Why deepslate coal ore is rare in Minecraft 1.18 update

After Mojang released Minecraft Caves & Cliffs Part II, the Overworld received a major revamp. The face of the Overworld has been changed forever and way beyond any player's expectation.

Minecraft Caves & Cliffs Part II came out on November 30, 2021. The update was well-received by the community as many players started returning to check out the brand new terrain generation. Beautiful mountains and magnificent caves are indeed a sight to behold.

With all the massive changes to the Overworld terrain, ore distribution was also in dire need of rework. Mojang came up with a new distribution for all the Overworld, which has resulted in some blocks becoming rarer than usual.

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Deepslate coal ore is a new rare block in Minecraft

While creating the 1.18 update, developers also wanted to improve mining strategies. In order to do it, the entire ore generation in the Overworld went through a revamp. Many ores have become abundant, but apparently, one specific ore block is now scarce.

Deepslate coal ore is one of the rarest blocks in Minecraft. The Caves & Cliffs update introduced a new type of stone block called deepslate. It starts generating at height level 0 and continues till the bedrock layer.

Any ore that generates in the deepslate area turns into deepslate ore. This is why deepslate coal ore is extremely rare. After Minecraft 1.18 update, coal ore generates between Y 256 and 0. As players can see, coal barely touches the deepslate region.

Deepslate coal ore only generates when deepslate blocks touch coal ore blocks near Y 0. Due to these specific conditions, deepslate coal ore has become a rare block. Given its rarity, players lucky enough to find a deepslate coal ore should definitely use the Silk Touch enchantment to preserve it.

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Is deepslate coal ore rarer than deepslate emerald ore?

Both deepslate coal and deepslate emerald are some of the rarest resources. Some players might be shocked to know that deepslate coal ore is rarer than deepslate emerald ore.

While rare, emerald ore can generate just a little below Y 0. But coal ore is limited to height level 0. Due to this, finding deepslate coal ore is a lot harder than deepslate emerald ore.