Minecraft:Skeleton

Template:For Template:Infobox entity Skeletons are common Minecraft:undead Minecraft:hostile mobs that perform ranged attacks with a Minecraft:bow, shooting arrows from a distance. They are most commonly found in the Minecraft:Overworld at night or in dark locations, but they also occasionally spawn in Minecraft:the Nether in Minecraft:Nether fortresses and Minecraft:soul sand valleys. They are an important source of Minecraft:bones and Minecraft:arrows, which they drop when killed.

Spawning

Skeletons may naturally spawn in the Overworld in groups of fourTemplate:Only or 1-2Template:Only above Minecraft:solid blocks at a Minecraft:light level of 0, except in Minecraft:mushroom fields, the Minecraft:deep dark, and Minecraft:trial chambers; they may continue to spawn in these places through other means like spawner blocks.

Spider jockeys

Minecraft:Spiders and Minecraft:cave spidersTemplate:Only have a 1% chance to spawn with a skeleton riding them, creating a Minecraft:spider jockey.

Skeleton horse traps during thunderstorms

File:SkeletonRiderGroup.png

A skeleton horse trap.

Four skeleton horsemen spawn when a skeleton horse trap is triggered, typically during a thunderstorm. The skeletons ride on skeleton horses and are equipped with enchanted Minecraft:bows and Minecraft:iron helmets. Template:IN, they have damage immunity for 3 seconds after spawning.

In the Nether

Skeletons spawn commonly in Minecraft:soul sand valley biomes in groups of 4Template:Only or 1-2Template:Only. However, due to the Minecraft:spawn cost system. skeletons have a lower population density in soul sand valleys than Minecraft:zombified piglins have in Minecraft:Nether wastes (i.e. there are much fewer skeletons in a given area).

In Minecraft:Nether fortresses, there is a 20% chance that a skeleton spawns in place of a Minecraft:wither skeleton.

Skeletons in the Nether spawn at the light level of 7 and below.

Monster spawners

Skeletons spawn from 25% of the Minecraft:monster spawners found in Minecraft:monster rooms.

Trial spawners

Regular skeletons have a Template:Frac chance to be selected as the "ranged" mob for Minecraft:trial spawners in Minecraft:trial chambers.

Variants

Many skeletons are also replaced by their variants: Minecraft:strays in snowy biomes, Minecraft:parched in desert biomes, Minecraft:bogged in Minecraft:swamp and Minecraft:mangrove swamp biomes, and Minecraft:wither skeletons in Minecraft:Nether fortress structures in Minecraft:the Nether.

Drops

On death

A skeleton always drops any equipment it picked up. A skeleton also has a random chance to drop each piece of naturally spawned equipment, including its Minecraft:bow, if it is killed by a Minecraft:player or tamed Minecraft:wolf. The chance to drop a naturally spawned piece of equipment is 8.5% without Minecraft:Looting, 9.5% with Looting I, 10.5% with Looting II, and 11.5% with Looting III.

Skeletons drop Template:Xp experience points when killed by a player or tamed wolf, and an additional Template:Xp for each piece of naturally spawned equipment, including their bow. The random amount dropped by each piece is independent of the amounts dropped by the other pieces.

Behavior

Skeletons chase Minecraft:players, baby Minecraft:turtles, and Minecraft:iron golems they see within 16 blocks, climbing Minecraft:stairs or Minecraft:ladders, navigating mazes and traversing other complex obstacles to get within shooting range. Despite being associated to Minecraft:iron golems, Minecraft:villagers and Minecraft:wandering traders are ignored by skeletons. However, a skeleton can retaliate if a Minecraft:firework rocket set by a villager hits it.

When within 15 blocks of a target, with a clear line of sight, a skeleton starts shooting Minecraft:arrows, once every 3 seconds on Easy and Normal difficulties or once every 2 seconds on Hard difficulty. If the player leaves the 15-block radius, skeletons wait for some seconds with the bow charged, shooting the moment the player comes within range again. Their detection range is reduced by 50% if a Minecraft:skeleton skull is worn by the player. This stacks with Minecraft:sneaking and the Minecraft:Invisibility effect.

Skeleton shooting

An idle skeleton and a skeleton shooting.

The skeleton's accuracy is based on the world Minecraft:difficulty. Skeletons have an "error" of 10 on Easy, 6 on Normal and 2 on Hard. This is compared to the player's lack of accuracy of 1. To account for gravity, skeletons aim 0.2 blocks higher for every horizontal block of range to the target.

Skeletons have infinite Minecraft:durability on their bows, and can shoot an infinite amount of arrows. Arrows shot by skeletons cannot be picked up from the ground.

