Unlocking Obsidian in Minecraft Without a Diamond Pickaxe

Obsidian is a valuable resource in Minecraft, but acquiring it can be a challenge, especially without a diamond pickaxe.

This article explores various ways to obtain obsidian without the need for a diamond pickaxe. From finding natural deposits to alternative methods like trading with villagers or using commands, there are creative ways to get this valuable material.

Discover the tools and techniques you can use to mine obsidian and its many uses in the game.

What is Obsidian?

Obsidian is an extremely hard, naturally occurring volcanic rock that cools after it has erupted. It is mainly found in Minecraft when lava from a volcano is cooled down by pouring water over it (note that while water contact causes lava to harden in real-life volcanic natural formations and basalt, this is not how obsidian is made in real-life… just mentioning it before anyone tries this dangerous or unproductive method).

The Minecraft obsidian block is an end game resource required in small numbers to build high-level technical and survival structures. Obsidian blocks are used to create the enchanting table that enables magic-based crafting. It is also used to make Nether portals which, once activated, ease travel to other worlds. The killer of a fully filled Nether portal in Minecraft, the Ender Dragon, explodes at death and destroys blocks in its vicinity, but unlike other portal frames, doesn’t blow up Obsidian. Obsidian blocks have a blast resistance of 2000, making the material one of the most resilient.

In real life, obsidian is often called dragonglass (as it is in the George R.R. Marting Game of Thrones books) and has been used in ancient societies for both cutting tools and weapons. As obsidian is an analog of glass, it can be cut into extremely thin and sharp edges that rival surgical steel in terms of cutting ability, leading to its use in arrowheads, knives, and other weaponry in times where metal was scarce or where unique advantages like reduced flint sparks when stuck, obsidian’s radiance, historical novelty, or obsidian’s ultralightness outweighed their brittle nature and lack of reusability (for example, despite historical weapons not having any survival use value, a typical obsidian core blade can only be used in a few fights before chipping and becoming near-useless).

How to Get Obsidian in Minecraft?

You can get Obsidian in Minecraft by adding a lava block onto a water block. When a block of lava is directly adjacent to a block of water, the water will change the lava into blocks of Obsidian.

When either the lava or water blocks are directly on top of each other, the combination of the two will form Cobblestone. Therefore, to ensure you receive Obsidian, be sure the lava block is placed opposite the water block. This method can be observed in the Minecraft game’s Creative mode using a wooden bucket obtained from a Drowned, a desert village, or simply crafting one. This specific method requires a wooden or stone pickaxe, but Torch and Fire methods or even mining diamond tools can help collect Obsidian if a wooden pick is difficult to obtain as well. Also, note that a player’s iron and diamond pickaxes will gather obsidian faster than a similar effectiveness wooden or stone pickaxe.

Finding Natural Obsidian Deposits

Obsidian blocks without having to mine them with a diamond pickaxe spawn naturally as part of the map generation process, in obsidian pillars or isle biomes. Pillars are the easiest to find and will have large amounts of obsidian blocks that can be immediately collected. They can be found in the End Dimension. The easiest way to get to the end is to create a nether portal and follow the ender dragon absorption into the end portal at the stronghold. Check for pillars and mine when you land.

Isle biomes produce less immediately obtainable obsidian within clusters of new isles made of as few as 20 blocks or less. Common isle biomes are the Magma Block Field, Lava Lake, Magma Ravine, Lava Lake, and Lava Ocean. Collecting obsidian flowing from the lakes and pools can be continued mining opportunities.

Linux Penguin Gaming provides an overview of how to collect obsidian via pillared pillars in this 3-minute video in Minecraft version 1.16.2.

Creating an Obsidian Generator

Obsidian generators allow for the generation of mass obsidian from lava and water sources. When water touches a lava source block, the lava is immediately transformed into obsidian. Building an obsidian generator is recommended for players who need large quantities because it is time-consuming to gather. Here are the steps to build a simple two-block wide obsidian generator.

