What are Elder Guardians and what do they do in Minecraft?

Elder Guardians are a hostile mob in Minecraft that only spawn in bodies of water. They are the stronger version of the two Guardians and are known for their attacks. The Elder Guardian has two types of attacks, a ranged attack, and a melee attack. The ranged attack involves the Elder Guardian shooting lasers out of its eye, which can deal significant damage to players. The melee attack involves the Elder Guardian spiking up, dealing damage to any nearby players.

The elder guardian ghost has defensive spikes. The elder guardian ghost has the same model and texture as the elder guardian but uses the player-hurt sound, has less health, and is missing the back tail model. When spawned outside of water, it floats upward until it despawns, similar to a mob tied to a balloon or under a high level of levitation.

The amount of damage dealt by the Elder Guardian's attacks varies depending on the difficulty setting:

Ranged Damage:

• Easy: 5 Hearts

• Normal: 8 Hearts

• Hard: 12 Hearts

Melee Damage:

• Easy: 2

• Normal: 2

• Hard: 3

Elder Guardians only spawn in Ocean Monuments, which are structures that generate naturally underwater. There are only three Elder Guardians in each Ocean Monument. One can be found in the top room, and the other two are located on each wing of the Monument. Finding Ocean Monuments can be challenging, but players can use various methods to locate them. One effective method is to use the "locate" command in Minecraft, which will provide the coordinates of the nearest Ocean Monument.

Elder Guardians behave differently from other underwater mobs in Minecraft. They do not swim around as much as normal guardians and do not swim away when approached by a player it is targeting, unlike regular guardians. Like normal guardians, elder guardians attempt to attack both the player and the squid.

The elder guardian's eye follows and stares at any nearby players, and always looks directly at its target. The eye still follows a player under the effects of Invisibility or in Spectator mode, but doesn't attack.

Elder guardians are considered aquatic mobs and thus are affected by the Impaling enchantment. The elder guardian has three methods of attacking, including firing its laser, inflicting Mining Fatigue, and a defensive thorn-like attack.

Laser

The elder guardian's laser takes several seconds to charge, doing no damage and allowing the player to move away in the meantime. As it charges, it turns from purple to bright yellow, thus acting as a warning indicator. Once charged, the beam flashes green, abruptly ends, and deals 12 hearts times 6 damage on hard difficulty. The elder guardian swims around for a few seconds before firing again. The beam cannot be dodged and has a maximum range of approximately 14 blocks. Once the player is out of range, or if the beam is obstructed by solid blocks, the guardian's beam disengages from the player and deals no damage.

Inflicting Mining Fatigue

In Java Edition, immediately after spawning and once each minute thereafter, the elder guardian searches for any player within a spherical radius of 50 blocks to afflict with Mining Fatigue III. In Bedrock Edition, the elder guardian inflicts any unafflicted player within range immediately.

When afflicted, the player sees a ghostly image of the elder guardian and hears a ghostly noise. The effect decreases a player's attack speed by 30% and decreases mining speed even more for 5 minutes. The attack targets players through blocks, even underground, and a potion of Invisibility offers no defense. This is not considered an attack in regards to the Thorn's enchantment.

Spikes Defense

An elder guardian deals 2 hearts (3 hearts on hard mode) of damage every time it is hit while its spikes are extended, similar to the Thorns enchantment on the armor. If cornered by a player or axolotl, the elder guardian usually extends its spikes and fires at point-blank range.

• Elder Guardians have three forms of attacks: Laser, Mini Fatigue, and Spikes

• Elder Guardians are known to attack axolotls

• Elder Guardian attacks squids and players

When players defeat an Elder Guardian, they will receive various loot items. The loot items that can be obtained from defeating an Elder Guardian are:

1. 0-2 Prismarine Shards

2. 1 Wet Sponge

3. 10 XP Orbs when killed by a player or tamed wolf

In addition to the above items, players will also receive one of the following:

1. Raw Cod (50% chance of dropping)

2. 1/3 of getting Prismarine Crystals

3. Random Fish (2.5% chance of dropping)

Elder Guardians are a formidable mob in Minecraft that players must be cautious of when exploring the game's vast underwater world. These hostile creatures only spawn in Ocean Monuments and are known for their ranged and melee attacks. Players can use various methods to locate Ocean Monuments and defeat the Elder Guardians inside. Upon defeating an Elder Guardian, players can obtain various loot items that can help them in their Minecraft journey.