How to Make a Mace in Minecraft
The mace is the hardest-hitting weapon in the game, but you do not craft it from scratch. It takes two rare drops from a trial chamber, and its damage comes from how far you fall before you swing. Here is how to get one and how to hit for 30+ hearts.
The recipe
1 maceHeavy core on top, breeze rod directly below it, in a crafting table. Both parts only come from a trial chamber, so the mace is really a question of getting those two drops.
Where the two parts come from
- Heavy core. The rare reward from an ominous vault in a trial chamber. Trigger Bad Omen (drink an ominous bottle), open the glowing ominous vaults with trial keys, and hope it drops. It is the only source and it is not guaranteed, so expect to clear a few chambers.
- Breeze rod. Dropped by a Breeze, the wind mob that spawns from the trial spawners. One or two rods per Breeze. You only need one.
How the smash works
On flat ground the mace is a plain 6-damage weapon. The power is the smash attack: attack a mob while you are falling and the damage scales with the distance dropped, roughly +4 per block for the first 3 blocks, then +2, then +1 each. A short 5-block drop already doubles your hit; a long fall one-shots almost anything.
Two bonuses make it safe and spammable: you take zero fall damage when a smash connects, and the impact sends out a shockwave that knocks back and damages nearby mobs.
Enchants worth chasing
See every option on the enchantments database.
Quick answers
Can I repair the mace?
Yes, on an anvil with breeze rods, or combine two maces. Mending also works.
Does the mace work in Bedrock?
Yes, the recipe and smash mechanic are the same on both editions in 1.21.
How do I get height for a smash?
Build up, use a Wind Charge to launch yourself, or dive with an elytra and pull up before impact.
Is the heavy core renewable?
Not really. It only comes from ominous vaults, so each mace is a genuine trophy.
Can you craft a mace from scratch?
No. A mace is a heavy core with a breeze rod directly below it in a crafting table, and both parts come only from a trial chamber, so getting one is really a question of getting those two drops.
Where does the heavy core come from?
From the ominous vaults of a trial chamber, and nowhere else. You trigger Bad Omen with an ominous bottle, open the glowing ominous vaults with trial keys, and hope it drops; it is not guaranteed, so expect to clear a few chambers.
How much damage does a mace actually do?
Six on flat ground, which is unremarkable. The damage comes from the smash attack: hit a mob while you are falling and it scales with the distance dropped, roughly four extra per block, which is how the mace reaches thirty hearts and more.
Crafting Table
Ominous Bottle
Wind Charge
Trial Key
Spawner
Elytra