Minecraft Snapshot 25w36a Adds Mannequins for Hosts

Mojang released Java Edition test build minecraft snapshot 25w36a on 2 September 2025, introducing an NPC entity type, per-dimension boundary boundaries, and key bind updates. Server administrators tracking development releases across the Minecraft Server List can now test data pack version 86.0 and resource pack version 68.0 in staging environments.

Technical Entities and World Border Configuration

Mannequin Entities for Custom NPCs

The snapshot introduces minecraft:mannequin, a technical entity summoned through commands to serve as an avatar without a human player behind it. These entities function as living mobs: they can equip armour, hold items in either hand, suffer damage, and receive status effects or attribute modifiers. In place of a player's below_score display, a mannequin constantly exhibits an "NPC" text tag.

Administrators configure them through data fields matching player profiles or custom mannequin definitions:

• profile: Accepts a standard minecraft:profile component or a custom profile object.
• texture: A namespaced identifier referencing an image file in the textures directory, such as entity/player/wide/steve without its .png suffix.
• cape: An optional namespaced path pointing to a custom cape asset.
• elytra: An optional identifier for custom glider textures, falling back to cape art or standard wings.
• model: Defines whether the rig uses wide or slim arms, defaulting to wide.
• main_hand: Designates either left or right as the dominant appendage.
• hidden_layers: A list suppressing specific cosmetic geometry, accepting cape, jacket, left_sleeve, right_sleeve, left_pants_leg, right_pants_leg, or hat.

Later development builds continue refining these technical models; for instance, the subsequent Minecraft 1.21.9 Pre-Release 1 Drops for Java Hosts entry builds upon pose options for these rigs.

Per-Dimension World Borders

World borders no longer apply globally across every realm simultaneously. Each individual dimension now maintains its own independent border position and radius settings, allowing administrators to restrict the Nether or the End without forcing the Overworld into matching limits. Later test versions like Minecraft Snapshot 25w43a Reworks Spears for Hosts further alter internal border tracking by moving interpolation steps onto standard game ticks.

Particle Customisation and Visual Tweaks

Data pack authors gain expanded control over particle parameters. The dragon_breath effect accepts an optional power floating-point modifier (defaulting to 1.0) applied directly to velocity following random distribution. Both instant_effect and effect introduce optional power values alongside color RGB integers (defaulting to 0xFFFFFF). In contrast, flash now mandates an explicit ARGB color argument.

Resource pack format 68.0 removes several obsolete shader pipelines: core/position_color_lightmap.vsh, core/position_color_lightmap.fsh, core/position_color_tex_lightmap.vsh, and core/position_color_tex_lightmap.fsh.

Server Administration and Technical Upgrades

Deploying 25w36a requires an explicit world update and testing across existing scripts. The snapshot increments the official data pack version to 86.0 and resource packs to 68.0, meaning custom packs lacking these format declarations will trigger warnings in server logs.

Existing code of conduct text files now have formatting codes stripped automatically upon loading. Developers also restructured how the internal engine collects and draws block entities and particles; while Mojang reported no expected behavioural deviations, custom render-dependent mod frameworks will require validation. Additionally, powered shelves now connect strictly to neighbours aligned in the identical facing direction.

Player-Facing Changes and Accessibility

Clients logging into 25w36a servers gain several control improvements:

• Conflicting key bindings assigned to the identical key can execute simultaneously instead of cancelling each other out. Binding a single key to both jump and strafe now performs both actions at once.
• The key configuration screen replaces the red duplicate warning indicator with a yellow alert.
• Spectator hotbar controls can now be rebound under an isolated Spectator category alongside player highlighting.
• Edit boxes allow double-clicking words to highlight text selections.
• Copper torches and copper lanterns feature modified hues designed to improve visibility for colour-blind users.
• Particles located outside a player's field of view cease rendering, offering targeted client performance gains.