Master the Minecraft Tellraw Command

Hey there, fellow Minecrafters! Today, we’re diving deep into a super cool, yet sometimes a bit tricky, command that can really level up your game: the tellraw command. If you’ve ever wanted to create custom messages, add interactive elements, or just make your world feel a whole lot more dynamic, then you’ve come to the right place. We’re going to break down exactly what tellraw is, how it works, and share some awesome examples to get your creative juices flowing. So, grab your pickaxe and let’s get started on becoming tellraw pros!

What Exactly is the tellraw Command?

Alright guys, let’s get down to brass tacks. The tellraw command is your golden ticket to sending fancy, formatted text messages in Minecraft. Unlike the basic /say or /tell commands that just spit out plain text, tellraw allows you to get super creative with how messages appear. We’re talking about adding colors, making text bold or italic, including clickable links, and even adding hover-over text. It’s like going from a black-and-white newspaper to a full-color, interactive magazine for your in-game communication. This command is a game-changer for map makers, server admins, and anyone who just wants to add a bit more flair to their Minecraft experience. You can use it to display important information, create quest logs, give hints to players, or even build elaborate narrative elements right into your world. The possibilities are pretty much endless, limited only by your imagination and how deep you’re willing to dive into JSON formatting – but don’t worry, we’ll make that part easy!

Basic Syntax and Structure

So, how do you actually use this magical command? The basic structure of the tellraw command looks like this: tellraw <selector> <JSON message> . Let’s break that down. First, you have the <selector> . This is pretty straightforward – it’s who you want to receive the message. You can target specific players (like "@p" for the nearest player, "@a" for all players, "@s" for yourself, or a specific player’s name), or even entities. Then comes the really interesting part: the <JSON message> . This is where all the magic happens. It’s a JSON (JavaScript Object Notation) string that tells Minecraft how to display your text. Don’t let the word ‘JSON’ scare you; it’s essentially a structured way of writing data, and for tellraw , it’s used to define the text, its formatting, and any special actions. The simplest JSON message is just a string containing your text, like tellraw @a "Hello, everyone!" . But to unlock the real power, you’ll want to use a more complex JSON object. This object can contain various properties, the most important being "text" , which holds your actual message content. You can also include formatting properties like "color" , "bold" , "italic" , "underlined" , and "strikethrough" . Plus, you can add "clickEvent" and "hoverEvent" for interactive messages. We’ll get into those in more detail soon. Remember, the syntax for JSON is crucial – pay attention to quotation marks, commas, and curly braces, as even a small mistake can prevent the command from working. It’s like building with LEGOs; everything needs to snap into place perfectly!

Unleashing the Power: Formatting Text with tellraw

Now that we’ve got the basics down, let’s dive into the fun stuff: making your messages look amazing . The tellraw command’s true strength lies in its ability to format text using JSON. This means you can go way beyond just plain old letters and numbers. Think vibrant colors, bold declarations, mysterious italics, and even text that’s been crossed out for dramatic effect. These formatting options aren’t just for show; they can be used to highlight important information, create different tones of voice for NPCs, or just make your chat more visually engaging. We’re going to explore how to apply these styles individually and even combine them to create truly unique messages that will grab your players’ attention.

Colors and Styles: Making Your Text Pop!

One of the most common ways to use tellraw is by adding color to your messages. Minecraft supports a wide range of colors, and you can apply them using the "color" property in your JSON. For example, to send a red message to all players, you’d use: tellraw @a {"text":"This is a warning!","color":"red"} . Pretty neat, right? You can use any of the standard Minecraft color names like "blue" , "green" , "yellow" , "gold" , "aqua" , "light_purple" , "dark_red" , "dark_green" , etc. But wait, there’s more! You can also make your text stand out with other styling properties. Want to make something really important? Use "bold": true . Need to add a touch of mystery or elegance? Try "italic": true . You can even underline text with "underlined": true or strike through it with "strikethrough": true . And the best part? You can combine these! For instance, to send a bold, dark red warning message, you could write: tellraw @a {"text":"URGENT ALERT!","color":"dark_red","bold":true} . This allows for a huge amount of customization. Imagine using bold red for critical alerts, yellow for important tips, and green for successful actions. It helps players quickly scan chat and understand the context of messages, making your world feel more alive and responsive. Mastering these basic formatting options is the first big step towards unlocking the full potential of tellraw . It’s all about making your communication clear, engaging, and visually appealing.

