How to craft the Mace in Minecraft & best enchantments

Minecraft 1.21 introduces the Mace, a heavy-hitting weapon with a powerful secondary attack. I'll explain how to use the Mace, how to get it, and its best enchantments in this Minecraft Mace guide.

How to craft a Mace in Minecraft

The crafting recipe for a Mace in Minecraft only requires two components. The first is a Breeze Rod, obtained by killing the new Breeze mob. The second item you need is a Heavy Core, which is found in a Trial Chamber's vault. Since these are the only items required, the Mace can be crafted in your inventory or on a crafting bench.

Maces can be used for two types of attacks. The first kind of attack is a regular swing, which is done by left-clicking on an enemy as if using a sword. A regular swing will do 5 damage in both Bedrock and Java editions. However, Java players will have a cooldown to use their mace at full power again. This is depicted by the typical cooldown icon in the center of the screen and a visual of the Mace raising at the side of the screen.

Maces have a stronger attack called a smash attack. A smash attack is done by jumping off a higher point to attack an enemy below you. Smash attacks are likely to become critical hits and do extra damage based on the distance you fell.

• For the first three blocks you've fallen, the Mace will do 4 extra damage per block.
• The Mace will do an additional 2 damage per block for the next five blocks.
• If you fall any more blocks, each block will add an extra 1 damage.

You will not take any fall damage after hitting the ground and doing a smash attack. After the attack, enemies near the mob that was hit will be knocked backward.

Keep in mind that you do not have to hit the ground to do a smash attack. All you need to do is left-click an enemy after falling, so you can perform the attack in mid-air. If you continue falling after the attack, your Smash attack will reset and can be performed again using your place in the air as your starting block.

Best Mace enchantments in Minecraft

Six enchantments stand above the rest when it comes to powering a Mace. Three of these were introduced alongside the Mace while the other three are old but reliable.

Mending

Mending is one of the two enchantments that should be on every piece of gear you own. It allows the Mace to repair itself using experience, making it last much longer than unenchanted Maces.

Unbreaking

Unbreaking is the second of the two enchantments that all Minecraft gear needs. Unbreaking gives tools a chance to avoid losing durability when they are used. I recommend going for Unbreaking III to make your Mace nearly impossible to destroy.

Fire Aspect

Fire Aspect sets enemies hit by the Mace on fire. Enemies on fire will take extra damage depending on the level of the enchantment. Use Fire Aspect II to take out enemies much faster than usual.

Density

Density is the first of the new Mace-specific enchantments. Density increases the damage done by Smash Attacks by increasing the amount of damage each block adds to the overall damage of the attack.

• Density I: Adds an extra one-fourth of a heart of damage per block fallen.
• Density II: Adds an extra one-half heart of damage per block.
• Density III: Increases the extra damage per block to three-fourths of a heart.
• Density IV: For every block fallen, the Mace will do an extra heart of damage.
• Density V: Every block the player falls will give the Mace an extra 1.25 hearts of damage.

Density cannot be used in combination with the Breach enchantment. If you're playing solo or PVE with friends, I recommend choosing Density over Breach.

Breach

Breach is the second new enchantment and the only one on this list that cannot be used with Density. Breach reduces the armor of the enemy being hit by 15% per enchantment level. If you're playing PVP, this is the enchantment to go for. This is especially true for Bedrock players as they will not have the Mace cooldown that Java players do.

Wind Burst

The final new Mace-exclusive enchantment is Wind Burst. After completing a Smash Attack with a Mace enchanted with Wind Burst, players will be shot back into the air. Bedrock players will always be able to chain Smash attacks in this way, but Java players will need at least Wind Burst II to do so. How high players are launched into the air depends on the enchantment's level.

• Wind Burst I: The player is knocked 8 blocks into the air.
• Wind Burst II: The player rises 16 blocks into the air.
• Wind Burst III: The player shoots up 24 blocks into the air.

Looking for more Minecraft enchantment guides? Check out Best Minecraft Axe Enchantments here on Pro Game Guides.