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Home»Minecraft»What Does Smite Do in Minecraft? Detailed Guide
what does smite do in minecraft
Minecraft

What Does Smite Do in Minecraft? Detailed Guide

José ZapataBy José ZapataMarch 3, 2023

Enchantments in Minecraft are complex, as they include a random factor, high-quality materials like diamonds, and a long list of buffs. That’s what Enchantments offer: magical upgrades for your gear.

Smite is one of these enchantments, and while it seems straightforward, it has a trick. It increases the damage you deal with swords and axes, but only to undead mobs.

Smite Enchantment

what does smite do in minecraft guide

Smite is an Enchantment available to swords and axes. You can apply it to these types of weapons via the Enchanting Table, or by combining a sword or an ax with the Smite enchantment book on the anvil.

You can also trade the enchantment book with librarian villagers, fish it with a fishing rod, or find it in treasure chests.

The buff increases the damage you deal to undead mobs, and you can put it on swords and axes on both the Java and Bedrock editions.

Undead mobs include:

  • Skeletons
  • Zombies
  • Zombie villagers
  • Zombified piglins
  • Zombie horses
  • Skeleton horses
  • Withers
  • Wither skeletons
  • Strays
  • Husks
  • Phantoms
  • Drowned
  • Zoglins
  • Mummy
  • Necromancer
  • Undead dragon
  • Zombie cowmen
  • Crawler
  • Drowned sapper
  • Charred zombie
  • Others…

Undead mobs are one of the two mob categories in-game that are affected by an enchantment. The other category is arthropods, which are affected by the Bane of the Arthropods.

Undeads (like zombies, phantoms, and all of their variants) appear at night and in places without sunlight. They burn in sunlight, they don’t have armor, they are always hostile, and they are very common in the game, especially in the Overworld.

Smite Damage

smite damage

The enchantment has five levels. Each level increases the damage by 2.5 each level, generally. 

Here’s the damage it deals on Bedrock Edition, assuming that the target has no armor and without considering critical damage.

Enchantment levelWooden swordGold swordStone swordIron swordDiamond swordNetherite sword
No enchantment445678
I7.57.58.58.510.511.5
II101011111314
III12.512.513.513.515.516.5
IV151517171819
V17.517.519.519.520.521.5
Smite damage on swords in Bedrock Edition

Similarly, here’s the damage Smite adds to axes in Bedrock Edition:

Enchantment levelWooden axGold axStone axIron axDiamond axNetherite ax
No enchantment334567
I6.56.57.58.59.510.5
II9910111213
III11.511.512.513.514.515.5
IV141415161718
V16.516.517.518.519.520.5
Smite damage with axes on Bedrock Edition

Now, let’s look at the damage Smite adds to Java. The base damage of swords in Java is different, but the overall buff is the same, which means Smite is more potent in this edition. 

That said, here’s what Smite adds to swords (without considering armor or critical damage):

Enchantment levelWooden swordGold swordStone swordIron swordDiamond swordNetherite sword
No enchantment445578
I6.56.57.58.59.510.5
II9910111213
III11.511.512.513.514.515.5
IV141415161718
V16.516.517.518.519.520.5
Smite damage with swords in Java Edition

Lastly, here’s the damage Smite adds on axes in the Java Edition, where the difference is more notable compared to Bedrock.

Enchantment levelWooden axGold axStone axIron axDiamond axNetherite ax
No enchantment7799910
I9.59.511.511.511.512.5
II121214141415
III14.514.516.516.516.517.5
IV171719191920
V19.519.521.521.521.522.5
Smite damage with axes in Java Edition

As you see, Smite is a massive buff. It can turn lowly wooden swords and axes into serious damage dealers. And because it’s quite easy to repair an Enchanted weapon (you can combine it with a regular version of the weapon on the anvil), getting that kind of damage is very cheap.

Smite Incompatibility

There’s another “but,” though. Smite is not compatible with Sharpness, which is the straight damage upgrade enchantment for swords and axes.

Still, the damage Sharpness adds is much lower, as, in general, it adds 1.5 points of damage every two levels. For instance, it raises the wooden sword’s damage from 4 to 7 (Sharpness 5) or the Netherite ax’s damage from 10 to 13 (Sharpness V).

Smite is also not compatible with Cleaver and Bane of Arthropods. Let’s check:

EnchantmentGearMax levelDescriptionIncompatible with
SmiteSwords and axes VIncreases the damage you deal to undead mobs to appropriate weaponsBane of Arthropods, Sharpness, Cleaving
CleavingAxesIIIIncreases damage and shield stunningSharpness, Bane of Arthropods, Smite
SharpnessSwords (axes as well in Bedrock Edition)VIncreases damage with swords and shieldsSmite, Bane of Arthropods, Cleaving

In particular, Bane of Arthropods adds a very similar buff as Smite, but it applies when fighting against arthropods. This group of mobs includes endermite, silverfish, bees, cave spiders, spiders, and similar.

Smite Compatibility

Lastly, you can also combine Smite with other sword and ax enchantments. Remember that you can put up to seven enchantments on any piece of gear. Here’re the ones you can combine:

EnchantmentItemDescriptionMax levelIncompatible with
Curse of VanishingAll itemsThe gear disappears when your character dies (most usable in multiplayer)I
EfficiencyShovels, axes, hoes, pickaxesIt increases mining speed as well as shield stun chance with axesV
Fire AspectSwordsYour attacks set mobs on fireII
FortuneHoes, Shovels, Axes, PickaxesIncreases drop amount on certain blocksIIISilk Touch
KnockbackSwordsIncreases knockbackII
LootingSwordsIncreases loot mobs drop on deathIII
Silk TouchShovels, Pickaxes, Axes, HoesYou get the entire block rather than the usual loot when you mine or chop a block. VFortune
Sweeping Edge (Java Edition only)SwordsIt increases sweeping attack damageIII

UnbreakingAll armor, weapon, and tool typesIncreases the item’s durabilityIII
MendingAll armor, weapon, and tool typesIt allows you to restore the item’s durability by picking up experience orbsIUnbreaking

You can put up to seven enchantments on an item on Bedrock Edition. On Java, you can put up to eight enchantments.

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Jose Zapata
José Zapata
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Jose Gregorio Zapata Urdaneta is a video game writer and a casually addicted gamer. Jose Zapata has worked as a video game writer for over four years. He focuses on video game troubleshooting, game lists, and game guides. His first console was a SNES in 1994, and his first games were Star Fox and Super Mario. Since he was a kid, he learned he had a passion for playing, sharing, and talking about games, so he pursued the endeavor with a Social Communication bachelor's degree. His favorite genre is RTS (real-time-strategy), so he plays Age of Empires IV, Age of Empires II, Total War: Warhammer III, Starcraft II, and others. He also has a passion for the type of open-world games where he can create his adventures, such as Minecraft and, with tons of mods, Fallout 4. And like every other gamer, he also likes action-RPG games such as Elden Ring or Mass Effect, although he has a soft spot for classic turn-based RPGs like Original Sin II or the Baldur's Gate Saga. He also manages two YouTube channels. One of these features semi-professional gameplay for eSports players (Rocket League, Warzone, and others). Additionally, he has a background as a musician (bass player), and he used to write musical tutorials and reviews for BegginnerGuitarHQ.

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