Struggling to return to your base in Minecraft? Building a Beacon can help illuminate your route. They also provide some great buffs to keep you secure
Explainer Video: How to Make a Beacon in Minecraft
How to Make a Beacon in Minecraft
Here’s how to find and arrange the materials you need to craft a Beacon:
1️⃣ Defeat the Wither to obtain a Nether Star.
2️⃣ Make 5 Glass Blocks by smelting Sand in a Furnace.
3️⃣ Mine 3 Obsidian by pouring a Water Bucket over Lava to create Obsidian blocks, then mine them using a Diamond or Netherite Pickaxe.
4️⃣ Craft the Beacon:
- Open a Crafting Table.
- Place 1 Nether Star in the center.
- Fill the bottom row with 3 Obsidian.
- Use 5 Glass Blocks to fill the remaining slots.
Tip: To explore your Minecraft world more efficiently, create and customize a map using a Cartography Table.
Build a Base for Your Beacon
If you want to activate the Beacon, you’ll need to construct a base with Diamonds, Emeralds, Gold, Iron, or Netherite. Feel free to use any combo of these blocks. Your base can have between 1 and 4 layers, just remember to place the blocks in the right order.
- Layer 1: 9 blocks (3X3)
- Layer 2: 25 blocks (5X5)
- Layer 3: 49 blocks (7X7)
- Layer 4: 81 blocks (9X9)
The perks of the Beacon get better with every layer you add. Think of it like a pyramid: start with the biggest layer at the bottom and work your way up to the smallest at the top. To create a 4-layer base for your Beacon, you’ll need 244 blocks in total.
The size of your base decides how long the status bonus from your Beacon lasts and how far it reaches.
| Layers | Range | Duration |
|---|---|---|
| Layer 1 | 20 blocks | 11 seconds |
| Layer 2 | 30 blocks | 13 seconds |
| Layer 3 | 40 blocks | 15 seconds |
| Layer 4 | 50 blocks | 17 seconds |
How to Activate a Beacon in Minecraft
When you finish building the base for the Beacon, you’re all set to activate it.
1️⃣ Put the Beacon on the center block of the uppermost layer of your base. It’ll give off a light that serves as a useful guide during your adventures.
Note: To change the light’s color, just place a stained glass block on it. You can even pile on several blocks to create a variety of colors.
2️⃣ Go ahead and interact with the Beacon! A menu will pop up where you can select a status boost. If your base has 4 layers, you can also snag a secondary bonus. The choices expand as your base levels up!
- Layer 1 : Speed, Haste
- Layer 2: Resistance, Jump Boost
- Layer 3: Strength
- Layer 4: Regeneration or double another bonus
3️⃣ Place one of these blocks in the empty slot at the bottom of the menu: Netherite Ingot, Emerald, Diamond, Gold Ingot, or Iron Ingot. After that, just click the checkmark to turn on your Beacon.
Tip: When you have a full pyramid, just activate another Beacon on each side of the initial one. This lets you enjoy up to six status bonuses all at once.
Make sure all your base layers are good to go, whether you’ve built one or four, and that you’re using the right blocks. Also, ensure your beacon is activated. If everything checks out but it’s still not functioning, look up—your beacon needs a clear line of sight to the sky. If there are any obstacles, you’ll need to either get rid of them or move the beacon and its base.
Once you’ve built and powered up your beacon, the first thing you want to do is craft some blue, green, red, and yellow stained glass. Stack those blocks right on top of your beacon. After that, you’ll need to make some sticky pistons and place them in a counter-clockwise loop around the stained glass, starting from the bottom and working your way up. Don’t forget to set your repeaters to four ticks for each piston, and then fire it all up with a Redstone torch.
You can’t just dye your beacon to change its color. The only way to switch up the beam’s color is by putting a stained glass block on top of it.
If you’re playing in Java Edition, you can catch a glimpse of the beacon’s beam from 256 blocks away, provided your line of sight is clear. In Bedrock Edition, it’s only visible from 64 blocks.
Also Check: How to Make Terracotta in Minecraft