Using a Bucket of Water and Lava

In Minecraft, you can get obsidian blocks without a diamond pickaxe by using a bucket of water and a bucket of lava. Begin by making sure you have easy access to both water and lava. Consider using a space such as a crevasse or near a lava lake to build your obsidian-gathering infrastructure. Follow the following steps for getting obsidian blocks without diamond pickaxe in Minecraft:

1. Put the lava in a spot where it creates a 2×2 or larger square of obsidian below it.
2. Pour the water in each block space to the side, above, and below the obsidian to create new obsidian blocks. Water flows consistently, so be aware that once you place it, it will continue along the path you have set.
3. Continue the process of placing the water and harvesting the newly created obsidian until you have a sufficient amount for your task.

Cons to the water-lava method include limited water and lava source locations and limited ability to see exactly how many obsidian blocks you create at once.`Opening an obsidian block with a bucket` of water will make the block disappear. Be quick to gather water so that it is not wasted when the block dissipates>.

What Tools are Needed to Mine Obsidian?

Only a diamond, netherite, or golden pickaxe can mine obsidian in Minecraft. The diamond pickaxe is most common and gold and netherite pickaxes can also mine obsidian. You cannot mine obsdian with a wooden, stone, iron, or diamond axe if you seek the obsidian block item itself. However, it is possible to have a player use a flint and steel, fire charge, or redstone glitch to light obsidian on fire and turn it into crying obsidian. Although 1000 and 3 such fire charges would be needed to mine a single block of obsidian. And time.

Diamond Pickaxe

The player must have at least one Diamond Pickaxe to mine Obsidian in Minecraft without it disappearing or taking a long time. The block takes 15 seconds to mine with a diamond pickaxe – the only tool strong enough to mine it that does not automatically break the block. However, obsidian mining is much quicker with the efficiency enchantment, as at level 5 it takes just over 2 seconds to mine with a diamond pickaxe.

Enchanted Pickaxe

To get obsidian in Minecraft without a diamond pickaxe, one solution is to use a gold pickaxe instead. You cannot mine obsidian with a gold pickaxe or any non-diamond mining tool. But using a 4-tick duration (67.67% filled) lava source block can generate obsidian in Minecraft and can be done without pickaxes. Another option is to use an enchanted pickaxe. To enchant a pickaxe, the player first needs to make an enchanting table. They must collect diamond, sugarcane, leather, obsidian, and book materials. Once they make the enchanting table and acquire enough XP levels, the player places their pickaxe on the enchanting table and one or more lapis lazuli in the slot. During enchanting, if the player is lucky, they will get obsidian. Remember, enchanting is nearly impossible unless you have mined enough diamond to make a full set of enchanted diamond armor.

Using TNT

The fastest way to obtain Obsidian in Minecraft without utilizing a Diamond Pickaxe is to use TNT (Trinitrotoluene). This currently is the fastest option for maximum ore extraction in the game. TNT is a block of explosive that needs a Flint And Steel to detonate. Once detonated, TNT will release a powerful explosion and destroy the subject block, turning it into a collected item. This will enable a user to collect the maximum allowed for a given block.

The production cost is the lowest for TNT, requiring just 4 units of Sand and 5 units of Gunpowder. As it requires both sand blocks and trees to earn materials through trading, TNT consistently requires only 2 units of Diamonds to utilize, making it a very low-cost alternative. The power and splash radius of TNT explosions could give it some control difficulties for players with a lower dexterity skill level. But all in all, the TNT method for mining Obsidian in Minecraft is one of the most flexible choices available.

Can Obsidian be Obtained Without a Diamond Pickaxe?

Yes, obsidian can be obtained without a diamond pickaxe. The only legitimate way to collect obsidian without a diamond pickaxe is to pour lava on top of a body of water. This forms obsidian automatically. In this way, harvesting obsidian does not require any tool whatsoever.

With the use of functional Mineral Blocks for obsidian added to the game via mods, it is possible to make it easier to grow small amounts of obsidian. But again, these are decorative items that do not add truly new functionality for obsidian in the game. The process described above for water/lava construction of obsidian is the same even when these mods are used.

Using a Nether Reactor

In old versions of Minecraft PE editions such as 0.12.0 (The Nether Upgrade), players could obtain Obsidian at the center of the glowing stone blocks formed when a Nether Reactor is activated. A Nether Reactor Core used to be crafted with 4 Iron Ingots and 3 Diamonds, and the structure for activating it was a three by three layer of Gold Blocks topped by three Cobblestone with a click-activated Nether Reactor Core in the center of the cobble.

