1.9

Minecraft 1.9, the Combat Update, introduced the attack cooldown, dual-wielding, and shields, and turned the End into an explorable dimension. It was released on February 29, 2016 as one of the game's numbered feature updates.

At its heart, 1.9 is reworking combat and finishing the End. The standout addition is an attack-cooldown combat system with off-hand dual-wielding and shields. The first version of the 1.9 'Combat' series, which received many follow-up patches.

This page breaks 1.9 down into 11 headline features, 4 notable gameplay or technical changes and 2 documented fixes, and a plain-language summary of why the update matters. Java Edition is the original PC version of Minecraft, available on Windows, macOS, and Linux.

The most talked-about part of the Combat Update update is an attack-cooldown combat system with off-hand dual-wielding and shields.

In full, 1.9 adds dual-wielding and off-hand slot, attack cooldown and sweep attacks, shields replaced sword blocking, End Cities and End Ships, elytra wings for gliding, shulkers, Chorus Plants and Chorus Fruit, and Lingering Potions and tipped arrows, with several further additions listed on the right. Together these are what make Combat Update worth updating to, and each appears in the Major Features list on this page.

Beyond new content, 1.9 reworks how parts of the game behave. The notable changes include end dimension completely overhauled, new sounds and subtitles, Skeleton AI reworked, and arrows of effects with tipped arrows. Adjustments of this kind reshape day-to-day play for existing worlds as much as new ones.

On the bug-fixing side, 1.9 resolves fixed many combat-related bugs and Fixed End-related world generation issues. Fixes like these remove long-standing frustrations without altering how the game is meant to be played.

To play Minecraft 1.9 on Java Edition, open the official Minecraft Launcher, select the Java Edition tab, and use the version dropdown beside the Play button to choose 1.9. As a full release it appears in the standard release list by default.

Before updating an existing world to 1.9, it is good practice to copy the save folder first. Worlds from 1.8 upgrade in place, but newly generated chunks will use 1.9's world generation while older chunks keep their original terrain.