The Ultimate Player’s Guide to

MINECRAFT
Stephen O’Brien

800 East 96th Street,

Indianapolis, Indiana 46240 USA
ii The Ultimate Player’s Guide to Minecraft

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The Ultimate Player’s Guide to Minecraft
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iii

Contents at a Glance
Introduction 1

CHAPTER 1 Getting Started 7

CHAPTER 2 First-Night Survival 23

CHAPTER 3 Gathering Resources 47

CHAPTER 4 Mining 69

CHAPTER 5 Combat School 83

CHAPTER 6 Crop Farming 103

CHAPTER 7 Taming Mobs 125

CHAPTER 8 Creative Construction 137

CHAPTER 9 Redstone, Rails, and More 159

CHAPTER 10 Enchanting, Anvils, and Brewing 195

CHAPTER 11 Villages and Other Structures 217

CHAPTER 12 Playing Through: The Nether and The End 231

CHAPTER 13 Mods and Multiplayer 251

APPENDIX A Crafting Recipes (Online)

Index 273
iv The Ultimate Player’s Guide to Minecraft

Table of Contents
Introduction 1
What’s in This Book 2
How to Use This Book 4
Crafting Recipes 4
There’s More Online… 5

Chapter 1 Getting Started 7

Registering and Downloading 7
Registering a Mojang Account 8
Purchasing Minecraft 10
Launching Minecraft 12
Starting a New Game 14
Choosing a World Generation Style 16
Singleplayer Game Modes 16
Seeding Your World 18
Controls 19
The Bottom Line 20

Chapter 2 First-Night Survival 23

Survive and Thrive 23
Head for the Trees 25
Using Your Inventory 27
Build a Crafting Table 29
Let’s Build Some Tools 30
Creating a Shelter 33
The Furnace Is Your Friend 38
Let There Be Light 39
Slumber with Lumber 41
The Bottom Line 44

Chapter 3 Gathering Resources 47

Introducing the HUD 47
Improving Your Tools 51
Chests: Safely Stash Your Stuff 54
Table of Contents v

Avoiding Monsters 55
Hunger Management 58
Your Mission: Food, Resources, and Reconnaissance 59
Food on the Run 61
Finding a Building Site 63
A Resourceful Guide to the Creative Mode Inventory 66
The Bottom Line 68

Chapter 4 Mining 69
Dig Deep, My Friend 69
The Mining Layer Cake Guide 71
Lava Lakes and Other Pitfalls 73
Descending to Layer 11 74
The 2x1 Ladder Descent 74
The Straight Staircase 76
The Spiral Staircase 77
Layouts for Fast, Efficient Mining 78
Staying Safe While You Mine 81
The Bottom Line 82

Chapter 5 Combat School 83

Introducing the Menagerie 83
Zombies 84
Spiders 86
Skeletons 87
Cave Spiders 88
Spider Jockeys 89
Creepers 89
Slimes 90
Endermen 91
Zombie Pigmen 91
Defensive Mobs 92
Snow Golems 92
Iron Golems 93
vi The Ultimate Player’s Guide to Minecraft

Weapons and Armor 94

Swordcraft 95
Bows and Arrows 95
Armor-All 98
Color Coordinate Your Leather 100
The Bottom Line 101

Chapter 6 Crop Farming 103

Choosing a Crop 103
Establishing a Farm 106
Automated Farms 113
Creating a Piston Harvester 117
Sticky Piston Harvesting 119
Creating a Water Harvester 119
Harvesting Other Crops 122
The Bottom Line 123

Chapter 7 Taming Mobs 125

Farming and Working with Friendly Mobs 125
Using Leads 128
Breeding Animals 129
Taming and Riding Horses, Donkeys, and More 130
Armoring Your Horse 132
Loading Up the Pack 133
Riding Pigs 134
Fishing 134
The Bottom Line 135

Chapter 8 Creative Construction 137

Leaving the Cave 137
Unleashing Your Interior Decorator 140
Building Underwater 147
Protecting Your Perimeter 153
Become a Ditch Witch 153
Mob Pitfalls 155
Thick as a Brick 157
The Bottom Line 157
Table of Contents vii

Chapter 9 Redstone, Rails, and More 159

Seeing Red: A Beginner’s Guide 160
Power Sources 160
Redstone Wiring 164
Powered Blocks 166
Modifiers 167
Repeaters 168
Comparators 170
Output Devices 171
Automatic Doors 173
Vertical Currents 178
Advanced Circuits 180
NOT Gates, aka Inverters 180
OR Gates, or Any Input Will Do 181
AND Gates, Two True 182
Repeater Loops 184
Rail Transport 185
Have Minecart, Will Travel 186
Rolling on Rails 188
Making Tracks and Stations 190
T-Junctions 191
Halfway Stations 192
A Word About Hoppers 193
The Bottom Line 194

Chapter 10 Enchanting, Anvils, and Brewing 195

Enchanting Wiles 195
Creating and Mining Obsidian 197
Crafting Books 200
Casting Enchantments 200
Improving Enchantment Chances with Bookshelves 202
Earning and Managing Experience 203
Spruce Up Your Weapons 204
Enhance Your Armor 205
Improve Your Tools 206
viii The Ultimate Player’s Guide to Minecraft

Hammer It Out with the Anvil 207

Brewing Potions 209
Brewing Up a Storm 211
Enhancing Potions 214
The Bottom Line 215

Chapter 11 Villages and Other Structures 217

Village Life 217
Emerald City: Your Ticket to Trade 220
Hidden Temples and Other Structures 222
Desert Temples 223
Jungle Temples 224
Witch Huts 224
Dungeons 225
Abandoned Mineshafts 226
Strongholds 226
Nether Fortresses 227
Mapping, or There and Back Again 227
Crafting a Clock 229
The Bottom Line 230

Chapter 12 Playing Through: The Nether and The End 231

Alternate Dimensions 231
Getting to The Nether 234
Portal Magic 236
Surviving the Nether Fortress 239
Nether Mobs 240
The End Game 242
Finding a Stronghold 244
Defeating the Ender Dragon 246
The Bottom Line 250
Table of Contents ix

Chapter 13 Mods and Multiplayer 251

Customizing Your Experience 251
Changing the Skin You’re In 252
Minecraft Skin Editors 253
Skincraft 253
Minecraftskins 253
Novaskin 254
Resource Packs: Change Your World 255
Mind My Mods 258
Installing Forge Mods 259
Too Many Items 261
More Explosives 262
Super Heroes 262
REI’s MiniMap 263
Legendary Beasts 263
More Mobs 264
Multiplayer Madness 265
Sharing and Joining on LAN 266
Joining a Multiplayer Server 267
Hosting a Multiplayer Server 269
The Bottom Line 272

Appendix A Crafting Recipes (Online)

Index 273
x The Ultimate Player’s Guide to Minecraft

About the Author

Stephen O’Brien is an Australian-born writer and entrepreneur currently residing in Sydney
after too many years in Silicon Valley. He has previously written 27 books across multiple
editions with publishers such as Prentice-Hall and Que, including several best-selling titles.
He also founded Typefi, the world’s leading automated publishing system, and in his
spare time he invented a new type of espresso machine called mypressi. He has been play-
ing Minecraft since its earliest days and remains astounded at the unparalleled creativity it
engenders.
Acknowledgments xi

Dedication
To Mika, who at age nine taught his dad to laugh hysterically at the sight of a pig riding up a mountain in a
minecart. Laughs and love always, dear boy.

Acknowledgments
It’s an author’s dream to work with a talented team, and I feel like I’m having a better
dream than most. After 12 years away from Que working on entrepreneurial projects, I was
incredibly fortunate to step straight back into the fold of a fantastic group. I’d like to thank
Rick Kughen for his outstanding project direction, polished editorial efforts, and always
gentle prompting even as I started to run behind schedule. Rick, it’s such a true pleasure to
work with you again. Seth Kerney, thank you for so smoothly shepherding this book through
the numerous stages of the publishing process. Karen Gill, I appreciate your thorough, pre-
cise copyediting and constantly joyful feedback. Mark Shirar, you created a fantastic cover
and page design. And Tim Warner, thanks for a technical edit that truly left no block uncov-
ered, no cobblestone unturned.
Writing a book always feels a long leap into the dark, with the only light often being close
family and friends. I thank you all, in particular my dad, Tony; my siblings, Justin, Adele,
and Siobhan; my dear friend Laura; and everyone else who gave me no end of encourage-
ment, best wishes, and a chorus of variations on the very Australian “goodonya.”
Last, but by no means least, thank you, Amy, for your constant love, support, and encour-
agement.
xii The Ultimate Player’s Guide to Minecraft

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Introduction

Imagine waking one morning thrust from your soft, cozy bed into a strange new world. A square sun
crosses the sky. You have no tools or weapons—nothing but your bare, knobby hands. You briefly
survey the landscape. Hills and forests surround you. A cow lows in the distance.
On a hunch you look for a Horn of Plenty—anything that may deliver something useful. Every other
RPG you’ve played has plenty of stuff lying around. But it’s a fruitless search with no cache in sight.
Curiously, though, one of your random clicks does dig a hole in the ground. Interesting. But how
does it help? You try again. Another hole. Hmmm.
You continue your reconnaissance, admiring the varied terrain, soaring cliffs, verdant forests, and
clear blue lakes. It certainly is pleasing to the eye, but this universe seems to work by unfamiliar
rules. The sun is moving far too briskly across the sky, and nightfall now looks like it’s mere minutes
away.
That can’t be good.
You start a kind of random flail, clicking everything in sight. The trunk of a tree looks promising.
Aha! A block of wood falls to the ground. But what to do with it? You have to figure that out later.
Darkness descends, and with it comes an unearthly groan. Strange figures appear in the distant
gloom, lurching toward you. A slithering slurp shrieks into your senses from behind. A cold finger of
fear trips down your spine.
You run for the base of the nearest cliff. If your back’s against the wall, it might as well be a sturdy
one. Wait a moment. Is that the mouth of a cave? Perfect! A final quick dash sees you safely inside.
The darkness turns to an inky black. You stumble down a ledge putting more distance between you
and the horrifying creatures outside. Stop, breathe, look around.
You hear the briefest hiss, like a burning fuse. Frantically spinning to find the source, you catch a
glimpse of a ghastly green face. It’s the last you’ll see before a gigantic explosion claims your life.
Welcome to Minecraft and a typical experience for the millions of players who buy this game in ever-
increasing numbers on every major platform. Minecraft is, without doubt, one of the most interest-
ing open-ended games ever produced. It’s also one of the most vexatious.
From the first moment I started playing this game, back in the beta, to today’s extraordinary experi-
ence, Minecraft has developed into a tour de force of absolutely splendid gameplay, but one that is
not easily accessible.
2 Introduction

Before I even thought about writing this book I found it popping up more and more fre-
quently in random conversations among all age levels—everyone from my nine-year old’s
best friends going on up…way up. Minecraft’s unique open-endedness offers an equally
open-ended fascination to people of all ages. Fifty million of them, and counting.
Clearly, Minecraft was enjoying unparalleled success for an independent production, but
there was something strange going on. The game still lacked an in-depth tutorial or docu-
mentation of any sort. And while there is no paucity of online resources, how do you
explain a game where every block bends to your will; where the terrain can dance to your
tune; where an electrical system can do a crazy range of things including simulating its own
computer; and where other elements such as casting enchantments, brewing potions, and
finding a way to get to and defeat the final boss require some curiously specific, obtuse
steps and strategies?
The online community has stepped into that breach admirably, going to the point of
decompiling the code to understand and document specific game mechanics, but the essen-
tials are often buried among hundreds of thousands of random Minecraft videos or tucked
in with other encyclopedically detailed documentation. And, among all that, there are liter-
ally thousands of junk sites trying to trick you into clicking on ads or installing malware.
This book fills the gap, bringing together all the key information you need in a single place.
Written from the player’s perspective, it takes you through the essentials and then far
beyond with all the background information, crafting recipes, strategies, and ideas you need
to make your Minecraft world truly your own. It covers everything from first-night survival
to hosting your own Multiplayer server.
If you are a parent wondering if Minecraft is suitable for your own kids, consider it to be as
far from a consumption-only experience as old-school rote learning is from an active educa-
tion filled with exploration and discovery. Minecraft will inspire great feats of imagination
and a thirst for understanding how its many facets enmesh and evolve. Best of all, it’s like
one of those great movies or books that are marketed toward kids but entertain adults on a
whole other level. Play it together—even turn off the monsters through its creative or peace-
ful modes—and enjoy your time playing together with kids as young as four or five. But I
warn you, it’s addictive. Please remember to give them a go now and then.
No matter who you are or how you play, you’ll find Minecraft to be an endlessly fascinat-
ing, wonderful, enjoyable world. It’s going to be quite the journey!

