In Minecraft, Blaze rods are an important item used to activate and access The End dimension. Blaze rods are dropped by Blazes which are hostile mobs found in Nether fortresses. To activate the End portal and travel to fight the Ender Dragon, players need to craft Blaze powder from Blaze rods and use them to make Ender eyes. But exactly how many Blaze rods are required to craft enough Ender eyes to fill and activate the End portal frame? Let’s take a closer look.
What are Blaze Rods?
Blaze rods are items dropped by Blazes when killed. Blazes spawn naturally in Nether fortresses and appear as flying mobs engulfed in flames. They drop 0-2 blaze rods upon death.
Blaze rods can be used to craft a few items in Minecraft:
- Blaze Powder – By placing a blaze rod in a crafting grid, you get 2 blaze powder.
- Brewing Stand – A brewing stand requires 1 blaze rod surrounded by 3 cobblestone to craft.
- Eyes of Ender – Blaze powder combined with ender pearls makes eyes of ender, a key item to find the End portal.
Of these, blaze powder is the most crucial use of blaze rods for accessing The End.
What is Blaze Powder?
Blaze powder is an important crafting component that is created by placing a blaze rod in a crafting grid to get 2 blaze powder.
It has two main uses:
- Fuel for brewing potions – Blaze powder acts as the fuel for brewing stands to brew potions.
- Crafting Eyes of Ender – Combining blaze powder with ender pearls makes Eyes of Ender, which are necessary to locate and activate the End portal.
For reaching the End, crafting Eyes of Ender using blaze powder is the essential purpose.
What are Eyes of Ender?
Eyes of Ender are special items that are important for locating and activating the End portal to reach The End.
To craft Eyes of Ender, you need:
- 1 Blaze Powder
- 1 Ender Pearl
By combining 1 blaze powder and 1 ender pearl in a crafting grid, you get 1 Eye of Ender.
Eyes of Ender are used to locate the End portal by throwing them and following the direction they float towards the nearest portal room. Once inside the End portal room, the Eyes of Ender are needed to activate and fill the End portal frame blocks.
How Many Eyes of Ender For The End Portal?
To activate the End portal, you need to fill all 12 empty portal frame blocks with Eyes of Ender.
The End portal frame always consists of 12 empty frames arranged in a complete frame shape. Filling each of the 12 frames with an Eye of Ender will successfully activate the portal so you can access The End.
Therefore, you need a total of 12 Eyes of Ender minimum to activate the portal.
How Many Blaze Rods For 12 Eyes of Ender?
Since we need 12 Eyes of Ender to activate the portal, how many blaze rods and blaze powder are required to craft them?
The crafting recipe for 1 Eye of Ender requires:
- 1 Blaze Powder
- 1 Ender Pearl
To get 1 Blaze Powder, you need 1 Blaze Rod which makes 2 Blaze Powder when crafted.
So for every 2 Eyes of Ender, you will need:
- 2 Blaze Powder, requiring 1 Blaze Rod
- 2 Ender Pearls
For 12 Eyes of Ender in total, you will need:
- 12 Blaze Powder, requiring 6 Blaze Rods
- 12 Ender Pearls
Conclusion
Based on the crafting requirements, to activate the End portal with 12 Eyes of Ender, you need:
- 6 Blaze Rods to craft 12 Blaze Powder
- 12 Ender Pearls
So the minimum number of blaze rods needed to craft enough blaze powder for 12 eyes of ender is 6 blaze rods.
Of course, additional blaze rods may be needed if some are wasted or if you want to craft extra for brewing or other purposes. But in terms of the bare minimum just to activate the portal, 6 blaze rods to make 12 blaze powder for 12 eyes of ender is what you will need.
Farming Blaze Rods
To obtain the 6 blaze rods needed to reach the End, you will have to farm and kill Blazes. Here are some tips:
- Locate a Nether Fortress – Explore the Nether to find Nether fortresses where Blazes spawn.
- Equip Fire Protection – Wear armor with Fire Protection enchantment to reduce damage from Blazes.
- Keep a Distance – Stay back and use a bow or fishing rod to attack safely.
- Use Potions – Drink potions of Fire Resistance so you don’t take fire damage.
- Build Shelters – Create cobblestone shelters to hide behind while fighting.
- Loot Chests – Look for chests in the fortress, some may contain blaze rods already.
With looting, luck, and persistence while fighting Blazes, you should be able to get the 6-12 blaze rods needed for activating the portal.
Storing and Using Blaze Rods
Once you have collected excess blaze rods from farming Blazes, here are some tips on storing and using the extras:
- Craft more Blaze Powder – Turn rods into blaze powder for Eyes of Ender and brewing stands.
- Fuel Kilns – Use blaze rods as fuel in a furnace or smoker.
- Barter with Piglins – Trade blaze rods with Piglins to get other items.
- Decoration – Place blaze rods around as decoration or light source.
- Save for Crafting – Keep excess rods stored in chests for future crafting recipes.
Having extra blaze rods on hand is always useful in Minecraft.
Frequently Asked Questions
Here are some common questions about collecting blaze rods to reach the End:
Do you need to kill the Ender Dragon to get blaze rods?
No, you do not need to kill the Ender Dragon first to get blaze rods. Blaze rods are obtained by killing Blazes in Nether fortresses, which can be accessed before fighting the Ender Dragon.
Can you use lava instead of blaze powder to make eyes of ender?
No, you cannot substitute lava for blaze powder when crafting eyes of ender. The recipe specifically requires blaze powder made from blaze rods.
Do Blazes always drop blaze rods when killed?
No, Blazes have a chance to drop 0-2 blaze rods when killed. But on average, they drop about 1 rod per Blaze killed.
Can you craft blaze rods or spawn blazes without a fortress?
No, blaze rods are only obtainable as drops from blazes which spawn naturally in Nether fortresses. You have to locate a fortress to farm blaze rods.
Do you need more than 12 eyes of ender to activate the portal?
No, 12 eyes of ender are the minimum needed to fill and activate the portal. Any extras can be saved for finding end cities or reactivating the portal later.
Can you use eyes of ender to also locate end cities?
Yes, eyes of ender can be used after defeating the dragon to locate the nearest end city by throwing them to float towards that direction.
In Summary
- 6 blaze rods are needed to craft 12 blaze powder for 12 eyes of ender.
- 12 eyes of ender minimum are required to fill and activate the end portal.
- Blaze rods drop from killing Blazes in Nether fortresses.
- Extra blaze rods can be used for brewing stands, fuel, and bartering.
Gathering the necessary blaze rods to activate the end portal is an important step in Minecraft progression to eventually fight the Ender Dragon and reach end game content. By exploring the Nether, finding a fortress, slaying Blazes, and collecting their rods, you’ll be geared up in no time to take on the End dimension.
