You've conquered lands near and far, built a house, and discovered remote villages in the Overworld. You have been captivated by the picturesque landscapes and conquered by the adorable animals of Minecraft. There are times, however, when you wonder if this is as good as life is?
You want more from your virtual life than endless crafting and mining projects. You are still looking for that special spark. Danger is calling you. Do you dare to answer his call?
Enter the Nether and find out if you have what it takes to brave the Nether's hearths and storm its castles, or "fortresses."
Before you go, though, keep reading to find out how to find a Nether Fortress and what you need to do to prepare for it. The Nether is no place for the faint of heart, so get ready for the ultimate adventure.
How to prepare to enter a Nether Fortress in Minecraft?
Many intrepid adventurers have ventured into the Nether unprepared and lost their lives. Don't let bravado be your downfall. Check out the list below and start your adventure on the right foot:
1. Create a portal
The Nether is a realm that exists beneath the idyllic landscape and rolling hills of the regular Minecraft map. Getting there isn't as easy as fast-traveling or riding a horse. You are going to have to do an extraordinary thing to visit this extraordinary world.
You're going to need a portal.
Luckily, building a portal is relatively simple and only requires Obsidian – lots of it, Steel and Flint. You can find obsidian in different places in the Overworld, such as:
- Woodland Mansions, inside secret rooms on the 2nd or 3rd floors
- Deep ravines and caves, areas where water and lava meet. To mine obsidian, you will need a diamond pickaxe.
- Ruined portals
You can also find Obsidian Blocks by looting or trading with Piglins. If you choose the latter route, you have an 8,71% chance of receiving an Obsidian Block.
Regardless of how you gather your Obsidian resources, keep in mind that you will need 10 blocks to create a basic portal. You will also need steel and flint to light it.
Once you have the Obsidian Blocks, find a nice spot to build your portal frame. You can look online to see other players' fancy portal setups, but you don't need them to reach the Nether. Simply place two blocks top and bottom and three blocks to form the sides. It should look like a "door" when you're done.
When you're ready to activate it, grab the flint and steel and light it on fire. You'll know you're ready for interdimensional travel when you see a purple, translucent, vaguely liquid goo filling the doorway.
2. Gather / craft armor and weapons
Before entering the Nether, make sure you have the right gear to fight its harsh environment. Your gear may vary depending on your character level and available resources, but you should include:
· A sword
Material: iron, diamond, netherite
Enchantments: Smite, Sharpen, Loot (optional), Unbreakable (optional)
· A bow
Material: all
Enchantments: Unbreakable, Power, Infinite (optional)
· arrows
Equipment: any, spectral arrows (optional)
Enchantments: N/A
· Pickaxes
Material: stone, diamond/iron (optional)
Enchantments: Unbreakable and Efficiency (for Diamond/Iron Axes)
· Armor
Material: diamond or gold (if possible)
Enchantments: protection, fire protection, feather drop (boots), unbreakable (armor), thorns
· Miscellaneous resources
You must also bring various resources like cobblestones to build stairs, stone tools or blocked passages. Try to bring at least a few bags of cobblestones – more if you have them.
Additionally, you will need a lot of torches or torch crafting materials in your Nether adventure. You can use them for a variety of things, like limiting monster spawns in areas you've already cleared or marking explored areas.
It's a good idea to include water buckets and a cauldron in your inventory if you have them. They are good for clearing lava and putting you out if you are on fire.
3. Eat lunch
You can probably include "food" in the "miscellaneous resources" section of the checklist, but it's an important part of any adventure and deserves its own section.
As this is your primary healing element, you should include as many highly nutritious foods as possible. Consider including Steaks and Cooked Pork Chops in your inventory arsenal.
Golden apples can be a good idea to bring too if you have them. They aren't essential, but they can help save you in tough fights.
4. Create a temporary base kit
Creating a temporary base in the Nether is a great way to ensure you can create larger resources if needed. Consider bringing key components like a Furnace, Chest, and even a Crafting Table for your trip. Also bring some extra logs if you have them. Nether has wood, but you can't use it as fuel, and you can't make charcoal out of it.
