Top 5 villager trades to avoid in Minecraft

Trading with Minecraft villagers has been a mechanic within the game for quite some time now and is a great way to snag some materials if players have the Emeralds for it.

Villagers have plenty to offer players in Minecraft, however, there are also a few trades that simply aren't worth the value. Although these trades can still increase a villager's professional level, the player stands to lose.

Considering these trades can leave a player with less than they expected, they're best avoided. There are at least five major trades that should be sidestepped whenever possible.

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Minecraft: The five worst villager trades not worth the cost

5) Seven emeralds for one map

Maps and their components are easily craftable and aren't worth the price of seven emeralds (Image via Mojang)

Maps are easy to craft in all of Minecraft, requiring either nine paper pieces (Bedrock Edition) or eight paper pieces and a compass (Java Edition). Paper is easily made from sugar cane, which can be found near water all over Minecraft worlds. Compasses only require a few iron ingots and some redstone dust.

For seven emeralds, the cost of a single map is much better served being crafted by the player instead. Emeralds may not be super precious, but they're much better used towards items that are more difficult to obtain.

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4) 22 Nether wart for one emerald

Nether wart can take a significant trip to obtain and is worth more than one emerald (Image via Mojang)

A vital component in creating Minecraft potions, nether wart grows within the Nether and can be hazardous to obtain due to the dangers of the Nether world. Despite this, master cleric villagers possess a trade of 22 nether warts for one emerald.

Considering everything, nether wart is worth much more than a single emerald. Save your nether wart if this trade pops up.

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3) Nine emeralds for one bookshelf

Bookshelves are cheap to produce much like maps, and surely don't require a large number of emeralds to obtain (Image via Mojang)

Much like paper, bookshelves don't take much to craft in Minecraft on the player's behalf. They require only three books and six wooden planks of any type. Books may be tricky to craft for a new player but become easily accessible later, and wood is almost always readily available if there are enough trees nearby.

This completely invalidates the trade for nine emeralds unless players don't want to craft bookshelves themselves and have emeralds to spare. Otherwise, this is just a bad deal.

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2) Seven emeralds for an item frame

Item frames require sticks and leather, hardly materials worth seven emeralds (Image via Mojang)

Cartographers are the source of a few bad trades, but this one might be the worst of all of their selections. Minecraft cartographer villagers can offer item frames for seven emeralds once they reach expert level, and it's just egregious.

Item frames only require eight sticks and a piece of leather, both of which are readily accessible to nearly any player in a given Minecraft world. Sticks are easily constructed from wooden planks and leather can be obtained from killing an ordinary cow. Why are cartographers charging seven emeralds for that?

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1) Four scute pieces for an emerald

Scute takes a considerable amount of time to get and is used to create the water-breathing turtle shell helmet (Image via Mojang)

Scute can be a reasonably difficult material to obtain in Minecraft, usually requiring the growth of a baby turtle into an adult. Doing so allows the baby to outgrow its scute and have a full shell, leaving the scute on the ground to be collected.

However, hatching and nurturing turtles into adults takes a considerably long time. Furthermore, scute is a core component in creating turtle shell helmets, allowing players to breathe underwater without potions, making them a vital exploration aid.

Even a few scutes can take time to collect, making them incredibly valuable. The only thing this trade truly offers to Minecraft players is wasted time and disappointment.

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Note: This article reflects the author's views.