Minecraft Caves & Cliffs Part II now available—here’s what you can expect

Mojang Studios released Patch 1.18 for both Minecraft: Bedrock Edition on Xbox and Minecraft: Java Edition today, bringing the long-awaited Caves & Cliffs Part II update with a lot of changes and new features. 

Together, the two parts of the Caves and Cliffs update form one of the biggest Minecraft updates. While Part I of the Caves and Cliffs update presented new blocks and mobs, Part II will focus more on updating world generation. 

Players can expect new cave biomes, like Lush Caves and Dripstone Caves, formed mostly by the new blocks from the previous update, more diverse world generation, especially in caves and mountains, a bigger world size, with generation range and build limits being expanded by 64 blocks up and down to a total range of 384 blocks, and a lot more.

Here are the patch notes for the Caves & Cliffs Part II update: 

New Overworld biomes

Driptstone Caves

• Contains plenty of Pointed Dripstone and Dripstone Block on the floors and ceilings, as well as within small pools of water.
• In some places, you’ll find larger stalagmites, stalactites, and columns built from Dripstone Blocks.
• Contains extra Copper Ore.
• Drowned can spawn in aquifers inside Dripstone Caves.

Frozen Peaks

• Smooth mountain peaks with ice and snow.
• Spawns Goats and Yeti. Wait, no, actually it’s just Goats.

Grove

• Snowy terrain with big Spruce Trees and Powder Snow traps. You might want to wear leather boots.
• Tends to generate on high-altitude terrain beneath mountain peaks or on hilltops.
• Spawns Wolves, Rabbits, and Foxes.

Jagged Peaks

• Dramatic jagged mountain peaks with Snow and Stone blocks.
• Spawns Goats.

Lush Caves

• Moss covers the floors and ceilings.
• Spore Blossoms grow from the ceiling and drip particles.
• Contains Clay pools with Dripleaf plants growing out of them.
• Contains Azalea Bushes and Flowering Azalea Bushes.
• The Azalea Tree loves to have its roots in Lush Caves, so if you find an Azalea Tree (either overground or in a cave) you know there is a Lush Cave beneath you.
• Cave Vines with Glow Berries grow from the ceiling and light up the caves.

Meadow

• Large grassy and flowery biome that tends to generate high up on plateaus or next to large mountain ranges.
• Sometimes contains a lone, tall Oak or Birch Tree with a Bee Nest.
• Think Sound of Music.
• Spawns Donkeys, Rabbits, and Sheep.

Snowy Slopes

• Very snowy terrain that can hide Powder Snow traps. “I hope you kept those leather boots.”
• Tends to generate on high-altitude terrain beneath mountain peaks or on hilltops.
• Spawns Rabbits and Goats.

The patch notes also feature the following changes:

• Added an “Allow Server Listings” option to opt out of having your name displayed in server listings.
• Added an Online options screen where you can now find the Realms Notifications option.
• Added new Overworld biomes.
• Added noise caves and aquifers.
• Added world autosave indicator for single-player worlds.
• Axolotls now have their own, separate, mob cap.
• Axolotls now only spawn in Lush Caves when in water that is above Clay Blocks.
• Badlands Mineshafts now generate higher up.
• Buried Treasure Chests may contain a Potion of Water Breathing.
• Changed default brightness to 50.
• Cod, Salmon, Pufferfish, Tropical Fish, Squid, and Dolphins now only spawn in water from height 50 to height 64.
• Frozen Peaks biome.
• Glow Squids now only spawn in water blocks under height 30.
• If it is raining, sleeping will stop the rain and reset the weather cycle (in 1.17 sleeping would always reset the weather cycle).
• Illagers (Vindicator, Pillager, Evoker) no longer attack baby villagers.
• New music has been added to the game.
• New ore distribution and large ore veins.
• Overworld build and generation limits have been expanded.
• Raised the cloud level from 128 to 192.
• Redesigned how effects look in the inventory screen, to allow them to show even with recipe book open.
• Removed world types “Caves” and “Floating islands” from the world creation screen.
• Sprinting is no longer reduced to walking when gently brushing your sleeve against a wall.
• Tropical Fish now also spawn in Lush Caves at any height.
• Villages are slightly more spread out.
• World spawn selection algorithm has been reworked, now spawns player according to climate parameters.

The Minecraft Caves & Cliffs Part II update is available to download now for Minecraft: Bedrock Edition on Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S, Xbox One, PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch, iOS, Android, and Windows 10 and 11, as well as Windows,  macOS, and Linux for Minecraft: Java Edition.