What’s in This Book

Survive and thrive in Minecraft with 13 chapters of detailed step-by-step guides, tips, tricks,
and strategies. Each chapter in this book focuses on a key aspect of the game, from initial
survival to building an empire. Make the most of your Minecraft world today:
Q Chapter 1, “Getting Started,” will walk you through the steps needed to download and
install Minecraft, and start a new game, optionally using seeds to control the world gen-
eration.
What’s in This Book 3

Q Chapter 2, “First-Night Survival,” is an essential strategy guide to one of the most chal-
lenging times in Minecraft. You’ll learn to craft essential tools and build your first mob-
proof shelter, all in less than 10 minutes of gameplay.
Q Chapter 3, “Gathering Resources,” will fill out the skills you need to build a permanent
base of operations, create better tools, store resources, and find food to stave off hun-
ger. I also show you how to use the built-in GPS so you can always find your way home,
even after extended forays into the wilds.
Q Chapter 4, “Mining,” unlocks some of Minecraft’s deepest secrets. I’ll show you the best
tunneling plan to uncover the most resources in the shortest possible time, the essential
tools required, and the layers you should dig to uncover everything from basic iron ore
to diamonds.
Q Chapter 5, “Combat School,” will get you ready to tackle any mob, including the
creeper. From sword-fighting techniques to armor, this chapter has you covered. You’ll
also learn the essential perimeter protection techniques for your home.
Q Chapter 6, “Crop Farming,” will help you become completely self-sufficient, ensuring
the hunger bar stays full, constantly boosting your health. Learn to hydrate 80 blocks of
farm land with a single water block, and automate your harvests at the touch of a
button.
Q Chapter 7, “Taming Mobs,” is all about Minecraft’s passive animals, the chickens,
pigs, cows, horses, and more that populate its world and provide you with valuable
resources. Learn to breed animals, tame Ocelots to scare off creepers, and gallop across
the world on horseback.
Q Chapter 8, “Creative Construction,” will help you unleash your inner architect. From
grand constructions to inventive interiors, learn about the decorative ways you can use
Minecraft’s blocks and items to build the perfect abode.
Q Chapter 9, “Redstone, Rails, and More,” empowers your world with a host of auto-
mated devices. Control redstone power, automated doors, send minecarts on missions,
and build stations, stopovers and more.
Q Chapter 10, “Enchanting, Anvils, and Brewing,” will have you brewing up a storm. Cast
spells, improve your weapons and armor, and fall from great heights with grace.
Q Chapter 11, “Villages and Other Structures,” is your key to interacting with the other
non-playing characters. Trade your way to better goods, and learn the secrets of the
game’s temples.
Q Chapter 12, “Playing Through: The Nether and The End,” is the strategy guide you’ll
need to get through these tricky sections of the game. Find a fortress fast, get what you
need, and then prepare for the Ender Dragon. It’s easy when you know how.
4 Introduction

Q Chapter 13, “Mods and Multiplayer,” will show you how to customize the game, from
new character skins to mods that add a host of functionality. And along the way you’ll
also learn how to access multiplayer games and set up a permanent world on your own
server for family and friends.

How to Use This Book

Throughout this book, you’ll see that I have called out some items as Notes, Tips, and
Cautions—all of which are explained here.

NOTE
Notes point out ancillary bits of information that are helpful but not crucial. They often
make for an interesting meander.

TIP
Tips point out a useful bit of information to help you solve a problem. They’re useful in
a tight spot.

CAUTION
Cautions alert you to potential disasters and pitfalls. Don’t ignore these!

Crafting Recipes
You’ll also see that I’ve included crafting recipes throughout this book. I’ve included the
actual ingredients in the text, so just match the pattern you see to create the item, as shown
here for a wooden pickaxe. It’s easy, and you’ll be surprised how quickly you can whip them
up after just a few uses.
There’s More Online… 5

There’s More Online…

In addition to the information packed between the covers of this book, I’ve put together a
complete guide to all the crafting recipes online. Feel free to download! Visit http://www.
quepublishing.com/register to register your book and download your free PDF copy.
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3
Gathering Resources
In This Chapter
Q Never get lost. Learn the secrets of the HUD and its hidden GPS.
Q Improve your tools with more durable materials.
Q Safely store your hard-earned resources.
Q Learn the easy way to manage hunger.
Q Build your first outdoor shelter and enjoy the view.
Q Access the full Creative mode inventory.

Minecraft is filled to the brim with all manner of resources, and gathering them is the first step
toward getting the most out of the game. In Chapter 2, “First-Night Survival,” you put together a
pack of essentials sufficient to last the first night, but this is really just the smallest prequel to the
real game, and describing how to find, create, and use other types of resources forms much of this
book. This chapter is about building the foundation you can use to launch into the rest of the game.
Your focus is on a few key points: build an outdoor shelter, find food to stave off hunger, improve
your collection of tools, and build a chest to safely store items. This solidifies your position, making
your base more impervious to attack, allows you to do all sorts of Minecrafty things more efficiently,
and sets yourself up for longer excursions both above and below ground.
The good news is that you already have a base, so you can explore during the day, try not to lose
your way, and head back at night. However, you still need to avoid at least some of the hostile mobs
that persist during the day.

Introducing the HUD

Before we start, let’s take a look at the Heads-Up Display (HUD)—that collection of icons and status
bars at the bottom of the screen. Figure 3.1 shows the HUD as it appears in Survival mode with all
possible indicators displayed. (The Creative mode HUD only shows the Inventory bar.)
48 CHAPTER 3: Gathering Resources

1 4

2 3 5

FIGURE 3.1 The HUD provides key status indications. Health is all important,
but low hunger also leads to low health, so keep a close eye on both.

1. Armor bar 4. Oxygen bar

2. Health bar 5. Hunger bar
3. Experience bar 6. Inventory quick access

Each section of the HUD provides a key nugget of information about the health or status of
your avatar:
Q Armor bar—The armor bar appears when you’ve equipped your avatar with any type of
armor and shows the current damage absorption level. Each armor icon represents an
8% reduction in the damage you’ll take, so a 10/10 suit of armor reduces the damage
you take by 80%, whereas a 1/10 suit absorbs only 8%. Armor becomes less effective the
more damage it absorbs, although the rate at which it deteriorates also depends on its
material—leather being the weakest and diamond the strongest.
Q Health bar—You have up to 20 points of health available, represented by the 10 hearts
shown. Each heart disappears in two ticks. Health and hunger have a complicated rela-
tionship. You can read more below starting at “Hunger Management.”
Q Experience bar—The experience bar increases the more you mine, smelt, cook, kill, and
fish. Your current level is shown in the middle of the bar. When it’s full, you move to
the next experience level. Experience isn’t generally important until you start enchanting
and giving additional powers to items such as swords (see Chapter 10, “Enchantments,
Anvils, and Brewing”). Unlike other role-playing games, experience in Minecraft is more
like a currency that you spend on enchantments, so it waxes and wanes. But all experi-
ence gained counts toward the final score shown on the screen when you die. Killing
a mob drops experience orbs that either fly directly toward you or float to the ground
waiting for you to collect them, and you can also gain experience by smelting certain
items in the furnace and carrying out other activities such as finding rare ores. Dying
causes a substantial drop in your current experience level.
Q Oxygen bar—The oxygen bar appears whenever you go underwater and it quickly starts
to drop. You can probably hold your own breath for longer! As soon as your oxygen
level hits zero, your health starts taking a two-point hit every second, but it resurfaces
for just an instant if you hold down the jump key until you’ve reached air once more.
Diving isn’t that big of a deal in Minecraft, at least not for completing the core game,
Introducing the HUD 49

but you can use the ability to do interesting things like building an underwater base. An
example is shown in Figure 3.2, and I’ll show you how to build your own in Chapter 8,
“Creative Construction,” as well as sharing with you some other underwater breathing
techniques.

FIGURE 3.2 Underwater bases are impervious to mob attacks, even when built
from glass, but you’ll need to watch your oxygen bar carefully to ensure you
don’t run out of air while building this type of structure. By the way, the only
mob that spawns underwater is the friendly, curious squid. Can you make out
the one shown here? He’s now part of Elysia’s first private aquarium. Say hello
to “Ceph.”

Q Hunger bar—You also have 20 points of hunger available, as well as a hidden value
called Saturation. Like health, each hunger bar icon holds two points and can reduce by
half an icon (that icon is, incidentally, a “shank,” or the lower part of a leg of meat) at
a time.
Q Inventory quick access—These nine slots, also known as the Hotbar, represent items
you can select with the mouse scroll wheel or by pressing the 1–9 keys. Press E to access
your full inventory and to change the items in these slots. The white number next to
some shows that slot’s count of stacked identical items. A durability bar also appears
under each tool’s icon in green, gradually reducing as you use them until the tool
actually breaks and disappears from your inventory. You’ll have some warning of this
because the bar turns red when it’s close to zero. See “Improving Your Tools” later in the
chapter to learn more about the durability of different materials.
50 CHAPTER 3: Gathering Resources

TIP
Showing Durability Stats in the HUD

Press F3+H (or fn+F3+H on OS X) to display the current and maximum durability value
of all the tools in your inventory. The value appears in a tool tip when you hover your
mouse over that item.

NOTE
HUD Changes When Mounted

The HUD changes when you ride a horse, showing the horse’s health in place of your
own. The experience bar also changes to the jump bar. You can learn more about
horses and other mountable mobs in Chapter 7, “Taming Mobs,” on page 125.

In multiplayer, your HUD also displays a chat window in the bottom-left corner. Press T to
expand the chat window.
Toggle the entire HUD display off and on by pressing F1. Press F3 with the HUD turned on
to view a much more detailed HUD debug screen (see Figure 3.3.)

NOTE
Hiding the HUD in the Xbox Editions

You cannot hide the HUD in Minecraft Pocket Edition but there is an option for doing
so on the Xbox edition. Press the Start key and open the Help & Options menu.
Scroll down to SettingsÆUser Interface and deselect Display HUD. Unfortunately
there isn’t a quicker way to do this at present.

The coordinates shown in the debug screen are based on the world’s origin where x=0 and
z=0. (y shows your current level above bedrock.) Take a note of the current values. If you
become lost before you have had the chance to build a bed and reset your spawn point, you
can always find your way back to your original spawn and, presumably, your first shelter, by
facing in a direction that will bring both x and z back to those noted values. If you do sleep
in a bed and reset your spawn, turn on the debug screen and write down the coordinates
shown before you head out.
Improving Your Tools 51

FIGURE 3.3 The Debug HUD provides a lot of cryptic information but can also
help you navigate home.

1. Your location in blocks east of your original spawn point. Blocks west are shown as a negative.
2. Your current vertical height in layers above bedrock.
3. Your location in blocks south of your original spawn point. Blocks north are shown as a negative.
4. The current biome type.
When you need to return, and I should warn you that this can take some experimentation
and a little practice, turn and take a few steps while noting the change in values of your
current coordinates. Shift those x and z values back toward the coordinates you originally
recorded. You’ll probably wander around a bit, but eventually you’ll get there.

Improving Your Tools

Wooden tools wear out fast, so it’s best to upgrade your kit as quickly as possible.
Each type of material has a different level of durability. Think of durability as the number of
useful actions the tool can perform before wearing out completely and disappearing from
the inventory. I’ve included the durability in parentheses after each material’s description:
Q Gold (33)—Although this is the least durable material, a gold pickaxe can break blocks
out of most softer materials in the blink of an eye, and it happens to be the most
enchantable material, so you can imbue it with superpowers (see Chapter 10). But given
that gold is about 5 times as rare as iron and can be used to craft many other useful
items, I wouldn’t recommend using it for tools.
52 CHAPTER 3: Gathering Resources

Q Wood (60)—It’s easy to obtain, especially in an emergency aboveground, but think of

wood as just a means of getting to cobblestone because, unlike the latter, wooden tools
can’t mine the more valuable ores such as iron, gold, diamond, and redstone. You will
at least need a wooden pickaxe to mine stone because doing so with your bare hands
will just break the stone down into unusable dust, but after that, switch to stone.
Q Stone (132)—With just a touch over twice the longevity of wood, stone makes a great
starting point for more serious mining and other activities. Stone tools are built from
cobblestone blocks, which in turn come from stone. That may seem a little confusing,
but it will seem natural enough after a while.
Q Iron (251)—Iron will become your go-to material. It is found most commonly all the
way from bedrock, the lowest layer of the Minecraft world, up to about 20 levels below
sea level. Iron is used for building all kinds of tools, implements, and devices including
armor, buckets (for carrying water, lava, and milk), compasses, minecarts, and minecart
tracks. All these require at least iron ingots obtained by smelting the ore in a furnace,
with each block of ore producing one ingot. Ingots and many other items are found
scattered throughout the world in village chests, mine shafts, dungeons, and strong-
holds. You might also find them as drops from killed zombies and iron golems (if you
dare tackle them!).
Q Diamond (1562)—It’s the strongest material of all, but also the most expensive given
that diamonds are relatively rare. (You will enjoy the moment you do find your first
diamond, but it’s found only in the first 16 layers above bedrock, the lowest layer in
the Minecraft world, and even then it’s about 25 times as scarce as iron.) A diamond
pickaxe is the only material that can successfully mine obsidian, a material required for
creating the portal to reach The Nether region. Given diamond ore is much scarcer than
iron but only 6 times as durable, you should use iron pickaxes as much as possible and
only switch to diamond when you need to mine obsidian to reach The Nether. You’re
better off saving any diamonds you find for weapons (a diamond sword does more
damage, and that combined with its increased durability will ensure it lasts much longer
than any other material), armor, and enchantment tables.

NOTE
Different Materials for Different Items

Durability applies to all tools, weapons, and armor, although there are differences
in the materials that can be used in each case. For example, you can craft leather
armor and make stone tools, but not vice versa.
Improving Your Tools 53

CAUTION
Don’t Let Tools Wear Down to Nothing!

Try not to let a tool become so worn it actually breaks down completely and disap-
pears. Instead, place two of the same type of worn tools in the crafting grid to com-
bine their remaining strength into another and give it a second shot at life, or busting
blocks.

The recipes for crafting tools from all materials are identical, save for the replacement of the
head of the implement with the material of choice.
Q To make a stone pick, you need two wooden sticks for the handle and three cobble-
stone blocks.

Q Replace in the same way for the axe and the sword.

Q You might also want to add a shovel to your collection, because it’s about four times
faster than using hands to harvest softer materials such as dirt, gravel, sand, clay, and
snow, and helps some of those blocks deliver resources rather than just breaking down.

