Selective Keep Inventory
by Kadddor
Rather than switching keepInventory on for every player in the world, a server owner can pick the specific players who retain their items and experience when they die, using Selective Keep Inventory.
What it does
Vanilla keepInventory applies to every player on a world, while this Fabric mod is a lightweight datapack that gives keep inventory to selected players only. A player who carries the keepinv tag keeps their inventory and XP on death, and a player without the tag dies normally and loses both as usual. Tags are added and removed with ordinary commands, so the choice can be changed at any time.
The mod is a server-side install with the Vanilla Datapack Plugin mod required, and it adds a custom root command such as keepinv Steve for managing the tag. Players do not need it, since the environment is server required and client optional. It is released under the MIT License, is not open source, and is published for 1.20.1 – 1.21.11 across 18 release versions, with Fabric 1.0.0 for 1.21.1 as the latest file.
Selective Keep Inventory is a useful choice for servers that want safer deaths for some players, such as trusted builders or testers, while keeping the regular risk for everyone else. The datapack also runs on the Data pack server platform as a plain add-on for the same tag system.
Key features
Per-player keep inventory
Each player gets an individual keep-inventory setting based on a tag, rather than one switch for the world.
Per-player XP retention
Tagged players keep their experience after death, while untagged players lose it as in vanilla.
Tag commands
Adding and removing the keepinv tag enables or disables the effect for a chosen player at any time.
Custom root command
A root command such as keepinv Steve is added, so server staff can manage the tag with a short phrase.
Gallery
Compatibility
Latest build for each game version and loader.
Only full game releases are shown. This mod publishes no snapshot builds.
Use cases
Who it’s for: Server owners who want keep inventory for specific players instead of the whole world. Players only need the mod if the server asks for it.
How it compares
Balanced KeepInventory is a server-side only Fabric mod under All rights reserved, published for 1.21 – 26.3. KIBNXP is server-side only, Fabric only, released for 1.21.11 under the CC0 1.0 Universal license. KeepInvTag covers Fabric, Forge, NeoForge and Quilt for 1.21 – 26.3, with the server required and the client optional, and it is All rights reserved.
| Mod | Loaders | Game versions | Environment | Updated |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Selective Keep Inventory | Fabric | 1.20.1 – 1.21.11 | Server required, client optional | 2026-03-29 |
| Balanced KeepInventory | Fabric | 1.21 – 26.3 | Server-side only | 2026-09-17 |
| KIBNXP | Fabric | 1.21.11 | Server-side only | 2026-08-07 |
| KeepInvTag | Fabric, Forge, NeoForge and Quilt | 1.21 – 26.3 | Server required, client optional | 2026-09-19 |
Questions
Does Selective Keep Inventory need another mod?
Do players have to install it?
How is a player given keep inventory?
Which Minecraft versions are supported?
More from Kadddor
What the author says
Selective Keep Inventory is a lightweight vanilla datapack for Minecraft Java Edition that enables keep inventory for specific players only. Instead of enabling keepInventory for the entire world, this pack lets you choose exactly which players keep their items and XP after death.
Official listing
- Modrinth page
- modrinth.com/mod/selective-keep-inventory
- Owner
- Kadddor
- Published
- 2026-03-27
- Updated on Modrinth
- 2026-03-29
- Facts verified
- 2026-10-15