The Nether



The Nether (Also referred to as "The Nexus" in Notch's Blog and was previously known as Hell and The Slip) is part of the Minecraft Halloween Update. It exists in a completely different world from the normal world above. The terrain is dimly lit, full of lava streams flowing from the ceiling, sudden cliffs, and lava lakes, making it extremely dangerous to explore. The ceiling and the base of the Nether are made of bedrock. Mushrooms are also commonly found. If the player dies in The Nether, they will be transported back to the spawn point on the surface world.

Portals and Fast Travel
The portals are made by creating a 4x5 (2x3 on inside) door frame out of obsidian and then lighting the inside of the frame on fire with Flint and Steel. The corners of the frame may be left out, using only 10 obsidian. When you stand inside the portal for the first time, it will create a portal in its equivalent area of the Nether. A loading screen will appear during the change of worlds.

A portal can be shut down if part of the obsidian frame is removed.

When re-entering the normal world, any distance covered in The Nether is multiplied by 8, effectively making The Nether a fast travel zone that allows for greater distances to be covered in a short amount of time in the normal world.

Walking through a portal will not teleport the player - in order to use them, the player has to stand still inside the purple haze. Currently, they will not transport mobs or minecarts. Attempting to go through a portal while in a minecart will result in the player needing to restart the game to continue.

Mobs
Mobs that spawn in the main world do not appear here. Instead, there are special mobs that appear only in the Nether (although Ghasts have an extremely small chance of spawning through a portal on the surface world.)


 * Ghasts - Flying jellyfish-like monsters that shoot fireballs. They can be damaged by any conventional weapons, but they do not get hurt when on fire, only when touching it. It is possible for Ghasts to suicide by flying into lava falls and lava lakes, upon which they will drop Gunpowder. The fireballs they shoot can be deflected back at them using a fist or any tool by hitting it just before impact (shooting an arrow or using the Fishing Rod on the fireballs works too).


 * Zombie Pigmen - Peaceful, humanoid creatures that turn hostile when attacked. They drop grilled pork when killed. They carry gold swords, and do 2.5 damage.

Blocks
Blocks can be brought to and from the main world. So far, there are three block types only found in the Nether:


 * Netherstone - This block burns indefinitely, and is the main block type forming the Nether. Setting these on fire while travelling in the Nether is a great way to save on torches.


 * Lightstone - A golden block that glows indefinitely, commonly found as stalactites on the ceiling of the Nether. These can be used as a light source underwater on the surface world, and the powder produced when it is mined is suspected to be an ingredient in making lanterns.


 * Slow Sand - A brown block resembling a creeper face. When walked on, it slows the movement speed of the player and mobs that walk across it, and sinks them down a tiny bit.

There are three blocks that spawn in both worlds. They are Lava, Gravel and Bedrock.

Water
Water cannot be placed from buckets normally in the Nether. Instead, it generates a steam effect and the fizz.ogg sound effect (the same used when lava destroys an object) is played. If an inventory hack is used to give the player a water block, they can place the block. The water block will behave and flow normally, and it will react with lava as usual, creating obsidian. Another way to place water in The Nether is to place a block of ice and break it; water will flow normally from it.

Because water is normally unplaceable in The Nether, if a player falls into a lava pit or otherwise catches fire, they are unable to put themselves out.

Planting & Growing
As water cannot be placed in the Nether, Wheat is unable to grow, and Reeds will not be able to survive either. However, using a sapling and a dirt block, Trees will be able to grow. Its leaves will take a dead-looking brownish colour. Cactus blocks will also be able to grow normally, provided they are planted on Sand. In addition, flowers can survive in the Nether, but only with a light source nearby.

Naming
In the original announcement, Notch mentioned "a brand new Hell world". However, he's made it clear that he doesn't want to use religious names (as mentioned in this article), and prefers for Minecraft to be unique. When the preview was sent out on 29 October 2010 to a couple of gaming websites, the new dimension was called the Slip. This was changed to The Nether on the day of the update release. It has since been referred to as 'The Nexus' on his personal blog, although there has been no indication as yet that there will be another name change.

Trivia

 * When you warp from worlds, the direction you are facing is maintained (e.g., if you face east in the overworld and warp to the Nether, you will still be facing east).
 * While inside the Nether, Watches and Compasses will be unable to tell the time or direction and will flail back and forth.
 * While inside the Nether, Time does not pass in the normal world, and vice versa. (i.e. furnaces will stop smelting etc.)
 * If you use a Chest inside the Nether while teleporting out, and don't close the window, you will have access to the items inside it after being teleported.