Overview
An Ominous Trial Key opens the ominous vaults, and those vaults are the only place in the game the Heavy Core generates — which makes this key the gateway to the Mace. Getting one means running a trial chamber the hard way: drink an Ominous Bottle before you go in, which converts to Trial Omen for 15 minutes and turns every trial spawner in the chamber ominous. Ominous spawners send harder, larger waves that include breezes and armoured mobs, and they pay out an ominous key instead of an ordinary one. The ominous vaults those keys open carry the best loot in the update: the heavy core at roughly a 4.5% chance, enchanted diamond gear, and the three enchantments that exist nowhere else — Wind Burst, Density and Breach. Like ordinary keys, the vault lock is per player, so a group all get their own share from one vault. Expect several chamber runs before a heavy core appears; the enchanted books and gear along the way are what make the repetition worth doing. Map the chamber on your first pass so the ominous run is quick.
Opening ominous vaults — the only source of the heavy core needed for a mace, and of the Wind Burst, Density and Breach enchantment books.
In Minecraft, Ominous Trial Key is a miscellaneous item. A full stack holds 64. It also turns up in chests in Trial Chambers.
Nothing on the crafting grid is made from it.
How to get it
Beat an ominous trial spawner's wave while under Trial Omen. Each ominous vault has roughly a 4.5% chance of a heavy core, so budget for several runs; each chamber's spawners reset after 30 minutes.
Tips
- Trial Omen lasts 15 minutes; enter the chamber immediately after drinking or the omen expires before you reach a spawner.
- Ominous waves include breezes, so bring a shield — their wind charges shove you into the mob pit otherwise.
- Ominous keys only work on ominous vaults; the ordinary vaults still need ordinary Trial Keys.
- Fight from a doorway: ominous spawners scale their wave size to how many players are in the room.
Version notes
Added in 1.21 alongside the Ominous Bottle, Trial Omen and the ominous vault loot table that holds the heavy core.
Properties
One inventory slot holds 64, so a double chest holds 3,456.
- Stack size
- 64
- Category
- Miscellaneous
Found in
Ominous Trial Key is in the loot tables of Trial Chambers.
- Trial Chambers — A copper and tuff complex of interconnected combat rooms, corridors and reward vaults, generating throughout the Overworld underground.
Guides and tools that cover this
Frequently asked questions
How do you make Ominous Trial Key in Minecraft?
Ominous Trial Key has no crafting recipe; it is obtained from mobs, chests or trading.
What is the stack size of Ominous Trial Key?
Ominous Trial Key stacks to 64.
