What combat changes to expect in Minecraft 1.21 update?

Mojang announced the Minecraft 1.21 update in October 2023, mainly stating how this update's focus is on combat adventures. The studio then introduced trial chambers, new spawners, and a new hostile mob called Breeze. However, Mojang has changed its development and announcement methods and showcased only a handful of features that will arrive in 1.21.

When the 1.16 version was being developed, Mojang tested several tweaks to the game's combat systems. However, the developer never released those updated features in the vanilla version. So, the chances of these being added to the Minecraft 1.21 update are low. Here are some of the major combat changes that could be released soon.

Note: None of these features have been confirmed by Mojang for the Minecraft 1.21 update. They are only from the last combat test, 8c.

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Possible combat changes in the Minecraft 1.21 update

Ranged weapon changes

Bows

In the last combat test, i.e., 8c, bows were changed so that all arrows shot from them had 100% accuracy. Only when players keep an arrow aimed for more than three seconds will the accuracy decrease progressively.

Crossbows

One of the massive buffs showcased in this combat test was that crossbows with multishot enchantment would allow players to hit and damage the same target if they were sufficiently close to them.

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Melee weapon changes

Swords

Regarding swords in combat test 8c, Mojang increased the weapon's attack speed from 1.6 to 3. However, the damage for stone, iron, diamond, and netherite swords was decreased. Each does one heart less worth of damage.

A standard hit from a sword has reduced range, while a charged attack has up to one block worth of extra range. Furthermore, the sweeping edge enchantment was nerfed, and the sweeping edge attack damage was reduced considerably.

Axe

Axe's attack speed was also increased to 2, but its attack damage was reduced. The melee weapon would now always disable shields for 1.6 seconds and only use one durability point instead of two when attacking. However, its attack range was nerfed from 3 to 2.5.

Trident

Trident's melee damage was reduced from nine to seven health points, but its range was increased from 3 to 3.5. In the combat test, it could also be shot from the dispenser.

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Potions and health

Health regeneration

Another massive change in combat test 8c was that health regeneration was now possible even if players only had three and a half points of hunger. Previously, health regeneration stopped after the hunger bar dipped below nine points.

Although saturation was no longer used to heal from damage faster, the base health regeneration speed increased from four seconds to two seconds. Such a change would be a big one in the Minecraft 1.21 update.

Potions

The potion of healing in this combat test 8c heals 50% more per level, while the potion of strength provides 20% and 40% damage at respective levels. Another massive buff in the test version was that potions were stackable up to 16.

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Conclusion

Apart from these major changes, many smaller tweaks were made in combat test 8c, released in August 2020. Since then, Mojang has not made any new changes to combat, but there is a small chance that they might with Minecraft 1.21 update.