Minecraft Pixel Art Block Palette Guide

What a Minecraft block palette controls

A block palette is the set of eligible Minecraft blocks the converter may use for a generated design. During mapping, each non-empty design cell is assigned from the blocks you selected. Changing that set can change both the preview and the resulting material list even when the source image and Width stay the same.

Palette selection is therefore both a visual decision and a build planning decision. The useful palette is not automatically the largest one; it is the set of blocks that gives you an acceptable result and a material list you can source.

The current reviewed Pixel Art palette

The current production tool supports 49 reviewed Pixel Art blocks for Minecraft Java Edition 1.21.5. They are grouped into the Concrete, Wool, and Terracotta families.

Concrete

16 eligible blocks

Wool

16 eligible blocks

Terracotta

17 eligible blocks

This is the current release palette, not a claim that every Minecraft block or version is supported. The reviewed catalog and its block availability are version-specific.

Start broad when you are exploring

The tool initially selects all eligible blocks. This gives the mapper the complete current reviewed set and is useful for a first preview. Generate once, inspect which materials are actually used, and decide whether that list fits the build.

A broad palette can provide more candidate matches, but it may also use blocks from several families. It does not guarantee that every selected block appears in the result; the material counts show the blocks the generated design actually uses.

Use Quick Select for a family-only result

Choosing a Concrete, Wool, or Terracotta Quick Select replaces the current selection with that family. This is a direct way to test a material constraint without changing the source image or Width.

1. Generate with the full reviewed palette.
2. Record the main materials and overall readability.
3. Choose one family with Quick Select and generate again.
4. Compare the preview and material list before choosing the version to build.

Refine the palette one block at a time

Individual block checkboxes remain editable after a Quick Select. Use them to remove materials you cannot source or to add eligible blocks from another family. At least one eligible block must remain selected before the tool can generate.

• Remove a block when its material is unavailable for your build.
• Keep the comparison fair by leaving the image and Width unchanged while testing palette edits.
• Re-generate after every selection change; the previous preview is marked out of date until a new design is created.
• Judge the new material counts together with the visual result.

Read counts as the final palette result

The selected palette defines what the mapper may use. The generated material list tells you what it did use. Plan from the final counts, not from the number of eligible blocks or the size of the family you selected.

If the design uses too many materials, remove blocks deliberately and compare again. If important image regions lose definition, restore useful candidates or reconsider the Width. Palette and size work together, but changing one setting at a time makes the tradeoff clear.

Continue with the complete conversion workflow

Palette selection is one stage of a larger process. For source-image preparation, sizing, Grid review, and build planning, read How to Turn an Image into Minecraft Pixel Art.