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HOSTILE MOBS.
Hostile mobs are dangerous monsters that roam the land serching for you. It is your job as the player to slay these demons to survive
Some live in caves, some live in hell, some even live outside your front door!
Now, lets take a look at these dangerous beasts.
BLAZE
GENERAL
Their bodies are made up of a head atop a central column of smoke, and three rotating sections. Each rotating section contains four floating yellow rods.
Blazes can fly and shoot Fire Charges. They make a metallic breathing sound
BEHAVIOR
Although Blazes are able to fly, they will stay on the ground or sink down slowly in the air when not attacking.
Blazes will attempt to swim upwards in lava much like regular mobs behave in water. When they see a player, they will start flying and shooting.
They will catch fire briefly before shooting a three round burst of Fire Charges. A short cool down period occurs between attacks.
In addition to normal weapons such as swords and bows, Blazes can be hurt by water and snowballs, as well as rain, if they have found a way into the overworld.
Water does roughly 1 damage every second. They are not damaged by fire or lava. If killed, they drop Blaze Rods.
CREEPER
GENERAL
The Creeper is a hostile mob that will ambush players and explode, causing damage to the player and the surrounding blocks and mobs.
Unlike Zombies and Skeletons, Creepers will not catch fire in direct sunlight, meaning they can wander around unharmed any time of the day until it is killed, like Spiders. However, the creeper will still be aggressive during the day, unlike spiders.
Creepers spawn in the overworld at night and in locations with a light level of 7 or less, just like regular hostile mobs (though they do not have a Spawner in vanilla minecraft.) They are especially dangerous as they are almost completely silent (except for footsteps and their hissing noises when ready to explode), and their explosion is devastating at short range.
Creepers run from Cats and Ocelots and will even ignore the player to run away when a feline is too close. The Creeper has gained considerable notoriety among Minecraft players for their infuriating habit of sneaking up on the player and killing/hurting them and/or damaging structures.
The creeper is a handless humanoid creature, with four short curvy legs, large empty eye sockets, a mouth twisted into a sad expression and a greenish skin with some gray spots. When asked to describe the physical texture of a Creeper, Notch (Creater of Minecraft) said they would feel "crunchy, like dry leaves"
BEHAVIOR
Creepers will chase after any player they see within a 16 block radius. Creepers will climb steps, navigate mazes, and traverse other complex obstacles in order to get as close as possible to the player. They will cease pursuit if the player moves more than 16 blocks away. A Creeper will also stalk the player, making it very hard to escape when the player is busy doing something else.
When within one block of a player, a Creeper will hiss loudly, start flashing and inflating, and violently explode after 1.5 seconds. Killing a Creeper before the countdown finishes will prevent it from detonating. A Creeper's detonation can be halted if the player moves out of the blast radius (about 3 - 5 depending on the difficulty you are playing on.)
If a Creeper is attacked by another mob, they will chase that mob and explode when close enough, just as they do with players. This can happen when a Creeper gets caught in the crossfire between the player and a skeleton. However, they do not do this in 1.2.5 unless you're in creative mode and the creeper isn't aggressive. If the skeleton shoots the creeper it will explode at close range. If you try to do this in survival mode the creeper will get shot but that will push it forward to you.
Creepers make no sound, except for common mob sounds like footsteps, splashing in water, etc. Their only unique sounds are the sharp hissing and clicking noises they make when they get hurt.
If the player manages to block a creeper behind a soul sand one-way entrance, they can approach up to two blocks without triggering the countdown, but if they suddenly go into a sneaking position, the creeper will hiss and initialize the countdown. This demonstrates that creepers count down farther away if the player is at a lower elevation, and will only count down if much closer to a player are at a higher elevation - probably because players can outrun explosions at a higher altitude and are more shielded from the blast there.
