It’s the holidays, the armadillo is rolling into testing… and there’s a joke there! I can feel it. The winter armadillo? The warm-adillo? Anyway, back to more important matters: an early version of the armadillo is coming to testing for Minecraft: Bedrock Edition preview and beta and Java Edition snapshot this holiday season. That means you’ll be able to spend your break interacting with this skittish new mob and venturing out with your favorite pet clad in wolf armor!
News
- Written By
- Sophie Austin
- Published
- 12/13/23
Armadillo rolls into testing
Meet an early version of this cautious mob
The armadillo is a savannah-dwelling mob that’s easily startled. When an armadillo detects a nearby threat, it rolls into a very adorable blocky ball, and won’t uncurl until the threat is gone.
Things the armadillo finds threatening include: zombies (same), skeletons (also same), zombie villagers (wow, me and the armadillo have a lot in common!), the Wither, and a wider host of hostile mobs. The armadillo can also be startled by fast-moving players, so don’t sprint up to an armadillo to say hello! Approach at a slow walk (or better yet, a crouch).
Favorite food: Spiders eyes
Least favorite thing: Threats
Cuteness rating: 11 out of 10 scutes
The armadillo also drops something called a “scute”. No, it’s not an acronym for “seriously cute”. Scutes are actually a real-world thing, and I know this because I asked Wikipedia.
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WIKIPEDIAA scute or scutum is a bony external plate or scale overlaid with horn, as on the shell of a turtle, the skin of crocodilians, and the feet of birds.
Minecraft armadillos drop scutes too, and these can be used to craft wolf armor. That’s right, armor for your wolf! Because surely your favorite furry friend wants to join some of your adventures, and not just sit home all day!
An early version of wolf armor is also available to test soon in snapshot, beta, and preview and has a really cute crafting recipe. Not only that, but the armor crafted from armadillo scute is as strong as diamond horse armor, so it’ll give your furry friend a good defense buff. I think me and my buddy Zero are going to spend the holidays looking for a cherry grove to set up a new base! I’m picturing a pastel pink tree house. Maybe with a secret entrance? Oooh, the possibilities…
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Me and Zero!
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I think that head tilt means "please take me on an adventure"!
How to access pre-release features
Soon you will be able to test these features by enabling snapshots for Minecraft: Java Edition, or previews/beta for Minecraft: Bedrock Edition.
To install a snapshot, open up the Minecraft Launcher and enable snapshots in the "Installations" tab. To enable preview/beta for Minecraft: Bedrock Edition, then follow these instructions.
Play on Realms!
If you are a Realm owner, you can also play the new snapshots, betas*, and previews* on your realm! Any player who has an active Realms subscription is eligible to create a free testing Realm, so you can try out the new features with friends. Find more information on how to enable snapshots for Java Realms, and how to enable betas/previews on Bedrock Edition Realms*!
*Preview is available for Minecraft: Bedrock Edition Realms on Xbox, Windows 10/11, and iOS. Betas are available on Android (Google Play).
Important note: testing versions can corrupt your world, so please backup and/or run them in a different save folder from your main worlds.
SEND US YOUR FEEDBACK!
These features are all still in development, which means that the details outlined above can change as we iterate on them. So then why are we releasing them into testing? Because we want your feedback! Send us your thoughts on the armadillo and wolf armor, and report bugs at bugs.mojang.com!
Now if you’ll excuse me, me and Zero are off to find an armadillo. Which way is the savannah biome from here?
See the armadillo in action in Minecraft Monthly!
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