How to Hunt Endermen More Effectively – Minecraft Java Edition Guide

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Ever since Notch made Endermen teleport away from danger, they've gone from being scary to being giant chickens.

Case in point: Yesterday, I saw an Enderman and wanted his pearl, so I looked at him. He got mad and came at me, but after one hit from my iron sword, he skedaddled far, far away, and completely ignored me. Looking at him again did nothing. I ended up chasing him across 3 biomes (which remember are huge now in 1.0) before I finally got him.

Another case: This morning, I saw an Enderman and again wanted his pearl. I look at him, he gets mad, I hit him once and he loses interest. Several times I would spot him, sprint toward him furiously clicking with my iron sword in the hopes of landing a hit, and when I'm mere meters away, he glances at me over his shoulder with a "Oh, puh-lease" look and vanishes, leaving me amidst the purple particles and saddeningly Enderpearl-less.

How can I hunt Endermen better?

Best Answer

Attack their legs, never look at them.

If you don't look at Endermen, they seem less-inclined to teleport away.

Here's a video example:

Related Solutions

Minecraft – How far can endermen reach

Reportedly at PAX (summary) it was said that they have a two-block reach: you'll want to have a one-block buffer zone between the fence and anything of value.

The reach, based on the pictures I've seen of the Endermen's destruction (and my own experience), appears to be directly in front, 1-2 blocks laterally, and from ground to eye level. Diagram:

Enderman facing to the right -> o ..
                                o ..
                                o ..

o : Enderman body
. : Blocks that are fair game

Evidence of Enderman mischief:

Coincidentally, this mirrors the one-block buffer zone you need to have for beds in order to sleep undisturbed.

Interestingly, vines might be a better alternative to fences, if you're okay with the appearance: Endermen will take the vine block before taking anything behind it. Since vines automatically regenerate, you'll have a defense that's more compact than a fence with a buffer zone.

Minecraft – How to modify the grinder to harvest endermen

One way of catching mobs without using water to channel them is a dropper:

X: Cobblestone
S: Sign

SSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS
SXSXSXSXSXSXSXSXSXS
SSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS
SXSXSXSXSXSXSXSXSXS
SSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS
SXSXSXSXSXSXSXSXSXS
SSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS

3 blocks above this cover the whole thing in a layer of cobblestone so that the spawn area is dark. Light the top of the cobblestone to prevent spawning there.

Build your trap a sufficient distance above the ground such that falling mobs will instantly die. Light the ground too. You can build it so that mobs fall into water streams (but still die instantly) so that their items are collected.

This trap takes advantage of the fact mobs treat signs as solid blocks, so will walk straight off a high drop and fall to their deaths. Since it involves no water (pre-murder), it will catch endermen.

Best Answer

Related Solutions

Minecraft – How far can endermen reach

Minecraft – How to modify the grinder to harvest endermen

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