5 items every Minecraft player needs to carry

Minecraft has no shortage of different items for players to carry on their adventures, but some generally are much more useful than others. While most items in the game have plenty of utility, some are considered essentials by the player base due to how incredibly helpful they can be in a wide range of situations. These items are simply too useful to leave stuck in a chest somewhere.

While every Minecraft player is free to carry the items they want and need, these items should be heavily considered essentials due to how helpful they can be in a multitude of situations. It's better in the long run to have these items and not need them than to need them and not have them.

Note: This article is subjective and based on the author's opinion.

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5 items Minecraft players should always carry

1) Totems of Undying

Totems of Undying can prevent catastrophe in Minecraft (Image via Mojang Studios)

Obtained by defeating evoker mobs, Totems of Undying can be the difference between surviving a dangerous encounter or hazard or dying and being forced to respawn. While Totems of Undying are held by the player, most sources of damage that would ordinarily kill them will instead consume the totem and prevent them from dying while bestowing multiple helpful status effects.

Providing Regeneration II, Fire Resistance I, and Absorption II, Totems of Undying prevent players from dying and help heal them to escape compromising situations, which can be an absolute necessity if players are on Hardcore Mode.

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2) Bucket

Buckets are one of the best multi-use items in Minecraft (Image via Mojang Studios)

No matter what players are up to in Minecraft, having a bucket in their inventory is a good idea. These incredibly useful items can carry fluids like water and lava, can be filled with milk, can be filled with powder snow, and can even carry around aquatic mobs when filled with water. In addition to all of this, water buckets can save players from fall damage thanks to the water bucket clutch trick.

Because of the bucket's versatility, players do themselves a disservice by not carrying at least one. They never know when it might come in handy to clear/deploy liquids, drink some milk to remove status effects, or find a new home for an axolotl or two. There are simply too many applications for buckets and they can save lives in the right situation.

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3) Shields

Minecraft shields are worth carrying for extra protection (Image via Mojang Studios)

Armor and weapons are all well and good in Minecraft, but it doesn't hurt to have a little extra protection on top of it. Shields are fantastic for protecting the user from melee attacks, ranged attacks, and even explosions. Sure, players who have heavily enchanted diamond or netherite armor may not necessarily need them as much, but shields can be crucial in the early and mid-game.

Plus, since these items are constructed out of iron ingots and wooden planks, crafting a shield and keeping it in good shape is a pretty easy process, and it's hard to beat the extra survivability they provide.

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4) Cooked Porkchops

Minecraft players have to eat in Survival Mode, and cooked porkchops are easy to make and are great food items (Image via Mojang Studios)

Food is generally necessary in Minecraft, at least where Survival Mode is concerned. While items like golden apples, golden carrots, and enchanted golden apples are obviously better food sources, they're much tougher to find. However, cooked porkchops are easy to collect with a pig/hoglin farm and restore eight hunger points on consumption, making them an incredible and cheap food source.

Food sources are crucial to keeping a player's health regeneration active, and cooked porkchops are the perfect balance between quality hunger restoration and ease of access.

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5) Flint and Steel

Flint and steel might be more useful than Minecraft players think (Image via Mojang Studios)

Fans might think flint and steel are just for igniting Nether portals, starting fires, or priming TNT, but this tool is more useful than one might expect. They can detonate creepers at a distance, they can be placed in dispensers to automatically set fires or activate blocks, and they're also capable of putting out spreading fires in a hurry alongside water buckets.

While setting fires might not always seem conducive, it can be particularly helpful when warding off enemy mobs that aren't fireproof, and flint and steel's ability to remove fire hazards can be incredibly helpful when surrounded by fire hazards, particularly in the Nether.