👻 Special

Overview

Renders a hardcoded special model — things Minecraft knows how to draw natively (heads, chests, shields, banners, etc.). Each special type has its own fields. A base model provides the transform reference, particle texture, and GUI lighting.

items:
  demo:head:
    material: player_head
    model:
      type: minecraft:special
      base: minecraft:item/custom/head_base
      model:
        type: minecraft:head
        kind: skeleton
        texture: minecraft:custom/heads/wizard
        animation: 0.0

Fields

Field	Type	Required	Default	Description
type	string	Yes	—	minecraft:special
base	asset path	Yes*	—	Namespaced model path for transforms, particle texture, and GUI light. *Optional when blueprint is set — becomes the output path of the generated model
blueprint	string	No	—	Blockbench .bbmodel file converted into the base model JSON Experimental (see Blueprint)
model	object	Yes	—	Special model object with its own type (see below)
transformation	object	No	—	Display transform overlay (26.1+)

Special Model Types

minecraft:head

Renders a mob head or skull.

model:
  type: minecraft:head
  kind: skeleton          # skeleton | wither_skeleton | player | zombie | creeper | piglin | dragon
  texture: minecraft:custom/heads/wizard  # Optional, defaults per kind. Omits textures/entity/ prefix and .png suffix
  animation: 0.0          # Dragon jaw: -2.5 (closed) to 2.5 (open); Piglin ear wiggle

minecraft:player_head (1.21.6+)

Uses minecraft:profile component for the skin texture. No extra fields.

model:
  type: minecraft:player_head

minecraft:chest

Renders a single chest.

model:
  type: minecraft:chest
  texture: minecraft:custom/chest  # Path in chests atlas, no .png suffix
  chest_type: single         # "single" | "left" | "right" (26.1+)
  openness: 0.0              # 0.0 (closed) to 1.0 (open)

minecraft:shulker_box

Renders a shulker box.

model:
  type: minecraft:shulker_box
  texture: minecraft:custom/shulker  # Path in shulker atlas, no .png suffix
  openness: 0.0              # 0.0 (closed) to 1.0 (open)

minecraft:shield

Reads minecraft:banner_patterns and minecraft:base_color components. No extra fields.

model:
  type: minecraft:shield

minecraft:banner

Reads minecraft:banner_patterns component.

model:
  type: minecraft:banner
  color: red                 # One of 16 colors (required)
  attachment: ground         # "ground" | "wall" (26.1+)

minecraft:trident

Renders a trident. No extra fields.

model:
  type: minecraft:trident

minecraft:conduit

Renders a conduit. No extra fields.

model:
  type: minecraft:conduit

minecraft:decorated_pot

Reads minecraft:pot_decorations component. No extra fields.

model:
  type: minecraft:decorated_pot

minecraft:bell (26.1+)

Renders the animated bell block part. No extra fields.

model:
  type: minecraft:bell

minecraft:book (26.1+)

Renders a book (enchanting table / lectern).

model:
  type: minecraft:book
  open_angle: 0    # Degrees: 0 = closed, 90 = flat
  page1: 0.0       # Page turn progress 0.0–1.0
  page2: 0.0

minecraft:end_cube (26.1+)

Renders a starfield cube (end portal / gateway).

model:
  type: minecraft:end_cube
  effect: portal     # "portal" | "gateway"

minecraft:copper_golem_statue

Renders a copper golem statue.

model:
  type: minecraft:copper_golem_statue
  pose: standing       # "standing" | "sitting" | "running" | "star"
  texture: minecraft:custom/statue.png  # Full path, .png suffix required

Removed types

Type	Removed in	Notes
minecraft:bed	26.2 snap3	Replaced by block-based rendering
minecraft:standing_sign	26.2 snap7	Replaced by block-based rendering
minecraft:hanging_sign	26.2 snap7	Replaced by block-based rendering