If you’ve spent any time modding Minecraft lately, you’ve probably realized that the standard vanilla world feels a bit... empty. It’s a common gripe. You’ve seen one Plains biome, you’ve seen them all. That’s why Oh The Biomes You'll Go (often abbreviated as BYG) basically became a permanent fixture in almost every major modpack like All The Mods or Better Minecraft. It doesn't just add a few trees. It fundamentally rewrites the geography of your world.
Honestly, looking at the Oh The Biomes You'll Go biome list for the first time is overwhelming. We aren't just talking about a "Forest but with different colored leaves." We’re talking about massive, towering redwood structures, glowing fungal marshes, and crystalline deserts that feel like they belong in a high-fantasy novel rather than a block game.
The mod is massive. It’s ambitious. But because it adds over 80 biomes across the Overworld, Nether, and End, finding what you actually need—whether that's a specific wood type or a place to build—can be a nightmare if you don't know what you're looking for.
Why the Overworld feels so different now
Most people get into BYG because they want pretty scenery. They want the screenshot-worthy vistas. But once you start playing, you realize the biomes are categorized by "themes." You have the temperate areas that feel like home, and then you have the weird stuff.
🔗 Read more: Why the Ocarina of Time Fire Temple Master Quest Still Breaks People
Take the Aspen Forest. It’s bright. It’s crisp. It feels like autumn in Vermont. Then you stumble into the Cypress Marsh, and suddenly everything is murky, damp, and honestly a little claustrophobic. The variety isn't just visual; it’s atmospheric. One minute you’re in the Cherryl Boreal, which is basically a pink-tinted wonderland, and the next you’re lost in the Great Lakes, wondering if you’ll ever find dry land again.
The Oh The Biomes You'll Go biome list for the Overworld is where most players spend 90% of their time. It’s where the wood variety comes from. If you’re a builder, this mod is your best friend and your worst enemy because you now have twenty different shades of wood to choose from. Blue wood from the Mahogany trees? Check. Deep purple from the Jacaranda? You bet.
The Nether isn't just red anymore
Forget the "Nether Update" from Mojang for a second. While that was great, BYG takes the Underworld and turns it into a psychedelic fever dream.
You’ve got the Glowstone Gardens. It’s exactly what it sounds like, but more intense. Then there's the Subzero Hypogeum, which is basically a frozen wasteland inside a hellscape. It’s jarring. It’s confusing. It’s brilliant. Most players expect the Nether to be hot, but BYG throws a curveball by introducing biomes that look and feel cold, even if the mechanics of the dimension still want to melt your face off.
Then there is the Withered Abyss. It’s dark. It’s oppressive. If you’re looking for a challenge, that’s where you go to feel truly unwelcome. The modders clearly wanted to make the Nether feel like a place where you shouldn't survive for long. It’s not just a place to get Ancient Debris; it’s a place to explore.
Don't ignore the End
The End is usually the most boring part of Minecraft. Once you kill the dragon, it’s just beige islands and purple plants. BYG changes that entirely.
The Oh The Biomes You'll Go biome list extends into the third dimension with things like the Ethoreal Islands and the Visceral Heap. The names alone tell you that the developers were leaning into the "alien" vibe. The Ivis Fields are particularly striking, with a color palette that makes the End feel like a vibrant, living ecosystem rather than a dead void.
It changes the endgame loop. Instead of just flying with an Elytra until you find a city, you find yourself stopping to look at the trees. You start collecting End-specific resources that actually have a use in high-tier crafting or decoration.
👉 See also: Finding the Best Games to Play That Are Not Blocked Without Losing Your Mind
Finding specific biomes without losing your mind
If you’re playing on a server or a large pack, you can’t just walk 10,000 blocks hoping to find a Maple Taiga. You’ll die of boredom.
Most people use the Nature’s Compass mod alongside BYG. If you don't, you're basically playing blind. You open the compass, type in "BYG," and it’ll list every single biome currently loaded in your world. It tells you the coordinates and the distance.
Is it cheating? Some say yes. I say it’s a necessity when the Oh The Biomes You'll Go biome list is this long.
A few standouts you should look for:
- The Redwood Tropics: Massive trees. Tons of wood. Great for base building because you can live in the trees.
- The Zelkova Forest: Very green, very lush. It feels like a "Vanilla+" version of the game.
- The Shattered Glacier: If you like ice spikes but wish they were more dramatic, this is it. It's jagged and dangerous.
- The Allium Fields: Literally just flowers everywhere. It’s a frame-rate killer if your PC is a potato, but it’s gorgeous.
The Wood Type Dilemma
Here is something nobody talks about: the inventory clutter. Because the Oh The Biomes You'll Go biome list is so extensive, every biome has its own unique dirt, grass, wood, and stone variants.
If you go for a 20-minute walk, your inventory will be full of fifteen different types of logs. Palo Verde, Pine, Baobab, Embour, Cika. It’s a lot. You’ll need a backpack mod or a very organized storage system early on.
But the payoff? The palettes. If you’re tired of using Spruce for everything, the Ebony or Holly wood types provide stark blacks and whites that you just can't get in the base game. It changes the "meta" of building. You stop thinking in terms of "blocks" and start thinking in terms of "color theory."
Compatibility and the "World Type" Trap
One thing to watch out for is how you generate your world. In newer versions of Minecraft (1.18, 1.19, 1.20+), BYG integrates naturally with the standard "Default" world type. However, if you’re playing on older versions like 1.12.2 or 1.16.5, you often had to select "BIOMESOP" or a specific world type in the settings.
If you mess this up, you'll end up with a vanilla world and zero BYG biomes. Always check your world-gen settings before you commit 40 hours to a save file.
Also, keep an eye on TerraBlender. It’s a library mod that BYG (and many other biome mods) uses to actually inject its biomes into the world-gen shuffle. If your game is crashing or biomes aren't showing up, 9 times out of 10, it's a TerraBlender version mismatch.
Actionable Next Steps
To get the most out of the Oh The Biomes You'll Go biome list, follow these steps:
- Install Nature's Compass: Do not skip this. It is the only way to find specific BYG biomes without spending hours wandering.
- Check the Config: If you find a specific biome too annoying (like the ones that generate too much fog), you can actually disable them in the config files or tweak their rarity.
- Search by Wood Color: Instead of looking for a biome name, look at the BYG wiki or creative menu to find a wood color you like, then search for the corresponding biome.
- Pair with a Map Mod: Use JourneyMap or Xaero’s World Map. Seeing the biomes from a top-down perspective helps you identify the boundaries of things like the Skyris Highlands versus the White Mangrove.
- Focus on the Nether First: If you want a quick change of pace, head to the Nether. The BYG Nether biomes are much easier to find than specific Overworld ones because the dimension is smaller.
The mod is a beast. It’s heavy, it’s beautiful, and it completely changes the "feel" of Minecraft. Just make sure you have enough RAM allocated—8GB is usually the sweet spot for packs running this level of world-gen. Happy exploring.