In Minecraft you can design many different mob farms to collect things like bones, string, or gunpowder. We’ve already presented several designs, but none are as efficient as the farm we’re showing you today. It performs so well because it accounts for multiple game mechanics to maximize the number of mobs that can spawn. Mob spawning isn’t always straightforward and can drastically affect your farm’s efficiency. We’ll cover that, too, and show you how to get the most out of an advanced mob farm.
Understanding Minecraft mob spawning The best location for your mob farm
Mobs only spawn in Minecraft under specific conditions. First, it needs to be dark enough for them to appear. That applies not only at night but at any place where the light level is low enough. Since 1.18, hostile mobs require block light level 0; in older versions it was light level 7 or lower. You can check this in the F3 menu, for example when you’re in a cave or lighting up your base.
Second, spawn distances matter. No mobs can spawn within a radius of 24 blocks around you, so you won’t be surprised by sudden spawns. You can imagine this radius as a sphere around you. Mobs spawn between 25 and 128 blocks away from you, regardless of your entity render distance settings. Once they leave the 128‑block radius, they despawn immediately. This radius is also a sphere around the player.
For maximum farm efficiency, your constructed mob farm should be the only spawnable surface available. We want all available mob spots on the farm’s different levels to be filled. Mobs must not spawn elsewhere, such as in caves or on land.
The best place to build the farm is above the ocean. You can build the spawning floors fairly close to the surface, then account for the 128‑block distance upwards. The key is to allow mobs to spawn in your farm but not in caves beneath it or under the ocean.
If you’re interested in other designs, check out some of our other posts:
- (Building a Minecraft Creeper Farm: Infinite Gunpowder Supplies for TNT and Rockets)
- (Building a Minecraft XP Farm: Quickly and Easily Reach Level 30)
- (Build a Minecraft Monster Trap: Automatically Gain Endless Resources)
Materials for an efficient Minecraft mob farm
The materials aren’t particularly varied, but you’ll need a lot of them. Quantities may vary with the farm’s size.
- Several stacks of full blocks mobs can spawn on, e.g., wood or cobblestone
- 2 to 3 stacks of slabs for the roof
- 9 soul campfires
- 15+ hoppers expandable
- 2+ chests expandable
- 2 water buckets for an infinite water source
- 8 empty water buckets
- 11 observers
- 10 dispensers
- Note block
- 2 comparators
- 2 redstone dust
- 2 sticky pistons
- Redstone block
- Filler items for the hoppers, e.g., sticks
Step-by-step guide Large Minecraft mob farm
Collection basin hoppers and chests for the Minecraft mob farm
Because this farm is designed to collect mob drops only, we need a way to kill mobs efficiently and transport their items away. The best option is soul campfires: they deal steady damage but don’t burn items. The drops can then be moved by hoppers.
Pick a suitable spot over an ocean and start with a 3x3 field of hoppers, all pointing into the middle hopper. Place the campfires on top, where the mobs will fall in. Below the hoppers, add more hoppers as you like and connect them to chests to collect all items.
Surround the campfires with a 3‑block‑high wall and begin the collection basin from there. It needs to extend at least 8 blocks in every direction so the water flows to the center. In total the basin is 19x19 blocks, with a wall around it and solid blocks in each corner. Place four water sources, one on each corner block, and then fill the sides. The collection basin is now complete.
Spawning platforms for maximum mob rates
Next, build the platforms where mobs will spawn. These are arranged in a 7x7 diamond shape and have, at their center, a dispenser with a water bucket and an observer that passes the signal to the level below.
Start with a dispenser facing up, 3 blocks above the collection basin. Extend the platform 7 blocks in each cardinal direction and fill the edges in a zigzag pattern. The water from the dispenser will flow exactly to the edge. Place two temporary blocks above the dispenser and place the next dispenser. Under it, place an observer looking upward with its redstone output pointing down. Repeat this process until you have enough platforms; 6 to 10 platforms is fine. Fill the dispensers with water buckets.
Water mechanism hopper clock for automatic triggering
Finally, you need a timer that activates the water buckets regularly. There are different methods, but we’ll use a hopper clock. This mechanism shuttles items back and forth and triggers itself periodically.
Place a note block two blocks above the top dispenser and build a temporary platform around it. Tap the note block once to have the dispensers retract the water. Place a solid block on the note block, a comparator behind it, then two hoppers facing into each other, then another comparator and a solid block at the end. On the solid blocks, place one redstone dust each, and above the comparators place two sticky pistons facing inward. Put the redstone block so that it sits over one of the hoppers and on one of the pistons.
The clock will then shuttle items back and forth once you load one of the hoppers. You can pick the duration yourself, but 10 sticks should be enough. To finish, build a large slab roof so no mobs spawn on top of the farm. Roof the hopper clock as well. We recommend a 43x43 slab platform. This also prevents sunlight from reaching the platforms.
Your farm should now work both at night and during the day. To get the best rates, position yourself high above the platforms as described earlier. Take the height of the mob farm and subtract 127 blocks. Pillar up with scaffolding accordingly and enjoy the view.
Conclusion More mob drops in Minecraft
Sooner or later you’ll need lots of items for various projects. Whether it’s gunpowder for fireworks or bones for bone meal, a large mob farm is a key hub in your world. Once you understand mob spawning, it’s much easier to use these mechanics for maximum efficiency. The farm is straightforward to build and well worth it.
An advanced mob farm is perfect for a server. Rent your own Minecraft server from us and build this farm together with your friends. You’ll have more than enough drops for all your other projects.
