Overview
Caves & Cliffs: Part I, numbered 1.17, shipped the blocks a year before the world generation that was meant to hold them, and playing it at the time was a strange experience — amethyst geodes and deepslate existed, but the caves they belonged in did not yet. Judged on its own contents it is nonetheless one of the richest releases in the game's history. Copper introduced the first material that changes over time, oxidising through four stages and stoppable at any of them with honeycomb, which gave builders a palette that ages. Amethyst geodes gave players a renewable crystal farm found rather than built. Powder Snow added a block that you sink into and freeze in, and that mobs fall through, which made it both a trap and a way to survive a long drop. Axolotls turned out to be far more than decoration: killing a mob near one grants you Regeneration and clears Mining Fatigue, which is the single best answer to an ocean monument's elder guardians. Goats, glow squid, candles, spyglasses, lightning rods, moss, azalea and glow lichen rounded out a very large drop.
Copper and the oxidation system, amethyst for spyglasses and tinted glass, deepslate and calcite as building materials, axolotls as a monument-clearing ally, powder snow as a trap and a soft landing, and raw ore items replacing direct ingot drops from ore blocks.
The blocks half of Caves & Cliffs shipped a year before the world generation that was meant to carry it, so most of its content had nowhere natural to appear yet. Copper introduced the first oxidising material, amethyst geodes gave players a renewable crystal farm, and deepslate previewed the deep world to come. Axolotls turned out to be the best ocean monument weapon in the game, since killing a mob near one grants Regeneration and clears Mining Fatigue.
How to get it
Java Edition 1.17 was released on 8 June 2021 as the first half of a 2-part update. It is playable on its own, but the caves and mountains its blocks were designed for did not arrive until 1.18 five months later.
Tips
- Wax copper with honeycomb at whatever oxidation stage you like — all 4 stages are permanent once waxed.
- Carry an axolotl in a bucket to an ocean monument: a kill near one removes Mining Fatigue, which milk cannot do.
- Powder snow needs leather boots to walk on, and any other footwear means sinking and freezing within seconds.
- Ore blocks now drop raw copper, raw iron and raw gold rather than ingots, so smelting became a required step here.
Version notes
Released 8 June 2021. Added copper, amethyst geodes, deepslate, tuff, calcite, axolotls, goats, glow squid, powder snow, candles, spyglasses, lightning rods, dripstone, moss and azalea, plus raw ore items.
What it added
- Copper ore, the oxidation system, and waxing with honeycomb
- Amethyst geodes, budding amethyst and amethyst shards
- Deepslate, tuff and calcite
- Axolotls, goats and glow squid
- Powder snow, which mobs and players sink into and freeze in
- Candles, spyglasses and lightning rods
- Raw copper, raw iron and raw gold replacing direct ingot drops
- Dripstone, pointed dripstone, moss, azalea and glow lichen
Properties
Minecraft 1.17 was released on June 8, 2021 as a major release. It added 3 mobs, 15 blocks and items the site documents, and 1 generated structures.
- New blocks and items
- 15
- New structures
- 1
New mobs
Axolotl, Goat, and Glow Squid arrived in this release.
New blocks and items
Copper Ore, Block of Copper, Deepslate, Tuff, Calcite, Block of Amethyst and 9 more were added, and each has its own page with the recipe, the drops and the break times.
New structures
Amethyst Geode first generated in 1.17.
- Amethyst Geode — A hollow spherical cavity with three concentric shells: smooth basalt outside, calcite inside that, and a lining of amethyst blocks and budding amethyst around a chiming hollow centre.
Where it sits in the release line
1.17 sits 10 of 28 in the release list this site covers, with 1.18 after it and 1.16.2 before.
Worlds always upgrade forwards and never downgrade: a world opened in a newer version cannot be opened in an older one again, so back it up before the first launch on a new release.
| Version | Name | Released | Type | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Minecraft 1.18 | Caves & Cliffs: Part II | November 30, 2021 | Major release | |
 | Minecraft 1.17 ← | Caves & Cliffs: Part I | June 8, 2021 | Major release |
 | Minecraft 1.16.2 | Nether Update point release | August 11, 2020 | Point release |
Guides and tools that cover this
Frequently asked questions
Why did 1.17 feel incomplete?
Because the update was split in two. The blocks arrived in 1.17 and the world generation designed to feature them — the tall mountains and the deep cave systems — came with 1.18.
How do you stop copper oxidising?
Apply honeycomb to it. Waxed copper stays at its current stage permanently, and an axe strips the wax off again if you change your mind.
Are axolotls really useful in combat?
Yes. When an axolotl near you kills a hostile aquatic mob you receive Regeneration and any Mining Fatigue on you is removed outright, which is what makes ocean monuments manageable.
What did Minecraft 1.17 add?
Copper ore, the oxidation system, and waxing with honeycomb Amethyst geodes, budding amethyst and amethyst shards Deepslate, tuff and calcite
When was Minecraft 1.17 released?
Java Edition 1.17 was released on June 8, 2021. Bedrock dates for the same content often differ by days or weeks.