What the Loyalty enchantment does
Loyalty makes a thrown trident fly back to the player who threw it. Without Loyalty, a trident behaves like any other thrown weapon: you have to walk over and pick it up, which gets old fast when you are fighting at range or throwing across water. With Loyalty, you throw, the trident flies, it lands in a block or a mob, and then it pulls itself back to your hand.
The enchantment has three levels: I, II, and III. Higher levels return the trident faster. Most players go after Loyalty III specifically because the speed difference matters once a fight starts.
Loyalty only works on tridents. No other item in the game uses it.
How to get Loyalty
Loyalty comes from enchanted books or, depending on your version, directly from the enchanting table when you place a trident inside. The most reliable path is a librarian villager.
Librarian villager trades
Find a librarian, or convert an unemployed villager into one by placing a lectern next to them. Check the master-level trade slot for an enchanted book. The book a librarian offers is random when their profession locks, so if you do not see Loyalty, break the lectern, place a new one, and let an unemployed villager take the job again. Repeat until Loyalty shows up. Once it does, trade with that villager regularly to stock the emeralds you need for the purchase.
Fishing and chest loot
Enchanted books can come out of fishing rods or from chests in generated structures, but the odds of pulling Loyalty this way are low. Fishing is a side option, not a plan.
Enchanting table
If your version allows it, place the trident in an enchanting table with lapis lazuli and pick a level like any other weapon. If Loyalty does not appear in the offered enchantments, reroll by enchanting a low-cost item to push the seed forward.
Applying a Loyalty book to a trident
Put the trident and the enchanted book in an anvil. The XP cost depends on the trident’s existing enchantments and prior work penalty. If the anvil reads “Too Expensive!”, you have stacked too many anvil operations onto one item. Combine the trident with a fresh trident first to reset the penalty, or build your enchantments onto a fresh trident from the start.
Loyalty levels and what each one feels like
Each level pulls the trident back faster than the level below it. Exact return speed depends on travel distance and what the trident hit, but the broad feel:
- Loyalty I: usable. You will feel the wait between throw and return.
- Loyalty II: noticeably faster. Fine for most fights.
- Loyalty III: fast enough that the trident is back in hand before you are ready to throw again.
The jump from II to III is the biggest one. If you can land a Loyalty III book in trade, take it.
How the trident actually returns
The return path has a few quirks worth knowing.
When the trident lands, it pauses for a moment, then flies in a straight line toward the player. It passes through blocks, water, and most entities on the way back. If your inventory is full when it reaches you, the trident drops at your feet as a normal item. Pick it up before it despawns.
If you walk through a Nether portal or End portal while the trident is mid-throw, the trident does not follow. It stays in the dimension you left it in.
If you die before the trident gets back, it lands at the spot where it last stuck and joins your death-loot run.
Loyalty does not change durability cost. Each throw still uses one durability point. Pair Loyalty with Unbreaking III and Mending if you plan to throw the trident often.
Loyalty and Riptide cannot share a trident
Loyalty and Riptide are mutually exclusive enchantments. You can put one on a given trident, not both. The two answer different questions about how you want to use the weapon.
Riptide turns the trident into a movement tool. Throw it in rain or while standing in water, and it launches you in the direction you aimed. The trident does not come back because the trident is whatever you land holding.
Loyalty turns the trident into a ranged weapon you keep. Throw, hit, get it back. It works in any weather, on any surface, against any target.
Players who use tridents often carry two: one with Loyalty III, Channeling, and Impaling for combat, and one with Riptide III for travel. If you only have one trident, Loyalty is usually the better pick because Riptide only works when wet.
What to combine Loyalty with
Loyalty on its own makes the trident useful as a ranged weapon. To get the most out of it, pair it with the enchantments that fix the trident’s other weaknesses.
Channeling I turns the trident into a lightning rod. Throw a Channeling trident at a mob during a thunderstorm and the storm strikes that mob. Combined with Loyalty, you get a lightning bolt that returns to your hand.
Impaling V adds a large damage bonus against ocean mobs. In Java, that means damage against guardians, elder guardians, drowned, squid, and turtles. In Bedrock, Impaling also adds damage to any mob standing in water or rain, which is a real difference between editions and worth knowing if you raid ocean monuments often.
Unbreaking III stretches the trident’s durability. Each throw costs one durability point, so a heavily used Loyalty trident burns through durability fast without Unbreaking.
Mending repairs the trident with experience orbs you pick up. Pair it with Unbreaking and the trident will outlast almost anything you throw it at.
The combination of Loyalty III, Channeling I, Impaling V, Unbreaking III, and Mending is the standard late-game trident setup. Build it in stages on an anvil to keep the prior-work cost manageable.
Common mistakes and tips
A few things that catch new trident users off guard:
Inventory full when the trident comes back. If you cannot pick it up because your hotbar and inventory are jammed, the trident sits on the ground and starts the standard 5-minute despawn timer. Clear a slot before a fight starts.
Throwing into the void. If your trident lands in the void (in the End or a custom void area), Loyalty cannot bring it back. The void deletes items. Same idea if you throw it past the world border.
Throwing across lava lakes. The trident still returns, but it slows down as it travels through lava. Aim around lava in the Nether rather than over it.
Do not waste a Loyalty book on a low-durability trident. Repair the trident first by combining two tridents on an anvil to refresh durability before you sink XP into enchantments.
Save the prior-work budget for the enchantments you want. A fully built combat trident usually carries Loyalty III, Channeling I, Impaling V, Unbreaking III, and Mending. Plan the order so the anvil costs stay manageable.
Java vs Bedrock differences
Loyalty works in both editions at the same three levels. Return speed numbers and a few edge cases (like exactly how the trident behaves around lava or in moving water) can vary slightly. The basic loop is identical: throw, hit, return. If you play on Bedrock and you are not sure how your trident will behave in a tricky situation, test in a creative world before you commit. Impaling is the bigger Bedrock difference here, not Loyalty itself.
Frequently asked questions
Can you put Loyalty on a sword or a bow?
No. Loyalty only applies to tridents. It does not exist on any other weapon.
Does Loyalty work on tridents thrown by drowned?
No. A drowned mob throwing a trident does not trigger Loyalty mechanics. The trident drops to the ground when it lands, and you pick it up like any other dropped item.
Can you combine Loyalty and Riptide on the same trident?
No. The two are mutually exclusive. Picking one means giving up the other on that trident.
Does Loyalty change throw distance or damage?
No. Loyalty only affects what happens after the trident lands. Throw distance and impact damage are the same as on an unenchanted trident. For more damage, add Impaling.
What is the maximum level of Loyalty?
Loyalty III. There is no Loyalty IV in vanilla Minecraft, though servers with custom plugins may allow higher numbers.
Does the trident still cost durability on each throw?
Yes. Each throw uses one durability point. Add Unbreaking and Mending if you plan to use the trident often.
Can Loyalty come on an enchanted book?
Yes. Librarian villager trades, fishing, and chest loot can produce a Loyalty book at level I, II, or III. Combine the book with a trident on an anvil to apply it.
The short version
If you find a trident, put Loyalty on it before you put anything else on it. Nothing else changes the weapon as much. Once the trident comes back on its own, it stops being a one-throw spear and starts being a ranged option you will actually carry into fights.