BetterNether Decorative and Utility Structures: Pillars, Portals, Respawn Points, and Spawn Altar Ladders

guide

BetterNether adds small decorative and utility structures to the Nether, including pillars, portals, respawn points, and spawn altar ladders. These structures generate through the `#betternether:has_structure/nether_decorations` structure set, which controls where each one can appear. Each type has its own placement rules, so the spacing and frequency differ from one structure to the next.

How Placement Works

Every structure in this group uses the same structure set, `#betternether:has_structure/nether_decorations`. Placement is defined by two numbers: the size of the region in which one generation attempt is made, and the minimum distance required between two instances of that structure. Because each structure has different values, some appear more often than others.

Pillars

Pillars are the most common of the four structures. A placement attempt occurs once per 20x20 chunk region, and pillars must be at least 8 chunks apart from one another. That combination of a small region and a short minimum distance means pillars can show up fairly regularly as you move through the Nether.

Region size: 20x20 chunks
Minimum separation: 8 chunks
Structure set: `#betternether:has_structure/nether_decorations`

Portals

Portals are considerably rarer than pillars. They use a 40x40 chunk region for placement attempts, and two portals must be at least 15 chunks apart. The larger region and greater spacing mean you will encounter them less often than pillars while exploring.

Region size: 40x40 chunks
Minimum separation: 15 chunks
Structure set: `#betternether:has_structure/nether_decorations`

Respawn Points

Respawn points sit between pillars and portals in terms of spacing. A placement attempt is made once per 32x32 chunk region, and respawn points must be at least 24 chunks apart. The minimum separation here is the largest of any structure in this group, so even though the region is smaller than the one used for portals, respawn points are kept well away from each other.

Region size: 32x32 chunks
Minimum separation: 24 chunks
Structure set: `#betternether:has_structure/nether_decorations`

Spawn Altar Ladder

The spawn altar ladder shares its region size with portals but has a different minimum separation. One placement attempt is made per 40x40 chunk region, and spawn altar ladders must be at least 20 chunks apart. That spacing is larger than the portal requirement but smaller than the one for respawn points.

Region size: 40x40 chunks
Minimum separation: 20 chunks
Structure set: `#betternether:has_structure/nether_decorations`

Comparing the Four Structures

Looking at the numbers side by side makes the relative rarity clear. Pillars have the smallest region and the shortest minimum distance, so they generate most often. Portals and spawn altar ladders share the largest region size, but portals require 15 chunks of separation while spawn altar ladders require 20. Respawn points use a middle-sized region of 32x32 chunks but demand the greatest separation of all, at 24 chunks.

Pillars: 20x20 region, 8 chunks apart
Portals: 40x40 region, 15 chunks apart
Respawn points: 32x32 region, 24 chunks apart
Spawn altar ladders: 40x40 region, 20 chunks apart

All four structures draw from the same structure set, `#betternether:has_structure/nether_decorations`, so they are placed as part of the same decoration pass over the Nether. If you are searching for a particular one, keep its region size and minimum separation in mind: the larger the region and the longer the required gap, the farther you may need to travel before finding it.

Covers the mod’s in-game guide topics: Pillars Portals Respawn Points Spawn Altar Ladder