The Wither is one of Minecraft’s two boss mobs, and the only one you have to build yourself. Defeating it is the gateway to the nether star, the single ingredient you need to craft a beacon. This guide walks through exactly how to summon the Wither, what happens during its explosive spawn, how its two combat phases work, and the strategy that gives you the best odds of walking away with the reward. Every number below is checked against the official Minecraft Wiki, with edition and difficulty differences flagged where they matter.
What you need to summon the Wither
The Wither is summoned by building a fixed structure out of two ingredients: 4 blocks of soul sand or soul soil (you can mix the two), and 3 wither skeleton skulls. The hardest part is the skulls.
Wither skeleton skulls drop from wither skeletons, which spawn in nether fortresses. The base drop chance is only 2.5% when the skeleton is killed by a player or a tamed wolf. In Java Edition the Looting enchantment adds 1% per level, capping at 5.5% with Looting III; in Bedrock Edition it adds 2% per level, capping at 8.5%. A wither skeleton killed by a charged creeper’s explosion always drops a skull. Expect to farm for a while, so bring a sword with Looting.
How to build the spawn structure
The arrangement is a T-shape. Place 3 soul sand/soul soil blocks in a horizontal row, then add a 4th block directly below the center of that row. Finally, place the 3 wither skeleton skulls on top of the 3 upper blocks. The Wither forms at the base block position once the final skull is placed.
- Lay 3 soul sand/soul soil in a horizontal line.
- Add 1 more soul sand/soul soil below the middle block (forming a T).
- Place all 3 wither skeleton skulls on the top row of soul blocks.
- Note: air blocks are required on either side of the base soul block for the spawn to trigger.
The spawn sequence and its explosion
When the last skull lands, the Wither does not attack immediately. It enters an 11-second invulnerability period, flashing between black and blue while its health bar fills. At the end of this charge, it unleashes a large explosion centered on itself (blast power 7) that destroys nearby blocks and deals heavy damage to anything close by. This is a critical detail: never spawn the Wither standing next to it. Place the final skull and run, or summon it on the other side of a thick wall.
Health and the two phases
The Wither has 300 health (150 hearts) in Java Edition regardless of difficulty. Bedrock Edition scales it with difficulty: 300 on Easy, 450 on Normal, and 600 on Hard. It also passively regenerates 1 HP per second, so chip damage that lets it heal between hits is wasted effort, bring serious DPS.
The fight splits at the 50% health mark.
Phase one (above 50%): The Wither flies and tries to hover about 5 blocks above its target, firing black wither skulls from all three heads. The main head fires roughly every 2 seconds; the side heads fire every 2-3 seconds.
Phase two (below 50%): Behavior differs by edition. In Java Edition, the Wither gains a natural “wither armor” effect that makes it immune to arrows and thrown tridents, meaning you must finish it in melee. In Bedrock Edition it dashes toward targets and spawns 3 wither skeletons of its own (except on Easy difficulty).
Two skull types matter. Black skulls deal 8 damage and inflict the Wither effect (Wither II for 10 seconds on Normal, 40 seconds on Hard). Blue skulls move more slowly but destroy blast-resistant blocks, including obsidian. The Wither effect turns your hearts black and drains health like Poison, but unlike Poison it can kill you, so milk or regeneration is vital.
Wither stats at a glance
| Property | Detail |
|---|---|
| Summon ingredients | 4 soul sand/soul soil + 3 wither skeleton skulls |
| Spawn structure | T-shape; skulls on the 3 top blocks |
| Charge time | 11 seconds (invulnerable, then explodes) |
| Health (Java) | 300 HP, all difficulties |
| Health (Bedrock) | 300 / 450 / 600 (Easy / Normal / Hard) |
| Passive regen | 1 HP per second |
| Phase 2 trigger | Below 50% health |
| Skull damage | 8 HP + Wither effect |
| Guaranteed drop | 1 Nether Star |
Best arena and combat strategy
The Wither breaks all blocks within a 3x4x3 area around it, including blast-resistant ones like obsidian, crying obsidian, and ancient debris. A handful of blocks are immune, including bedrock, barriers, end portals, command blocks, and reinforced deepslate. That immunity is the basis of two popular tactics.
- Bedrock ceiling (Java): Many players fight on top of the Nether’s bedrock roof, where the Wither cannot break the floor or fly away easily. This makes melee follow-up far more reliable in phase two.
- Boxed enclosure: Summon it inside a tight space so its movement is limited and you can hit it consistently.
- Gear up: Bring Diamond or Netherite armor with Protection, a sword with Sharpness/Smite, golden apples or potions, and milk buckets to clear the Wither effect.
- Smite is huge: The Wither is an undead mob, so the Smite enchantment deals bonus damage to it.
- Java phase two is melee-only: Since arrows and tridents stop working below 50%, switch to your sword early and keep pressure on to outpace its 1 HP/s regen.
When the Wither kills other mobs during the fight, wither roses spawn where they died, a flower that itself inflicts the Wither effect, so handle it with care.
The reward: nether star and beacon
On death the Wither always drops exactly 1 nether star, plus 50 XP. The nether star is the centerpiece of a beacon. Craft a beacon from 1 nether star, 5 glass, and 3 obsidian, then place it on a pyramid built from iron, gold, emerald, diamond, or netherite blocks (the mineral type is purely cosmetic).
Pyramid size determines range and which effects you can pick. A 1-tier pyramid (9 blocks) gives Speed or Haste at 20 blocks; a full 4-tier pyramid (164 blocks) extends to 50 blocks and unlocks Regeneration or a level-II boost to your chosen effect. Higher tiers also unlock Resistance (tier 2+), Jump Boost (tier 2+), and Strength (tier 3+). One Wither, one star, one beacon, that is the whole payoff loop.
FAQ
How much health does the Wither have?
In Java Edition it has 300 HP (150 hearts) on every difficulty. In Bedrock Edition it scales: 300 on Easy, 450 on Normal, and 600 on Hard. It also regenerates 1 HP per second.
How many nether stars does the Wither drop?
Exactly one, guaranteed, every time. You need only one nether star to craft a single beacon, so each Wither kill equals one beacon’s worth of the key ingredient.
Why does the Wither explode when I spawn it?
After the final skull is placed, the Wither charges for 11 seconds while invulnerable, then releases a large explosion (blast power 7) centered on itself. Always place the last skull and immediately move away, or summon it behind a thick barrier.
The Wither is a great fight to take on with friends, three players can split aggro, revive each other, and farm skulls together far faster than a solo run. If you want an always-on world to gear up and stage the battle in, you can spin up a Minecraft server for you and your friends, and the step-by-step setup lives in our Minecraft hosting docs.
Once you have your beacon running, keep building out the world: learn the geometry of a nether portal for faster skull farming, set up Mending so your Looting sword never wears out, and decorate your base with concrete in all 16 colours.
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