What Doesn’t Go With Smite? The Ultimate Minecraft Enchantment Guide
In the world of Minecraft enchantments, Smite is a powerful but specialized tool. It significantly boosts damage against undead mobs, making it invaluable in certain situations. However, its usefulness is limited by its incompatibilities with other enchantments. In short, Smite cannot be combined with Sharpness or Bane of Arthropods on the same weapon. These enchantments occupy the same damage-boosting niche, and the game’s mechanics prevent them from coexisting.
Understanding Enchantment Conflicts
Minecraft’s enchantment system is designed to encourage strategic choices. Certain enchantments offer similar benefits, and allowing them to stack would unbalance the gameplay. This is why enchantments like Sharpness, Smite, and Bane of Arthropods are mutually exclusive. You can only have one of these damage-enhancing enchantments on a single sword or axe at any given time.
The Damage Enchantment Triangle
Think of Sharpness, Smite, and Bane of Arthropods as forming a triangle. Each represents a different approach to increasing damage output:
- Sharpness: Provides a general damage boost to all mobs. It is the most versatile option.
- Smite: Deals extra damage specifically to undead mobs like zombies, skeletons, and the Wither.
- Bane of Arthropods: Increases damage against arthropod mobs such as spiders, cave spiders, and silverfish.
Because they all modify the same base damage value, the game prevents them from being combined. The choice between them depends on the player’s intended targets.
Why the Incompatibility?
The incompatibility between these enchantments stems from a fundamental design choice by the game developers. Allowing these enchantments to stack would create weapons that are excessively powerful. This would diminish the challenge and reduce the incentive to use different weapons or strategies.
Furthermore, from a technical standpoint, the game’s code likely handles damage calculations in a way that only allows one damage-boosting enchantment to be applied at a time. Attempting to apply multiple enchantments would lead to conflicts and potentially unpredictable results. However, it has been shown that these enchantments can be stacked using commands, but this circumvents the intended game mechanics.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) About Smite
1. Can I have Smite and Fire Aspect on the same sword?
Yes, Smite and Fire Aspect are compatible. Fire Aspect adds fire damage, which is a separate effect from the direct damage boost provided by Smite.
2. What about Smite and Knockback?
Absolutely. Smite and Knockback can coexist on the same weapon. Knockback affects the distance a mob is pushed back, and does not modify the base damage.
3. Is Smite better than Sharpness for fighting zombies?
In a straight-up fight against zombies, Smite is generally better than Sharpness. Smite provides a significantly larger damage boost against undead mobs, making it more efficient for taking them down quickly.
4. Does Smite affect the Ender Dragon?
No, Smite does not affect the Ender Dragon. The Ender Dragon is not classified as an undead mob, so the bonus damage from Smite will not apply.
5. Can I put Smite on a trident?
No, Smite cannot be applied to a trident through normal gameplay. Smite is exclusive to swords and axes. While using commands may allow the enchantment to be applied, this is not possible through normal game mechanics.
6. Is Smite useful in the Nether?
Yes, Smite is highly useful in the Nether due to the presence of undead mobs like wither skeletons, zombie piglins (now zombified piglins), and skeletons.
7. What level of Smite is best?
Smite V (Smite 5) is the highest and most effective level. Each level of Smite adds more damage, so maximizing the level is always desirable when facing undead mobs.
8. Can I combine two Smite III swords to get a Smite IV sword?
Yes, combining two Smite III swords will result in a Smite IV sword. Combining two of the same enchantment level will result in an increased level on the resulting item, so long as the resulting level is not beyond the maximum allowed.
9. If I use commands to get both Smite and Sharpness, will they stack?
While commands can bypass the normal enchantment restrictions, the actual stacking behavior may be unpredictable or non-existent. It is better to consider which enchantment would be more useful in most situations.
10. Does Smite work on players?
No, Smite does not work on players. Players are not classified as undead mobs.
11. Is Smite a good enchantment for an axe?
Yes, Smite is a good enchantment for an axe if you frequently encounter undead mobs. Axes deal more base damage than swords, so the Smite bonus can be quite significant.
12. Can I get Smite from an enchantment table?
Yes, Smite can be obtained from an enchantment table. The level of the enchantment offered depends on the level of the enchantment table and the number of bookshelves surrounding it.
13. What are the best situations to use Smite?
The best situations to use Smite are when fighting large numbers of undead mobs, such as in zombie sieges, exploring Nether fortresses, or battling the Wither.
14. How much extra damage does Smite V do?
Smite V deals a significant amount of extra damage to undead mobs. On Java Edition, it adds 2.5 hearts (5 points) of damage per hit against undead mobs. Bedrock Edition deals variable damage based on the weapon type.
15. What are alternative enchantments if I can’t use Sharpness with Smite?
If you choose Smite and can’t use Sharpness, consider other utility enchantments such as Knockback, Fire Aspect, Looting, or even Unbreaking to improve the weapon’s durability. Also, consider that the Games Learning Society helps further the understanding of how games have an impact on education and learning. Visit GamesLearningSociety.org to learn more.
Conclusion
While Smite is a powerful enchantment against specific types of enemies, its incompatibility with Sharpness and Bane of Arthropods requires players to make strategic choices about their weapon enchantments. Understanding these limitations is crucial for maximizing your effectiveness in Minecraft’s diverse environments. Knowing when to use Smite and when to opt for a more versatile enchantment will make you a more successful adventurer.