Day three of The Great Race!, Michael Deering's December 2014 Minecraft Hardcore Challenge. Basket starts the day in the Nether, still with no bow. "There's a ghast around the corner. And I basically want to head east." This is the episode where the plan settles into a long dig.
Climbing toward the roof
Out on the open netherrack, red mushrooms grow near a column of falling lava, and Basket goes for them before heading off. The goal is to get high, close to the roof of the Nether. Instead of a straight staircase, Basket digs a slow, gradual climb. "If I gradually increase my height, I think that that will be a little safer, maybe." Something red glows on a ledge above. "It might just be fire. I don't hear any lava." It turns out to be an upper shelf, and Basket keeps working upward.
The long dig east
From here it's a narrow tunnel through solid netherrack, one block after another. Food isn't a worry yet: two steaks, and a viewer pointed out there's enough for a pumpkin pie too. At one point Basket gets nervous about the heading, since spending two episodes going the wrong way "would be silly", and checks that the tunnel really does run east.
Lava in the tunnel
Then lava pours into the tunnel. Basket digs out a spot for the lava to fill and covers it over with cobblestone. "No problem. It looks like I used a little bit of hunger, but not very much." Not long after, a second pocket breaks through, and Basket blocks it again and climbs a little higher.
Basket also thinks ahead. The race ends on the zero line, so the exit portal will need lining up before going back to the Overworld. There aren't enough torches to light a tunnel this long, so Basket plans to brighten the footage afterward instead.
One pickaxe down
Partway through, Basket checks the coordinates on the debug screen and is happy with the progress. "I think that this approach is working pretty well." Distance in the Nether counts for more in the Overworld, and Basket thinks a portal built right now would land a long way east. Soon after, the diamond pickaxe breaks. Basket places a crafting table and makes another from the spare diamonds.
The tunnel cuts into a few caves along the way, one with lava spilling across its floor. Basket uses them to save some wear on the new pick, and eats a steak.
A plan that might be too boring
Basket explains the thinking. Going through the Nether and building a portal at the end seemed like the best way to win, but digging a tunnel like this for about five episodes "would be pretty boring." If the lead turns out to be big, Basket might go back to the Overworld just to make better videos. There are risks in the Nether too: "I might end up hitting some lava pocket and then not reacting quickly enough, and so then I would die." A hidden hole is another, since all the netherrack looks the same.
The pickaxes are a problem as well. Basket has already worn one out in this episode and may need a trip to the Overworld for more supplies before carrying on.
Calling it a day
Guessing the day is almost over, Basket digs a little further and decides to stop. "Let's go ahead and end this episode now, let's put out a torch so you guys can see a little better." The camera swings around to show Basket standing in the lit tunnel.
The episode ends with Basket alive and at full health, deep in a tunnel in the Nether. The credits roll after that, with no gameplay after them.