Among the many new blocks added through Minecraft's Caves and Cliffs update part 1, copper stands as one of the more interesting. This new mineable mineral has quite a few uses and comes with a game mechanic that is completely new to the game: oxidation.
Copper has many forms in Minecraft, and it can be gathered, smelted, shaped, waxed, and even cut. In its ore form, copper can be found as a regular copper ore block (mainly light grey with orange and green spots) or in its deepslate variant (same color spots but a much darker grey). The former of these generates between layers 0 and 96, while its deepslate variant can be found in layers 0 to 16. Both must be mined with a stone pickaxe or better and will normally drop 2 and 3 pieces of raw copper.
Updated December 8th, 2021 by Russ Boswell: Minecraft has just released its Caves and Cliffs Part 2 Update and players are once again flocking to the block-building game to explore new and exciting worlds. But there are some out there that are just now getting back into the game, after waiting through the original Caves and Cliffs Part 1 Update. For those players returning, they may be asking themselves, what does copper do in Minecraft? To shine a better light on copper in Minecraft, as well as some ways to farm copper in Minecraft, the following list has been updated.
What Does Copper Do in Minecraft
Raw copper or either of the blocks that drop it can be smelted into a copper ingot as part of Minecraft's latest update, Caves and Cliffs part 1. Aside from this, copper ingots can be dropped by drowned as well. Regardless of how it is gathered, however, this is where most items begin to open up as building possibilities. Most importantly, 9 copper ingots can be combined to form a copper block. As with other materials in-game, copper blocks are the base for numerous other constructions in Minecraft.
A regular block of copper can be transformed into three other forms: cut copper block, a waxed block of copper, and a waxed cut copper block. The cut variant of this block can either be crafted in a crafting table or through a stone cutter. To get a waxed block of copper, players need to combine a block of copper with a honeycomb in Minecraft. And each of these can be transformed into slabs as well as stairs for building convenience.
The first part of the update for Minecraft gives copper blocks four stages of oxidation: unweathered, exposed, weathered, and oxidized. Copper blocks will weather and change color at random over time, and this is not dependent on rain or whether the block is covered or not. But this oxidation doesn't have to be permanent. Players who want to maintain one level of weathering can scrape the block with an axe to revert it one stage back. Those that don't wish to see their copper blocks go through oxidation can wax them using a Honey Comb. This will keep them from oxidizing past whatever stage they're currently on.
Copper ingots can also be used to construct a lightning rod and a spyglass in Minecraft's latest update. Three ingots combined create the lighting rod, while two ingots and an amethyst shard form a spyglass. Attaching a lightning rod is another way to deoxidize copper blocks. One lightning strike is enough to revert a copper block to its unweathered state fully. There is also a chance that this strike will deoxidize nearby blocks as well.
Copper blocks can also be turned back into regular Copper Ingots but ONLY if they're unoxidized (or partially unoxidized) and as long as they are not cut.
The Best Ways To Farm Copper In Minecraft
With the latest release of Minecraft Caves and Cliffs Update Part 2, players will be pleasantly surprised to see how abundant Raw Copper has become throughout the world, specifically when exploring the new massive caves that generate with updated worlds. Those looking to get their hands on a ton of Raw Copper can dip down into these large openings in the ground and mountainsides, where they'll likely be greeted with a mass of exposed Raw Copper ore deposits.
It's also possible to snag Copper Ingots from Drowned, which used to drop Gold Ingots but now drop the Copper Variant. In Java Editions, the drop rate has increased from 5 percent to 11 percent and can be increased further (by 1 and 2 percent respectively) if players have a looting enchantment. Because of this, players can turn to creating "drowned farms" in order to amass a large amount of Raw Copper ore.
Once players have amassed a large amount of Raw Copper ore, they can smelt it down by tossing it inside an array of furnaces. Or, for those looking to create Copper Ingots enmasse, they can turn to crafting a Smelter to make the process even easier and faster.
Minecraft is available now for PC, PS4, Switch, Xbox One, and various other platforms.
