In contrast to the creative freedom that the world of Minecraft offers to players, its vehicles have always been limiting. But not anymore. Thanks to the new ride command in Minecraft 1.20, every in-game entity is now a rideable vehicle. Not only that, but every mob can now become a driver in Minecraft. As crazy as it sounds, this is just the beginning of a new level of creativity in the game. So, let’s stop beating around the bush and learn how to use the ride command in Minecraft.
At the moment, the ride command is exclusive to the Minecraft Java edition and is only available in the Minecraft Snapshot 23W03A. Its functionality, syntax, and mechanics are subject to change in the final release.
What is the Ride Command?
As the name reveals, the ride command in Minecraft allows players to initiate or prevent a particular entity from riding other entities. By default, players can ride several mobs in Minecraft, including horses, striders, etc. Moreover, several in-game entities can also ride other entities, such as zombies riding chickens and more. But with the help of the ride command, you can modify the riding rules and turn almost any entity into a vehicle or a passenger.
Minecraft Ride Command Syntax
After updating to the latest Minecraft snapshot, it’s time to learn how to use the ride command in Minecraft. When you want to make one entity ride another entity, the ride command has a simple syntax:
/ride <target> mount <vehicle>
Here, the “target” is the entity that is acting as the rider and the “vehicle” is the second entity whom the rider is riding. For instance, if you are riding a camel in Minecraft, you are the target and the camel is the vehicle.
Similarly, if you want to dismount a particular entity the syntax changes to the following:
/ride <target> dismount
The “target” should already be riding a vehicle, else this command will not work. Moreover, you don’t need to name the vehicle when using this command, only targeting the rider is enough.
What is an Entity in Minecraft
If this is your first time reading about or using Minecraft commands, it is important to understand common terminology like entity. This term usually refers to all dynamic objects in the world of Minecraft. All the mobs (animals or players), projectiles (like arrows), and even vehicles (like boats and minecarts) count as entities.
In the context of the ride command, you can use any of the in-game entities, ranging from a cat to a Minecart with TNT in the command’s syntax. As long as you know that particular entity’s in-game alphanumeric ID, which is different for each iteration of a particular entity, the command will work with ease. So, even though all pigs look the same in Minecraft, every single pig has a unique ID that no other pig or entity can have.
Limitations of Ride Command
The syntax of the ride command in Minecraft only works if you are abiding by these rules:
- In addition to mobs and other entities, the players can be vehicles as well.
- An entity that is supposed to be the “target” shouldn’t be already riding another entity. If you are on top of a pig, you can’t also be on top of a horse at the same time.
- You can’t use the same entity as the “target” as well as the “vehicle” in one command. A pig can’t ride itself, but it may ride other pigs.
- The vehicle entity can’t be a passenger of another entity. You can’t make a cat ride a pig that’s already riding a cow.
In case you are worried, the last rule won’t prevent you from creating long towers of entities riding each other. Keep reading to find out how to work around it.
How to Use Ride Command in Minecraft
Follow the steps below to use the ride command accurately in Minecraft:
1. First, find two mobs that you want to use. They don’t have to be rideable by default, so feel free to be creative. We are going with a cow and a camel for this tutorial.
2. Next, while looking at one of the entities, open your chat and only type “/ride” in the chatbox. Then, press the “Tab” key. Doing so will make the entity ID automatically appear in the chatbox. However, for it to work, the entity must be in front of your crosshair while you type so it’s best to wait for it to stand or you can also trap it.
3. Then, add “mount” at the end of the command and copy the entire string of code. So, your command should look something like this:
- /ride [rider_id] mount
- Example: /ride 9549da99-a2aa-43ff-bbbc-da7d3a1e3b65 mount
4. Then, go to the second entity and paste the copied code in your chat while looking at it, and then press the “Tab” key. You might have to press Tab multiple times if the entity ID does not appear at the top of the list. With that, you now have the complete syntax that looks something like this:
- /ride [rider_id] mount [vehicle_id]
- Example: /ride 9549da99-a2aa-43ff-bbbc-da7d3a1e3b65 mount d5cb7685-68f5-456c-a4a7-34cb1b86ebaf
5. Finally, use the final code in your chat and press the “Enter” key. You don’t need to look at the entities for this to work. As soon as the command executes, the first entity (cow) will start riding the second entity (camel).
6. If you want to dismount the rider, use its ID with the “dismount” keyword in the ride command. Leave the vehicle out while doing so. Here’s what the syntax looks like:
- /ride [rider_id] dismount
- Example: /ride 9549da99-a2aa-43ff-bbbc-da7d3a1e3b65 dismount
Players Riding Mobs
If you want to ride any particular mob in Minecraft, the ride command’s syntax will be:
/ride @s mount [vehicle_id]
Here, the “@s” marks yourself, aka the player executing the command. On a multiplayer server, you can use the usernames of other players to make them ride particular entities. But, riding doesn’t mean controlling. Only saddle-able entities like horses can be ridden and controlled. Moreover, for entities like pigs, you still need a carrot on a Stick to control them.
Though, thanks to the ride command, you can now ride entities that are not ridable by default. Ever thought of conquering the Minecraft world on Ender Dragon‘s back? Now that’s possible.
How to Make a Rideable Mob Tower in Minecraft
Now that you know the basics of this command, let’s push it to its limits by creating a tower of mobs riding one another. Here’s how that works:
1. First, use the steps in the previous section to create a pair of two entities, one riding another.
2. Then, copy the entity ID of the vehicle of that pair. In the case of a camel riding a cow, it will be the entity ID of the cow. Then, find the entity you want the pair to ride. Keep in mind that you can add entities beneath a mob tower but not on top of it. We are going to try to make the cow (who is being ridden by a camel) ride a pig.
3. Next, go to the new entity, and similar to the previous section, open the chat while looking at it and paste the following command:
/ride [original_vehicle] mount
Here, replace the “original vehicle” with your first vehicle’s entity ID (cow, in our case). Then, press the “Tab” key to include the new entity’s ID (pig) in the command. Finally, press the “Enter” key to execute the command.
4. From then on, you need to put your latest vehicle’s entity ID as the next rider’s entity ID and continue the command until you are satisfied. At the moment, we don’t think there’s a particular limit to this command, but you can try pushing it to its limits. You might want to try it with a flying mob like Allay in Minecraft to truly unleash your creative side.
With that, you are now ready to create the most unthinkable and strange combinations of mobs riding one another. To use this newfound creative power, we suggest you explore our Minecraft mob list to find the best options for your experiments. Meanwhile, if you want to try more game-breaking but fun commands, our list of best Minecraft commands will be a better pick. With that said, which Minecraft entity are you going to ride? Tell us in the comments below!
With the help of the ride command, you can ride any entity in Minecraft without using a saddle. However, if you want to control the movement of the mob, you must place a saddle on top of it. This, however, only works with a few mobs.
If the topmost entity in a tower of mobs is compatible with a saddle, you can place it on it. But since the bottommost entity is responsible for the overall movement, the saddle won’t let you control the tower’s movement.
