CC's Better Fletching Table (Custom GUI, Reworked Mechanics, New Arrows!) Minecraft Data Pack (2024)

Power

The vanilla Bow enchantment to always get is Power. Just like Sharpness, it's a flat simple damage increase, who doesn't want that? That's BORING. Power also makes combat boring once you start two-shotting every 10-heart mob.

WIth this data pack, Power works differently; a Power bow now makes your arrows fly faster.

This opens up a very different playstyle compared to Crossbows, or even vanilla Bows. The difference is most noticeable on partially-charged shots; a floppy Power V Bow on weakest charge flies as fast as a fully-charged Power I Bow!

And, with a similar damage output, people may opt for the Crossbow now! All without completely scraping the Power enchantment, but instead recontextualizing it.

The damage an arrow deals is calculated by the damage NBT as well as its velocity on impact. Since we are going to scale up the values of initial velocity, we have to scale down the damage NBT of Power arrows.

Yet, I recognize that increased arrow damage is important because you barely take any damage in full Diamond/Netherite from Arrow from a regular-damage-unenchanted Bow. As you can see, Power V will still do much more damage than a Power I Arrow. So, still try to get higher levels of Power. But a Power V bow isn't going to hit like a truck.

Credit: I'm copying all these amazing ideas. I saw this idea on a Data Pack on planetminecraft years ago, titled something like "Acceleration — an enchantment that makes your arrows go faster!" It was an amazing idea and I tried hard but can't find it. So I had to code it from scratch. Took me a week. Please help claim the credits if anyone finds it!

Piercing

Nobody gets the Crossbow because of its lame enchantments. Namely, the Piercing enchantment. It's supposed to be to Crossbows what Power is to Bows. But it never took off. You are more likely to fight 1v1s, so flat Power damage makes more sense; and even in a crowd of mobs/players, you just run until you pick them off one-by-one.

But, I came across AKA__Fox's Piercing Arrows Can Go Through Blocks Data Pack. Wow.

This gives Piercing such an amazing and unique use case, especially in PVP when players hide behind blocks. It can work especially well with Spectral Arrows' glowing. It scales and pierces more blocks according to the Piercing level. On top of being able to pierce through Shields, it gives one more a reason to use Crossbows for their Piercing enchantment! Imagine an enemy hiding behind a wall, but you shoot him with a Piercing-enchanted Spectral Arrow, highlighting his location and movements.

I want to just wholesale rip it off. So I asked for permission, then I did.

If you liked this particular feature and found it interesting, please send that Data Pack some Diamonds and Hearts, because I literally just ripped off the entire mechanic. But my Data Pack is made so much more complete with it.

I've also disabled regular crafting for the Cross/Bow/Spectral/Arrow/Target items, locking them behind the progression wall of a very cheap two Planks and two Flint (this can be disabled).

Hint: You can Shift+Right-Click to place a regular vanilla Fletching Table without the GUI and tracking entities, if you want to use it as a decorative block!

Naturally generated Fletching Tables will not have the mini-Crafting-Table on the top face, and will act like vanilla Fletching Tables. Conversion to the custom Fletching Table only occurs when placing a Fletching Table block, so you can break the naturally generated Fletching Tables first and place them!

Since the custom Fletching Table actually uses an invisible Llama as its GUI behind-the-scenes, simply right-clicking it will cause you to mount it. Awkward. You will be automatically dismounted with commands. Just remember to Shift+Right-Click!

And I guess if you want, since it is technically not a GUI but an Inventory, you could store stuff in the Fletching Table. Don't forget to pick up after yourselves!

Fire-Charged Arrow

Shoot your own Blaze Fireballs!

Blaze Fireballs are such a cool projectile, having the ability to set blocks on fire from a distance (lighting up caves?), setting mobs on fire, as well as light up TNT remotely.

Flaming Arrow, a new arrow, is crafted with a Fire Charge in place of the Flint (that is, 1 Fire Charge + 1 Stick + 1 Feather → 2 Flaming Arrow).

Due to it being unfairly spammable with Bows, it's designed that regular bows will only shoot out the Tipped Arrow form. You must use a crossbow.

For now, Piercing Blaze Fireballs are not a thing, it would be really cool if it were. But Multishot, though....

Phantom Arrow

The gimmick is simple: the Phantom Arrow is unaffected by gravity.

Furthermore, on top of the Piercing enchantment rework, I thought to just add on the Piercing enchantment/NBT to Phantom Arrows! Phantom Arrows get automatic Piercing II. Now you can shoot Piercing arrows from bows that can penetrate multiple enemies AND hit through shields AND go through blocks!

The Phantom Arrow is crafted by replacing the Feather in the typical Arrow recipe shape with a Phantom Membrane (1 Flint + 1 Stick + 1 Phantom Membrane → 2 Phantom Arrows). They come in multiples of 2, since Phantom Membranes should be hard to come by, but they are very useful! If players want to use this unique arrow type and have Phantom Arrows in bulk, they will need to farm Phantoms!

The Phantom Arrow is an arrow brought forward from the old Improved Fletching Tables data pack. There are a variety of applications, but it's generally easier to hit any target, especially precisely hitting long-distance shots or evasive enemies, without needing to account for gravity.

TNT Rocket

Ah yes, everyone loves explosions. Of course I added a ranged explosive option!

TNT Rockets are crafted from 1 Firework Rocket (must have at least one Large Ball pattern) + 1 TNT → 1 TNT Rocket! Just point, shoot, and watch the particles and blocks explode with the equivalent firepower of a TNT block!

I made the choice to not have explosive arrows because there are already so many arrow types, plus since Bows cannot shoot Firework Rockets, this provides another incentive for players to use the Crossbow! I have also required a Large Ball pattern on the Firework Rocket to make it slightly more expensive/tedious; besides, the firework explosion on impact adds to the flair!

I have also made them unstackable/stacks of 1. This is because it is wayyy to OP to carry multiple stacks of 64 bazooka rockets. I'd like them to stack to 4 ideally, but data packs require so many workarounds for inventory stack limitation. Also, a Multishot Crossbow will only shoot 1 TNT Rocket from the middle projectile slot instead of 3.

Light Underwater Missile

After making TNT Rockets relatively expensive, I've also added Light Underwater Missiles: they are cheap TNT Rockets that are meant for underwater combat!

These are crafted very cheap with 1 Gunpowder + 1 Kelp + 1 Dried Kelp → 1 Light Underwater Missile. They have an ExplosionPower of 3, but only when it explodes underwater. If it explodes elsewhere, it fizzles and drops itself as an item. However, these Missiles stack up to 64 and unlike Arrows, they are not affected by gravity in water, so you could spend them lavishly just like how you can spam cheap regular Arrows on land!

Target Block

Target blocks have their crafting recipe moved over to the Fletching Table, since they are arrow/shooting-related. As an added utility, you can use Dried Kelp Blocks in the place of Hay Blocks to craft Target blocks!

Vanilla Arrows

Regular arrows are unchanged, they just have to be crafted through the Fletching Table instead of the Crafting Table.

Spectral Arrows have their recipe simplified from 1 Arrow surrounded by 4 Glowstone → 2 Spectral Arrows (Seriously, have you ever used this recipe?) to 1 Arrow + 1 Glowstone → 1 Spectral Arrow. To encourage the use of Spectral Arrows, glowing mobs now always drop 1 (extra) Glowstone Dust upon death if killed by a player, so they can craft even more Spectral Arrows.

Large credit to and permission granted by Avexus02's HeartDrops Datapack, to completely use its drop-item-at-mob-on-death code, unchanged! I spent a whole day trying to figure out how to do this. Thanks.