Minecraft has a surprisingly rich set of crafting mechanics outside of the typical building blocks for bases and fortifications. In addition to crafting tools and weapons, you can also enchant said weapons and tools. For example, applying the ‘Flame’ enchantment to arrows to make them into fire arrows. Another useful and powerful enchantment is Efficiency. With this guide, we’ll go over what Efficiency does in Minecraft and why it’s so helpful.
What Does Efficiency Do in Minecraft? Answered
Plain and simple: Efficiency speeds up how quickly tools mine blocks in Minecraft, with increased speeds the more powerful the enchantment is. For example, a Wooden Axe enchanted with Efficiency II will chop wood much faster than a Wooden Axe with Efficiency I. However, Efficiency can only be applied to certain tools such as:
- Axes
- Hoes
- Sheers
- Shovels
- Pickaxes
Another effect Efficiency has, specifically with Axes, is improving an axe’s effectiveness against disabling shields. The more powerful the Efficiency enchantment is, the higher the chances are. In that sense, Efficiency becomes equally useful for PVP.
How to Enchant Tools With Efficiency
Unfortunately, enchanting your tools with Efficiency requires a heaping pile of luck. Whenever you enchant items, it’s entirely random. You’re just as likely to get Efficiency as you are the Mending enchantment. But so long as you have an Enchanting Table and bookshelves, you can get started. To craft an Enchanting Table, you’ll need four Obsidian, two Diamonds, and one Book.
- Craft an Enchanting Table.
This requires four Obsidian, two Diamonds, and one Book. Place Obsidian all along the bottom row, plus one in the center. One Diamond on left side and right side. Place the Book directly in the middle space of the top row.
- Craft 15 Bookshelves.
Place three Wooden Planks (of any kind or mix) along the top and bottom row, then a row of books in the middle. Having Bookshelves surrounding an Enchanting Table improves enchantment levels.
- Acquire at least 3 Lapis Lazuli and XP.
You’ll need to exchange Lapis Lazuli and XP to enchant items.
- Place a tool in the left space and Lapis Lazuli in the other slot.
You can always opt into using a Book to save the enchantment for later. If you do, rather than using an Enchantment Table, you combine a tool and the book within an Anvil.
- Pick a glyph and hope it enchants your tool with Efficiency.
Outside of that, you might get lucky and find enchanted items with Efficiency from killing mobs, chests, the End City, pillagers and vindicators, and even fishing. That also applies to enchanted books.
And with that, we close the book on a simple yet important question: What does Efficiency do in Minecraft? It’s arguably one of the best enchantments in the game. Naturally, if you know how to enchant Efficiency on tools, you should also know how to disenchant items. For combat, considering looking into the Sweeping Edge enchantment.
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