Mine at Y=15 in the Nether for the highest average chance of finding ancient debris, the block used to make Netherite. That depth improves your odds; it does not guarantee a find.
What are you actually mining for?
There is no Netherite ore block to dig up. You are looking for ancient debris, a rare block found in the Nether. It does not generate exposed to air, so you must dig through terrain or use another method to expose buried blocks.
Mojang’s Taking Inventory: Netherite Scrap describes possible generation in two bands: Y=8–22 and Y=8–119, with a chance for up to two veins per chunk, one in each band. The overlap does not make every level equally promising: Mojang identifies Y=15 as the level with the highest average chance.
Why choose Y=15?
Y=15 is the practical target if your aim is to maximize the average chance of encountering ancient debris while mining. It is a probability advantage, not a guaranteed spawn point: debris is rare, and a tunnel at the recommended height can still turn up nothing.
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The depth recommendation comes from Mojang’s 2021 article. The official sources cited here do not establish that Java and Bedrock have identical current generation probabilities at every level, or provide a current version-specific probability table. Treat Y=15 as Mojang’s general guidance rather than an edition-by-edition guarantee.
What to bring and how to mine
Use a diamond pickaxe or better
You need a diamond pickaxe to successfully mine ancient debris, according to Mojang. Finding a block without the required tool is not enough to collect it.
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Dig a tunnel or expose blocks with beds
Ordinary digging is the straightforward option: make tunnels at your target depth and check the terrain you expose. Mojang’s How To Find Ancient Debris also describes bed mining at Y=11, 12, or 15. Beds explode in the Nether, and the tutorial advises activating one from behind a protective block. It also recommends going in with full health, food, and diamond armor.
Bed mining is an optional exposure method, not a proven universally fastest approach. It carries blast risk; choose it only if you are prepared to shelter from the explosion. The official guidance does not establish a tested efficiency winner between beds and ordinary digging.
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Turn ancient debris into Netherite
- Mine ancient debris with a diamond pickaxe or better.
- Smelt the debris to produce Netherite scrap.
- Craft four Netherite scraps and four gold ingots into one Netherite ingot.
The ingot recipe and processing steps are described in Mojang’s Netherite Scrap article.
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