Copper gears vs iron gears: Which one is better for beginners in Minecraft?

Mojang will soon be releasing copper gears to Minecraft with the fall game drop. Copper gears will include copper pickaxe, axe, shovel, hoe, sword, and armor parts. These new features aim to make copper a lot more useful to players, especially those new to the game.

However, one could argue that copper gears might not be as useful as iron gears, and here's why.

Note: This article is subjective and solely reflects the writer's opinion.

Chart New Territories with the ultimate Minecraft Seed Generator!

Reasons why iron gears can be better than copper gears for Minecraft beginners

Iron gears are much stronger

Almost every iron gear is better in durability, protection, mining, and attacking stats (Image via Sportskeeda Gaming || Mojang Studios)

Even though copper is more common than iron in the wilderness, players must always try to find iron first rather than simply settling for copper gears. This is because iron gears are much stronger in every way when compared to copper gears.

Iron gears are superior in terms of durability and protection and attack levels. The iron armor set offers around 20% more protection against all attacks, the iron sword deals one extra heart worth of damage and is more durable, and even the iron pickaxe can mine all blocks slightly quicker and is also more durable.

An iron pickaxe is necessary to break diamond

An iron pickaxe is necessary for players to progress, which makes them a lot more useful (Image via Sportskeeda Gaming || Mojang Studios)

As soon as players enter a new world, their main aim should be to get stronger resources as soon as possible to make survival easier. Hence, most new players aim to get diamonds quickly. While copper might bridge the gap between stone and iron, it doesn't have the features that allow players to move forward in the upgrading chain.

This is because a copper pickaxe cannot break a diamond ore to get diamonds out. It can only be done by an iron pickaxe.

Since an iron pickaxe is necessary to progress, while a copper pickaxe is not, the former is considered a much more important gear.

Iron gears will continue to be decently useful in the future

Iron gears are still used in some form even after players get diamonds or netherite (Image via Sportskeeda Gaming || Mojang Studios)

After playing Minecraft for a while, players usually move to either diamond or netherite gear. While these gears are a lot more durable than both iron and copper, some still prefer to use iron tools in some cases. For example, for strip mining, they use loads of iron pickaxes instead of wasting their diamond pickaxes' durability on breaking stone.

Furthermore, those who constantly use shields keep making them with the help of iron.

Hence, iron remains an important resource for gears even after players move on to stronger gears. On the other hand, copper might not be used by these players since it is weaker than iron.

Check out our latest articles on Minecraft:

About the author

Akshat has been a Minecraft writer at Sportskeeda for almost three years. He has loved gaming since childhood, and the fact that Need For Speed Most Wanted is still installed on his PC is proof that the flame burns strong even today. This love for the racing franchise spilled over to F1 fandom, leading him to cover the sport as well for the company.

Akshat's articles have accrued over 19 million views so far at Sportskeeda. He prefers both solo and multiplayer titles and is a huge admirer of popular gamers Shroud and Philza. Akshat places huge emphasis on accurate, relevant, and ethical content, and does thorough research using social media, videos, and a multitude of websites before writing an article.

Akshat's other hobbies include cars, mechanical keyboards, psychology, and philosophy. He would recommend indie and Slice of Life games to a gaming skeptic because of their ease of play, compelling storyline, and message.

Know More

Uncover new worlds with our Minecraft Seed Generator!

Edited by Akshat Kabra