Minecraft 1.17 Caves & Cliffs update first release: Everything announced by developers so far

Mojang has finally released the first pre-release for Minecraft 1.17 Caves and Cliffs update. The arrival of the pre-release means the snapshot phase is now over for the 1.17 update.

Last year, the nether update received eight pre-releases before its official release. The developers have officially announced that there are going to be no more 1.17 snapshots but only pre-releases.

Almost all 1.17 features have already been implemented into the game. Players can download the latest pre-release 1 to experience the new blocks, mobs, and items coming to Minecraft.

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Read: How to download Minecraft 1.17 Caves and Cliffs update pre-release 1

Minecraft 1.17 Caves & Cliffs Update the first release

Axolotls, glow squids, and goats

Let there be life! With three new mobs joining the party in Caves & Cliffs: Part I, there’s been plenty of glowing, ramming, jumping and dead-playing to be designed!Join the devs behind the scenes in this latest Caves & Cliffs Special:↣ https://t.co/si5rQrguNU ↢ pic.twitter.com/g4j77ZtwGF

— Minecraft (@Minecraft) May 28, 2021

Minecraft 1.17, the first part of the Caves and Cliffs update, adds three new mobs to the game. The fourth mob, the warden, is still in the shadows and will arrive with the 1.18 update. Anyways, fans are excited about getting these new cute animals rather than a terrifying one.

Cute axolotls (Image via Minecraft)

Axolotls are the first amphibian mob added to Minecraft. They are small passive animals found naturally in water bodies below the height of Y 63. Axolotls are aggressive towards all aquatic mobs, other than dolphins and sea turtles. Players can use axolotls as their underwater companions and take them to ocean monument raids.

Glow squids (Image via Minecraft Wiki)

Glow squids won the Mob vote at Minecon 2020. Players can find glow squids naturally spawning in water-logged deep caves. Unfortunately for them, they get hunted by axolotls as both of them can spawn close to each other.

Bleating goats (Image via Minecraft)

Far from these aquatic creatures, players can find mischievous goats on top of mountains. This new mob loves to knock players off the high clips. Players must remember not to stay still in front of goats.

New blocks and items

New lit textures for candles (they're back!) and new rendering for glowing signs. Check out the pre-release patch notes in the tweet below. pic.twitter.com/xcv8bUsHWL

— kingbdogz (@kingbdogz) May 27, 2021

Minecraft Caves and Cliffs has a long list of new blocks and items. Over 100 new items/blocks are coming in the 1.17 update. Some of them are just for the sake of decoration, while others can be pretty helpful.

Deepslate blocks (Image via Minecraft)

A lot of players are looking forward to deepslate and its other variants. Deepslate replaces the stone block in areas below height level 0. Like stone, mining a deepslate without silk touch drops cobbled deepslate. Players can also turn deepslate into other variants such as bricks, polished, stairs, slabs, and more.

Copper blocks (Image via Minecraft)

Other than deepslate, players are also curious about the new mineral, copper. Copper ores are common at height levels 47-48 but can be found at any height in the world. Using copper, players can create lightning rods, which attract lightning during thunderstorms.

Interested readers can check out the complete list of new blocks and items on Minecraft Wikipedia.