Unfortunately, the Nether Reactor was removed from the game after 0.12.0, and it is simply no longer available to players at the present moment. Obsidian made with the Nether Reactor is not identical to the naturally occurring Obsidian in terms of function, being slightly less resistant, but it is very similar. It takes less time to mine and can be used as a portal base or gravity-affected water. If a player holds on to a bedrock world from the early Pocket Edition days that still has activated Nether Reactors ahead of removing the update, that Obsidian will remain.

Trading with Villagers

Villagers are an in-game Minecraft player mob. In Java Edition, villagers get their first job by charging a job site block during the day, while in Bedrock Edition they link to their job sites. Trading comes into play once villagers start their jobs. Villagers likely unlock trades (and many other features) once they have enough experience (affected by power unlinking and visiting next time) (which are increasingly difficult to unlock), but restocks their trade blocks one minute following the disappearing of the associated villagers (with exception of their job site block). Click here for a complete list of villager trades. Villages as a whole do not create obsidian. However, upon exploring villages and interacting with villagers, it is common to find obsidian in the nearby refuse and/or under basement blacksmith shops. Additionally, during trading with Cleric villagers, they may offer obsidian as a trade. In all versions, one foregoes easy, unlimited obsidian by utilizing Pickle-powered villagers lacking obsidian based trades. You can make Armorer villagers utilizing a bell, some beds, job site blocks, as well as station blocks. Then, promote the villagers by opening among the job site blocks, then gleaming their chosen stations with the arrangement.

The villagers then need to get together with their chosen work stations to make the exchange. You will recognize this stage since both villagers will get a few sparkling blue concentrates. When neither behaves this mode, then either wait for them to do so or try wrecking and putting blocks as well as the bell to get them to associate instantly. If this does not work, use a boat to move them. By using a boat, you can easily place the villagers in the same area precisely. A player simply needs to box in a villager and use a boat like a minecart to capture him/her. This approach also allows the easy transportation of the villagers to a new location.

Finding Obsidian in Chests

While not as common as the prior methods, obsidian can be found in the game in the forms of desert temples and the high achieves of loot from ruined portals. Desert temples are underground structures with a two-chamber design: a main chamber filled with tnt traps, orange wool flooring and basic loot chests above a smaller burial chamber with a looted blue terracotta floor hiding the blue terracotta block attached to a stone pressure plate which triggers the explosion to reveal more valuable loot. Chests in the main chamber have a 50% chance of containing 12 obsidian blocks.

Ruined Portals are naturally generated structures that are partially destroyed throughout the Nether and Overworld, and in them can be found chests containing a variety of loot. About 13% of chests will contain 4 obsidian blocks, sometimes with a tnt block for an added element of danger.

Using Commands

The fourth method on how to get Obsidian in Minecraft without a Diamond Level pickaxe is by cheat commands. The three principal ways are:

1. Using a Command Block Module
2. Using Cheat Codes
3. Using a Debug Stick

Command Blocks are in building accessories category that players activate, run commands within, and get up to 34 contiguous building blocks of obsidian placed instantly anywhere in their world they choose. Players can receive blocks in both creative (Gamerule: commandBlockOutput set to false) and survival (Gamerule: commandBlockOutput set to true) environments. Properly-created mechanics access limited commands that won’t ruin the play experience.

Another way to cheat in obsidian is by typing the following command into the chat window: /give @s obsidian 64.

Debug sticks are exclusive to Java Edition and can only be obtained through cheating like those same two methods noted above. The debug stick gives millions of different states to various in-game blocks and can be used to assign them back to a default state.

What are the Uses of Obsidian in Minecraft?

The uses of Obsidian in Minecraft are to construct Portals and alternate dimensions, as well as for the Enchantment Table to enchant items.

The main use of obsidian is to construct portals to the alternate dimension of The Nether. A player can build a Nether Portal to transport them to a different area. After the Nether is entered, the player will need to construct a different portal with different coordinates to enter the Overworld again.

The Enchantment Table uses 4 blocks of obsidian as a crafting recipe, as well as 2 diamonds and 1 book. With this table, you can enchant your items, increasing their effectiveness and providing additional abilities.