Creepers are afraid of cats and will flee from a cat or ocelot if one is too close, even if the player is within their range of sight. A creeper which sees a cat will run directly away from the cat as best as possible, and come to a stop after a "safe" distance has been reached. This distance is smaller than the creeper's range of sight, and this results in a possible endless cycle of approach and fleeing if a player is standing near a cat. Creepers still will detonate in their fleeing mode and thus are still a danger if the player gets too close
Explosive Power
A creeper's explosion is 25% less powerful than that of TNT, with an explosive power of 3. Charged creeper explosions are 50% more powerful than TNT and twice that of a normal creeper's.
As with TNT and Ghast fireballs, all dropped items in the explosion radius will be destroyed. A certain percentage of blocks destroyed by the creeper will survive the blast and can be picked up. In terms of environmental damage, the harder the material caught in an explosion, the less damaging the explosion will be to anything behind the material. Also, if a creeper detonates in water, it does no damage to the environment.
GHAST
GENERAL
Ghasts are very large, jellyfish or ghost-like mobs that float through the air and shoot fireballs from their mouths. Their bodies are 4 blocks tall and 4 blocks wide with 9 tentacle-like limbs hanging from the bottom. They first appeared in the Halloween Update. Ghasts are able to spawn above any non-transparent block in the Nether, as long as there is sufficient space (at least a 5*4*5 space, with the base centered above a solid block) and the game is not in Peaceful mode
BEHAVIOR
Ghasts normally float around with their eyes and mouth closed and periodically make high-pitched, cat- or infant-like sounds. They open their red eyes and mouth when attacking. They make a chirp-like noise when shooting and scream pitifully when taking damage. The sounds that Ghasts make have a minimum intensity regardless of their distance, so they often sound closer when they are actually far away. As of Beta 1.8.1, the Ghast will let out a death rattle upon being killed - similar to the death cries that Zombies and Spiders use when killed. Fireballs do not home in on the player, and can be deflected if the player hits them with an arrow or melee attack.
Unlike most other aggressive mobs, the Ghast does not have a pursuit mode - it does not attempt to draw closer to the player when at long range (and likewise is not particularly likely to float away). Compared to other mobs, the Ghast has a very long search range and can target a player up to 100 blocks away.[1] When the player comes within about sixteen blocks, the Ghast will open fire and attempt to gain altitude.
Ghasts will not fire at the player without a line-of-sight - this can be blocked by glass, glass panes, leaves, Nether portals, vines, iron bars, both types of fences, and cobwebs - making safe scenic paths through the Nether a viable possibility. When not moving, Ghasts within firing range will face the player, giving the impression that they can see through transparent materials. Ghasts can draw a line-of-sight through curtains of lava, and their fireballs can pass through it meaning players near a pillar of lava can be struck without seeing the source. However, the Ghast can "cancel" its fireball while shooting if the player moves behind an obstruction or builds one.
Ghasts may drop a ghast tear when killed, but this can be hard to collect - because it is a flying mob, the tear may fall into lava or an inaccessible area. Ghast tears are a positive potion ingredient for Regeneration potions, so Ghast tears are well worth obtaining.
If shot at by a Ghast just try to hit the fireball back at the Ghast; if you happen to hit the Ghast, it will die in one hit. Doing this will also earn you the Return To Sender achievement. Also, when in the Nether, always build a cobblestone wall around your portal to prevent it being deactivated by a Ghast, for Ghasts cannot destroy cobblestone.
A Ghast fireball will deactivate an active portal, but a second fireball will (re-)activate the inactive frame. (Or you can just use a flint and steel or a fire charge.)
FIRE SHOTS
The Ghast's fireball attack has a straight trajectory unaffected by gravity and an unlimited or very long range limited in practice only by the confines of the Nether's caverns. Their explosions can often be heard without the impact being seen. At close range, it is one of the most powerful mob attacks in Minecraft, third only to the explosion of a Creeper and the melee attack of an Iron Golem or the explosion of a wither skeleton skull powered by a Wither. A direct hit from point blank range will deal 8.5 hearts of damage but damage decreases with distance and is less if the player is simply caught in the blast radius. However, fire damage from a direct hit will most likely kill the unprotected player.
