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The seasonal game drop for the block-building phenomenon has arrived — and it brings with it the first new weapon added to the title since the heavy club made its debut. The spear is now available and it could very well change how you play Minecraft, particularly when you love chaos.

An Armament Designed for Chaotic Rides

The Mayhem Mounts drop also incorporates several new features and updates centered around riding animals in the game. That focus made the spear the ideal addition for this update, as the development team had already known it was time for a fresh combat tool.

"We knew initially that we desired a new weapon that would provide extended reach, and we wanted it to be mounted combat," explained a lead developer. "We experimented with a number of concepts, but the spear was the one that both felt great when we tested our prototypes and also looked good for the intended purpose."

If you're asking yourself whether mounted combat means you can charge at your companions on horseback, the answer is a resounding yes. In fact, there's even an offensive action ideally crafted for it.

"[Jousting on horses is a primary use cases for the spear, and it's incredibly enjoyable," the lead continues. "The spear has two attacks: You have the quick stab, where you just stab your enemy. But you also have a sprinting strike where you couch your lance and get more damage [with] the more speed and velocity you have. So [it’s] tailor-made for mounted duels."

Aerial Mayhem & Deep-Sea Exploration

The wild enjoyment can extend beyond there, though. If you're advanced sufficiently into the game that you've visited The End, the developers have an even more ridiculous idea. "If you are quite advanced, [spears are] ideal for strapping on the wings and flying forth and creating genuine chaos," she teases.

In other words: Jousting in the clouds is now possible, and it deserves to be an Olympic sport without delay.

Another major addition in this fresh content is the underwater mount. This underwater creature, which is modeled after the seashells found in-game for years, can be domesticated and mounted for underwater travel. Not only will it move you through the water more swiftly than swimming, it'll also conserve your breath meter, so there's no necessity to surface for a breath.

The rest of the additions are mostly things that are out to get you, as is the way of Minecraft. Unsurprisingly, there's also a undead nautilus appearing in the water, frequently with a zombie villager on its back. If you succeed in dispatch the Drowned, though, you can claim the undead mount — or the regular one, for that matter — with a puffer fish.

"We've long considered this challenge on and off, and again, like with the spear and [adding] more mounts, it seemed like the perfect moment to also introduce something for underwater," the developer explains. "For the Nautilus in particular, we had a several proposals for sea mounts that we wanted to try out, but the Nautilus design sketches looked striking, and we have the connection to the Nautilus shell that was pre-existing in the game."

She also notes that there are actually two distinct kinds of undead nautilus: regular and coral zombie Nautilus. "[The variants] provide diversity to what you encounter underwater."

Parched Perils & Overdue Enhancements

Further inclusions include the Parched, desert-exclusive undead archers that can endure the sun, which means there's no refuge from them if you end up in that region. Sometimes you'll see them on camel husks, another new mob. Camel husks have an notable look that sees their skeletal frame exposed. The applies equally to zombie horses, who have a analogous rib-popping design and can sometimes be encountered after dark with a spear-carrying undead rider on their back.

The final pair of items on the drop's list are refinements, including some long-overdue changes to equestrian travel. Now, you can cross bodies of water while atop a horse. Furthermore, high-tier barding is now craftable at the workbench, so you can give your horse the top-tier safeguarding it deserves.

A Fittingly Chaotic Finale

Overall, the last content update of the year is a solid offering. The spear by itself — and the potential for chaos — would have seemed like a significant enhancement. Throw in the Nautilus, and new threats trying to kill you, and Minecraft's definitely getting a little more dangerous.

The Mounts of Mayhem content drop is out now for all major editions of Minecraft.