Ancient Debris is a new block in Minecraft, introduced in the 1.16 Nether Update. It doesn’t serve any other purpose besides being smelted into Netherite Scrap, which can later be turned into Netherite Ingots. You will need at least a Diamond Pickaxe to mine Ancient Debris.
It carries the same effects as Netherite in how it’s fire resistant. When placed on lava, Ancient Debris will float and not burn, making it one of the only blocks to have this effect. Ancient Debris is also blast resistant, like Obsidian.
This guide is suitable for all versions of Minecraft, including Java Edition and Bedrock Edition. The steps should also be similar between consoles and devices including the PC, PS4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch and Pocket Edition. For more Minecraft Guides & Best-of content, make sure to check out our dedicated area here!
How to Get Ancient Debris
As we know, Ancient Debris spawns in the Nether in Veins. Unfortunately, the spawn chance of them is incredible low. Only 2 Veins of Ancient Debris will spawn in a single chunk (every 16×16 section). These Veins then only have 0-3 Ancient Debris spawning, so there’s a chance of them not spawning at all.
You can find Ancient Debris by exploring between Levels 8-22 and 8-119, this is where the two veins start. On Java Edition, you can see your current level by pressing F3 and checking your coordinates.
The screenshot above is for reference, Ancient Debris will never spawn being exposed to air, and the most you can find in a chunk is 5. It would be best to strip mine, similar to when looking for Diamonds.
How to Use Ancient Debris
Once you have Ancient Debris, you can place it inside of a furnace with a fuel source to obtain Netherite Scrap. For each block of Ancient Debris that you place in a furnace, you’ll receive a single piece of Netherite Scrap.
You can then turn Netherite Scrap into Netherite Ingots. You’ll need at least 4 Netherite Scrap though to turn them into Ingots. Place 4 Netherite Scrap and 4 Gold Ingots into a Crafting Table (the pattern doesn’t matter) to receive a single ingot. Then, you can go onto making the new Netherite Tools & Netherite Armor.
