Minecraft: Everything You Need To Know About Elytras

The world of Minecraft is infinite. Spawning in the center of the world, you can explore in any direction you want. Over time, you will travel farther away, exploring new biomes, villages, and enemies. Traveling in Minecraft can take a while though; there will be countless obstacles in your way, and you may even come across some impassible areas.

To aid your travels, you need an elytra. This unique equipment will help you fly around the world, going anywhere you want! This guide will go over what elytras are, how to get one, and how to use it.

What Elytras Are Used For

Elytras are basically a pair of wings that let you fly around. They work in the Overworld, the End, and the Nether, and are very important for long-distance travel.

Considered a late-game find, elytras are a necessity for expanding your Minecraft world. With an elytra, you will no longer have to worry about the dangers of traveling at night or making your way across a mountain range. Avoid all of this by taking flight with your elytra!

Where To Find Elytras

Elytras can only be found in End Cities. These ‘cities’ are complex structures filled with enemies and loot.

As expected, End Cities are located in the End. It’s not a simple process, so let’s go over the steps you have to take before beginning your hunt for End Cities.

Locate a Stronghold in the Overworld

This can be done by throwing an Eye Of Ender (crafted from one Ender Pearl and one Blaze Powder) into the air. The eye should go in the direction of the nearest Stronghold. Once the eyes start to point downwards, this means that you are over a Stronghold.

Dig downwards until you come to the Stronghold. Be careful; the area will be full of various traps and enemies. Explore the Stronghold until you come across the End Portal. You will know you have found it when you see a 9×9 pool of lava surrounded by frames.

To activate the portal, you will need to place Eyes Of Ender in each empty frame. In total, there are 12 frames, but there is a random chance that some will be filled in. Just to be safe, try to have at least 12 Eyes Of Ender with you. 

Once you have filled the frames, the portal will activate. Jump through and you are in the End!

Fight The Ender Dragon

The Ender Dragon is the biggest enemy in Minecraft. To successfully kill the Ender Dragon, you will need to prepare. Check out this full guide on how to defeat the Ender Dragon, which will then allow you to find End Cities.

Teleport Through End Gateway

Once the Ender Dragon is defeated, an End Gateway will appear. This will be a structure made of bedrock, with a portal in the center. To enter the portal, just throw an Ender Pearl at it. Ender Pearls can be picked up from any Enderman that is in the area and there will be a lot.

Find An End City

Next, you just need to find an End City. The End is made out of a bunch of smaller islands. You need to island-hop until you find one. They are giant, so you should be able to see pretty quickly if an island holds one.

If an End City has a boat floating off to the side, then it will contain an elytra. This means that if you are on the hunt for one, you shouldn’t waste your time on structures without a boat. For more information on finding End Cities, check out this guide.

How To Use An Elytra

Now that you have your elytra, let’s learn how to use it. First, you need to equip it. Elytras should go where you would place chest armor. This means that when you do have your elytra on, you will not have any chest armor. Be sure to always carry the armor, just in case you need it.

There are two ways to start flying; launch from the ground with rockets, or jump from a high area.

Flying With An Elytra And Rockets

To launch with rockets, start at a flat spot on the ground. Make sure your elytra is equipped and you are holding some rockets. Doing a double jump will cause you to glide a bit. While you are slightly gliding, look towards the sky and use a rocket. You should launch into the sky. You can use as many rockets as you want to boost yourself up.

Once at the desired height, you can straighten yourself out and fly. You will fly in the direction that you are pointed. To land, angle downwards until you get near the ground. Do not point straight down, or you will crash and die. Instead, you will want to approach the ground at an angle. Think of yourself as an airplane. You need a ‘landing area’ to coast on the ground.

Jumping From A Ledge To Fly With Your Elytra

Launching from a high place is pretty similar. Instead of jumping and using a rocket facing upwards, just double jump off a ledge. You will begin flying through the air, and can aim in any direction that you want.

Rockets are definitely more efficient, but be sure that you have enough on hand. To craft a rocket, you will need paper and gunpowder. A creeper farm will aid you in gathering gunpowder, and a sugarcane farm will aid with gathering paper.

Elytra Durability

You’ve been flying for a while, and notice that your elytra is losing durability. Elytra can be repaired at an anvil with phantom membranes. This is a material that will only drop from phantoms, and it can be hard to come by.

One phantom membrane will repair your elytra by 25% and has an enchantment cost. This is a quick way to repair your elytra if it is unenchanted. When it has zero durability, the elytra will become a broken elytra.

You can fix this, but to prevent the elytra from breaking in the first place, carry an anvil and phantom membranes with you.

Enchanting Your Elytra

Elytras can be enchanted with two different enchantments; mending and unbreaking.

The mending enchantment will restore durability for your elytra based on the XP that you collect. For example, when you kill a zombie, you will usually get that XP. With a mending elytra though, the XP will be converted into durability. This will only work if you have your elytra equipped though.

The unbreaking enchantment increases the chances of an item not using any durability. Essentially, your elytra will last longer. There are three levels of unbreaking enchantments that affect the total flight time of your elytra.

With no enchantments, you will have about seven minutes of flight time. When enchanted with Unbreaking III, the flight time will increase to about 28 minutes. 

That’s all there is to know about elytras. Overall, they are a necessity for your travels. With an elytra, you can quickly glide across oceans or fly over lava in the Nether.

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