Generated structures
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"Construction" redirects here. For a tutorial on constructing, see Tutorials/Construction.
Every specific group of blocks purposefully formed in Minecraft based on coding is part of a natural structure.
The Overworld[edit]
The Overworld contains numerous generated structures, at a wide variety of scales.
Terrain[edit]
Biomes dictate the shape and height of the world. At this stage, the ground is made mostly of stone and stone variants, with water filling in most empty spaces below layer 63, with exception for structures.
Mountain[edit]
"Mountain" redirects here. For the biome, see Mountains.
Mountains are hills with extreme slopes and cliffs. Mountains can sometimes have caves through them. On an amplified world, mountains are extremely common in all biomes except ocean and swamp biomes.
A picture of a mountains biome.
A large overhang, occasionally found in mountains biomes.
A mountain overhang with a floating island.
Floating "island"[edit]
Floating "islands" are structures that float in midair that are not connected to the ground, the sea, hills or cliffs. Floating "islands" are normally just random pieces of floating dirt and stone found near cliffs, but on rare occasions they can be large, floating structures that even have springs and trees on them. Floating Islands are most frequently found in mountains biomes (and its variants), along with the "hills", "mountains", and "modified" variants of most biomes, especially shattered savannas.
A small floating "island".
It is rare to see a naturally occurring, large, floating "island".
A cluster of large floating "islands".
A small but tall floating "island", with water flowing down from it.
Hollows[edit]
Hollows are the opposite of floating islands. They look like caves, but they have nothing to do with cave generation (although they may intersect with them). When there are many overhangs, they close together and create a hollow. They have exactly the same floor as the terrain above, depending on the biome that they are located in, unlike caves. Hollows have no specific floor. Grass blocks can generate inside too, and interestingly will survive without light. When they generate under the sea level, they are filled with water. They are extremely rare in the default world, but can be found far more commonly in certain customized worlds.
A hollow in a customized world.
Another hollow connected to a cave.
Hill[edit]
Hills are randomly generated pieces of land in the map. Like stairs, hills are always traversable to their lowest point by virtue of the algorithm which generates them; there is almost always a place on each level from where the next level can be accessed, meaning that the player can climb a hill one level at a time until they reach the top. Cases where this is not true are rare.
A randomly-generated hill with some tall grass and trees.
Surface[edit]
Surface layer[edit]
The uppermost layers of the terrain are converted to a biome-dependent material: usually grass blocks and dirt, or sand in deserts and beaches. Podzol is found in giant tree taiga, mycelium in mushroom field biomes, and red sand is found in the badlands biome. Sandstone is generated under sand.
Basin[edit]
Occasionally, instead of being converted to dirt or sand, the top layer is stripped away, leaving a 'basin' of bare stone. They bear some resemblance to a geological 'shield' (an area of tectonically stable rock that has been exposed to prolonged erosion due to its very old age; it is distinct from the geological term "basin"). They seem to be more common in forest or plains, and are occasionally seen filled with water. Commonly, minerals can be found in these, generally coal ore and iron ore. If generated in a Badlands biome, gold ore can also be seen.
A naturally generated basin landform.
Water bodies[edit]
Lake[edit]
Lakes are shallow and often small bodies of liquid. Water lakes, which are small pools of water springs, can generate above sea level or inside caverns. They can also generate isolated underground, connected to no other structures whatsoever. When in a winter biome, these small lakes are never initially frozen but will turn to ice if exposed. The lakes can also be composed of lava; however, lakes of lava are much rarer. Lava lakes found at the surface are surrounded by stone (which can be replaced by ore veins such as dirt, gravel and coal). Both types of lake generate with a small air pocket above them, which may result in floating sand, floating snow cover or even the top two-thirds of trees above the lake. Lava lakes may cause trees to burn away.
A lake in a plains biome.
A lake in a taiga biome, which is freezing.
A lava lake in a badlands biome.
A waterfall naturally generated on top of a lava lake, turning it into obsidian.
Coral reef[edit]
Large structures[edit]
Cave[edit]
Ravine[edit]
Ravines are tall, thin trenches that generate either underground or at the surface, and extend 30 - 50 blocks downwards or to bedrock level in the Bedrock Edition. Ravines can spawn in the ocean making it look like underwater trenches.
