Entity metadata
Entity Metadata Format
Note that entity metadata is a totally distinct concept from block metadata. All entities must send at least one item of metadata, in most cases this will be the health item.
The entity metadata format is quirky dictionary format, where the key and the value's type are packed in a single byte.
To parse, repeat the following procedure:
- Read an unsigned byte
- If this byte == 127, stop reading
- Decompose the byte.
The bottom 5 bits (0x1F) serve as an identifier (key) for the data to follow.
The top 3 bits (0xE0) serve as a type. - Read and unpack based on the type (below)
Type | Meaning |
---|---|
0 | byte |
1 | short |
2 | int |
3 | float* |
4 | string16 |
5 | slot |
6 | int, int, int (x, y, z)* |
*Not currently used (last checked in 1.3.1 [1])
In Python-like code:
#socket is positioned at the beginning of the metadata array. Also note that the method unpack() doesn't exist in socket
metadata = {}
x = socket.unpack('byte')
while x != 127:
index = x & 0x1F # Lower 5 bits
ty = x >> 5 # Upper 3 bits
if ty == 0: val = socket.unpack('byte')
if ty == 1: val = socket.unpack('short')
if ty == 2: val = socket.unpack('int')
if ty == 3: val = socket.unpack('float')
if ty == 4: val = socket.unpack('string16')
if ty == 5: val = socket.unpack('slot')
if ty == 6:
val = []
for i in range(3):
val.append(socket.unpack('int'))
metadata[index] = (ty, val)
x = socket.unpack('byte')
return metadata
Common Metadata
Index 0, byte: Flags
All mobs, objects and players send metadata with index 0
. The value is a byte representing 8 boolean flags:
Bit index | Bit mask | Meaning |
---|---|---|
0 | 0x01 | Entity on fire |
1 | 0x02 | Entity crouched |
2 | 0x04 | Entity riding |
3 | 0x08 | Sprinting |
4 | 0x10 | Eating/Drinking/Blocking (any right click action?) |
5 | 0x20 | Invisible |
Index 1, short: Drowning counter
Initialized to 300
on entity spawn. When underwater, this is decremented by 3 every tick (and sent S->C with Entity Metadata (0x28)). If the value dips below -19, an Entity Status (0x26) is sent (i.e. the entity is hurt) and counter is reset to 0.
Seems to be sent for *at least* all mobs. Not sure about players.
Index 8, int: Potion effects
Players and most (all?) mobs send metadata with index 8
. This specifies the colour of the bubbling effects around the player.
The value is an int, that should be decomposed into four bytes, representing 0x00RRGGBB
If the value is 0, no potion effects currently apply to the entity.
Index 12, int: Animals
0 for ordinary animals.
Baby animals have the value -23999. This corresponds to the number of ticks in a minecraft day, which is how long it takes for a baby animal to "grow up". It is therefore considered likely that this field determines the size of the animal, and that Entity Metadata will update it as the animal grows.
When an animal becomes a parent this value is set to 6000 and is then decreased over time. Probably a countdown until they can have a new baby.
Mobs
Mobs are spawned via 0x18 Mob Spawn
Type | Name | x, z | y |
---|---|---|---|
50 | Creeper | 0.6 | 1.8 |
51 | Skeleton | 0.6 | 1.8 |
52 | Spider | 1.4 | 0.9 |
53 | Giant Zombie | 3.6 | 10.8 |
54 | Zombie | 0.6 | 1.8 |
55 | Slime | 0.6 * size | 0.6 * size |
56 | Ghast | 4 | 4 |
57 | Zombie Pigman | 0.6 | 1.8 |
58 | Enderman | ||
59 | Cave Spider | ||
60 | Silverfish | ||
61 | Blaze | ||
62 | Magma Cube | 0.6 * size | 0.6 * size |
63 | Ender Dragon | ||
64 | Wither | ||
65 | Bat | ||
66 | Witch | ||
90 | Pig | 0.9 | 0.9 |
91 | Sheep | 0.6 | 1.3 |
92 | Cow | 0.9 | 1.3 |
93 | Chicken | 0.3 | 0.4 |
94 | Squid | 0.95 | 0.95 |
95 | Wolf | 0.6 | 1.8 |
96 | Mooshroom | ||
97 | Snowman | ||
98 | Ocelot | ||
99 | Iron Golem | ||
120 | Villager |
Extra Metadata
Creeper
- Index 16 (byte): Status. Depends on the fuse, values from -1 to 1
- Index 17 (byte): Charged.
