Experience points (XP) are earned in Minecraft by doing simple things like killing mobs, mining oars, and cooking food. At the bottom of your screen in the game, you will notice a green bar, either empty or slightly full, accompanied by a small green number that indicates your overall experience level. Each time you fill this bar, you will gain a new level and the bar will reset. As you increase in experience, each level requires more XP to achieve the next one. It is also important to keep in mind that dying in the game will reset your experience back to 0. You can, however, return to the site where you died and reclaim some of the XP.
If you intend on using an enchantment table, in any sort of efficient way, you will no doubt require an XP farm. One of the most simple and effective versions of an XP farm in Minecraft is also referred to as a mob farm. This guide will teach you how to construct an entirely automated mob, from which you can collect plenty of XP and subsequently enchant your heart's content.
Required Materials
Before you begin any construction, collect all the materials listed below:
- 25 stacks of Building Blocks (cobblestone, stone brick, deep-slate, etc. Whatever matches your style)
- Four Hoppers
- Four Chests
- Four Slabs (Any kind will do)
- One Stack of Trap Doors (Any kind will do)
- A handful of Torches
Step One: Building The Collection Apparatus
You will begin your build at the base, which features a mob, XP, and mob drop collection system. Every time mobs die in Minecraft, there are varying probabilities that they will drop useful items. You will begin by creating an automated system that collects these items and stores them in chests. The first step is digging a hole in the ground that is one block deep, two blocks wide, and two blocks long; a square. Now, place the 4 chests inside the hole.
You will then place the four hoppers on top of the chests, as shown in the image above (shift-clicking will allow you to place the hoppers, without opening the chests instead). Use the same shift clicking method to then place the four slabs on top of the hoppers. Lastly, use your primary building block to build a wall that stretches around this structure.
The wall should float, as seen in the image above, leaving only a half block of space open.
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Step Two: Building The Structure
At this point, you have effectively built an automated system for collecting mob drop items. From here, however, you must build the actual structure of the XP farm. The first step is to continue erecting the wall from the previous step, adding 21 blocks in height.
Once this is done, build four platforms that are level with the highest blocks. They should be 2 x 8 and protrude radially outward from each side.
Next, build a wall that stretches all the way around each of these platforms. This wall should also be two blocks tall.
It would be helpful at this point to create an infinite water source inside the farm. This can be done easily by filling a 2 x 2 hole, that is one block deep, with two buckets of water.
You can now make the main chamber of the XP farm, in which the mobs will actually spawn. Build a floor by filling in the spaces between each of the four platforms. Then, make a two-block tall wall that stretches all the way around, and a roof that sits on top.
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Step Three: Inside The Farm
While you're working inside the farm, be sure to first place plenty of torches around. This will prevent hostile mobs from spawning while you're still inside.
There are several more things to do before this farm can become functional, the first of which is lining each of the trenches with trap doors, then opening them. This will trick the mobs into thinking that they are "walkable blocks," allowing them to fall inside.
Next, use your buckets, and the infinite water source from earlier, to place a water source at the back of each trench. Each trench will require two water source blocks, one for each of the two blocks in the back. The water should flow just to the edge, leaving only one block of dry space. When mobs fall into the trenches, the current will drag them to the center of the farm. As they collect in the center, they will fall through the hole, down to the collection chamber.
Step Four: Preparing The Farm
Congratulations! The grunt work is mostly behind you. The structure of the farm itself is complete, and you are finally done building. There are, however, a few more things to square away before this farm can become operational. If you placed torches inside, to illuminate the space while you worked, removing them should be your next step. Hostile mobs spawn only in the dark, so this chamber must be kept completely devoid of light.
The efficiency of this farm depends entirely on maximizing the number of mobs that spawn inside. One way to do this is by illuminating every dark place within your render distance. If you find that your farm isn't generating as many mobs as you would like, it could very well be that there is a cave nearby, filled with lots of mobs. By completely lighting up all the nearby caves with torches, all the mob spawns become concentrated in the only place where mobs can spawn, your farm. Depending on how many caves there are in close proximity to your farm and how big those caves are, this can be a very time-consuming endeavor. If you're up to the task, however, you will undoubtedly see a major improvement in the efficiency of the farm.
One last improvement you can make, which is technically optional, is building an AFK room (AFK: Away From Keyboard). This should be built 70-100 blocks above the top of the farm. This room should include a bed, allowing you to sleep and avoid monsters spawning overnight.
The XP farm will only be as efficient as you make it. Eliminating nearby areas in which mobs can spawn, will increase the odds of them spawning in your farm.
Step Five: Using The Farm
Finally, the farm is complete and you are ready to reap the rewards of your effort. Mobs will spawn in the chamber and fall into the trenches randomly. The currents of the water will push them to the center and they fall down into the collection chamber at the bottom. All that is required of you now, is to stand outside at the bottom and kill the mobs through the half-block opening. The height of the farm was chosen specifically so that the mobs don't die from fall damage. Rather, they usually become reduced in health so that one hit is sufficient to kill them. Sometimes, however, the mobs are wearing armor, which protects them from the fall.
Use a sword when killing the mobs, they have a swiping attack that allows you to kill multiple mobs in one swing. When the mobs die, collect the green XP points that spill out from the collection chamber. If you decided to build an AFK room, wait inside of it and check the collection chamber every five minutes, or so.
Remember that the mobs often drop useful resources and items. These are all being collected by the hoppers and stored in the chests.
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