Jumpy Boats Mod Guide: Boat Jumping Mechanics & Configuration
Jumpy Boats adds a simple but game-changing ability: jumping while riding a Boat. Press the jump key to hop your Boat from Water onto Land, scale small slopes, and transport Villagers and animals without the usual frustration of getting stuck on shorelines.
Overview
Jumpy Boats is a quality-of-life mod that gives Boats the ability to jump. Once installed, any Boat you ride becomes capable of small hops, letting you transition seamlessly from Water to Land and even climb gentle slopes without dismounting. The mod doesn't add any new items, blocks, or crafting recipes. It simply modifies vanilla Boat behavior using the same jump mechanic that Horses use.
If you've ever struggled to bring a Villager or animal across a shoreline in a Boat, this mod solves that problem entirely. The jump heights are configurable through a server-side config file, so server operators can tune the experience to their liking.
Getting Started
- 1
Craft a Boat
Jumpy Boats works with every vanilla Boat type. Craft any Boat as you normally would using five Planks (and optionally a Shovel for a Boat with Chest). No special materials or modified crafting recipes are needed.
- 2
Place Your Boat in Water
Place your Boat in Water and hop in by right-clicking it. You'll notice the jump bar appears at the bottom of your screen, just like when riding a Horse. This is the jump charge indicator that controls how high your Boat will hop.
- 3
Charge and Jump
Hold the jump key (Space by default) to charge the jump bar, then release to jump. The longer you hold, the higher the Boat will hop. A fully charged jump from Water applies the full jump height modifier (0.4 by default), while a quick tap produces a smaller hop.
- 4
Hop Onto Land
Drive your Boat toward a shoreline and jump as you approach. The Boat will hop up onto the land surface, letting you continue riding without dismounting. You can even chain jumps on land to scale small inclines one block at a time.
Jumpy Boats uses Minecraft's built-in PlayerRideableJumping interface, the same system that powers Horse jumping. This means you charge jumps by holding Space and release to jump, exactly as you would on a Horse. When jumping from Water, you'll hear a splash sound effect on landing.
How Jumping Works
The mod distinguishes between two jumping contexts: jumping from Water and jumping from Land. Each has its own height modifier that determines how high the Boat launches. When you hold the jump key, the charge level goes from 0 to 100. The final jump velocity is calculated as the height modifier multiplied by the charge level divided by 100. So a fully charged Water jump applies the full 0.4 upward velocity, while a half-charged jump applies 0.2.
The default Water jump height (0.4) is slightly higher than the Land jump height (0.3). This makes sense because jumping from Water needs more force to clear the shoreline and transition onto solid ground. Once on Land, the lower jump height is enough to hop up single-block steps and navigate gentle terrain.
Water vs. Land Behavior
When jumping from Water, the mod tracks that the Boat left the Water surface and plays a splash sound effect (the vanilla Dolphin splash sound) when the jump completes. This gives satisfying audio feedback. Land jumps are silent by comparison. The Boat can only jump when its status is either IN_WATER or ON_LAND; it cannot jump mid-air or while falling.
Configuration
Jumpy Boats is configured through a server-side config file. Since it registers as a SERVER config type, the settings are controlled by the server (or the host in singleplayer). The config file is located at your server or world directory under serverconfig/jumpboat-server.toml. Two options are available.
Configuration Options
| jumpHeightInWater | 0.4 (range: 0.0 to 2,147,483,647) |
| jumpHeightOnLand | 0.3 (range: 0.0 to 2,147,483,647) |
Increasing jumpHeightInWater to around 0.6 lets Boats clear two-block-high shorelines in a single jump, which is helpful on worlds with steep coastal terrain. Be careful going much higher, as the Boat can launch high enough to take fall damage when it lands. A value of 0.3 for Land jumping is comfortable for single-block steps; raise it to 0.5 if you want to hop up two-block inclines on land.
Practical Uses
Villager and Animal Transport
The most impactful use of this mod is making mob transport by Boat far less painful. In vanilla Minecraft, getting a Boat with a Villager or animal from Water onto Land often requires breaking the Boat, pushing the mob, and replacing the Boat repeatedly. With Jumpy Boats, you simply jump the Boat onto shore and keep going. This is especially valuable for long-distance Villager transport where you alternate between waterways and overland paths.
River and Ocean Navigation
Rivers in Minecraft are rarely smooth, continuous waterways. They frequently narrow, become shallow, or are blocked by single blocks of Dirt or Sand. Jumpy Boats lets you hop over these minor obstructions without stopping, turning Rivers into much more practical highways for travel.
Boat on Land Travel
While Boats on Ice are already a well-known fast travel method, Jumpy Boats extends overland Boat viability. You can chain Land jumps to hop up gentle slopes, making it possible to continue riding a Boat short distances across flat or mildly elevated terrain before finding the next body of Water.
Since Jumpy Boats uses a server-side config, the jump height values are controlled by the server operator in multiplayer. If jumping feels different on a server compared to singleplayer, the server likely has custom values set. Ask your server admin about their Jumpy Boats configuration.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Jumpy Boats work with Chest Boats?
Yes. The mod applies to the base Boat class via mixin, so all Boat variants including Chest Boats inherit the jumping ability. Any entity that extends the vanilla Boat class will be able to jump.
Can I use Jumpy Boats on a server where other players don't have it installed?
Jumpy Boats needs to be installed on the server. Since the config is server-side, the mod's logic runs on the server. Both client and server need the mod installed for it to function properly in multiplayer.
Is there a Fabric version?
Yes. The Forge and Fabric versions are separate downloads on CurseForge. Search for "Jumpy Boats Fabric" to find the Fabric edition. Both versions have the same functionality.
How high can the Boat jump?
With default settings, a fully charged Water jump uses a velocity modifier of 0.4 and a Land jump uses 0.3. This is enough to clear one-block height differences. You can increase these values in the config file to jump higher, but very high values may cause the Boat to take fall damage on landing.
Does the jump charge level matter?
Yes. The jump height is proportional to how long you hold the jump key. A quick tap gives a small hop, while holding to full charge gives the maximum jump height. The formula multiplies the config modifier by the charge percentage, so a 50% charge gives half the configured height.
Does Jumpy Boats affect Boat speed or other Boat mechanics?
No. The mod only adds the jump capability. Boat speed, steering, passenger capacity, and all other vanilla Boat mechanics remain unchanged. The mod purely adds vertical velocity when you press jump.