Skeleton behavior varies between the game editions:

Java Edition

• Strafe in circular patterns to dodge attacks and retreat to a safe range if the player comes within 4 blocks. They can walk off cliffs while strafing.<ref>Template:Bug</ref>
• Minecraft:Sprint toward the player if they are 14 blocks away or farther.
• Use bows even underwater. The Minecraft:water slows down the arrows.
• Animates its bow while attacking.

Bedrock Edition

• Skeletons typically stop moving to shoot, making no attempt to avoid being hit.
• An underwater skeleton uses a melee attack because it is unable to use a Minecraft:bow underwater.
• A skeleton on land shoots quickly at a player in water. The rate of fire increases as the player approaches, making Minecraft:combat difficult due to the knockback.Template:Until
• Skeletons shoot faster at players the closer they are to it. The rate of fire increases from 3 seconds to 1 second the closer the player is.Template:Until

In most cases, if a skeleton's arrow hits a neutral or hostile Minecraft:mob that has not yet been attacked by the player, the mob attacks the skeleton. When a skeleton is attacked by another mob (including another skeleton), it attacks that mob, reorienting on the player once the mob is dead. Skeletons flee from Minecraft:wolves. A skeleton runs from a chasing wolf until the wolf deals damage, after which the skeleton turns to shoot at the wolf that successfully attacked it.

File:Skeletonduel.png

Dueling skeletons. One skeleton is being hit by the other skeleton.

Skeletons sink in Minecraft:water and cannot Minecraft:swim, but do not drown.

If a skeleton is inside of Minecraft:powder snow for Template:Convert, it begins shaking. After another Template:Convert, it converts into a Minecraft:stray. A newly-converted stray always has full health even if converted from a damaged skeleton. The converted stray keeps any items worn or held when it was a skeleton. Only skeletons can become strays; Minecraft:bogged, Minecraft:parched, or Minecraft:wither skeletons cannot be converted. The process is similar to when a Minecraft:husk turns into a Minecraft:zombie or when a zombie turns into a Minecraft:drowned if it stays underwater for too long.

Wolves attacking skeleton

Wolves attacking a skeleton.

If spawned with a weapon other than a bow or no weapon at all (which can be spawned with commands such as Template:Cmd, or Template:Cmd), or it picks up a weapon other than a bow, a skeleton charges at a player with arms outstretched and deals damage by touch, similar to a wither skeleton.

A skeleton holding a Minecraft:tipped arrow or Minecraft:spectral arrowTemplate:Only in its off-hand always shoots that type of arrow, and the arrow held is not consumed.

If a skeleton kills a Minecraft:creeper, the creeper drops a Minecraft:music disc, randomly selected from 13, cat, blocks, chirp, far, mall, mellohi, stal, strad, ward, 11, and wait.

Sunlight

Skeleton on fire

A skeleton burning in sunlight.

When the moon can no longer be seen (Dawn) and the sun is above 15°, skeletons can burn. Burning is suppressed when the skeleton is:

• in a place with a non-air block directly over it. In Minecraft:Java Edition, the roof must be a light-blocking block.
• in a sufficiently shaded area: a sunlight level of 11 or less.
• in water. A skeleton pathfinds to water if it is not wearing head armor and not already in water.
• wearing head Minecraft:armor. Minecraft:Helmets have a 50% chance to lose 1 durability for every tick where the skeleton would normally be set on fire.
• under the status effect of Minecraft:Fire Resistance.
• standing in cobwebs.<ref>Template:Cite bug</ref>

Transparent and translucent blocks, including Minecraft:glass and Minecraft:ice, do not prevent them from burning.Template:Only

Unlike Minecraft:zombies, skeletons seek out shelter during the day, and remain under it while attacking.

Mob type

Being an Minecraft:undead mob, they are:

• Damaged by the status effect Minecraft:Instant Health and healed by the status effect Minecraft:Instant Damage.
• Unaffected by the status effects Minecraft:Regeneration and Minecraft:Poison.
• Ignored by the Minecraft:wither.
• Affected by the Minecraft:Smite enchantment.
• A threat to Minecraft:armadillos, causing them to hide in their shell.

