PickupArrows: Custom Arrow and Trident Pickup Control
Every seasoned Minecraft survivor knows the frustration. You spend a fight with skeletons, dodging their volleys, only to realize you cannot reclaim a single arrow from the battlefield. Even with an Infinity bow, the special arrows fired by mobs vanish into thin air, leaving you with a depleted inventory and a nagging sense of waste. The vanilla game offers no way to recover these projectiles, and for server administrators, this creates a gap in gameplay economy and resource management. This is precisely where the Bukkit plugin PickupArrows: Custom Arrow and Trident Pickup Control steps in, transforming a chaotic and often disappointing mechanic into a fully customizable system that puts the power back into the hands of players and server owners alike.
What Does PickupArrows Do?
At its core, PickupArrows is a server-side tool designed to overhaul the projectile retrieval system. It does not simply add a blanket "pick up everything" rule. Instead, it introduces a granular configuration layer that allows you to dictate exactly which types of arrows and tridents can be picked up, and crucially, from which source they originated. This means you can create distinct rules for arrows fired by players, skeletons, dispensers, drowned, pillagers, and crossbow-wielding mobs. The plugin also intelligently handles the unique cases of multi-shot crossbow volleys and burning projectiles, ensuring that no edge case is left unmanaged.
Key Features and Capabilities
The plugin is packed with features that cater to both casual survival servers and complex, heavily-modded networks. Here is a breakdown of its primary capabilities:
- Per-Source Configuration: Define pickup rules independently for each projectile source, including skeletons, players, dispensers, drowned, pillagers, and unknown sources.
- Projectile Type Control: Manage the pickup of normal arrows, fire arrows, spectral arrows, tipped (potion) arrows, and tridents separately.
- Crossbow Support: Dedicated settings for crossbow-fired arrows, including handling for the multi-shot enchantment.
- WorldGuard Integration: Seamlessly integrate with WorldGuard to enable or disable the plugin's functionality in specific protected regions.
- Permission System: A robust permission tree allows for fine-grained control over who can pick up what, perfect for ranked servers or game modes.
- In-Game Toggle: A simple command allows any player to toggle their own pickup status on the fly, which is invaluable during mob farms or PvP arenas.
- Optional Analytics: Uses bStats for anonymous data collection, which can be easily disabled in the configuration files.
Deep Dive into Configuration
The heart of PickupArrows lies in its main configuration file, which is structured around a central pickupFrom section. This section acts as a matrix, listing every possible projectile source. For each source, you will find a set of boolean flags: fire, normal, spectral, tipped, and trident. Setting a flag to true allows pickup for that specific combination, while false prohibits it.
For instance, you might want to allow players to reclaim their own normal arrows but prevent them from picking up fire arrows shot by skeletons. This level of detail is achieved by simply toggling the respective flags. A separate crossbow section provides similar control for arrows launched from crossbows, including the multi-shot mode, ensuring that even a spread of three arrows is handled according to your rules.
Permissions and Access Control
For servers that rely on permission plugins, PickupArrows offers a comprehensive set of nodes. The plugin checks for these permissions only if usePermissions: true is set in the config. If this is disabled, all players can pick up items without restriction. When enabled, the following permissions are available:
pickuparrows.allow.normal- Allows pickup of standard arrows.pickuparrows.allow.fire- Allows pickup of flaming arrows.pickuparrows.allow.spectral- Allows pickup of spectral arrows.pickuparrows.allow.tipped- Allows pickup of tipped arrows.pickuparrows.allow.trident- Allows pickup of tridents.pickuparrows.allow.*- Grants all pickup permissions.pickuparrows.*- Grants full access to all plugin features.
If no permission system is detected on the server, the plugin will automatically grant these permissions to server operators when usePermissions is active, ensuring that admins always have control.
In-Game Command
Interaction with the plugin is streamlined through a single command: /pickuparrows. This command also accepts several aliases, including /pa, /arrow, /arrows, and /pickuparrow. When executed by a player, it toggles their personal pickup state. This is particularly useful in scenarios where a player is farming mobs and does not want their inventory cluttered with arrows, or in PvP situations where picking up arrows might be considered a disadvantage.
Installation and Compatibility
Installing the plugin is a straightforward process. The current major version, 7.0.0, is designed for Minecraft 1.20.6 and newer server builds. For those running older versions of the game, the 6.x line of the plugin remains the recommended choice. To install, you simply place the JAR file into the plugins folder of your server directory and restart. Many server administrators prefer to streamline this process by using launchers that offer direct plugin downloads, which eliminates the need for manual file searching and copying. This is especially helpful when you need to quickly update a modpack or add several add-ons at once.
For those interested in the development process, the developer provides dev builds via Jenkins and the source code is available on GitHub. However, for a stable gameplay experience, it is always recommended to download the release versions from the official plugin page. The plugin is distributed under the MIT license, granting you the freedom to use and modify it in any project, personal or commercial.
Privacy and Statistics
PickupArrows utilizes bStats to gather anonymous usage statistics. The data collected is purely technical and includes a random server UUID, player count, online mode, and the versions of Bukkit, Java, and the operating system in use. This information helps the developer gauge the plugin's popularity and prioritize future updates. If you are not comfortable with this, you can disable it entirely by editing the ./plugins/bStats/config.yml file and setting enabled: false.
Use Cases and Scenarios
The flexibility of PickupArrows makes it suitable for a wide array of server types. On a hardcore survival server, where resources are scarce, the ability to reclaim every arrow is a game-changer. It reduces waste and encourages players to use bows more liberally, knowing that their ammunition is not permanently lost. On a PvP server, administrators can create specific rules, such as allowing the pickup of normal arrows but not spectral ones, to maintain balance. The WorldGuard integration is perfect for protecting spawn areas or arenas where projectile pickup should be disabled to prevent griefing or unintended item duplication.
Furthermore, the permission system allows for creative game modes. For example, you could grant pickuparrows.allow.trident only to a specific player rank, making tridents a more valuable and exclusive commodity. The in-game toggle command also empowers players to make personal choices, adding a layer of strategic depth to their gameplay.
Conclusion
PickupArrows: Custom Arrow and Trident Pickup Control is more than just a simple utility; it is a comprehensive management tool that brings order to a chaotic aspect of Minecraft. Its detailed configuration options, combined with robust permission and WorldGuard support, make it an ideal choice for public servers, while its simple command interface ensures that individual players retain personal control. If you are tired of losing valuable ammunition or want to bring a new level of strategic resource management to your server, this plugin is an indispensable addition. Whether you choose to download PickupArrows: Custom Arrow and Trident Pickup Control for Minecraft from a launcher or manually install it, the process is simple, and the benefits are immediate. Understanding how to install it is the first step toward a more efficient and enjoyable gameplay experience.