Minecraft: Non-renewable resources and all limited items

In many of our other articles, we cover blocks and items you can automate with large farms. From simple mob farms to massive gold or iron setups, you’re well supplied with the essentials! But some resources in the game can’t be obtained that way. They aren’t dropped by any mob, and you can’t craft them by other means. Minecraft’s world is huge and many materials are still quite common, yet some are extremely rare and true treasures! Today we’ll look at every item you have to find or obtain in another way, but for which only a limited number exists.

Minecraft structures: Non-renewable items and where to find them

The largest group of non-renewable items are those you must find in structures. That’s also part of the gameplay loop—treasure hunting wouldn’t be as exciting if you could just farm everything automatically. The game wants you to search for those structures and go on a treasure hunt.

• Dragon Egg: Exists only once per world, awarded the first time you defeat the Ender Dragon.

• Dragon Head: Found on the ships of End Cities.

• Elytra: Elytra are also limited, found on End ships. You can repair them with phantom membrane, which is renewable.

• Certain banner patterns: You can craft some patterns yourself, but three of them (Snout, Flow, Guster) only appear as loot in various chests.

• Pottery Sherd: These decorative items are obtained only through archaeology (Minecraft Archaeology: Discover All Dig Sites & Rare Items) .

• Music Disc Fragment: Most other music discs can be obtained when a skeleton kills a creeper. Disc 5, however, is exclusive to the Deep Dark.

• Six music discs: There are also six more discs you have to find. We have a full guide on this topic (Minecraft Records: All Locations & How to Build an Automatic Farm) .

• Echo Shard: Also found only in the Deep Dark, used to craft a Recovery Compass.

• Enchanted Golden Apple: One of the rarest items in the game, found only in loot chests.

• Gilded Blackstone: This beautiful block is found in the Nether, either as part of Bastion Remnants or in their chests.

• Heart of the Sea: You need this rare find from buried treasure chests to build a Conduit, which you can locate using a treasure map. Nautilus shells, by contrast, are now renewable.

• Sponge: Sponges are very handy for removing water. They can be found only in Ocean Monuments and generate as part of the structure. They’re also dropped by Elder Guardians, but those can’t be farmed.

World generation in Minecraft: Limited blocks and ores

Beyond the fixed structures you can visit for the resources above, some materials are tied to specific biomes or world generation. While Minecraft’s map is enormous—with roughly 29 million blocks in every direction—strictly speaking, the following blocks are still limited, and you can’t craft them yourself. Let’s take a closer look.

• Calcite: An underrated white building block found only in amethyst geodes and in stony peaks.

• Tuff: Like calcite, tuff appears only in certain places, such as caves or within iron ore veins. Some tuff-based building blocks also generate as part of Trial Chambers. Unlike granite, andesite, and diorite, you can’t craft tuff.

• Ore blocks: You can farm almost all metals renewably, but the ore blocks themselves are limited. You may not need them often, but as decoration you can mine them with Silk Touch.

• Diamonds: Other ores and metals can be farmed, but not diamonds themselves. You can, for example, trade armour and tools from villagers, but the diamond item itself isn’t renewable and remains rare.

• Netherite: The rare Nether ore is also non-renewable. Learn how to find Netherite here (Farming Netherite in Minecraft: Best Methods & Tips for Armor and Tools) .

• Raw metals: Copper, iron, and gold can be farmed, but not their raw variants that drop from ores.

• Spore Blossom: Most flowers and flora blocks are renewable, but not the Spore Blossom. You’ll find it only in lush caves, hanging from the ceiling. Break it by hand and use it as decoration.

Peaceful mode in Minecraft: These resources can’t be farmed

Some players prefer not to play with monsters, making Peaceful mode perfect. However, several otherwise renewable resources become much rarer here because they’re normally dropped by mobs. If you want to learn more about the mode in general, check out our guide (Minecraft Peaceful Mode: Tips, limits, and hidden challenges) . It’s a whole new challenge.

• Coal: Can be dropped by Wither Skeletons.

• Copper: Part of the drowned loot table.

• Music discs: Some can be obtained only by killing specific mobs, such as a Ghast or a Chicken Jockey. Others are renewable via creepers and skeletons, but not on Peaceful.

• Prismarine Crystals: Would be renewable via Guardians.

• Resin: Obtainable from the Breeze.

• Spider Eye: Unlike gunpowder, string, or bones that you can get from fishing, spider eyes are only renewable through spiders and witches.

• Shulker Shell: Shulkers do spawn in Peaceful, but reaching the End is almost impossible. And even then, you can’t replicate shulkers.

• Trident: Also dropped by drowned.

• Ominous Bottle: Only obtainable from pillagers to trigger a raid.

Conclusion: Secure limited resources in Minecraft wisely

Minecraft is famous for its large farms that let you automatically gather many important resources. But there are materials and items you cannot renew. Many can only be found as loot in chests across various structures, while others are part of world generation. And even though the Minecraft world is vast, these are still limited. Players on Peaceful will find some resources even harder to acquire.

To set off in search of rare materials, rent your own Minecraft server from us and play together with your friends: https://www.4netplayers.com/en/gameserver-hosting/minecraft/. See who among you can find the most non-renewable resources and keep them safe.