W DO RA UB PP LE IN -SI G DE PA D PE CH R R + S IS TI TM CK AS ER S
VOLUME 8 CHRISTMAS 2015
CRAFT THE PERFECT CHRISTMAS
stampy speaks
Baubles! Stockings! Gingerbread!
YouTube star reveals exclusive tips & tricks!
REDSTONE MASTERED!
FANTASTIC FESTIVE MODS 12 DAYS OF MINECRAFT CHRISTMAS BUILDS TO TRY
Brilliant builds to transform your game
Yule love it!
MINECRAFT MERCH GUIDE
STORY MODE EXPLAINED
SPECIAL 17
PRINTED IN THE UK
£12.99
Contents KNOW YOUR BIOMES
NEWS build to rule them all 07 One
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07
Epic build recreates The Shire from Lord of the Rings. Baggsy Bag End!
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Flower Forest
made in minecraft 08 pokemon
Have a Pikachu at this working version of Pokemon Red, made in Minecraft
lets you step inside minecraft 10 oculus
Oculus finally confirms Minecraft will work on their wonderful VR headset
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Ice Plains
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STAMPY longhead longhead special 16 stampy
The massive YouTube star shares his video secrets and toughest challenges
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Mineshaft
top ten minecraft tips 22 stampy’s
We chat to the YouTube legend as he shares his top ten tips for success 16
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Black Forest
expand your game Masterclass 88 Minecraft
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The biggest and best community builds and top tips for Minecraft success!
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Deep Ocean
projects to transform your game 92 redstone Master Minecraft’s most powerful tool with our superb step-by-step guides
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Minecraft: Story Mode
Why you should try the game-changing Minecraft spin-off
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River 04
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FESTIVE FUN the perfect minecraft christmas 26 craft
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Craft your own real-life Minecraft gingerbread, baubles and stocking!
Beach
merriest minecraft mods 40 8christmas Festive mods to give your game a warm, cosy glow this holiday season
TWELVE DAYS OF CHRISTMAS 50 minecraft’s
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What happens when you recreate the famous festive ditty in Minecraft?
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Village 40
Christmas building challenge
Make Minecraft merry with this selection of cheery Chrimbo builds!
festive maps 68 15adventure
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Get set for frosty fun with our guide to Minecraft’s best advent adventures
to THROW A Minecraft PARTY 78 how
Stronghold
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Birthdays, Christmas or New Year’s Eve here’s how to make your party complete!
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Mesa
BEYOND MINECR AFt minecraft 106 10toalternatives
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Swamp
A shiny selection of titles to scratch your crafting itch if you ever tire of Minecraft
other masterpiece 114 mojang’s
We know them for best Minecraft, but Cobalt could be Mojang’s hidden diamond
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Hills
MINECR AFT MERCH minecraft pc is right for you? 112 which
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Find your ideal Minecraft rig with our handy guide to the best tech out there
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essential minecraft gift guide
A selection of the greatest Minecraft goodies to pop on your Christmas list
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The Cat’s Whiskers
Get to know the YouTube superstar better with our smashing Stampy special 16
PRESENTS MINECRAFT
MEET STAMPY
Yes, even cats can wear diamond armour
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hances are, if you’re reading this gloriously chunky Minecraft bookazine, you know who Stampy is. You’ve watched his videos, shared his adventures, perhaps even bought his lovely book. But for anyone who doesn’t play Minecraft, he’s a bit of a mystery. Many folk could easily stroll past Stampy in the street, unaware they almost rubbed shoulders with a YouTube superstar; a man who gets more YouTube
stampy facts He’s one of YouTube’s biggest stars, but how much do we really know about Stampy? Well, rather a lot, actually. Below is a list of some fascinating Stampy tidbits, including his rise to stardom, spin-off channels and motivation. For ease, we refer to Stampy and Joseph as the same person - it can get confusing with all those names!
hits than many successful pop stars, with a legion of dedicated, block-bashing followers. Many mainstream newspapers and websites run bemused stories, struggling to understand why we tune in to watch hours of pretend things being built in a virtual world. Of course, anyone who’s watched Stampy’s videos - or played Minecraft themselves - will know why. That’s why the next few pages are dedicated to Stampy, whose real name is Joseph Garrett. We were lucky enough to interview him, and naturally we asked him for
all his closely guarded YouTube secrets: they might not be enough to propel us to internet superstardom, but his top ten tips are still a smashing place to start. Whether it’s YouTube tips, Stampy’s favourite Minecraft block or his proudest achievements, we’ve got you covered. On top of that, we’ve also got a list of essential Stampy facts that everyone should know - some familiar, others less so. If you’re already a fan, slice yourself a whopping great piece of cake, sit back and enjoy; if not, hopefully we can convince you to give Stampy’s lovely channel a look.
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Stampy’s channel is one of the fastest growing channels of any genre. He currently averages around 3,500 new subscribers every single day - more than enough to fill Wembley Stadium every month.
