Large Amethyst Like That Continue to Grow
Amethyst is one of the new materials introduced in Minecraft's 1.17 Caves and Cliffs update, Part I. This purple crystal is different from most other resources in the game due to not being an ore that's found in solid stone or deepslate. Amethyst is actually a crystal, which must be mined from special crystal blocks found in specific geode structures.
Amethyst comes in a few different block variants, as well as its shard, cluster, and crystal variant. Only some of these are available in survival mode, provided you have the right tools to mine them. Amethyst is a particularly important resource when it comes to the brand-new spyglass tool, as well as tinted glass. Here's everything you'll need to know about this gorgeous purple crystal.
Amethyst Is Found Inside Geodes
Hunting down amethyst isn't all too complicated. With 1.17, amethyst geodes will now generate all over the Overworld. These geodes are circular structures that are big enough for you to enter.
Sometimes the geodes are cracked, which makes entering them easy, and sometimes they're completely solid, with a layer of smooth basalt and calcite on the outside you need to mine through.
How To Find Amethyst Geodes
Amethyst geodes generate quite frequently. They're not exactly considered structures, so even with structure generation turned off, you're still likely to find some. Geodes most often generate between bedrock level and Y=70, so there's quite a wide range to search for them. On rare occasions, these geodes will even spawn at surface level.
The easiest method to finding geodes is to simply hop on a boat and travel the ocean biomes. With the help of a Night Vision potion, it's easy to spot geodes from the surface level and then dive down to them. Otherwise, you'll have to blindly mine in caves and hope to run into one.
What Are Amethyst Blocks?
Inside the geode, the entire chamber will be lined with purple blocks. These solid blocks are called amethyst blocks. They can be mined with an iron pickaxe and will even make a special, clinging sound when walked on or mined.
An amethyst block can also be crafted using four pieces of amethyst shards combined in the crafting grid. Amethyst blocks are strictly decorative blocks. Budding amethyst blocks are distinguished by their X-shaped pattern on all sides, and it's likely for an amethyst cluster to grow on them.
Budding Amethyst Can't Be Mined
Budding amethyst blocks are special, especially in survival mode. They can't be mined, even when using a Silk Touch pickaxe. Currently, they're only available in creative mode.
Placing an amethyst cluster onto a budding amethyst block can actually make it grow, provided you first use Silk Touch to remove the cluster and then place it down on a budding amethyst block again.
What Are Amethyst Clusters And Buds?
Aside from the solid walls of the geode, you'll notice there are large clusters and small buds growing on the walls, floors, and ceiling inside.
The small pieces are called amethyst buds, and they have three growth stages: small, medium, and large.
The final growth stage turns them into amethyst clusters and is the only stage that actually drops amethyst shards, unless you mine the clusters with a Silk Touch pickaxe.
When mining for amethyst, make sure to always check that the cluster you're mining is the largest possible cluster and not a large amethyst bud. Ignore the small clusters that are still growing.
How To Get Amethyst Shards
Amethyst shards are dropped by fully grown amethyst clusters. These are born when an amethyst bud reaches its final growth stage and transforms into a cluster.
Depending on the type of tool you're using to mine the crystal in question, you'll receive a different amount of shards.
- Iron or lower-tier pickaxe: two amethyst shards.
- Diamond or Netherite pickaxe: four amethyst shards.
Having a Fortune enchantment on your pickaxe is highly useful, since it increases the amount significantly, up to an average of eight shards from one crystal at Fortune III.
How To Use Amethyst Shards
There are three uses for shards, and two of them are actually useful. Here's what you can do with amethyst.
- Craft an amethyst block by combining four shards. This is purely decorative.
- Craft a spyglass by combing one shard with two copper ingots. This allows you to see into the distance.
- Craft two blocks of tinted glass by surrounding a block of glass with four amethyst shards on each side.
Amethyst Clusters Emit Light
When you first enter a geode, you might notice something strange: there's a bit of light inside. That's because amethyst clusters and buds emit a small amount of light.
Depending on the size of the amethyst bud, the light level might be stronger or weaker. The bigger the bud, the more light there is. Amethyst clusters emit a light level of five, which is the highest of them all.
Source: https://www.thegamer.com/minecraft-amethyst-guide-farming-uses/