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Why disable swimming?
Swimming was added in the Aquatic Update (1.13), completely changing how you interact with water.
Before swimming, water required planning. You moved slowly underwater, had limited visibility, and crossing large bodies of water meant building boats, constructing bridges, or navigating around coastlines. Water created natural boundaries that shaped your exploration and play sessions.
With swimming, you can dive down, move faster than your walking speed when underwater, and cross oceans easily (especially with dolphins). Water transforms from a barrier into another movement option.
How you used to play
If you played before 1.13, think about encountering your first large lake or ocean. You probably looked for a way around, built a bridge, or crafted a boat. You didn't just jump in, because it wasn't efficient. That planning was fundamentally part of the gameplay loop.
Water made you think creatively and made large distances meaningful. Crossing water required preparation and consideration.
No Swimming
This data pack disables swimming by applying blindness very briefly when you go underwater. There's a slight flicker, but it prevents the swimming animation and speed boost. When you get no benefit from swimming, you quickly learn not to bother.
When you can't swim, bridges become priorities for regular water crossings. You can't just dive into any body of water and navigate it easily. Water returns to requiring deliberate planning rather than being another travel route.
When combined Expensive Boats, you're confined to a smaller area to start with, and water travel is unlocked in the late-game instead of after your third block of wood.
Best when used with No Sprinting, making exploration a deliberate decision.
