Minecraft 14w27a Features - Rabbits, Potion of Leaping, Jump Boost

This weeks snapshot (14w27a) contains the loveable bunnies that were supposed to make it into the underwater update. These little creatures can be tamed, killed and cooked in a pot for a generous amount of health, even enough to rival the Golden Apple. Rabbits also provide the main ingredient for a new potion called the Potion of Leaping and the ability called Jump Boost.

Ryan Holtz has been working on the new feature which presumably was pushed to this week after not fitting into the water themed update 2 weeks ago. Based on a well-known mod (Mo's Creatures) the bunnies are similar to the other small animals in Minecraft. They have a similar speed to Ocelots and their skins come in a variety of colours and shades.

Rabbits are timid creatures that run away if the player comes too close but they can be tamed with food and a careful approach. Rabbit drops not only provide an excellent food source but Rabbit Foot is the core ingredient in the Potion of Leaping which gives the player a Jump Boost ability.

Bunnies can be tamed and bred

Just like cats and wolves, bunnies can be tamed with a particular food. The particular food you need is a carrot and the player simply has to hold the carrot close enough to a Bunny for the tell-tale hearts to appear. Once you see those, the bunny is yours to keep as a new pet.

Bunnies will breed in the right surroundings but they do NOT breed on their own. This is because auto-breeding increases pressure on the CPU and the overall enjoyment of the game.

Killer rabbit of Caerbannog

The killer rabbit variation was originally teased on Twitter. With only a 1 in 1000 chance of appearing, don't expect to see this killer too soon. The killer rabbit of caerbannog is immediately noticeable by its albino colour and worrying death stare.

The name derives from the Monty Python film: Monty Pyton and the Holy Grail.

You can summon the deadly rabbit using the following command:

/summon Rabbit ~ ~ ~ {RabbitType:99}

What do Bunnies drop?

When killed, a rabbit will drop a combination of Hide, Feet and Meat. The in-game items are shown below:

Rabbit - Items

As you can see Mutton can be cooked in a furnace to produce Cooked Mutton and Rabbit Hide can be used to craft armour (using 4 hides).

Rabbit Stew

Rabbit Stew is the new food item in 14w27a. Just like other Stew's the player needs to combine the following items:

Cooked rabbit
Carrot
Baked potato
Mushroom
Bowl

Eating the Rabbit Stew will provide 10 points, or 5 hunger bars. This makes it almost as good as the Golden Apple for replenishing your health.

Potion of Leaping / Jump Boost

Rabbits sometimes drop a Rabbits Foot which is the core ingredient in the Potion of Leaping. Players can brew this potion using the standard brewing technique. The actual potion grants the player the Jump Boost ability which increases the players jump height for a limited time.