Wither mob in Minecraft
The Wither is a three-headed flying boss that you build yourself, from soul sand and three wither skeleton skulls. It is one of the hardest fights in the game: it fires exploding skulls, breaks almost any block and inflicts the Wither effect. Its reward is the Nether Star, the only way to craft a beacon.
- Health
- 300150 hearts
- Behavior
- Boss
- Main drop
Nether Star- Found in
- Not in the wild
Wither stats
- Health
- 300 150 hearts
- Behavior
- Boss
- Main drop
- Nether Star
- Spawns in
- —
- Size
- 0.9 × 3.5 blocks
- XP when killed
- 50
- Speed
- 0.6
- Flying speed
- 0.6
- Detection range
- 40 blocks
- Armor
- 4
// Experience drops only when a player kills it. Speeds are the game’s internal values, not blocks per second.
How much damage Wither deals
Damage to a player without armor, by world difficulty. 1 ♥ = 2 damage points.
Wither II: Easy — · Normal 10 s · Hard 40 sExplosion power 1: damage depends on how close you are to the blast.
Explosion power 7: damage depends on how close you are to the blast.
What else changes with difficulty
- Fires skulls at random when it has no target: Normal and Hard
// Armor, Protection and Resistance reduce these values. Base values read from the game code (26.3).
Where to find Wither
Doesn’t spawn naturally in a biome: it comes from a structure, a spawner, a block or an event.
Wither drops
Health compared
WitherTraits
Properties set in the game files.
Effects
Advancements with Wither
Advancements whose criteria involve this mob, from the game files.
Command
/summon minecraft:wither ~ ~ ~How to summon the Wither
Place four blocks of soul sand or soul soil in a T shape: one block at the bottom and three in a row on top of it. Then put three wither skeleton skulls on the top row. The last block you place must be a skull, and the two spaces under the arms of the T must stay empty. The skulls come from Wither Skeletons in Nether Fortresses.
Where to fight it
The Wither can be summoned in any dimension. It flies, breaks blocks and attacks every creature that is not undead, so never summon it near your base or a village. Two common choices:
- Deep underground, in a tunnel near the bottom of the Overworld. The Wither stays close to you, and bedrock is one of the few blocks it cannot destroy, along with end portal frames, reinforced deepslate and barriers.
- On open ground far from anything you care about, where you can see it coming and shoot it.
How the fight goes
Right after it appears, the Wither glows blue and its health bar fills up. It cannot be hurt during this phase. At the end of it, it releases a powerful explosion around itself, so stand well back.
It then flies around and fires wither skulls from its three heads. Black skulls explode on impact. Blue skulls are rarer and far more destructive: they break even blast-resistant blocks such as obsidian. On Normal and Hard difficulty, a skull hit also gives you the Wither effect. Whenever you hurt it, it soon smashes the blocks around its body, which lets it dig its way out of tunnels. It also regains health slowly, so keep up the pressure.
Once its health drops below half, the Wither gains a layer of armor. Arrows and other projectiles no longer hurt it, so switch to your sword for the second half.
How to prepare
- Weapons: a diamond or netherite sword with Smite, since the Wither is undead, and a bow with Power for the first half.
- Armor: full diamond or netherite with Protection. Blast Protection on one piece helps against the skull explosions.
- Healing: golden apples, Potions of Healing and Regeneration, and a few milk buckets to clear the Wither effect. Milk also removes your own potion effects, so drink it at the right moment.
- Insurance: a Totem of Undying in your off hand.
Any mob the Wither kills leaves a Wither Rose where it died, a black flower that inflicts the Wither effect on whatever touches it.
What to do with the Nether Star
When the Wither dies, it drops a Nether Star. Explosions cannot destroy it. Its only crafting use is the beacon: five glass on top, the star in the middle and three obsidian at the bottom.
A beacon needs a pyramid of iron, gold, emerald, diamond or netherite blocks beneath it, from one to four layers. Each layer unlocks more powers: Speed and Haste first, then Resistance and Jump Boost, then Strength. A full four-layer pyramid adds Regeneration or a stronger version of your main power. To choose a power, pay the beacon with an iron ingot, a gold ingot, an emerald, a diamond or a netherite ingot.
✓ Checked in Java Edition 26.3 · updated 1 November 2026
Wither — FAQ
How do you summon the Wither?
Build a T of four soul sand or soul soil blocks, then place three wither skeleton skulls on the top row, the last block being a skull. The spaces under the arms must be empty.
What does the Wither drop?
A Nether Star, which is used to craft a beacon. The star cannot be destroyed by explosions.
Why can't my arrows hurt the Wither?
Below half health, the Wither gains armor that blocks arrows and other projectiles. Finish it in melee.
Which blocks can the Wither not break?
Bedrock, end portal frames, reinforced deepslate, barriers and a few technical blocks. Its blue skulls can even break obsidian.
Where does the Wither spawn?
It doesn’t spawn naturally in biomes.
Other boss mobs
Ender Dragon