What density does to the mace
Density is an enchantment that only applies to the mace. It increases the extra damage your smash attack deals per block fallen, so the further you drop before you land a hit, the more damage the enchantment adds on top.
The mace already turns falling into damage on its own. Density just makes each fall block pay out more. With no enchantment, every block you fall adds a set amount of bonus damage to the smash. Each level of Density adds another 0.5 damage per fall block. At the cap of Density III, you get a flat +1.5 damage for every block you fell before connecting.
That sounds small, but it scales. Drop 10 blocks onto a mob with Density III and you have added 15 damage on top of the normal smash. Drop 30 blocks and you have added 45. The mace is one of the few weapons in Minecraft that gets stronger the higher up you start, and Density is the enchantment built for that.
Where to get density
Density only comes from trial chamber loot. You will not find it at an enchanting table, and you cannot pull it out of a librarian villager. The book drops from ominous vaults inside trial chambers.
To open an ominous vault, you need a trial omen effect on you when the vault is broken. The short version of the path:
- Find a trial chamber in the deep underground. They generate under stone and deepslate, anywhere from near the surface down to about Y -50.
- Get a trial omen. The cleanest way is to drink an Ominous Bottle, which drops from raid captains. Ominous Bottles come in five tiers, and any tier triggers the omen when you drink it.
- With the omen active, walk up to a normal vault inside the trial chamber and use a regular Trial Key on it. The vault opens with the ominous loot table instead of the regular one.
Ominous vaults roll from a much better loot table than the normal ones. The Density book is on that table, along with the other mace-only enchantments and a few unique items.
Once you have the book, drop it on an anvil with your mace. The XP cost depends on the book’s level and any prior work penalty on the mace. Density I costs less than Density III, so save the higher-level book for the mace you actually plan to keep.
How smash attack damage works
To get Density’s value, it helps to know what the mace does in the first place.
The mace has a normal melee attack like any other weapon: hit a mob, deal its base damage. That base damage is fine, but it is not why people use the mace. The headline feature is the smash attack.
A smash attack happens when you are falling and attack a mob before you land. The mace converts your fall into bonus damage on the hit. The fall damage you would have taken is also canceled out, so you do not lose hearts, the mob does.
The bonus damage scales with how far you fell. The first stretch of blocks adds the most per block, the next stretch adds less, and the rest adds the least. The exact ramp does not matter much for understanding Density, because Density adds a flat 0.5 damage per block on top of whatever ramp the smash is already on, multiplied by the enchantment level.
So the formula in plain words: smash damage = mace base damage + the normal per-block bonus + (0.5 × Density level × blocks fallen).
The mob’s armor and resistance still apply to the result, so Density III is not a one-shot button against everything. It does, however, push your smash damage well into the range where most overworld and Nether mobs go down in a single hit from a modest drop.
Density vs Breach: pick one
Density conflicts with Breach. You can only put one of them on a given mace, so this is a real choice.
Density adds raw damage that scales with how far you fell. The taller your drop, the harder it hits.
Breach ignores a percentage of the target’s armor per level. Against unarmored mobs, that does nothing. Against fully geared targets, like other players in PVP or vindicators in iron gear, Breach lets the smash damage land more cleanly.
For PVE on undefended mobs, Density is the stronger pick. You are always going to be falling onto the mob, so you are always going to be cashing in on +1.5 per block. For PVP or fighting heavily armored mobs, Breach wins, because raw damage does not help much if armor is eating half of it.
A practical rule of thumb: if you mostly fight raids, pillagers, the warden, or other players, Breach is usually safer. If you are using the mace as a mining-shaft drop weapon or a Nether escape tool, take Density.
Stacking density with other enchantments
Density plays well with the rest of the mace toolbox. The enchantments worth knowing about:
- Wind Burst launches you back into the air after a smash. With Density on your mace, Wind Burst lets you chain falls without climbing back up between hits. Each chained smash adds Density’s per-block bonus to a fresh fall.
- Smite, Bane of Arthropods, and Sharpness work on the base hit, not the per-block bonus. You can still pick one of them. Smite is the standard choice if you are going after the wither or clearing zombie-heavy nether fortresses.
- Fire Aspect works normally and stacks fine with Density.
- Unbreaking and Mending are the usual durability picks. The mace breaks like any other weapon, so one of these is basically required for long-term use.
You cannot use Density alongside Breach on the same mace. The anvil will refuse the combination, or the second enchantment will replace the first depending on how you apply it.
Tips and common mistakes
A few things that come up when people start using Density:
- The fall has to be a real fall. Jumping off a 1-block ledge does not trigger the smash attack. You need to be in a falling state with downward velocity when the hit lands.
- Water cancels fall damage and also cancels the smash. If you splash into water on the way down, the bonus damage will not apply on your next swing.
- The mob has to be roughly under you at the moment of impact. The smash is not a wide area-of-effect hit on its own. Land directly on the mob.
- Density does not change the area-of-effect ground slam pulse the mace makes on landing. That pulse exists independent of the enchantment.
- Wind Burst is the missing piece for sustained Density use. Without a way to get back up, Density is a one-shot tool. With Wind Burst, it becomes a combo loop.
- Plan your anvil order. Anvil cost compounds with prior work, so a mace with Density III, Wind Burst III, Unbreaking III, and Mending will eat a lot of levels to build. Apply the heaviest book first and the lighter ones last.
Java vs Bedrock notes
Density works the same way on both editions. Same source (ominous vaults), same per-block scaling (0.5 per level, max III), same conflict with Breach. The mace itself is functionally identical across editions. If a guide tells you the enchantment behaves differently between Java and Bedrock, double-check the patch notes before you trust it.
Frequently asked questions
Can you get density from an enchanting table?
No. Density only comes from books found in ominous vaults inside trial chambers. The enchanting table will not roll it on a mace.
What is the max level of density?
Density III. Each level adds +0.5 damage per fall block, so III adds +1.5 damage per block of fall.
Does density work on the regular melee attack?
No. Density only adds damage to the smash attack, which requires you to be falling when you hit the mob. A standing swing does not benefit at all.
Can density and breach go on the same mace?
No. They conflict. You have to pick one. Density scales with fall distance, Breach ignores armor.
Does density affect the fall damage I take?
No. The mace already cancels the fall damage on a successful smash. Density does not change that either way. If you miss the smash and hit the ground, you take normal fall damage as if the mace was not there.
How do I farm density books fast?
Find a trial chamber, mark its vaults, and farm Ominous Bottles from raid captains or use trial keys to roll the ominous loot table. Each ominous vault drops once, so plan loops across several chambers if you want stacks of books.
Is density worth it on a starter mace?
Yes. Even Density I gives you +0.5 per fall block, and the books are not that hard to get if you are already running trial chambers. Do not wait for III to enchant your first mace.
The point of density
Density turns vertical distance into damage. If you build vertical, climb a lot, or fight from above, it is the enchantment that pays you back for the trip up. Keep one mace with Density, one with Breach if you do PVP, and you will cover almost every fight the mace was built for.