How to Beat the Ender Dragon: Stats & Strategy (26.3)

How much HP does the Ender Dragon have?

The Ender Dragon has 200 HP — the same on Java and Bedrock, and no difficulty scaling on health. What scales is her damage output:

She is also the largest naturally-spawning mob in the game — 8 blocks tall and 16 blocks wide — so she destroys almost any block she flies through except obsidian, end stone, bedrock, and a few other End-native blocks.

How do I reach the End?

Find a stronghold with /locate structure stronghold (or thrown Eyes of Ender), fill the End Portal frame with Eyes of Ender, and jump in. The dragon fight starts the moment you arrive — there is no way back except death or victory, so bring everything:

• Bow + at least two stacks of arrows (or an Infinity bow)
• Full diamond or Netherite armor (Netherite upgrade guide)
• Slow Falling potions — they hard-counter her knockback launches
• Empty glass bottles to harvest dragon’s breath for lingering potions
• A carved pumpkin or high FOV discipline to avoid aggravating Endermen
• Beds, if you plan the speed-kill method below

Why destroy the End Crystals first?

The ten obsidian pillars around the exit portal each hold an End Crystal that continuously heals the dragon while she is tethered nearby. Two pillars are caged in iron bars — you must climb or break in to reach those crystals. Shooting an exposed crystal with a bow detonates it instantly.

Leave even one crystal alive and the dragon regenerates faster than you can realistically damage her. Destroy all ten, then the fight becomes a damage race. Watch for her charge attack when you break the last few — she gets aggressive.

Should I use beds or a bow?

Both work; beds are faster and riskier:

• Bow method (safe): Stay near the portal, shoot her in the head during strafing runs, and when she perches on the exit portal she becomes immune to arrows — switch to melee on her head or tail. Expect a 5–10 minute fight.
• Bed method (speedrun): Beds explode when used in the End. When she perches, place a bed at the portal edge, stand behind it, and right-click — the explosion deals massive damage to her head. Wear Blast Protection and keep a block between you and the bed. Expect to burn through most of a stack of beds before she falls.

Either way, avoid the purple lingering clouds — dragon’s breath does 3 HP/sec and hangs around for a while. Bottle it for lingering potions instead of walking through it.

What do you get for killing the Ender Dragon?

The first kill drops 12,000 XP (enough to go from level 0 to ~68), one dragon egg on top of the exit portal (grab it with a piston or torch trick — it teleports when punched), and activates the exit portal home. An End gateway also appears at the edge of the island — throw an Ender Pearl through it to reach the outer islands, where End Cities hold Elytra and Shulker loot.

To fight her again, place four End Crystals on the exit portal frame. Repeat kills drop 500 XP and another gateway each, up to 20 gateways total.

What to read next

• Minecraft Wither Guide: Spawn, Stats & Kill Strategy — the second boss, for Nether Stars and beacons
• How to Get Netherite — upgrade the gear you used for the fight
• Minecraft Enchanting Guide — Power V and Protection IV before the rematch
• All Minecraft Commands — /locate structure stronghold and more