TL;DR: The best way to learn Nether building is to remove the obvious material. Cobblestone is the default. These 10 builds use everything else. They get progressively harder. Start at 1.
Most Nether bases look the same: cobblestone walls, cobblestone roof, torches on the inside. This works, but it doesn't teach you anything.
The no-cobblestone challenge forces you to understand the Nether's actual block palette. Here are 10 builds in difficulty order.
Build 1 — The Netherrack Shell (Beginner)
Blocks: netherrack only. Time: 10 minutes.
Dig into a netherrack wall. Hollow out a 3×3×3 room. Add a door. That's it.
The shell teaches you that the Nether's walls are also your material. You're not building in the Nether — you're building from it.
Build 2 — The Warped Treehouse (Beginner)
Blocks: warped stem, warped wart blocks, warped roots. Time: 15 minutes.
Find a large Warped Stem (the blue-green tree trunk). Build 2 blocks above it. Add a flat platform using Warped Wart Blocks. Add walls from Warped Stems. Use Warped Roots as window accents.
This teaches that the environment provides ready-made building material.
Build 3 — The Basalt Tower (Intermediate)
Blocks: basalt, smooth basalt, polished basalt. Time: 20 minutes.
Basalt generates in the Basalt Deltas biome. Mine 64 blocks of it. Build a 5×5 base, then add 2 more layers as a tower. Roof it with smooth basalt (furnace-smelted).
Basalt is darker and more elegant than cobblestone. This teaches that darker palettes have their own logic.
Build 4 — The Quartz Cottage (Intermediate)
Blocks: Nether quartz, quartz pillar, smooth quartz. Time: 25 minutes.
Nether quartz ore is everywhere. Mine it, smelt to get quartz blocks. Build a clean 5×5 cottage with quartz pillar columns at each corner and smooth quartz walls.
This teaches that white and light-tone materials change how a build reads — the Nether can be bright.
Build 5 — The Blackstone Fortress (Intermediate)
Blocks: blackstone, gilded blackstone, polished blackstone bricks. Time: 30 minutes.
Mine blackstone from Bastion areas. Build a 7×7 wall with 5-block-high sides. Add crenellations on top (2 blocks up, 1 block gap, repeat). Add polished blackstone brick corners.
This teaches planning: bigger footprint means more material math before you start.
Build 6 — The Soul Lantern Outpost (Intermediate)
Blocks: soul sand, soul soil, soul fire lanterns, basalt. Time: 25 minutes.
In the Soul Sand Valley biome, build a 4×4 platform from soul soil. Add basalt columns at each corner, 3 blocks high. Hang soul fire lanterns from the corners. Add a simple soul soil floor inside.
The soul fire lanterns glow blue. This teaches how light color changes the feel of a build.
Build 7 — The Crimson Dome (Advanced)
Blocks: crimson stem, crimson planks, crimson slabs, shroomlight. Time: 45 minutes.
Build a 7×7 circle (skip corners). Add a 5×5 circle one block up. Add a 3×3 circle two blocks up. Close with 1 crimson block on top. Add shroomlight inside for a warm glow.
This teaches curves — the single hardest building skill in Minecraft.
Build 8 — The Glowstone Cathedral (Advanced)
Blocks: glowstone, nether brick, blackstone. Time: 50 minutes.
Build a 5×5 structure using nether brick. Make the walls 5 blocks high. Replace every other block in the top 2 rows with glowstone. Add a simple pointed roof using blackstone. The glowstone panels look like stained-glass windows.
This teaches light integration — using a glowing block as a structural element, not just a light source.
Build 9 — The Ancient Debris Shrine (Expert)
Blocks: ancient debris, netherrack, blackstone. Time: 60 minutes.
Mine 4 blocks of ancient debris. Don't smelt it. Build a small shrine: 5×5 platform, 3-block-high obsidian (or blackstone) sides, ancient debris block as a central altar piece. This is pure flex building.
This teaches restraint: the point is the single block at the center, not the surrounding structure.
Build 10 — Your Own Design (Open)
Blocks: anything except cobblestone. Time: your call.
You have now worked through 9 different material systems. Build whatever you want using anything from the Nether except cobblestone. No guide. No reference. Just your idea.
This is the point of the challenge.
A closing thought
Cobblestone is the default because it's safe. The Nether's palette — crimson, warped, blackstone, basalt, netherrack, quartz, glowstone, soul — is more interesting and less used than it should be.
The kids who learn to build without cobblestone become better builders with it.
Pair with Nether Base Designs and the Build Contest page at nethercon.com/build-contest.
Listen to the audio version above. Send corrections to [email protected].
← BACK TO NETHER WASTES