How to Make a Beacon in Minecraft: Recipe, Pyramid, and Powers
To make a beacon in Minecraft, craft it from five glass, three obsidian, and one Nether star, then place it on a pyramid of mineral blocks and activate a power. Here is how to make a beacon in Minecraft, step by step, from the crafting recipe to choosing your buff.
The beacon is a late-game reward. The Nether star comes only from defeating the Wither, so most of the work happens before you ever open a crafting table.
Get the Nether Star
The Nether star is the one ingredient you cannot mine or trade for. You must build and beat the Wither boss.
- Collect four soul sand and three wither skeleton skulls from the Nether fortress.
- Place the soul sand in a T shape and set the three skulls across the top to spawn the Wither.
- Fight and defeat the Wither in an open area, using strong armor and a good sword or bow.
- Pick up the Nether star it drops, which never despawns like normal items do.
Warning: The Wither explodes on spawn and destroys terrain. Build the boss underground in a sealed room or far from your base to protect your builds.
Craft the Beacon Block
With the Nether star in hand, gather the rest and open a crafting table for the 3×3 recipe.
- Place five glass across the top row and both upper side slots.
- Put the Nether star in the exact center of the grid.
- Fill the bottom row with three obsidian blocks.
- Take the beacon from the result slot into your inventory.
Regular glass works fine, made by smelting sand in a furnace. Obsidian comes from pouring water over a lava source and mining it with a diamond or netherite pickaxe.
Build the Pyramid Base
A beacon does nothing on its own. It needs a pyramid of mineral blocks beneath it to project a beam and power.
- Tier 1: a 3×3 square of blocks, giving one power at short range.
- Tier 2: add a 5×5 layer beneath the 3×3.
- Tier 3: add a 7×7 layer beneath that.
- Tier 4: add a 9×9 base layer for maximum range and both a primary and secondary power.
Any combination of iron, gold, emerald, diamond, or netherite blocks works, and you can mix them freely. This table shows the block cost per tier.
| Pyramid tier | Blocks in that layer | Total blocks |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 9 | 9 |
| 2 | 25 | 34 |
| 3 | 49 | 83 |
| 4 | 81 | 164 |
A full tier-4 pyramid needs 164 mineral blocks, so iron blocks from a farm are the cheapest way to reach it.
Place and Activate the Beacon
Once the pyramid is ready, set the beacon on top of the center block and open its menu.
- Place the beacon on the middle block of the top layer.
- Confirm the beam appears, shooting straight up into the sky, which means the pyramid is valid.
- Open the beacon and choose a primary power from the available list.
- Insert one payment item (iron ingot, gold ingot, emerald, diamond, or netherite ingot) and press the green checkmark.
Tip: The beam must have a clear line to the sky. If it does not appear, remove any blocks directly above the beacon.
Choose the Right Power
The tier you built determines which buffs you can pick. Higher tiers unlock stronger movement and a secondary slot.
- Speed and Haste: the classic mining combo, great over a build site or strip mine.
- Resistance and Jump Boost: useful for combat zones and parkour builds.
- Strength: available at higher tiers for melee-focused players.
- Regeneration: the tier-4 secondary option that slowly heals you in range.
Knowing how to make a beacon in Minecraft and picking Haste over a mining operation can dramatically speed up large excavation projects.
Frequently Asked Questions
What blocks can I use for the pyramid? Iron, gold, emerald, diamond, and netherite blocks all count, and you can mix them in any pattern. Iron blocks are usually the most affordable choice.
How do I get a Nether star? Only by defeating the Wither boss, which you summon with four soul sand and three wither skeleton skulls. There is no crafting or trading route to it.
Can I change the beacon’s beam color? Yes. Place stained glass or a stained glass pane above the beacon, and the beam takes on that color. Stacking different colors blends them.
Does the beacon power work through walls? Yes. The buff applies to anyone within range regardless of walls, as long as they are inside the horizontal and vertical radius set by the pyramid tier.
Why isn’t my beacon beam showing? Either the pyramid layers are incomplete or a block is blocking the beam’s path to the sky. Check that each layer is a full solid square and clear anything above the beacon.
