Mob Farm (XP and Drops)
Beginner Java + Bedrock
Produces: Gunpowder, bones, string, arrows, rotten flesh - and XP if you kill by hand
Quick answer: A mob farm is a dark box where hostile mobs spawn, get flushed by water into a drop chute and land at your feet with half a heart - one punch each, and the XP and drops are yours. Build it high over an ocean so caves cannot steal the spawns.
How it works
- Hostile mobs spawn at light level 0 on solid blocks, in a sphere around the player: 24 to 128 blocks away in Java.
- Rates depend entirely on how many other dark spots exist nearby - spawnproofing caves below or building 100+ blocks above the ocean surface is what makes a farm fast.
- Fall damage math: mobs take 1 damage per block after the first 3, so a 22-block drop leaves zombies and skeletons (20 HP) at half a heart. Give spiders a different chute or they climb.
- Bedrock rates are much lower than Java for the same design, and simulation distance limits the spawning area.
Materials
- ~500-1500 solid blocks for platforms and the chute (cobblestone is fine)
- Slabs, trapdoors and water buckets for the flush system
- 4-8 hoppers and chests for collection
- Torches to light the outside when you are done
Build steps
- Pick an ocean biome and pillar up: build the collection point at least 100 blocks above the water so the farm is the only spawnable space in range.
- Build 2-4 spawning platforms (about 8x8 each) with 2-block ceilings so endermen cannot spawn, water on the edges pushing to the center hole.
- Drop chute: 22 blocks for one-punch kills, or 24+ for automatic kills if you only want drops (no XP).
- Stand at the bottom with a Looting III sword: one hit kills each mob and multiplies the drops.
- Light the roof and every outside surface when finished so mobs only spawn inside.
Rates
Output depends on the design, the version and how much of it you build, so we do not quote an hourly figure. Build the layout below, time it for a few minutes in your own world and scale from there.
Tips
- AFK spot matters: in Java, stand so the platforms are 24-40 blocks from you - closer than 24 blocks and nothing spawns.
- Add a roof of slabs: phantoms spawn above you if you AFK outdoors for days.
- Creepers only: build with trapdoors on the ceiling - creepers are shorter than zombies and skeletons.