diff --git a/minecraft-server/Dockerfile b/minecraft-server/Dockerfile
index 2a88f0c9..6cb49bb9 100644
--- a/minecraft-server/Dockerfile
+++ b/minecraft-server/Dockerfile
@@ -31,4 +31,4 @@ ENV MC_IMAGE=YES
 ENV UID=1000
 ENV MOTD A Minecraft Server Powered by Docker
 ENV JVM_OPTS -Xmx1024M -Xms1024M
-ENV TYPE=VANILLA VERSION=LATEST LEVEL=world PVP=true DIFFICULTY=hard
+ENV TYPE=VANILLA VERSION=LATEST LEVEL=world PVP=true DIFFICULTY=easy
diff --git a/minecraft-server/README.md b/minecraft-server/README.md
index f4961f6a..dd3ea6b1 100644
--- a/minecraft-server/README.md
+++ b/minecraft-server/README.md
@@ -130,9 +130,9 @@ up:
 
 ### Difficulty
 
-The difficulty level (default: hard) can be set like:
+The difficulty level (default: `easy`) can be set like:
 
-    docker run -d -e DIFFICULTY=peaceful
+    docker run -d -e DIFFICULTY=hard
 
 Valid values are: `peaceful`, `easy`, `normal`, and `hard`, and an
 error message will be output in the logs if it's not one of these