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Minecraft is one of the best-selling games of all time. Outside of mining and building are perilous places like the Nether world and the End. In Survival, players must forage to survive an onslaught of mobs and starvation. For players who have logged countless hours into the game already and seeking other things to do—here are some amusing options for those bored and eager for new Minecraft experiences.
Updated on August 21, 2022, by Anastasia Maillot: The Wild Update is finally here, and there’s a lot for players to sink their teeth into Minecraft right now. With the world generation and cave changes complete and deep dark cities, biomes, as well as the Warden added into the game, there’s no shortage of things to do and challenges to vanquish in Minecraft. That said, if players still somehow find themselves bored of the typical survival grind, there are a few suggestions that have been added to the list of things to do in Minecraft when bored.
25 Find Ancient Debris And Make Netherite Gear
One of the longest grinds in Minecraft is the grind of good gear, and though it might be tough, it’s extremely rewarding. If players haven’t acquired a full set of Netherite gear just yet and they’re feeling boredom slowly creeping in, then it’s the perfect time to head to the Nether and start searching for Ancient Debris.
Note that players will first need to get diamond gear, and upgrade their diamond set into a Netherite set. Netherite ingots also require gold ingots, so while players are in the Nether they should also keep an eye out for any gold.
24 Build A Home In A Different Dimension
Speaking of the Nether, if players are getting tired of living in the same place and want an excuse to build something again, why not make into a challenge of living in another dimension? They can choose to either set up a house in the Nether or even travel to the End dimension.
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While building in these dimensions and even surviving and thriving in them won’t be an issue, be careful not to sleep in a bed in the End or the Nether, as that will lead to a violent explosion that might destroy everything in the vicinity.
23 Play On Mini-Game Servers
Minecraft has a massive and colorful community, so there’s no need to experience the game alone. There are always people to play with and the best place to find and make friends is to join a massive multiplayer server like Hypixel.
Hypixel is also a hub for various mini-games and larger game modes that are popular with Minecraft, including bed wars. Players can hop on the server and navigate the hub until they find something that appeals to them.
22 Search For Ancient Cities And The Warden
The 1.19 update finally released the Warden officially to the big audiences of Minecraft, and it’s a challenge of its own to deal with this powerful mob. He’s even tankier than the Wither, so players have a real threat to deal with once again if they’ve defeated every other boss mob in the game.
Moreover, the new update also added ancient cities and deep dark biomes. Hunting these structures down can be a lot of fun and a cool challenge, though players should come prepared with their best gear and a ton of wool to remain stealthy.
21 Challenge Friends To Minecraft PVP
One aspect of Minecraft that doesn’t get enough love is its PVP side. Usually, there are dedicated servers where players will engage in PVP with its own rules and even a unique meta. Anarchy servers are particularly famous for this.
However, players don’t need to go super hardcore with PVP when starting. They can simply challenge their friends to a duel or two, with limitations and rules as to what kind of armor, enchantments, and consumables they can use.
20 Find Axolotls
Axolotls were added into Minecraft first in the 1.17 update, where they could spawn pretty much anywhere in dark waters. However, thanks to the 1.18 update, axolotls now exclusively spawn in lush cave biomes, in water. They come in a few different color variations, eat tropical fish, and can help players fight against Guardians and Elder Guardians.
To breed axolotls, players will need a bucket of tropical fish. Since lush caves are a pretty rare cave biome to find, players will have to go on a fairly lengthy adventure before coming across one and get lucky to find axolotls inside.
19 Hunt For Rare Items
Powerful and rare items in Minecraft make the game so much more fun and easy to play. That said, these items are by no means easy to get one’s hands on. The Elytra is one of them and requires the player to defeat the Ender Dragon and search the End Islands for an End City with a ship. Elytras let players fly with the help of fireworks.
Another rare item is the Totem of Undying, which can be looted off of Evokers. They can be defeated by starting a raid on a village or by entering a Woodland Mansion, the latter being the harder one to find, but making for a greater challenge and adventure. Totems, when held by the player, will save them from certain death and be consumed at each potential death.
18 Build Underwater, In A Cave, Or Mountain
Most players will want to build their Minecraft homes in easy lush biomes with tons of resources. However, if that feels too easy or too boring, players should build a house underwater, in a cave, or even on some of the new mountain biomes included in the 1.18 update.
Building underwater, in particular, can be a great challenge, as it requires water-breathing potions or a conduit. However, the results are well worth the sacrifice. Lush caves and dripstone caves can also make for very cool Minecraft homes when lit up properly by the player.
17 Try A Challenge
Over the years, Minecraft players have come up with a lot of great challenge ideas to make the game more interesting. The most notable one is Skyblock, which has players start off on a small stretch of land suspended in the air, next to a chest with some basics. From there on, it’s up to them to survive and thrive.
More recently, the One-Chunk survival challenge has been trending as well. In this challenge, players must complete as much of the game as possible without leaving their spawn chunk. Finally, players should consider trying to speedrun Minecraft, as there’s a huge speedrunning community around the game with a ton of different strategies.
