Quick start guide
Everything you need to know to survive your first days in Minecraft and begin your journey across all three dimensions.
Your first day in the Overworld
You spawn in a random biome of the Overworld with absolutely nothing. The clock is ticking — you have about 10 real-time minutes of daylight to prepare for your first night, when hostile mobs will spawn.
Step 1: Punch a tree
Hold down the attack button on a tree trunk until the wood block breaks. Collect 6-10 logs.
Step 2: Craft a crafting table
Open your inventory, convert logs to planks, then combine 4 planks into a crafting table. Place it down.
Step 3: Make wooden tools
Craft sticks (2 planks vertically), then make a wooden pickaxe (3 planks + 2 sticks). Also make a wooden sword.
Step 4: Mine stone
Dig down or into a hillside to find stone. Mine 20+ cobblestone to upgrade to stone tools and build a furnace.
Step 5: Find food
Kill animals (cows, pigs, sheep, chickens) for raw meat. Cook it in your furnace for better hunger restoration.
Step 6: Make a bed
Kill 3 sheep (same color) for wool. Combine with 3 planks to craft a bed. Sleep to skip the night and set your spawn point.
Essential crafting recipes
| Item | Recipe | Use |
|---|---|---|
| Crafting Table | 4 planks in a square | Access 3x3 crafting grid |
| Furnace | 8 cobblestone in a ring | Smelt ores and cook food |
| Chest | 8 planks in a ring | Store 27 stacks of items |
| Torch | 1 coal + 1 stick | Light up areas, prevent mob spawns |
| Bed | 3 wool + 3 planks | Sleep, skip night, set spawn |
| Door | 6 planks in 2 columns | Block mobs from entering |
Surviving the night
Night in Minecraft is when hostile mobs spawn — zombies, skeletons, spiders, and the dreaded creeper. Here are your options:
Sleep in a bed
The best option. Skip to morning instantly and reset your spawn point.
Build a shelter
A simple dirt hut with a door will protect you. Mobs can't break most blocks.
Mine underground
Dig a staircase down and mine resources while waiting for dawn.
Fight mobs
Risky but rewarding. Mobs drop useful items like bones, arrows, and gunpowder.
Watch out for Creepers
Reaching the Nether
After you've established yourself in the Overworld with iron tools and armor, it's time to enter The Nether.
- Get a diamond pickaxe — You need it to mine obsidian.
- Find or create obsidian — Pour water over lava sources, or find it naturally in caves.
- Build a portal frame — Minimum size is 4 wide × 5 tall (corners optional). You need 10 obsidian.
- Light the portal — Use flint and steel on the inside of the frame. Purple particles appear.
- Step through — Stand in the purple portal for 4 seconds to teleport.
Nether travel tip
Reaching the End
The End is the final dimension, home to the Ender Dragon boss. Here's how to get there:
- Collect Ender Pearls — Kill Endermen or trade with Piglins in the Nether.
- Collect Blaze Powder — Kill Blazes in Nether Fortresses for blaze rods, then craft into powder.
- Craft Eyes of Ender — Combine 1 ender pearl + 1 blaze powder. You need 12.
- Locate the Stronghold — Throw Eyes of Ender into the air. They fly toward the nearest stronghold.
- Activate the End Portal — Place Eyes of Ender in the 12 portal frame blocks.
- Jump in— There's no way back until you defeat the dragon (or die).
What to bring to boss fights
| Item | Quantity | Purpose |
|---|---|---|
| Diamond/Netherite Armor | Full set | Survivability |
| Diamond/Netherite Sword | 1 | Melee damage |
| Bow + Arrows | 1 + 64+ | Ranged combat |
| Golden Apples | 8+ | Emergency healing |
| Cooked Food | 1 stack | Hunger regeneration |
| Ender Pearls | 16+ | Emergency teleportation |
| Beds (Nether only) | 5+ | Explosive damage trick |
| Building Blocks | 2 stacks | Pillaring and bridging |
| Water Bucket | 1 | Fall damage, Endermen |
You're ready!