Additionally, the projectile is fairly slow and aims slightly above the player's head. When two Ghast fireballs collide, one is deflected to a random direction while the other explodes upon impact.
Hitting a Ghast fireball with an item held in hand, an empty hand or a fired arrow will deflect the fireball in the direction of the player's aim. Charged arrows may destroy the fireball instead of deflecting it. Again, a Ghast struck by its own fireball (or even another Ghast's fireball) will be killed instantly, however this is very hard to do.
If a Ghast's fireball hits a portal or hits close to it the portal will be closed, requiring re-ignition. If the player manages to get a Ghast to fire at the portal while it is closed, it can be reignited using the fireball. Blocks are also set on fire by the explosion, adding an extra hazard to fighting Ghasts.
The minimum block resistance required to absorb all blast force of the Ghast's fireballs is 20.17, meaning that fences and other blocks with low blast resistance will be destroyed in a fireball explosion.
Cobblestone is a good building material to use, as it is strong enough to resist a Ghast's fireball. Other safe materials include bricks, stone brick, Nether brick (including Nether brick fences), iron bars, and iron doors. Netherrack should not be used, as it is easily destroyed by explosions, and fires set on it by Ghast fireballs will not burn out.
On multiplayer if you log out when a ghast fireball is flying when you log back in it will slow to a stop and can be hit to launch again (at your aim)
MAGMA CUBE
GENERAL
Magma Cubes are hostile mobs with dark red and black skin and red, orange and yellow eyes found around The Nether. When killed, they release 2-4 smaller versions of themselves in addition to Experience Orbs, similar to Slimes. When they move, they jump up and momentarily unravel into several layers, giving them the appearance of a spring and revealing a molten lava core inside
BEHAVIOR
Magma Cubes are reddish brown cubes with vaguely similar eyes to Creepers and Slimes, but bright orange. Although they look like normal slime size, when they jump they separate into 8 layers in a spring-like fashion, revealing a bright orange lava core. They release the same fire particles as spawners upon landing.
SILVERFISH
GENERAL
Silverfish are small, bug-like hostile mobs which have silver skin and black eyes that hide in Monster Eggs most often found in strongholds, but occasionally found beneath extreme hills biomes. There are three types of Monster Eggs: Stone, Cobblestone, and Stone Brick Monster Eggs. Each of them look identical to normal blocks, but take slightly more time to mine than normal with a pickaxe, and will take noticeably less time to mine without one. When the block is mined, the silverfish pops out and attacks. Destroying the blocks via Creepers or TNT simply kills the silverfish. In regular gameplay, Silverfish are only found in strongholds and rarely in extreme hills biome. If left alone, silverfish can re-enter some blocks, namely cobblestone, regular stone, and stone bricks.
As of 1.0.0 (and possibly earlier), Silverfish can cause damage to a player. The coding behind them allows this to occur when a silverfish is touching a player and a change of the Y-coordinate of either the player or silverfish occurs. This can easily kill a player, since - in a confined space - receiving damage causes the player to perform a short "hop," which counts as a Y-coord change, which allows for the silverfish to damage the player again as the player is coming back down from the initial damage hop. Formerly, Silverfish could not damage the player directly, but would scurry towards the player and push them around, with the tendency to be aggravating and potentially dangerous.
When attacked (but not killed), Silverfish may awaken other Silverfish blocks within a 21x11x21 block area around them. This can lead to a terrifying swarm if there are enough in the vicinity, and an uncontrolled swarm can quickly destroy dozens of stone bricks within a Stronghold. They scurry away after the player moves a short distance.
BEHAVIOR
Silverfish spawn from Monster Eggs and monster spawners, which are only found in strongholds and randomly underground in Extreme Hills biomes from silverfish blocks when broken. When spawning from monster spawners, they can only spawn in light level 11 or lower, except on top of stone blocks, where they can spawn at any light level. They also cannot spawn within a 5 block distance of any player. These restrictions only apply when spawning from a monster spawner, and not from a Silverfish block.
