How to Make Netherite Armor in Minecraft: Full Guide

If you’ve spent hours digging through caves hunting diamonds, the payoff of netherite armor feels almost mythical — and that’s before you’ve even set foot in the Nether. The upgrade process is nothing like crafting diamond gear; it flips the whole workflow on its head, demanding a trip into hostile territory, a specific smelting setup, and one item most players overlook entirely. Here’s how the full chain works, from locating ancient debris to slapping that first netherite helmet onto your character.

Upgrade Base: Diamond Armor · Key Material: Netherite Ingot · Tool Required: Smithing Table · Template Needed: Netherite Upgrade Smithing Template · Source Mineral: Ancient Debris

Do I need a smithing template to make netherite armor?

Yes — and this is the part that catches most players off guard. Netherite armor isn’t crafted in a crafting table the way diamond or iron gear is. Instead, you upgrade existing diamond armor by combining it with a netherite ingot at a smithing table. The smithing table requires a netherite upgrade smithing template to recognize the transaction, which means that template is non-negotiable. If you’re still running around with a regular crafting table, stop right there: you cannot make netherite gear without these two workstations and the template.

What is a netherite upgrade smithing template?

The netherite upgrade smithing template is a consumable item that tells the smithing table which recipe to perform. Think of it like a blueprint — without it, the smithing table doesn’t know you want to upgrade diamond into netherite. Each template is consumed when you perform the upgrade, which means you’ll need to gather extras if you plan to upgrade multiple pieces of armor. The good news: after obtaining your first template, you can duplicate it using a crafting recipe that uses the original plus materials.

Where to find netherite upgrade templates?

Netherite upgrade smithing templates are found exclusively in bastion remnant chests throughout the Nether. Every bastion remnant has one guaranteed in its main treasure chest, so even a single visit will net you at least one template. You’ll need four total for a full armor set (helmet, chestplate, leggings, boots), plus extras if you also want to upgrade tools and weapons. Duplicate templates once you have the first one to stretch your supply.

How do I find ancient debris?

Ancient debris is the raw ore that eventually becomes netherite. It generates only in the Nether, exclusively between Y-levels 1 and 119, with deposits so sparse that patience is the real currency here. Most guides cite Y=15 as the sweet spot where you maximize ore spawns while minimizing lava interruptions. You’ll need to strip mine with a diamond pickaxe (or better) — weaker tools won’t drop the debris, they’ll just chip the block.

Best Y-levels for mining ancient debris

Players targeting efficiency generally agree on two primary depths. For strip mining with a pickaxe, Y=16 produces the least lava overhead, making it easier to dig long tunnels without interruption. For bed explosion mining (more on that below), Y=13 to Y=15 gives the best results because the terrain is more predictable. Average generation is about 2 blocks per chunk, with a maximum of 5 — meaning a full armor set (16 debris) requires roughly 12 chunks of systematic mining.

Tools needed for ancient debris

• Diamond pickaxe (minimum) or netherite pickaxe
• Furnace or blast furnace (blast furnace smelts twice as fast)
• Plenty of fuel (coal, charcoal, or lava buckets)
• Fire resistance potions for bastion raids
• Food to regenerate health from piglin damage

How to make netherite ingot?

The ingot is the cornerstone of the entire upgrade chain. The process has two stages: first smelting ancient debris into netherite scraps, then combining those scraps with gold ingots to forge an actual netherite ingot. Neither stage happens in the same workstation, which trips up beginners who expect a single crafting sequence.

Smelting ancient debris

Drop ancient debris into either a regular furnace or a blast furnace. The blast furnace processes the ore twice as fast as a regular furnace, which matters when you’re sitting on 16+ blocks. Use solid fuel (coal works fine) and let it run. Each block of ancient debris yields exactly one netherite scrap. Running multiple blast furnaces in parallel is the fastest path — most experienced players set up a bank of them before committing to a large smelting session.