Two ravines joined together underground.
A ravine that is open to the sky.
Two ravines open to the sky that generated next to each other, with a river biome between them.
An underwater ravine.
A ravine that exposed a mineshaft.
Mineshaft[edit]
Stronghold[edit]
Small structures[edit]
The quantity of most of these features (aside from dungeons, mineral veins, and springs) is biome-dependent; not all features can be found in every biome.
Dungeon[edit]
Mineral vein[edit]
| Biome(s) |
Coal, iron, gold, redstone, diamond, lapis lazuli: Anywhere in the Overworld. | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Consists of |
|
A mineral vein is a natural deposit of ores. Players can come across these veins in caverns or anywhere where there is natural stone. Underground deposits of dirt and gravel are generated in this step, followed by the more precious ores: coal, iron, gold, redstone, diamond, emerald (in mountains biomes) and lapis lazuli. They can only form in stone, and do not replace each other or any other block. However, there is one exception: other ores can replace andesite, diorite and granite. Note that two or more mineral veins can form next to each other and make it look like a mineral vein made of more than one material.
Multiple ores generated above an underground lava lake.
A coal vein generated underwater.
Multiple ore veins in a cave. Diamond ore and redstone ore as well as coal ore and gold ore are visible in the distance.
Tree[edit]
Huge mushroom[edit]
Spring[edit]
Springs are randomly generated blocks of either lava or water that act as a source of their respective material. While both can be found on the vertical side of stone blocks above the surface, lava springs are more often found underground beneath layer 32 in caverns and mineshafts. They do not generate above a certain Y altitude.
A water spring falls from a cliff.
A lava spring fall from a mountain side.
A double lava stream fall (The wildfire is on the left).
Desert well[edit]
Mossy cobblestone boulder[edit]
These structures are meant to represent boulders, made entirely of mossy cobblestone. The arrangement of these structures varies greatly. They can be found dotted around areas of the giant tree taiga biome. Mossy cobblestone boulders are quite rare, due to the giant tree taiga biome's rarity.
The first image of the giant tree taiga featuring mossy cobblestone boulders.
A mossy cobblestone stone boulder generated in a ravine.
Many mossy cobblestone boulders in water.
Ice spike[edit]
Ice spikes are tall spires made of packed ice that can only be found in the snowy tundra biomes. There are two variants of ice spikes: one is short and thick, and the other is extremely tall and thin.
An area largely covered by ice spikes. Both types of ice spikes are visible.
A small group containing only short spikes.
Fossil[edit]
Buried treasure[edit]
Shipwreck[edit]
Iceberg[edit]
| Biome(s) |
Frozen Ocean, Deep Frozen Ocean | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Consists of |
|
Icebergs are structures that generate in frozen oceans and their deep variants. They consist primarily of packed ice with a little bit of ice and blue ice, and will often be topped with snow. They are the only place where blue ice can be found naturally. Icebergs generate in a wide variety of shapes and sizes, ranging from small "islands" to giant mountain-like ice structures. They can also generate with "cave-like" holes in them, which sometimes reach to the other side of the iceberg. Polar bears and strays can also spawn here, much like other cold biomes.
First screenshot of an iceberg.
A naturally generated iceberg.
An aerial view of a frozen ocean with icebergs.
A snowy iceberg generated with blue ice.
An iceberg viewed from below.
The top view of a small iceberg, with other icebergs in the background.
Buildings[edit]
Buildings are naturally generating structures that form above ground. They can contain valuable treasure, but traps and puzzles as well.
Village[edit]
Desert pyramid[edit]
Jungle pyramid[edit]
Swamp hut[edit]
Woodland mansion[edit]
Monument[edit]
Igloo[edit]
Underwater ruins[edit]
Upcoming structures[edit]
  |
These structures have not been implemented into a full version yet but have appeared in snapshots of an upcoming version of Java Edition. (Refer to 1.14)
Pillager outpost[edit]
The Nether[edit]
The Nether, though equally vast, contains far fewer types of generated structures than the Overworld.
Lava sea[edit]
Lava seas are found at and below level 30 in the Nether. They make a large portion of the Nether, and are extremely common. They can stretch for hundreds of meters in any direction, and are usually bordered by netherrack (or more rarely soul sand and/or magma blocks).
