What Does Breach Do in Minecraft? Breach Enchantment Explained

If you have picked up a mace in Minecraft, you have probably seen an enchantment called Breach. So what does Breach do in Minecraft?

Simply put, Breach makes armor less effective against your mace attacks. When you hit a target with a mace that has Breach, the enchantment reduces how much protection their armor gives them. That means more of your damage gets through, even if the target is wearing strong armor like diamond or netherite.

This matters a lot when you are using the mace, since the mace is built around hitting hard with smash attacks. If your target’s armor is soaking up most of your damage, Breach helps cut through that defense.

Let’s break down exactly how it works, what each level does, and when it is worth using.

What Is Breach in Minecraft?

Breach in Minecraft is an enchantment made specifically for the mace. It was added alongside the mace itself, and you will not find it on swords, axes, or any other weapon.

The main idea is simple: Breach lowers how much a target’s armor protects them. It does not remove or destroy the armor; instead, it makes the armor work less effectively for that hit.

Think of it this way: the target is still wearing their armor, but it is not blocking as much damage as it normally would.

How Does Breach Minecraft Work?

Here’s the important part. Breach in Minecraft reduces the target’s armor effectiveness by a percentage, and that percentage depends on the enchantment level. The higher the level, the more armor protection you cancel out.

In practice, this means a heavily armored player or mob takes noticeably more damage from a Breach-enchanted mace than they would from a normal hit.

One thing to keep in mind is that Breach does not ignore armor completely, even at its highest level. Some protection still gets through. Breach just shifts the balance so armor matters less during that attack.

Breach also has a smaller effect against netherite armor specifically. Netherite is the strongest armor material in the game, and it resists Breach’s armor reduction better than other armor types. So Breach is still useful against netherite, just not quite as powerful as it is against diamond, iron, or other armor.

What Does Breach Do to Armor in Minecraft?

Breach in Minecraft lowers the effective value of the target’s armor and armor toughness for that hit. Armor points and armor toughness are the stats that decide how much a hit gets reduced before it lands. Breach cuts into that reduction.

So, what does this mean for you? It means your smash attacks hit harder against armored enemies. Without Breach, a well-armored player or mob might barely feel your attack. With Breach, that same hit does real damage.

Breach Enchantment Levels

Breach in Minecraft can be enchanted up to level IV. Each level adds more armor reduction, so higher levels are always stronger.

The maximum Breach level in Minecraft is IV. At this level, Breach has the biggest impact on how much armor blocks your damage, though as mentioned, netherite armor still resists it somewhat better than other armor types.

You cannot go beyond level IV, whether you are using an enchantment table, an anvil, or an enchanted book.

Breach and the Mace

The mace is a weapon built around one specific move: the smash attack. To do a smash attack, you need to fall from a height and hit a target the moment you land. The more fall distance you have, the more damage the smash attack does.

This is where Breach in Minecraft becomes really useful. Smash attacks already hit hard, but if the target has strong armor, a lot of that damage gets blocked. Breach reduces that blocking effect, letting more of your smash attack damage actually land.

In other words, Breach and the mace’s smash attack work together. The mace gives you the big hit, and Breach makes sure armor does not eat up too much of it.

Breach vs Density in Minecraft

Density is another mace enchantment, and players often compare it to Breach.

• Breach: Reduces the target’s armor effectiveness so more damage gets through.
• Density: Increases mace damage based on how far you fell before hitting the target.

The stuff to know is that Breach and Density cannot be used together. They are incompatible enchantments, so you have to pick one or the other for your mace.

Here’s a simple way to decide:

• Best for Breach: Fighting targets with strong armor, like other players in diamond or netherite gear.
• Best for Density: Fighting targets with little or no armor, since Density boosts raw fall damage instead of cutting through armor.

If your target is not wearing much armor, Density often deals more damage. If your target is heavily armored, Breach usually wins.

Breach vs Wind Burst in Minecraft

Wind Burst is a different kind of mace enchantment. Instead of boosting damage or reducing armor, it launches you into the air after a smash attack. This lets you set up another smash attack more quickly, since the mace needs fall distance to work.

So the comparison looks like this:

• Breach: Focuses on damage output against armored targets.
• Wind Burst: Focuses on mobility and repositioning for more smash attacks.

Unlike Breach and Density, Breach and Wind Burst can be used on the same mace. Many players actually combine them, using Wind Burst to keep landing smash attacks and Breach to make sure those attacks hit hard even against armor.

Is Breach in Minecraft Good on the Mace?

