The new Trial Chambers in Minecraft brings a fresh new activity to what has otherwise been quite a stale mid-game for a great many years now, and it's a welcome change indeed. However, aside from the typical Trials one might find, there are also the "Ominous" Trials. So, what are these?
What are Ominous Trials in Minecraft?
Ominous Trials are a variation of the regular Trials in Trial Chambers. They offer a much greater challenge but also much better rewards for those brave enough to beat them. Mobs spawned in one of these Trials will be much more challenging opponents, with Zombies and Skeletons wearing more armor than normal (typically even enchanted) and the Trial Spawner itself even blasting you with potions and projectiles.
As with regular Trial Spawners, besting the mobs from one of these has a chance to spawn an Ominous Key whilst on cooldown, although this is not a guarantee, and you may have to fight through multiple waves.
Once you've got your key, you'll have to find an Ominous Vault to be able to claim your spoils. Note that Ominous Vaults are typically more hidden away than regular Vaults, so you'll have to give the place a proper look through first.
How to start an Ominous Trial in Minecraft
In order to start an Ominous Trial in Minecraft, you'll need to first get the Bad Omen debuff. This is the same debuff that is used to start raids in Villages, and you get it from slaying a Pillager Captain (The ones who carry those big daft looking banners around), and collecting the new Ominous Bottles they carry with them.
Drinking one of these will give you Bad Omen, which can be used in a Trial Chamber to transform the regular Trial Spawners into Ominous Trial Spawners.
All Minecraft Ominous Vault Rewards
As with all loot-based rewards in Minecraft, it all comes down to a loot table with Ominous Vaults. The table has drop chance weights stacked more in your favor than regular ones and even some rewards unique to them. We've compiled a helpful loot table for you below.
| Item | Drop Chance |
|---|---|
| Emerald (4-10) | 54.9% |
| Wind Charge (8-12) | 46.2% |
| Arrow of Slowness IV (4-12) | 36.4% |
| Diamond (2-3) | 25.5% |
| Nothing | 25% |
| Flow Armor Trim | 22.5% |
| Enchanted Golden Apple | 22.5% |
| Block of Emerald | 18.2% |
| Flow Banner Pattern | 15% |
| Ominous Bottle III-V | 13.4% |
|
| |
| Enchanted Crossbow | 12.1% |
| Block of Iron | 12.1% |
| Golden Apple | 12.1% |
| Enchanted Diamond Axe | 9.1% |
| Enchanted Diamond Chestplate | 9.1% |
| Music Disc (Creator) | 7.5% |
| Heavy Core | 7.5% |
| Enchanted Book (Breach or Density) | 6.1% |
| Enchanted Book (Sharpness, Bane of Arthropods, Efficiency, Fortune, Silk Touch or Feather Falling) | 6.1% |
| Enchanted Book (Windburst) | 3% |
| Diamond Block | 0.8% |
If you've found this guide helpful and are looking for some more Minecraft content from us here at Pro Game Guides, check out our list of the Best Trial Chamber Seeds or our guide on How to Find and Start Trial Chambers!