A lava sea with ghasts taking a dip in it.
Fortress[edit]
Glowstone clusters[edit]
Glowstone clusters are typically veins of glowstone that can be among the hardest natural materials to harvest that don't require digging. They form in coral-like structures on the underside of hanging Netherrack, so they are often found on the ceilings of the Nether, where they provide light along with the ever present lava.
A naturally occurring vein of glowstone.
Other things located in the Nether[edit]
There are areas of soul sand and gravel around layer 64, veins of nether quartz ore, large "veins" of magma blocks and "hidden lava", which is a single block of lava generated randomly between netherrack.
A patch of soul sand.
Hidden lava and nether quartz ore.
Magma veins.
The End[edit]
The End is the final and most barren dimension, with very few types of significant structures, until after defeating the Ender Dragon, which will open gateways to more structures.
The Central Island[edit]
The center of the End is a large, asteroid-like island composed entirely of end stone, floating in the void. At a distance of 1000 blocks away, an endless expanse of more islands begins, away from the main island. These consist of large islands, about the size of the main island, and smaller ones, which are usually very thin and small.
The central island with a lone enderman.
Obsidian pillar[edit]
Obsidian platform[edit]
| Biome(s) |
The End |
|---|---|
| Consists of | |
| Can generate in existing chunks |
Yes, is replaced upon dimension re-entry |
The obsidian platform is a 5 by 5 square of obsidian that is generated once a player enters the End. (Note that if the obsidian is destroyed, or if a block is placed on top of it, when the player enters the End, the obsidian will be restored and any blocks on top of it will despawn.) Obsidian platforms generate at X, Y, Z = 100(100.5), 48, 0(0.5), mostly far away from the island, making it tough to get there. Players who enter the end will spawn at X, Y, Z = 100, 49, 0 and the other entities that enter the end will spawn at X, Y , Z = 100.5, 50, 0.5, the middle of platform and 1 block higher than the platform.
- Sometimes the platform generates inside a case of end stone. It will remove enough end stone so that the player can walk around.
- Occasionally the platform will generate in midair.
The obsidian platform, generated underground.
Exit portal[edit]
End gateway portal[edit]
End city[edit]
End ship[edit]
End ships are common floating structures that are often generated alongside end cities. They are the only place where the elytra and the dragon head can be legitimately obtained.
An end ship.
The end ship, viewed from the bow.
The treasure room of the ship.
Chorus tree[edit]
| Biome(s) |
The End |
|---|---|
| Consists of | |
| Can generate in existing chunks |
Yes, when a chorus flower is planted on end stone and left to grow. |
Chorus trees generate on the outer islands of the end. They are formed in tall, coral-like patterns.They consist of chorus stems and chorus flowers. A chorus flower will generate at the top of each branch. They are the only source of chorus fruit and chorus flowers. The player can grow a new chorus tree by planting a flower on a block of endstone.
A chorus tree, next to a freshly planted flower. Enderman for scale.
Four chorus trees at different points in the life cycle.
Half of a chorus tree generated inside of an end city room.
Return portal[edit]
Return portals are end gateway portals that generate randomly throughout the outer End islands. These will teleport the player back to the center island's spawn platform.
Technical details[edit]
Structures are generated for a given chunk after the terrain has been formed. The chunk format includes a tag called TerrainPopulated that indicates whether structures whose point of origin is in that chunk have been generated. If it is false or missing, they will be generated again. Structure generation is based on what is already in the chunk, so (for example) flagging a chunk that has already been populated for repopulation will approximately double the amount of ore in it.
When structures are generated, they can spill over into neighboring chunks that have been previously generated. Thus, a tree at the edge of the generated world (and probably only visible using external tools) may be overwritten by a lake before the player reaches it. It is also theoretically possible for two worlds generated with the same seed, from the same version of Minecraft, to differ slightly depending on the players' travel routes, because the order in which chunks are generated may determine which of two conflicting structures will overwrite or suppress the other.
