How to Make Ender Portals in Minecraft: A Comprehensive Guide

players face off against the Ender Dragon. For players who have advanced through the game and are looking to test their skills in an ultimate showdown, building an Ender Portal is a crucial step. But, how exactly do you make an Ender Portal?

This guide will walk you through everything you need to know about constructing an Ender Portal in Minecraft, whether you’re in Survival Mode or Creative Mode. Along the way, we’ll cover key topics like:

• What is an Ender Portal?
• Where can you find natural Ender Portals?
• How to gather the materials required for an Ender Portal in Survival Mode.
• How to construct an Ender Portal in Creative Mode.
• Key tips for using the Ender Portal.

By the end of this article, you’ll be well-prepared to either find or create an Ender Portal and make your way into The End.

What is an Ender Portal in Minecraft?

An Ender Portal (or End Portal) is a structure in Minecraft that provides players with a one-way ticket to The End, a dark, barren dimension inhabited by Endermen and dominated by the Ender Dragon. The End is the game’s final dimension, and defeating the Ender Dragon is considered the game’s primary goal.

In Survival Mode, Ender Portals naturally generate within Strongholds, which are large, underground structures filled with various rooms and challenges. However, you cannot simply stumble upon these portals early in the game. You need specific resources to activate them. In Creative Mode, the process of making an Ender Portal is much simpler, but it’s still an important part of Minecraft’s progression.

Finding Natural Ender Portals (Survival Mode)

Before delving into how to create an Ender Portal, let’s first talk about natural Ender Portals. These portals are embedded within Strongholds, large, maze-like structures hidden deep underground. The journey to find a Stronghold can be a challenge, but it is an essential part of Minecraft’s Survival Mode progression.

Step 1: Finding a Stronghold

Strongholds can only be located using an item called the Eye of Ender. Here’s how to obtain and use it:

1. Crafting Eye of Ender: You will need two items:
   • Ender Pearl: Obtained by killing Endermen, hostile mobs that spawn at night or in the Nether.
   • Blaze Powder: Crafted by placing Blaze Rods in a crafting grid. Blaze Rods are dropped by Blazes, fiery mobs found in Nether Fortresses.

   Combine the Ender Pearl and Blaze Powder in your crafting grid to make an Eye of Ender.

2. Using Eye of Ender:
   • Hold the Eye of Ender in your hand and right-click (or the corresponding button on your platform) to throw it into the air. The Eye of Ender will fly towards the direction of the nearest Stronghold.
   • The Eye of Ender can be used multiple times, but it has a chance to break each time it’s thrown, so bring several along.
3. Digging to the Stronghold:
   • As you throw the Eye of Ender, it will eventually hover in place, indicating that the Stronghold is directly below. Once the Eye of Ender stops moving, dig down carefully (avoiding a straight drop) until you reach the Stronghold.

Step 2: Finding the End Portal Room

Once inside the Stronghold, you’ll need to navigate through its winding halls, rooms, and traps until you locate the End Portal Room. This room contains a partially constructed End Portal frame and is guarded by a Silverfish spawner. Clear the spawner to avoid constant attacks from Silverfish mobs while you work.

In the End Portal Room, you’ll find a 3×3 grid of End Portal frames around a central, empty space. Some of the frames may already contain Eyes of Ender, but in most cases, you’ll need to add more to activate the portal.

Constructing and Activating the Ender Portal (Survival Mode)

Once you’ve found the End Portal, your next task is to activate it. Here’s how:

Step 1: Completing the Portal Frame

The portal consists of a 3×3 grid of End Portal frames, but you only need to fill the outer ring with 12 End Portal Frames. This means there will be a 3×3 hole in the middle of the portal.

• Important Tip: The orientation of the End Portal frames matters. They must all face inward toward the center of the portal. This is already set up in naturally occurring portals, but when constructing a portal in Creative Mode, you must place the blocks correctly.

Step 2: Placing Eyes of Ender

To activate the Ender Portal, you’ll need to place Eyes of Ender into each of the 12 End Portal frame blocks. Right-click each frame while holding an Eye of Ender. Once all the Eyes of Ender are in place, the portal will activate, and a starry, purple-black void will fill the center of the frame, signifying that the portal is open.

• Important Note: Be very cautious when placing Eyes of Ender. If you make a mistake while placing the Eyes, the portal will not activate, and you cannot retrieve the Eye once it has been placed. You will need to find or craft more Eyes to fix the mistake.

Once the portal is activated, you can jump into it to be transported to The End.

Building an Ender Portal (Creative Mode)

In Creative Mode, things are much simpler. You don’t need to find a Stronghold, and you can build an Ender Portal from scratch using items from your inventory.

Step 1: Gather Materials

To build an Ender Portal in Creative Mode, you’ll need:

• 12 End Portal Frames.
• 12 Eyes of Ender.

These items are readily available in the Creative Inventory under the Miscellaneous tab or by searching for their names.

Step 2: Construct the Frame

1. Create a 3×3 square using the End Portal frames, leaving the center block empty.
2. As you place the End Portal frames, ensure that the green tabs on each frame are facing the inside of the square (toward the central empty space). All the frames need to face inward, or the portal won’t activate.

Step 3: Insert the Eyes of Ender

Once the frame is complete, add an Eye of Ender to each frame block. As in Survival Mode, right-click on each frame with an Eye of Ender to place it.

When all 12 Eyes of Ender are in place, the portal will activate, and you’ll see the starry void appear in the center of the frame. You can now jump into the portal to enter The End.

Entering The End

Once the portal is activated and you step inside, you’ll be transported to The End dimension. The primary challenge here is to defeat the Ender Dragon, a massive boss mob that flies around the dimension’s obsidian pillars. Here are a few things to keep in mind before entering:

• Preparation is key: Bring armor, weapons, and plenty of food. It’s also wise to bring bows and arrows (or a crossbow) to destroy the End Crystals, which heal the Ender Dragon.
• Avoid looking at Endermen: The End is filled with Endermen, neutral mobs that become hostile if you look directly at them. Wearing a Pumpkin on your head or keeping your gaze down can help avoid provoking them.
• Save your progress: Before you enter The End, make sure you are well-equipped and have saved your game (if playing in a mode that allows saving). The battle with the Ender Dragon can be long and dangerous.

Key Tips for Ender Portals and The End

1. Bring extra Eyes of Ender:

When playing in Survival Mode, always bring more Eyes of Ender than you think you’ll need. They can break when thrown, and you don’t want to run out before finding the Stronghold or activating the portal.

2. Beware of falling in The End:

The End is mostly composed of floating islands. If you fall off one, you’ll plunge into the void and lose all your items. Be careful with your movements, and consider using Ender Pearls or Elytra wings to safely navigate between islands.

3. Use beds as explosives:

In The End, beds can be used as a powerful weapon against the Ender Dragon. Since beds explode when you try to sleep in them in The End, you can use this mechanic to deal massive damage to the dragon. Just be careful of the blast radius.

4. Collect Dragon’s Breath:

The Ender Dragon occasionally breathes purple fire or Dragon’s Breath, which you can collect using empty bottles. Dragon’s Breath is a key ingredient in making Lingering Potions.

5. The End Gateway Portal:

After defeating the Ender Dragon, you can explore End Cities by using the End Gateway Portal that appears. These cities contain valuable loot and the coveted Elytra, wings that allow you to glide.