Yes, Breach is generally considered a strong choice, especially in PvP.

Main benefit: It makes armor less effective against your attacks, which is huge in fights where the other player is fully geared up in diamond or netherite armor.

Main limitation: It is less useful against unarmored targets, since there is little or no armor to reduce in the first place.

Is Breach in Minecraft Useful in PvP?

In PvP, most opponents wear full armor sets, which makes Breach especially useful. A well-armored player might normally survive several hits, but Breach lets your smash attacks cut through their defenses much faster. As a result, many players consider Breach one of the best mace enchantments for PvP.

Landing a smash attack at the right moment also depends on your connection. If your hits feel like they are not registering, it is worth checking out how to fix lag in Minecraft Bedrock online worlds, since lag can throw off the timing your smash attack needs.

Is Breach Useful in Survival?

In survival, you will fight a mix of armored and unarmored mobs. Zombies and skeletons often do not wear armor, so Breach will not help much there. But armored mobs, or other players on a server, will still take extra damage from a Breach mace. If you play on servers with PvP or fight armored enemies often, Breach is worth having.

If you are running your own world with friends, our guide to modded Minecraft server hosting can help you set up a smoother server for testing enchantments like Breach together.

Practical Example

Let’s say you are fighting another player wearing a full set of diamond armor.

Without Breach, your mace’s smash attack gets reduced a lot by their armor points and armor toughness. The hit still deals damage, but less than it could.

With Breach IV, that same armor blocks much less of your attack. Your smash attack deals far more damage, even though the player is still wearing the same armor.

Now let’s say you are fighting a zombie with no armor at all. Breach has almost nothing to work with here, since there is no armor to reduce. In this case, Density or Wind Burst would likely be more useful than Breach.

Best Mace Enchantments for PvP and Survival

Best mace enchantments for PvP:

• Breach: Cuts through armored opponents.
• Wind Burst: Keeps you airborne for repeated smash attacks.
• Unbreaking: Extends your mace’s durability during long fights.

If ping is an issue during close PvP fights, take a look at does a VPN really improve Minecraft ping to see whether it is worth trying.

Best mace enchantments for survival:

• Density: Great for general mob fighting, since most mobs are not armored.
• Wind Burst: Helps you chain smash attacks without needing natural fall distance.
• Mending: Keeps your mace repaired over time using experience.

Smooth gameplay also depends on your setup. If your game feels choppy while enchanting or fighting, check our guide on how to allocate more RAM to Minecraft and how to show FPS in Minecraft for Bedrock editions to keep an eye on performance.

How to Get Breach in Minecraft

You can get Breach the same way you get most enchantments:

• Enchanting table: Breach may appear as an option when enchanting a mace, though availability can vary.
• Enchanted books: You may find Breach books in loot chests, particularly around Trial Chambers, which are closely tied to the mace and its enchantments.
• Anvil combining: You can combine an enchanted book with Breach onto your mace using an anvil, or combine two maces that each have Breach to raise the level.

Keep in mind that Breach and Density cannot exist on the same mace, so if your mace already has Density, you will need to remove or replace it before adding Breach.

Final Thoughts

So, what does Breach do in Minecraft? It reduces how much a target’s armor protects them, letting your mace’s smash attacks deal more damage against well-armored players and mobs. Breach scales up to Breach IV and works alongside Wind Burst, but you cannot combine it with Density.

If you are fighting armored opponents, especially in PvP, Breach is one of the best mace enchantments you can use. If your targets are mostly unarmored, Density or Wind Burst may serve you better.

FAQ

What does Breach do in Minecraft? Breach is a mace enchantment that reduces how much a target’s armor protects them, letting more of your attack damage get through.

Does Breach ignore armor completely? No. Breach reduces armor effectiveness, but it does not remove armor protection entirely, even at its highest level.

What is the maximum Breach level? The maximum level is Breach IV.

Is Breach better than Density? It depends on the target. Breach is better against armored opponents, while Density is better against unarmored targets since it boosts fall damage directly.

Can you use Breach and Wind Burst together? Yes. You can use Breach and Wind Burst together, and many players put both enchantments on the same mace.

Can you use Breach and Density together? No. Breach and Density are incompatible enchantments, so you can only have one on your mace at a time.

Is Breach good against netherite armor? Breach still works against netherite armor, but netherite resists the armor reduction better than other armor types like diamond or iron.

Is Breach useful in survival mode? It helps against armored mobs and other players, but has little effect on common unarmored mobs like zombies and skeletons.

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