Upgrading from Iron to Gemstone Gear

When to Switch

If you are still running iron tools and armor, gemstone gear from Mythic Upgrades is a natural next step. Ametrine and Aquamarine tools mine faster and last longer than iron, and their armor offers better protection. The tradeoff is that you need a steady supply of shards, so do not switch until you have found a decent ore vein.

Order of Upgrades

1. Pickaxe first. A gemstone pickaxe speeds up everything else, including mining more gemstone ore.

2. Sword second. Better damage makes cave exploration and mob fights much safer.

3. Chestplate and leggings. These cover the most body slots and give the biggest protection jump.

4. Helmet and boots last. Still useful, but lower priority.

5. Axe, shovel, hoe. Quality-of-life tools once you have spare ingots.

Enchanting Your New Gear

Gemstone tools accept the same enchantments as vanilla gear. Put Efficiency and Unbreaking on your pickaxe, Sharpness and Looting on your sword, and Protection plus Mending on your armor. Mending is especially valuable because gemstone gear is expensive to replace. If you have an anvil and enough XP, combine two partially used pieces of the same gemstone tool to repair them before enchanting.