Spider Jockey Has a Posse

In the world of Minecraft, there are people- like you- animals- like cows and chickens- and monsters.

Monsters are the things you need to look out for most, the entities that will seek you out and do you harm just because they notice that you exist.  While there are monsters in the Nether as well, this series of articles is specifically about the monsters you can find in the World itself, the world of trees and dirt and stone and water.

In the World, there are seven and a half kinds of monster.  Why do I say seven and a half?  Well, there are actually eight kinds- but one of those kinds is extremely rare, normally only appearing in the Nether, and there is an ‘extra’, ninth kind of monster that is actually two of the other monsters sort of kludged together.  I suppose to start with, I ought to explain that.

There is a monster that appears in the Nether called the Zombie Pigman.  This undead (and very strange) beast -can- appear in the World, but does so only under very specific circumstances- in order to get a Zombie Pigman in the World, a pig has to get hit by lightning.  With the rarity of lightning storms in the World, this is an extraordinarily uncommon event, and Zombie Pigmen are essentially tougher Zombies anyways- so I feel fairly secure not discussing them in detail here.  Just be aware that they can exist and will attack you, and you should be alright.

Now then.

With the exception of the Zombie Pigman, monsters will only appear- or ‘spawn’- in Minecraft where it is dark.  This means that the surface of the World is safe from the appearance of new enemies during the day.  However, it also means that the moment it becomes fully dark, monsters will spawn all over the ground, making nighttime rather dangerous.  Keeping yourself in well-lit areas is key to not getting ambushed by monsters spawning, or running afoul of something nasty while you wander around the world.  Remember that monsters will spawn -anywhere- that it is dark, with two exceptions: Blocks that let light through (fence, glass, leaves, etc.) and half-blocks (slabs).

Of course, this isn’t the only way monsters ever reach the surface of the world.  Underground caves, ravines, tunnels, and such are always dark- and can spawn monsters at any time.  This is why torches are so important to doing anything underground, and to keeping the inside of your home lit.  Anywhere- anywhere!- that is dark enough will spawn monsters, and these monsters will not hesitate to charge you on sight, attacking with everything they’ve got.... for the most part.  The monsters you can find are as follows:

Zombies

Skeletons

Spiders

Slimes

Creepers

Endermen

Silverfish

Spider Jockey

Generally speaking, this is an order of least to most dangerous, though the last three- Endermen, Silverfish, and Spider Jockeys- are all equally certain death if you don’t know what you’re doing when you run across them.  Endermen and Silverfish can be rendered essentially harmless if you know how to handle them right, which can place them as less threatening than zombies (although Endermen will always be annoying), but without knowledge of exactly what you need to neutralize them they can actually be even more dangerous than the vaunted Spider Jockey.

However you slice it, you -are- going to have to deal with these monsters, and you -are- going to want to know.  Only Zombies can be handled with a cavalier attitude and simple straightforwards combat- all the rest of the monsters require a certain degree of skill to overcome.  With that in mind, this series of articles is intended to lay out just what it is you need to deal with each of these monsters that you can find in the World.