Geared skeletons

Template:Main Some spawned skeletons have the ability to pick up dropped items from the ground. Unlike zombies, however, they pick up only weapons or armor. If a picked up item is Minecraft:armor, a Minecraft:carved pumpkin or a Minecraft:mob head, a skeleton equips itself with the item. If the picked up item is a Minecraft:weapon, the skeleton uses the item as a melee weapon. Template:IN, skeletons can also pick up and equip illager banners worn in their chest slot.Template:Needs testing

Skeletons spawn already armed with Minecraft:bows, which may be Minecraft:enchanted. The chances of that event are listed below. If a skeleton spawns wearing multiple pieces of armor, the armor is never mismatched (all pieces are made of the same material) except if it is spawned as part of a skeleton trap, in which case only the iron helmet may not match the rest of the armor.

On Template:W, skeletons may spawn wearing a Minecraft:carved pumpkin or Minecraft:jack o'lantern. They do not drop this, even when killed with Looting.

Chances of skeleton wearing or picking up armor, per difficulty

	Easy	Normal	Hard
Armor	0%	0%–15%<ref group="note" name="localdifficulty">Value is based on the Minecraft:regional difficulty.</ref>	1.875%–15%<ref group="note" name="localdifficulty"/>
Weapon<ref group="note">100% chance of a bow</ref>	100%	100%	100%
Can pick up loot	0%	0%–55%<ref group="note" name="localdifficulty"/>	6.875%–55%<ref group="note" name="localdifficulty"/>
Weapon enchantment<ref group="note" name="enchantment">Enchantment is the same as on an enchantment table at level 5–22.<ref group="note" name="localdifficulty"/></ref>	0%	0%–25%<ref group="note" name="localdifficulty"/>	3.125%–25%<ref group="note" name="localdifficulty"/>
Armor enchantment<ref group="note" name="enchantment"/>	0%	0%–50%<ref group="note" name="localdifficulty"/>	6.25%–50%<ref group="note" name="localdifficulty"/>

If a skeleton does spawn with armor, the chances of specific armor are as follows:

Chances of different armor pieces, per difficulty

Armor	Easy & Normal	Hard
1 piece	100%	100%
2 pieces	75%	90%
3 pieces	56.25%	81%
Full set	42.19%	72.9%

If a skeleton does spawn with an armor, the order in which they receive armor pieces is as follows (from most likely to least likely): helmet; helmet and chestplate; helmet, chestplate and leggings; full set.

The chances of it being of a particular material are:

Chances of different armor types

Armor type	Chance
Leather	23.60%
Copper	32.23%
Gold	33.29%
Chain	9.73%
Iron	1.10%
Diamond	0.04%

Template:IN, a skeleton's armor does not lose durability upon taking damage. Minecraft:Helmets (not Minecraft:blocks like Minecraft:carved pumpkins) on skeletons can break if the skeleton is exposed to daylight. Template:IN, any armor piece is damaged as if the player is wearing it.Template:Verify

Pickup mechanics

Template:Main When picking up items, skeletons prefer Minecraft:weapons that deal more damage without considering enchantments. They also prefer items with NBT data over those without, and weapons that are less damaged.

For weapon types, skeletons prefer Minecraft:bows over Minecraft:melee weapons. Skeletons won't take Minecraft:crossbows, Minecraft:tridents or Minecraft:maces whatsoever, as long as they have any other item in hand.

For Minecraft:armor, skeletons prefer armor that give more armor points than the armor to replace. Skeletons accept given cosmetic wearables (Minecraft:heads and Minecraft:carved pumpkins), as long as they aren't wearing a Minecraft:helmet.

If the skeleton accepts a given equipment, the skeleton drops the old one, with the same chance as if killed with Looting I, in favor of the new one. Any skeleton that spawns with equipment (picked-up items do not count) gives 1–3 extra experience points per item.

Skeletons can pick up and equip Minecraft:shields in the other hand, but they cannot use it to block damage.

File:Skeleton with a shield.jpg

A skeleton holding a shield.

If multiple viable items exist, the skeleton endlessly picks up and drops the items.<ref>Template:Bug</ref>

Sounds

Template:JE: Template:SoundTable

Template:BE: Template:SoundTable

Data values

ID

Template:Edition: Template:ID table

Template:Edition: Template:ID table

Entity data

Skeletons have entity data associated with them that contains various properties.

Template:El: Template:Main

<section begin="entity data"/>

• Template:Nbt Entity data
  • Template:Nbt inherit/entity
  • Template:Nbt inherit/mob
  • Template:Nbt: The number of ticks until this skeleton converts to a stray (default value is -1, when no conversion is under way).

<section end="entity data"/>

Template:El:

See Minecraft:Bedrock Edition level format/Entity format.