As you craft more items, you need to find somewhere to store those you don’t need to use
right away. You should also store other resources and food you come across on your travels.
That comes next.
54 CHAPTER 3: Gathering Resources

Chests: Safely Stash Your Stuff

Whenever you head away from your secure shelter, there is always a reasonably high risk of
death. Creepers, lava pits, long falls—they can all do you in. Respawning is only a moment
away, but the real danger here is that any items you’ve collected and carry in your charac-
ter’s inventory drop at the location of your untimely death and may prove impossible to
retrieve in the 5 minutes you have to get back to them before they disappear forever.
Chests act as an insurance policy. Put everything you don’t need in a chest before you
embark on a mission, and those things will be there when you get back or after you
respawn.
The natural place to leave chests is in your shelter, but you can also leave them elsewhere,
perhaps as a staging point as you work away in a mine, or even outside. Mobs will leave
them alone, and the only real risk you face is leaving them out in the open on a multiplayer
server or getting blown up from behind by a creeper in singleplayer mode while you’re rum-
maging around inside.
Chests come in two sizes: single and double. A single chest can store 27 stacks of items.
Create a double chest by placing two single chests side by side. The double chest stores up
to 54 stacks of items. Given that a stack can be up to 64 items high, that’s an astonishing
potential total of 3,510 blocks in a crate that takes just 2×1 blocks of floor space. If you’ve
ever followed the Doctor Who TV series, consider chests the Tardis of storage!
Create a chest at your crafting table with eight blocks of wooden planks arranged around
the outside, leaving a space in the middle.

Place and then right-click the chest to open. You can then move items back and forth
between your inventory and the chest. In Figure 3.4, I’ve transferred all the items I don’t
need for the next expedition.
Before you head out, there are two other things you should know: how to avoid monsters
and how to deal with hunger. Read on.
Avoiding Monsters 55

FIGURE 3.4 Chests act as an insurance policy for your items so they aren’t lost
if you die. Use the inventory shortcuts you learned earlier to quickly move items
between your active inventory and the chest’s storage slots.

THE CONNECTED CHEST

Chests are undoubtedly useful; it’s difficult to survive without them. But you can’t
transport a chest’s contents with you. Need to shift your stash of diamonds? That
can make for a fairly fraught journey.
Enter the Ender chest, which is like storage in the cloud. An Ender chest isn’t cheap
to make. You’ll need eight Obsidian blocks obtained by combining lava with water, or
through regular mining and caving, and one Eye of Ender, collected from a downed
endermen. So what’s so good about Ender chests? All of them access the same vir-
tual chest, sharing all contents between them. So let’s say you’ve built multiple dwell-
ings across your vast world, and you have some items—a few favorites—that you’d
like to be able to access anywhere you go. Place an Ender chest in each of your dwell-
ings; any items that you place in any of the chests become available in all others. It’s
like quantum travel without all that entanglement business.

Avoiding Monsters
There’s a key difference between the Minecraft world on the first and second days. In a
word, mobs: hostile ones to be specific. Mobs only spawn in dark areas, and some only
during the night, so if you are outside during your first day and stay in well-lit areas, you’ll
be reasonably safe. By the second day, however, mobs have had a chance to build their
numbers and wander about. It’s not that likely you’ll encounter them on day 2, but it’s best
to be prepared.
56 CHAPTER 3: Gathering Resources

There are 14 types of hostile mobs in the Overworld. These are the ones you might meet on
your second day outside:
Q Zombies—Zombies burn up in sunlight but can still survive in shadows or rain, or when
wearing a helmet, and, of course, in dark caves all hours of the day or night. They are
relatively easy to defeat, and if any come after you, just head to a well-lit area and keep
your distance while they burn up in the sun.
Q Skeletons—Skeletons also burn up in sunlight unless they are wearing a helmet, and they
can survive at any time in lower light conditions. They’re quite deadly with a bow and
arrow and best avoided until you have an iron sword and sufficient cover to avoid their
line of fire.
Q Spiders—Spiders come in two variants: large or blue. You’ll probably only see the larger
spiders at this stage. They are passive during the day but become hostile in shadow and
can attack at any time if provoked. They’ll climb, they’ll jump, and they are pretty darn
fast. Fortunately, they’re also easy to kill with some swift sword attacks. The blue spi-
ders are a smaller, poisonous variant called cave spiders. They live only in abandoned
mine shafts underground, but in substantial numbers. If you suffer from arachnopho-
bia, I don’t have much good news for you, except that with a little time you’ll get used
to them and they won’t seem quite so nasty.
Q Creepers—Creepers have a well-earned reputation as the Minecraft bad guys. They are
packed to their green gills with gunpowder, and they’ll start their very short 1.5-second
fuse as soon as they are within three blocks of you. Their explosion can cause a lot of
real damage to you, nearby structures, and the environment in general. If you hear a
creeper’s fuse—a soft hissing noise—but can’t see it, run like heck in the direction you’re
facing. Remember to sprint by double-tapping and holding your W key. With a little
luck, you’ll get three blocks away and the creeper’s fuse will reset. Creepers are usually
best dealt with using a ranged attack from a bow and arrow, but if you sprint at them
with an iron or diamond sword and take a swipe at just the right moment, you can send
them flying back out of their suicidal detonation range, causing the fuse to reset. Most
creepers despawn around noon, leaving the afternoon generally free of their particular
brand of terror.
Q Slimes—Slimes appear in the swamp biome and in some places underground. They ini-
tially spawn as quite large Jello-like green blocks and are more than capable of causing
damage. Attacking eventually breaks them up into 2–4 new medium-sized slimes. These
can still attack but are relatively easily killed, only to spawn a further 2–4 tiny slimes
each! These last don’t cause any attack damage, but may still push you into peril if
you’re unlucky.

If you come across a lone spider, a zombie, or even a slime, now is as good a time as any to
get in some sword practice. Just point your crosshairs at the creature and strike with the left
Avoiding Monsters 57

mouse button. Keep clicking as fast as you can, and you’ve got a very good chance of killing
the mob and picking up any items it drops before it lands too many blows. Try to avoid the
other mobs for now.

TIP
Switch to Peaceful Mode to Get a Break

Getting mobbed by mobs? Click Esc to open the Options window and change your
difficulty level to Peaceful. This despawns all hostile mobs and allows your health to
regenerate. But do try to switch the level back to Normal as soon as you can.

So how do you avoid mobs? Use these tips to survive:

Q Stay in the open as much as you can, avoiding heavily wooded areas if possible.
Q Most mobs have a 16-block detection radar. If they can also draw a line of sight to
your position, they will enter pursuit mode. (Spiders can always detect you, even through
other blocks.) At that point they’ll relentlessly plot and follow a path to your position,
tracking you through other blocks without requiring a line of sight. Pursuit mode stays
engaged much farther than 16 blocks.
Q Keep your sound turned up because you’ll also hear mobs within 16 blocks, although
creepers, befitting their name, are creepily quiet.
Q Avoid skirting along the edges of hilly terrain. Creepers can drop on you from above
with their fuse already ticking. Try to head directly up and down hills so you have a
good view of the terrain ahead.
Q Mobs are quite slow, so you can easily put some distance between them and yourself by
keeping up a steady pace and circling around to get back to your shelter. Sprint mode
will leave them far behind.

CAUTION
Sprinting Makes You Hungry
Sprint mode burns up hunger points, so try to use it only in emergencies.
58 CHAPTER 3: Gathering Resources

Hunger Management
Hunger plays a permanent role in Minecraft, much as in real life. While it’s only possible
to starve to death on Hard difficulty, hunger does affect your character in other ways, so
it’s always important to ensure you have the equivalent of a couple of sandwiches packed
before heading deep into a mine or on a long trek.
Hunger is a combination of two values: the one shown in the HUD’s hunger bar, as well
as a hidden value called saturation. The latter provides a buffer to the hunger bar, decreas-
ing first. In fact, your hunger bar doesn’t decrease at all until saturation reaches 0. At that
point, you see the hunger bar start to jitter, and after a short while it takes its first hit.
Saturation cannot exceed the value of the hunger bar, so with a full hunger bar of 20 points,
it’s possible to have up to 20 points of saturation. However, a hunger level of 6 points also
only provides a maximum of 6 points of saturation, and that makes you vulnerable.
You’ll find some key information about the hunger system here:
Q On Easy and Normal Survival modes, there is no need to worry too much about hunger
because your character won’t drop dead from it. If you’re close to home and pottering
around in your farm or constructing some building extensions, you’re fairly safe, but
your health starts to drop. Eat something as soon as you can to fill your hunger bar,
and rebuild your health.
Q Sprinting isn’t possible when the hunger bar drops below 6 hunger points, or 3 shanks,
as shown in the HUD.
Q Keeping a relatively full stomach at 18 hunger points (9 shanks in the HUD) allows
health to regenerate at 1 point (half a heart) every 4 seconds.
Q Health depletes if the hunger bar drops to 0, increasing the risk of dying from one of the
many imaginative ways Minecraft has on offer (see Figure 3.5).
Q There are some limits to the amount health can drop according to the difficulty level.
On Easy, health cannot deplete from hunger further than 10 points, or half the full
quotient. On Normal, it drops to 1 point, which is an extreme level of vulnerability. On
Hard difficulty, there are no limits; don’t ignore the hunger bar, or death from starva-
tion could be just moments away. See “Food on the Run” later in this chapter to help
avoid this.
Your Mission: Food, Resources, and Reconnaissance 59

FIGURE 3.5 The effects of extreme hunger on Normal difficulty: health depletes
to just one point, or half a heart.

Your Mission: Food, Resources, and

Reconnaissance
Your second day is the perfect opportunity to gather food and other resources and to take a
quick survey of the landscape surrounding your first shelter, in particular to find somewhere
suitable for your first outdoor abode. Keep an eye out for any of the following:
Q Passive mobs—Chickens, pigs, and cows all provide a ready source of food, or at least
raw protein that can be cooked on the furnace and made more nutritious. Cows also
drop leather that you can use for your first armor, and when you have an iron bucket,
cows can be milked, giving you an instant cure for food poisoning. Chickens also lay
eggs, so gather any that you find.
Q Natural harvest—The harvest includes cocoa pods, apples, cactus, sugar cane, carrots
and potatoes (found in villages), and seeds. Knock down tall grass to find seeds. When
you plant the seeds, they mature into wheat within 5–8 day/night cycles. From wheat,
it’s easy to bake bread, one of the simplest but most effective sources of food, especially
if there are no passive mobs nearby. See Chapter 6, “Crop Farming,” for more on agri-
cultural techniques.
60 CHAPTER 3: Gathering Resources

Q Construction resources—You can mine plenty of cobblestone quite safely by expanding

your original shelter, digging into the terrain. But some other resources will definitely
come in handy. Wood is always useful. If you see any sand, mine it so you can smelt
it into glass blocks to let light into your shelter, and provide a view. (There’s no point
moving from your first cave into the outdoor equivalent of another!) Also keep an eye
out for coal. You can often see it in veins on the surface of the walls of small caves or
on the sides of cliffs. If you can safely get to it, make like a miner and dig it out. Use the
coal to make torches and to smelt other ores.

FIGURE 3.6 Knock down grass to gather seeds to plant wheat, an easy crop to
farm and turn into bread—a handy food if you’re stuck with no other edible options.

TIP
Making Use of Bones

The morning sun burns up skeletons, leaving behind bones that you can craft into
bone meal. Bone meal acts as a fertilizer, helping your crops grow faster. You can also
use bone to tame wolves, providing you with an extra level of protection. Chapter 7,
“Taming Mobs,” has a lot more information on breeding and taming Minecraft’s many
friendly creatures.

Start early, heading out with a stone sword at the ready, just in case. If you are low on wood,
swing an axe at a few nearby trees.
Your Mission: Food, Resources, and Reconnaissance 61

Move carefully so you don’t lose your bearings. The sun rises in the east and sets in the
west, and the clouds always travel from east to west, so you can always at least get your
bearings. Following a compass cardinal point (north, south, east, or west) using the sun
and clouds as a reference can lead you away and reasonably accurately back home again.

TIP
Finding Your Way

It’s easy to become lost in Minecraft. Run helter-skelter from your base, chase a herd
of livestock, discover a natural cave system, or take a shot across the sea like that
famed Norseman, Leif Eriksson. It’s all part of the Minecraft charm. But don’t become
Columbus in the process.
A few quick tips:

Q When you are able, craft a compass. It takes some redstone and iron, and both
are relatively easy to obtain with some assiduous mining. The only problem with a
compass is that it always points to your original world spawn point. Think of that
point as the magnetic north pole—it’s not a GPS. Sleeping in a bed resets your
spawn point but not your compass, so this method falls out of date as soon as
you move to new dwellings and update your spawn point.

Q A compass is actually more useful when crafted into a map, see Chapter 10,
“Enchanting, Anvils, and Brewing” page 195.

Q Don’t forget that you can always use the built-in GPS available through the debug
screen (mentioned under the “Introducing the HUD” section earlier in this chap-
ter).

Food on the Run

If you are getting dangerously hungry, head to the nearest equivalent of a fast food outlet—
a passive mob—sword at the ready. Your best bet is to look for cows and pigs because they
each can drop up to three pieces of raw meat, with each piece restoring 3 hunger units and
1.8 in saturation. They’re an excellent target of opportunity. You can also eat raw chicken,
although with a 30% chance of developing food poisoning, or you can try rotten meat har-
vested from zombies, which is guaranteed to give you a taste of the stomach aches. But you
can also cure any type of food poisoning by drinking milk obtained with a bucket clicked on
a cow, and you can eat any amount of poisoned meat, gaining the restorative benefits, and
curing the whole lot with one serving of milk. So keep that rotten flesh the zombies drop
around! And the bucket o’ milk.
62 CHAPTER 3: Gathering Resources

That said, unless you are desperate, it is actually much better to take the time to cook all
your meat first. In fact, the secondary processing of foods makes them all healthier, restor-
ing more hunger and saturation points. It’s therefore quite handy to always carry a furnace
in your inventory, along with fuel. When you’ve finished cooking, break the furnace down
with a pickaxe, and it floats back into your inventory. If you don’t mind seeming like a
crazed pyromaniac, you can also both kill and cook pigs, chickens, and cows in one blazing
swoop by setting the ground beneath them on fire with a flint and steel (right-click on the
ground, not the animal), or a little more chaotically by pouring lava from a bucket. Just take
caution that you don’t do this anywhere it could pose a risk, such as near that fantastic
wood cabin you just spent the last three weeks building; there’s no Undo key in Minecraft.