The Power of Clickable Text: Click Events

Now, let’s talk about making your messages interactive . This is where the tellraw command truly shines and separates itself from basic chat commands. The "clickEvent" property allows you to make parts of your text clickable, triggering specific actions when a player clicks on them. This opens up a whole new world of possibilities for adventure maps, minigames, and server management. Think about creating buttons in chat that players can click to accept quests, open shops, or teleport to different locations. The structure for a clickEvent involves two key parts: "action" and "value" . The "action" specifies what should happen when clicked, and the "value" provides the details for that action. Common actions include: "open_url" (opens a web link), "run_command" (executes a command in the game), "suggest_command" (inserts a command into the player’s chat input, allowing them to edit it before sending), and "copy_to_clipboard" (copies text to the player’s clipboard, useful for sharing data). For example, to create a clickable link to a website, you’d use: tellraw @a {"text":"Visit our website!","color":"blue","underlined":true,"clickEvent":{"action":"open_url","value":"https://www.example.com"}} . Or, to create a button that runs a command, like /home , you could use: tellraw @a {"text":"Go Home","color":"green","bold":true,"clickEvent":{"action":"run_command","value":"/home"}} . This is incredibly powerful for guiding players through your world or providing quick access to game features. You can even combine this with suggestions: tellraw @a {"text":"Suggest command /gamemode creative","color":"purple","italic":true,"clickEvent":{"action":"suggest_command","value":"/gamemode creative "}} . The suggest_command is particularly useful for helping players learn commands without them having to type them out perfectly. Remember, the value for run_command and suggest_command needs to be a valid command string, including the leading slash. This interactivity makes your Minecraft world feel much more alive and user-friendly!

Hovering Over Details: Hover Events

Complementing the clickEvent is the "hoverEvent" . This allows you to display custom text when a player hovers their mouse cursor over a specific piece of tellraw text. It’s perfect for providing extra information, tooltips, item descriptions, or even hidden messages. Like clickEvent , hoverEvent has an "action" and a "value" . The most common action is "show_text" , which displays additional text. You can even use another JSON string as the value for show_text , allowing you to format the hover text itself! For example, to show a tooltip with more information when hovering over a message: tellraw @a {"text":"Hover over me!","color":"yellow","hoverEvent":{"action":"show_text","value":"This is some extra info!"}} . You can also use colored or formatted text in the hover event’s value: tellraw @a {"text":"Special Item","color":"gold","hoverEvent":{"action":"show_text","value":{"text":"A rare artifact with mysterious powers.","color":"light_purple","italic":true}}} . This is incredibly useful for displaying item lore without cluttering the player’s inventory screen, or for giving contextual hints during gameplay. Imagine creating a quest giver NPC whose dialogue shows a detailed quest description when hovered over. Or perhaps providing detailed stats for a custom item. The show_entity , show_item , and show_achievement actions are also available, allowing you to display information about entities, items, or achievements directly in the hover text, making it even more dynamic. For instance, show_item can display NBT data about an item, giving players intricate details about its enchantments, durability, or custom names. The combination of clickEvent and hoverEvent transforms tellraw from a simple messaging tool into a powerful narrative and interactive design element. It’s all about providing context and enabling action seamlessly within the game’s interface.

Advanced tellraw Techniques for Experts

Once you’ve got a solid grasp on basic formatting and events, you’re ready to explore some more advanced techniques that can make your tellraw messages truly stand out. This involves nesting JSON objects, using selectors within the message, and even creating complex chains of text. These methods allow for more dynamic content generation and can make your Minecraft worlds feel incredibly polished and professional. Don’t be intimidated; with a little practice, you’ll be crafting intricate messages like a pro.