SPIDER JOCKEY
GENERAL
A Spider Jockey is the rare appearance of a spider being ridden by a skeleton. A Spider Jockey possesses the ranged arrow attack of a skeleton plus the vision, agility, and wall-climbing ability of a spider, and the two creatures attack and take damage individually. The skeleton and spider are treated as separate entities in the game (i.e. if the spider is killed, the skeleton will continue to attack and move, and vice-versa).
A Spider Jockey can spawn above and below ground. However, generally, underground skeleton riders die of suffocation, due to the spider scaling walls, causing the skeleton to have its head raised into the ceiling and suffocate
BEHAVIOR
The spider controls the movement, so a Spider Jockey will wander aimlessly in the day and only pursue the player at night or in dimly lit areas when the spider is hunting. However, the skeleton will turn and fire at the player as soon as it sees them no matter the time of day (although the skeleton will quickly burn in sunlight, leaving the spider unharmed). Because spiders can detect a player through solid blocks, Spider Jockeys can ambush unsuspecting players in sufficient darkness. If the skeleton shoots another hostile mob, it will focus its attack on the skeleton but not the spider being ridden, even after the skeleton is killed.
When exposed to sunlight, the skeleton will burn and die like a normal skeleton, but the spider will remain active and deadly.
Sometimes, a skeleton can get off a spider after a certain amount of time. This happens because of code within every entity's AI to occasionally decide to dismount the entity it is currently riding, which is used for when they are on boats or minecarts
SKELETON
GENERAL
Skeletons are ranged, hostile mobs that shoot arrows at the player and any other mob that attack it. Like zombies, skeletons spawn in dimly lit areas, and will burn when directly in sunlight (when the sun is 15 degrees or greater above the ground) unless they are swimming in water. The skeleton will not burn if not directly in view of the sun, e.g. underneath a tree.
Since their initial introduction into the game, skeletons have received an AI update that has allowed them be about as "intelligent" as zombies, since they were both given similar AI updates. Skeletons can since now seek cover when on fire, and can perform many other "smarter" actions.
BEHAVIOR
When skeletons are nearby, their presence is indicated by the soft rattling sound of their bones. Skeletons will chase any player they see within a 16 block radius. They will climb steps, navigate mazes, and traverse other complex obstacles in order to get close to the player. When they are within 8 blocks of the player, with a clear line of sight, they will stop chasing and start shooting the player with arrows. If the player moves more than 16 blocks away from the skeleton, it will cease pursuit. In the old versions, the skeleton would have started to "bunnyhop" around you while shooting arrows. This was removed in 1.2, because Notch and Jeb thought it was then harder to kill the skeleton. Skeletons will attempt to avoid damage from the player by continuously circling around them while in combat. The general path finding capabilities of the skeleton is demonstrated in this video.
If a skeleton's arrow hits another hostile mob, that mob will then attack the skeleton the same way it would attack the player (with the exception of zombies and creepers, which usually manage to continue pursuing the player).
Skeletons are unique in that they can hit an Enderman with their arrows, which the player can't do. However, this will result in the Enderman becoming hostile towards the skeleton and killing it in a few blows.
Skeletons normally attack with a bow, however if they pick up a weapon they will switch to melee, unless the item is another bow.
Skeletons will attempt to avoid sunlight by running under shade or into water
Skeletons can pick up and equip armor. They can also place pumpkins on their head
SLIME
GENERAL
A slime is a hostile, animate, green, gelatinous, hopping mob in the shape of a cube that appears in various sizes. They are able to see the player through solid blocks. When killed, a slime will split into smaller slimes, except for the smallest slime which will drop slimeballs instead. Slimes are found in either the lowest 40 layers of certain chunks, or (as of the 2012 Halloween update) in swamp biomes. On Xbox 360, slimes are found only below layer 16. Slimes can spawn in flatland world types because its world generation level is 3 blocks above bedrock.
BEHAVIOR
Slime size: 1 to 256 although only 1,2, and 4 sized slimes spawn naturally.
