Infinity — bow enchantment for infinite arrows in Minecraft

Infinity — bow enchantment for infinite arrows in Minecraft

Infinity is a bow enchantment that prevents the consumption of regular arrows when firing. You only need to have a single arrow in your inventory, and the bow will shoot limitlessly as long as that arrow remains in your bag. For a player who frequently fights at a distance, this removes Minecraft's most tedious chore — the constant crafting of ammunition from flint, sticks, and feathers. This guide gathers everything about the enchantment: how it works, where to get it, what it combines with, and what traps await a beginner.

What the Infinity enchantment does

The main effect is simple: the bow stops "eating" regular arrows. Make one stock, and you can fire until the bow itself breaks. There is only one condition: you must have at least one arrow in your inventory. If you take it away completely, the bow will fall silent, as it needs a "sample" of ammunition to shoot.

The maximum level of the enchantment is I. Higher levels do not exist, so a book or bow will always say "Infinity I". The effect can only be applied to a bow — the crossbow does not accept it in standard survival.

The internal weight of this enchantment is 1. This is the lowest possible value, meaning that among all enchantment options, Infinity drops less frequently than most others. That is why it can be harder to get than, say, Power.

A common mistake among beginners is to expect something more from the enchantment. Infinity only affects ammunition consumption. It does not add damage, does not change the range or flight speed of the arrow — other enchantments are responsible for the power of the shot. A bow with only Infinity hits exactly the same as a regular one, it just doesn't consume arrows.

A player shoots a bow at a target; at the bottom, a hotbar slot is visible where the arrow count remains "1" and does not decrease 

Limitations you should know about

The effect sounds almost flawless, but a few nuances directly affect how you will play with such a bow.

Arrows not affected by the enchantment

Infinity only works with regular arrows. It ignores two special types:

• Tipped Arrow (an arrow with a potion effect) — is consumed as usual.

• Spectral Arrow — is also deducted from the inventory for every shot.

In other words, only simple arrows will fly for free. If you need the effect of poison, slowness, or glowing on a target, you will have to pay with resources separately for each such arrow.

Fired arrows cannot be picked up

An arrow fired from a bow with Infinity disappears after hitting — you won't be able to pick it up from the ground or a mob's body. In Creative mode, it simply gets deleted. This is a logical balance: since the ammunition is infinite, the game doesn't allow you to also collect it back and stockpile reserves.

The bow's durability still drains

The enchantment removes the consumption of arrows, but it doesn't protect the bow itself. Its durability in Java Edition is 384 shots, and every shot wears out the weapon equally. Sooner or later, the bow will need to be repaired. Here comes the main inconvenience, which is covered in a separate section below.

Two bows are combined in an anvil, a red cross indicates the incompatibility of the enchantments 

Infinity or Mending: which to choose

Since both enchantments cannot coexist on the same bow, you have to make the choice once and for a long time. The difference between them lies in the very logic of weapon maintenance.

With Infinity, you save ammunition, but the bow wears out and requires repairing on an anvil with a second bow. With Mending, the bow restores its durability on its own using experience orbs, but you will have to carry arrows with you and constantly replenish the supply.

A practical guideline is as follows. If you have an established experience farm or you kill many mobs in melee combat, Mending is more profitable — the bow will repair itself, and a skeleton farm will provide the arrows. If, on the other hand, you play at a distance, frequently go on long expeditions without a base nearby, and do not want to depend on an ammo reserve, Infinity is more convenient. Many players put Infinity on a "travel" bow for exploration, and keep a separate bow with Mending and Power for serious fights.

How to get Infinity

There are several ways, and each has its conditions. The fastest one depends on what you already have: an enchanting table with bookshelves, a surplus of emeralds, or a successful fishing trip.

Enchanting Table

The most direct route is to enchant a bow at an enchanting table, spending experience and lapis lazuli. To get access to powerful enchantments, surround the table with 15 bookshelves — this raises the available level to 30.

Due to its low weight, Infinity does not appear in the list every time, so be prepared for a few attempts. If the desired option is not among the three offered, enchant a cheaper item first (for example, a book) to reset the options, and then return to the bow.

An enchanting table surrounded by bookshelves

Anvil and Enchanted Book

The second option is to find or enchant a book with Infinity, and then transfer the enchantment to the bow using an anvil. You place the bow and the Enchanted Book in the anvil slots; the book is consumed, experience levels are deducted, and the bow receives the enchantment.

