Monsters on The Ancient World are more often than not enhanced to some capacity. Their enhancements tend to vary dependent on which Age the world is in.
During a peaceful age monsters will be limited to the deep underground and seldom appear on the surface except for in ruins, and so don’t pose much of a threat. In darker ages they will re-emerge on the surface and can have improved health and damage output compared with vanilla mobs.
Also known as Ancient Ones, these veterans are not just your run-of-the-mill monsters. They have ravaged the over-world time and time again over many centuries, gaining themselves many lifetimes worth of combat experience. Not to mention the assimilation of many thousands of battle hardened warriors who fell in battle against them and subsequently joined their ranks. These superior monsters can often be seen commanding inferior monsters in assaults against the living, and can be well armed and armored in battle against their living counterparts.
Other than Rifts, The Darkness is the monsters greatest ally. It is during these dark days we see them have not only have enhanced health and damage but also new behaviors that make them very formidable to the unwary or unprepared.
Below is a summary on what one can expect from Monsters during a Dark Age.
Zombies
Zombies can now seek out the player over vast distances. This often results in hordes to form and converge on any player occupied dwelling. They also have strong resistances to lava, fire, and explosions.
Zombies will be able to dig their way through blocks to reach their prey, with different blocks having varying resistances. Obsidian is the only block with full resistance.
ALL BLOCKS in the game fall into one of these tiers;
Dirt Tier > Wood Tier > Cobble Tier > Stone Tier > Brick Tier > Deepslate Tier > Blackstone Tier > Obsidian
Skeletons
Skeletons, like zombies, can also seek out the player over a long distance. They will fire their arrows at the player even without a clear line of sight, with approximately 5% chance of their arrows exploding. With this explosive arrow, Skeletons are able to slowly create openings in walls which can further assist zombies in breaching a defence.
Creepers
Creepers will explode when they are killed, making them very hazardous to deal with. Their explosions are approximately 2x stronger and will cause fires. Burning Silverfish will also emerge out of the creeper.
Ghasts
Ghasts explosive power is increased up to 3x and will cause fires and spawn silverfish. They also have increased health and are immune to projectile damage.
Survival Tips:
- During Dark ages where monsters dominate the surface overworld, we recommend building and fortifying as deep underground as you can. Do not build with low-tier blocks such as dirt, wood, and cobblestone, as they are exceptionally weak against undead attack. Stone Bricks should be the minimum standard block you use when building walls. Deepslate is even stronger. The thicker you make your walls, the better.
- Use lanterns to light up your base. Do not settle for using basic torches as the undead will have an easy time breaking them.
- Do not settle near old ruins, as ruins tend to be concentrated monster spawn zones. These monsters will seek you out even if your base is 100 blocks away. We know this is easier said than done especially on The Old Mainland which is littered with hundreds of ruins. If you cannot find a suitable location, consider going underground.
- Obsidian is the absolute strongest material you can use in your construction as it’s the only block which cannot be destroyed by monsters. Line your walls with a Obsidian layer to make them impenetrable. If you don’t have a lot of Obsidian to spare you can make do with lining the walls in a checkerboard pattern. Some monsters may still breach through the 1×1 gaps, but most wont be able to.
- If you are averse to living deep underground and want the challenge of surface survival, then by all means give it a shot. Just remember to use stronger blocks and adopt enough countermeasures to deal with breaches.
The Ancient World 