Updated end/stronghold progression

My problem with the elytra is that it seems too OP in a way that it doesn't feel late game anymore. People are speed running the end in an hour. The ender dragon fight is a bit easy and the progression to reach the end seems too linear. Here is my idea to fix it: 

The answer was already introduced in minecraft 1.20: Armour trims. These trims let the player explore various parts and structures of the minecraft world(s), in order to obtain an item that lets them customize their gear aesthetically wise. Nothing functionally.

What if this were to change. What if obtaining all (or some) armour trims are necessary to "unlock" the end. This way the player is encouraged to explore various parts of the minecraft world(s). That way "the end" stands actually more true to its name.

A way this could be done is by adding a second item to the minecraft end portal block, in order to activate it. Not only do they need an eye of ender, but also a specific armour trim corresponding to the block.

There are 12 end portal blocks and 16 armour trims. 1 of the trims is found in ancient cities (extremely rare) and one of them is found in the end (so that one can't be used) so there is still some variability about which ones are needed for the end

Another cool feature would be the randomness and perhaps "luck". Some of them might already be filled, resulting in a different set of trims that need to be found, resulting in a less lineair progression and custom experience for each player