Achievements

Achievements that apply to all mobs: Template:Collapse

Advancements

Advancements that apply to all mobs: Template:Collapse

History

Historical sounds

Sound	From	to	Pitch
Template:Sound	Alpha v1.0.3	1.4.2	1.0

Historical screenshots

• A skeleton in Minecraft:Java Edition Beta 1.8. The Minecraft:player can see it wielding its bow with both hands.
  A skeleton in Minecraft:Java Edition Beta 1.8. The Minecraft:player can see it wielding its bow with both hands.
• A skeleton in Minecraft:the Nether used as the Minecraft:12w36a snapshot image.
  A skeleton in Minecraft:the Nether used as the Minecraft:12w36a snapshot image.
• Naturally Minecraft:armored skeletons.
  Naturally Minecraft:armored skeletons.
• 2 skeletons fighting each other.
  2 skeletons fighting each other.

Trivia

• If alerted to a Minecraft:player's presence, a skeleton can fire Minecraft:arrows backward, occasionally hitting themselves.
• The artificial intelligence of skeletons Template:In is a mix of skeleton AI from Template:El between versions 1.5 and 1.8.9 and the skeletons in Minecraft:Update Aquatic. They shoot faster when they are on land and the target underwater, causing enough knockback to make combat hard. Additionally, they do not strafe left to right, and they shoot more rapidly at closer targets.Template:Until Skeletons also use ranged attacks on land and switch to melee attacks when sinking underwater.
• If a skeleton has a Minecraft:sword or any other melee item, generally with commands, its Minecraft:AI resembles the Minecraft:wither skeleton's AI.
• Template:IN, skeletons do not animate their Minecraft:bow.
• Minecraft:C418 used bamboo wind chime sounds as a base for the skeleton sounds.<ref>https://freesound.org/people/C418/downloaded_sounds/?page=1#sound</ref>

Gallery

Renders

Poses

• A skeleton without a Minecraft:bow spawned by Template:Cmd Minecraft:commands.
  A skeleton without a Minecraft:bow spawned by Template:Cmd Minecraft:commands.
• A skeleton aiming its bow
  A skeleton aiming its bow
• A left-handed skeleton
  A left-handed skeleton
• A Minecraft:spider jockey with a skeleton
  A Minecraft:spider jockey with a skeleton
• A Minecraft:cave spider jockey with a skeleton
  A Minecraft:cave spider jockey with a skeleton

Armored

• Skeleton in leather armor
  Skeleton in leather armor
• Skeleton in copper armor
  Skeleton in copper armor
• Skeleton in golden armor
  Skeleton in golden armor
• Skeleton in chainmail armor
  Skeleton in chainmail armor
• Skeleton in iron armor
  Skeleton in iron armor
• Skeleton in diamond armor
  Skeleton in diamond armor
• Skeleton in netherite armor
  Skeleton in netherite armor

Screenshots

• A skeleton being compared to its variants Template:In.
  A skeleton being compared to its variants Template:In.
• A dying skeleton Template:In.
  A dying skeleton Template:In.
• A dying skeleton Template:In.
  A dying skeleton Template:In.
• Two skeletons shooting each other while in Minecraft:water. One skeleton is in a Minecraft:boat while the other is a Minecraft:spider jockey.
  Two skeletons shooting each other while in Minecraft:water. One skeleton is in a Minecraft:boat while the other is a Minecraft:spider jockey.
• A skeleton in Minecraft:Bedrock Edition. Like in Minecraft:Beta 1.8, it holds its Minecraft:bow with both hands and it doesn't animate it's bow.
  A skeleton in Minecraft:Bedrock Edition. Like in Minecraft:Beta 1.8, it holds its Minecraft:bow with both hands and it doesn't animate it's bow.
• A skeleton riding a Minecraft:minecart.
  A skeleton riding a Minecraft:minecart.
• A skeleton kills an attacking Minecraft:wolf.
  A skeleton kills an attacking Minecraft:wolf.
• A Minecraft:stray standing next to a normal skeleton.
  A Minecraft:stray standing next to a normal skeleton.
• A skeleton wearing an Minecraft:iron helmet.
  A skeleton wearing an Minecraft:iron helmet.
• A skeleton wearing a Minecraft:leather cap.
  A skeleton wearing a Minecraft:leather cap.
• A Minecraft:player trying to give a Minecraft:diamond chestplate to a skeleton.
  A Minecraft:player trying to give a Minecraft:diamond chestplate to a skeleton.
• Minecraft:Skeleton horsemen spawned from a Minecraft:skeleton trap.
  Minecraft:Skeleton horsemen spawned from a Minecraft:skeleton trap.
• A Minecraft:spider jockey rider wearing a Minecraft:pumpkin on Halloween.
  A Minecraft:spider jockey rider wearing a Minecraft:pumpkin on Halloween.
• A skeleton with full Minecraft:golden armor and another with an enchanted bow.
  A skeleton with full Minecraft:golden armor and another with an enchanted bow.
• A skeleton with full enchanted chainmail armor looking at the player.
  A skeleton with full enchanted chainmail armor looking at the player.
• A spider jockey.
  A spider jockey.
• Skeleton wearing a pumpkin on Halloween.
  Skeleton wearing a pumpkin on Halloween.
• A left handed skeleton in a Minecraft:superflat world.
  A left handed skeleton in a Minecraft:superflat world.
• A skeleton with no Minecraft:bow.
  A skeleton with no Minecraft:bow.