NOTE
Fishing in the Sea of Plenty

Mobs such as chicken, cows, and pigs spawn quite rarely compared to hostile mobs,
so consider them a nonrenewable resource if you kill them in the wild. You’re better
off breeding them in a farm so they can’t wander off and can be readily replaced.
Fish, on the other hand, are unlimited in quantity and very plentiful. You can even fish
in waterfalls! By the way, your hunger bar never decreases when travelling by boat,
making it the perfect opportunity to get in a spot of fishing. And you can never get
food poisoning from raw fish. Sushi anyone? See Chapter 7 for more information.

TIP
Let Them Eat Cake

What’s the quickest way to fill your hunger bar? Eat cake. Unlike another well-known
game, Minecraft’s cake is not a lie. Cake has a quite a complicated recipe, but each
full cake provides up to 6 slices, each worth 1.5 hunger points, or 9 in total, and it’s
less resource intensive than creating golden apples. Minecraft rewards calories, so
eat as much as you like without penalty, quickly building back your full hunger bar but,
as in the real world, the nutrients are lacking, so cake doesn’t provide any saturation
benefit. Make sure you eat some more nutritional foods such as protein as your hun-
ger bar starts to top out to ensure you also get that extra boost. If only they added
pizza!

Finally, if you simply cannot find mobs, your hunger bar has dropped to 0, and your health
has plummeted to half a point, consider at least planting a wheat field and waiting it out in
your shelter for three blocks of wheat to grow so you can harvest them and bake bread.
Your Mission: Food, Resources, and Reconnaissance 63

There’s one final alternative, and this is a pretty neat trick. Assuming you have reset your
spawn point to a bed or are still near origin, head to your shelter, place everything you carry
in a chest, and then head outside and either jump off a cliff, drown in a lake, or wait for
a mob to kill you. You respawn back in your shelter with full health, a full hunger bar, and
all your possessions waiting for you. Get dressed, fully equipped, and head out there to try
again.

Finding a Building Site

As you scout around, keep in mind that you are also looking for a new building site. This
doesn’t have to be fancy or even particularly large. A 6×5 space manages just fine, and even
6×4 can squeeze in the basics. You can also level ground and break down a few trees to
clear space. I did this in Figure 3.7. The site is located just up the hill from the first dugout,
overlooking the same lake and river system.

FIGURE 3.7 A nice, flat, elevated building site after clearing some trees and fill-
ing some holes in the ground with dirt.

I usually prefer space that’s a little elevated because it provides a better view of the sur-
roundings, but it’s perfectly possible to create a protected space just about anywhere. You
may even decide to go a little hybrid, building a house that’s both tunneled into a hill and
extending outside.
64 CHAPTER 3: Gathering Resources

TIP
Light Those Caves

Check for any caves or tunnels close to your site’s location. If they aren’t too big, light
them up with torches to prevent mobs spawning inside and wandering out during the
day, or just block their entrance for now.

So what can we build on this site? Let me show you a basic structure. It takes 34 cobble-
stone blocks dug out of the first shelter and 12 wood blocks for the roof obtained by cut-
ting down the 3 trees that were occupying the site.

FIGURE 3.8 The layout for a small cobblestone cabin using a total of 46 blocks,
roof not shown. The sharp-eyed will notice it can be reduced in width one space
further, but for the sake of four blocks, that would feel a little claustrophobic.

You can build the roof from almost any handy material, including dirt, cobblestone, and
wood. Avoid blocks that fall down, such as gravel and sand. A two-block high wall keeps
out all mobs except for spiders, because they can climb walls. An overhang on the wall
keeps spiders out because they can’t climb upside-down, but it’s easier to just add a roof,
especially if there are trees nearby the spiders can climb up and use as an arachnid’s spring-
board to jump straight into your dwelling. (Yes, it’s happened to me. Sent shivers up my
spine.) Figure 3.9 shows the finished hut with a few torches on the outside to keep things
well lit.
Your Mission: Food, Resources, and Reconnaissance 65

FIGURE 3.9 The finished hut—basic but serviceable. And it’s spider proof.
Although there is a large gap above the door, in Minecraft’s geometry the door
fills the entire space. Spiders are also two blocks wide, so they can’t fit through
a one-block-wide gap. You could actually leave the door wide open, and spiders
will just gather outside and make horrible noises, but don’t do that because it’s
an invitation for other mobs to enter.

TIP
No Housing Codes in Minecraft

The roof in Figure 3.9 rests right on the lip of the inner wall. You can’t directly build a
roof like this from scratch. First place a block on top of the wall, and then attach the
inner block for the roof. Remove the first block, and the inner block floats. Attach new
blocks to that to build out the roof structure. It won’t pass a building inspection, but it
certainly works in Minecraft.

Building a wall even two blocks high can take a little bit of fancy footwork. Some basic
techniques help:
Q Place your walls one layer at time. Put down the first layer, and then jump on top to
place the second.
Q If you fall off, place a temporary block on the inside of your structure against the wall,
and use this to climb back up. You can remove it when you’re finished.
Q Use pillar jumping if you need to go higher. While looking directly down, press the
66 CHAPTER 3: Gathering Resources

spacebar to jump and then right-click to place a block underneath you. You land on
that block instead of the one below. Repeat as often as necessary. Dig the blocks out
from directly underneath you to go back down.
Q Hold down the Shift key as you work around the top of tall walls so you don’t fall off.
You can even use this technique to place blocks on the side of your current layer that are
normally beyond sight.

See Chapter 8 for more building techniques and ideas.

A Resourceful Guide to the Creative Mode

Inventory
Minecraft’s resources fall into several primary categories. Some of them are a natural early
focus as you improve your position from those gathered for first-night survival; others
become more important as you get further through the game, gear up for your exploration
of The Nether and The End regions, and become more creative with all that Minecraft has
to offer. Here’s a quick summary of the different categories. You can view all possible tools
and resources by opening your inventory in Creative mode, as shown in Figure 3.10. The
categories that follow correspond to the tabs running across the upper and lower sections
of the Creative mode inventory.

FIGURE 3.10 Creative mode inventory provides access to the full set of
resources and tools.
A Resourceful Guide to the Creative Mode Inventory 67

TIP
Turn On Cheats

Turn on Cheats when you start a new world to quickly jump between different
gameplay modes. Type /gamemmode creative and /gamemode survival to move
between the main types.

Q Building Blocks—Building blocks are used, as you might expect, for construction, includ-
ing housing and almost anything else. Build a bridge for your redstone rail. Construct a
dam. Elevate a farm above a level that won’t get trampled by mobs, or put up a fence.
Build a skyscraper or reconstruct a monument. Minecraft provides a large number of pri-
mary blocks—such as cobblestone, gravel, wood, and dirt—that can be harvested directly,
but things definitely become more interesting once you start creating secondary types of
blocks from primary materials. You can store many items more efficiently (for example, by
converting nine gold ingots into a single gold block), and climb more efficiently by craft-
ing stairs instead of jumping up and down blocks on well-travelled routes. Building blocks
are, without being too punny, the building blocks of creativity.
Q Decoration Blocks—Decoration blocks are something of a catchall category. Generally,
they are things you can use to make your constructions more interesting. Some of those
are just visual, such as carpet, whereas others such as crafting tables, chests, and the
bed that keeps you safe at night provide vital functions.
Q Redstone—Redstone is an almost magical resource. You can use it to build powered
circuits, quite complex ones, and then activate pistons to automatically harvest a farm
plot, set up traps, open and close doors, and a huge amount more. The limits are set
only by your imagination. Redstone is also used to craft powered rail tracks and a range
of other useful items such as a compass and clock. See Chapter 9, “Redstone, Rails,
and More,” for more information.
Q Transportation—Transportation is a small category, but one that’s a lot of fun and very
useful. It includes powered and unpowered rails, minecarts, a saddle, a boat, and any-
thing else related to moving yourself and other items around. There are enough options
there to enable you to build everything from massive transportation systems to incredible
roller coasters.
Q Miscellaneous—Miscellaneous contains a range of useful and obscure items. You’ll find
the buckets quite handy for setting up new water and lava sources, and you can use the
eggs to spawn most of the mobs, populating a farm and more.
Q Foodstuffs—Foodstuffs contains the full range of edibles, including the enchanted form
of the golden apple, the rarest edible in the game. Take a few of these with you the next
68 CHAPTER 3: Gathering Resources

time you think you’ll be in a tight spot, and you may just be able to make it through that
moaning zombie horde.
Q Tools—Tools can be wielded as weapons, but not very effectively. They are, however,
great at digging, chopping, hoeing, and setting Nether Portals on fire with the flint and
steel. You’ll also find shears for stripping the wool from sheep, a fishing rod, and a few
enchanted books that can add special powers to your tools.
Q Combat—Combat provides your weapons and armor, as well as the remaining enchanted
books that relate to combat items.
Q Brewing—The Brewing tab contains all possible potions and a number of the rarer ingredi-
ents required that don’t fit into other categories. Potions are incredibly handy. Caught out-
side at night? The Potion of Night Vision triples the brightness to almost daylight conditions.
You can learn more about brewing in Chapter 10.
Q Materials—Materials is the final catchall category, along with the miscellaneous and deco-
ration blocks. It differs because it is composed of secondary items that are derived from
another action. For example, killing a chicken can drop feathers, and you’ll need those for
the fletching on arrows unless you gather them from skeletons. Grow wheat to get bushels
that can be used to tame horses, donkeys, and mules.

There are two other tabs on the Creative inventory. In the upper-right corner is a compass
icon. This is the search bar. Just click on it and type in the item’s name.
In the lower-right corner is a chest. This is your Survival mode inventory containing any items
you were carrying when you switched to Creative mode. (This is empty if you started your world
in Creative mode.) You can shift items between the Creative mode inventory and your Survival
inventory. Any items you drag down to the quick access bar are common across both invento-
ries. Re-move items from your Survival inventory by dragging them down to the square filled
with an X.

The Bottom Line

Congratulations! You’ve now learned everything you need to know to understand how your
character is doing, improve your tools for better longevity, hopefully not get lost on your trav-
els, and create your first mob-proof outdoor shelter.
These are the keys to Minecraft. Just remember to head back to your chest often to store the
valuables you’ve gathered, or build other chests further afield.
You might also want to consider building a pillar and platform on top of your new shelter.
It can help you survey your terrain and acts as an easy-to-see landmark when you’re out and
about. Put some torches on top because mobs can spawn on any platform, no matter how
small, and you don’t want to poke your head up through the platform only to discover a
creeper on a short fuse.
The next chapter is all downhill—deep into your first mine.
INDEX

NUMBERS horses, 127

armor and, 132
2x1 ladder descent, mining and, 74 jumping with, 132
leading, 129
A riding, 130-132
taming, 130-132
A key, 25
hostile mobs and safety, 128
activator rails, 189
jumping with, 132
ads (pop-up), downloading resource packs, 258
leading, 127-129
Adventure mode, 17
leather, obtaining, 99
airlocks, building, 36
mooshrooms, 127
Allow Cheats setting (Create New World
screen), 14 mules, 127, 130-133
anchor blocks, 166 ocelots, 127
AND gates, 182-183 pack animals, 133
animals, 125 pigs, 127, 134
breeding, 126-130 raw, eating, 61
cats, 127 resources, animals as, 59, 62
chickens, 127 riding, 130-134
crafting arrows, 97 sheep and wool, 42-43, 127, 130
fences, 126 squid, 135
cooking, 61 taming, 127, 130-132
cows, 127 wolves, 127
donkeys, 127, 130-133 anvils
farms, 125-128 combining two items with, 209
fences, 126 crafting, 207
fish, 62 enchantments, 209
fishing, 134 placement of, 208
food poisoning, 61 renaming items, 209
herding, 128 repairing items, 209
274 Aqua Affinity enchantment