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His daily views are pretty darn impressive, too. His videos average over four million daily views - that’s way more than the entire population of Berlin, or all of Georgia, in a single day!
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Jingle Bell Blocks Your building guide to a merry Minecraft Christmas
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FESTIVE FUN
Build yourself a giant Creeper Christmas Cracker – and no paper hat!
h, Christmas. It’s that wonderful time of year when the world takes a day off just to relax. Endermen lay down their blocks and pick up baubles; skeletons swap bows and arrows for bows on presents; zombies toddle back into their caves to watch a spot of Christmas telly (we reckon probably EastEnders, because they like a bit of drama). Why not chill out for the day? Why not switch off Survival Mode, and go and mess about in Creative Mode
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GINGERBREAD HOUSE/ FORTRESS
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with some Christmas creations. You can stroll through the snow biomes, or the ice plains, and be inspired to build by our three holly-jolly how-to building guides. We’ll show you how to make a Gingerbread House/Fortress, a scene from The Lion, The Witch And The Wardrobe, and a Creeper Christmas Cracker. Go ahead and alter the designs as much as you want to – let’s see how Christmassy you can make your Minecraft world! First person to jam a Santa hat onto a creeper’s head earns our infinite respect and admiration…
THE LION, THE WITCH AND THE WARDROBE
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CREEPER CHRISTMAS CRACKER
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There
ain’t no
party Like a
Minecraft
party Follow our top tips to host a soirée worthy of Steve himself – both in and out of the game 78
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E veryone loves a good get-together, whether the occasion is Christmas, New Year’s Eve or just your average Thursday afternoon. And seeing as a) it’s party season and b) you can recreate anything you darn well fancy in Minecraft, why not throw a party of your own? Read on and you’ll find we’ve got you covered with everything from how to set the mood with some funky decor to games and activities to keep everyone amused – not to mention how to recreate that iconic red-and-white cake for yourself. Nom! But first, however, there’s an important thing to consider. Would you want a bunch of creeps turning up to your party in real life? Of course not. Nobody wants their do gatecrashed by a bunch of thugs, so it’s worth turning the difficulty right down to Peaceful to ensure that you’re not going to get ambushed by hostile mobs. Creepers are just virtual creeps, after all, and party planning is stressful enough as it is (just ask anyone who’s ever been on My Super Sweet 16). If you fancy a challenge, try piecing together all of your party setup in Survival Mode. You might be free of hostile mobs, but you’ll still have to work for that success. If it all proves a bit much, though, there’s no shame in switching to Creative Mode, where everything is at your fingertips – just think of it as making a run to the supermarket, but with more digging… So, to get your pals involved, make sure you’ve set your world to Online during setup, and then send out your invites. The most important thing, though? Have fun!
FESTIVE FUN
Decoration Lighting If you want your party to carry on until the small hours of the morning, you’ll need to spare a thought for your lighting requirements. Sure, torches do the basic job when it comes to illuminating the darkness, but unless you’re going for a medieval – or uncomfortably romantic – theme, there’s something a little basic and rougharound-the edges about them. Our solution? Glowstone. Each of these blocks emits more light than a torch and – unlike redstone lamp – doesn’t require a power source. We think they look super-stylish set into the ground, and you can even make a feature of them by putting some in the centre of your floor, surrounded by other colourful blocks such as emerald and lapis lazuli.
Sculpture Nothing says ‘I have made a colossal effort to welcome you to my shindig’ to your guests more than a bespoke piece of sculpture somewhere in full view. After all, you’ve cared enough to create a piece of artwork specifically for their viewing pleasure. If you’re struggling for ideas, how about a giant, Hollywood-esque PARTY sign? After all, it’ll make it perfectly clear to your friends exactly where the, errr, party’s at – and serve as a useful homing beacon for anyone who wanders too far afield. If you craft it out of blocks of redstone lamp, and then affix a redstone block to the back of each, it’ll also glow at night, adding to the already cool ambience. Groovy.
Coloured sheep Balloons are boring, right? Also, they’re not actually available in Minecraft, so it’s time for some lateral thinking. It’s easy to round up a herd of sheep by waving a sheaf of wheat in front of them – at which point the adorable idiots will follow wherever you lead without the slightest clue they’re about to be turned into fluffy four-legged decorations. Once you’ve got them where you want them, erect a fence around the perimeter of your party space to keep them from wandering off – and put plenty of gates in, so you keep the fun in without keeping anyone out. Then, just choose a shade and dye them to suit your theme. Oh, and because they’re only pixelated sheep, it doesn’t even count as animal cruelty! Result!
Flowers Elton John would never so much as dream of hosting a party without an entire meadow’s worth of flowers present. Granted, you are not Elton John (or so we presume, at least – our apologies if we’re wrong on that front, Sir Elton), but you are aiming to host a party to rival his in the fabulousness stakes. So: flowers are a must and, what’s more, they’re one of the easiest decorations to keep your bash looking brilliant. Simply place flowerpots at intervals around your venue, and then fill them with flowers, roses or cacti – the choice is yours. If you’re going for a garden party vibe, you can of course plant straight into the ground, but why not make it look like you’ve made a little extra effort, eh?
