BetterEnd Biomes: Dragon Graveyards, Shadow Forest and Ice Starfield
BetterEnd adds new biomes to the End, and each one has its own atmosphere, resources and mobs. Among the most dangerous and exotic are the Dragon Graveyards, the Shadow Forest and the Ice Starfield. This guide covers what each of these biomes is like and what you will run into there.
Dragon Graveyards
The Dragon Graveyards have a temperate climate with a temperature of 0.5, and no rain falls there. The biome is home to enderman, which spawn as its monsters.
Because the biome sits at a temperate temperature and stays dry, you will not need to prepare for cold or for weather. The threat comes from the mobs themselves, so bring gear that lets you handle enderman encounters while you explore.
Shadow Forest
The Shadow Forest is also temperate, with a temperature of 0.5 and no rain. It is the most crowded of the three biomes when it comes to hostile mobs: shadow walker, enderman and phantom all spawn there.
That mix matters when you plan a trip. Phantom spawns add a threat from above, while shadow walker and enderman operate at ground level. A single biome therefore pressures you from more than one direction, which is what makes the Shadow Forest one of the more dangerous places to visit.
Ice Starfield
The Ice Starfield is the cold one of the group. Its climate is snowy with a temperature of 0.0, and like the others it has no rain. Enderman are the monsters that spawn in this biome.
The snowy climate is the key difference from the Dragon Graveyards and the Shadow Forest. Everything else about the biome's mob list is simple: only enderman appear there.
Other Biomes Worth Knowing
Several other BetterEnd biomes share the same temperate, rainless profile as the Dragon Graveyards and the Shadow Forest.
- Dust Wastelands: temperate at 0.5, no rain, with enderman spawns.
- Sulfur Springs: temperate at 0.5, no rain, with enderman spawns.
- Umbra Valley: temperate at 0.5, no rain. No monster spawns are listed for it.
If you can handle one temperate, dry biome, you can handle the others in this group, since the climate and the mob pressure are the same or lighter.
How the Biomes Fit Into BetterEnd
BetterEnd is built around giving the End distinct regions rather than one uniform landscape. The mod adds more than 24 new biomes, and each has its own atmosphere, resources and mobs. All biomes come with custom music by Firel, plus sounds and effects, so exploring them feels different from one another.
Mob variety is part of that design. BetterEnd adds 6 new mobs, some with biome variations, and the Shadow Forest shows how a biome can combine several of them at once.
The terrain itself is different too. BetterEnd uses a custom End generator, so islands have different shapes and terrain and sit at different heights. Caves inside islands hold unique resources. There are also custom structures for the Central Island, and the sky has a fresh look with purple nebulas and stars.
Beyond biomes and mobs, the mod adds many new blocks, including 9 wood types and 7 new stone types, and many new items such as food sources, tools, armor and weapons. It also introduces mechanics like Infusion Rituals, Anvil Recipes and End tool progression, along with configs for blocks, items, mobs, enchants and more.
Planning Your Trip
Before heading into any of these biomes, decide what you are there for. The Dragon Graveyards and Ice Starfield keep their mob lists short, so they are easier to move through if you only need to pass. The Shadow Forest stacks three hostile mobs together, so treat it as the hardest of the three and prepare accordingly. Check the climate as well: the Ice Starfield is snowy at 0.0, while the other two are temperate at 0.5, so the conditions you pack for are not the same.
Covers the mod’s in-game guide topics: Dragon Graveyards Shadow Forest Ice Starfield Dust Wastelands Sulfur Springs Umbra Valley
Sulfur