In Minecraft, drowning damage is the damage sustained by a player when they run out of air while underwater. Here are the specifics about how drowning damage works:
Breath Meter: Players have a limited air supply that is represented by a breath meter, which depletes as they stay underwater.
Damage Per Tick: Once the breath meter is depleted, drowning damage starts to accumulate. The damage is applied every half-second (2 game ticks), and it increases over time, accumulating faster the longer the player stays underwater without surfacing for air.
Amount of Damage: The amount of damage taken from drowning is not constant; it increases with each breath you miss. Here's a quick breakdown:
Respiration Enchantment: Wearing a helmet with the Respiration enchantment can extend the time a player can stay underwater without taking damage.
Water Breathing Potion: Drinking a potion of Water Breathing provides immunity to drowning damage for a certain duration, allowing the player to stay underwater indefinitely during the effect.
Conduit Effect: The Conduit status effect, obtainable from Conduit sea potions or by using a Conduit in the ocean, provides a constant source of air underwater, preventing the need to surface.
Sprint Swimming: Sprinting underwater causes the player to breathe out their air supply twice as fast, effectively doubling the rate at which they take drowning damage.
Death: If a player's health reaches zero due to drowning damage, they will die and potentially respawn at their spawn point, bed, or spawners, depending on the game settings and their last save.
Drowning damage is a crucial mechanism in the game, designed to encourage players to manage their air supply effectively when exploring underwater environments.