The following tricks aren’t cool or flashy, but they help you get the job done without wasting time. Stay safe, play smart, and Minecraft away!
Java Edition, version 1.14.4
1. 3×3 Digging
There’s not much to do when going up in Minecraft, so the better choice is digging down. Many people start their first game, make some tools, and dig straight down because, “why not?”
Well, when mining straight down you’ll hit underground tunnels or giant cave with a ravine. Of course, there’s a nice pit lava waiting at the bottom too.
How can you mine safely?
Dig in a tight spiral (3×3 area, leaving the middle block continuous) until you get to the depth you need. This allows you to mine a block ahead of you each time you make a new “step” down, thus avoiding falling into a chasm or lava.
Since you don’t ever leave the original 3×3 area while going down, you’re less likely to hit nasty stuff.
2. One Way At A Time
Try your best to stick to cardinal directions:
- North
- East
- South
- West
Going every direction you want may lead you down a path that you don’t recognize. Making it impossible for you to find your way home.
Only walk/swim/fly/row/ride in one of the four main directions. Then, it’s much more difficult for you to get lost. You should also use natural identifiers like rivers, coastlines, and biomes to identify where you’re at and how to get back from that point.
One easy idea is to place down a torch often, so you can find your way back home when night falls.
3. Night In The Desert
The desert doesn’t offer you much protection from the elements, and by “elements” we mean hordes of mobs. You can’t really hide in the ground when you’re using sand as your materials. They’ll end up falling on your head.
If you need a safe place to stay in a desert biome, gather a bunch of cactus. At night surround yourself with a double staggered row of cacti 2+ blocks high. Most mobs can’t see you and zombies and phantoms will damage themselves trying to get at you.
4. Tree”house”
Do you need a safe place in woodland, swamp, or jungle biome?
- Climb a tree.
- Hollow out the leaves down to the trunk (leaving the outside leaves untouched).
- Place a torch on the tree trunk.
- Plop down two blocks of wood adjacent to the trunk.
- Place your bed.
If you can find a tree that’s low to the ground (1 block or less), you could also dig a shallow pit underneath it, jump in, and use the soil you excavated to close off the gap. Mobs will never know you’re there.
5. Trench The Village
The quickest, easiest way to defend a village from illagers is to make a bunch of shovels and surround it with a 1×2 dry moat. The evil illagers will fall in and get stuck trying to get to your poor idiot villagers.
Use the dirt you dug out to place a 1×2 wall on your side of the trench to keep your dumb villagers from falling in the same trench. Finally, pour your favorite bucket of lava in the trench. It isn’t the most effective way to dispose of them, but it sure is entertaining to watch.
6. Minecraft Bunker
On flat ground, build a minimum 3×3 pillbox that is just 1 block deep (with a roof of course) and windows 1/2 block above ground level. This small bunker enables you to then snipe or melee attack nearby mobs from a relatively safe distance.
Of course, this isn’t a full-proof defense for creepers, and they’ll end up demolishing your base. You can take the trench idea and dig it much deeper around your pillbox bunker. Then, enjoy watching the boom boom monsters fall in your trap.
7. For The In-Game Writer
Make a book as soon as you can. You can use it to keep notes of things you need to do or want to explore later on. Keeping your notes in-game ensures that they won’t get lost, thrown away, or deleted – unless you delete the entire server with it.
However, you can also decide to join the rest of 2020 and take notes on your phone.
