Nick Johnson • Apr 14, 17:57

If Minecraft is about one thing, it’s about getting diamonds.

As much as Minecraft is about building, farming, and slaying mobs to find that last piece of string players need to make a bow, it’s most of all a game about mining. And even then, players will happily throw out a stack of redstone for the chance to add even one diamond to their collection. Diamonds are Minecraft’s most valuable material. They’re strong. The tools they make last much longer than tools made from stone or iron, and there are some blocks, such as obsidian, that can only be mined by using a diamond pickaxe. The block is so important that many survival playthroughs are are divided up into “before diamonds” and after. But finding diamonds can be hard, especially when new players don’t know where to look.

How to find diamonds in Minecraft

Minecraft’s diamonds are only found deep inside caves. Players who go searching for them unprepared might not come back at all thanks to the Creepers, skeletons, and spiders that like to hang out in the dark. And if the mobs don’t send players back to their beds., the lava might. Sometimes it’s hard to figure out if players are deep enough to even find diamonds. Before players take the trip, there are a few things they should have. These are the most important items to carry when going after diamonds:

• Plenty of pickaxes
• Torches
• Lots of food

Players will have a ton of stone on them from all the mining, so it’s easier to bring a stack of sticks and make them as they go. Since iron can be limited early on, stone pickaxes are available and easy to craft. But they also shouldn’t go cave diving without at least one iron pickaxe. Diamond blocks can only be mined with an iron pickaxe or better.

There’s nothing worse than hitting bedrock and finding out that players don’t have any torches left. Minecraft’s mobs won’t spawn in a bright area, so placing torches as players go is important to keep mobs off their back.

Finally, it’s easy to spend full days, real ones and Minecraft ones, hollowing out Minecraft’s blocky world. Nothing ruins that more than having to climb all the way back to the surface for a loaf of bread. Bringing enough food, at least 20 bread or 15 steaks, will keep players going long into the night.

Once players are all geared up, it’s time to go deep.

Step 1: Dig down to level 12

There’s two ways to make sure that players dig deep enough that they can find diamonds. Minecraft has a coordinate system that counts the number of blocks from the deepest part of the game, bedrock. Minecraft has a handy coordinate system that helps players find out where they are, and it’s pretty easy to understand. Bedrock is the deepest players can dig , but the highest it will spawn is level 6. So if players start to see a light gray block that they can’t mine, they’re too deep. Lava is another danger in caves, but players can actually use lava to help them find diamonds.

The best place to search for diamonds is all the way down on Y=12, and that’s for two reasons. First, lava starts to spawn in big, flat pools at 11. By digging down to and stopping at Y=12, players won’t have to worry about accidentally mining into a lava pool and dying. Level 12 also puts players right in the middle of the prime spot for diamonds.

Step 2: Make a home base

Once players are there, they should dig out a little home base by hollowing out a small room. Chests, a furnace, and a crafting table are a smart idea, and a bed will make sure players won’t have to run back to their items if something goes wrong. After they’re all set up, players can grab their pickaxes and start mining! Here’s the best strategy.

Step 3: Dig the perfect mine

Dig a long hallway straight into the stone

• Place a torch every seven blocks on the left hand side. This helps players know which way they’re going; if the torches are on their left, they’re “L-eaving” home base. If the torches are on the right, the player is “R-eturning.”
• Pick a spot to stop directly across the last torch, turn to the right and dig another long, straight hallway. Place torches every seven blocks on the left side. While mining, check both sides of the tunnel for diamonds. Don’t forget the top and bottom!
• Pick a spot and turn around, heading back to the original tunnel. Once there, go back two blocks towards home. The torches should be on the right. Dig another shaft off the main hallway, leaving two blocks inbetween the first a second “branches.”
• Repeat

This is a very efficient way of searching for diamonds. Since players have already checked right wall in their first branch, only leaving one block in between branches means the right wall would now be the new tunnel’s left wall.  Only leaving one block in between branches means that players will end up checking the same block twice. By leaving two blocks in between, they can cover more ground. 

Eventually players will run into the precious block of diamonds, all shiny and sparkling, waiting to be mined. Players can then pull out their iron pickaxe and go to town. 

Finding diamonds in Minecraft isn’t hard, but it does take a bit of luck. Some players find the gem immediately, and it takes others a bit more time. But following these tips makes the whole thing faster, and it sets up a killer mine for players to use in the future. Stay out of the lava!