16 Complete Achievements
Achievements or Advancements in Minecraft are some of the biggest milestones players can reach during their journey. From getting that full set of Netherite armor as mentioned earlier to finally using up a diamond hoe until the end, there are some crazy achievements players can attempt to complete.
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There are a bunch of these advancements, too, so it will take quite a bit of time in a single-player survival world to complete every single one of them. That means plenty of activities for players to do.
15 Venture Out And Go Exploring
While many enjoy the building and mining aspects of Minecraft, the game often thrives when played more like a treacherous survival adventure. Make a point to get prepared with some solid equipment and survival goods, and venture outward to find dungeons, caves, mineshafts, desert and jungle temples, and more.
Simply going on a long hike for exploration or slaying baddies can be thrilling, especially during the more hostile conditions of the night. It’s a good way to bump up the excitement and test one’s resolve. Not only this but plenty of awesome new landmasses can be discovered in this endlessly expanding world. Bring a compass or build a towering beacon as a frame of reference so getting lost isn’t an issue.
14 Build A Highway
Though it might be a bit tedious to some, the simple act of constructing a long highway can be a good way to occupy oneself and aid in exploration as well. Since there’s no shortage of cobblestone in Minecraft, settle on using that as the foundation and get to building. This can provide a central focus for a time and act as a handy navigation tool. Railroads can be built on the surface for faster navigation.
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A tall enough highway can also double as a wall to ward off unwanted foes and bar them from a town or safe area.
13 Make A Farm
Though this part of the game isn’t quite as detailed as the likes of Stardew Valley or Harvest Moon, an overlooked part of this sandbox is the ability to plant seeds within its sands and dirt. One can create a farm and harvest a bounty of crops with just a handful of simple steps.
Create a fenced-in region of roughly 20-40 blocks, then dig several rows that will act as water canals. After these are filled with water, use a hoe to till the dirt, and right-click on the tilled land while holding seeds. Bone meal can speed up this action. Harvest the crops by left-clicking with the hoe, and collect the bounty. Crops such as wheat, melons, pumpkins, and even carrots can be grown.
12 Build A Cobblestone Generator
Though cobblestone is fairly easy to come by when mining and exploring the vast Minecraft caverns, sometimes it’s nice to have a ready supply at one’s immediate disposal. With just a few easy steps involving a small pit, a bucket of lava, and a bucket of water, a cobblestone generator can be constructed. The water makes constant contact with the flowing lava, creating an instant block of cobblestone. This principle can be applied on a more advanced level to generate obsidian as well.
This handy guide delves into more detail regarding the steps involved to make this simple cobblestone contraption.
11 Try New Features
The new 1.18 update features a ton of new world generation changes which can make the game feel completely different. Plus, players who haven’t enjoyed the new additions that came with summer 2021’s 1.17 update should try to make a spyglass and find amethyst geodes.
There are also candles that players can make that can be used to decorate a home and light up caves. Those who don’t mind a few bugs can also just play on the latest snapshot to always get the newest features immediately.
10 Slay The Ender Dragon
Arriving in The End, players are met face to face with Minecraft’s most powerful foe. The Ender Dragon is a mythological creature that is considered the final boss in Minecraft. The Ender Dragon spits fireballs and flies swiftly throughout the area. Even in Peaceful mode, the Ender Dragon can cause damage.
Getting to this boss isn’t easy as players must do more than merely build a Nether Portal. The End is similar to the Nether world since it doesn’t have a day and night cycle. However, it’s recommended to have diamond armor, a diamond sword, tons of potions, and golden apples before facing the Ender Dragon.
9 Build A Roller Coaster
Minecraft’s titular feature of mining extends to mine carts. Despite being a basic thing to do in the game, players often overlook it. Add in a dose of imagination, and those minecarts and rails can be transformed into a roller coaster fun ride.
Think of it as a monorail except with Redstone tracks and ups and downs at incredible speeds. Roller coasters in Minecraft can be custom-themed and colored to provide a thrilling experience like none other.
8 Mine For Diamonds
Finding diamonds beneath level 16 is possible, but they are most commonly found in layers 5-12. Diamonds serve as the most durable material for a piece of armor or sword and the most efficient for mining with a pickaxe.
Especially if players plan to go mob hunting in the Nether world, having diamond gear is a must-have. The thrill players experience finding a diamond is much like catching a fish in a sparse lake. Only if players go swimming in a lava lake, they’ll roast.
7 Try Out The Latest Mods
If players are growing bored of Minecraft, then there are plenty of options for broadening one’s horizons. The modding community has put together an abundance of mods to enhance the Minecraft experience.
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LOTSOMOBS puts away the long days of seeing chicken and squid everywhere. Biomes in the game become more realistic with the introduction of twenty-five mobs. There are at least fifteen mods that make Minecraft feel brand new.
6 Play With Friends
Building in Minecraft with friends is highly recommended if players are feeling bored. Playing with friends lets people brainstorm together to build the most intricate designs. Especially in Survival mode, having a helpful friend is essential.
Getting bored of playing Minecraft while creating the same house designs? Find a fellow villager with a wild imagination to take those designs to the next level.
