How to Make Obsidian in Minecraft: Step-by-Step Guide

Obsidian is one of the strongest blocks in Minecraft and is generated from the interaction of the two most important resources: water and lava. However, players often get confused when they are not able to obtain the Obsidian block due to the hidden mixing mechanics of water and lava. So, dive right in to learn the step-by-step process of how to make Obsidian in Minecraft and all its uses.

How to Make Obsidian Fast in Minecraft

The quickest way to create Obsidian in Minecraft is to gather an iron bucket and fill it with water. Now, find a lava pool on the surface of the Overworld and pour water over it using the bucket. Wait for the lava source blocks to turn into Obsidian blocks, and then you can mine them using a Diamond Pickaxe in Minecraft.

Items Required to Craft and Mine Obsidian in Minecraft

Learning how to make Obsidian in Minecraft is rather easy, and all you need is the right resources as described below:

Item	Purpose
Iron Bucket	For carrying water or lava
Water	To convert lava source blocks into Obsidian
Lava Source Block	To turn it into Obsidian by making water flow over it.
Diamond or Netherite Pickaxe	To mine and drop Obsidian blocks

Liquid Reaction Rules: Obsidian vs. Cobblestone vs. Stone

While mixing both resources, keep the following liquid interaction rule in mind:

Interaction Rule	Result
Water + Lava Source	Obsidian
Water + Flowing Lava	Cobblestone
Lava + Water	Stone

Step-by-Step: How to Make Obsidian with Lava and Water in Minecraft

When a flowing water block comes in contact with a lava source, it will directly convert into Obsidian, destroying the lava source. This means you will need a lava source for every single Obsidian block you want to obtain. Here’s what the process looks like:

Step 1: Craft an Iron Bucket (Do You Lose the Bucket?)

To craft a bucket in Minecraft, you need three iron ingots. Open the Crafting Table UI and place one ingot in the first and third cells of the first row. Now, place the last iron ingot in the central cell to complete the Iron Bucket recipe and collect it from the right-hand side.

For the ingots, you can simply mine iron ore and smelt it in a Furnace or create a quick iron farm in Minecraft with the Iron Golem, a few villagers, and a zombie.

Note that you do not lose the bucket when placing water or lava. The bucket simply becomes empty after the liquid is poured out.

Step 2: Locate Lava Source Blocks Safely

The tricky part of how to create Obsidian in Minecraft is locating lava. You can stumble upon this dangerous liquid block in various places in the Overworld. Lava pits or pools can form on the surface, directly exposed to the sky.

Those surface lava pools are the best option for gathering early-game Obsidian in Minecraft. You can most easily find them in the desert Minecraft biome since it’s fairly flat.

Additionally, lava pools also generate underground, which you will discover by exploring caves and searching for Minecraft diamonds at the best Y level. You can refer to our best Minecraft seeds to generate some customized worlds with such structures right away.

Step 3: Pour Water Above the Lava Pool

Once you find a lava pool, it’s time to learn how to make Obsidian in Minecraft. Start by placing the water source a block away (horizontally or vertically) from the lava pool edge. The water will then start flowing, and it will cover multiple lava sources, turning them into Obsidian.

Step 4: Harvest the Obsidian Without Burning Your Items

If you are using a lava pool to get Obsidian in Minecraft, there are almost definitely more lava source blocks right underneath the Obsidian you just generated. To avoid all the long-mined Obsidian items burning in lava, place the water source block on the same level as the Obsidian platform and allow it to flow towards the blocks you’re mining.

How to Mine Obsidian Safely Over Lava Lakes in Minecraft

Many new players ask how to mine Obsidian in Minecraft. The answer is simple, and you will need at least a diamond pickaxe to mine Obsidian in Minecraft. Also, it will take quite a lot of time compared to most other blocks.

Which Pickaxe Works? (Diamond vs. Netherite)

Note that either a diamond or a Netherite pickaxe can be used to successfully mine the Obsidian blocks. Here are the pickaxe options in the game and their association with the Obsidian block:

Pickaxe	Can it harvest Obsidian?
Wooden Pickaxe	No
Stone Pickaxe	No
Copper Pickaxe	No
Iron Pickaxe	No
Golden Pickaxe	No
Diamond Pickaxe	Yes
Netherite Pickaxe	Yes

A diamond pickaxe is generally the easiest early-game option when you’re obtaining Obsidian for the first time. Netherite works as well and is a stronger late-game option with a reduced time to mine the block.

What Happens If You Mine Obsidian with an Iron Pickaxe?

You can attempt to break the Obsidian block using an Iron pickaxe; however, it cannot successfully harvest the block. Instead, that will just break the Obsidian and make it disappear. And yes, even if you use the iron pickaxe with a Silk Touch enchantment in Minecraft, the Obsidian block won’t drop. So, at least a diamond-tier pickaxe is required to obtain Obsidian.

Alternative Ways to Find and Farm Obsidian in Minecraft

Apart from learning how to make Obsidian in Minecraft from scratch, you can obtain it in other ways. Those include both early and late-game options. Naturally generated Obsidian is not an uncommon sight. In some cases, you will find just a few Obsidian blocks, whereas in other cases, you’ll be able to fill even dozens of those inside the shulker boxes in Minecraft.

