Tower roof planner
Pointed roofs for round and square towers. Choose your tower, the shape and the height of the roof, and build it layer by layer. Click blocks you have placed to keep track of where you are.
Side view
roofspiretowerClick a layer to view it on the right.
Build breakdown
Per layer, from bottom to top
| Layer | Diameter | Compared with the layer below | Pieces | Of which |
|---|
Layer 1, row by row
| Row | Start | Pattern | Pieces |
|---|
Build tips
- Layer 1 goes directly on the top edge of your tower wall. With an overhang it sticks out that many blocks on every side.
- First put a pole of blocks in the middle up to the full height. That way you know on every layer where the centre is and where the top ends up.
- Place stairs with the high side towards the middle. Corners form by themselves when two stairs meet.
- Place slabs in the bottom half of the block. They go where the roof steps far inwards and soften that step.
- Fences, walls, a Lightning Rod or an End Rod work nicely for the spire. With an even tower width the spire is 2 × 2 blocks.
- An onion dome sticks out past the tower. Build the lowest layers first, then you can build up the bulge from the wall.
3D and layer-by-layer build plan
To Minecraft
Download the design as a schematic file and paste it into your world with WorldEdit, or rebuild it from a hologram in Litematica.
Shopping list
Add the amounts of this design to your list. There you see everything together, converted to stacks and shulker boxes.
How it is calculated
History and fun facts
Why towers got pointed roofs
A round or square tower roof keeps rain and snow out and protects the wooden beams of the floor below. The steeper the roof, the faster the water runs off.
In the Middle Ages many castle towers had a conical roof of slate, thatch or wooden shingles. Other towers stayed flat, so defenders could stand on the roof.
Spires on churches
Church towers got tall spires so they could be seen from far away. The spire of Salisbury Cathedral in England is 123 meters high and dates from the 14th century.
Ulm Minster in Germany has the tallest church tower in the world, at about 161 meters. It was only finished in 1890.
Broach spires and pepper pots
A broach spire starts square and changes into an octagonal spire. You often see it on English village churches from the 12th and 13th centuries.
In Scotland and France, castles often have small round turrets with a pointed little roof. These are called pepper pots. Look at the castles along the Loire, for example.
Onion domes and bell roofs
Onion domes are typical of Russia and Eastern Europe. The best known are on Saint Basil's Cathedral in Moscow, built between 1555 and 1561.
In Bavaria and Austria many church towers have a bell-shaped roof, sometimes with a lantern on top. You also see such towers in the Netherlands, for example on town halls.
Fairy-tale castles and pagodas
Neuschwanstein Castle in Bavaria, built from 1869, has slim towers with pointed roofs. It became a model for many fairy-tale castles.
In China, Japan and Korea pagodas have several roofs stacked on top of each other, with edges that curl upward. With the Pagoda profile you build such a stacked roof.
Tower roofs in Minecraft
A roof turns an empty cylinder into a real tower. With stairs and slabs you get a smooth slope instead of hard block steps.
Builders often choose dark oak, spruce or deepslate for tower roofs. A spire of fences, a Lightning Rod or an End Rod finishes it off.
Did you know?
- Ulm Minster is the tallest church tower in the world, at about 161 meters.
- The spire of Salisbury Cathedral is 123 meters high, the tallest in England.
- Saint Basil's Cathedral in Moscow was built between 1555 and 1561.
- Construction of Neuschwanstein Castle started in 1869.
- A broach spire starts on a square tower and turns into an octagon.
- In Minecraft you craft 4 stairs from 6 blocks and 6 slabs from 3 blocks.
About this tool
The Tower roof planner is a free Minecraft roof generator for round and square towers. You choose the diameter of your tower, the overhang outside the wall, the steepness and the roof height. Then you build the roof layer by layer.
There are ten profiles: Straight, Witch hat, Bell, Rounded, Onion dome, Pagoda, Dome with lantern, Broach spire, Spire with collar and Pepper pot. For some profiles you set the curve or the number of stacked roofs.
Choose the Stairs and slabs finish for a smooth slope, or blocks only. The side view shows the shape. Click a layer to see it row by row, with the layer below shown lightly next to it. The table tells you for each layer how many blocks, stairs and slabs you need.
The 3D view and the layer-by-layer build plan show the result from every side. With the block palette you give the roof and the spire each their own block. The materials calculator converts everything to stacks and shulker boxes and shows how many blocks you need to craft.
Download the roof as a .schem file for WorldEdit or Litematica. It is ideal when you build a Minecraft castle and want to give every tower a nice tower roof.
Frequently asked questions
How do I make a nice roof on a round tower?
Choose Round and the same diameter as your tower. Give it 1 block of overhang, so the roof sticks out over the wall. Choose stairs and slabs for a smooth slope. Layer 1 goes directly on the top edge of your wall.
Which side of the stair should face the middle?
Place stairs with the high side toward the middle of the tower. Look toward the middle while you place them and they turn the right way by themselves. Corners form by themselves when two stairs meet.
How tall should a tower roof be?
A roof about as tall as the tower is wide looks medieval. Choose Steep for a slim fairy-tale roof and Low for a flat, Italian-style roof. With the roof height you set it exactly.
What do I put on top of the spire?
Fences, walls, a Lightning Rod or an End Rod look nice. With an even tower width the top is 2 by 2 blocks. With an odd width you have one center block, which gives a sharper point.
How many stairs and slabs do I need?
It is listed per layer in the build breakdown and in the materials calculator. There you also see how many blocks to craft: 6 blocks give 4 stairs and 3 blocks give 6 slabs. Put the roof on your shopping list if you build several towers.
Is there also a roof for a normal house?
Yes, for rectangular houses use the house roof planner. For round walls under your roof there is the circle planner.
Can I build this in Bedrock?
Yes, the layer-by-layer plan works in every edition. Stairs and slabs work the same way in Bedrock. The .schem file is for Java Edition with WorldEdit or Litematica.