If you think about it, mixing potions isn’t all that different from mixing materials to make items in Minecraft. That is just conceptually speaking because the act of brewing potions is not nearly as simple or straightforward as just organizing a couple of sticks and stones in a grid. Potions require a bit more nuance and preparation to make, but the effects they can have are quite literally game-changing.
There’s a lot you need to do to get started mixing up your own potions, and once you have the tools required, there’s no instruction manual on how to make the dozens of possible potions, let alone the best ones. If you want to allow yourself to walk through lava and see in the dark without the use of mods, check out this full potions guide.
How to make a brewing station
Much like a witch needs a cauldron, you need a brewing station to start making your own potions in Minecraft. This isn’t something you can do in the early hours of the game since it requires a few endgame resources. Most notably, you will need Blaze Rods, which can only be found in the Nether. There are multiple ways to make a portal to reach the Nether so you can take your pick on how you do it, but obviously, make sure you’re prepared with good armor and weapons first since you will be doing some fighting.
Once in the Nether, find a fortress and fight some Blazes until you get at least one Blaze Rod. That’s all you need for now, but the Nether is full of important brewing ingredients you may want to snag for later like Nether Wart and Ghast Tears.
The recipe for a brewing station itself is very simple. Just place the Blaze Rod and three cobblestones as shown above to make your simple stand. Set it up in your base, and you will be ready to start making some potions.
How to brew and enhance potions
To brew potions you will need a few things: Water (a source block is best), Blaze Powder, and Bottles.
With these base items (plus more specific ingredients for different potions we’ll get to next), you can start brewing. Fill at least three glass bottles from your water source and place them in the three bottom slots in the brewing stand menu. The top-left slot is where your Blaze Powder goes, and in the top middle above the potions is where you will put different ingredients to change what type of potion you get. By default, putting a Nether Wart there will create an Awkward Potion that has no effect but is the base for most potions. Start there and then you can add a different ingredient to the top to give your potion some use.
If you put a potion in the stand again, but add either glowstone or redstone dust to it, you can achieve several enhancements. Redstone dust will make whatever potion you make last longer, while glowstone will increase the level of that potion and make it more potent. For example, a potion of invisibility normally lasts for three minutes, but modifying it with redstone dust will make it last for eight. Other items like gunpowder can turn potions into splash potions you throw for offense.
Best potions and how to make them
There are dozens of possible potions to make and enhance, but these are the ones we find the best, along with what ingredients they require:
- Potion of healing
- Ingredients: Awkward Potion + Glistening Melon Slice
- Effect: Heals two hearts instantly
- Potion of invisibility
- Ingredients: Potion of night vision + Fermented Spider Eye
- Effect: Makes it harder for enemy mobs to see you
- Potion of slow falling
- Ingredients: Awkward Potion + Phantom Membrane
- Effect: slows your fall speed so you don’t take fall damage
- Potion of strength
- Ingredients: Awkward Potion + Blaze Powder
- Effect: Increases your attack damage by 1.5 hearts per hit
- Potion of water breathing
- Ingredients: Awkward Potion + Pufferfish
- Effect: You don’t lose air bubbles while underwater for 3 minutes
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