Text Components and extra Array

One of the most powerful features for creating complex messages is the "extra" array. Instead of just having a single "text" field, you can use "extra" to create a list of multiple text components, each with its own formatting and events. This allows you to build a single, cohesive message out of several distinct parts. Each element in the "extra" array is itself a JSON object representing a text component. This means you can have a bold red word followed by a blue italic word, all within the same tellraw message. For example: tellraw @a {"text":"This is","color":"white","extra":[{"text":" bold red","color":"red","bold":true},{"text":" and this is","color":"white"},{"text":" blue italic","color":"blue","italic":true}]} . This structure is incredibly useful for creating grammatically correct sentences with different styles or for highlighting specific keywords within a larger block of text. You can apply different colors, styles, and even clickEvent or hoverEvent to each individual component within the "extra" array. This level of control allows for much more sophisticated communication. Imagine creating a tutorial where each step is a separate component, or a news announcement where key details are emphasized. The "extra" array is the backbone of building dynamic and multi-formatted messages. It’s how you construct elaborate narratives or instructions piece by piece, ensuring clarity and visual appeal. Always remember that the first component can be a standard "text" object, and subsequent components are then added within the "extra" array. It’s like writing a sentence where you can change the font and color mid-word if you wanted to!

Using Selectors and Variables within Messages

Leveraging selectors and variables within your tellraw messages can make them incredibly dynamic and personalized. Instead of hardcoding everything, you can have messages adapt to the specific player or game state. The "selector" key within a JSON text component allows you to insert the name of a player or entity directly into the chat message. For instance, if you want to greet the nearest player by their name, you could use: tellraw @a {"text":"Hello, ","extra":[{"selector":"@p","color":"gold"}]} . This will insert the name of the player closest to the command block or sender into the message. You can also combine this with other formatting and events. For more advanced scenarios, especially on servers with plugins or command block contraptions, you might use scoreboards or NBT data to insert dynamic information. While tellraw itself doesn’t directly parse NBT or scoreboard values into text within the JSON string in the same way as selectors, you can achieve this by having another command block or function run a command that outputs the desired text into chat using tellraw . For example, a scoreboard objective could track a player’s kills, and another command could use tellraw to display “Player [Name] has [Score] kills.” If you’re using a plugin like Essentials or have custom commands, they might offer ways to directly embed variables. However, for vanilla Minecraft, the selector is your primary tool for dynamically inserting player names. This makes messages feel much more personal and relevant. Imagine a welcome message that says, “Welcome to the server, [Player Name]!” or a death message that accurately reports who defeated whom. It adds a layer of sophistication and immersion that plain text messages simply can’t match.

Combining Multiple tellraw Commands for Complex Effects

Sometimes, a single tellraw command just isn’t enough to achieve the complex effect you’re aiming for. This is where chaining multiple tellraw commands comes in handy. You can execute them sequentially using command blocks, function files, or even by using the suggest_command or run_command click events within a tellraw message itself! For example, you might want to display a series of messages that build upon each other, perhaps revealing a story or giving multi-step instructions. You could have one tellraw command display an introduction, and then a clickable button within that message that, when clicked, executes a second tellraw command with the next part of the message. tellraw @a {"text":"[Part 1] Click here for the next part!","color":"green","clickEvent":{"action":"run_command","value":"/tellraw @a [\"{\\\"text\\\":\\\"[Part 2] Here is the next piece of information.\\",\\\"color\\\":\\\"yellow\\\"}\"]"}} . Notice the tricky escaping of quotation marks ( \" ) needed when nesting JSON within JSON inside a command string. This technique allows for dynamic unfolding of information, creating a more engaging experience for the player. It’s also useful for creating elaborate UIs or menus where each click reveals new options or information. You can also use function files in datapacks to string together many tellraw commands with different messages, formatting, and events, executing them in a specific order. This is the professional’s approach to creating complex interactive narratives or game mechanics within Minecraft. By breaking down a large task into smaller, manageable tellraw commands, you can achieve sophisticated results that feel polished and professional.

Practical Examples and Use Cases

To really solidify your understanding, let’s look at some practical examples of how you can use the tellraw command in your Minecraft worlds. These scenarios should give you plenty of ideas for your own projects, whether you’re building a small adventure map or running a large server.

