What Blast Protection does
| Level | Effect | Book cost |
|---|---|---|
| I | 2 points against explosions (about 8% less per piece), 15% less blast knockback | 2 |
| II | 4 points against explosions (about 16% less per piece), 30% less blast knockback | 4 |
| III | 6 points against explosions (about 24% less per piece), 45% less blast knockback | 6 |
| IV | 8 points against explosions (about 32% less per piece), 60% less blast knockback | 8 |
Book cost is the anvil cost of putting that book on a fresh item. However, already-used items add their prior work penalty: work it out in the calculator.
What counts as an explosion
Blast Protection works against every explosion: creepers, TNT, end crystals, ghast fireball blasts and the wither's skulls. Beds that explode in the Nether or the End, and respawn anchors that explode outside the Nether, also count. Each level gives 2 protection points against them.
It also reduces the knockback of explosions by 15% per level. That keeps you on your feet near a creeper instead of flying off a ledge, which is often the bigger danger.
How many pieces you need
Protection already counts against explosions. Three pieces of Protection IV give 12 points, and one piece of Blast Protection IV adds 8, so you hit the 20-point cap with a single Blast piece. Two Blast pieces would only lower your protection against everything else.
The exception is the knockback cut. If you mainly want to stay put during explosions, extra pieces of Blast Protection do help with that part.
Where Blast Protection is worth it
- Creeper farms, where you stand near explosions all day.
- The wither fight: its skulls explode on impact, and it blows up the area when it spawns.
- End crystal and respawn anchor PvP, where explosions do most of the damage.
- Mining with TNT or blowing up a bed to fight the ender dragon.
Outside those jobs it loses to Protection. So keep it on one piece of a second armor set and swap it in when you need it.
Is Blast Protection worth it?
On a spare set, yes. Creepers are the most common cause of sudden deaths in survival, and the wither and end crystals deal huge explosion damage. One Blast Protection IV piece takes the sting out of all of them. On your main set, Protection on every piece is still better, because explosions are only one of many threats.
Blast Protection and the wither's spawn
When the wither spawns, it explodes with huge force. So many players build the wither underground or in a bunker, then fight it in a tight space. A Blast Protection piece helps a lot in that first moment, before you switch to melee.
Common mistakes
- Putting Blast Protection on all four pieces. You waste points past the cap and lose general protection.
- Trying to add it to a piece that already has Protection. They exclude each other, so the anvil skips the book.
- Expecting it to stop the knockback of a mace smash. That is melee knockback, not an explosion.
Which items take Blast Protection
Blast Protection goes on 4 kinds of gear in the calculator: helmet, chestplate, leggings, boots. An enchanting table can roll it on the helmet, chestplate, leggings, boots.
It can't share an item with Protection, Fire Protection or Projectile Protection. If an item already has one of those, the anvil skips the Blast Protection book. Java still charges 1 level for it.
Blast Protection from the enchanting table
The level you can roll depends on the item's enchantability. A material with a higher value reaches higher levels from the same level 30 enchant. This table shows the best Blast Protection each helmet can get from a level 30 enchant with 15 bookshelves.
| Item | Enchantability | Best from the table |
|---|---|---|
| Netherite Helmet | 15 | IV |
| Diamond Helmet | 10 | IV |
| Iron Helmet | 9 | IV |
| Golden Helmet | 25 | IV |
Anything higher has to come from a book instead. Then the enchanting table calculator shows the exact chance for every level.
Anvil cost of Blast Protection
Blast Protection has an anvil multiplier of 4 from another item and 2 from a book. So a Blast Protection IV book costs 8 levels on a fresh item, and each lower level costs 2 less. Two fresh Blast Protection III books merge into Blast Protection IV for 8 levels. Building it from scratch takes 8 level I books and 7 merges, 46 levels in all. That is a middling cost, so the order still matters once you combine several books.
Java charges the full resulting level every time, even when the item already has a lower level of it. Every step also adds the prior work penalty of both items. The enchantment calculator finds the cheapest order for your whole set of books.
Builds, questions and guides
Blast Protection can go on 4 items: best helmet enchantments, best chestplate enchantments, best leggings enchantments, best boots enchantments. To put it on in the cheapest order, see the helmet enchant order, chestplate enchant order, leggings enchant order, boots enchant order.
More reading: Getting books from librarians, How to enchant in Minecraft, Every max enchantment level. You can make a Blast Protection book with the command generator. The librarian price list shows what villagers charge for it.
How to get Blast Protection
- Enchanting table It can appear when you enchant a supported item at an enchanting table. However, higher levels need more bookshelves and a level 30 enchant.
- Librarian villagers Librarians can sell it as an enchanted book. Level I costs 5–19 emeralds plus a book.
- Random enchanted books It is also in the pool for the random enchanted books and gear in many chests and in fishing loot.
Blast Protection is a rare roll at the enchanting table, so a librarian is the reliable source. The book is ×2 per level on the anvil, which makes Blast Protection IV cost 8 levels on a fresh piece.
Enchanting power and librarian prices
| Level | Enchanting power | Librarian price |
|---|---|---|
| I | 5–13 | 5–19 emeralds |
| II | 13–21 | 8–32 emeralds |
| III | 21–29 | 11–45 emeralds |
| IV | 29–37 | 14–58 emeralds |
The power column is the hidden enchanting value each level needs. A level 30 enchant on a netherite helmet reaches power 43 at most. That already includes the enchantability bonus and the random spread. The price column shows what a librarian can ask for each book. Curing a zombie villager or the Hero of the Village effect lowers it.
Tips
- Great for creeper farms, the wither fight and crystal PvP, where explosions are the main threat.
- The knockback resistance is handy with the mace and wind charges, which use explosion knockback.
Commands
Give yourself a Blast Protection book or enchant the item in your hand. These work in Java 26.3 once cheats are on.
/give @p enchanted_book[stored_enchantments={blast_protection:4}]
/enchant @s blast_protection 4
/give @p netherite_helmet[enchantments={blast_protection:4}]Versions
Blast Protection is in every Java version from 1.21 (when enchantments became data files) up to 26.3.
- 1.21.9: now goes on copper boots, copper leggings, copper chestplate, copper helmet.
Also see the update log for every change, and how this data is checked. Bedrock player? See Blast Protection on Bedrock.
Questions
Is Blast Protection worth it?
Only for explosion-heavy situations. For general survival Protection is better because it covers every damage type.
Does Blast Protection reduce creeper damage?
Yes. Creeper explosions are the main thing it is for. One piece of Blast Protection IV with three pieces of Protection IV reaches the 80% cap against explosions.
Does Blast Protection help against the wither?
Yes. The wither shoots skulls that explode on impact, and it explodes when it spawns. The wither effect itself is not an explosion, so milk or a totem is still useful.
Should I use Blast Protection or Protection?
Protection for your main set. Use Blast Protection on one piece of a spare set for creeper farms, crystal PvP or the wither fight.
Does Blast Protection reduce knockback?
Yes. Each level cuts the knockback from explosions by 15%, so you are less likely to be thrown off a ledge.