Aqua Affinity enchantment, 206

B
architectural plans, finding, 140
armor, 94 Bane of Arthropods enchantment, 204
armor bar (HUD), 48 barbeques, building, 146
Armor slots (inventory), 27 barricades, building in The Nether, 239
crafting bases
color, 100 mining bases, setting up, 81
leather, 99 underwater bases, mob attacks, 49
recipes, 99-100 basins, 222
requirements, 98-99 BeastsMC multiplayer server, 269
critical hits, 94 beds
damage absorption, 99 building, 41-43, 142
enchantments, 205-206 End, The, 242-243
End survival checklist, The, 243 Nether, The, 242
horses and, 132 spider string, 42
Nether survival checklist, The, 234 taking with you, 44
arrows and bows villages and, 219
arrow slits, building, 157 wool, 42-43
crafting, 96 bedside tables, building, 142
End survival checklist, The, 243 biomes
fighting, 98 changing, 26
Nether survival checklist, The, 235 choosing, 16
skeletons, 88, 96 Far Lands or Bust, 16
target practice, 98 islands, first-night survival, 26
attacking. See combat Large Biomes option, 217
automated farms, 113 oceans, first-night survival, 26
crop selection, 116 pocket edition, 16
harvesting, 115 resetting, 26
piston harvesters, 117-118 trees
sticky piston harvesters, 119 first-night survival, 25
sugar cane, 122 lumberjacking, 26
water harvesters, 119-122 Xbox 360 Edition, 16
automatic doors, building, 173-176 blacksmiths, 220
awkward potion, 212-213 Blast Protection enchantment, 206
axes, crafting, 32
bowls, crafting 275

blaze rods obsidian

finding, 234 enchantment tables, 197-199
Nether, The, 234, 239 End survival checklist, The, 243
potions, brewing, 210 mining, 70, 197-199
blazes in The Nether, 241 Nether Portals, building, 236
blaze spawners, 239 Nether survival checklist, The, 235
blocking powered blocks, 166-167
areas off (mining), 73 redstone blocks, 67, 162
attacks, 95 scale of, 138
blocks signs, placement of, 141
anchor blocks, 166 snow blocks, The Nether survival checklist,
235
building blocks, 67
soft blocks, building underwater, 148,
cobblestone, 60 152
furnace, crafting, 38-39 wood blocks, 52
huts, building, 64
gathering, first-night survival, 25-26
Nether survival checklist, The, 234
mining and, 70
powered blocks, 166
Nether survival checklist, The, 235
Command Block, 267
planks, crafting, 29
decoration blocks, 67 wood buttons, 162, 166, 173
diamonds, 52 boats, building, 134
floating blocks, 140 bobbers (fishing), 134
glowstones bones
glowstone dust potion, 214 as resources, 60
Nether, The, 238 farming, 110
underwater, building, 148-150
Bonus Chest setting (Create New World
gold (material type), 51 screen), 15
gravel books
arrows, crafting, 97 crafting, 200
mining, 97 enchantment tables, 200
Nether survival checklist, The, 234
storing enchantments, 202
Nether, The
bookshelves
barricades, building, 239
building, 145
Netherbrick, 238-239
casting enchantments, 202
Nether quartz, 238
bottles, crafting, 212
Netherrack, 146, 237
survival checklist, 234 bowls, crafting, 124
note blocks, 173
276 bows and arrows

bows and arrows crafting tables, 29-30, 35

arrow slits, building, 157 decoration blocks, 67
crafting, 96 dining tables, 142
End survival checklist, The, 243 enchantment tables, 197-201
fighting, 98 fireplaces, 146
Nether survival checklist, The, 235 floors (raised/lowered), 145
skeletons, 88, 96 fountains, 144
target practice, 98 frames (item), 144
branch mines, 79-80 griefing, 140
bread, 62 huts, 64-65
breaking your fall, 75-76 item frames, 144
breeding animals, 126-130 lighting, 64
brewing. See also building; crafting; location, determining, 139, 149
growing maps (wall), 144
bottles, crafting, 212 multiplayer rules, 140
brewing stands, building, 212 Nether Portals, 236
Creative mode inventory, 68 netting, 145
potions overhangs and spiders, 64
blaze rods, 210 paintings, 144
Nether wart, 209-212 perimeters
soul sand, 209-211
arrow slits, 157
testing potions, 210 ditches, 153-154
buckets and mining, 70 lighting, 155
building, 137-138. See also brewing; mobs, 155-157
crafting; growing
towers, 155
airlocks, 36 walls, 157
arrow slits, 157 pits, 155-157
automatic doors, 173-176 plans, finding, 140
barbeques, building, 146 planter boxes, 143
barricades, building in The Nether, 239 ponds, 144
beds, 41-43, 142 pools, 144
bedside tables, 142 pressure plates, 156
boats, 134 redstone, 67, 162
bookshelves, 145 resource packs, 138
brewing stands, 212 scale of, 138
building blocks, 67 security
chairs, 141 arrow slits, 157
clocks (wall), 144 ditches, 153-154
carts (mine) 277

lighting, 155 ladders, 150

mobs, 155-157 lighting, 148-150
perimeters, 153-157 location, 149
pits, 155-157 oxygen, 150
pressure plates, 156 required equipment, 148-149
towers, 155 security, 153
walls, 157 signs, 150
shelter, 33-34 soft blocks, 148, 152
doors, 36-37 Survival mode, 148
emergency shelters, 38 vandalism, 140
heat sources, 37-38 villages, building next to, 139
light sources, 37-41 wall clocks, 144
signs, placement of, 141 wall maps, 144
sites walls, 86, 157
finding, 63 water, building on, 139
housing codes, 65 butchers, 220
walls, 65 buttons, 162. See also pressure plates
sliding doors, 177-179
automatic doors, 173
tables
powered blocks, 166
bedside tables, 142
buying Minecraft, 10-11
crafting tables, 29-30, 35
enchantment tables, 197-201
dining tables, 142
C
tennis courts, 145 cake, 62
tool enchantments, 206-207 carrots, 105
tracks carts (mine), 185-186
halfway stations, 192 destroying and reusing, 188
mobs, protecting tracks from, 192 hopper minecarts, 187
powered rails, 190 powered minecarts, 187-188
T-junctions, 191 rails, building, 159
zig zags, 190 activated rails, 189
trees (fantasy), growing, 144 detector rails, 164, 189
underwater, 139, 147, 151 halfway stations, 192
Creative mode, 147 mobs, protecting tracks from, 192
doors, 150 normal rails, 188
enchantments, 153 powered rails, 189-190
floating blocks, 140 T-junctions, 191
flooding, 152 zig zags, 190
island spawn points, 149 storage minecarts, 187
278 carts (mine)

TNT minecarts, 187-189 minecarts with chests (storage minecarts),

trains, minecarts as, 188 187
underground rails, 188 mining and, 81
cats, 127 Nether survival checklist, The, 235
caves, 222 opening, 54
cave spiders, 88-89 sizes of, 54
doors, importance of, 85 trapped chests, 163
lighting, 64 chickens, 127
mining arrows, crafting, 97
creating caves, 69 fences, 126
existing caves, 69 children in villages, 218, 221
shelter, building, 34 chopping down trees, 26
chairs, building, 141 circuits
character skins, 251 AND gates, 182-183
changing, 252, 255 NOR gates, 182
skin editor websites NOT gates (inverters), 180
Minecraftskins, 253 OR gates, 181
Novaskin, 254 repeater loops, 184
Skincraft, 253 cliffs
superhero skins, 262 Nether, The, 238
Steve, 252 shelter, building, 34
charcoal clocks, crafting, 144, 229
crafting, 37 closing doors, 36
furnaces, fueling, 40 clothing, dyeing wool, 130
chat window (HUD), 50 coal
cheats, 15 charcoal, crafting, 37
Allow Cheats setting (Create New World furnaces, fueling, 40
screen), 14
cobblestone, 60
seeding, 19
furnace, crafting, 38-39
spawning, 42
huts, building, 64
turning on, 67
Nether survival checklist, The, 234
chests
powered blocks, 166
Bonus Chests setting (Create New World
cobwebs as netting, 145
screen), 15
cocoa beans, 104-105
Chest icon (Creative mode inventory), 68
color
crafting, 54-55
armor, crafting, 100
Ender chests, 55, 232, 235
dyeing and, 130
crafting 279

combat. See also defenses zombies, 84-85

armor zombie pigmen, 91-92
crafting, 98-100 combining items and enchantments with an
critical hits, 94 anvil, 209
damage absorption, 99 Command Block, 267
arrows and bows compare mode (comparators), 170
arrow slits, 157 compasses
crafting, 96 Compass icon (Creative mode inventory),
End survival checklist, The, 243 68
fighting, 98 crafting, 61, 227
Nether survival checklist, The, 235 construction. See building
skeletons, 88, 96 controls
target practice, 98 A key, 25
combat category (Creative mode directional keys, 25
inventory), 68
D key, 25
critical hits, 94
E key, 27
creepers, 89-90, 102
Esc key, 25
critical hits, 94
FN key (Mac OSX), 20
enchantments, 204-205
left-handed options, 21
Ender Dragon, 246-249
list of controls, 19-20
Endermen, 91
Q key, 29
hostile mobs, 84
Shift key
iron golems, 93-94
pausing on ladders, 74
Peaceful mode, resting via, 57
sneaking around hazards, 81
skeletons, 87-89 S key, 25
slimes, 90-91 W key, 25, 56
snow golems, 92-93 cooking, 61
spiders, 86-87 cows, 127
cave spiders, 88-89 crafting. See also brewing; building;
spider jockeys, 89 growing
sprinting and, 95 anvils, 207
swords armor
blocking attacks, 95 color, 100
crafting, 32, 95 leather, 99
damage, dealing, 95 recipes, 99-100
End survival checklist, The, 243 requirements, 98-99
fighting with, 56 arrows and bows, 96
Nether survival checklist, The, 234 axes, 32
280 crafting

books, 200 foodstuffs, 67

bottles, 212 materials, 68
bowls, 124 miscellaneous, 67
bows and arrows, 96 moving items to Survival mode inventory, 68
chests, 54-55 redstone, 67
tools, 68
clocks, 229
transportation, 67
compasses, 61, 227
search bar, 68
Crafting grid (inventory), 27
underwater, building, 147
crafting tables, 29-30, 35
creepers, 56
furnaces, 38-39
defending against, 102
heat sources, 37-38
fighting, 89-90
light sources, 37-41
gunpowder and, 90
Minecraft: Xbox 360 edition, 31
swimming and, 90
multicrafting, 36
critical hits (combat), 94
pickaxes, 32
crop farming, 103
planks, 29
automated farms, 113
shortcuts, 35
crop selection, 116
shovels, 33
harvesting, 115
swords, 32, 95
piston harvesters, 117-118
tools sticky piston harvesters, 119
durability, 53 sugar cane, 122
handles, 30-31 water harvesters, 119-122
torches, 39-41 bones and, 110
wool, 42, 43 carrots, 105
Create New World screen choosing crops, 103-106
Allow Cheats setting, 14 cocoa beans, 104-105
Bonus Chest setting, 15 establishing farms
Generate Structures setting, 14 block to crop ratios, 107
World Type setting, 14 bone meal, 110
Creative mode, 17 difficult terrain, 106
compass icon, 68 fences, 109, 112
inventory, 66 growth cycles, 110
brewing, 68 harvesting, 112
building blocks, 67 lighting, 110
Chest icon, 68 location, 106-107
combat, 68 planting, 108
decoration blocks, 67 raised beds, 111-112
debug screen (HUD) 281

saving crops, 111 Forge mods, 259-260

water, 107-108, 112 installing, 259-260
fences, 104, 109, 112 jar files, 261
growth cycles, 110 Legendary Beasts website, 263
harvesting, 110-112, 115 More Explosives website, 262
lighting and, 104, 110 More Mobs website, 264
melons, 105 multiple mods, using, 258
permanent effects of, 259
Minecraft updates and, 107
REI’s MiniMap website, 263
piston farms, 113
removing, 260
crop selection, 116
restoring games, 259
harvesting, 115
superheroes website, 262
piston harvesters, 117-118
Too Many Items website, 261
sticky piston harvesters, 119
zip files, 261
sugar cane, 122
resource packs, 251, 255
water harvesters, 119-122
Dokucraft, 256-257
potatos, 105
downloading and pop-ups, 258
pumpkins, 105
Faithful 32, 257
raised beds, 104, 111-112
functionality, 256
saving crops, 111 installing, 256-257
seeds, 103, 108 Ovo2s Rustif, 257
self-suficiency, 104 pixels per texture, 257
sneaking and, 111 skins, 251
soil, 104 changing, 255
sugar cane, 104-106 Minecraftskins website, 253
automated farms, 122 Novaskin website, 254
piston farms, 122 Skincraft website, 253
tending farms, 104 Steve, 252
underground farms, 104, 123 superheroes, 262
wheat, 103, 106, 110-112
crosshairs (bows and arrows), targeting D
with, 98
D key, 25
current (vertical), 178-180
damage
customizing Minecraft
absorbing, 99
Minecraft launchers, 11
dealing, swords, 95
mods, 251
dandelions, dyeing with, 130
defining, 258
Dante’s influence on Minecraft, 242
finding, 265
debug screen (HUD), 50-51
282 decoration blocks

decoration blocks, 67 difficulty levels, 57

defenses. See also combat dining tables, building, 142
arrow slits, 157 directional keys, 25
barricades, 239 discarding inventory items, 29
caves, 85 ditches, building, 153-155
creeper attacks, 102 Dokucraft resource pack, 256-257
detection systems donkeys, 127
detector rails, 163-164, 189 HUD changes while riding, 50
pressure plates, 156 jumping with, 132
tripwires, 163 packing, 133
ditches, 153-154 riding, 130-132
doors, importance of, 85 taming, 130-132
emergency shelters, 38 doors
enchantments, 205-206 airlocks, building, 36
Ender Dragon, defeating, 246-249 as output devices, 172
perimeters, 153-157 automatic doors, building, 173-176
pits, 155-157 caves, 85
pressure plates, 156 installing, 37
spiders, 86 iron doors, 36, 235
towers, 155 opening/closing, 36
trapdoors, 172 sliding doors, building, 177-179
tunnels, 85 trapdoors, 172
walls, 86, 157 tunnels, 85
defensive mobs underwater, building, 150
iron golems, 93-94 down, digging straight down, 73
snow golems, 92-93 downloading
demo version Minecraft, 10-11
time span, 7 resource packs and pop-ups, 258
troubleshooting, 8 dungeons, 225-226
desert temples, 223-224 durability
destroying and reusing carts, 188 diamond, 52
detection systems gold, 51
detector rails, 163-164, 189 HUD, viewing stats in, 50
pressure plates, 156 iron, 52
tripwires, 163 stone, 52
diamonds, 52
End, The 283

