How to leave Nether when portal breaks in Minecraft

In Minecraft, players can explore the Nether realm through the nether portal, made from obsidian blocks. Once they enter the portal in the Overworld, they enter the hellish realm where another portal generates automatically. This particular portal in the new dimension is the only way to return to the Overworld.

Unfortunately, accidents can happen in the game, and the nether portal present in the Nether could shatter due to several reasons. This could be an issue for newcomers who might not know what to do. The lava-filled realm is not the safest place. Fortunately, there are a few ways to reignite the portal and return home.

Ways to leave Nether if portal breaks in Minecraft

Find flint and steel

One of the most important items players need to activate a nether portal is flint and steel. It is a combination of flint and iron ingot and is used to ignite the nether portal. Hence, if players have a full nether portal but it is not lit, they can explore the hellish realm to find a ruined portal or a nether fortress, which can generate flint and steel as chest loot.

Ruined portals have a 46% chance of generating them, while nether fortresses have a 19% chance. Once flint and steel are found, players can reactivate a broken portal and return to safety.

Ghast fireball trick

Ghast's fireball can activate nether portals in Minecraft (Image via Mojang)

If players do not want to waste time finding flint and steel in ruined portals and nether fortresses, there is another quicker but riskier method of activating a nether portal. Ghasts are massive, flying hostile mobs that shoot fireballs as soon as they detect a player. Though players may try to kill them instantly, their fireballs can reactivate the portal.

However, this is a risky method since ghasts might shoot other areas around it, making it extremely difficult to get them to aim directly at the portal.

Find obsidian

Obsidian can be obtained from bastion remnants or from a ruined portal in Minecraft (Image via Mojang)

There might be a situation where players might not have enough obsidian to create a nether portal and return to the Overworld. While obsidian can be created with lava and water in the Overworld, those mechanics do not work in the Nether. Hence, they need to explore and find structures like a ruined portal or bastion remnants to obtain obsidian and create a portal.

Ruined portals are the best choice since they already have a broken portal that can be completed with a few obsidian blocks.