1
if the creeper has been hit by lightning,0
otherwise.
Spider / Cave Spider
- Index 16 (byte): Unknown, Values 0 and 1. Possibly aggression.
Slime / Magma Cube
- Index 16 (byte): Size. Randomly-generated.
0
,1
,2
or4
.
Ghast
- Index 16 (byte): Aggression.
1
for aggressive (red eyes),0
otherwise.
Enderman
- Index 16 (byte): Item in hand
- Index 17 (byte): Item metadata
- Index 18 (byte): Aggression.
1
for aggressive,0
otherwise.
Blaze
- Index 16 (byte): Attacking.
1
sets the blaze on fire, and shortly after it will attack.0
signals the end of the attack.#
Ender Dragon
- Index 16 (short): Health. Full health =
200
Pig
- Index 16 (byte): Saddled.
1
if the pig is wearing a saddle,0
otherwise.
Sheep
- Index 16 (byte): bit 0x10 indicates shearedness. bits 0x0F indicate color (see below).
Index | Wool Color |
---|---|
0 | White |
1 | Orange |
2 | Magenta |
3 | Light Blue |
4 | Yellow |
5 | Lime |
6 | Pink |
7 | Gray |
8 | Silver |
9 | Cyan |
10 | Purple |
11 | Blue |
12 | Brown |
13 | Green |
14 | Red |
15 | Black |
Wolf
- Index 16 (byte): Flags (see below).
- Index 17 (string): Name of player that tamed wolf.
- Index 18 (int): Health. Values from 8 to 0
- Index 19 (byte): Unknown, either 0 or 1
Bit index | Bit mask | Meaning |
---|---|---|
0 | 0x01 | Sitting down |
1 | 0x02 | Aggressive (red eyes) |
2 | 0x04 | Tamed |
Ocelot
- Index 16 (byte): Flags. Same as Wolf but without the Agressive flag.
- Index 17 (string): Name of player that tamed the ocelot.
- Index 18 (byte): Skin: 0 - ocelot, 3 - tamed cat, probably 1 and 2 too.
Villager
- Index 12 (int): Same as index 12 of Animals, except that when the baby villager becomes a parent, no countdown starts.
- Index 16 (int): Profession of villager, as according to this.
Iron Golem
- Index 16 (byte): Unknown, example: 1
Objects
Objects are spawned via 0x17 Spawn Object/Vehicle
ID | Name | x, z | y |
---|---|---|---|
1 | Boat | 1.5 | 0.6 |
2 | Item Stack (Slot) | 0.5 | 0.5 |
10 | Minecart | 0.98 | 0.7 |
11 | Minecart (storage) | 0.98 | 0.7 |
12 | Minecart (powered) | 0.98 | 0.7 |
50 | Activated TNT | 0.98 | 0.98 |
51 | EnderCrystal | 1.25? | 2.25? |
60 | Arrow (projectile) | 0.5 | 0.5 |
61 | Snowball (projectile) | 0.25 | 0.25 |
62 | Egg (projectile) | 0.25 | 0.25 |
65 | Thrown Enderpearl | ||
66 | Wither Skull | ||
70 | Falling Objects - The object data field specifies the block id. in vanilla only used to spawn falling sand/falling gravel/falling dragon eggs | 0.98 | 0.98 |
71 | Item frames | ? | ? |
72 | Eye of Ender | ||
73 | Thrown Potion | ||
74 | Falling Dragon Egg | 0.98 | 0.98 |
75 | Thrown Exp Bottle | ||
90 | Fishing Float | 0.25? | 0.25? |
Extra metadata
Arrow
- Index 16 (byte): Unknown, either 0 or 1
Minecart
- Index 16 (byte): Bitfield for flags, but the only known value is 1 if the minecart is powered and has fuel.
- Index 17 (int): Unknown. Initialized to 0
- Index 18 (int): Unknown. Initialized to 1
- Index 19 (int): Damage taken. The cart breaks when this is over 40.
Boat
- Index 17 (int): Time since last hit
- Index 18 (int): "Forward direction". Initialized to 1.
- Index 19 (int): Damage taken.
Other
Players are spawned via 0x14 Named Entity Spawn. They have dimensions 0.6 * 1.8.
Pickups are spawned via 0x15 Pickup Spawn. They have dimensions 0.25 * 0.25.
Paintings are spawned via 0x19 Entity: Painting. Their dimensions depend on their type.