Skeleton Uses Custom Bow
by vomiter
Skeleton Uses Custom Bow lets skeletons fire modded bows that rely on player-style firing logic, which vanilla skeleton AI cannot use.
What it does
Vanilla skeletons only handle their own bow behavior, so many bows from other mods do nothing useful in their hands. This mod makes skeletons fire bows with player-style bow behavior, so most modded bows extending the vanilla bow class work without extra setup. Some bow-like weapons that inherit from BowItem still need explicit compatibility patches before they are recognized.
Skeletons also pick up dropped items, which vanilla mob spawn rules normally prevent, and they recognize bows of different tiers and switch to a better one when available. High-tier bows can be swapped in alongside swords. Bow behavior is configured with datapacks, and a skeleton can be prevented from using bows entirely through a configuration entry.
The mod is published for Forge and NeoForge, with files for 1.20.1 and 1.21.1 under the MIT License. It requires a datapack assignment to set up which bows skeletons use. Server owners install it, and players can join with or without it.
Key features
Player-style bow firing
Skeletons fire bows using the same behavior players use, so bows built around player firing mechanics work.
Tier-based bow switching
Skeletons recognize bows of different tiers and switch to a better bow when one is available.
Datapack configuration
Bow behavior is set through datapacks, so pack makers can decide which bows skeletons use.
Item pickup for skeletons
Skeletons can pick up dropped items, which vanilla mob spawn rules do not allow by default.
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 and modpack makers who run skeletons with custom or modded bows, and datapack authors who want to control which bows skeletons use.
How it compares
Skeleton Bow Chance is open source under the GNU General Public License v3.0 or later and is published for NeoForge 1.21.1 only, while this mod covers Forge and NeoForge for 1.20.1 and 1.21.1. EC L_Ender's Cataclysm Plugin is a client and server mod for Forge and NeoForge, 1.20.1 – 1.21.1, under All rights reserved, and is not open source.
| Mod | Loaders | Game versions | Environment | Updated |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Skeleton Uses Custom Bow | Forge and NeoForge | 1.20.1 – 1.21.1 | Server required, client optional | 2026-05-13 |
| Skeleton Bow Chance | NeoForge | 1.21.1 | Server required, client optional | 2026-07-24 |
| EC L_Ender's Cataclysm Plugin | Forge and NeoForge | 1.20.1 – 1.21.1 | Client and server | 2025-04-10 |
Questions
Which loaders does Skeleton Uses Custom Bow support?
Does a server need Skeleton Uses Custom Bow?
Do all modded bows work without setup?
In the catalog
Skeleton Uses Custom Bow is one of 17,631 Equipment mods on ModsFinder, and one of 9,216 Equipment mods for Forge. 32,366 mods support Minecraft 1.21.1.
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What the author says
Allows skeletons to properly use modded bows. Many modded bows rely on player-specific firing mechanics, which vanilla skeleton AI cannot use correctly. This mod lets skeletons fire those bows using player-style bow behavior, improving compatibility with many bow mods.
Official listing
- Modrinth page
- modrinth.com/mod/skeleton-uses-custom-bow
- Owner
- vomiter
- Published
- 2026-02-07
- Updated on Modrinth
- 2026-05-13
- Facts verified
- 2026-10-15