The map recipe
There are two distinct recipes to craft a Map in Minecraft. They will both craft an empty map. Hold it and use it by making a right-click to start exploring the region around you.
Resources
Java edition
Bedrock edition
This empty map is specific to the Bedrock Edition. It will only be used for zooming out of another map. The default craft for a normal map with the player indicators is the previous recipe.
- Paper x 9
Map usage and utility
To use it, place it in your hands and right click. Once done, you can start exploring for the map to start filling. Combine multiple maps by placing in item frames next to each other.
Players marks
In order to show players marks on the map, you need to clone it. Once cloned, give it to the others players in your world or server. If they have it in their inventories, their markers will be shown on the map.
Banners
Using banners to set marks on your world map is pretty useful. This way you can set points on it for every base or important place of your world. To do it, use your map on a placed banner. This will have for effect to add a banner mark on your map. Make sure to choose the banner color if you have a specific color code for your base.
Cloning a map
Making map clones in Minecraft is easy. You need to use a cartography table and combine your map with an empty map. Once combined, you should end up with two duplicated items. Repeat this process as many times as needed, until all the players have their own.
On Bedrock Edition, ou can also combine them using an anvil.
Zooming out
You can use a cartography table to zoom out. Add one paper per zoom level, up to 4 times.
Bedrock edition allows to zoom out by surrounding a map with 8 papers in a crafting table.
- Base zoom level: 128x128 blocks
- Zoom level 1: 256x256 blocks
- Zoom level 2: 512x512 blocks
- Zoom level 3: 1024x1024 blocks
- Zoom level 4: 2048x2048 blocks