Ruined Portals, Mansions, and Chest Loot

Obsidian generates naturally as a part of some structures. Those include:

• Ruined Nether Portals – Ruined Nether portals exist both in the Overworld and the Nether. They consist of Obsidian and crying Obsidian blocks, surrounded by Netherrack, magma blocks, and even some additional lava sources you can turn into Obsidian.
• Woodland Mansions – If you’re extraordinarily lucky, you will come across Obsidian in the Woodland Mansion in Minecraft. They generate only in the secret rooms and also conceals a whole diamond block inside.
• Chest Loot – Occasionally, you’ll find a couple of Obsidian blocks as loot material found inside the chests of Bastion Remnants, Nether Fortresses, and also in the Weaponsmith’s chest in a village.

Piglin Bartering in the Nether

One of the various items and blocks available through piglin bartering is Obsidian. Every piglin that’s been given a gold ingot has about an 8.71% chance of throwing an Obsidian block toward the player.

Infinite Obsidian via End Pillars & Nether Portals

The End pillars are often considered the closest thing to an Obsidian farm in Minecraft that players have access to naturally. The main island, where you battle the Ender Dragon, generates 10 giant and solid Obsidian pillars.

How to Get Crying Obsidian in Minecraft

Crying Obsidian looks very similar to the usual Obsidian blocks in Minecraft, but it has glowing purple vein-like structures and has a completely different purpose.

How Crying Obsidian Differs from Normal Obsidian

Both Obsidian and Crying Obsidian are extremely durable and have a high blast resistance. However, you can interchange them in the crafting recipes.

Regular Obsidian can be used to build the Nether portal in Minecraft. But even using one Crying Obsidian block in the structure won’t light it up. The regular block can also be used to make Enchanting Tables, Ender Chests, and Beacons.

Whereas Crying Obsidian is primarily used to craft Respawn Anchors that allow players to set a respawn point in the Nether.

Where to Find Crying Obsidian (And Can You Craft It?)

A common misconception among players is that you can make Crying Obsidian in Minecraft. However, it is not true, and you can only obtain Crying Obsidian from the following methods:

• Ruined Nether Portals
• Bastion Remnant Chests
• Bartering with Piglins

Once you obtain a Minecraft Crying Obsidian, you can use it to make Respawn Anchors. These help you respawn in the Nether biome, since you can’t really place beds and set the respawn position there.

How to Build an Obsidian Generator in Minecraft

As you already know, you can find pillars of Obsidian blocks in the End dimension of Minecraft. Not only that, but the pillars regenerate every single time you respawn the Ender Dragon mob in Minecraft. This essentially means you have an unlimited supply of Obsidian, provided you can defeat the Ender Dragon over and over again.

Since making Obsidian requires a lava source block, it is very difficult to make an automatic Obsidian generator in Minecraft. What you can do is repeatedly respawn in the End, defeat the Ender Dragon to get an unlimited supply of Obsidian, and it is basically the closest Obsidian generator in Minecraft.

What are the Uses of Obsidian in Minecraft?

Now that you know how to make Obsidian in Minecraft, it’s time to understand its significance. However, besides those uses, it also has other relevant functions that players should be aware of. So, without any further delay, let’s mention all uses of Obsidian.

Blast Resistant Block

So, as we mentioned above, Obsidian is a highly blast-resistant block. This is rather crucial in some cases. For instance, if you’re building a farm that includes a TNT duper, such as a tree farm or cobblestone generator, it’s essential to protect the surroundings from the explosion effects.

Therefore, we can use Obsidian to surround the blast area so that only the chosen blocks will be destroyed.

Moreover, with obsidian, you can protect yourself from Ghasts’ fireballs and TNT explosions while finding Netherite in Minecraft, or from bed explosions in the End while trying the bed technique against the Ender Dragon (read how to hatch an Ender Dragon egg here). Obsidian is your number one block that can be gathered in large quantities and shields you from almost all explosion damage.

Block Unable to be Pushed or Pulled

This is a rather useful feature of obsidian blocks. In certain farm designs, including slime or honey block flying machines, it’s crucial that we can stop and disable them. Even though you can utilize other blocks with similar properties, obsidian is used pretty regularly.

Crafting Ingredient

Obsidian is a part of three extremely relevant crafting recipes in Minecraft. Those are:

• Beacon: Beacons are functional and expensive blocks that provide players with buffs. There’s a lot to say about this amazing block, so if you’d like to learn more about beacons in Minecraft, check out our linked guide. Follow the crafting recipe shown in the image below to craft the beacon.

• Enchanting Table: Enchanting tables allow you to upgrade your gear, make it even stronger and more durable, and even enhance it with different abilities. Check out the guide on Minecraft enchantments that explains everything you need to know about enchanting. To craft the enchanting table, you will need the following items, as shown in the image below.

• Ender Chest: It is a must-have in every late-game player’s inventory. It’s a chest that allows you to access unique contents that every Ender chest shares. This way, the inside of the Ender chest is always safe, as the items cannot leave unless you pull them out. Check out our guide on how to make and use an Ender chest if you need additional help.

Nether Portal Frame Block

To progress in Minecraft and beat the game, you’ll have to enter the scary, fiery dimension — the Nether. The only way you can do so in survival is through a Nether portal. If you are not familiar with this construction, read our dedicated guide on how to make a Nether portal in Minecraft.

Note Block Interaction

If you place an obsidian block under a note block and right-click on it, bass drum sounds will be played.

So, now you know everything about how to make Obsidian in Minecraft. Which way of obtaining this block suits you: making it from scratch or looting various structures throughout your adventures? Let us know in the comments below!