Videos[edit]
History[edit]
| Java Edition Pre-classic | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cave game tech test | Development on "Cave Game" started; caverns added. | ||||
| Java Edition Classic | |||||
| 0.0.12a | Added ocean around map. | ||||
| 0.0.14a | Added trees. At this point they were simply stumps covered with a thin leaf layer. | ||||
| 0.0.15a (Multiplayer Test 1) | Trees have a new shape. | ||||
| August 25, 2009 | Video uploaded showing changed cavern generation; longer and narrower caverns, and bigger caves the deeper you travel. | ||||
| Surface lava lakes shown to be possible but unlikely, despite existing as early as 0.0.12a_03. | |||||
| Java Edition Infdev | |||||
| March 20, 2010 | Re-added trees. | ||||
| June 25, 2010, 2 | Added dungeons. | ||||
| Java Edition Alpha | |||||
| v1.0.1 | Caves can be far bigger and more expansive. | ||||
| v1.2.0 | preview | Added the Nether and all Nether-related generated structures, except for nether fortresses and magma veins. | |||
| v1.2.6 | Added small lakes and rare lava pools, both on the surface and randomly in caves. | ||||
| Java Edition Beta | |||||
| 1.8 | Pre-release | Added abandoned mineshafts. | |||
| Added villages. | |||||
| Added strongholds. | |||||
| Added huge mushrooms. | |||||
| Added river biomes and vast oceans. | |||||
| Sand and gravel beaches removed due to the changes in the terrain generation algorithm. | |||||
| Java Edition | |||||
| 1.0.0 | Beta 1.9 Prerelease | Added nether fortresses. | |||
| Beta 1.9 Prerelease 4 | Added the End and End-related generated structures, including the End island, the obsidian platform, the obsidian towers and the end fountain. | ||||
| 1.1 | 12w01a | Sand beaches have made a return, but the way they look and generate are not the same as before. | |||
| 1.2.1 | 12w04a | Desert wells were added. | |||
| 12w07a | The generation of beaches has been greatly improved. | ||||
| 1.3.1 | 12w21a | Added desert temples. | |||
| 12w22a | Added jungle temples. | ||||
| 1.4.2 | 12w40a | Added witch huts. | |||
| 1.6.1 | 13w17a | Water oases no longer generate in deserts. | |||
| 1.7.2 | 13w36a | Gravel beaches have been returned to the terrain. | |||
| Mountains now generate as part of the "M" biome variants. | |||||
| The desert oases appear in the desert M biome. | |||||
| Moss stone boulders were added. | |||||
| 1.8 | 14w25a | Added ocean monuments. | |||
| 1.8.1 | pre1 | New witch huts can spawn witches Y 64 to 71. This allows for three spawning floors for witches. | |||
| 1.9 | 15w31a | Added the outer islands of the End. | |||
| Added the end city dungeon. | |||||
| Added chorus trees. | |||||
| Added the end gateway portal. | |||||
| 15w43a | Added igloos with a 50% chance of having a basement. | ||||
| 1.10 | 16w20a | Added bone and coal ore fossils. | |||
| 16w21a | Blacksmiths now generate with cobblestone in all biomes, rather than acacia logs in savannas and sandstone in deserts. | ||||
| pre1 | Zombie villagers generated in zombie villages no longer despawn. | ||||
| Wooden fences are now substituted with the correct wood type for the biome. | |||||
| Paths no longer replace most blocks, instead considering the blocks underneath, preventing them from generating in treetops or bridging ravines. | |||||
| 1.11 | 16w39a | Added woodland mansions. | |||
Added /locate command that shows the coordinates of the nearest structures. | |||||
| 1.13 | 17w43a | Structures using structure files can now be modified, with the addition of data packs. | |||
| 17w47a | Flower pots in witch huts now have a mushroom inside of them; previously they were empty. | ||||
| 18w08a | Caves and ravines can now generate underwater. | ||||
| Frozen Ocean have made a return, but without customized, they look and generate, but are not the same unused. | |||||
| 18w09a | Added underwater ruin structures. | ||||
