Skeleton Summon Command Generator (Java Edition) — Bow & Crossbow NBT
Build /summon commands with custom NBT for every vanilla mob — baby variants, equipment, colors, and mob-specific options.
Run /summon from an operator’s chat, a command block, or the server console. Not every internal NBT field is covered — this generates the commonly-used ones for each mob.
How to Use the Skeleton Summon Generator
- Type skeleton into the search box, or open this page directly – it lands on the Skeleton panel already selected.
- Pick a ranged weapon from the Bow (hand) dropdown – Bow or Crossbow – or leave it on “None” for an unarmed skeleton (skeletons still spawn with a bow by default in vanilla, but this generator only writes NBT for the weapon you explicitly pick).
- Use the shared fields above the mob panel – Health override, No AI, Silent, Glowing, Invulnerable, Persistence Required, and custom Tags – to shape the rest of the summon.
- Copy the finished
/summonline into a command block, the server console, or an operator’s chat window.
Command Syntax & NBT Reference
The generator builds on /summon minecraft:skeleton ~ ~ ~ {NBT}:
HandItems:[{Count:1,id:"minecraft:bow"},{}]– puts a bow in the main hand. Swapbowforcrossbowwhen you pick the crossbow option instead. The off-hand slot (second array entry) is always left empty by this generator.- No other mob-specific fields exist for the base Skeleton entry in this tool – every other option you see on the page (Health, Tags, Glowing, etc.) comes from the shared fields block that every mob shares, not from anything skeleton-specific.
Note that a plain /summon minecraft:skeleton with no NBT at all still spawns a skeleton holding a normal bow – that’s vanilla default equipment, not something this generator adds. Picking “None” here doesn’t strip that default; it just means this tool isn’t the one responsible for it.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do skeletons summoned this way still burn in daylight?
Yes. A skeleton catches fire when the sun is high enough in the sky unless it’s shaded, underwater, or wearing a helmet – this generator doesn’t add any fire-immunity NBT, so a skeleton left out in the open during the day burns exactly like a naturally spawned one.
Why does my skeleton still have arrows even though I set the weapon to None?
Leaving Bow (hand) on “None” just tells this generator not to add a hand-item tag – it doesn’t force the skeleton to spawn unarmed. Vanilla skeletons already carry a bow by default, so the mob you summon will still shoot arrows unless you separately give it a different held item or an empty one via the general Summon Command tab.
What’s the difference between a Skeleton and a Stray or Wither Skeleton here?
Stray and Wither Skeleton are separate entries in this same generator with their own panels – a Stray’s arrows apply Slowness and it spawns in snowy biomes, while a Wither Skeleton is the Nether fortress variant that inflicts the Wither effect on hit. Switch mobs from the dropdown instead of adding NBT to a base Skeleton to get those behaviors.
Can I make a skeleton that never despawns?
Check Persistence Required in the shared fields section above the mob-specific panel. That adds PersistenceRequired:1b, which stops the skeleton from despawning naturally the way most passively-spawned hostile mobs eventually do.
Related Tools
- Stray Summon Generator – the frozen-biome variant with Slowness arrows.
- Wither Skeleton Summon Generator – the Nether fortress variant that inflicts Wither.
- Give Command Generator – hand a player the matching bow, arrows, or armor.
- General Summon Command Tab – for free-form item IDs beyond bow/crossbow.