Zombie Pigman

## Zonbie Pigman

**Zombie Pigmen** are a variation of zombies, (hence the name) who are neutral and are from The Nether. They drop 0-1 pieces of rotten flesh upon death as well as 0-1 gold nuggets. They occasionally drop a gold sword or gold helmet if defeated. Zombie pigmen can also drop gold ingots, however, this is very rare.

They travel in groups of up to 20, and do not attack a player unless a player attacks them first. Zombie pigmen are able to drown, but cannot be killed by lava, other then drowning in it. Because they are well-armed, zombie pigmen are highly dangerous to an unsuspecting player, also considering the Ghasts and horrible terrain of the Nether.

## Behavior

Attacking one zombie pigman causes any nearby zombie pigmen to become hostile, like wolves, and attack the player or all of the players if one is in multiplayer mode. Zombie pigmen won't become neutral again unless they're killed. They won't become neutral even if a player dies, regardless whenever the death was caused by the pigman or not. They walk faster than the player (speed of .95 blocks per second is an enraged zombie pigman's speed). Setting the game mode to "Peaceful" removes all zombie pigmen, unlike wolves. If a player is attacked by a group of zombie pigmen, escapes through a Portal, and returns to the Nether soon afterward, the zombie pigmen will remain hostile. Since update 1.4, zombie pigmen have the ability to pick up weapons and armor of any defeated players.

In *Minecraft: Pocket Edition*, zombie pigmen characteristics are the same as PC, except that they run slightly slower.

Zombie pigmen are incredibly strong, which gives them an unfair advantage to an unprepared player. If a player is in Multiplayer, a Zombie pigman that has been harmed will be aggressive towards all players (even players that did not harm the pigman). Zombie pigmen spawn in the Nether and the Overworld, near any active Nether Portals, or when a pig is struck by lightning. If a zombie pigman is harmed by another mob, the zombie pigman that was harmed will become hostile towards the mob that harmed it, but the rest of the group will remain neutral until the release of Better Together update. If one kills a pigman in one hit, the others will not become hostile.

In the past, if an Iron Golem attacked a zombie pigman, only that specific mob would be hostile. However, this was changed with the release of the Better Together Update. Now, every zombie pigmen in the vicinity is hostile toward the iron golem who attacked.

## Strategy

As stated earlier in the article, zombie pigmen are extremely difficult enemies to overcome. The best strategy to carry out when a zombie pigman is sighted is to simply walk away and ignore them, as they are neutral and will not become angry unless harmed. When doing battle with a zombie pigman, it is best advised to attack one single mob at a time and seclude them from the others. This being a reliant strategy, as nearby zombie pigmen will become angry and will swarm a player, closing off any escapes.

Another efficient way of tackling zombie pigman is from afar with a Bow. A regular bow works, but enchanted bows are preferred, as the extra perks will become useful in the situation that one is not far enough away. A player should be advised that they should still manage a single pigman at a time instead of shooting multiples. They should also be wary of their distance, and should remain at least 15 blocks away and out of the potential sight of a zombie pigman. Note that another excellent strategy is to attack zombie pigmen with another player to increase survival chances and to add extra damage.

Alternatively, one could pillar-jump, making sure the zombie pigmen can't reach one, and then just finish them off with a bow or Sword. Another reliable strategy is to surround one's self in cobblestone (to guard against a possible ghast attack), leaving at least one block open at eye level. Once this is done, the player can shoot a single zombie pigman with a bow, wait for a horde to show up, and then fight them off in relative safety, fearing only the occasional ghast attack and the possibility of a baby zombie pigman being in the horde.

Zombie pigmen are difficult enemies when in groups, and can easily overwhelm a player. An effective strategy (that also proves to damage-free) is to build a small tower that is three blocks above the surface. One single block of space is efficient, but it is cautioned that the zombie pigmen may not be able to attack one, but will still overlap one's model, causing one to move. It is best advised to build a 2x2x3 or 3x3x3 tower so that a player will have no risk in falling into a swarm of angered zombie pigmen and have the optimal safety.

A player should stay away from ghasts when battling zombie pigmen. When a ghast's fireball hits a group of zombie pigmen, they will turn hostile and blame a player for their suffering.

Battling them in multiplayer is also effective as well.

## Baby Zombie Pigman

The baby zombie pigman is a rare mob. It is the baby counterpart of the adult zombie pigman. Unlike the adult variant, they possess great speed, much like baby zombies. They can become a great hazard if a player mistakenly attempts to attack a herd of zombie pigman with a baby zombie pigman present within the group. They also have a chance to be in Chicken Jockey form, due to being a baby-counterpart and they are undead.

## As an Entity

Like all mobs, zombie pigmen are classified in a group of objects called entities. All entities can be summoned with commands or external editors. They can also keep their names given to them, unlike blocks. All mobs also have the possibilities of holding Items, as well as wearing Armor. The model for zombie pigmen shows the pigman itself wielding a sword. The mob itself does not actually hold a sword and does not deal the damage that a sword would. Zombie pigmen are able to equip different items, but only with external editors. Even at that, their wielded item will still appear as a gold sword and not the attributed item. Enchantments on gear and potion effects still affect zombie pigmen.