How to find a Nether Fortress in Minecraft

Nether Fortresses are the only area in Minecraft where Blazes and Wither Skeletons spawn.

This makes the fortresses extremely important as Blazes are needed to fight the Ender Dragon while Wither Skeletons are required to fight the Wither.

Most players end up needing to find a Nether Fortress at some point in their playthrough.

Inside a Nether Fortress (Image via Minecraft)

Luckily, Nether Fortresses are giant and blocky structures that contrast heavily with the other Nether environments. This allows them to be seen easily from a distance.

Players should look for the Nether Fortresses around the lava oceans as they'll be able to scan over more land that way.

The fortresses seem to spawn over lava oceans quite frequently. Due to this, it is recommended that players bring multiple Potions of Fire Resistance to avoid an unfortunate death.

Steps to find a Nether Fortress in Minecraft

The inside of a Nether Fortress in Minecraft (Image via Minecraft)

Step 1: Turn up Brightness!

It will be extremely hard to find a fortress if the brightness is on Moody! Players should change it to Bright.

Step 2: Look across Lava Oceans

To scan as much land as possible, players are recommended to look across lava oceans.

Step 3: Move away from Bastion Remnants

Nether Fortresses cannot spawn in or interfere with Bastion Remnants. If the player is close to one, they are advised to move far away!

Step 4: Look for blocky walls/structures

The Nether Fortresses will look like giant red walls with legs. Nothing else in the Nether looks anything like them, so the player shouldn't miss one.

Step 5: Create a path

If the player manages to find a Nether Fortress, they are advised to create a path leading to it from their portal. This will allow them to easily return whenever they need to.

The Nether Fortresses in Minecraft seem to spawn over lava oceans quite frequently (Image via Minecraft)

While it may be easy to spot a Nether Fortress, getting there and getting out alive is a whole different story.

As stated before, players are advised to bring Potions of Fire Resistance to prevent lava death. They are also recommended to at least have protection-enchanted iron armor as the blaze's damage isn't reduced by fire resistance potions.