Slimes move by hopping. Every interval before hopping takes 10 ticks to 30 ticks. The Slime will search and if it can find a player within 16 blocks (spherical) distance,
If a player is found
The Slime's direction will be set to the player's, and the intervals
between jumping will be divided by 3.
If no players are found
An angle between 57.259� & -57.259�(1 rad) will be added to the current direction of the Slime.
The Slime will jump and repeat the process until it finds a player or until it despawns.
Interaction with environment
Each time a Slime lands (Slime size * 8) Slime particles are spawned.
Slimes cannot swim upward in water, and will eventually drown if the water is deep enough.
Slimes can trample farmland.
Slimes can take damage in all the usual ways: burning, falling, drowning, suffocating inside blocks, being attacked, falling into The Void, etc.
Slimes can climb ladders, and be pushed over slabs & stairs.
Only large Slimes generate sound when they land.
Only medium, large Slimes will generate sound when they jump.
An interesting observation about slimes is that when you spawn at least five of them in the overworld, they all seem to hop in the same direction rather than wandering around aimlessly like a regular mob. This also applies for Magma Cubes
SPIDER
GENERAL
The spider is an arachnid-like mob that is neutral in sufficient light levels and hostile towards the player at night and in dark, shadowy areas. They are able to see the player through solid blocks. A spider measures 2 x 2 x 1 blocks, with brownish-gray skin and red eyes that glow eerily in the dark. Because of their dimensions, spiders cannot enter 1-block wide spaces that zombies, skeletons, and creepers can, but it can crawl into 1-block high gaps (as long as they are 2 or more blocks wide). Spiders' distinctive hissing noises can alert a player to their presence - creepers make a similar, much shorter noise when damaged. Spiders are easier to hit with arrows due to their size, but can quickly catch up to the player with their leaping (they can cover 2 - 3 blocks in a bound) and wall-climbing abilities. Spiders will often jump around when attacking, making them a moving target and harder to hit. When hunting, spiders move at a pace slightly slower than the player's walking speed. Unlike zombies and skeletons, spiders will not catch fire in daylight.
There is a 1% chance that a spider will spawn with a skeleton on its back, forming the dreaded Spider Jockey. The skeleton's ability to fire arrows combined with the speed, leaping, and wall-climbing of the spider makes this a very dangerous opponent.
In the Beta 1.8 update, there was added a new, superior, blue variety called Cave Spiders which spawn in Abandoned Mine Shafts and are able to poison their targets
BEHAVIOR
Spiders are hostile so long as the light level immediately around them is 9 or less. If they are found in an area with a higher light level, they won't attack unless a player attacks first. Hostile spiders will continue to chase the player even if they are exposed to daytime or other well-lit locations. Conversely, a spider won't become hostile around a player when roaming in daylight, but if it wanders into a moderately shaded area (i.e. under a tree or rocky overhang) it will turn hostile and remain that way. If a spider sustains damage from a source other than the player, such as falling, its hostility will be reset, so that if it is in a well-lit area, it will not be hostile towards the player.
Spiders can draw line of sight through solid objects, so they will pursue the player even when completely cut off from them, so long as they are within the standard aggressive mob's 16 block search radius. The spider will then approach as close as possible and ambush the player even if it subsequently becomes light. Spiders on the surface can also track a player in a cave or tunnel if there is a clear path above the player they can follow and vice versa.
Spiders can climb up over walls and other obstacles as if all blocks had ladders on them. However, spiders are careless climbers and will often fall off other blocks and take fall damage while in pursuit of the player. Spiders do not turn sideways when climbing up walls and cannot climb along the tops of ceilings. They will also sometimes fall off blocks in pursuit of the player to the point where they kill themselves. When a spider climbs a wall and hits a ceiling or roof, it will fall and take damage. If there are blocks around the top of a wall, a spider will not be able to climb to the top, making this a good defense against the mob.
WITCH
GENERAL
Witches are hostile, ranged mobs commonly spawning in Witch Huts. They're the second hostile ranged mob to spawn in the Overworld - the first being the skeleton.
