Everything you need to know to start brewing potions in Minecraft.
Minecraft is a sandbox survival game with a large focus on crafting (it’s in the name!). The game has tons of recipes, and you can make everything from swords and armor to potions and enchantments for said swords and armor.
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As the world is dangerous, especially with the various roaming mobs, you’ll need to make use of the crafting and brewing mechanics to make good use of all your resources and take every advantage you can get.
Potions are useful items that can give you a variety of status effects, from healing to boosting your stats, e.g. making you move faster. Making potions can seem daunting to new players and requires a lot of different materials. As a matter of fact, you’ll need to make a trip to the Nether at least once before you can even start brewing.
This guide encompasses the different kinds of potions, how to make them, and what materials you’ll need for the task.
Preparations for Brewing
Gather Nether Materials
Since a lot of the materials needed to start brewing potions can only be found within the Nether, it is wise to gather all the materials you’ll need from the Nether before continuing the rest of the guide. The complete list of materials you’ll need is as follows:
- Blaze Rods — Dropped by Blazes in Nether Fortresses and is used to craft Blaze Powder.
- Ghast Tear — Dropped by Ghasts.
- Magma Cream — Dropped by Magma Cubes or crafted using 1 Blaze Powder and 1 Slimeball.
- Nether Wart — Found in Nether Fortresses growing in Soul Sand.
- Soul Sand — Used to grow more Nether Wart in the Overworld (optional but will help reduce the tedium of returning to the Nether.
Brewing Stand
Now that you have your Nether materials, you can craft a Brewing Stand using a Blaze Rod and 3 Cobblestone (or any stone tier block). Use your crafting table and arrange the materials as shown below:
You can then drag the Brewing Stand and place it wherever you find convenient.
Cauldron
Also, you’ll need some water to start brewing potions, so it could be wise to set a Cauldron next to your Brewing Stand. To craft a Cauldron, you’ll need 7 Iron Ingots and arrange them in a U-shape as shown below:
Glass Bottles
Next, to store the potions you’ll make, you’ll need some empty Glass Bottles. To craft 3 Glass Bottles, you’ll need 3 Glass blocks and arrange them in a crafting table as shown below:
Next, you’ll need to fill the bottles with water. Drag the bottles to your hotbar, equip them, and target any body of water as you would with a bucket. This will serve as the starting base for all your potions.
Blaze Powder
To fuel your Brewing Stand, you’ll need to use Blaze Rods to craft Blaze Powder. One Blaze Rod makes 2 Blaze Powder. Simply place your Blaze Rod in the middle while using a crafting table.
Brewing Potions
To make Potions that have effects, you’ll first need to brew a base potion called an “Awkward Potion.” To brew 3 awkward potions, you’ll need the following materials:
- Blaze Powder
- Nether Water
- 3 Water Bottles
Open the Brewing Stand, and place Blaze Powder in the square in the top-left corner. Place the Nether Wart in the top square. Place your Water Bottles in each of the three empty squares at the bottom.
To your Awkward Potions, you’ll need to add other ingredients to turn them into Effect Potions.
Below is a list of all the materials that add effects to an awkward potion:
| Name | Effect | Upgrade Materials | Effect When Corrupted |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sugar | Speed | Glowstone Dust | Slowness |
| Rabbit’s Foot | Jump Boost | Glowstone Dust, Redstone Dust | |
| Glistering Melon Slice | Instant Health | Redstone Dust | Instant Damage |
| Spider Eye | Poison | Glowstone Dust, Redstone Dust | |
| Pufferfish | Water Breathing | Redstone Dust | None |
| Magma Cream | Fire Resistance | Redstone Dust | |
| Golden Carrot | Night Vision | Redstone Dust | Invisibility |
| Blaze Powder | Strength | Glowstone Dust, Redstone Dust | Weakness |
| Ghast Tear | Regeneration | Glowstone Dust, Redstone Dust | None |
| Turtle Shell | Slowness, Resistance | Glowstone Dust, Redstone Dust | |
| Phantom Membrane | Slow Falling | Redstone Dust |
Furthermore, you can use Glowstone Dust and Redstone Dust to your Effect Potions to make them more powerful.
Splash Potions
You might know what to do with potions that have negative effects. You can turn them into Splash Potions to throw at enemies, imbuing the status effect on them.
You’ll need Gunpowder for this, and then, using the brewing table, arrange the potions you made in the same manner as you did your water bottles, with Gunpowder in the top square instead of Nether Wart.
Lingering Splash Potion
You can also upgrade your Splash Potions to Lingering Splash Potions. However, you’ll need Dragon’s Breath for this, which can only be gathered when fighting the Ender Dragon (The FInal Boss). Using an empty glass bottle, absorb the Ender Dragon’s breath attack or the purple cloud left by its fireballs.
Once you have your Dragon’s Breath, open your Brewing Stand. Place the Glass Bottle filled with Dragon Breath in the top square and any splash potion in the bottom square.
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