What Respiration does
| Level | Effect | Book cost |
|---|---|---|
| I | about 30 seconds of air instead of 15 | 2 |
| II | about 45 seconds of air instead of 15 | 4 |
| III | about 60 seconds of air instead of 15 | 6 |
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.
How Respiration works
Without it you have 15 seconds of air underwater. Respiration gives each level a chance to skip losing air, so your bubbles last longer. At level III the bar lasts about four times as long, roughly a full minute.
Once the bubbles run out, you start to drown. So Respiration does not make you safe, it just buys time. Still, a minute is enough to dig, fight a guardian or swim to the next air pocket.
Stacking it with other air sources
- A turtle shell can take Respiration. Its own Water Breathing effect runs first, then the enchanted air bar starts.
- A conduit gives Conduit Power, which stops your air from running out at all while you stay in range.
- Bubble columns from soul sand or magma blocks refill your air as you swim through them.
- A Water Breathing potion makes Respiration irrelevant while it lasts, but it runs out.
In practice, Respiration III is the backup that keeps you alive when the potion ends or you leave the conduit's range.
The underwater helmet
Respiration goes on helmets only, and it does not conflict with anything. So the standard helmet carries Protection IV, Respiration III, Aqua Affinity, Unbreaking III and Mending. With Depth Strider III on the boots you get a full underwater kit. The best helmet enchantments page lists the cheapest order.
When it is worth it
It is worth it on any main helmet, because a helmet has few other options. It matters most for ocean monuments, shipwrecks, buried treasure and drowned farms. On a spare Nether helmet you can leave it off.
Respiration by level
Each level adds about 15 seconds of air. Level I doubles your time underwater, and level III gives about four times as much. The book is ×2 per level, so Respiration III costs 6 levels on a fresh helmet.
Respiration and drowned
Drowned swarm you near the sea floor, and fighting them uses up your air. Respiration III gives you time to fight back instead of swimming up for air. Bring a trident with Impaling or a sword, and stay near bubble columns if you can.
Respiration on the anvil
The helmet takes Protection, Respiration, Aqua Affinity, Unbreaking, Mending and Thorns. So it has more books than most items. Put Respiration on early, since it is a ×2 book, and finish with the cheap ones.
Which items take Respiration
Respiration goes on 1 kind of gear in the calculator: helmet. An enchanting table can roll it on the helmet.
Nothing conflicts with Respiration, so it fits next to every other enchantment its items can take.
Respiration 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 Respiration each helmet can get from a level 30 enchant with 15 bookshelves.
| Item | Enchantability | Best from the table |
|---|---|---|
| Netherite Helmet | 15 | III |
| Diamond Helmet | 10 | III |
| Iron Helmet | 9 | III |
| Golden Helmet | 25 | III |
Anything higher has to come from a book instead. Then the enchanting table calculator shows the exact chance for every level.
Anvil cost of Respiration
Respiration has an anvil multiplier of 4 from another item and 2 from a book. So a Respiration III book costs 6 levels on a fresh item, and each lower level costs 2 less. Two fresh Respiration II books merge into Respiration III for 6 levels. Building it from scratch takes 4 level I books and 3 merges, 16 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
Respiration is part of the max build for 1 item: best helmet enchantments. To put it on in the cheapest order, see the helmet enchant order.
More reading: Getting books from librarians, How to enchant in Minecraft, Every max enchantment level. You can make a Respiration book with the command generator. The librarian price list shows what villagers charge for it.
How to get Respiration
- 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.
Respiration is a rare roll at the enchanting table, but helmets have so few enchantments that it still shows up often. Librarians also sell it, and the book costs ×2 per level on the anvil.
Enchanting power and librarian prices
| Level | Enchanting power | Librarian price |
|---|---|---|
| I | 10–40 | 5–19 emeralds |
| II | 20–50 | 8–32 emeralds |
| III | 30–60 | 11–45 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
- Combine it with Aqua Affinity on the same helmet for underwater building.
- A turtle shell helmet adds 10 more seconds of water breathing on top.
Commands
Give yourself a Respiration book or enchant the item in your hand. These work in Java 26.3 once cheats are on.
/give @p enchanted_book[stored_enchantments={respiration:3}]
/enchant @s respiration 3
/give @p netherite_helmet[enchantments={respiration:3}]Versions
Respiration is in every Java version from 1.21 (when enchantments became data files) up to 26.3.
- 1.21.9: now goes on copper helmet.
Also see the update log for every change, and how this data is checked. Bedrock player? See Respiration on Bedrock.
Questions
Does Respiration let you breathe underwater forever?
No. It slows how fast your air runs out. For unlimited time use a Water Breathing potion or a conduit.
How long can you stay underwater with Respiration III?
About 60 seconds before you start to drown, instead of 15. Add a turtle shell, a conduit or a Water Breathing potion for longer dives.
Does Respiration work on a turtle shell?
Yes. The turtle shell takes Respiration, and its own short Water Breathing effect runs before the enchanted air bar starts to drop.
Is Respiration or Aqua Affinity better?
They do different jobs and do not conflict. Respiration lets you stay under longer, and Aqua Affinity lets you mine at normal speed while you are there. Most helmets take both.
What is the max level of Respiration?
Respiration III. It gives about 60 seconds of air instead of 15.
Does Respiration help in the Nether?
No. There is no water in the Nether, so Respiration does nothing there. Use a spare helmet for Nether trips if you like.