Beacon

A beacon is a block that projects a light beam skyward, and can provide status effects such as Speed, Jump Boost, Haste, Regeneration, Resistance, or Strength to nearby players.

Obtaining
A beacon can be mined successfully with any tool, or with bare hands.

Usage
Beacon blocks can function as light sources, emitting a light level 15. Like other light sources, they melt snow and ice. They cannot be pushed by pistons.

When "activated", beacon blocks provide two unique functions:
 * An aesthetic landmark beam reaching into the sky, which can be visible from far away.
 * Powers, which give players status effects within a certain range.

Activation
In order to activate a beacon, the beacon must adhere to the following requirements:
 * Beacons require an unobstructed view of the sky, though bedrock and transparent blocks (including water, lava, slime, glass, and other beacon blocks) does not count as obstruction.
 * The beacon is on top of a pyramid constructed from iron blocks, gold blocks, emerald blocks, and/or diamond blocks.

Pyramids
Pyramids are the structures required to activate beacons. There are four possible pyramid heights. More pyramid levels make more powers available in a wider affected vicinity. The type of mineral block used to build the pyramid is entirely cosmetic and has no functional effect. Several different block types can be mixed without affecting functionality. If the pyramid is damaged so that the beacon deactivates, the previously-set powers resume their effects upon reactivation when the pyramid is repaired. This applies to piston-altered pyramids as well. Multiple beacons can make use of the same specific mineral blocks below them. Combined pyramids do not need to be symmetrical. The image to the right shows a 6-beacon (2 by 3) pyramid. It requires a total of 244 mineral blocks, with a base layer of 10 by 11.

Beam
A vertical beam appears from a beacon if the beacon is activated, extending from the beacon block up to Y=255. The beam is visible from roughly the same distance as a single ordinary stack of blocks. If a render distance of 16 chunks is set, the beam of light is visible from up to 255 blocks away.

The color of the beam may be changed by placing blocks of stained glass (or stained glass panes) anywhere above the beacon block. The beam changes colors according to the colors of glass placed above it: the first block sets the beam color, while each additional block sets the color by averaging the red, green, and blue components of the current beam color and the block color. The color values are the same as those for the corresponding dye. Oddly enough, Beacon beams cannot go through most blocks, but can go through bedrock and end portal blocks.

Powers
Once the beacon is emitting a beam, it can then be fed 1 iron ingot, 1 gold ingot, 1 emerald, or 1 diamond, to select the status effects given to players within range of the beacon. This is done through the beacon's GUI, displayed by pressing while looking at the beacon block. It doesn't matter which of the items is fed into the beacon.

In the GUI, the player places the item to be fed in the empty slot, and clicks an effect from the "Primary Power" section on the left. If the beacon is sitting on a 4-level pyramid, the "Secondary Power" section on the right also becomes active. The player can then choose either to turn on the Regeneration power in addition to the Primary Power or to raise the primary power to Level II. The user clicks the "Done" button (green check mark), the item is consumed, and the power(s) become activated. To change the beacon's powers, this process must be followed again, consuming another ingot or gem.

If the pyramid is broken, effects deactivate or weaken, or the beacon deactivates entirely depending on the level of the pyramid that is no longer complete. Upon restoration of the pyramid, the originally selected power return without the need to spend another item.

The five Primary Powers are:
 * I: Increased movement speed.
 * I: Increased mining and attack speed.
 * I: decreased nearly all incoming damage (2-level pyramid required).
 * I: Increased jumping distance and height (2-level pyramid required).
 * I: Increased melee damage (3-level pyramid required).

The Secondary Powers available with a 4-level pyramid are:
 * I: Regenerates health.
 * Increasing the Primary Power to level II.

It is also possible to combine two different primary Level I powers:
 * select a primary power in the left panel
 * select the Level II option in the right panel
 * select the second desired power back in the left panel

Only one of the two powers appear to be selected, although both effects are active.

Every four seconds, the selected powers are applied with a duration of 9 seconds, plus 2 seconds per pyramid level, to all players in range. Thus, when powers are changed or a player travels outside the area-of-effect, the powers persist for 5–9 seconds, or 13-17 seconds with a full pyramid.

Range
The beacon affects an area in the shape of a square column, which reaches downward and out to each side at a range determined by the size of the pyramid base (see table below), and upward a distance of that range + 256. In Bedrock Edition, the range of the beacon is the same, except it extends upwards infinitely.

The distance from the player to the beacon block does not affect the intensity of the status effect.

ID
Bedrock Edition:

Block entity
A beacon has a block entity associated with it that holds additional data about the block.

Trivia

 * The texture of the beacon is 16×16, but renders only the 10×10 area in the center.
 * It is possible to see the beacon beam on the bottom of an activated beacon. This was initially reported as a bug, but the resolution was "won't fix", despite a fix being provided.
 * When destroyed by an explosion, the block always drops as an item.
 * There are 16777216 different beam colors, needing, at most, 6 layers of glass.