Minecraft Mounts of Mayhem Update: Everything You Need to Know

The Mounts of Mayhem update was released on December 9, 2025, bringing exciting new mounts, weapons, and combat mechanics to Minecraft. This update introduces the nautilus as a new aquatic mount, spears as a new weapon type, and several new hostile mobs that ride mounts into battle. Whether you're exploring oceans or defending against zombie horsemen, this update adds new layers of strategy and adventure to Minecraft.

What's New in Mounts of Mayhem

The Mounts of Mayhem update introduces new mounts, weapons, armor, and hostile mobs. The update focuses on mounted combat and aquatic exploration, with the nautilus as the star addition. Spears provide a new combat style with longer range and charge attacks, while zombie horses and camel husks now spawn naturally with hostile riders.

The Nautilus - New Aquatic Mount

The nautilus is a neutral aquatic mount that spawns in oceans. This unique creature can be tamed and ridden, making it perfect for underwater exploration. When you ride a nautilus, you receive the "Breath of the Nautilus" effect, which freezes your oxygen bar, allowing you to stay underwater indefinitely while mounted.

Zombie Nautilus - Undead Aquatic Mount

The zombie nautilus is a rare undead variant of the regular nautilus. It spawns being ridden by a drowned wielding a trident, forming a zombie nautilus jockey. This hostile mob can also spawn as a coral variant in warm oceans. Unlike regular nautiluses, zombie nautiluses don't dehydrate on land and swim about 10% faster, but they burn in sunlight unless equipped with nautilus armor.

Camel Husk - Undead Desert Mount

The camel husk is an uncommon undead variant of the regular camel that spawns in deserts at night. It spawns with two riders: a husk wielding an iron spear and a parched (new skeleton variant), forming a camel husk jockey. This hostile mob doesn't burn in sunlight and behaves similarly to regular camels, except it cannot be bred. You can tempt and heal camel husks using a rabbit's foot.

Parched - New Skeleton Variant

The parched is a new variant of the skeleton that spawns in deserts at night. Unlike regular skeletons, parched do not burn in sunlight (similar to husks) and shoot arrows of Weakness instead of regular arrows. They have a slower rate of fire compared to normal skeletons, similar to the bogged. Parched are immune to the Weakness effect themselves.

Zombie Horse - Now Spawns Naturally

Zombie horses have been updated and now spawn naturally in plains and savanna biomes at night. They spawn being ridden by a zombie wielding an iron spear, forming a zombie horseman. The zombie rider has a chance to drop a red mushroom. Zombie horses can now be tempted and healed using red mushrooms, and they can be equipped with saddles and horse armor. Unlike before, zombie horses now burn in sunlight, but horse armor prevents them from burning.

How to Tame Nautiluses

Taming a nautilus is straightforward. Find one in an ocean biome and feed it pufferfish or buckets of pufferfish until hearts appear. Once tamed, you can ride it with a saddle and control it with mouse or joystick movements, similar to the happy ghast. The nautilus has a dash movement that can be used while riding, similar to camels.

Nautilus Armor - Protect Your Aquatic Mount

Nautilus armor is a new tiered armor type specifically for equipping tamed nautiluses or zombie nautiluses. There are five tiers available: Copper, Iron, Gold, Diamond, and Netherite. Equipping nautilus armor on a zombie nautilus prevents it from burning in sunlight, making it much more useful for land exploration.

Netherite Horse Armor - Ultimate Protection

Netherite horse armor is a new tier of horse armor that provides superior protection. It offers 19 armor points (9.5 armor bars), 3 armor toughness, and 1 knockback resistance. You can obtain it by upgrading diamond horse armor using a smithing table with a netherite upgrade template. This armor also prevents zombie horses from burning in sunlight.

Spears - New Weapon Type

Spears are a new tiered weapon that offers longer attack range than swords or any other weapon. They include two main attacks: jab and charge. The faster you move while charging, the more damage you deal to entities. Spears can be crafted using 2 sticks and their corresponding tier item, or upgraded from diamond to netherite using a smithing table.

Lunge Enchantment

Lunge is a spear-exclusive enchantment with 3 levels. It only works with the Jab attack. When doing a jab attack with Lunge, it propels the player horizontally in the view direction. The view angle needs to be perfectly leveled horizontally to achieve maximum lunge distance. It consumes saturation and hunger points based on the enchantment level, as well as 1 durability point. Can only be used if the player has 6 or more hunger points.

Combat Tips and Strategies

The Mounts of Mayhem update introduces new combat dynamics with spears and mounted enemies. Here are some tips for mastering the new features.

• Spears on Mounts: Spears are excellent for mounted combat. Use charge attacks while riding for maximum damage.
• Nautilus Exploration: The Breath of the Nautilus effect makes underwater exploration much easier—no need for respiration enchantments.
• Zombie Horsemen: These spawn naturally at night in plains and savannas. Be prepared with good armor and weapons.
• Camel Husk Jockeys: Dangerous in deserts at night. The parched shoots weakness arrows, so bring milk or golden apples.
• Lunge Mobility: Use Lunge enchantment for quick escapes or to close distance with enemies.
• Mount Armor: Always equip your mounts with armor—it significantly increases their survivability.

Other Changes

The update also includes several quality-of-life improvements and changes to existing mechanics.

Tips for Getting Started

• Start by crafting a wooden or stone spear—it's a great early-game weapon with longer range
• Explore oceans to find nautiluses. Bring pufferfish to tame them for underwater exploration
• Be careful at night in plains, savannas, and deserts—zombie horsemen and camel husk jockeys spawn naturally
• Equip nautilus armor on zombie nautiluses to prevent them from burning in sunlight
• Use the Lunge enchantment on spears for enhanced mobility in combat
• Upgrade diamond horse armor to netherite for maximum protection on your horses
• Parched shoot weakness arrows—bring milk or golden apples when fighting them