You can also bring additional supplies to create another portal, especially if you find yourself in a stronghold far from your base. Portal crafting supplies are optional, but it can save you a long trip back to your home portal to the Overworld.
5. Bring Fire Resistance Potions
Are you ready to ignite your world? Otherwise, you may need Fire Resistance Potions or Splash Potions to counter any fire hazards you encounter in the Nether. You can trade for potions or brew them yourself.
Since brewing these potions requires an ingredient found in the Nether, you probably won't be brewing them for your first trip. However, you can bring all the ingredients needed to brew them once you are in the kingdom.
How to find Nether Fortresses in Minecraft?
Finding a Nether Fortress is harder than it looks. You could walk thousands of miles in different directions and never see one. It's even worse if you're playing Minecraft with the 1.16 Nether update, as the developers have moved the apparent distance between each stronghold even further.
Unfortunately, short of using a command code and enabling cheats, there's no easy way to find a stronghold in the Nether. However, you can make your search a little easier with the tips below:
- Look for structures that stand out from ordinary colored blocks. Fortresses are usually made of dark red bricks.
- Save time and ride surveyors through the Nether Seas to get a closer look at the other shore.
- If you have cheats enabled, use the /locate stronghold command for the coordinates of the nearest stronghold.
- Change your render settings to see further.
Nether fortresses can be tricky to find, but watch for the telltale signs of a nearby fortress. Withered skeletons, flames, and nether bricks may be signs of a stronghold behind the Netherrack.
Inside the Nether Fortress in Minecraft
Once you find a Nether Fortress, make sure you have all the supplies you need to fight your way through it and gather resources efficiently. If you don't have access to high-level supplies, make sure you have at least an iron sword, a stone pickaxe, and plenty of food.
Explore the fortress thoroughly. You might not find much in some fortresses, but sometimes you can get lucky and find a plantation of nether warts. They are usually behind a flame generator or a staircase.
Also watch out for fading skeletons.
They can be scary at first, but remember they are incredibly slow moving. These bony enemies also can't cross a 2 block high passage, so it's easy to form barriers.
If you find a fortress that you would like to use for farming, consider building a portal there. Having a portal in a stronghold saves you time when you want to mine Nether resources and gives you a quick way to get back to the Overworld.
Additional FAQs
How deep is a Nether Fortress?
Nether fortresses are generally made up of two levels: bridges and corridors.
The bridges have lanes five blocks wide and framed by a one block high wall. If a fortress is embedded in the netherrack, the bridges appear as tunnels instead.
Corridors, on the other hand, spawn with 3 x 3 walkways surrounded by Nether bricks. They also have 2 x 1 nether brick fences that act as "windows" for the structure.
These fortresses are easily overlooked if your elevation is too high or you are level with the lava below them. Luckily, in either case, you can look for other stronghold indicators like wither skeletons and nether bricks that point to a nearby structure.
Where are Nether Fortresses born in Minecraft?
Nether Fortresses spawn in all Nether biomes. The trick is to find a grid/region that has one.
Generally, each region of the Nether can only spawn one of two structures. You will find either a fortress or a remnant of a bastion. If you've come across a stronghold remnant during your wanderings, you'll need to venture into another area to find a fortress.
To help you visualize these regions, think of them this way:
• Regions consist of 432 x 432 blocks (Java) or 480 x 480 blocks (Bedrock).
• Each region has a block of 4 on the eastern and southern borders to spawn structures.
With these numbers in mind, you only need to cover a 368 x 368 (Java) or 416 x 416 (Bedrock) section of the region where possible structures can spawn.
Some players say they can find fortresses if they follow the north/south axis of the Nether. They are supposed to generate every 200-400 blocks. However, other players prefer to research fortresses organically through exploration.
The Needle in the Nether
Most players have trouble locating a Nether Fortress, especially if it's their first Nether jaunt. The best thing you can do for yourself is to be patient. Even if you think you have enough, it is better to bring a little more because you will be wandering around for a while.
How long did it take you to find a Nether Fortress? Tell us about it in the comments section below.