tools Feather Falling enchantment, 206

crafting, 53 Fire Aspect enchantment, 205
improving, 51-52 Fire Protection enchantment, 206
wearing down, 53 Flame enchantment, 205
wood, 52 Fortune enchantment, 207
dyeing Infinity enchantment, 205
color, choosing, 130 Knockback enchantment, 204
dandelions and, 130 Looting enchantment, 205
Lapis Lazuli ore and, 130 methods of gaining, 196
squid ink and, 135 Power enchantment, 205
wool, 130 Projectile Protection enchantment, 206
Protection enchantments, 205-206
E Punch enchantment, 205
E key, 27 repairing enchanted items, 201
earning XP, 203-204 Respiration enchantment, 153, 206
Easy mode and hunger, 58 Sharpness enchantment, 204
Easy option (Survival mode), 18 Silk Touch enchantment, 207
Efficiency enchantment, 207 Smite enchantment, 204
emeralds, farming, 222 storing, 202
emergency shelters, 38 Thorns enchantment, 206
enchantments, 195 tools, 206-207
anvils, crafting enchantments and, Unbreaking enchantment, 207
207-209 water affinity, building underwater, 153
Aqua Affinity enchantment, 206 weapons, 204-205
armor, 205-206 End, The, 24, 231
Bane of Arthropods enchantment, 204 Dante’s influence on, 242
benefits of, 195 Ender chests, 55, 232, 235
Blast Protection enchantment, 206 Ender Dragon, 233, 245
books, 200-202 defeating, 246- 249
bookshelves, 202 egg, collecting, 250
casting, 200-202 Endermen, 91, 246, 249
combining, 209 Ender pearls, 91, 234
Efficiency enchantment, 207 End Poem, 250
enchantment tables End Portals, 245
books, 200 Eyes of Ender, 233-234, 243-245
casting enchantments, 200-201 navigating, 233
obsidian, 197-199 silverfish spawners, 245
284 End, The

sleeping in, 242-243 fighting, 86-87

strongholds, finding, 244-245 overhangs and, 64
survival checklist, 243 spider jockeys, 89
trading versus fighting, 234 string, 42, 86
enemies uses for, 86
avoiding, 57 walls as defense, 86
zombies, 56
creepers, 56
crafting arrows, 97
defending against, 102
fighting, 84-85
fighting, 89-90
reinforcements, 85
gunpowder and, 90
rotten meat, 85
swimming and, 90
zombie pigmen, 91-92
Endermen, 91, 246, 249
equipment
iron golems, 93-94
End survival checklist, The, 243
Legendary Beasts mod website, 263
Nether survival checklist, The, 234-235
More Mobs mod website, 264
Esc key, 25
Peaceful mode, 57
experience bar (HUD), 48
pursuit mode, 57
experience points (XP)
skeletons, 56
earning, 203-204
arrows and, 88, 96
enchantments, 195, 200
as resources, 60
bones, farming benefits, 110 managing, 203-204
fighting, 87-88 exploding minecarts, 187-189
potions, 215 explosives
spider jockeys, 89 exploding minecarts, 187-189
wither skeletons, 241 More Explosives mod website, 262
slimes, 56, 90-91 Eyes of Ender, 91, 233-234, 243-245
snow golems, 92-93
spawners F
blaze spawners, 239 Faithful 32 resource pack, 257
disabling, 223
falling while mining, 73, 75-76
silverfish spawners, 245
fantasy trees, growing, 144
spiders, 56
Far Lands or Bust, 16
cave spiders, 88-89
farmers, 220
defending against, 86
farming, 103
ditches, crossing, 153
eyes as food, 86 animals
fermented spider eye potions, 214 breeding, 126-130
cats, 127
fences 285

chickens, 126-127 lighting, 110

cows, 127 location, 106-107
donkeys, 127, 130-133 planting, 108
fences, 126 raised beds, 111-112
fish, 62 saving crops, 111
herding, 128 water, 107-108, 112
horses, 127-132 fences, 104, 109, 112, 126
jumping with, 132 growth cycles, 110
leading, 127-129 harvesting, 110-112, 115
mobs and safety, 128 leather, obtaining, 99
mooshrooms, 127 lighting and, 104, 110
mules, 127, 130-133 melons, 105
ocelots, 127
Minecraft updates and, 107
pack animals, 133
piston farms, 113
pigs, 127, 134
crop selection, 116
riding, 130-134
harvesting, 115
sheep and wool, 42-43, 127, 130
piston harvesters, 117-118
taming, 127, 130-132
sticky piston harvesters, 119
wolves, 127
sugar cane, 122
automated farms, 113
water harvesters, 119-122
crop selection, 116
potatos, 105
harvesting, 115
pumpkins, 105
piston harvesters, 117-118
raised beds, 104, 111-112
sticky piston harvesters, 119
sugar cane, 122 saving crops, 111
water harvesters, 119-122 seeds, 103, 108
bones and, 110 self-sufficiency, 104
carrots, 105 sneaking and, 111
choosing crops, 103-106 soil, 104
cocoa beans, 104-105 sugar cane, 104-106, 122
cooking, 61 tending farms, 104
establishing farms underground farms, 104, 123
animals, 125-128 wheat, 103, 106, 110-112
block to crop ratios, 107 Feather Falling enchantment, 206
bone meal, 110 fences
difficult terrain, 106 animals, 126
fences, 109, 112 farming, 104, 109, 112
growth cycles, 110 gates, 172
harvesting, 112
286 fermented spider eye potion

fermented spider eye potion, 214 fighting with, 56

fighting Nether survival checklist, The, 234
armor zombies, 84-85
crafting, 98-100 zombie pigmen, 91-92
critical hits, 94 finding
damage absorption, 99 blaze rods, 234
arrows and bows building sites, 63
arrow slits, 157 End strongholds, The, 244-245
crafting, 96 mods, 265
End survival checklist, The, 243 Nether fortresses, 238
fighting, 98 villages, 219
Nether survival checklist, The, 235 Fire Aspect enchantment, 205
skeletons, 88, 96
fireplaces, building, 146
target practice, 98
Fire Protection enchantment, 206
combat category (Creative mode
inventory), 68 Fire Resistance potion, 213
critical hits, 94 first night, surviving
creepers, 89-90, 102 building
critical hits, 94 beds, 41-43
crafting tables, 29-30, 35
enchantments, 204-205
furnaces, 38-39
Ender Dragon, 246-249
shelter, 33-38
Endermen, 91
crafting
hostile mobs, 84
axes, 32
iron golems, 93-94
crafting table, 29-30, 35
Peaceful mode, resting via, 57 heat sources, 37-38
skeletons, 87-89 light sources, 37-41
slimes, 90-91 pickaxes, 32
snow golems, 92-93 shovels, 33
spiders, 86-87 swords, 32
cave spiders, 88-89 tool handles, 30-31
spider jockeys, 89 torches, 39-41
sprinting and, 95 first-day tasks, 23-24
swords inventory, checking, 27-29
blocking attacks, 95 island biomes, 26
crafting, 32, 95 ocean biomes, 26
damage, dealing, 95 perimeter structures as protection, 36
End survival checklist, The, 243 trees, 25-26
wood, gathering, 25-26
gates 287

fishing, 62, 134 Fortune enchantment, 207

Flame enchantment, 205 fountains, building, 144
flint and steel frames (item), building, 144
mining flint, quick mining tips, 97 free Minecraft demo version
Nether Portals, 236 time span, 7
Nether survival checklist, The, 235 troubleshooting, 8
floating blocks, 140 furnaces
flooding, building underwater, 152 crafting, 38-39
floors (raised/lowered), building, 145 fueling, 40
flying while leading animals, 129 minecarts with furnaces (powered
FN key, 20 minecarts), 187-188
food
animals, 59, 62 G
bowls, crafting, 124 games (new)
bread, 62 biomes
brewing, 68 choosing, 16
cake, 62 Far Lands or Bust, 16
cooking, 61 game modes
End survival checklist, The, 243 Adventure mode, 17
fishing, 62, 134 Creative mode, 17
foodstuffs category (Creative mode Hardcore mode, 17
inventory), 67 selecting, 14
harvesting, 59, 62 Survival mode, 16-18
health and, 58 Nether options, configuring, The, 238
hunger, 49, 58 pausing, 25
meat (rotten) and zombies, 85 setup, configuring, 14-15
mining and, 70 worlds
mushroom stew, creating, 124 choosing world generation style, 16
Nether survival checklist, The, 235 creating, 14-15
poisoning, 61 naming, 14
gates
raw, eating, 61
AND gates, 182-183
spider eyes as food, 86
as output devices, 172
vegetables, 59
NOR gates, 182
Forge mods, 259-260
NOT gates (inverters), 180
fortresses (Nether), 227
OR gates, 181
finding, 238
survival tips, 239-240
288 Generate Structures setting

Generate Structures setting Hard option (Survival mode), 18

Create New World screen, 14 Harming potion, 215
More World Options, 217 harvesting, 59, 110-112
ghasts, 237-240 piston farms, 115
gifting Minecraft, 11 wheat, 62
glowstones Healing potion, 213
glowstone dust potion, 214 health
Nether, The, 238 food and, 58
underwater, building, 148-150 health bar (HUD), 48
gold (material type), 51 hunger and, 58
golems heat sources, crafting, 37-38
iron golems, 93-94 hedges, growing, 143
snow golems, 92-93 herding animals, 128
villages and, 219 Herobrine, 252
gravel hills, crafting shelter from, 34
arrows, crafting, 97 Hive multiplayer server, The, 268
mining, 97 hoppers, 193-194
Nether survival checklist, The, 234 as output devices, 173
griefing, 140 hopper minecarts, 187
growing plants. See also brewing; building; horses, 127
crafting armor and, 132
establishing farms, 108 Horse Update edition. See PC edition
fantasy trees, 144 HUD changes while riding, 50
hedges, 143 jumping with, 132
indoor plants, 142 leading, 129
planter boxes, building, 143 leather, obtaining, 99
trees (fantasy), 144 riding, 130-132
growth cycles (farming), 110 taming, 130-132
gunpowder hostile mobs. See mobs
creepers and, 90 hosting
potions, 214 LAN parties, 265-266
multiplayer servers, 265, 269-271
H houses, building
halfway stations, 192 building blocks, 67
handles (tool), crafting, 30-31 decoration blocks, 67
Hardcore mode, 17 housing codes, 65
inventory 289

huts, 64-65 hydration

overhangs and spiders, 64 farming, 107-108, 112
redstone, 67 permanent watering holes, digging, 109
HUD (Heads Up Display), 47 water harvesters, 119-122
armor bar, 48
chat window, 50 I
debug screen, 50-51 indoor plants, growing, 142
durability stats, viewing, 50 Infinity enchantment, 205
experience bar, 48 ink (squid), 135
health bar, 48 installing
hiding, 50 doors, 37
hunger bar, 49, 58 mods, 259-260
inventory quick access, 49 resource packs, 256-257
oxygen bar, 48 inventory
riding animals, HUD changes while riding, Armor slots, 27
50
Crafting grid, 27
hunger
Creative mode, 66
dying from, 63
brewing, 68
Easy mode, 58
building blocks, 67
food
Chest icon, 68
bread, 62 combat, 68
cake, 62 compass icon, 68
cooking, 61 decoration blocks, 67
food poisoning, 61 foodstuffs, 67
health and, 58 materials, 68
hunger bar (HUD), 49, 58 miscellaneous, 67
Normal difficulty and, 58 moving items to Survival mode inventory, 68
raw meat, eating, 61 redstone, 67
saturation, 58 search bar, 68
sprinting and, 57-58 tools, 68
Survival mode, 58 transportation, 67
huts, 224 discarding items from, 29
building, 64-65 evenly distributing items, 29
overhangs and spiders, 64 first-night survival, 27-29
witch huts, 224 inventory quick access (HUD), 49
Inventory slots, 28
290 inventory

main storage, moving quick access grid

items to, 29
L
opening, 27, 30 ladders
picking up items, 29 2x1 ladder descent, mining and, 74
placing items in inventory, 29 End survival checklist, The, 243
quick access grid (inventory), 28-29, 73, pausing on, 74
235 underwater, building, 150
removing items from, 29 lamps
stacking items, 28 bedside tables and, 142
storage area, 28 redstone lamps, 171
Survival mode, moving items to Creative LAN parties (multiplayer games), 265-266
mode, 68
lanterns
inverters (NOT gates), 180
Nether, The, 235-237
Invisibility potion, 213-215
perimeters, 155
iron, 52
underwater, building, 150
anvils, crafting, 207
Lapis Lazuli and dyeing, 130
Nether survival checklist, The, 235
Large Biomes option (structures), 217
iron doors, 36, 235
launching Minecraft
iron golems
custom launchers, 11
fighting, 93-94
logins, 13
villages and, 219
passwords, 12
islands
usernames, 12
first-night survival, 26
lava pools
spawn points, building underwater, 149
furnaces, fueling, 40
item frames, building, 144
mining and, 73, 79
Nether, The, 238
J-K obsidian, mining, 197-199
jack-o’-lanterns, 235-237 leading animals, 127-129
.jar files, modes as, 261 leather, obtaining, 99
joining left-handed control options, 21
LAN parties, 265-266 Legendary Beasts mod website, 263
Minecraft Realms, 268 levers, 162, 166
multiplayer servers, 265-268 librarians, 220
jumping, 132 lighting
jungle temples, 224-225 bedside tables and, 142
caves and tunnels, 64
Knockback enchantments, 204 crafting, 39-41
Minecraft 291

