Where to Find Spectral Arrow in Minecraft

Spectral Arrow, a combat item filed under Weapons in Minecraft, comes from one place, and this page walks through all 2 methods that end with Spectral Arrow in your inventory, fastest one first. All Overworld biomes (crafting) is the address for Spectral Arrow, and there you craft it from 4 Glowstone Dust and 1 Arrow (yields 2). Finding Spectral Arrow is rated easy (2/5): most players can secure it within their first in-game day with basic tools. Practically speaking, no distant biome is involved in getting Spectral Arrow: a Crafting Table makes it, so the rest of this guide is about lining up the ingredients and picking the moment to make one.

Biomes & Dimensions

• All Overworld biomes (crafting)

All Methods

1. 1Craft using 4 Glowstone Dust and 1 Arrow (yields 2)
2. 2Java Edition only

• Glowstone Dust comes from breaking Glowstone blocks in the Nether
• Witches occasionally drop Glowstone Dust on death
• The Glowing effect makes targets visible through walls for 10 seconds
• Useful in PvP to track enemy players behind cover

• Added in 1.9 (Combat Update); Java Edition exclusive

Applies the Glowing status effect. Useful in PvP to track enemy players. Java Edition only.

A spectral arrow is four glowstone dust around an arrow, and it gives four arrows back. Anything it hits glows through walls for ten seconds, which turns a bow into a tracking tool: hit a fleeing mob or a player once and you can follow the outline instead of guessing.

Four glowstone dust per two arrows makes spectral arrows expensive, which is why they are used as markers rather than as ammunition. One shot at a fleeing creeper or a mob in a dark cave outlines it through walls for ten seconds, and that is usually enough to finish the fight.