Witches have a similar appearance to the villager mob, and they wear purple and green robes with brown leggings underneath. They have large noses (which moves slowly around on the Witch's face) with a single wart and have lavender colored eyes. They wear the usual witch hat with a green buckle on it, and their skin is slightly paler than the normal villager. However, witches periodically give off purple star particles similar to the villager's green stars.
BEHAVIOR
The witch mob uses splash potions of poison, weakness, damage, and slowness to fight the player. The current order of potions thrown is; slowness, poison, they will then proceed to throw potions of harming until the player is no longer poisoned which they will rectify by throwing another splash potion of poison and will continue to do this. The splash potion of harming will occasionally be substituted by potions of slowness. These potions will affect other mobs - not just the player. The witch does not burn in sunlight and when set on fire, drinks a potion of fire resistance. This can be seen when a bottle appears in the witch's hands. Iron Golems will attack witches as most other hostile mobs.
Witches are almost immune (85% damage resistance) to splash potions of poison and instant damage. When damaged, they will drink a potion of healing, healing themselves. When drinking a potion, a witch's nose will point straight forward (instead of down). While healing they can't attack the player. If lit on fire by lava or fire, witches will quickly drink potions of fire resistance, making lava and fire ineffective ways of killing witches.
A bow will likely be the best weapon for dealing with a witch, as the splash potions have only a short range (at most nine blocks) compared to arrows (which, when fired straight at full charge, travel 24 blocks). If a bow is not an option, however, a direct melee charge is the best option. Due to the witch's slow attack speed, if the player runs in a straight line and manages to get a quick sword strike in, the witch will try to heal themselves with a potion of healing, leaving the player to attack them without fear of retaliation.
WITHER SKELETON
GENERAL
Wither Skeletons are dangerous hostile mobs that spawn in Nether Fortresses. Wither Skeletons are the Nether equivalent of skeletons. Unlike skeletons, however, Wither Skeletons use stone swords and are over two blocks tall. When hit by a Wither Skeleton on any difficulty, the player is inflicted with the "Wither" effect for 10 seconds, darkening the health bar and further damaging the player. When killed, the mob may drop coal and bones, and very rarely drop their skull and the stone sword. The skulls are the key items to creating the Wither boss.
Wither Skeletons, like all Nether mobs, are immune to fire and lava and are not damaged by daylight. Some Wither Skeletons can also pick up items, weapons, tools, and armor, similar to other undead-type
BEHAVIOR
Wither Skeletons are tough mobs to fight due to their high attack strength, their ability to inflict the Wither effect, and the probability of them being near a Blaze. Their biggest weakness is that they cannot pass through a two block high passage because of their height, much like Endermen.
If there are lots of Wither Skeletons and Blazes around, bring some Blocks of Iron and a pumpkin to make an Iron Golem. This is also a good way to farm the drops of the Wither Skeleton.
If an Iron Golem is not an option it is advised that the player treat the Wither skeleton as they would a creeper, albeit with far more care. If you attack and move backwards at the same time you should not have any trouble avoiding damage provided you have some room to maneuver. If you have your back to a wall spam attacking should be enough to kill a single Wither Skeleton without taking damage. If you have your back to a wall and are facing more than one Wither Skeleton it is strongly advised that you move to a position where you have room to maneuver as the Wither Skeletons move slightly faster than zombies and so more easily overwhelm you. Sniping with a bow is also effective although it is not recommended at under 10 blocks away (without a punch enchantment) as Wither Skeletons move surprisingly fast.
If you find yourself facing a Blaze at the same time the best course of action is to move into a place inaccessible for the blaze -such as a corridor- and then proceed in taking the above steps to kill the Wither Skeleton. If this is not possible it is suggested that the player run out of range of the blaze and turn to face the Wither skeleton. It is strongly advised that inexperienced players do not face both mobs at the same time as this often leads to death, but for more experienced players willing to face both you should either; deal with the blaze first by charging at it with a sword (do not use a bow as you will be exposed to attack) and then turning and facing the Wither Skeleton or (more recommended) putting the Wither Skeleton between yourself and the Blaze so as to use its body as a shield against the Blaze's fireball attack, and then charging the Blaze once it is dead.