farming and, 104, 110 materials category (Creative mode inven-

light sources, crafting, 37-41 tory), 68
mining, 70, 73 material strength. See durability
Nether, The, 235- 239 meat (rotten) and zombies, 85
perimeters, 155 melons, 105
redstone torches, 161, 167, 178-180 minecarts, 185-186
underwater, building, 148-150 destroying and reusing, 188
Linux, downloading Minecraft, 11 hopper minecarts, 187
logins, 13 powered minecarts, 187-188
loops (repeater), 184 rails, building, 159
Looting enchantment, 205 activated rails, 189
lost, avoid getting detector rails, 164, 189
halfway stations, 192
compasses, crafting, 61, 227
mobs, protecting tracks from, 192
debug screen (HUD), 50
normal rails, 188
maps
powered rails, 189-190
numbering maps, 229
T-junctions, 191
REI’s MiniMap mod website, 263
zig zags, 190
villages, 219
storage minecarts, 187
wall maps, 144
TNT minecarts, 187-189
zooming in/out maps, 229
trains, minecarts as, 188
lowered floors, building, 145
underground rails, 188
lumberjacking, 26
Minecraft
M cheats, 15
controls
Mac OSX A key, 25
downloading Minecraft, 11 directional keys, 25
FN key, 20 D key, 25
magma cubes, 241 E key, 27
main storage (inventory), moving quick Esc key, 25
access grid Items to, 29 FN key (Mac OSX), 20
maps left-handed options, 21
compasses, crafting, 227 list of controls, 19-20
numbering maps, 229 Q key, 29
REI’s MiniMap mod website, 263 Shift key, 74, 81
villages, 219 S key, 25
wall maps, 144 W key, 25, 56
zooming in/out maps, 229
292 Minecraft

demo version Minecraft Realms, joining, 268

time span, 7 mining
troubleshooting, 8 2x1 ladder descent, 74
downloading, 10-11 abandoned mineshafts, 226-227
game modes bases, setting up, 81
Adventure mode, 17 blocking off areas, 73
Creative mode, 17 branch mines, 79-80
Hardcore mode, 17 breaking your fall, 75-76
selecting, 14 buckets, 70
Survival mode, 16-18
caves
gifting, 11
cave spiders, 88-89
launching
creating caves, 69
custom launchers, 11 existing caves, 69
logins, 13 chests, placing in mines, 81
passwords, 12
chunks, 82
usernames, 12
cobblestone, 60
logins, 13
do’s and don’ts, 73-74
Nether options, configuring, The, 238
down, digging straight down, 73
new games
falling and, 73-76
choosing biomes, 16
farming underground, 104, 123
choosing world generation style, 16
flint, quick mining tips, 97
configuring setup, 14-15
creating worlds, 14-15 food, 70
naming worlds, 14 gravel, quick mining tips, 97
selecting game mode, 14 ladders, 74
pausing, 25, 74 lava pools, 73, 79
PC edition, 8, 11 lighting, 73
Pocket edition, 8 mobs and, 81
biomes, 16 netherrack, 237
crafting in, 31 obsidian, 70, 197-199
hiding HUD, 50 ore layers, 71-72
purchasing, 10-11 pickaxes, 70
Raspberry Pi edition, 8 quick access bar, keeping blocks in, 73
updates, 107 safety and, 81
Xbox 360 Edition, 8 sleep, 81
biomes, 16 sneaking around hazards, 81
crafting in, 31 staging points, 81
hiding HUD, 50
Xbox One Edition, 8
mobs 293

staircases security
spiral staircases, 77-78 ditches, 155
straight staircases, 76-77 pits, 155-157
strategies for starting, 69 tunnels, 155
tools, required equipment list, 70 water, 154
torches, 70, 73 skeletons, 56
unlit areas, 73 arrows and, 88, 96
up, digging straight up, 73 fighting, 87-88
way out, knowing, 73 spider jockeys, 89
wood blocks and, 70 sleep, 81
miscellaneous category (Creative mode slimes, 56, 90-91
inventory), 67 snow golems, 92-93
mobs spawners
avoiding, 57 blaze spawners, 239
character vulnerability and inventory disabling, 223
checks, 30 silverfish spawners, 245
creepers, 56 spiders, 56
defending against, 102 cave spiders, 88-89
fighting, 89-90 crossing ditches, 153
gunpowder and, 90 defending against, 86
swimming and, 90 eyes as food, 86
defining, 18 fermented spider eye potions, 214
ditches, crossing, 153-155 fighting, 86-87
employing, 155-157 overhangs and, 64
spider jockeys, 89
Endermen, 91, 246, 249
string, 42, 86
farming and animals, 128
uses for, 86
inventory checks and character vulner-
walls as defense, 86
ability, 30
tracks, protecting from attack, 192
iron golems, 93-94
tunnels, 155
Legendary Beasts mod website, 263
types of, 18
mining, 81
underwater bases, 49
More Mobs mod website, 264
water, 154
Nether, The, 236-241
zombies, 56
passive mobs
arrows, crafting, 97
animals as, 59-62
fighting, 84-85
squid, 135
reinforcements, 85
Peaceful mode, 57
rotten meat, 85
pursuit mode, 57
zombie pigmen, 91-92
294 mods

mods, 251 as resources, 60

defining, 258 bones, farming benefits, 110
finding, 265 fighting, 87-88
Forge mods, 259-260 potions, 215
installing, 259-260 spider jockeys, 89
wither skeletons, 241
.jar files, 261
slimes, 56, 90-91
Legendary Beasts website, 263
snow golems, 92-93
More Explosives website, 262
spiders, 56
More Mobs website, 264
cave spiders, 88-89
multiple mods, using, 258
defending against, 86
permanent effects of, 259
eyes as food, 86
REI’s MiniMap website, 263
fighting, 86-87
removing, 260 overhangs and, 64
restoring games, 259 spider jockeys, 89
superheroes website, 262 string, 86
Too Many Items website, 261 uses for, 86
.zip files, 261 walls as defense, 86
Mojang accounts zombies, 56
passwords, 10 crafting arrows, 97
registering, 8-10 fighting, 84-85
security, 9 reinforcements, 85
monsters rotten meat, 85
avoiding, 57 zombie pigmen, 91-92
mooshrooms, 127
blaze spawners, 239
More Explosives mod website, 262
creepers, 56
More Mobs mod website, 264
defending against, 102
fighting, 89-90 moving inventory items between main stor-
age and quick access grid, 29
gunpowder and, 90
mules, 127
swimming and, 90
Endermen, 91, 246, 249 jumping with, 132
iron golems, 93-94 packing, 133
Legendary Beasts mod website, 263 riding, 130-132
More Mobs mod website, 264 taming, 130-132
Peaceful mode, 57 multicrafting, 36
pursuit mode, 57 multiplayer games
skeletons, 56 Command Block, 267
arrows and, 88, 96 LAN parties, 265-266
netting 295

Minecraft Realms, joining, 268 blazes, 241

multiplayer servers blaze spawners, 239
BeastsMC, 269 cliffs, 238
Hive, The, 268 Dante’s influence on, 242
hosting, 265, 269-271 Ender chests, 232
joining, 265-268 Ender pearls, 234
Phanatic, 269 fortresses
Shotbow, 268 finding, 238
Supercraft Brothers, 268 survival tips, 239-240
superheroes mod website, 262 game options, configuring, 238
singleplayer games versus, 13
ghasts, 237-240
whitelisted (trusted) players, 140
glowstone, 238
mushrooms
jack-o’-lanterns, 237
mushroom stew, 124
lanterns, 237
Nether, The, 238
lava pools, 238
music, creating via note blocks, 173
lighting, 237-239
magma cubes, 241
N mobs, 236-241
navigating mushrooms, 238
compasses, crafting, 61, 227 navigating, 233
debug screen (HUD), 50 netherbrick, 238-239
End, The, 233 Nether Portal, 236-237
maps Nether quartz, 238
numbering maps, 229 Nether wart, 209-212, 239
REI’s MiniMap mod website, 263 Overworld size comparison to, 242
villages, 219 sleeping in, 242
wall maps, 144 Sneak key (Left Shift), 238
zooming in/out maps, 229 soul sand, 238
Minecraft controls
stairs, 237
FN key (Mac OSX), 20
survival checklist, 234-235
left-handed options, 21
torches, 237-239
list of controls, 19-20
tunnels, 237
Nether, The, 233
water, 235
negative effect potions, 214-215
wither skeletons, 241
negative structures, 222
netting, 145
Nether, The, 24, 231
barricades, building, 239
blaze rods, 234, 239
296 new games

new games trees

biomes gathering wood, 25-26
choosing, 16 lumberjacking, 26
Far Lands or Bust, 16 Night Vision potion, 213
game modes NOR gates, 182
Adventure mode, 17 Normal difficulty and hunger, 58
Creative mode, 17 Normal option (Survival mode), 18
Hardcore mode, 17 note blocks, creating music, 173
selecting, 14 NOT gates (inverters), 180
Survival mode, 16-18
Nether options, configuring, The, 238 O
pausing, 25
obsidian
setup, configuring, 14-15
enchantment tables, 197-199
worlds
End survival checklist, The, 243
choosing world generation style, 16
creating, 14-15 mining, 70, 197-199
naming, 14 Nether Portals, building, 236
night (first), surviving Nether survival checklist, The, 235
building oceans, first-night survival, 26
beds, 41-43 ocelots (cats), 127
crafting table, 29-30, 35 online resources, Far Lands or Bust, 16
furnaces, 38-39 opening
shelter, 33-38 doors, 36
crafting inventory, 27, 30
axes, 32 OR gates, 181
crafting table, 29-30, 35 OSX (Mac)
heat sources, 37-38 FN key, 20
light sources, 37-41 Minecraft, downloading, 11
pickaxes, 32
overhangs and spiders, 64
shovels, 33
Overworld, 24, 242
swords, 32
Ovo’s Rustic resource pack, 257
tool handles, 30-31
oxygen bar (HUD), 48
torches, 39-41
first-day tasks, 23-24 oxygen, building underwater, 150
inventory, checking, 27-29
island biomes, 26
P
ocean biomes, 26 pack animals, 133
perimeter structures as protection, 36 paintings, 144
potions 297

passive mobs pits, building, 155-157

animals as, 59-62 pixels per texture (resource packs), 257
squid, 135 planks (wood), crafting, 29
passwords, 12 plants, growing
pausing games, 25, 74 establishing farms, 108
PC edition (Minecraft), 8, 11 fantasy trees, 144
Peaceful mode, 57 hedges, 143
Peaceful option (Survival mode), 17 indoor plants, 142
pearls (Ender), 91, 234 planter boxes, building, 143
perimeters, building, 36 trees (fantasy), 144
arrow slits, 157 Pocket edition (Minecraft), 8
ditches, 153-154 biomes, 16
fences, 104, 109, 112, 126 crafting in, 31
lighting, 155 hiding HUD, 50
mobs, 155-157 poison
towers, 155 food poisoning, 61
walls, 157 Poison potion, 215
Phanatic multiplayer server, 269 rotting meat and zombies, 85
pickaxes spider eyes, 86
crafting, 32 ponds, 144
mining and, 70 pools, 144
Nether survival checklist, The, 234 pop-ups, downloading resource packs, 258
picking-up items in inventory, 29 portals
pigmen (zombie), 91-92, 236-237, 240 End Portals, 245
pigs, 127, 134 Nether Portal, 236, 237
pillar jumping, 38, 65 positive effect potions, 213-215
piston farms, 113 potatos, 105
crop selection, 116 potions
harvesting, 115 awkward potion, 212-213
piston harvesters, 117-118 brewing, 209
sticky piston harvesters, 119 blaze rossa, 210
sugar cane, 122 building brewing stands, 212
water harvesters, 119-122 Nether wart, 209-212
soul sand, 209-211
pistons
testing potions, 210
as output devices, 172
End survival checklist, The, 243
sliding doors, 178
enhancing, 214-215
298 potions

fermented spider eye potion, 214 priests, 220

Fire Resistance potion, 21 Projectile Protection enchantment, 206
glowstone dust potion, 214 Protection enchantments, 205-206
gunpowder, 214 pumpkins, 105
Harming potion, 215 Punch enchantment, 205
Healing potion, 213 purchasing Minecraft, 10-11
Invisibility potion, 213-215 pursuit mode, mobs and, 57
negative effect potions, 214-215 PvP (player versus player). See multiplayer
Night Vision potion, 213 games
Poison potion, 215
positive effect potions, 213-215 Q-R
redstone dust potion, 214 Q key, 29
Regeneration potion, 213 quick access grid (inventory), 28-29, 73,
skeletons, 215 235
Slowness potion, 215
Splash potion, 214 rails, 159
Swiftness potion, 213 activated rails, 189
testing, 210 detector rails, 163-164, 189
Weakness potion, 215 halfway stations, 192
zombies, 215 minecarts, 185-186
powered blocks, 166-167 destroying and reusing, 188
powered minecarts, 187-188 hopper minecarts, 187
powered rails, 172, 189-190 powered minecarts, 187-188
Power enchantment, 205 storage minecarts, 187
TNT minecarts, 187-189
power sources, 160, 170
trains, 188
powered blocks, 166-167
mobs, protecting rails from, 192
redstone, 162
normal rails, 188
powered rails, 189-190
powered rails, 172, 189-190
redstone wire, properties of, 164
pressure plates, 163
repeaters, 168-169
torches, 161, 167 T-junctions, 191
repeaters, 168-169 trains, minecarts as, 188
pressure plates, 162. See also buttons underground rails, 188
automatic doors, 176 zig zags, 190
detector rails, 189 rain, fishing in, 134
minecart rails, 163 raised beds (farming), 104, 111-112
pits, 156 raised floors, building, 145
security 299

