screwballz

Behavior

The Guardian attacks by sending out a large laser beam which harms the player. In addition, Guardians can target and damage players who are riding in boats; however once the player is out of range, the Guardian's laser will disengage from the player, and deal no damage. Guardians will swim around in water, attacking any players or squids that come into sight. They swim in abrupt charges, moving their tail rapidly when doing so. Unlike squids, Guardians will not die outside of water, instead they will jump and flail around, making wet, squishy noises. They will quickly move towards the nearest water source, at which point they swim away. When swimming, their spikes retract and they don't deal damage when attacked. When not swimming they sink. Guardians' eyes will follow and stare at any nearby players, and will always look directly at who they're attacking. This makes them the first mob with dynamic eyes.

Strategy

Guardians are very resistant to melee attacks when under water, as the player will not be able to quickly approach the Guardian due to the water's slowing effect. Guardians will swim away when approached by a player it is targeting, and the Guardian will deal of damage every time it is hit when its spikes are extended. If cornered, the Guardian will usually extend its spikes and fire at the player, even at point blank range. The Guardians are resistant to fire damage, but if somehow brought on land, they sometimes take fall damage from their swift movement. If the player must fight a Guardian in melee, they should try to corner it and hope for the best; or else try to trick it into swimming within melee range repeatedly. The Guardian cannot shoot as fast as a player with a bow can, so a skilled player will be able to shoot the Guardian, and then hide to break the beam's lock, repeating until the Guardian is dead. If the Guardian is in shallow water the player(s) can use a fishing rod to pull it out of the water where the player(s) can then kill it using melee attacks without being shot at or hurt by the spikes. Fighting Guardians is incredibly dangerous without armor. Armor is essential to combating Guardians, especially within the Water Dungeons. Entering their territory without armor will almost always lead to a swift death, even if armed with a sword or bow and arrow.

Trivia

• This is the first mob with dynamic eyes.
• If you have full Diamond armor, the Guardian's laser will do approx. 1 heart ( ) of damage.
• The Guardian's laser sound can be heard up to 100 blocks away.
• Guardians take fall damage, and it takes 32 blocks for them to fall to their death.