Like all mobs, Wither Skeletons can travel through a Nether Portal. This means that if you put a Nether Portal inside the Nether Fortress, and yourself between the portal and a Wither Skeleton (or any other hostile mob), the Wither Skeleton will travel towards you but teleport into the overworld. This means that once you get back from the Nether you might still be up for a fight against a Wither Skeleton.
It is also possible to use an invisibility potion therefore be able to fight the Wither skeleton with only stone sword and no armor. This is one of the easier ways to kill a wither Skeleton but it requires you to have a Invisibility potion.
ZOMBIE
GENERAL
Zombies are hostile mobs that appear in two slightly different forms. The most common form closely resembles the player, and a less common form that resembles a villager may appear. The rarer form is called a Zombie Villager, and 5% of all zombies spawned are of this type. If any type of zombie attacks a villager and kills them, there is a chance (100% in hard difficulty, 50% in normal, 0% in easy and peaceful) that the villager will become infected and transform into a zombie villager. This often occurs during sieges. These zombie villagers can be 'healed' by throwing a '1:07' splash potion of weakness onto them, then giving them a Normal golden apple and wait around 3 minutes ( They must be protected from attacks and sun damages ) . However, these cured villagers do not retain the same trades they had before they became infected. Also, if the zombie villager has picked up any of your equipment, including armor, these items simply disappear when the villager is cured.
Zombies spawn in dimly-lit areas, and will attack the player by slowly moving toward them, touching them and thereby inflicting damage. Like skeletons, zombies catch fire in sunlight.
BEHAVIOR
Zombies moan when wandering around aimlessly, but snarl and gurgle when attacking or injured. Zombies spawn in groups of 1-6 and will pursue the player on sight. Zombies will attempt to avoid obstacles, including sheer cliffs and lava, and would try to find the shortest path towards the player. Unlike skeletons, zombies do not try to avoid being hit, and continue to pursue the player even when being counter-attacked. Zombies can sometimes deal damage through a closed door, as shown on the picture to the right. This is because when they occupy the space of the door, the game considers their hits as reaching past the door into an adjacent block. The behavior of the zombies is demonstrated in this video.
At dawn (when the Sun is 15 degrees or more above the ground), zombies will catch fire and burn once exposed to direct sunlight. However, zombies will make some attempt to seek out shade from the sunlight, or enter bodies of water to protect themselves from burning up. Being in water negates the effects of direct sunlight, preventing them from burning. If they exit water, they will again be vulnerable to direct sunlight. Zombies standing under trees will prevent them from being burned. They will not burn if it is raining or if they have the ability to pick up items and are wearing headgear. They will leave trees and water if a Player comes near.
Zombies will attempt to break down wooden doors, continuously banging on them. This is only successful on Hard difficulty and wooden doors though; on other difficulties, the door will crack, but not break. Iron Doors are always safe from zombie attack and destruction. Zombies will attack villagers within 16 blocks of themselves, ignoring the hazard of direct sunlight. The villagers will attempt to flee from the zombies. Once a zombie has focused on a villager, the zombie will ignore any other villagers and the player until its target is killed or when the player attacks it.
Like most mobs, zombies will always float on water even if their target is below them.
Occasionally (1% of the time on easy, 7% on normal, 20% on hard), zombies (along with skeletons and zombie pigmen) will spawn with the ability to pick up items on the ground. Armor will automatically be equipped. If a zombie picks up any type of headgear (helmet, pumpkin, head, etc.) it gains immunity to burning in sunlight. Items will instantly be held, which is not exclusive to weapons. This means these zombies can be found holding items they have come across, such as rotten flesh. This feature will cause zombie pigmen to drop their sword and skeletons to drop their bow. If any of the three mobs has a sword in their hand, and you give them a better sword, they will ditch the old one and go for the better one. Example: if a Zombie has a wooden sword, and you give it a stone sword, it will take the stone sword and drop the wooden one.
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