Bows are versatile weapons in Minecraft. They’re one of only a few long-range weapons in the game and by far the most common. You can do a lot with bows, including enchanting them to give them special properties. Plus, you can craft them like many other items, including the map. In this tutorial, we’ll go over how to craft a bow, repair a bow, and even get an infinite bow.
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To craft a bow in Minecraft, first, gather three strings and three sticks. Put them in the crafting box in the rough shape of a bow to craft one. This method works in all versions of Minecraft.
How to craft a bow
Credit: Joe Hindy / Android Authority
Making a bow isn’t terribly difficult. You only need a few rudimentary materials, and you can do it pretty soon after starting the game. Here’s what to do.
- Obtain three strings and three sticks. These are fairly basic and common items, so they should be easy to scrounge up.
- Head to a crafting table and place the items in the table using the recipe in the screenshot above.
- Remove your fresh bow from the crafting slot, and you’re all done.
Please note that you need arrows to fire a bow. You can find them in chests, on the ground after defeating bow-wielding skeletons, or craft them with one flint, one stick, and one chicken feather. Crafting generates four arrows per craft, so you need quite a few feathers, flints, and sticks to make a full stack. You’ll likely have better success finding arrows than crafting them in the early game.
How to repair a bow
Credit: Joe Hindy / Android Authority
It is possible to fix a bow in Minecraft, and it’s not terribly difficult to do.
- Place two damaged bows next to each other in a crafting table, as shown above in the screenshot.
- Retrieve the new bow.
- Bonus — You can also put two damaged bows in a grindstone and retrieve a repaired bow that way.
This also works with enchanted bows, but repairing an enchanted bow will strip it of its enchantment.
How to create an infinity bow (or any enchanted bow)
Credit: Joe Hindy / Android Authority
Infinity bows are awesome because they only require one arrow, from which it generates infinite ammo. There are a few different ways to make a bow with the infinity enchantment. We’ll list all of them, in increasing order of difficulty.
- Craft an anvil and an enchanting table. You’ll need both of these later. Obviously, make sure you have a bow too.
- Create a book of enchantment with the infinity perk. This requires a regular book and three lapis lazuli. Place both into your enchantment table.
- Note — Enchantment tables are random, so you may need to try multiple times to get one with infinity.
- Finally, the book and the bow to your anvil. Place the bow in one slot and the book of enchantment in the other. Pull your infinity bow out of the final slot.
- Bonus — You can also find books of enchantment in dungeons and stronghold chests, while fishing, and you can trade emeralds to villagers for them.
There aren’t too many steps, but finding a book of enchantment with infinity on it may take some time. Many players just play the game until they find one randomly, and then come back to enchant the thing they want to enchant.
Of course, you can use this same method for any enchantment type, be it power, mending, or others. Just keep in mind that some enchantments don’t mesh with others.
FAQ
How do I make a diamond bow in Minecraft?
There is no diamond bow in vanilla Minecraft. That is an item you can only get through modification.
What is the best bow in Minecraft?
The best bow is an enchanted bow. From there, it’s mostly subjective as different players have different opinions. A lot of folks like infinity for the infinite ammo, power for the extra damage, or mending for the extra durability. Note, though, that you can’t put infinity and mending on the same bow.