Not long ago, the Glow Squid, Moobloom, and Iceologer were announced as three contenders for the next mob to be added to Minecraft. Rather than make this decision on their own, Mojang Studios saw fit to put it up to a fan vote. By the end of this process, the Glow Squid reigned supreme and it was made clear that this mob, originally from Minecraft Earth, would be added to the main game. Since then, certain snapshots and other experimental updates have added the Glow Squid in some capacity, but the mob is now fully in the main version of the game.
As part of this update, players also gained access to a new item. Just like regular Squids in Minecraft drop Ink Sacs, the Glow Squid drops a Glow Ink Sac. This is a very cool new addition to the game, but most players probably aren't familiar just yet with what they are used for.
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The Glow Ink Sac has two primary uses. At a crafting table, players can combine one Glow Ink Sac and one Item Frame to create a Glow Item Frame. The recipe for this is shapeless, so players don't have to worry about placing the items in any specific order or pattern. The Glow Item Frame works identically to the regular Item Frame but with the exception that any item placed inside of it will be illuminated even in the dark. This can allow for some neat effects and gives players a chance to display items in areas that are typically dark. It's worth noting that this doesn't actually give off a light source, so players could use it while growing mushrooms for example.
On the other hand, if players approach a sign and use a Glow Ink Sac on it, the sign's writing will become illuminated. This will help to make sure that players can still see the writing on signs even in dark areas. Potential applications for this would be creating a path through a dark cave without worrying about lighting it up or placing signs on chests in a storage room that has no light source. This works with dyed signs as well, and players can use a regular Ink Sac to revert it back to normal.
At the moment, these are the only things that players can use Glow Ink Sacs for. Harvesting them is the same as harvesting regular Ink Sacs, as players will simply need to find and kill the new Glow Squid mobs.
Minecraft is available now on Mobile, PC, PS4, Switch, and Xbox One.