Random tick speed in Minecraft: Everything players need to know

To be able to explain random tick speed, Minecraft ticks must be defined first.

Minecraft ticks can basically be explained as one cycle of the game's algorithm. Most computer games and software run in loops, and Minecraft has a set speed for how fast the loop will run. These ticks generate the world in realtime.

What is a random tick?

Minecraft also has a feature called "random ticks," which affect things that can be considered "random," such as plant growth, leaf decay, and fire spread.

Random tick speed is set to a default of three in Java Edition, and one in Bedrock Edition.

Don't do it (Image via Minecraft)

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What does the randomTickSpeed command do?

Players should be aware that this command is nothing to mess around with!

The randomTickSpeed command increases the number of random ticks that happen per block. Here is a video explaining it in-game.

Again, the randomTickSpeed defaults to three, so if gamers decide to change it to 18, the speed of tree decay, fire spread, and plant growth will increase by around six times.

As seen in the image above, the player is attempting to set the randomTickSpeed to 900,000. This would result in the Minecraft client being completely unplayable.

Ticks operate based on computer specifications as well, and some Minecraft clients can't run the default tick speed without lagging, so fans can only imagine cranking that up 300,000 times the normal rate!

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Why change random tick speed in Minecraft?

Shouldn't have changed the tick speed (Image via u/megamichiel on Reddit)

Here are some reasons why players might want to change the random tick speed:

• They don't like waiting for crops to grow.
• They want to burn down a forest quickly.
• They want grass to spread quicker.
• They want Turtle eggs to hatch faster.
• They want mushrooms to spread faster.

Players must seriously survey their area to make sure there is no possibility of a forest fire burning down their base of operations. They would have no chance at trying to stop it if they have increased their random tick speed too much!

If gamers have no qualms about "cheating" to speed up their game, it is apparent that using the randomTickSpeed command can be quite useful.