Introduction to Entity Visuals

Unlike blocks or items, which can often render with a single texture and a simple definition, entities use a multi-step rendering pipeline. This separation allows a single entity to swap models, change skins, or alter its transparency dynamically based on what is happening in the game world.

At the center of this pipeline is the Client Entity definition file. This file does not render anything on its own; instead, it acts as a directory. It assigns short, local names (aliases) to the actual assets scattered across your resource pack folders. Those aliases are then passed to a Render Controller, which decides which combination of model, texture, and material to draw on any given frame.

Every custom entity needs a file in the RP/entity/ directory. The identifier in this file must match the identifier in the Behavior Pack's entity file exactly. If they do not match, the entity will still exist and function in the world, but it will be completely invisible (except for its shadow).

Inside the description object, you map short names—like 'default'—to the actual asset paths or identifiers. Using 'default' as your primary key is standard practice in Bedrock because it allows you to reuse built-in vanilla render controllers without writing your own from scratch.

{
  "format_version": "1.10.0",
  "minecraft:client_entity": {
    "description": {
      "identifier": "wiki:copper_golem",
      "materials": {
        "default": "entity_alphatest"
      },
      "textures": {
        "default": "textures/entity/copper_golem"
      },
      "geometry": {
        "default": "geometry.copper_golem"
      },
      "render_controllers": [
        "controller.render.default"
      ],
      "spawn_egg": {
        "base_color": "#b8674b",
        "overlay_color": "#4f9478"
      }
    }
  }
}

A render controller is the bridge that actually puts the entity on the screen. In the client entity example above, we referenced controller.render.default. This is a built-in vanilla render controller that simply looks for a geometry named 'default', a texture named 'default', and a material named 'default', and draws them together.

When you want an entity to have multiple visual states—such as a sheep with sheared wool, or a golem that oxidizes over time—you write a custom render controller. Render controllers use Molang expressions to pick from arrays of textures or geometries, and apply materials to specific bone groups using wildcard matching (an asterisk means 'apply to all bones').

{
  "format_version": "1.8.0",
  "render_controllers": {
    "controller.render.copper_golem": {
      "geometry": "Geometry.default",
      "materials": [
        {
          "*": "Material.default"
        }
      ],
      "textures": [
        "Texture.default"
      ]
    }
  }
}

Materials tell the game's rendering engine how to handle transparency, culling, and lighting on your entity's texture. While you can define custom material files, most add-on creators rely on the standard vanilla entity materials already loaded by the game.

Picking the wrong material is a frequent source of visual bugs. If your texture has transparent cutouts (like wings or tattered cloth) and those areas render as solid black or white in-game, it means you are using an opaque material instead of an alpha-tested one.

Models are static until animations move their bones. Just like textures and geometry, animations and animation controllers are given short names in the client entity file. However, simply listing them in the animations object does not make them play.

To actually run an animation, you use the scripts.animate array inside the client entity description. This array runs every frame and evaluates Molang conditions or triggers animation controllers. In format version 1.10.0, you can either list the short name directly to make it run constantly, or map the short name to a Molang expression so it only runs when that expression is true.

{
  "format_version": "1.10.0",
  "minecraft:client_entity": {
    "description": {
      "identifier": "wiki:copper_golem",
      "materials": {
        "default": "entity_alphatest"
      },
      "textures": {
        "default": "textures/entity/copper_golem"
      },
      "geometry": {
        "default": "geometry.copper_golem"
      },
      "animations": {
        "walk": "animation.copper_golem.walk",
        "look_at_target": "animation.common.look_at_target"
      },
      "scripts": {
        "animate": [
          "look_at_target",
          {
            "walk": "query.modified_move_speed > 0.1"
          }
        ]
      },
      "render_controllers": [
        "controller.render.default"
      ]
    }
  }
}

Applies to Minecraft Bedrock 1.10.0 and newer. Client entities use format_version 1.10.0, render controllers use 1.8.0, and modern geometry files use 1.12.0. No experimental toggles are required for any of these visual systems.

Read out of the game itself, so the ids match the version you are building for.