How to Duplicate Netherite Upgrade Smithing Templates in Minecraft

In the Trails & Tales update (1.20), the process of upgrading diamond gear to netherite became significantly more challenging with the introduction of the Netherite Upgrade Smithing Template. Unlike older versions where you only needed a netherite ingot, you now require a specific consumable template for every single item you upgrade. Because these templates are rare and found only in the most dangerous parts of the Nether, knowing how to duplicate them is a survival necessity.

To duplicate a Netherite Upgrade Smithing Template, you must combine one existing template with seven diamonds and one block of netherrack in a standard 3x3 crafting table. This process allows you to turn one template into two, effectively letting you "farm" templates as long as you have enough diamonds.

The Essential Duplication Recipe

Before heading to your crafting table, ensure you have gathered the specific materials required for the duplication process. This recipe is expensive, primarily due to the diamond cost, so efficiency is key.

Required Materials

1 Netherite Upgrade Smithing Template: You must already possess at least one. This serves as the "master copy."
7 Diamonds: These act as the material cost for the replication.
1 Netherrack: A common block found throughout the Nether that serves as the base for the netherite template.

Crafting Table Layout

Open your crafting table (the 3x3 grid) and arrange the items exactly as follows:

Top-Middle Slot: Place the Netherite Upgrade Smithing Template.
Middle-Center Slot: Place the Netherrack block.
All Remaining Seven Slots: Fill every other empty slot with a Diamond.

Once placed correctly, the output slot will show two Netherite Upgrade Smithing Templates. One is your original, and the second is the newly created duplicate.

Why Duplication is Mandatory for End-Game Players

Since the 1.20 update, every diamond tool, weapon, and armor piece consumes one template upon upgrade. If you want a full set of netherite gear—helmet, chestplate, leggings, boots, sword, pickaxe, axe, shovel, and hoe—you will need nine templates in total.

Finding nine individual templates in chests would require raiding multiple Bastion Remnants, which is high-risk and time-consuming. Duplication is the only reliable way to ensure you have enough templates for your entire gear set and potential backups if you die and lose your items.

How to Find Your First Netherite Upgrade Template

You cannot craft the very first template from scratch. It must be looted from a Bastion Remnant, a massive obsidian and blackstone fortress inhabited by Piglins and Piglin Brutes.

Locating Treasure Room Bastions

While templates can appear in any Bastion variant, they are most common in the "Treasure Room" variant.

Treasure Room Bastions: These structures feature a central bridge over a lava lake leading to a series of chests surrounded by gold blocks and Magma Cube spawners. In a Treasure Room Bastion, the template has a 100% spawn rate in the main treasure chest.
Other Bastion Variants: In the Bridge, Housing Units, or Hoglin Stables variants, the spawn rate is significantly lower (approximately 10%).

Pro-Tips for Bastion Raiding

Wear Gold: Always wear at least one piece of gold armor (boots are usually best) to keep regular Piglins neutral.
Beware of Brutes: Piglin Brutes are not distracted by gold. They hit extremely hard and should be dealt with using axes or ranged weapons from a distance.
Use Fire Resistance: Bastions are filled with lava. One accidental knockback from a Hoglin can end your run. Drink a Fire Resistance potion before entering the treasure room area.
The Hopper Trick: Opening a chest in a Bastion makes Piglins angry. However, placing a hopper underneath the chest to pull the items into your own inventory or a separate container does not trigger their aggression.

The True Cost: Managing Your Diamond Economy

The biggest hurdle to duplicating netherite templates isn't the Netherrack—it's the diamonds. To create a full set of nine templates (starting from your first found one), you will need to perform eight duplication crafts.

The Math:

8 duplication crafts x 7 diamonds per craft = 56 Diamonds.

This cost is in addition to the diamonds you already spent crafting your diamond gear. To sustain this, you should prioritize obtaining a Fortune III enchanted pickaxe. A Fortune III pickaxe can drop up to four diamonds from a single ore block, drastically reducing the time spent mining at Y-level -59.

Avoiding the "Last Template" Disaster

The most common mistake players make is using their very last template in a Smithing Table to upgrade a piece of gear. Once you use it, the template is consumed and gone forever. If you don't have another one in a chest, you are forced to find another Bastion Remnant to start the process over.

