Magma cubes vs Slime in Minecraft: How different are the two mobs?

Magma cubes and slimes are two different Minecraft mobs with similar behaviors and appearances. At first sight, a player may think that a magma cube is just a Nether slime. This may be a somewhat accurate assumption, but there are more differences between the two than the player realizes.

With many slimes and magma cubes roaming around Minecraft, players need to know the differences and similarities between these two mobs.

Differences between Magma Cubes and Slimes in Minecraft

Appearance

Magma cubes and slimes have similar body styles. Each one appears as different size squares, depending on how much attack damage they've received. This is where the similarities in appearance end.

Slimes in Minecraft (Image via planetminecraft)

Slimes are light lime green cubes that roam around the overworld. They appear to be squishy, and when they bounce, they make a squishing sound and expel small green droplets.

Magma cube jumping (Image via bugs.mojang)

Magma cubes are maroon cubes of the same size, with glowing lava-like eyes. Unlike slimes, when magma cubes bounce in any direction, their bodies seize to resemble a cube and starts to resemble a spring.

Spawning

Minecraft slime spawning in a swamp (Image via gamespredator)

Slimes and magma cubes spawn in very different places. Magma cubes spawn in the Nether. Slimes spawn on the surface of the overworld in swamp biomes, and they can also spawn underground in small slime chunks with enough space.

Attack damage

Fight against slime and magma cube (Image via bugs.mojang)

Slimes and magma cubes have different attack damage points based on which size variant they are.

Large magma cubes in hard mode can do 9 attack damage points. Large slimes in hard mode can only do up to 6 attack damage points.

Small slimes are completely harmless towards players no matter which model they play on. Small magma cubes are not harmless to players. These smaller cubes can do up to 4.5 attack damage to a player on hard mode.

Drops

Minecraft magma cream drops (Image via Minecraft.fandom)

Slimes and magma cubes both have unique drops when they're killed. Magma cubes will drop one experience point for killing the smallest variant. They also have a chance of dropping magma cream for more experience points.

Slimes, on the other hand, drop 0-2 slimeballs when killed. The experience dropped depends on what size variant the slime was when killed.

Crafting

Slime block Minecraft (Image via wordpuncher)

Slimes drop slimeballs, and these can actually be crafted into several things in Minecraft. Slimeballs can be used to make sticky pistons and bouncy slime blocks to name a few.

Magma cubes drop magma cream, which is an essential ingredient in making the potion of fire resistance. This potion is extremely useful in the Nether.

Water and Lava

Slime underwater (Image via goodgamery)

Slimes and magma cubes have slight differences when it comes to which liquids they can survive in.

Magma cubes are found in the Nether and are accustomed to lava. In recent updates, they are even able to jump on top of lava. Slimes, unsurprisingly, will burn up in lava.

When faced with water, slimes and magma cubes can both drown when submerged for long periods of time, but they can also both swim and survive if they stay above the surface.

Similarities between Magma Cubes and Slimes in Minecraft

Behavior

Both magma cubes and slimes behave in similar ways. These two mobs both jump towards any players in range to attack them. The only way both of these mobs can move is by jumping. Slimes actually jump even when the player is not around.

Both of these mobs get slightly faster when the player is near. Neither has any sort of pathfinding ability, while both are incredibly hostile towards players.

Variants

Large and small magma cube variant (Image via keywordteam)

Slimes and magma cubes each have three different variants. It starts as a big variant, which are very large cubes that appear most commonly. Medium variants, which are slightly smaller than the big variants, appear after the player has slain the biggest variant. Instead of dying, the mob splits into two. The small variant appears after the player slays the medium variant. These are the least dangerous, and tiniest variants of the mob.

Health points

Single slime Minecraft (Image via Minecraft.gamepedia)

Magma cubes and slimes both have the same health points in Minecraft. Big variants have 16 health points, the medium has 4, and the small has 1.

Who would win in a fight?

These two mobs can't fight organically in vanilla Minecraft, but if one had to fight the other, the magma cube would win. The magma cube would win because they have more attack damage points and the same health points as the slime. Magma cubes also have the advantage of being able to survive in lava, while slimes would take serious damage