| Material
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Description
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Pros
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Cons
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| Stone
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Stone is overall a fairly strong and withholding material, and is very abundant. However, cobblestone has nearly the same properties as stone. Stone must be smelted from cobblestone. If used carefully, stone can create a distinctive look.
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- Common and renewable.
- Has a relatively high blast resistance of 6.
- Not flammable.
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| Dirt
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Dirt is very weak, and isn't the most beautiful material to build with either. However, it is found on the surface of nearly all biomes, and can be mined up very quickly, even with a player's hand, meaning that it is suitable for beginners on their first night. It is generally not a good idea to use dirt as part of a permanent structure.
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- Very common and easy to obtain.
- Not flammable.
- Renewable.
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- Low blast resistance of only 0.5.
- Has a somewhat ugly look for most styles of buildings.
- Can easily be destroyed
- Turns into Grass Blocks if exposed to sunlight (unless converted into Coarse Dirt), which may not be desirable
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| Planks
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Planks have a rather nice look and are inexpensive to make. Their blast resistance is lower than stone but higher than dirt. One of the main disadvantages of wood planks is that they are flammable, so don't build near lava.
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- Inexpensive and renewable.
- Moderate blast resistance of 3.
- Large variety of styles.
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| Cobblestone
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Cobblestone is a strong block and is easy to acquire, making it great for building houses.
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- Very common and renewable.
- Has a relatively high blast resistance of 6.
- Not flammable.
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- Can look ugly if not combined with other materials.
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| Stone Bricks
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Stone Bricks grants a very medieval and in some ways, militaristic feel to structures made out of it and is in many ways the ideal building material for structures meant to look medieval, militaristic and/or fortified in general, like forts and castles.
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- Obtained by crafting it from Stone (which in turn is obtained by smelting Cobblestone), making it renewable.
- Has a good blast resistance of 6.
- Not flammable.
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- Is somewhat expensive and time-consuming to acquire, as every batch of 4 blocks of Stone Bricks requires 4 blocks of Stone which must be smelted from Cobblestone.
- Cracked Stone Brick requires a second round of smelting and Mossy Stone Brick requires Vines, to further add to material expenses.
- The gray texture may not be the most pleasant option for some structures.
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| Bricks
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Bricks have a very pleasant look to them and a high blast resistance. However, they are also rather expensive, even though they are renewable.[Java and Bedrock editions only] They are good for buildings with a neutral yet pleasant look.
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- Has a high blast resistance of 6.
- Has a detailed and polished look, but not a wild look, making it great for many styles of buildings.
- Renewable.[Java and Bedrock editions only]
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- Costs 4 clay per block, and they must be smelted, making it expensive.
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| Obsidian
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Obsidian is an extremely strong material, and takes a long time to break. Its breaking time can be a pain when building, but is great for protection against other players on multiplayer PVP servers.
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- Practically invincible to explosions with a blast resistance of 1,200.
- Very hard to mine through, even with proper tools.
- Renewable through nether portal.
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- Difficult to collect and build with due to the long breaking time.
- Doesn't always look the best; sets a rather dark mood.
- Somewhat challenging to build with on lower brightness settings as the dark appearance of the block can make it hard to see exactly how a given block is placed.
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| Sand
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Sand is gravity-affected block that can be found in many Overworld biomes. Sand is generated in large numbers in the Desert.
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- Affected by gravity.
- Blast resistance of 0.5.
- Can be easy destroyed by hand.
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| Sandstone
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Sandstone looks great for certain style of homes, especially a desert-style home. However, it has a low blast resistance and is not renewable.[Bedrock Edition only] It's strongly recommended to have a desert biome nearby if you want to make a building out of sandstone.
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- Fairly easy to decorate with and has several variants for different textures.
- Easily found and mined in the desert biome.
- Renewable.[Java Edition only]
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- Not renewable.[Bedrock Edition only]
- Has a low blast resistance of only 0.8.
- Easily mined through.
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| Terracotta
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Terracotta is a rather colorful block, making it good for some styles of homes. It also has a high blast resistance. However, it is rather time-consuming and expensive to acquire unless the player have access to a badlands biome.
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- Comes in many different colors, providing many variation for decoration.
- Has a decent blast resistance of 4.2.
- Not flammable.
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- Is expensive and time-consuming to acquire, as it requires lots of clay, smelting, and dyes.
- If overused can create an overly exotic look.
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