Top 5 unexpected and surprising features in Minecraft 1.20 update

Minecraft 1.20 has been coined with the name "Trails & Tales" (Image via Mojang)

Minecraft's 1.20 update has been speculated upon for months, but more information arrived on March 2, 2023. According to Mojang's official YouTube channel for the title, the update will be known as the "Trails & Tales" update. It will focus on self-expression and the ability for players to share memorable in-game moments with the community as stories.

Thanks to the snapshot and preview programs for Java and Bedrock Editions, respectively, Minecraft players have already encountered plenty of update 1.20 features. Additions like the sniffer, archeology, cherry grove biomes, and more have been experimented with in these programs. However, not every addition was expected.

With that in mind, it isn't a bad time to examine the most surprising features making their way into Minecraft 1.20.

Note: This article is subjective and reflects the opinions of the writer

New pyramid room and other surprising features arriving in Minecraft version 1.20

5) Piglin Heads

With a storm of new content additions, one inclusion pertaining to piglins has flown somewhat under the radar. In 1.20, piglins who die will occasionally drop their heads, increasing the number of collectible mob heads that are obtainable in Survival Mode.

However, the piglin head isn't just a decorative block. It can also be placed on a note block and recreate piglin sounds when the note block is powered. When the piglin head is powered by redstone or equipped to a player, it will even animate as if it were still alive.

4) Smithing Table Redesign

To accommodate the inclusion of the new in-game smithing template items in Minecraft 1.20, the smithing table has been redesigned. This block is no longer solely used for upgrading equipment.

Thanks to the advent of smithing templates, the smithing table in Trails & Tales can be used to upgrade diamond gear into netherite and create newly-introduced armor trims.

Smithing templates are now the core catalyst that makes the smithing table tick. Trainers will need to seek them out in generated structures to use the new functions of the block.

3) New Pyramid Room

In the current Minecraft betas, players can experience archeology gameplay in desert wells and pyramids. However, what some fans might not know is that pyramids have been changed to specifically account for the release of archeology in the Trails & Tales update.

Suspicious sand is currently the main block that aspiring archeologists need to find to collect artifacts. For this reason, Mojang added a hidden room in desert pyramids containing mostly sand and suspicious sand.

While suspicious sand can be found elsewhere around pyramids, adding this hidden room should be a huge help for players who want to experiment with archeology to a significant degree.

2) Smithing Template Cloning

While the release of smithing templates in Minecraft has been hailed by players for the most part, many were worried that these rare items would have to be re-looted after being used.

Fortunately, this isn't the case, and players can clone their smithing templates using diamonds, specific materials that make up the templates, and the templates themselves.

This keeps Minecraft players from having to plumb the depths of generated structures repeatedly to find new templates once the ones they possess are expended. As long as players have one template, they can continue to clone it as much as they'd like as long as they have the materials for the recipe.

1) Reworked Netherite Upgrades

While armor trimming has been welcomed by the Minecraft community, the upcoming release of smithing templates also introduced a controversial change many players didn't see coming.

A netherite upgrade template drew quite a bit of scrutiny because it is now required to upgrade diamond gear into netherite instead of simply using netherite ingots. Mojang stated this change was made to make diamond and netherite gear feel more significant when obtained. However, some players still believe it's more of a hindrance than any kind of positive change.

There's still time before Minecraft's release for Trails & Tales, so Mojang may still make changes to the netherite upgrade template before version 1.20 drops.