Elytra are of the greatest end-game rewards in Minecraft. Even with the Nether Update adding Netherite equipment, the Elytra's use stopped it from becoming obsolete. Gliding around worlds is loads of fun, but when combining them with Fireworks, players have pretty much free flight.
This makes them a great tool for navigation in a place like The End, as well as the construction of the massive buildings in a player's world. Naturally, as an end-game item, they can be quite difficult to come by, and knowing where to go and what to look for is essential for players to get their hands on one.
6 Craft Eyes Of Ender
Before players can get anywhere close to an Elytra, they must first gather the necessary materials to reach The End dimension. The most important of these are the Eyes of Ender, which must be placed into the slots on the portal in order to open it.
The amount that players will need is random for each portal, but the maximum possible is 12. To craft them, players must combine an Ender Pearl, dropped by Endermen, with Blaze Powder, obtained from crafting the Blaze Rods, dropped by Blazes in The Nether.
5 Locate A Stronghold & Portal
Once everything is ready to go, players need to find where the portal is, as they cannot be built like a Nether Portal. They will always be contained somewhere in a Stronghold structure, a place filled with cramped tunnels and Silverfish in the walls.
The Eyes of Ender can help here. If a player uses one, it will float in the direction of the Stronghold. Using one of these every now and then will allow players to slowly home in on its location. Once they're in, players must navigate the winding corridors, finding some treasure along the way before eventually seeing the portal.
4 Defeat The Ender Dragon
Once in The End, the battle begins, as nothing can be achieved while the Ender Dragon is still alive. Damaging it is fairly simple, however, it will use the crystals on top of pillars to heal, so these must first be destroyed. The unguarded ones can be hit with a well-placed arrow, but the ones in cages may require more explosive solutions.
Once the crystals are destroyed, chipping away at the Dragon is pretty easy as long as players are careful. When it lands on the Bedrock pillar in the middle, that is the time to strike, but don't hang around too long, as it will send players flying when it takes off again.
3 Travel To The Outer End
Once the Dragon is defeated, a big portal will open up in the middle. This will roll the credits and take the player back to the overworld, but don't do this. Instead, look around the edge of the island and a small bedrock structure will have appeared with a portal in the middle.
Throw an Ender Pearl into this portal (be VERY careful, as missing could result in plummeting into the void), and players will be teleported to the Outer End, where many floating islands are dotted with nothing but Endermen and Chorus Fruit.
2 Find An End City With A Ship
The reason players must come to this dreary place is to find an End City. These tall and strange structures are home to the rather pretty Purpur Blocks, which are great for building. They are also infested with Shulkers, who shoot projectiles that cause players to float up into the sky. This sounds useful, and it can be, but be careful, as going too high will cause players to hit the ground hard and die.
However, not all End Cities contain an Elytra. To be sure, players must look around the top of the End City for an End Ship, which is a boat made of Purpur floating in the air. If there is one, that's where the Elytra is guaranteed to be.
1 Claim Your Prize (& Some Other Goodies)
After dealing with the Shulkers (don't forget to pick up their shells for Shulker Boxes), players will get high enough to cross onto the ship. There's little to worry about here other than a couple more Shulkers, so descend the stairs to the ship's interior, and a pair of Elytra will be hanging in an Item Frame on the wall.
With the main prize obtained, make sure to search the ship, as a chest full of Enchanted Diamond gear will be in there. That's still not all, though, as on the very front of the ship should be an item just as rare as the Elytra, the Ender Dragon's Head. This item can be mounted on a wall or worn as a helmet for great effect.
Minecraft 1.18: Caves & Cliffs Part 2 was released on November 30, 2021 and is available for Java Edition and Bedrock Edition.