Overview
Soul sand and soul soil slow you to a crawl, and vast stretches of the Nether are made of them — the entire soul sand valley, most of the ground around a bastion, and any path you cut through one. Soul Speed inverts the penalty: instead of being slowed, you move faster on those blocks than you do on ordinary ground, and at the top level the difference is enough to make a soul sand valley a road rather than an obstacle. Nether road builders exploit this deliberately, laying soul soil paths purely because their boots make them fast. The cost is durability. The enchantment wears boots down as you use it, which is why it belongs on a pair with Unbreaking III and Mending rather than on your only netherite boots. Its acquisition is unusual and worth knowing precisely: no enchanting table offers it, no librarian sells it, and it appears only from piglin bartering and bastion chest loot. That makes gold, not levels, the currency for this one — a gold farm or a stack of ingots traded to piglins is the practical route, and bartering gives it as a book rather than as enchanted boots.
Crossing soul sand valleys and bastion approaches at speed, and building deliberate soul soil roads through the Nether that are faster to walk than any ordinary path.
Makes you move faster on soul sand and soul soil instead of slower, at the cost of boot durability. Essential for anyone who builds roads through the Nether.
The highest level of Soul Speed is III. It is treasure-only, which takes the enchanting table out of the picture: loot chests, fishing and trades are the sources.
It carries a weight of 1, but no table rolls it. Loot chests, fishing and librarians are where that weight is felt instead.
How to get it
Barter gold ingots with piglins or loot bastion chests — those are the only 2 sources. No enchanting table and no villager offers it, level III is the maximum, and 2 level II books combine on an anvil to reach it.
Tips
- It costs boot durability while active, so pair it with Unbreaking III and Mending.
- Piglin bartering is the reliable source; a gold farm turns it from luck into a shopping trip.
- Soul soil paths become the fastest roads in the Nether once you have level III boots.
- It conflicts with nothing, so the same boots can carry Feather Falling and Protection alongside it.
What each level does
Level by level, this is what you get. Most of the gain is in reaching III, and two II books on an anvil make one III.
Soul Speed III gives the largest speed bonus on soul blocks.
| Level | Effect |
|---|---|
| I | +1.41× speed on soul sand and soul soil; costs durability as you walk |
| II | +1.51× speed on soul sand and soul soil; costs durability as you walk |
| III | +1.61× speed on soul sand and soul soil; costs durability as you walk |
Properties
The enchanting table will not roll it, and no villager trades it, which leaves loot chests and fishing.
- Maximum level
- III
- Type
- Treasure only
- From enchanting table
- No
- Villager trading
- No
- Weight
- 1
What it can be applied to
Soul Speed can be applied to Boots.
- Boots
Gear it goes on
How to get it
Piglin bartering and bastion chest loot; it never appears at an enchanting table.
No number of bookshelves helps here — it is treasure-only. Loot chests, fishing with Luck of the Sea and raid drops are the sources.
Command
If cheats are on, use the first line to add Soul Speed III to the item you are holding, or the second to be handed one outright — written with the 1.20.5 "enchantments" component.
Apply it
/enchant @s minecraft:soul_speed 3Give an enchanted item
/give @s leather_boots[enchantments={levels:{"minecraft:soul_speed":3}}]Guides and tools that cover this
Frequently asked questions
What is the maximum level of Soul Speed?
Soul Speed goes up to level 3. Soul Speed III gives the largest speed bonus on soul blocks.
How do you get Soul Speed in Minecraft?
Piglin bartering and bastion chest loot; it never appears at an enchanting table.
What does Soul Speed III do?
Soul Speed III +1.61× speed on soul sand and soul soil; costs durability as you walk.
