Minecraft wouldn’t be complete without monsters! They provide an extra level of excitement and danger: a challenge or obstacle to overcome. We’ll explain how monsters appear so you can protect your home from various bad guys.
Some Facts About Monsters
Most monsters start to notice your presence when you’re roughly 16 blocks away. Monsters that immediately move to attack you are called hostile or aggressive. Some monsters can see you through rocks, and others can climb or fall to reach you.
Monsters are usually affected by the environment in the same ways you are. Thus, they take falling damage, can suffocate or drown underwater, and they can be set on fire. Additionally, and most importantly, monsters take damage from weapon attacks.
Monsters can also ride in Minecarts, and you can transport them around this way. Although monsters can’t open Doors, they can break them down under the right conditions. If your difficulty level is set high enough, monsters attack and destroy Wood Doors.
When a monster is killed, it may drop an item. Some monsters can pick up blocks or equipment and use it against you, or simply carry things around. Other monsters wear armor or use creatures as mounts.
Born in the Darkness
Night is the time of monsters. As the sun sets, monsters appear. The sudden appearance of a monster into the world is called “spawning.” Some monsters spawn more often than others—Zombies are the most common.
Light level is usually what determines monster spawning. The following table shows which monsters appear at a given illumination level:
| Light Level | Monsters | Additional Details |
|---|---|---|
|
7 |
Zombies, Skeletons, Wither Skeletons, Creepers, Witches, Endermen, Spiders, Spider Jockeys, Chicken Jockeys |
Spiders are no longer hostile once the light level is 12 (they attack if you hit them, though). |
|
8 |
Slimes |
Only in Swamps. If below Layer 40 underground, Slimes spawn at any light level. |
|
11 |
Silverfish, Blazes |
— |
|
Any |
Zombie Pigmen, Ghasts, Magma Cubes, Endermites |
Zombie Pigmen are found in the Nether but can appear in the Overworld under rare conditions. Rarely, Endermites are formed after an Enderman teleports. |
When the sun rises, most of the monsters outside start to catch fire. Zombies and Skeletons, which are the most common monsters to spawn, can’t deal with bright light and quickly become walking torches. If you attack them at close range while they’re on fire, be careful; you can catch fire as well. However, if there’s enough shade or a storm outside, monsters can survive the daytime. They might also wear protective armor (a helmet helps) to shield them from the sun’s deadly rays.
Some monsters don’t care about daylight; Witches, Creepers, and Spiders can all be found while the sun’s out. Endermen often teleport away from the light to find more comfortable areas.
Monster Hideouts
Because monsters spawn anywhere the light isn’t too bright, naturally occurring caves are monster playgrounds. Dark pits in the ground, large openings into mountains, or deep underground pockets make wonderful monster homes.
Strongholds, Fortresses, Temples, Dungeons, and Abandoned Mineshafts are all places where monsters live. There are wonderful treasures to be found in these locations, but it’s dangerous to go there unprepared.
Monster Spawners
Monster Spawners are bluish-black, cage-like blocks found in special locations: Fortresses, Dungeons, Abandoned Mineshafts, and Strongholds. Within the block, there are flames and a small, spinning monster soon to be spawned. Generally, Monster Spawners create only Zombies, Skeletons, Spiders, Blazes, and Silverfish, but they can make animals as well.
A Monster Spawner activates when you are 16 blocks away and immediately begins spawning a random monster within an 8x2x8 block area (eight blocks wide, two blocks high, and eight blocks long). As long as the light level is appropriate and any other conditions are met, monsters appear anywhere in this zone. They can even spawn midair.
You can stop Monster Spawners by surrounding their area with Torches (i.e., raising the light level) or attacking them with weapons. They drop 15-43 experience when you break them. Some people create traps of various types around Monster Spawners; when the monster appears, it finds itself falling into a large pit, for example. You can set up the traps to be instantly lethal as a means of gathering certain items. Or you can use this as a way to corral monsters if you want to slaughter them at your leisure. Any experience or items gained from the monster’s destruction can then be gathered later.
Spawn Eggs
In Creative Mode, monsters come from eggs, called Spawn Eggs. Hostile monsters still appear during the evening in Creative Mode, but they almost never attack the player. But what if you want to decorate using monsters or have them wander around your house? Who wouldn’t want a pet Creeper!
Select the Spawn Egg, put it on your hotbar, and use it; the creature immediately appears. Unlike Chicken Eggs, Spawn Eggs are not thrown; you have to be within range on an appropriate block. After that, the creature moves on its own. If you want, put Spawn Eggs in Dispensers; for example, you can surprise someone with an instantly appearing buddy!
Withers
You can summon a special boss monster, a Wither, in-game. You must be in the Overworld, and you cannot be in Creative Mode. To create a Wither in the crafting interface, put Soul Sand in a T shape, with the T’s horizontal bar going across the middle section. Then add three Wither Skeleton Skulls on top. The Wither Skeleton Skulls must be added last. The sky immediately turns darker, and the Wither appears. As the Wither grows, it begins to flash blue. It doesn’t move or attack at this point, and it can’t take any damage. Don’t stay close to it. Once the Wither reaches its full size, it explodes, blasting anything within range!
The Wither considers every living thing to be its enemy (especially you), and it attacks anything that isn’t considered undead.