Complete your Minecraft journey from building a simple base to slaying the Ender Dragon! Learn what to do first, what objectives you'll need to complete, and how to beat the game with our walkthrough!

Walkthrough and Progression Guide

Objectives Summary

	Objectives
1	Make a starter base
2	Mine some Raw Iron
3	Get a Diamond Pickaxe
4	Mine for Obsidian
5	Dive into the Nether
6	Find a Nether Fortress
7	Farm Ender Pearls
8	Find a Stronghold
9	Enter the End Portal and defeat the Ender Dragon

Make a starter base

Gather some logs

The first thing that you need to do is to set up a simple base complete with the necessities for surviving. Start gathering logs by punching trees around you.

Use wooden planks to build a base

Use these logs to create wooden planks, which you'll be using to build your new home. Find a nice spot where resources like wood and stone are accessible, then start placing the planks.

Craft a Crafting Table and a Wooden Pickaxe

Next step is to create a Crafting Table for... crafting. This block is where all the magic begins and you'll be using it throughout your journey. Craft some Sticks and through the Crafting Table, craft a Wooden Pickaxe so you can mine stones.

Craft other necessities

Make sure your starter base has a Door and enough lighting using Torches to keep mobs away. Also give it a big enough room where you can place a Furnace (for smelting), a Large Chest (for storing items), and a Bed (for setting respawn points and skipping time).

Mine some Raw Iron

You're done on the "craft" part, for now, so it's time to do the "mine" part. Craft a Stone Pickaxe, head out to the nearest cave, or create your own, then start digging down until you reach layer 16. You can check your coordinates by pressing F3 for Java edition players or typing /gamerule showcoordinates true for Bedrock edition players.

Once you reach the said layer, start digging horizontally to find some Raw Iron. Your goal is to mine enough Raw Iron to craft a full Iron Armor and an Iron Pickaxe—a surprise tool that will help us later.

Take note that you need to smelt the Raw Iron using the Furnace first and turn them into Iron Ingots before you can use them to craft armor and tools.

1.18 Ore Distribution

Get a Diamond Pickaxe

After setting up your base, finding a steady food source, and gearing up, it's time to dig deeper into the Overworld to find Diamonds. Craft some more Iron Pickaxes and torches, then dig down until you reach any Y-level between-54 and -59. This is an ideal level range to setup an underground base and look for Diamond Ores.

Same as before with Iron, you'd want to gather enough Diamonds to craft a full set of Diamond Armor and a Diamond Pickaxe.

Best Way to Mine Diamonds

Mine for Obsidian

The fastest way to get Obsidian is to pour a Water Bucket into a Lava block then mine the resulting Obsidian block with a Diamond Pickaxe. Lava lakes are usually found on levels close to where Diamond Ores are generated.

You need at least 10 Obsidian Blocks for the next step.

Dive into the Nether

Craft a Flint and Steel

Now that you have what you need to build the portal frame, next step is to find the tool that can activate it. There are a few other ways to turn on a Nether portal, but using a Flint and Steel is the easiest way by far.

Flint is obtained by breaking Gravel blocks, commonly found near bodies of water. You can repeatedly mine a single Gravel block until it drops a Flint.

Craft the Flint and an Iron Ingot together to get the Flint and Steel tool.

Build a Nether Portal

You're about to leave the Overworld and dive into the Nether. Make sure you're fully prepared before entering as the Nether is home to much more dangerous mobs than the ones you've encountered so far.

Create a 4x5 frame using Obsidian (the four corners are not needed) then light up the inner part of the frame using Flint and Steel. Enter the portal by walking into the purple haze at the center.

★ Nether Preparation Checklist ★
Wear a full set of Diamond Armor Craft an Iron Sword (or better) Craft a Bow and some Arrows Bring extra blocks for creating paths Bring at least 10 Obsidian blocks and a Flint and steel for a quick return to the Overworld Don't forget your Diamond Pickaxe

Find a Nether Fortress

Upon arriving in the Nether, the next thing that you should look for is a Nether Fortress. These areas are difficult to find and set foot on as they're usually generated on lava oceans.

Your main objective is to defeat Blazes swarming inside the fortress and get Blaze Rods. We recommend getting at least 10 Blaze Rods.

Farm Ender Pearls

Phew. That was intense. Feel free to take a break before starting this step if you need to.

You probably already ran into some weird forests on your way to a Nether Fortress. Those biomes are called Warped Forests and they're where you should head to next. Take down some Endermen that spawn in these areas and grab at least 10 Ender Pearls.

Once you've gathered enough Blaze Rods and Ender Pearls, get out of there and return to your home.

Find a Stronghold

Craft Eyes of Ender

One does not simply find a Stronghold. To complete this task, you need to craft Eyes of Ender using Ender Pearls and Blaze Powder. Blaze Powder can be crafted from the Blaze Rods you picked up.

Use the Eyes of Ender to locate a Stronghold

While holding the Eyes of Ender, press the "Use" button to make an eye float towards the nearest Stronghold. Follow this direction, while using more eyes if needed, until you locate the Stronghold. The eyes will fly downwards when you're directly above a Stronghold so dig your way down when that happens.

Note: There's a chance that the eye will break after floating so be careful not to use up all your Eyes of Ender as you will need a few to activate the End Portal. You will have to go back to the Nether and farm more materials if you lack the required number of eyes.

Enter the End portal and defeat the Ender Dragon

Activate the End Portal

Once you're inside a Stronghold, you'll have to explore the dungeon until you find the End Portal. After finding it, slot Eyes of Ender in the empty blocks (needs a total of 12 eyes to activate) and step into the portal.

We recommend setting your spawn point next to the portal and a chest with some emergency gear.

Defeat the Ender Dragon

The fight against the Ender Dragon will commence as soon as you enter the End.

In the main area, you'll see tall pillars of Obsidian, each with an End Crystal at the top. You'll need to destroy these with any ranged weapon as they will heal the Ender Dragon whenever it is in their range. The area is also swarming with Endermen, making the fight much more difficult.

Slay the Ender Dragon and exit the realm through the portal to complete your journey!

Minecraft Related Guides

All Tips and Tricks

All Tips and Tricks Guides

Gameplay Tips and Tricks
1.18 Ore Distribution	1.18 Diamond Level
Villager Trades and Jobs	How to Join and Create Realms
Walkthrough and Progression Guide	List of All Commands
How to Show Mob Hitboxes	Best Enchantments
How to Use Texture Packs	What is Simulation Distance?
Beginner's Guide	How to Get to the Far Lands
How to Update Old Worlds	How to Update to Newer Versions