Flint

Overview

Flint makes arrows and it makes Flint and Steel, which means it stands between a new world and both ranged combat and a Nether portal. It comes from gravel and nothing else: breaking a gravel block drops flint about 10% of the time and gravel the rest, so a riverbank or a beach with a shovel is the standard source. Fortune changes that arithmetic completely — Fortune III makes every gravel block drop flint, which turns a slow trickle into a stack in minutes and is one of the best arguments for putting Fortune on a shovel rather than only on a pickaxe. Beyond arrows and lighters, flint trades to fletcher villagers for emeralds, and it is the ingredient in a fletching table's supply chain. Gravel itself is common in caves, along rivers, in deserts under sand and in enormous quantities on ocean floors, so the material is never the constraint. Bring a shovel to any river you cross and the arrow problem solves itself. A shovel, a riverbank and ten minutes removes the last excuse for not carrying a bow.

Crafting arrows and flint and steel — the ammunition for every bow in the game and the only tool that lights a nether portal early on.

In Minecraft, Flint is a crafting material item. A full stack holds 64. It is used to craft Arrow, Fletching Table, and Flint and Steel.

How to get it

Break gravel with a shovel; each block drops flint at roughly a 10% chance, and Fortune III makes the flint drop guaranteed. 1 flint, 1 stick and 1 feather craft 4 arrows.

Tips

Fortune III on a shovel guarantees flint from every gravel block, which is the fastest arrow supply there is.
Gravel falls under gravity, so dig it from the side rather than standing underneath a column.
Fletcher villagers buy flint for emeralds, which turns a riverbank into a trading income.
Keep one flint and one iron aside for a spare lighter before spending the rest on arrows.