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How to Get Nautilus Shell in Minecraft

Nautilus Shell is one of the more important items in Minecraft, essential for crafting a Conduit – a powerful structure that works underwater. With it, you can significantly improve ocean exploration and make building underwater bases much easier.

In this guide, we’ll show all the ways to obtain a Nautilus Shell in Minecraft, from fighting Drowned to trading with the Wandering Trader.

Best Ways to Get Nautilus Shell in Minecraft

Nautilus Shell can be acquired in several ways, such as defeating Nautilus or Drowned, fishing, or trading with the Wandering Trader.

Loot from Nautilus

One of the most obvious ways to obtain a Nautilus Shell is by getting it directly from the Nautilus mob. After killing it, there is about a 5% chance that it will drop one Nautilus Shell, so it’s not a very high drop rate. You can increase your chances by using the Looting enchantment – at level III, it raises the drop chance to around 8%. However, the downside of this method is the need to actually find a Nautilus, which can be time-consuming on its own.

nautilus minecraft

The best approach is to search for it in deeper parts of the ocean and prepare for longer exploration by bringing a Potion of Water Breathing.

Loot from Drowned

Another method of obtaining a Nautilus Shell is by killing Drowned. There is about a 3% chance that a Drowned will spawn holding a Nautilus Shell, and if you encounter one and defeat it, the drop is guaranteed.

drowned minecraft

You can find Drowned in oceans, rivers, and dripstone caves, especially at night when their spawn rate is higher.

Fishing

Nautilus Shell can also be obtained through fishing, however it is a very rare drop in this case. This means that obtaining it mainly depends on luck and may take some time.

The chances of catching this item increase with each level of the Luck of the Sea enchantment on your fishing rod.

Wandering Trader

The last method is obtaining a Nautilus Shell from the Wandering Trader. Sometimes he has Nautilus Shells in his offer, which he can trade for 5 emeralds each.

Unfortunately, his offer is limited, as he can have a maximum of 5 of this item at a time. It’s also not a very reliable method, since both his trades and his appearance are random, and he can show up at the most unexpected moments.

FAQ

What to Do With Nautilus Shell in Minecraft?

Nautilus Shell in Minecraft has one very practical use – it is used to craft a Conduit. To craft it, you need 8 Nautilus Shells and 1 Heart of the Sea, which you place in the crafting table.

conduit recipe minecraft

The Conduit is an extremely useful item that works underwater and provides the player with effects such as water breathing, better visibility, and faster mining. Because of this, it is a must-have if you plan to do underwater construction.

How Rare Is a Nautilus Shell in Minecraft?

Nautilus Shell is a relatively rare item, as most methods of obtaining it rely on luck. Killing a Nautilus itself gives only about a 5% chance of getting a shell, which is a very low rate, not to mention the probability of a Drowned spawning with one in its hand.

When fishing, it is treated as treasure loot, and the Wandering Trader has it in his offer quite rarely.