With the recent release of Chaos Cubed, Minecraft has already started the rollout of previews for its next update! Although things are subject to change, this is all we know so far about the Dappled Forest preview and other things to come in the third drop of 2026. The contents of this article were added as new announcements from Mojang were made.
Dappled Forests (Added May 30th, 2026)
Source: https://minecraft.wiki/w/File:Poplar_Tree_Red_Leaves.png
The Dappled Forests are another cold forest in the world that can be found near other cold biomes, such as Taigas. Within this forest, you can find Poplar Trees, a new tree variant added within this update. These trees can generate with one of 3 different colour variations: Red, Orange, and Yellow Poplar Leaves which all have a chance to drop the Poplar Sapling. Growing a sapling has the chance to grow any of the 3 tree colors with a randomised chance of which colour you will get.
You can also find Poplar Trees which have fallen from the ground, adding ambiance to the biome giving it that aged forest feel. The sides of these logs will grow Shelf Mushrooms, a new addition to the crafting recipes for stew alongside their red and regular counterparts. These mushrooms contain a slight bounce when jumped on, giving a similar effect to the Minecraft bed.
Within the Dappled Forest, you can find both neutral and passive mobs in their specific cold variants. The mobs that you can find in the biome are Sheep, Chickens, Cows, Pigs, Rabbits, and Foxes.
A new shrub type has been added with this preview, the Red Shrub. It can only generate inside the Dappled Forest biome and is a decorative plant. It can be used inside a Composter, like all other plants, to be turned into Bone Meal. However, when using Bone Meal on Red Shrubs, it will reproduce and spread more Red Shrubs around the area in a random position, where possible.
Poplar Planks (Added May 30th, 2026)
Source: https://minecraft.wiki/w/File:Poplar_Planks_JE1.png
With a new tree coming, we also have a new wood type coming to the world! Poplar is a grey wood variant, allowing more diversity within your block palette. It can also be crafted into all of the usual building blocks, such as Planks, Stairs, Slabs, Fences, Fence Gates, Trapdoors, and Doors. All three variations of the tree will drop the same wood and have a chance at dropping saplings despite their altering appearance.
Wool Variants (Added May 30th, 2026)
Source: https://minecraft.wiki/w/File:White_Wool_Stairs_(N)_JE1_BE1.png
With the release of the Dappled Forest, we will also be blessed with the addition of wool stairs and slabs. This is something many players have been hoping and asking for for years now. All different Wool colours have their own variants allowing all of you builders out there to add a lot more shape to your builds in the future when using Wool.
Abandoned Camps (Added May 30th, 2026)
The Abandoned Camps are a new type of structure that can generate randomly in 18 different biomes, mostly prominently in forests. Each biome in which the structure can generate provides its own unique variant of the structure. Abandoned Camps can also be generated with loot chests, allowing you and your friends to scavenge inside for early-game rarities. These utilise the soon-to-be-added Wool Stairs to create a more realistic-style tent than previously possible. There is also a possibility of Oxidised Copper Chests generating within the Camps, which can be found with a higher rarity of loot inside of them.
The structures themselves can be found somewhat damaged, with Cobwebs replacing some of the Wool Stairs, creating a more abandoned feel to them. With each camp having a different variant depending on which biome it generates inside, you will also find that the Fences that hold up the Wool Stairswill be consistent with the biome it generated inside. So, for example, if you find a camp generated inside of a Dappled Forest, it will have Poplar Fences holding up the tent.
Straw Beds (Added July 7th, 2026)
Source: https://minecraft.wiki/w/Straw_Bed
Straw Beds are one of the most recent additions to the list when it comes to what's coming in this update. They will act as regular beds for you to sleep in and pass the night, however will break once you wake up/leave the bed itself. This allows you to have a safe place to pass the night in a pinch whilst out exploring, whilst not having to fill your inventory with beds on your next expedition. The Straw Beds also do not reset your spawn point, meaning that if you were to die when exploring, you will return safely to your home and not where you last set up your temporary camp to pass the night. These beds are found naturally generated inside the new Abandoned Camps previously mentioned above, which also gives a cozy place to sleep once found.
Cushions (Added July 7th, 2026)
Source: https://minecraft.wiki/w/Cushion
Alongside the Straw Beds, Mojang has since announced that Cushions will be added within the third drop of 2026! Cushions are something the community has been waiting for for years now. They willallow you to sit down on them, meaning you can now have true, functioning chairs and seats. Mojang adding these to the game finally gives us the ability to create more realistic environments inside of our homes.
They can be found at the Abandoned Camps, just alongside the Campfires, or can be crafted using 3 Wool Slabs. The Cushions can be dyed to any of Minecraft’s 16 colour types much like other blocks. They will act as an entity, like item frames, and can be placed on virtually anything. Meaning you can place them on top of fences, trapdoors, half slabs, you name it! This adds an unreal amount of depth and creativity to builds from this point forward, with all new shapes being able to be used with the help of the Cushions.
This is all the information we have on the content coming within the third drop of 2026 so far. If you would like to read more on bug fixes and technical updates, you can visit the official Minecraft Website here. If you are interested in having your own server ready to host when the update eventually comes, you should definitely check out our server plans, which start at just 10$ USD per month. You can also visit our helpful setup guide to help you through setting up your server for the first time!