The Golden Rule of Netherite: Always keep at least one template stored safely in an Ender Chest or a protected base. Never carry your "master copy" into dangerous territory, and never use it for an upgrade until you have already crafted a replacement.

Using the Template in a Smithing Table

Once you have duplicated your templates, you need to use them correctly. You do not use a crafting table for the actual gear upgrade; you use a Smithing Table.

Left Slot: Place the Netherite Upgrade Smithing Template.
Middle Slot: Place your Diamond gear (e.g., Diamond Sword).
Right Slot: Place one Netherite Ingot.

This process preserves all enchantments, custom names, and even any Armor Trims currently on the diamond item. Unlike the duplication process, the upgrade process does not require diamonds—only the single template and the ingot.

Common Myths and Misunderstandings

With the complexity of the 1.20 and 1.21 updates, several misconceptions have spread online regarding template duplication.

Myth: You can use a Loom to duplicate templates.

Fact: This is incorrect. Looms are used exclusively for Banners and Banner Patterns. Smithing templates must be duplicated in a 3x3 Crafting Table.

Myth: Any stone block works in the recipe.

Fact: While Armor Trims (the decorative templates) use various blocks like Cobblestone, End Stone, or Sandstone, the Netherite Upgrade Template strictly requires Netherrack. Using any other block will result in no output.

Myth: You can find templates in Ancient Cities.

Fact: Ancient Cities contain rare loot like the Silence Armor Trim and Ward Armor Trim, but they never contain the Netherite Upgrade template. You must go to the Nether and find a Bastion.

Strategic Upgrade Order

Since duplication is expensive, you might not have 56 diamonds ready immediately. If you have to choose which items to upgrade first, consider this order based on survival utility:

Netherite Pickaxe: Netherite tools have higher durability and mine faster. More importantly, they don't burn in lava. A netherite pickaxe makes mining for ancient debris much safer.
Netherite Chestplate: This provides the most significant boost to your armor points and "Armor Toughness," which helps mitigate large bursts of damage from Creepers or Brutes.
Netherite Sword/Axe: Increases your damage output, allowing you to kill mobs in fewer hits.
Boots (with Soul Speed/Depth Strider): The extra durability on boots is helpful, especially in the Nether.

Summary: The Duplication Checklist

To ensure a successful transition to the netherite tier, follow this checklist:

Locate a Treasure Room Bastion for a guaranteed template.
Mine at least 7 diamonds (ideally 21+ for a start).
Clear a 3x3 Crafting Table.
Place Template (Top-Middle), Netherrack (Center), and 7 Diamonds in the remaining slots.
Store the original template in a safe location.
Use the duplicate in a Smithing Table with a Netherite Ingot and Diamond gear.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Can I lose my template if I die in lava?

Yes. While netherite gear (tools and armor) and netherite ingots float in lava and do not burn, Smithing Templates are not fireproof. If you die in lava while carrying your only template, it will be destroyed. Always leave your master copy at home.

Do I need to be at a certain XP level to duplicate?

No. Unlike anvils, which require levels to combine items, duplicating templates at a crafting table costs zero experience points. You only need the physical materials.

Is it cheaper to find templates or duplicate them?

In terms of time and safety, duplication is almost always "cheaper." While diamonds are valuable, they are infinitely renewable (through mining) and safer to acquire than raiding multiple Bastion Remnants. Most players prefer mining for an hour over fighting Piglin Brutes in a laggy Nether fortress.

Can I use the same recipe for Armor Trims?

The structure of the recipe is the same (7 diamonds + 1 template + 1 block), but the block changes depending on the trim. For example, a Sentry Armor Trim requires Cobblestone, while a Vex Armor Trim requires Cobbled Deepslate. Only the Netherite Upgrade uses Netherrack.

Does the Smithing Table process increase the "Prior Work Penalty"?

No. One of the best features of the 1.20 smithing system is that upgrading diamond gear to netherite does not increase the anvil cost for future enchantments. It is a "clean" upgrade that simply swaps the material while keeping everything else intact.

Conclusion

Duplicating the Netherite Upgrade Smithing Template is the single most important craft for any player entering the Minecraft end-game. By investing 7 diamonds and a single block of netherrack, you bypass the need to raid dozens of dangerous bastions. Remember the golden rule: always keep one spare template in your chest. As long as you have that one master copy and a steady supply of diamonds, you will never be locked out of the powerful netherite tier.