Raspberry Pi Edition (Minecraft), 8 respawning, 18, 63

ravines, 222 cheats, 42
Realms (Minecraft), joining, 268 spawn points, building underwater, 149
redstone, 67, 159-160, 170 Respiration enchantment, 153, 206
automated farms, building, 116 resting, Peaceful mode, 57
piston farms, creating, 116 restoring games, 259
powered rails, 189-190 reusing destroyed minecarts, 188
redstone blocks, 162 riding animals, 50, 130-132
redstone dust potion, 214 rotten meat and zombies, 85
redstone lamps, 171 running, 56
redstone torches, 161, 167, 178-180 combat and, 95
redstone wire, 164 effects of, 57-58
repeaters, 168-169, 174 hunger and, 57-58
sticky piston harvesters, building, 119
Regeneration potion, 213
registering Mojang accounts, 8 S
passwords, 10 S key, 25
security questions, 9
safety, mining and, 81
REI’s MiniMap mod website, 263
saturation, hunger and, 58
removing
saving crops, 111
inventory items, 29
search bar (Creative mode inventory), 68
mods, 260
security
renaming items, anvils and, 209
arrow slits, building, 157
repairing
ditches, building, 153-154
anvils and, 209
Minecraft passwords, 12
enchantment items, 201
mobs
repeater loops, 184
ditches, 155
repeaters, 168-169, 174
tunnels, 155
resetting biomes, 26 water, 154
resource packs, 138, 251, 255 Mojang accounts
Dokucraft, 256-257 passwords, 10
downloading and pop-ups, 258 security questions, 9
Faithful 32, 257 perimeters, building
functionality, 256 arrow slits, 157
installing, 256-257 ditches, 153-154
Ovo2s Rustic, 257 lighting, 155
pixels per texture, 257
300 security

mobs, 155-157 housing codes, 65

towers, 155 huts, building, 64-65
walls, 157 light sources, crafting, 37-41
pits, building, 155-157 overhangs and spiders, 64
pressure plates, 156 pillar jumping, 38
towers, building, 155 redstone, 67
underwater, building, 153 tunneling, 34
walls, building, 157 Shift key
water, 154 ladders, pausing on, 74
seeds sneaking around hazards, 81
farming, 103 Shotbow multiplayer server, 268
planting, 108 shovels, 33, 234
servers (multiplayer) signals, 160
BeastsMC, 269 buttons, 162
Hive, The, 268 automatic doors, 173
hosting, 265, 269-271 powered blocks, 166
joining, 265-268 detector rails, 164, 189
Phanatic, 269 levers, 162, 166
Shotbow, 268 pressure plates
Supercraft Brothers, 268 automatic doors, 176
whitelisted (trusted) players, 140 detector rails, 189
setup minecart rails, 163
Mojang accounts, 8-10 weighted pressure plates, 162
new games, 14-15 redstone torches, 161, 167
Sharpness enchantment, 204 tripwires, 163
sheep and wool, 42-43, 127, 130 signs
shelter placement of, 141
building, 33-34 underwater, building, 150
building blocks, 67 Silk Touch enchantment, 207
caves, 34 silverfish spawners, 245
cliffs, 34 singleplayer games
decoration blocks, 67 Adventure mode, 17
doors, 36-37 Creative mode, 17
emergency shelters, 38 Hardcore mode, 17
heat sources, crafting, 37-38 multiplayer games versus, 13
hills, 34
sprinting 301

Survival mode, 16 sneaking

Easy option, 18 around hazards, 81
Hard option, 18 farming and, 111
Normal option, 18 Sneak key (Left Shift), 238
Peaceful option, 17 snow blocks, 235
skeletons, 56 snow golems, 92-93
arrows and, 88, 96 soft blocks, building underwater, 148, 152
as resources, 60 soil, farming, 104
bones, farming benefits, 110 soul sand
fighting, 87-88 brewing potions, 209-211
potions, 215 Nether, The, 238
spider jockeys, 89 spawners
wither skeletons, 241 blaze spawners, 239
skins, 251 disabling, 223
changing, 252-255 silverfish spawners, 245
skin editor websites spawning, 18, 63
Minecraftskins, 253 cheats, 42
Novaskin, 254 spawn points, building underwater, 149
Skincraft, 253
spiders, 56
superhero skins, 262
cave spiders, 88-89
Steve, 252
defending against, 86
sleep
ditches, crossing, 153
beds
eyes
building, 41-43
as food, 86
taking with you, 44
fermented spider eye potions, 214
End, The, 242-243
fighting, 86-87
mining and, 81
overhangs and, 64
mobs and, 81
spider jockeys, 89
Nether, The, 242
string, 42, 86
time and, 42
uses for, 86
villages and, 219
walls as defense, 86
sliding doors, building, 177-179
spiral staircases and mining, 77-78
slimes, 56, 90-91
Splash potion, 214
Slowness potion, 215
sprinting, 56
Smite enchantment, 204
combat and, 95
effects of, 57-58
hunger and, 57-58
302 squid

squid, 135 jungle temples, 224-225

stacking inventory items, 28 Large Biomes option, 217
staging points, mining and, 81 mineshafts (abandoned), 226-227
staircases and mining negative structures, 222
Nether, The, 237 Nether fortresses, 227
spiral staircases, 77-78 finding, 238
straight staircases, mining and, 76-77 survival tips, 239-240
stations (halfway), 192 ravines, 222
steel and flint spawners, disabling, 223
Nether Portals, 236 strongholds, 226
Nether survival checklist, The, 235 villages
Steve (character skin), 252 appearances of, 218
stew, 124 beds, 219
sticky piston harvesters, 119 blacksmiths, 220
butchers, 220
stone buttons, 162
children, 218, 221
automatic doors, 173
commonality of, 217
powered blocks, 166
farmers, 220
stone (material type), 52
finding, 219
storage interacting with inhabitants, 218-221
storage area (inventory), 28 iron golems and, 219
chests, 54-55 librarians, 220
enchantments, storing in books, 202 priests, 220
storage minecarts, 187 sleeping in, 219
straight staircases and mining, 76-77 trading with inhabitants, 219-221
Strength potion, 213 uses of, 218
string (spiders), 42, 86 zombies and, 218-219, 222
strongholds, 226, 244-245 witch huts, 224
structures subscription services, 268
basins, 222 subtract mode (comparators), 170
caverns, 222 sugar cane, 106
desert temples, 223-224 automated farms, 122
dungeons, 225-226 growing, 104
End strongholds, The, 244-245 piston farms, 122
Generate Structures setting Supercraft Brothers multiplayer server, 268
Create New World screen, 14 superhero mods website, 262
More World Options, 217
tools 303

survival fighting with, 56

first night survival Nether survival checklist, The, 234
axes, 32
beds, 41-43 T
crafting tables, 29-30, 35
tables
first-day tasks, 23-24
bedside tables, 142
furnaces, 38-39
crafting tables, 29-30, 35
heat sources, 37-38
inventory, checking, 27-29 dining tables, 142
island biomes, 26 enchantment tables, 197
light sources, 37-41 books, 200
ocean biomes, 26 casting enchantments, 200-201
perimeter structures as protection, 36 obsidian, 197-199
pickaxes, 32 taming animals, 127, 130-132
shelter, 33-38 teleporting players into LAN parties, 266
shovels, 33 temples
swords, 32 desert temples, 223-224
tool handles, 30-31 jungle temples, 224-225
torches, 39-41 tennis courts, building, 145
trees, 25-26 testing potions, 210
wood, gathering, 25-26 texture packs. See resource packs
Survival mode, 16
textures, pixels per (resource packs), 257
Easy option, 18
Thorns enchantment, 206
Hard option, 18
time, sleeping and, 42
hunger, 58
T-junctions, building tracks, 191
moving items to Creative mode inventory, 68
TNT minecarts, 187, 189
Normal option, 18
Peaceful option, 17 tools
underwater, building, 148 axes, 32
Swiftness potion, 213 durability, 53
swimming enchantments, 206-207
creepers and, 90 End survival checklist, The, 243
swimming pools, 144 handles, 30-31
switches, 114, 142, 161-162 improving, 51-52
swords mining, required equipment list, 70
blocking attacks, 95 Nether survival checklist, The, 234
crafting, 32, 95 pickaxes, 32, 70
damage, dealing, 95 shovels, 33
End survival checklist, The, 243
304 tools

tools category (Creative mode inventory), trading

68 End, The, trading versus fighting, 234
wearing down, 53 with village inhabitants, 219-221
Too Many Items mod website, 261 trains, 159
torches activated rails, 189
bedside tables and, 142 detector rails, 163-164, 189
crafting, 39-41 halfway stations, 192
farming and lighting, 104, 110 minecarts, 185-189
mining, 70, 73 mobs, protecting rails from, 192
Nether survival checklist, The, 235 normal rails, 188
Nether, The, 237-239 powered rails, 172, 189-190
perimeters, 155 pressure plates, 163
redstone torches, 161 T-junctions, 191
powered blocks, 167 trains, minecarts as, 188
vertical current, 178-180 underground rails, 188
underwater, building, 148-150 zig zags, 190
towers, building, 155 trapdoors, 172
tracks, 159 trapped chests, 163
activated rails, 189 treasure
detector rails, 163-164, 189 abandoned mineshafts, 226-227
halfway stations, 192 desert temples, 223-224
minecarts, 185-186 dungeons, 225-226
destroying and reusing, 188 emeralds, farming, 222
hopper minecarts, 187
Ender pearls, 234
powered minecarts, 187-188
jungle temples, 224-225
storage minecarts, 187
Nether fortresses, 227
TNT minecarts, 187-189
trains, 188 spawners, disabling, 223
mobs, protecting rails from, 192 strongholds, 226
normal rails, 188 witch huts, 224
powered rails, 172, 189-190 trees
pressure plates, 163 biomes, 25
T-junctions, 191 fantasy trees, growing, 144
trains, minecarts as, 188 first-night survival, 25
underground rails, 188 lumberjacking, 26
zig zags, 190 tripwires, 163
trusted (whitelisted) players, 140
walls 305

tunnels, 34
V
abandoned mineshafts, 226-227
ditches and, 155 vandalism, 140
doors, 85 vegetables, harvesting, 59
lighting, 64 vertical current, 178-180
Nether, The, 237 video cards (Minecraft PC edition), 8
underground rails, 188 Video Settings menu (game options),
configuring The Nether options, 238

U villages
appearances of, 218
Unbreaking enchantment, 207 beds, 219
underground blacksmiths, 220
abandoned mineshafts, 226-227 building next to, 139
dungeons, 225-226 butchers, 220
rails, 188 children, 218, 221
strongholds, 226 commonality of, 217
underwater, building, 151 farmers, 220
Creative mode, 147 finding, 219
doors, 150 interacting with inhabitants, 218-221
enchantments, 153 iron golems and, 219
flooding, 152 librarians, 220
island spawn points, 149 priests, 220
ladders, 150 sleeping in, 219
lighting, 148-150 trading with inhabitants, 219-221
location, 149 uses of, 218
mob attacks, 49 wells, 222
oxygen, 150 zombies and, 218-219, 222
required equipment, 148-149
security, 153 W
signs, 150
W key, 25, 56
soft blocks, 148, 152
walls
Survival mode, 148
building, 65, 157
up, digging straight down, 73
clocks, 144
usernames (Minecraft), 12
maps, 144
spider-proof walls, 86
306 water

water Nether survival checklist, The, 235

Aqua Affinity enchantment, 206 skeletons, 88, 96
boats, building, 134 target practice, 98
farming, 107-108, 112 critical hits, 94
fishing, 134 enchantments, 204-205
fountains, 144 Ender Dragon, defeating, 246-249
Nether, The, 235 End survival checklist, The, 243
obsidian, mining, 197-199 Nether survival checklist, The, 234-235
permanent watering holes, digging, 109 Peaceful mode, resting via, 57
ponds, 144 swords
pools, 144 blocking attacks, 95
security, 154 crafting, 32, 95
damage, 95
underwater, building, 151
End survival checklist, The, 243
Creative mode, 147
fighting with, 56
doors, 150
Nether survival checklist, The, 234
enchantments, 153
web resources
floating blocks, 139-140
Far Lands or Bust, 16
flooding, 152
island spawn points, 149 mods
ladders, 150 finding, 265
lighting, 148-150 Legendary Beasts website, 263
location, 149 More Explosives website, 262
oxygen, 150 More Mobs website, 264
required equipment, 148-149 REI’s MiniMap website, 263
security, 153 superheroes website, 262
signs, 150 Too Many Items website, 261
soft blocks, 148, 152 multiplayer server websites
Survival mode, 148 BeastsMC, 269
water harvesters, 119-122 Hive, The, 268
wells, 222 Phanatic, 269
Weakness potion, 215 Shotbow, 268
Supercraft Brothers, 268
weapons, 94
skin editors
arrows and bows
Minecraftskins, 253
arrow slits, 157
Novaskin, 254
crafting, 96
Skincraft, 253
End survival checklist, The, 243
superheroes, 262
fighting, 98
zooming in/out maps 307

weighted pressure plates, 162

X
wells, 222
wheat, 106, 222 Xbox 360 Edition (Minecraft), 8
farming, 103 biomes, 16
growth cycles, 110 crafting in, 31
harvesting, 62, 110-112 HUD, hiding, 50
whitelisted (trusted) players, 140 Xbox One Edition (Minecraft), 8
witch huts, 224 XP (experience points)
wither skeletons, 241 earning, 203-204
wolves, 127 enchantments, 195, 200
wood blocks, 52 managing, 203-204
gathering, first-night survival, 25-26
mining and, 70 Y-Z
Nether survival checklist, The, 235 YouTube, finding architectural plans, 140
planks, crafting, 29
wood buttons, 162 zig-zag tracks, building, 190
automatic doors, 173 .zip files, mods as, 261
powered blocks, 166 zombies, 56
wool arrows, crafting, 97
crafting, 42-43 fighting, 84-85
dyeing, 130 potions, 215
spider string instead of, 42 reinforcements, 85
worlds rotten meat, 85
biomes villages and, 218-219, 222
choosing, 16 wells, 222
Far Lands or Bust, 16 zombie pigmen
pocket edition, 16
fighting, 91-92
Xbox 360 Edition, 16
Nether, The, 236-237, 240
creating, 14-15
zooming in/out maps, 229
naming, 14
Overworld, 24
world generation style, choosing, 16
World Type setting (Create New World
screen), 14