The main use of obsidian is to construct portals to the alternate dimension of The Nether, but its secondary use in crafting the Enchantment Table is crucial for the end game. Players need to ultimately obtain obsidian and thus need to venture into the world and mine it, meaning it is very unlikely they will run out of obsidian even when dying.

Crafting Nether Portals

A Nether portal is a manufactured structure that acts as a passage between the Overworld and the Nether. Nether portals are built using 14 obsidian shards. To build a 3 x 3 square nether portal, you will need a minimum of 10 obsidian blocks. The two outer vertical blocks should be 4 long (or 5 for a legitimate over/under design), and the two inner vertical blocks should be 3 long. Both horizontal blocks are 3 long. You light the Nether portal by using a flint and steel tool. When right-clicking the portal’s center, it generates a teleporter in the destination world. Teleport back between the two worlds is accomplished by building a second portal in the two dimensions corresponding to the first’s coordinates on the Y-axis and then jumping in.

The quality of obsidian depends on its formation. The smooth appearance is because obsidian is a type of lava rock formed as a solid. It does not have a crystalline structure encountered in many other rocks and minerals. Its rapid cooling, which does not allow for proper development of internal crystal structures, is the reason for the smooth glass and conchoidal fracture of obsidian. Observing the occurrence of obsidian in regions of active volcanic activity and lightning activity is promoted by economic geologists, who suspect that this will allow sufficient heat in a shorter length of time that crystallization can be unlikely. Only geological tools, unlike any other, are required by miners.

Building Structures

This is the second of the three ways of gathering obsidian in Minecraft without a diamond pickaxe. The obsidian you find in desert villages or woodland mansions is only enough for an occasional trip to the Nether, so if you plan on making a lot of obsidian for use in large amounts, you will need to build farms and cobblestone or obsidian generators.

Building generators increases the amount of cobblestone and obsidian you have to play with. There are many designs ranging from very simple two-bucket ones that take up a mere seven blocks of space, down to incredibly complex designs that use numerous redstone mechanisms and will yield obscene amounts of obsidian.

However, most users should be able to do fine with a simple 2×2 cobblestone generator. What many people do not know is that all generators technically create obsidian, just instantly forcing it into cobblestone via water before it gets a chance to properly form. So by blocking the water of a cobblestone generator and using a flint and steel, you can generate obsidian. You can also just use the tap-and-wipe strategy in the pause menu to generate obby in the moment.

Creating Enchantment Tables

When mined in its crude form, Obsidian requires a Diamond Pickaxe, but it can be harvested into a controllable inventory item using a very straightforward bucket-based method known as Lava-Water Obbycast Mining. This is an effective and simple way to farm Obsidian for novice adventurers.

Grow a surplus of crops to convert into the Emergent Economic tier of Super Spring’s economy where you can build a Bitoasis to trade more easily with others.

If you find Super Spring useful and want to contribute and help expand its capabilities, you can sell Super Spring Emergent Economic Data Tiers for SPRING that will help train our A.I.

Making End Crystals

Making an End Crystal is a complex process, requiring a Dragon’s Breath glass bottle. However, in the video game itself it doesn’t even show up in any recipes, and for the sake of the simplicity of the guide, see opeforge’s video on their acquisition. Once acquired, end crystals may be honed into Obsidian Clumps inside of an animal pen, which in turn may open into the Obsidian Chests.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can you get obsidian in Minecraft without a diamond pickaxe?

Yes, there are alternative methods for obtaining obsidian without using a diamond pickaxe.

What items do I need to get obsidian without a diamond pickaxe?

To get obsidian without a diamond pickaxe, you will need a bucket, water, and lava source blocks.

How do I create an obsidian generator in Minecraft without a diamond pickaxe?

To create an obsidian generator, place a water source block on top of a lava source block and let the obsidian form.

Can I mine obsidian with any other tool besides a diamond pickaxe?

No, obsidian can only be mined with a diamond pickaxe. However, there are other ways to obtain it without mining.

How do I get obsidian in Minecraft if I don’t have a lava source?

If you don’t have a lava source, you can create one by placing a bucket of lava in the Nether and bringing it back to the Overworld.

Is it possible to get obsidian without any tools in Minecraft?

No, obsidian cannot be obtained without any tools in Minecraft. However, you can trade with villagers to obtain it without mining.