Mojang images

• A preview featuring skeletons in the Minecraft:soul sand valley.
  A preview featuring skeletons in the Minecraft:soul sand valley.
• To the left is (or was) a skeleton holding the bow the wrong way.
  To the left is (or was) a skeleton holding the bow the wrong way.
• First image of skeletons wearing armor.
  First image of skeletons wearing armor.
• First image of a skeleton dual wielding.
  First image of a skeleton dual wielding.
• An armored skeleton in Bedrock Edition.
  An armored skeleton in Bedrock Edition.
• A skeleton and Minecraft:zombie in a cave.
  A skeleton and Minecraft:zombie in a cave.
• A skeleton in alpha.
  A skeleton in alpha.
• Skeleton scoring big in the floor routine.
  Skeleton scoring big in the floor routine.
• Moments before disaster.
  Moments before disaster.

Textures

• Skeleton texture file.
  Skeleton texture file.
• Minecraft:Programmer Art
  Minecraft:Programmer Art

In other media

Merchandise

• Pixel art of a skeleton used on a banner for the Minecraft:Minecraft Marketplace.
  Pixel art of a skeleton used on a banner for the Minecraft:Minecraft Marketplace.
• Minecraft:Lego Minecraft Skeleton.
  Minecraft:Lego Minecraft Skeleton.
• Official skeleton plush made by JINX.
  Official skeleton plush made by JINX.
• Official T-shirt artwork "Skelly Dreams" made by JINX.
  Official T-shirt artwork "Skelly Dreams" made by JINX.
• City texture pack
  City texture pack
• Plastic texture pack
  Plastic texture pack
• Party Skeleton, a skin featured in the 1st Birthday skin pack.
  Party Skeleton, a skin featured in the 1st Birthday skin pack.
• Halloween mash-up pack
  Halloween mash-up pack
• A t-shirt with Minecraft:Steve and a skeleton with bows.
  A t-shirt with Minecraft:Steve and a skeleton with bows.

Other appearances

• Artwork of a skeleton
  Artwork of a skeleton
• Animation of undead mobs walking on snow, including skeletons
  Animation of undead mobs walking on snow, including skeletons
• A skeleton in promotional artwork for the first Minecraft:Caves & Cliffs update
  A skeleton in promotional artwork for the first Minecraft:Caves & Cliffs update
• Skeletons in promotional artwork for the second Minecraft:Caves & Cliffs update
  Skeletons in promotional artwork for the second Minecraft:Caves & Cliffs update
• Skeletons in the key art for the Minecraft:Wii U Edition
  Skeletons in the key art for the Minecraft:Wii U Edition
• A skeleton on the moon aiming at the Earth
  A skeleton on the moon aiming at the Earth
• Skeleton Spirit from Minecraft:Super Smash Bros. Ultimate
  Skeleton Spirit from Minecraft:Super Smash Bros. Ultimate
• Potato variant of skeleton in Minecraft:24w14potato
  Potato variant of skeleton in Minecraft:24w14potato
• A skeleton wearing two Minecraft:spyglasses in Minecraft:Java Edition 22w13oneBlockAtATime
  A skeleton wearing two Minecraft:spyglasses in Minecraft:Java Edition 22w13oneBlockAtATime
• A skeleton as it appears in Template:MCD
  A skeleton as it appears in Template:MCD
• A skeleton as it appears in Template:MCL
  A skeleton as it appears in Template:MCL
• A skeleton as it appeared in Template:MCSM
  A skeleton as it appeared in Template:MCSM
• A Template:AMCM as seen in Template:AMCM
  A Template:AMCM as seen in Template:AMCM
• A Lego Club advertisement, featuring Minecraft:LEGO Minecraft set The Desert Outpost and some skeletons.
  A Lego Club advertisement, featuring Minecraft:LEGO Minecraft set The Desert Outpost and some skeletons.