Overview
Bountiful, numbered 1.8, was a catch-all, arriving after a long gap and filling in years of accumulated gaps at once, and two of its additions are still load-bearing today. Ocean monuments gave the sea its first real dungeon, with guardians, elder guardians and Mining Fatigue turning a swim into a siege, and they brought prismarine, sea lanterns and obtainable sponge with them. The Slime Block is the other one, and it did something nobody anticipated: it lets pistons move whole structures rather than single blocks, which is the foundation of every flying machine, self-building bridge and moving door the technical community has produced in the decade since. Beyond those, the update broke up the Overworld's grey with granite, diorite and andesite, gave builders banners with layered patterns and armour stands to display gear, and finally provided doors, fence gates and fences in every wood type rather than oak alone. Rabbits and endermites were added, spectator mode arrived for map makers, and a large amount of command and world generation work shipped underneath. It is a release with no theme and an unusually long list of things people still use.
Ocean monuments and everything prismarine, slime blocks for moveable redstone contraptions, banners and armour stands for decoration, the three stone variants for building, and wooden doors and fences in every wood type instead of only oak.
Bountiful was a long-awaited catch-all update that filled in years of gaps. Ocean monuments gave the sea its first real dungeon, and slime blocks made moving contraptions possible, which is the foundation of every flying machine built since. Banners gave builders heraldry, and the new stone types finally broke up the grey. It also shipped a huge amount of technical command and world generation work.
How to get it
Java Edition 1.8 was released on 2 September 2014 and its final point release, 1.8.9, is the one PvP servers still run. It remains one of the 2 most commonly hosted legacy versions alongside 1.12.2.
Tips
- Slime blocks let pistons push whole structures, but a piston can still only move 12 blocks at once including the slime.
- Sponge from a monument is the only bulk way to remove water; dry it in a furnace and it is reusable indefinitely.
- Granite, diorite and andesite all polish into a smoother variant, which is easy to miss and doubles the palette.
- Many long-running PvP servers are on 1.8.9 because of combat, so check before assuming a newer client will connect.
Version notes
Released 2 September 2014. Added ocean monuments, guardians, prismarine, sea lanterns, sponge, slime blocks, armour stands, banners, rabbits, endermites, spectator mode and the three stone variants.
What it added
- Ocean monuments with guardians and elder guardians
- Prismarine, sea lanterns and sponge as obtainable blocks
- Rabbits and endermites
- Slime blocks, which let pistons move whole structures
- Armour stands and banners with layered patterns
- Granite, diorite, andesite and coarse dirt
- Spectator mode
- Doors, fence gates and fences in every wood type
Properties
Minecraft 1.8 was released on September 2, 2014 as a major release. It added 4 mobs, 11 blocks and items the site documents, and 1 generated structures.
- New blocks and items
- 11
- New structures
- 1
New mobs
Guardian, Elder Guardian, Rabbit, and Endermite arrived in this release.
New blocks and items
Prismarine, Sea Lantern, Slime Block, Armor Stand, Granite, Diorite and 5 more were added, and each has its own page with the recipe, the drops and the break times.
New structures
Ocean Monument first generated in 1.8.
- Ocean Monument — A prismarine fortress on the deep ocean floor, guarded by three elder guardians that inflict Mining Fatigue III across a fifty-block radius so you cannot simply mine in.
Where it sits in the release line
1.8 sits 20 of 28 in the release list this site covers, with 1.9 after it and 1.7.2 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 1.9 | Combat Update | February 29, 2016 | Major release |
 | Minecraft 1.8 ← | Bountiful Update | September 2, 2014 | Major release |
 | Minecraft 1.7.2 | The Update that Changed the World | October 25, 2013 | Major release |
Guides and tools that cover this
Frequently asked questions
What made slime blocks so important?
They stick to adjacent blocks and move them when pushed by a piston, which is exactly what a flying machine needs. Every moving contraption built since descends from that one property.
Where does sponge come from?
The sponge rooms in ocean monuments, and from elder guardians as a rare drop. It is the only practical way to remove large volumes of water.
Why is 1.8.9 still used?
It is the last release before the 1.9 attack cooldown, so competitive PvP servers and clients have stayed on it for over a decade.
What did Minecraft 1.8 add?
Ocean monuments with guardians and elder guardians Prismarine, sea lanterns and sponge as obtainable blocks Rabbits and endermites
When was Minecraft 1.8 released?
Java Edition 1.8 was released on September 2, 2014. Bedrock dates for the same content often differ by days or weeks.