How to Find Strongholds in Minecraft

Nutan Lele
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<div class="paragraphs"><p>Here is how to find strongholds in Minecraft.</p></div>
Here is how to find strongholds in Minecraft.

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Highlights
Strongholds in Minecraft let you get some rare loot and hold the End Portal.
Finding strongholds is easier in the Bedrock edition compared to the Java edition of the game.

Strongholds in Minecraft not only give players access to some rare items in the game but are the key to accessing the End which spawns the Ender Dragon. Strongholds are naturally occurring structures in the Overworld. They are usually made of a number of rooms constructed with stone bricks including corridors, libraries and the end portal room. Players will find loot in chests located in corridors and storerooms. You won’t usually find mobs here since strongholds are usually lit by torches. Here is how you can find strongholds in Minecraft. 

How to find strongholds in Minecraft

Strongholds are usually randomly generated but in the Minecraft Bedrock Edition, they usually generate under a village. In the Java edition, they generate in a series of rings along the biomes.

Strongholds are generated in a series of rings along the biomes in the Java edition of Minecraft.

You can also use Eyes of Ender to find strongholds. The crafting recipe of Eyes of Ender requires one Ender Pearl and one Blaze Powder.

Ender Pearls combined with Blaze Powder gives you an Eye of Ender.

You can kill Endermen for a 1 in two chance of dropping 1 ender pearl. The drop is increased by 1 per level of Looting, with a maximum of 4 with Looting III. Endermen usually spawn at the light level of 0 in the overworld and the End, or a light level of 7 or less in the Nether. Blaze rods used to make Blaze Powder can only be obtained from Blazes. Blazes are levitating hostile mobs found in nether fortresses. One rod gives you two Blaze Powders. Combining the two will get you an ender pearl. 

Another way to obtain Ender Pearls is by trading Gold with Piglins found in the Nether. Throw a gold ingot near an adult piglin or use a gold ingot on it. The Piglin will inspect the ingot for a few seconds and then drop you a random item.

Piglins will sometimes drop you an Eye of Ender if you give them gold items.

You can barter Gold items with Piglins which have an approximately 2.18% chance of dropping an Eye of Ender. 

Once you obtain a number of Eyes of Ender (12-20 depending on how far you are from the Stronghold), you can use them to guide you towards the Strongholds. Once used an Eye of Ender will travel for 12 blocks in the direction of the stronghold and fall or shatter.

The Eye of Ender travels upto 12 blocks leaving a trail behind it before either shattering or falling to the ground.

The eye has a 20% chance of shattering after each use. Once you’re above the stronghold, throwing the eye will cause it to disappear downwards into the ground. Start digging down from here you’ll eventually reach the Stronghold. Activating the End Portal requires you to place 12 eyes of ender in the portal, so if you want to journey towards the End, make sure you have some extra eyes in your inventory. However, you may find some Eyes of Ender already in place in the slots of End Portal.


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Nutan is experienced with content across various FPS, MOBA, and BR titles for both PC and mobile gaming. Basically, she's a Jill of all trades. As the former captain of an all-woman esports team, her roots lie firmly in PC gaming but she does enjoy that one map in Call of Duty: Mobile.