Minecraft Dimension Type

Dimension Types

This content applies only to Java Edition.

Dimension types control a dimension's environmental lighting, build height, and many other behaviors. Definition files are their data-driven definitions in datapacks.

Definition format

Dimension types use the DIMENSION_TYPE registry; the datapack path is dimension_type (definitions in data/<namespace>/dimension_type, tags in data/<namespace>/tags/dimension_type).

Definition files use JSON with the following structure:

• JSON file root object
  • has_fixed_time (bool, default false): whether the dimension logically has day/night (see below).
  • has_skylight (bool, required): whether the dimension has skylight (see below).
  • has_ceiling (bool, required): whether the dimension has a ceiling (see below).
  • has_ender_dragon_fight (bool, required): whether the ender dragon fight can start.
  • ambient_light (float, required): ambient light (0–1 under vanilla shaders).
  • coordinate_scale (double, required): (0.00001≤v≤30000000.0) coordinate scaling, affects nether portal travel and /execute in.
  • infiniburn (string/list, required): blocks on which fire burns indefinitely (block ID, tag, or list).
  • min_y (int, required): (−2032≤v≤2031, multiple of 16) lowest buildable height.
  • height (int, required): (16≤v≤2032−min_y, multiple of 16) total buildable height.
  • logical_height (int, required): (0≤v≤height) max height for chorus fruit teleportation and generated nether portals.
  • monster_spawn_block_light_limit (int, required): (0≤v≤15) max block light for monster spawns.
  • monster_spawn_light_level (int/compound, required): (0≤v≤15) max light for monster spawns using internal sky light (sky −10 during thunderstorms); a range is sampled per spawn attempt (int provider).
  • attributes (compound): dimension environment attribute map; duplicate attributes use the last value.
  • timelines (string/list): active timelines (ID, tag, or list); duplicate timeline-defined attribute changes use the last.
  • skybox (string, default overworld): none / end (periodic end flashes using world clock time) / overworld (sun, moon, stars, day/night).
  • cardinal_light (string, default default): block lighting type default or nether (shade=false blocks get 10% less brightness on top/bottom instead of 0/50%; fluids and shade=true blocks get 10% less on all faces).
  • default_clock (string): (namespace ID) world clock used in this dimension; absent = no world clock.

Definition behavior

Dimension type data is loaded only once at server startup; /reload does not reload it — a server restart is required. Inline dimension types in datapacks and level.dat are supported but dimensions using them cannot be loaded.

Dimension behaviors

has_fixed_time does not control visual day/night; it disables day/night logic for some behaviors: sleeping at any game time, Drowned always hostile, wandering traders stop drinking invisibility potions/milk, patrols always spawn, endermen never increase random teleport chance, foxes never head to villages or sleep, zombie sieges always spawn, some undead stop avoiding sunlight.

has_skylight controls: skylight existence (daylight sensors), phantom spawning, and weather.

has_ceiling controls: initial animal spawn search, player spawn preference (Y=64 instead of highest block, except superflat), some map updates, and weather absence.

Hardcoded behaviors

Players always spawn in the Overworld. Nether portals teleport with dimension scaling to/from the Nether; end portals to/from the End. Frosted ice melts by block light (not skylight) in the End. The End never has weather. Nether map player icons rotate randomly.

Built-in dimension types

• overworld, the_nether, the_end, overworld_caves (unused directly; for legacy cave worlds).