Over the past few years, Minecraft's oceans have sprung to life. With Update Aquatic back in 2018, oceans have received a major facelift and have become more than just a giant body of water. From underwater temples to shipwrecks, there is so much to explore. Within these oceans, you may come across a coral reef.
Related: Minecraft: A Guide To Conquering An Abandoned Mineshaft
This colorful biome is teeming with life but can be difficult to find at first. In this guide, we are going to go over everything you need to know about coral reefs, including where to find one, mobs, and blocks available here. First, let's take a look at where you can find a coral reef.
Updated June 4, 2023, by Sean Murray: Looking for coral to make your tropical Minecraft vacation that much more magical? We've updated this guide with better formatting to make finding a coral reef that much easier.
How To Find A Coral Reef
Coral reefs are a structure that can be found within the warm ocean biome. This is a variation of the normal ocean, with warmer waters. In the image above, you can see a coral reef in a warm ocean biome from above. The water's color is considerably different and gives the area a 'tropical' feel.
Warm oceans will never generate directly next to land. This biome is always surrounded by at least a 32-block wide border of a lukewarm ocean.
Remember, there are many ocean variations that can be found. To easily find a coral reef, you can travel across the water on a boat or fly above with an elytra. The aquamarine color of warm ocean water will help you locate this biome quickly.
Mobs That Spawn In Coral Reefs
Although coral reefs are underwater, small sand islandsmay generate. On these small islands, a variety of mobs can spawn. Below, you can find all hostile mobs that will spawn on land within coral reefs in the warm ocean biome.
Spider | Zombie | Zombie Villager | Skeleton |
Creeper | Slime (only if there is a slime chunk present) | Enderman | Witch |
When you are exploring a coral reef, be sure to light up any exposed land. These mobs will spawn in underground caves as well.
In addition to the hostile mobs listed above, you can find a variety of non-hostile mobs underwater. Below, you can check out these mobs, as well as what they drop.
Mob | Drops |
|---|---|
Dolphin |
|
Squid |
|
Pufferfish |
|
Tropical Fish |
|
Tropical Fish and Pufferfish
These fish are unique to warm water biomes and the associated variations.
Although pufferfish are passive, they will deal poison damage if you get close to them. The poison isn't lethal, but it can be quite annoying to deal with.
Tropical fish are very common in coral reefs. This mob often appears in groups with other fish of the same color. In total, there are 2,700 variations of tropical fish. This is a lot, but the tropical fish item that they drop upon death will be a single orange-colored fish, regardless of the fish's colors while alive.
Tropical fish are important when breeding axolotls. To breed, an axolotl will need live tropical fish in a bucket. To capture this fish, swim up to with a bucket full of water. Interacting with the fish while holding the water bucket will place the fish inside. The fish will remain alive, and you can feed it to an axolotl.
Dolphins
Dolphins can appear in almost every ocean biome. This passive mob is unique in that if you swim near it, you will be granted a speed boost called Dophin's Grace. This is helpful if you are swimming around a coral reef; with Dolphin's Grace, you can navigate the oceans with ease.
Related: Minecraft: How To Get Blaze Rods And Their Uses
Available Blocks
The following blocks can be found within coral reefs.
Coral Blocks | Blue (tube) |
Pink (brain) | |
Red (fire) | |
Magenta (bubble) | |
Yellow (horn) | |
Coral | |
Coral Fans | |
Sea Grass | |
Sea Pickles | |
The coral reef structure is made from coral blocks. In the image above, you can see coral blocks forming shapes that make up the reef. On these blocks, you will find coral and coral fans growing, adding a bit of detail.
In addition to coral, you can find sea pickles spread throughout the area; sea pickles can be placed on coral or the sand. This is a unique item that can be placed in groups of up to four. Sea pickles give off a light level that increases when more are placed.
With four sea pickles grouped together, they will give a light level of 15, which is about the same as a torch (light level of 14).
Mining Coral
When mining coral with a pickaxe enchanted with silk touch, the block will drop with its color maintained. If your pickaxe does not have silk touch, you will instead receive a dead coral block. This block is grey in color and cannot be brought to life again.
Coral will also die if you place it out of water. In the image above, you can see coral placed on land. The coral will maintain its color for a few seconds, before turning grey.
That's all there is to know about coral reefs. Don't forget to gather some coral and tropical fish next time you find one!
Next: Minecraft Complete Guide And Walkthrough
