Minecraft: All The Rarest Blocks And Where To Find Them

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While Minecraft is a game where most items can be crafted from scratch, there are some items that are rarer than others. These are things that you aren't likely to see every time you turn on the game. In fact, you may never come across them organically. But they are out in the environment, and here is where you can find them.

Updated November 2, 2024 by Jacqueline Zalace: Looking to have a collection of the rarest blocks in Minecraft? We've updated this list with even more blocks in the game that stand out among the rest in terms of rarity.

19 Dragon Head

Location

End City Ships

There are plenty of decorative blocks in Minecraft, but if you want to be truly metal, you can place the head of a dragon in your house - alternatively, you can stick it onto your head. And it's not just any dragon head - it's the skull of the Ender Dragon. So, if you've killed the beast, you can use it as a reminder of your achievement.

However, you don't actually acquire it through killing the dragon. Instead, you can find it attached to an End Ship, which are sometimes near End cities. When you find it, you can simply break it with any tool, and it will drop.

18 Wither Skeleton Skull

Location

Wither Skeletons in Nether Fortresses

If you see yourself as a Dr. Frankenstein figure, you can build your own Wither. It's unclear why you'd want to do this outside of getting the achievement or trophy, as they're one of the most dangerous mobs in the game. However, if that is your wish, you're going to need a few Wither Skeleton Skulls.

The concept of getting them is simple: you just kill Wither Skeletons. Yet, not only are they not that easy to kill, but they rarely drop their skulls when they do die. While the chances increase if you have a few levels of looting on your weapon, it's still a small percentage. When you do get them, you can just use them as decoration if you aren't fond of monster creation.

17 Lodestone

Location

Crafted with a Netherite Ingot and 8x Chiseled Stone Blocks

One block introduced in 1.16 is the lodestone, which allows players to never get lost, even when exploring places like the Nether or the End. Before the addition of the lodestone, compasses would not work in other dimensions.

The lodestone can be crafted, but it can also be found in the Nether in places known as Bastion Remnants. These Piglin strongholds will usually have a bunch of chests which have a chance of spawning this super useful contraption.

16 Gilded Blackstone

Location

Bastion Remnants

Bastion Remnants aren't just really nice locations for great loot, they also naturally spawn a very cool variant of the blackstone; gilded blackstone. This stone basically drops a few gold nuggets when mined.

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However, mining a block like this within the Bastion will usually turn any nearby Piglins hostile. Players who are in dire need of gold and want to trade should definitely go for this rare blackstone variant, but at their own risk.

15 Crying Obsidian

Location

Ruined Portals

Obsidian in itself isn't that rare, but its variant, the crying obsidian, is a rarity that anyone should take advantage of and mine. The block is found both in the Nether and in the overworld, usually in ruined portals or even in Bastion Remnants.

When trading with piglins, it's also possible for them to drop crying obsidian for the player. This block is important because it allows you to craft the respawn anchor block, which lets you set a respawn point within the Nether.

14 Spawner

Location

Underground

The good old spawner block is a very special block that players have been wanting to have altered for quite some time. This block can't be mined and harvested and will only drop experience orbs when broken with a pickaxe.

Spawners are fairly uncommon, especially those that don't involve cave spiders which often appear in abandoned mineshafts or zombie ones. You may be incredibly lucky and find several spawners near each other; at this point, you can make the perfect multi-spawner XP farm.

13 Ancient Debris

Location

In the Nether between Y=8 and Y=24

The highly coveted ancient debris is the gateway to making Netherite. It's the material that everyone wants after getting full diamond gear, and will completely change how armor and weapons look and feel in combat.

Ancient debris can only be found within the Nether, and unlike diamonds, there's no set way to strip mine it. By using beds or other explosives, however, you can blast away blocks to expose any ancient debris clusters. Since it's blast-resistant, explosives are so far the best method for mining it.

12 Prismarine Blocks

Location

Ocean Monuments

Through the introduction of ocean monuments to spice up the underwater experience of Minecraft, the watery depths brought in this turquoise and green set of blocks known as Prismarine. These blocks are needed to construct a frame in order for a Conduit to activate underwater.

Prismarine is found in all ocean monuments, as it's the main construction block. It comes in a few different color and pattern varieties depending on the room of the monument. While these structures aren't too rare, you may struggle to find an ocean. On top of that, exploring the monument can be quite nerve-wracking.

11 Sea Lantern

Location

Ocean Monuments

Sea lanterns are another separate block that can be found in ocean monuments. These blocks are also turquoise and white in color, and they actually emit a pretty decent amount of light. Most ocean monuments have a few of them at their highest point, making them easy to detect at night time.

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Sea lanterns can be found exclusively in ocean monuments and some underwater ruins. They make for great decorative items but otherwise have no specific utility.

10 Purpur Blocks

Thanks to End Cities, you have access to an even wider variety of strange and beautiful decorative blocks. The Purpur blocks, in particular, are very peculiar and appear as detailed purple-colored stone blocks. They only come in one variety, but the texture changes slightly from one block to another.

Purpur blocks are found in End Cities and Ships only. They're mainly used as decorative blocks and have no other purpose in the game. End cities themselves can be few and far between, which makes Purpur elusive at times.