Minecraft just received an update carrying armadillos, with Mojang delivering the 2023 Mob Vote winner just as promised. 1.20.5 for Minecraft Java Edition and 1.20.80 for Minecraft Bedrock Edition have now landed with the armored critters and a whole lot of wolf variants, amongst other changes and tweaks.
The "minor" content update"s biggest addition is easily the armadillo. Arriving as a new passive mob found in Savanna and Badland biomes, armadillos will curl up to protect themselves when sensing any danger. This means players will have to be slow and steady when approaching them.
Armadillos are the only way to receive the latest item in the game, Scutes. Dropped by the critters randomly or when brushed by players, Scutes can be used to create the brand-new Wolf Armor that"s now in the game. For players looking to stock up on Scutes, they can also breed armadillos using Spider Eyes as food.
The Wolf Armor is especially important because of the updates Mojang has done to the ever-loyal wolves the sandbox game has had for many years now. Eight new wolf variants have now entered the game, with the original white wolf becoming the Pale Wolf. Here are the eight variants players can now find across biomes:
- Pale Wolf - The Wolf we"re all familiar with. This variant spawns in the Taiga biome
- Woods Wolf - A variant that spawns in the Forest biome. This will be the dominant Wolf variant that you will be able to find in the Overworld, since the Forest biome is very common
- Ashen Wolf - A variant that spawns in the Snowy Taiga biome
- Black Wolf - A variant that spawns in the Old Growth Pine Taiga biome, in smaller packs of 2-4
- Chestnut Wolf - A variant that spawns in the Old Growth Spruce Taiga biome, in smaller packs of 2-4
- Rusty Wolf - A variant that spawns in a new location for Wolves - the Sparse Jungle biome, in smaller packs of 2-4
- Spotted Wolf - A variant that spawns in a new location for Wolves - the Savanna Plateau biome, in larger packs of 4-8
- Striped Wolf - A variant that spawns in a new location for Wolves - the Wooded Badlands biome, in larger packs of 4-8
- Snowy Wolf - A variant that spawns in the Grove biome. This lone Wolf is a rare type, as it always walks alone
Aside from the new features, today"s update also boasts performance boosts for Java players thanks to a change in spawning new chunks, UI updates, changes to how saving and loading works, a whole load of bug fixes, and experimental features like the new Mace heavy weapon. Find the Bedrock changelog here and the much larger Java Edition changelog here.
The Minecraft Armored Paws minor update is now live for PC (Windows, macOS, and Linux) players on Minecraft Java Edition, as well as Windows, Xbox One, Xbox Series S|X, PlayStation 4 and 5, Nintendo Switch, Android, iOS, and ChromeOS players on Minecraft Bedrock Edition.