Can You Still Light a Nether Portal With Lava?
Yes, absolutely! You can still light a Nether portal with lava in Minecraft. This method, while perhaps not as straightforward as using flint and steel, remains a viable and often intriguing way to activate your portal to the Nether. This technique leverages the game’s fire mechanics, allowing you to achieve the same result using different materials. Let’s delve into how this works, and explore some common questions around Nether portal mechanics and materials.
The Lava Lighting Method: A Step-by-Step Guide
The core principle behind using lava to light a Nether portal involves utilizing a flammable material like wood to act as a medium. Here’s a concise breakdown of the process:
- Construct Your Nether Portal Frame: Ensure your Nether portal frame is properly built. It needs to be a rectangle or square, with the inner dimensions being at least 4×5 blocks and no more than 23×23 blocks, not including the corner pieces. Make sure you’re using standard obsidian blocks. Crying obsidian will not work.
- Prepare the Flammable Material: Place a flammable block, like a wood block, directly in front of the portal frame, in the corner. It’s advisable to use one block of wood to keep things contained.
- Apply the Lava: Carefully place lava near the wooden block. Be extremely cautious to avoid catching yourself on fire or spreading the lava. You can do this by pouring the lava near the block instead of directly on it.
- Wait for Ignition: The wooden block will catch fire after a brief period. The fire will then spread to the portal frame, ultimately activating it.
- Enter the Nether: Once the portal is lit, its distinctive purple haze will appear. You’re ready to step through and explore the Nether dimension!
Why Does This Work?
This method works because fire is the key ingredient to lighting a nether portal. In essence, the wood acts as a middle-man. The lava is used to light the wood block, which then ignites the portal frame. This process bypasses the use of flint and steel, providing an alternate means of activating the portal in a pinch, or simply for those who prefer more hands-on methods.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) about Nether Portals
Let’s tackle some of the most common questions players have regarding Nether portals, their construction, and mechanics:
1. What are the Size Requirements for a Nether Portal?
The interior of your portal frame needs to be a rectangle or square. The minimum size is 4 blocks wide by 5 blocks tall (4×5). The maximum size allowed is 23 blocks wide by 23 blocks tall (23×23), not including the corner pieces. Any frame that falls outside of these dimensions will not be lit.
2. Can I Use Crying Obsidian for the Portal Frame?
No, crying obsidian cannot be used to construct a Nether portal frame. Crying obsidian has a unique texture and visual effect, but it does not possess the portal-building properties of regular obsidian.
3. What is Crying Obsidian Used For?
Crying obsidian is a key ingredient in crafting a Respawn Anchor. When combined with glowstone, it allows you to set your respawn point in the Nether. It’s also notable for its decorative “crying” particle effect.
4. Can I Light a Nether Portal in the End Dimension?
No, Nether portals can only be activated in the Overworld or the Nether. They cannot be lit in the End dimension or any custom dimensions.
5. Does the Order of Placing Blocks Matter When Building a Nether Portal?
When building a nether portal, it is important to make sure that the fire from the lava or flint and steel is the last placed block. If you try to place fire on a incomplete frame it will not cause the portal to activate once you place the final obsidian.
6. What Other Ways Can I Light a Nether Portal?
Besides using lava or flint and steel, you can also light a Nether portal by:
- Getting a Ghast to shoot a fireball at the portal. However, Ghasts can also deactivate portals, so it can be risky.
- Trading with Piglins for flint and steel is a potential method of lighting. It is an unreliable source, however.
7. Will Lava Destroy My Nether Portal?
While lava alone won’t break a Nether portal, a dispenser filled with lava, water, or powder snow, when facing into and powered, can damage the portal. However, a small, lit portion of the portal will usually remain functional even after damage.
8. How Does Nether Portal Linking Work?
Nether portals are linked based on coordinates. When you create a new portal in the Overworld, the game searches for the closest portal in the Nether. This creates a link between the two. Sometimes it will create a new portal if a suitable one does not exist nearby. If you are experiencing issues with being sent to the wrong portal, ensure your overworld portals are a reasonable distance from each other and not directly on top of each other.
9. How Far Apart Should My Nether Portals Be?
In the Nether, one block equals eight blocks in the Overworld. Ideally, Nether portals should be spaced at 64-block intervals in the Nether, which corresponds to approximately 512-block intervals in the Overworld. The minimum distance for the Overworld is eight blocks, so care needs to be taken when spacing portals for intended destinations.
10. What is the Size of the Nether Dimension?
The Nether is a dimension that stretches infinitely horizontally like the overworld, however, in the vertical direction, it’s 128 blocks tall with bedrock comprising the top and bottom layers.
11. Can You Make Crying Obsidian?
No, you cannot craft crying obsidian. You can only obtain it through bartering with Piglins in the Nether. There is a 9% chance of a piglin giving the player crying obsidian in return for a gold ingot.
12. Can I Light a Nether Portal with a Fireball?
Yes, you can! A fireball, whether shot by a ghast or a player (using a fire charge), can light a Nether portal.
13. How Strong is Obsidian Compared to Crying Obsidian?
Both obsidian and crying obsidian have the same hardness rating. They are both mined with diamond or netherite tools, and they are equally resistant to explosions. Crying obsidian does not differ significantly from regular obsidian in any way except for its visual effects and its inability to be used as a portal frame.
14. Can You Make an Ender Chest Using Crying Obsidian?
Currently, in unmodded Minecraft, you cannot make an Ender Chest with crying obsidian. However, some players have suggested custom crafting recipes or mods where this could be possible.
15. Where Can I Find Netherite?
To obtain Netherite, you first need to find Ancient Debris, which spawns in the Nether at a depth of Y level 8-15, with the majority spawning at Y level 15. You’ll have to mine this, smelt it into Netherite Scrap, then combine four scraps with four gold ingots to create a single Netherite Ingot.
Final Thoughts
Lighting a Nether portal with lava is a fun alternative to using flint and steel. It showcases the flexibility of Minecraft’s game mechanics and offers a unique approach to setting up your gateway to the Nether. Remember, careful placement of the lava and flammable material is crucial. Explore the Nether with confidence, armed with the knowledge of how to ignite your portal through various methods and materials.