Fireworks Do you want your party to fizzle out, or close with a bang? The latter, obviously. The perfect way to do this is with fireworks – after all, who doesn’t love to ‘ooh!’ and ‘aah!’ away at the pretty colours in the sky before they call it a night? There are various types and colours of rocket to make, so our tip is to line them all up in your toolbar in order of burn time – from longest to shortest. Deploy each before quickly scrolling on to the next, and you should manage to time them to go off simultaneously, giving your friends a beautiful shower of sparks to gaze upon.
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SWAMP LAND Y
ou can tell swamplands not just by the darker tone of grass and obvious watery-ness, but also by the abundance of lilly pads and vines growing all over the shop. Ideal for finding sugarcanes, smaller clay deposits and mushrooms, this sea-level biome also has a chance to spawn a witch’s hut: perfect for getting your hands on witch loot, including the occasional potion. Watch out for slimes, though. They spawn like it’s out of fashion here at night, which can make a midnight stroll an experience to forget.
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If you’re setting up a farm it might be worth gathering a few lily pads first. They’re great for crossing water surfaces quickly without having to build full and complicated bridges.
KNOW YOUR BIOMES
Full moon in the sky? Not now, but beware later: slimes are even more likely to spawn and make your life a misery.
Slimes aren’t all bad. Sure they can see through blocks and split into two more mobs upon death, but grab some slimeballs from them and you can craft leads, magma creams and sticky pistons.
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MERCH-CrAFT The very best Minecraft loot you can buy
Might Mini Figures £2.99 These tiny figures are awesome for two reasons: 1) They’re blind boxes, so you don’t know which one you’re going to get - if you unwrapped one of these cubes on Christmas morning you’d get a double surprise; and 2) You won’t need loads of shelf space to get a good collection going… Though there’s always the chance you’ll end up with three of the same Minecart Steves, so finding friends to swap with might be a good idea. www.amzn. to/1LDWXpV
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BARGAIN BUY!
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Custom EnderToy Figure From £9.99 This might have to be the coolest Minecraft toy we’ve ever seen. Yes it’s a simple figure, but it’s also a completely customisable one. Want a collectible version of your favourite Minecraft YouTuber? Yep, they’ve got it. But the best thing of all is that if you put in your own username you can make a toy of yourself. Yes, you. Eeek! That’s a pretty cool thing! https://seuscraft.com/store
MAKE YOURSELF!
The great Minecraft bake off Want to make your own Minecraft cookies? Well why don’t you try this tasty recipe… Ingredients: 250g softened butter 140g caster sugar 1 egg yolk 2tsp vanilla extract 300g plain Flour
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Carefully cream all of the butter and sugar together until they are completely combined. Next, add the egg and vanilla extract and thoroughly mix them in. Sift and add the flour bit by bit until you have a smooth dough. Don’t be afraid to use your hands to bring it all together at the end.
Preheat your oven to 1800c (or 1600c for fan ovens) and while you wait for it to heat up, wrap the dough in cling film and put it in the fridge to chill. This will help stop the shape from splodging out when you bake it.
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Line a baking tray with greaseproof paper then take out your dough. Roll to about 1cm thickness then cut out your shapes. Arrange them on your baking tray, and make sure there’s plenty of space around each biscuit.
Cookie cutters £17.99 Make tasty, filling snacks for your Minecraft sessions with these appropriately shaped cookie cutters. They work really well with a simple sugar biscuit recipe, and while it can be a bit fiddly to get the dough out of the thin bits on the weapons, they hold their shape really well. All they need is plenty of green icing. www.bit.ly/1HymPjk
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Place them in the oven for 10-12 minutes, or until they are just turning golden brown at the edges, then remove from the oven and transfer them to a wire rack until they’re completely cool.
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For the icing, mix together 300-400g of icing sugar with 3-4 tablespoons of water, then add a few drops of food colouring in your desired colours. Make sure the biscuits are definitely cool, and then ice your biscuits. If they’re still warm the icing will slide right off. And nobody wants that.
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MINECR AFT MERCHANDISE
ith so much Minecraft merchandise out there these days it can be hard to figure out just what is worth spending your money on and what’s worth skipping. That’s where we come in! We’ve separated the confusing lapis lazuli trash from the sparkling sapphire treasures to bring you the ultimate collection of Minecraft loot that you’d be proud to display on your shelves. As well as some more extravagant items we’ve also got plenty of bargain buys for those on a budget, too. And with Christmas coming up there are sure to be a few things here that are worth putting onto your wishlists, so perhaps it’s worth leaving the magazine open on these pages in strategic places around the house in order to give friends or family a not-so-subtle hint…
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