Minecraft guide: How do I set my respawn point in the Nether Update?

Don’t get emotional on me.

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Since the dawn ofthe Nether, dying has been a massive risk. That’s because there was no way to set a respawn point, like there is in the Overworld. There, you sleep in a bed, and every death means appearing back in the comfort of your home, ready to head out again. In the Nether, beds explode with a violent intensity, and death is an uncertainty because the world’s default spawn is the respawn point. That’s all changing withthe Nether Update.

If you thought Mojang would just let you plop a bed down, though, you couldn’t be more wrong. Here’s how you can set your respawn point in the Nether.

How do I set my respawn point in the Nether Update?

Let’s get the basics out of the way. Setting your respawn point in the Nether isn’t a matter of sleeping in a bed, but rather constructing a new kind of block and ensuring that it stays charged over time. The new block is called the respawn anchor, and it’s crafted using two things you can only find in the Nether: crying obsidian and glowstone. Most of you will be familiar with glowstone already. It’s quite common in the Nether, and is useful for underwater lighting sources, or for potion brewing. Crying obsidian, on the other hand, is all new.

Contrary to its ominous name, crying obsidian doesn’t make weep, or make any noises at all for that matter. Instead, it is a variant of obsidian with luminescent properties. In most ways, crying obsidian shares its traits with its more traditional sibling, in that its incredibly durable and blast resistant, and can only be mined with a diamond pickaxe or better. This would be important, except that crying obisidian can’t be created like regular obsidian can. There are only two ways you can get it:bartering with piglins, or stumbling upon ruined portals that have a chance of spawning it.

You need a total of six pieces of crying obsidian and three-to-seven pieces of glowstone to craft your respawn anchor, so you better save up your gold ingots, because it might take you a while to collect all of the crying obsidian you need. Once you’ve done that, follow these steps:

Some things to know about the respawn anchor, once you’re all set up:

Come back to life

For a long time now, being defeated in the Nether meant a swift and unfriendly return back home in the Overworld, and could include a long and lonely journey back to the point of death. Respawn anchors do away with this, and let you set a dedicated respawn point in the Nether, as long as you’re planning to spend some time here. They’re not as easy to obtain or as easy to maintain as beds, but this is the Nether we’re talking about. Everything has to be more difficult.

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Minecraft is a veritable, inarguable and complete success. It has sold copies in the hundreds of millions, has a huge following of dedicated players, and lets you unlock your every creative desire. It’s also available on every platform imaginable, including Xbox One, Windows 10, Playstation 4, Nintendo Switch, Android, and iOS. Play with anyone, and play anywhere.

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Zachary Boddy (They / Them) is a Staff Writer for Windows Central, primarily focused on covering the latest news in tech and gaming, the best Xbox and PC games, and the most interesting Windows and Xbox hardware. They have been gaming and writing for most of their life starting with the original Xbox, and started out as a freelancer for Windows Central and its sister sites in 2019. Now a full-fledged Staff Writer, Zachary has expanded from only writing about all things Minecraft to covering practically everything on which Windows Central is an expert, especially when it comes to Microsoft. You can find Zachary on Twitter@BoddyZachary.