What does the echo shard do in Minecraft 1.19 update?

Echo shards in the Minecraft 1.19 update are brand new items that can rarely be found in a world. With The Wild Update, several new items were added to keep the age-old sandbox game fresh. Unfortunately, since this is a completely new item, it does not have many uses. However, it is definitely worth checking out since it crafts another new item.

This item is part of the new Deep Dark Biome, which was finally released after being announced more than a year ago. The new Mangrove Swamp is another new biome that features new mud and mangrove wood blocks. New mobs like Warden, Frog, Tadpole, and Allay also breathe new life into the game. To get echo shards, players will have to take on a dangerous adventure.

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How to obtain and use echo shards in Minecraft 1.19

Way to obtain this item

These items are only found in Ancient City chests (Image via Minecraft 1.19 update)

This new item is quite difficult to get simply because it only generates in one of the most dangerous structures in the game, Ancient Cities. This new structure was added to the game as part of the latest update and will generate inside the Deep Dark Biome, filled with sculk blocks and mysterious mini-structures.

These structures generate several chests with some of the best loot in the game. Players can find loot like enchanted golden apples, enchanted diamond gear, enchanted books, and more, alongside the new echo shards. This item will only spawn in Ancient City chests.

These chests are extremely hard to loot because sculk shriekers and sensors spawn more frequently near them. Since opening and closing chests makes some noise, the sculk blocks could get triggered and could summon the Warden. This new blind hostile mob is the sole reason why the new structure and biome are so dangerous.

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How to use the item

Crafting recipe for recovery compass (Image via Minecraft 1.19 update)

The bad news is that players will need at least eight of these new items to use them properly. Players might have to loot the entire Ancient City or even find a new one to gather all of them. Once players have eight echo shards, they can be used to craft another new item called the Recovery Compass.

Players can make several types of compasses, but this is a special one since it can direct players to their last death location. It can be crafted with eight echo shards surrounding a normal compass on the crafting table.

The compass pointing towards the last death location (Image via Minecraft 1.19 update)

The compass will randomly spin if a player has not died in the world. However, it will always point towards the last death location of players once they die. The best way to use them is to keep them near a respawn anchor from where players can take the compass and find their death location.