Piercing

What does Piercing do?

At level I, an arrow passes through one entity and can damage a second; each added level increases the number it can pass through by one. At level IV, it can pass through four entities, for up to five entities damaged by one arrow. The arrow continues along its original line, cannot hit the same mob twice, and can be retrieved after piercing a mob. Piercing also lets arrows ignore blocking shields.

When should I use it?

It is useful when targets are lined up, such as a group approaching through a narrow passage. It also suits conserving arrows: pierced arrows can still be retrieved, including spectral and tipped arrows. That recovery benefit applies to arrows, not firework rockets; Piercing has no effect on rockets.

What are the restrictions?

Piercing is for crossbows and has a maximum level of IV. It cannot normally be combined with Multishot, so choose based on whether you want a line-piercing arrow or Multishot's additional arrows. Piercing does not pass through a closed shulker shell, a wither's wither armor at half health, or a breeze's wind armor; in those cases the arrow bounces off.

What should I avoid assuming?

Piercing does not bend an arrow toward targets, hit one mob twice, or make rockets pierce. Levels above 127 created with commands stop working as intended and hit only one mob. The reference also describes command or Creative-only ways to put it on a bow; that is not its ordinary supported equipment use.

Limitations and tradeoffs

• Choosing Piercing rules out Multishot through ordinary anvil combining.
• Its multi-target value depends on targets being aligned in the arrow's flight path.