Minecraft's massively anticipated 1.20 update is finally here, changing many aspects of the game's core offered experience. Like many updates for the sandbox title, 1.20 has introduced new structures, game mechanics, and mobs.
A large portion of Minecraft's 1.20 update focuses on desert biomes, with the purpose of making them feel more saturated and lived in. With this in mind, it is clear to see why Mojang introduced camels as a Minecraft mob with the 1.20 update, as they give a crucial sense of life to desert areas. Players will of course want to become familiar with these new camels and how they work, so it is deeply important that they know exactly what to feed camels.
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Minecraft's 1.20 update is officially called the Tales and Trails update, with a lot of its changes improving exploration and the scope of Minecraft's experiences. For example, a fully-fledged archeology mechanic has been introduced with 1.20, which is pretty heavily tied to desert biomes.
Many desert structures such as temples and wells are now bolstered by being archeological sites, with these desert structures also potentially containing armor trims that the player can use. Of course, the introduction of camel mobs is perhaps the most overt change to come to desert biomes. Being introduced alongside the Sniffer mob, the camel is a mob with a lot of uses.
Camels can be ridden by up to two players simultaneously, being the only mob where this is a possibility. As well as this, the great height of camels means that players can ride through many dangerous melee-based mobs without being damaged. Camels of course need to be equipped with a saddle to be ridden, although they do not need to be tamed, unlike the horses of Minecraft.
Once a player is in possession of a passive mob as useful as Minecraft's camels, it becomes paramount that they are taken care of properly. As key mobs to exploration, camels are likely to take damage, and their health can be quickly replenished if they are fed. Most feed-able Minecraft mobs only eat food relating to their common biomes, and camels are no different.
Camels are fed with cacti in Minecraft, with this being the key to keeping them healthy and even breeding them. Cacti can be found in abundance in the same desert biomes that camels are found in, meaning players should be in no short supply of camel fuel. Camels regenerate two hearts of health each time they are fed a cactus, showcasing the importance of having some on hand when exploring with camels. Like other mobs, camels will follow the player if they are holding a cactus, with this being a simple way to move a camel where it needs to be without a saddle.
Two adult camels can be bred together if they are both fed a cactus within proximity of each other, quickly creating one baby camel. Camel reproduction has a cooldown of five minutes, but is vital if players want to have a pack of the mob to use in exploration. Interestingly, the player can also speed up the process of a baby camel's maturation by feeding it cactus, giving even more utility to the spiky plant. Minecraft's camels are a fascinating addition to the sprawling sandbox game and give extended use to the game's cacti via health regeneration and breeding.
Minecraft is available on Mobile, PC, PS4, Switch, Xbox One, and legacy platforms.
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