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Magma Cube in Minecraft, 3D render (3/4 view)
Render by Blockaria from the Minecraft: Java Edition models and textures (Mojang).
3/4 view
HOSTILE Present since 1.14 or earlier

Magma Cube mob in Minecraft

The Magma Cube is the Nether's version of the slime: a bouncing cube of lava that splits into smaller cubes when you kill it. It is common in the Basalt Deltas and inside Nether Fortresses. Its main use is magma cream for Fire Resistance, and with the help of a frog it also gives froglights.

Health
168 hearts
Behavior
Hostile
Main drop
Magma CreamMagma Cream
Found in
Basalt Deltas+1 more

Magma Cube stats

Health
16 8 hearts
Behavior
Hostile
Main drop
Magma CreamMagma Cream
Spawns in
2 biomes
Size
0.52 × 0.52 blocks
XP when killed
1 to 4equal to its size (1, 2 or 4)
Speed
0.2
Detection range
16 blocks

// Experience drops only when a player kills it. Speeds are the game’s internal values, not blocks per second.

Where to find Magma Cube

Biomes where it spawns naturally, with its share of the spawns in each group.

Basalt DeltasBasalt DeltasNether WastesNether Wastes
Spawning
Group size
2 to 52 to 5 · depends on the biome

Structures

StructuresNether FortressMonster spawnerBastion Remnant

Magma Cube drops

Magma Cube dropsFrom the loot table · chance per kill
Magma CreamMagma Cream+1 per Looting level · Medium or large size only · Not when eaten by a frog0–1
Pearlescent FroglightPearlescent FroglightEaten by a frog (warm)×1
Verdant FroglightVerdant FroglightEaten by a frog (cold)×1
Ochre FroglightOchre FroglightEaten by a frog (temperate)×1
Health compared
Health vs other hostile mobshealth points
Zombie20
Zombie Villager20
Bogged16
Magma Cube16
Parched16
Slime16
Vex14

Magma Cube and its family

Mobs built on the same base in the game code, compared on their game values.

MobHealthAttackXPSpeedNo fall damageExtra freeze damageFrog foodImmune to OozingIgnored by pufferfish
Magma Cube 16—1–40.2 ✓✓✓··
Slime 16—1–4— ··✓✓·
Sulfur Cube 811–2— ····✓

Traits

Properties set in the game files.

No fall damageTakes no damage from falling.
Extra freeze damagePowder snow hurts it more.
Frog foodFrogs can eat it.

Advancements with Magma Cube

Advancements whose criteria involve this mob, from the game files.

Monster HunterKill any hostile monster Monsters HuntedKill one of every hostile monster

Command

Summon a Magma Cube/summon →
/summon minecraft:magma_cube ~ ~ ~

How a Magma Cube fights

A Magma Cube moves by jumping, and it jumps much higher than a slime. It hurts you on contact, and unlike the smallest slimes, even the tiniest Magma Cubes deal damage. Lava and fire do not hurt it, and it never takes fall damage, so it happily drops on you from ledges and bounces out of lava pools.

Besides the Basalt Deltas, where they are everywhere, Magma Cubes spawn in the Nether Wastes, in Nether Fortresses and from spawners in Bastion Remnants.

How to kill one safely

  • Expect the split. A large cube splits into medium ones, and each medium one into small ones. Fight with your back to a wall so the pieces cannot surround you.
  • Open with a bow. Damaging the big one from a distance means fewer cubes reach you at once.
  • Stay away from lava. Their hits knock you back, and they can follow you where you cannot follow them.
  • Trust your armor, not your potion. Their contact damage is not fire damage, so Fire Resistance does not help against it.

What magma cream is for

Only medium and large Magma Cubes drop magma cream; small ones never do. Magma cream brews the Potion of Fire Resistance, and four of them make a magma block. You can also craft it from blaze powder and a slimeball, which is often faster if you already run a slime farm.

Froglights

A frog that eats a small Magma Cube drops a froglight instead of magma cream. The color depends on the frog: a temperate frog gives an Ochre Froglight, a cold frog a Verdant Froglight and a warm frog a Pearlescent Froglight. Frogs only eat the smallest cubes. To collect all three, bring one frog of each variant to the Nether, or lure small Magma Cubes to frogs kept near a bastion spawner.

✓ Checked in Java Edition 26.3 · updated 1 November 2026

Magma Cube — FAQ

Why don't small Magma Cubes drop magma cream?

Magma cream only drops from medium and large Magma Cubes. Small ones drop nothing, unless a frog eats them, in which case they drop a froglight.

How do you get froglights?

Let a frog eat a small Magma Cube. The froglight's color depends on the frog variant: temperate, cold or warm.

Can Magma Cubes swim in lava?

Yes. Lava and fire do not hurt them, so they move through lava without trouble.

Where does the Magma Cube spawn?

In Basalt Deltas and Nether Wastes.

What does a Magma Cube drop?

Magma Cream, Pearlescent Froglight, Verdant Froglight and Ochre Froglight. Medium or large size only: Magma Cream. Eaten by a frog (warm): Pearlescent Froglight. Eaten by a frog (cold): Verdant Froglight. Eaten by a frog (temperate): Ochre Froglight.

Other hostile mobs

BlazeBoggedBreezeCreakingCreeperElder GuardianEndermiteEvokerFrostbiteGhastGuardianHoglin