Welcome Messages and Server Announcements

Greeting new players or making server-wide announcements is a classic use case for tellraw . Instead of a boring plain text message, you can create a welcoming experience:

tellraw @a {"text":"Welcome to","color":"aqua","bold":true} {"text":"","extra":[{"text":" AmazingServer!","color":"gold","bold":true,"italic":true}]}

For announcements, you can use colors and formatting to draw attention:

tellraw @a {"text":"[ANNOUNCEMENT]","color":"red","bold":true} {"text":" The server will restart in 5 minutes. Please log out safely.","color":"yellow"}

Adding clickable links to server rules or websites can also be very helpful:

tellraw @a {"text":"Read our rules:","color":"blue","underlined":true,"clickEvent":{"action":"open_url","value":"https://www.example.com/rules"}}

Quest Givers and NPCs

Bringing your NPCs to life is where tellraw really shines. You can create dialogue boxes with choices:

tellraw @p {"text":"Greetings, traveler!","color":"green"}

tellraw @p {"text":"[Accept Quest]","color":"lime","bold":true,"clickEvent":{"action":"run_command","value":"/quest start tutorial"}} {"text":" | "} {"text":"[Decline]","color":"red","italic":true,"clickEvent":{"action":"run_command","value":"/quest decline"}}

You can also use hover events to provide backstory or quest details:

tellraw @p {"text":"The ancient artifact…","color":"gray","hoverEvent":{"action":"show_text","value":{"text":"This artifact is said to grant immense power, but at a terrible cost.","color":"dark_purple"}}}

Interactive Maps and Minigames

For adventure map creators and minigame hosts, tellraw is invaluable for creating interactive elements without relying solely on buttons or signs.

Creating custom menus: tellraw @p {"text":"[Main Menu]","color":"blue","bold":true,"clickEvent":{"action":"suggest_command","value":"/menu "}}

Displaying scores or game status: tellraw @a {"text":"Your Score:","color":"gold"} {"selector":"@s","color":"yellow"}

Giving hints or instructions that appear only when hovered over: tellraw @a {"text":"???","color":"white","italic":true,"hoverEvent":{"action":"show_text","value":"Perhaps there's a hidden lever nearby..."}}

Common Pitfalls and Troubleshooting

Even with the best intentions, you might run into some snags when using tellraw . Don’t worry, it happens to the best of us! Understanding common errors can save you a lot of frustration. The most frequent culprit is incorrect JSON syntax. Minecraft is very particular about this. Ensure all quotation marks are properly placed (double quotes for keys and string values), commas separate elements in objects and arrays, and braces {} and brackets [] are correctly matched. Even a misplaced comma or a missing quote can break the entire message. Another issue can be incorrect selectors or command syntax within clickEvent or hoverEvent values. Always double-check that the commands you’re trying to run or suggest are valid and that the URLs for open_url are correct. If your message isn’t appearing at all, start with the simplest possible tellraw command and gradually add complexity, testing at each step. Use online JSON validators or tellraw generators if you’re struggling with complex structures. Remember that tellraw messages are sent as a single JSON string, so if you’re trying to chain commands using run_command , you’ll need to escape nested quotes correctly. For example, to run /tellraw @a {"text":"inner message"} , the command would look like /tellraw @a {"text":"Click to send inner message","clickEvent":{"action":"run_command","value":"/tellraw @a [\\"{\\\"text\\\":\\\"inner message\\\"}\\"]"}} . This escaping can be a headache, but it’s essential for nested commands. Pay close attention to the number of backslashes needed. For debugging, try simplifying your command drastically. If tellraw @a {"text":"Test"} works, but tellraw @a {"text":"Hello", "color":"red"} doesn’t, the problem is likely with the formatting part. If that works, but tellraw @a {"text":"Click","clickEvent":{"action":"run_command","value":"/say hi"}} doesn’t, the issue is with the click event. Always test incrementally!

Conclusion

And there you have it, folks! You’ve just taken a deep dive into the powerful and versatile tellraw command in Minecraft. We’ve covered everything from basic text formatting with colors and styles to creating interactive experiences with clickEvent and hoverEvent . You’ve learned about advanced techniques like using the "extra" array for complex messages and incorporating selectors for dynamic content. We’ve also looked at practical examples and common troubleshooting tips to help you master this command. The tellraw command is an essential tool for anyone looking to add depth, interactivity, and polish to their Minecraft world. Whether you’re building adventure maps, running a server, or just want to send a cool-looking message to your friends, tellraw offers unparalleled creative freedom. So go forth, experiment, and start crafting your own amazing messages! Happy building, and happy chatting!