Crafting netherite ingot recipe

Take four netherite scraps and four gold ingots and arrange them anywhere in a crafting table grid. The arrangement is free-form; the grid just needs all eight materials present. The result: one netherite ingot. For a full armor set, you need four ingots, which means 16 scraps and 16 gold ingots total. Smelt gold ore found in the Nether to generate gold ingots, or mine gold ore elsewhere — either way, stock up before you start the upgrade process.

How to upgrade gear to netherite?

With your diamond armor, netherite ingot, and smithing template in hand, the actual upgrade is quick — but the interface has specific slot requirements. Open the smithing table, place the netherite upgrade template in the left slot, the diamond armor piece in the middle, and the netherite ingot in the right slot. Click the result, and the upgrade transfers. One ingot and one template per armor piece. The key perk: the upgrade preserves all enchantments and remaining durability from your diamond gear.

Smithing table setup

Craft a smithing table from four wooden planks on top and two iron ingots on the bottom. That’s it — no exotic materials, no redstone, no comparator tricks. The block functions as a pure upgrade station. If you already have diamonds and iron, you can build this anywhere in your base. Position it near your enchantment setup for convenience.

Upgrading diamond armor and tools

• Helmet: 1 netherite ingot + 1 template
• Chestplate: 1 netherite ingot + 1 template
• Leggings: 1 netherite ingot + 1 template
• Boots: 1 netherite ingot + 1 template
• Sword/Tools: Same process, same requirements

How to make a full netherite set?

A complete netherite armor set isn’t one crafting session — it’s the culmination of a multi-step supply chain. Start at the source: mine at least 16 ancient debris blocks. Smelt them into scraps, combine with 16 gold ingots to forge four netherite ingots. Scavenge four netherite upgrade templates from bastion remnants (or duplicate extras). Have your diamond armor set ready — that’s 24 diamonds total. Finally, run each piece through the smithing table with one ingot and one template. The result is the strongest armor tier in Minecraft.

Materials for full set

• 16 ancient debris (mined with diamond/netherite pickaxe)
• 16 gold ingots (smelted from gold ore)
• 4 netherite upgrade smithing templates
• 24 diamonds (pre-existing diamond armor set)
• Fuel for smelting (coal, lava, wood)

Step-by-step full armor crafting

1. Enter the Nether and strip mine at Y=15 to locate ancient debris
2. Collect 16+ ancient debris blocks with your diamond pickaxe
3. Smelt all ancient debris in blast furnaces to produce netherite scraps
4. Gather 16 gold ingots (smelt gold ore, ideally in the Nether)
5. Combine 4 scraps + 4 gold ingots per ingot; craft 4 total
6. Visit bastion remnants to collect 4 netherite upgrade templates
7. Build a smithing table (4 planks + 2 iron ingots)
8. Upgrade each diamond armor piece at the smithing table

The implication: skipping any step in this sequence wastes the materials you’ve already invested — each stage feeds the next, and you cannot skip from debris directly to armor.

Minecraft Wiki — Netherite gear is made by upgrading diamond gear with a netherite upgrade template

Ouiheberg Netherite Guide — First, smelt your ancient debris. Second, combine 4 netherite scraps with 4 gold ingots

The full netherite chain is less about one difficult step and more about a sustained resource grind punctuated by one high-risk Nether expedition. Players who go in prepared — with fire resistance, a full set of diamond gear, and a bank of blast furnaces running — finish in a single session. Those who wing it often make multiple Nether trips, burning through resources and risking gear loss. For players who want the absolute best armor in the game, the investment pays off: netherite armor outlasts diamond, resists explosions, and never burns. Players who complete the full chain gain armor that outlasts diamond, resists explosions, and never burns.

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After mining ancient debris in the Nether, upgrade your diamond gear using tips from this step-by-step Netherite tutorial that covers both Java and Bedrock editions effectively.