Can You Get Emeralds from Wandering Traders in Minecraft?
The short, direct answer is: No, you cannot directly obtain emeralds by trading with a Wandering Trader. Wandering Traders accept emeralds as their sole currency in exchange for the various rare and unique items they offer, making them a drain on your emerald reserves rather than a source. While this might be disappointing for players hoping to get more of the green currency, understanding the wandering trader’s purpose and the broader emerald economy in Minecraft is key to mastering the game.
Wandering Traders and Emeralds: A One-Way Street
The Wandering Trader is a non-villager mob that spawns randomly around the player in the Minecraft overworld. They are easily identifiable by their unique attire and their two leashed llamas. Unlike villagers, Wandering Traders do not live in villages nor do they participate in the standard village trading system. Instead, they appear for a limited time, offering a distinct selection of items not typically found in village trading halls, in exchange for emeralds. The items they offer include:
- Plants and nature-related items: Dyes, flowers, saplings, and buckets of fish.
- Uncommon and rare resources: Coral blocks, blue ice, podzol, and nautilus shells.
- Unique blocks: Moss blocks, dripleafs, and glowberries
- Other rare items: such as sand, gravel and red sand
The traders’ wares are specifically designed to provide players access to items that might be difficult to gather depending on their starting location or game progress. However, this access comes at the cost of emeralds. The Wandering Trader offers a convenient option for those who need a specific item urgently, but they are not a reliable source for emeralds.
The Importance of Understanding Emerald Acquisition
In the world of Minecraft, emeralds are a vital currency, primarily used for trading with villagers. While emeralds do have limited use in crafting, their main function is to facilitate access to a variety of items, including tools, armor, enchanted books, food, and other resources needed for progression. Understanding how to acquire emeralds efficiently is crucial for any player looking to thrive in Minecraft.
Reliable Emerald Sources
Instead of trying to get emeralds from Wandering Traders, players should focus on these primary methods:
- Villager Trading: This is the most reliable and efficient method for obtaining emeralds. Farmers will happily exchange emeralds for crops like wheat, potatoes, carrots, and beetroots. Additionally, armorers, toolsmiths, and weaponsmiths will trade emeralds for various types of items, primarily minerals like coal, iron, and flint.
- Zombie Villager Curing: When a Zombie Villager is cured, they will offer trade discounts, permanently lowering prices and opening opportunities for very beneficial trades that yield high amounts of emeralds over time. By infecting and curing a villager multiple times, prices will be lowered further. This is crucial for getting one emerald trades.
- Mob Drops: Evokers and Vindicators have a chance to drop emeralds upon death. This method is not very reliable as their spawn rates and quantity are not always available for players. Additionally, Foxes holding emeralds have a 100% chance to drop them if killed.
- Loot: Emeralds can be found in various chests throughout the game, including those found in villages, temples, and shipwrecks. But this method is more suitable for supplementing trade earnings than being a core strategy.
- Mining: Emerald ore can be found in mountain biomes, but it’s relatively rare, and mining it isn’t the most efficient way to acquire emeralds.
Wandering Trader: A Convenience, Not a Source
While you cannot get emeralds from the Wandering Trader, they can still be incredibly valuable. Their unique stock, containing rare saplings, flowers, blue ice, and even nautilus shells, can offer shortcuts to resources that would otherwise require extensive exploration and potentially dangerous encounters. The Nautilus shell trade is widely considered the best value the Wandering Trader offers.
By understanding how the Wandering Trader fits into the larger emerald economy of Minecraft, players can strategize their trading and resource acquisition effectively. Instead of looking for emeralds from them, plan how to use the emeralds you gain to acquire the rare items they carry.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
1. What currency does the Wandering Trader accept?
The Wandering Trader only accepts emeralds as payment for their goods. They don’t accept any other form of currency.
2. What is the easiest trade for emeralds?
The easiest trade for getting emeralds is by trading with Farmer villagers. They offer emeralds in exchange for large amounts of wheat, potatoes, carrots, or beetroots, all of which are easily farmable.
3. What is the best trade from the Wandering Trader?
The best trade the Wandering Trader offers is generally considered to be the Nautilus Shell trade. For only 5 emeralds, players can purchase a Nautilus Shell, which is required to craft a Conduit.
4. Can you get emeralds by killing the Wandering Trader?
No, you cannot get emeralds by killing the Wandering Trader. When killed, they drop leads from their llamas. They do not drop any emeralds or experience.
5. Does killing the Wandering Trader affect reputation with villagers?
Yes, killing a Wandering Trader will negatively impact your reputation with villagers, decreasing it by twice the amount of a successful trade.
6. What is the most profitable villager trade?
The most profitable villager trade is with Librarian villagers, who offer enchanted books for emeralds. By leveraging cured villagers with discounts, one can buy many enchantments for low emerald costs.
7. How can I get a one-emerald trade?
You can get one-emerald trades by repeatedly infecting and curing a villager. Each cure lowers the villager’s prices, potentially getting their trades down to one emerald per item.
8. Do Villagers follow you if you hold an emerald?
Villagers will follow you when you are holding emeralds or emerald blocks. They are especially insistent if you hold emerald blocks.
9. Can villagers steal your emeralds?
Yes, Nitwit villagers can open chests and will take emeralds. Keep your emeralds safe around these villagers!
10. How long does a Wandering Trader stay?
A Wandering Trader will despawn after being loaded for 48000 ticks (40 minutes) or two full Minecraft days, unless they are prevented from despawning through commands or other methods.
11. Can I trap a wandering trader forever?
No, simply trapping a Wandering Trader will not prevent them from despawning after their allocated time has expired. Name tags, boats, or minecarts are not methods for preventing despawning.
12. Can Wandering Traders breed?
No, Wandering Traders cannot breed. They are a unique mob with a specific set of actions that do not include breeding.
13. Can Wandering Traders sell cherry tree saplings?
Yes, Wandering Traders can sell cherry tree saplings, even if experimental features are turned off.
14. Does trading with the wandering trader prevent despawning?
No, trading with the wandering trader will not prevent despawning. Only using commands or manipulating specific game mechanics can achieve that.
15. What items do wandering traders sell?
Wandering traders offer a varied array of plants, rare items and blocks such as dyes, saplings, coral blocks, blue ice, nautilus shells, moss blocks, dripleafs, and glowberries. Their stock can vary each time they spawn.