| 18w10a | Added buried treasure structures. | ||||
| 18w10d | Added coral reefs. | ||||
| 18w11a | Added shipwrecks. | ||||
| 18w15a | Added icebergs. | ||||
| Upcoming Java Edition | |||||
| 1.14 | 18w47a | Added pillager outposts. | |||
| 18w48a | Overhauled villages. | ||||
| Pocket Edition Alpha | |||||
| 0.1.0 | Added beaches, ocean, frozen ocean, cliffs, mountains, basin, mineral vein, trees. | ||||
| 0.7.0 | Added gravel beaches. | ||||
| 0.9.0 | build 1 | Added villages, caves, lava pools, rivers, abandoned mineshafts, huge mushrooms, moss stone boulders, strongholds, ice patches, ice spikes, dungeons and desert wells. | |||
| Frozen oceans are now no longer generated. | |||||
| Removed gravel beaches. | |||||
| 0.10.0 | build 1 | Abandoned mineshafts generate above ground in mesa biomes. | |||
| 0.11.0 | build 1 | Added desert wells. | |||
| 0.12.1 | build 1 | Added the Nether along with lava oceans, glowstone clusters, Nether Fortresses, soul sand beaches, hidden lava, gravel beaches, and Nether quartz veins. | |||
| 0.13.0 | build 1 | Added desert temples. | |||
| 0.14.0 | build 1 | Added witch huts. | |||
| Cauldrons will now generate with a random potion. | |||||
| 0.15.0 | build 1 | Added jungle temples. | |||
| Added savanna and taiga village variants. | |||||
| Villages can generate in cold taiga and ice plains biomes. Buildings are made out of spruce wood like taiga villages. | |||||
| Villages have a 2% chance to generate as zombie villages. Buildings in zombie villages contain cobweb and moss stone. | |||||
| 0.16.0 | build 1 | Added ocean monuments. | |||
| Pocket Edition | |||||
| 1.0.0 | alpha 0.17.0.1 | Added the End and End-related generated structures, including the End islands, the obsidian platform, the obsidian towers, the end fountain, end cities, end gateways and chorus trees. | |||
| Added igloos. | |||||
| 1.1.0 | alpha 1.1.0.0 | Added woodland mansions. | |||
| 1.1.3 | alpha 1.1.3.0 | Added fossils. | |||
| Bedrock Edition | |||||
| 1.2.0 | beta 1.2.0.2 | Added ravines. | |||
| 1.4.0 | beta 1.2.14.2 | Added buried treasure structures. | |||
| Added shipwrecks. | |||||
| Added icebergs. | |||||
| Added coral reefs. | |||||
| Ravines can now generate underwater. | |||||
| Frozen oceans have made a return, but the way they look and generate are not the same as before. | |||||
| beta 1.2.20.1 | Added underwater ruins. | ||||
| Caves can now generate underwater. | |||||
| 1.10.0 | beta 1.10.0.3 | Added Pillager Outposts. | |||
| Overhauled villages. | |||||
| Legacy Console Edition | |||||
| TU5 | CU1 | 1.0 | Patch 1 | Patch 1 | Added villages, abandoned mineshafts, strongholds and ravines. |
| Sand and gravel beaches removed due to the changes in the terrain generation algorithm. | |||||
| TU9 | Added the End along with End-related structures such as the End island, the obsidian platform, the obsidian towers and the end fountain. | ||||
| Sand beaches have made a return, but the way they look and generate are not the same as before. | |||||
| TU12 | Desert wells were added. | ||||
| TU14 | 1.04 | Added jungle and desert temples. | |||
| TU19 | CU7 | 1.12 | Added witch huts. | ||
| Water oases will now no longer generate in deserts. | |||||
| TU31 | CU19 | 1.22 | Patch 3 | Added ocean monuments. | |
| TU43 | CU33 | 1.36 | Patch 13 | Added fossils and igloos. | |
| TU54 | CU44 | 1.52 | Patch 24 | Patch 4 | Added woodland mansions. |
| TU68 | 1.76 | Patch 38 | Added shipwrecks, underwater ruins, coral reefs, icebergs, underwater caves and ravines, and buried treasure chests. | ||
| New Nintendo 3DS Edition | |||||
| 1.7.10 | Added chorus plants. | ||||
Trivia[edit]
- In previous versions, before snow cover was solid, a lava lake with floating snow cover above it could be a deadly trap before the snow melted.
- The smallest possible fully-grown chorus tree (assuming the growth is not obstructed) would have 5 chorus plants.
See also[edit]