This method is more reliable than the table: you know exactly what you are applying, and you do not depend on a random roll. The downside is that you need the book itself, which you still have to get from somewhere.

The anvil interface; on the left is a regular bow, in the middle is an Enchanted Book saying "Infinity", on the right in the result slot is the finished enchanted bow

Trading with a Librarian

A librarian villager sells enchanted books for emeralds. The assortment of each villager is unique and randomly generated, but Infinity can quite possibly appear among the offers.

To "roll" for the desired book, break and place the lectern back next to an unassigned librarian until Infinity appears in their trades. Once the villager has obtained the profession and offers a favorable deal, lock in the trades by making a purchase.

Loot and Fishing

An enchanted book with this enchantment is sometimes found as loot in chests of various structures and dungeons. Another source is fishing: enchanted bows and books occasionally drop among the rare "treasures". The chance is small, but it is increased by the Luck of the Sea enchantment on the fishing rod.

Below is a summary of all the methods together:

Combining with other bow enchantments

Infinity only takes up one enchantment "slot", so there is room left on the bow for other effects. The following options are compatible with it:

The most useful pair is Infinity and Unbreaking. Since repairing the bow with experience is not possible, Unbreaking III significantly extends its lifespan and makes you run to the anvil less often. Power, on the other hand, turns infinite arrows into a serious tool against mobs and in PvP.

The only incompatible option is Mending, and the reason for this has already been stated above.

Practical application

The enchantment shines the most where you have to shoot a lot and for a long time. A few typical scenarios.

At mob farms and skeleton grinders, a bow with this enchantment allows you to finish off the crowd with endless fire, without being distracted by replenishing arrows. One arrow in the inventory — and you can keep shooting until the necessary drop is collected. An important nuance: the enchantments only work when you shoot from a bow in your hand. A dispenser fires arrows as separate items and consumes them regardless of any enchantments, so Infinity provides nothing for automated redstone contraptions.

On long expeditions — to the Nether, to pillager outposts, to ocean monuments — you don't need to drag stacks of ammunition and waste inventory space. A couple of arrows in reserve are enough, and the rest of the slots can be given up for food, blocks, or loot.

In PvP and on survival servers, a bow saves resources over a long distance: flint and feathers are no longer spent in batches, and this makes a noticeable difference when fights last for hours. The combo with Power works especially well here — every shot hits hard, and their quantity is unlimited.

Continuous fire at a group of mobs without consuming ammunition

Common mistakes and how to avoid them

Even with a seemingly simple effect, beginners regularly step on the same rakes.

1. Shooting with an empty inventory. Without a single arrow, the bow will not fire at all. The golden rule: one arrow must always be in your bag. Many people forget about this and wonder why their "infinite" bow is silent.

2. Expecting to pick up your arrows. Fired ammunition disappears — you won't be able to collect it back. It is not worth building your combat logic on the assumption that arrows will return to your inventory.

3. Trying to combine with Mending. The game won't let you put both enchantments on a single bow, neither through the table nor through the anvil. An attempt to merge two such bows will simply not work. Choose one or the other in advance.

4. Expecting savings on special arrows. Tipped and spectral arrows are consumed despite the enchantment. If you shoot potion arrows en masse, Infinity won't save you anything here.

5. Ignoring the bow's durability. Wear and tear doesn't go anywhere. Without Unbreaking and without a repair plan, the bow will break in the middle of a fight. Keep a second bow for repairing on an anvil or immediately apply Unbreaking III.

6. Running into "Too Expensive!". If a bow has already passed through the anvil many times, the next merge might exceed the cost limit in survival. Apply the necessary enchantments while the bow is "cheap", and don't leave the most expensive operations for last.

Conclusion

Infinity eliminates the constant crafting of ammunition and makes the bow a self-sufficient weapon with just one arrow. For travels, farms, and drawn-out ranged battles, this noticeably frees up inventory space and time.

Compared to Mending, the choice comes down to your playstyle: Mending wins out where there is a stable source of experience and you want to deal less with repairs, while Infinity wins out where independence from an arrow reserve is important. For explorers, "kiting" archers, and anyone who dislikes crafting ammo in bulk, this is one of the most convenient options for a bow in Minecraft.