How to get Netherite in Minecraft: from ancient debris to full gear

Every netherite item costs 4 Ancient Debris, 4 Gold Ingots and one upgrade template, applied to a diamond item. Here is the full route from the Nether to a complete set, with the exact cost.

Ancient Debris only drops when you mine it with a Diamond Pickaxe or a Netherite Pickaxe; any other pickaxe breaks it for nothing. Also pack:

• a few Potions of Fire Resistance,
• a stack of blocks to seal off lava (the netherrack you dig works),
• TNT if you want to blast instead of dig (see below),
• food and your best armor.

In Java Edition 26.3, Ancient Debris generates in all five Nether biomes between Y 8 and Y 119, but most of it sits in a narrow band: the peak is Y 16, and Y 15 to 17 is the sweet spot. Stand at Y 15 so a 2-block-high tunnel covers Y 15 and 16. Debris is rare: about 1.65 blocks per chunk on average.

The Nether's lava sea reaches up to Y 31, so at Y 15 you are digging under it, and lava flows faster in the Nether than in the Overworld. Compare debris with the other Nether ores in the explorer below.

Ancient Debris is never exposed to air: every block is fully enclosed by other blocks, so you will not spot it on a cave wall. It comes in small clusters of 1 to 3 blocks. Three methods work:

• Branch mining: dig 2-high, 1-wide tunnels at Y 15 with 2 blocks of netherrack between them. Slow, but safe and cheap.
• TNT: Ancient Debris has a blast resistance of 1,200 and survives explosions, while Netherrack is blown away. Place TNT along a tunnel, step back, and check the craters for debris.
• Beds: in the Nether a bed cannot be slept in; using one destroys it in an explosion. Some players use beds as charges instead of TNT. The blast also hurts you, so only do it at full health and in armor.

Put the debris in a Furnace or a Blast Furnace. Each Ancient Debris turns into 1 Netherite Scrap and gives 2 experience. In a Furnace one item takes 10 seconds.

On a Crafting Table, combine 4 Netherite Scrap and 4 Gold Ingots in any arrangement. You get 1 Netherite Ingot; the ninth slot stays empty. One ingot upgrades one item.

The Smithing Template "Netherite Upgrade" is not craftable from scratch: your first one comes from a bastion remnant, the large blackstone castle in the Nether. Chances per chest, from the 26.3 loot tables:

• treasure room chest: 100%,
• bridge chest: 10%,
• hoglin stable chest: 10%,
• other bastion chests: 10%.

Bastion chests can also contain Ancient Debris and Netherite Scrap, and treasure room chests sometimes hold Netherite Ingots. Piglins guard every bastion, so go prepared.

On a Crafting Table, place the template in the top middle slot, Netherrack in the center and 7 Diamonds in all other slots:

• top row: diamond, template, diamond,
• middle row: diamond, netherrack, diamond,
• bottom row: diamond, diamond, diamond.

You get 2 templates back. Always keep one to copy again: each copy costs 7 diamonds.

Open a Smithing Table (2 Iron Ingots on top of 4 planks) and fill the three slots: the template, the diamond item, then a Netherite Ingot. Take the netherite item from the output slot. The upgrade works on every diamond tool, weapon and armor piece, including the Diamond Hoe, the Diamond Spear, Diamond Horse Armor and Diamond Nautilus Armor.

Cost of a full set

A full set here means 4 armor pieces plus sword, pickaxe, axe and shovel, with only one template looted:

The 33 diamonds break down as helmet 5, chestplate 8, leggings 7, boots 4, sword 2, pickaxe 3, axe 3, shovel 1. Armor alone costs 16 debris, 16 gold ingots and 45 diamonds (24 for the armor, 21 for 3 template copies). Every extra template you loot saves 7 diamonds.