Understand Curse of Vanishing
Useful when…
- Prevent a specific carried item from dropping when a player dies.
- Apply the curse when permanently losing the item on death is preferable to leaving it recoverable.
What happens on death?
When a player dies with a cursed item in their inventory, the item does not drop and is removed from the world. The effect does not apply if the item was dropped manually or placed in a container before death. It also does not activate for an item stored in a shulker box or bundle, or when keepInventory is true. A grindstone or crafting table cannot remove the curse; placing a cursed block removes it.
Supported equipment
Curse of Vanishing has a maximum level of I and is supported on 92 enchantable equipment types. These include armor, weapons, tools, bows, crossbows, shields, elytra, compasses, carved pumpkins, and heads. The supported-item list describes where the enchantment can be applied; the player-death effect concerns a cursed item in a player's inventory. In singleplayer Hardcore, the effect has little practical significance for a player because death is permanent.
Anvil multipliers
The anvil book multiplier is 4 and the item multiplier is 8. These are multipliers; they do not by themselves establish the final anvil cost.
Mob drops and armor stands
Cursed items dropped by mobs are subject to the effect. An item with Curse of Vanishing dropped by an armor stand is also subject to the effect, as described in the reference.
Limitations and tradeoffs
- Prevents the cursed item from dropping on a relevant death, removing it from the world instead.
- The curse cannot be removed with a grindstone or crafting table.
- Its effect has little practical significance for a player in singleplayer Hardcore.
Common mistakes to avoid
- Applying it to gear without intending the item to be removed from the world on the relevant death.
- Assuming manually dropped items or items stored in containers before death are removed.
- Expecting a grindstone or crafting table to remove the curse.
