Mojang Studios announced a brand-new mob coming to Minecraft during the second game drop of 2025, the Happy Ghast, which will bring flying mounts to the game for the first time.

As Burning Crusade did for World of Warcraft, the Happy Ghast will do for Minecraft. Mojang officially gave us a look at a new mob, the Happy Ghast, and not only is it adorable, but it will bring a whole new way to play Minecraft as the first flying mount. Mojang Studios brought CGMagazine down to Stockholm, Sweden, to go hands-on with the new Happy Ghast and Vibrant Visuals updates, and they didn’t disappoint.

Minecraft players will know all about the Ghast, a nasty mob that lives in the Nether. Well, now you can find what is best described by the Mojang team as a “dehydrated” Ghast in the Nether, but you can’t bring water in there. If you come across one of these grumpy Ghasts, called a Dried Ghast, lying on the ground, take out your pickaxe, scoop it up, and bring it to the Overworld, where you can dump a bucket of water on it and wait approximately 20 real-life minutes. You can also craft it with ghast tears and a bone block.

During those 20 minutes, you will see the grumpy guy’s face turn from a frown to a straight face to a smile, eventually turning into a Ghastling. These look like happier versions of the Ghasts in the Nether, and they don’t attack you. They can imprint on you and follow you around like other friendly mobs. Over time, Ghastlings will turn into Happy Ghasts, a much larger, chipper version of the Ghast.

Not only can the giant Happy Ghasts imprint on you, too, because who doesn’t want an army of giant cheerful ghosts following you around, but you can create a brand-new item called a Ghast Harness, which will allow up to four players to fly the Happy Ghast around. This is the first time that a flying mount will be introduced in Minecraft, and the team and Mojang seem really excited to not only see players’ reactions but also see how they use the new Happy Ghast flying mount.

“As the first flying mount in Minecraft, the Happy Ghast brings a whole new way to play the game.”

The Happy Ghasts won’t make you fly a million miles per hour. Once you place its harness on, it is more like a gentle glide. Harnesses can be made with wool to create different colours, and you will be able to label your new mount as well. The Harnesses gave me flying carpet vibes, acting as a large flat saddle. When you mount your Happy Ghast, you can check in and out from all angles. It is especially fun from the front, where you can see its aviator-style goggles and your tiny-in-comparison avatars on top.

Turning the Ghastling into a Happy Ghast can take some time, or you can speed up the process by feeding it snowballs. This process takes a lot of snow, and it feels like it isn’t working, but as long as you see small green twinkles, it is working. If the Ghastling moves too far, you will accidentally hit it with your snowball, and it makes the saddest sound. When not being hit, the Ghastlings and Happy Ghasts coo non-stop, so if you’re making a Happy Ghast farm, make sure it is somewhere you won’t mind noise!

There are some things to consider as you get ready for the Happy Ghast flying mount update in Minecraft. First, there are some rules before you can get to it. Players must have made it to the Nether, but The End is not necessary. You can also find Ghasting spawn eggs in creative mode, both the little guys so you can hydrate them yourself or the hydrated versions you can turn into a Happy Ghast.

We don’t have official details on when the Happy Ghast will go live as the second game drop of 2025, but one thing is for sure: flying in Minecraft will be a game changer.