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The Wither is one of the most formidable and lethal mini-bosses in Minecraft, aside from the fabled final boss herself: the Ender Dragon. Being the only source of the nether star, an item required to craft a beacon, players must spawn and defeat at least one Wither in their time playing through Minecraft. The mini-boss is intimidating for many players to go up against in survival mode.
Withers are completely airborne, putting them just out of reach for players to be able to demolish them with their swords. They're also able to shoot skulls that leave a poison-like potion effect that whittles away at the player's health, called Wither II. All that said, this mini-boss may be formidable, but it is in no way completely unbeatable. There are more than a few tips and tricks players can keep up their sleeves before or during their fight with the Wither in Minecraft.
6 Farm Totems Of Undying
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Many players will die at least once during their fight with the Wither. Considering many players spawn the Wither far from their home base, getting back to where the mini-boss is flying around might be a bit of a journey. If this is the case, a few Totems Of Undying are a crucial tool for any player taking on the Wither.
If the Totem Of Undying is held in the player's off-hand when they get killed, the totem will resurrect the player. It disappears after being used, but players can keep multiple in their inventories to keep switching out whenever the totem gets used up after resurrecting. If players truly want to beat the Wither in one fight, having Totems Of Undying stored up in case they get slain multiple times is critical.
Players can obtain Totems Of Undying by killing Evokers during Village Raids and inside Woodland Mansions. The totems have a 100% drop rate, so they're a guaranteed drop if players manage to slay an Evoker.
5 Spawn The Wither In A Confined Area
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One of the most frustrating aspects of the Wither fight is the fact that the mini-boss is completely airborne. While there are advantages to spawning the Wither in an open area, it will lead to a very difficult fight. The mini-boss will have plenty of room to fly around and dodge the player's attacks. Once the Wither has reached half-health, it will put up a shield that makes arrows completely ineffective.
To avoid being put in a scenario where the mini-boss has its shield up and is flying just out of reach to be hit by a sword, it's helpful to spawn the Wither in a confined area, such as a cave or man-made structure.
4 Carry Milk Buckets
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Wither II is a poison-like effect inflicted on the player by the skulls that the Wither shoots. Much like the regular poison effect, it's unable to kill the player unless they're down to half a heart. That said, the Wither II effect also blacks out the player's health bar, making them briefly unable to see how many hearts they've lost.
Continuing to fight the Wither while this potion effect is in play is a gamble, but luckily there's an easy solution. Carrying a bunch of milk buckets will enable the player to immediately get rid of the potion effect once it's inflicted upon them.
3 Use Other Mobs As Bait
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One of the quirks of the Wither is that, in addition to the player, it will attack any and all passive and neutral entities nearby it. It's easy to distract the Wither from attacking solely the player if there are a plethora of mobs around it that can be used as bait.
Zombified Piglins are the best bet for many players, as they can be created using a trident enchanted with Channeling. Withers will attack the Zombified Piglins, and the mobs will band together to strike back. This can potentially aid the player by whittling down the Wither's health bar, unlike many other passive mobs that could be used as bait, such as sheep, cows, or regular pigs.
2 Wear Armor With Enchantments
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While expert players might be able to beat the Wither with iron armor, it's recommended that players don diamond or netherite armor for the best protection against the Wither's attacks. That said, armor alone won't do much good at protecting players from the onslaught of attacks. Players need to enchant their armor with specific enchantments to give them the defensive upper hand in their fight with the Wither.
Since the Wither attacks using projectiles and explosions, the best enchantment that players can have on their armor is Blast Protection IV or V. That said, if they're unable to get the Blast Protection enchantments, Protection IV or V and Feather Falling can also aid the player in taking as little damage as possible from the Wither's attacks.
1 Carry Golden Apples
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Much like defenses and protection, health is another crucial aspect of succeeding in the fight against the Wither. The mini-boss spawns with a lethal explosion and immediately begins pelting players with projectiles, so it's easy to get overwhelmed with the crossfire and lose a lot of health very quickly.
If players keep a stack of Enchanted Golden Apples or regular Golden Apples on hand, it'll greatly aid them in being able to quickly restore health if need be.