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The winter content update for Minecraft has arrived — and it features the initial fresh armament added to the game since the mace made its debut. The spear is now available and it could very well alter your gameplay in Minecraft, particularly when you love chaos.

A Weapon Forged for Mounted Mayhem

The Mounts of Mayhem update also incorporates several new features and updates focused on riding animals in the game. That central theme made the spear the ideal addition for this update, as the development team had already known it was the moment to introduce a new weapon.

"We knew initially that we desired a fresh armament that would provide extended reach, and we designed it specifically for fighting from atop a creature," explained a lead developer. "We prototyped a few different ideas, but the lance was the one that both felt great when we ran our trials and also made sense for the intended purpose."

If you're curious whether fighting from a saddle means you can tilt at your friends on horseback, the answer is a definite affirmative. In fact, there's even an attack perfectly suited for it.

"[Jousting on horses is a primary use cases for the spear, and it's a blast," the lead says. "The spear has a pair of offensive moves: You have the thrust, where you just stab your enemy. But you also have a charge attack where you couch your lance and deal greater injury [with] the more speed and velocity you have. So [it’s] tailor-made for jousting on horses."

Sky-High Chaos and Underwater Adventures

The unruly pleasure isn't limited to there, though. If you're far enough into the game that you've visited The End, the developers have an truly outlandish idea. "If you are quite advanced, [spears are] perfect for equipping the wings and going out and making some real mayhem," she teases.

In other words: Aerial lance combat is now a reality, and it should be made an competitive event immediately.

Another major addition in this new update is the Nautilus. This sea-dwelling mob, which is based on the nautilus shells found in-game for years, can be tamed and mounted for submarine exploration. Not only will it transport you through the water quicker than swimming, it'll also conserve your breath meter, so there's no need to surface for oxygen.

The rest of the additions are primarily things that are out to get you, as is the tradition of Minecraft. As expected, there's also a zombie Nautilus popping up in the water, often with a Drowned on its back. If you succeed in take care of the Drowned, though, you can claim the zombie Nautilus — or the standard version, for that matter — with a spiky fish.

"We've pondered this problem on and off, and again, like with the spear and [adding] more mounts, it felt like the right time to also introduce something for the ocean depths," the developer elaborates. "For the Nautilus in particular, we had a number of concepts for underwater mounts that we wanted to try out, but the Nautilus concept art looked impressive, and we have the connection to the Nautilus shell that was already in the game."

She also points out that there are actually two distinct kinds of undead nautilus: regular and coral-infested undead mount. "[The variants] give some flavor to what you find underwater."

Desert Dangers and Long-Awaited Tweaks

Additional features include the sun-proof skeletons, desert-exclusive undead archers that can endure the sun, which means there's no getting away from them if you end up in that region. Sometimes you'll see them on zombified camels, another new mob. Camel husks have an striking appearance that sees their ribs poking out. The applies equally to undead steeds, who have a comparable exposed-rib aesthetic and can sometimes be encountered after dark with a spear-carrying zombie on their back.

The remaining updates on the drop's list are smaller gameplay updates, including some much-anticipated changes to riding horses. Now, you can ford bodies of water while mounted on a horse. Furthermore, high-tier barding is now obtainable at the workbench, so you can give your horse the top-tier safeguarding it is worthy of.

A Fittingly Chaotic Finale

Overall, the year-end release of the year is a notable addition. The spear by itself — and the mayhem it enables — would have seemed like a significant enhancement. Combine that with the Nautilus, and additional creatures seeking your end, and Minecraft's definitely getting a little more dangerous.

The Mounts of Mayhem update is live for all major editions of Minecraft.