New Angler Design

 

Working on more Angler skins. This one is based on the squid, and when it's hostile, it shows teeth. When it's not hostile, it closes its mouth, illustrating those cute little teeth.
I dunno. It makes a little sense, Minecraft-wise, but it's kind of an ugly design. What do you guys think?

More Fisher Concept Art

So I'm thinking of changing the Fisher to the Angler, and some people have expressed discontent with the spider concept art. So I decided to gin up some new concept art, to see if anybody saw something they liked better.

Obviously, the new versions change some of the character behavior somewhat, but the core idea (hostile fishing mob) stays the same.

The Fisher

The Fisher is a neutral mob that tends to spawn near water; like spiders, it is docile during the day, and may even be seen riding in a boat, fishing with its fishing rod. It fights by snagging you a fishing pole and dragging you towards it. Although not especially dangerous on its own, it can often prevent you from maneuvering while dealing with more salient threats. The Fisher will pull you constantly towards it at low speed, then suddenly jerking the line to pull you long distances. Dashing when they try to jerk the line will break it and deal the Fisher damage. Once it reels you in (gets you to within three blocks of it) it will begin to attack you with a melee attack.

There are four variant skin concepts for the mob. The idea was so broad I wasn't sure which one was the best fit for the concept.

The Fishing Spider
Drops: Spider Eye, String.  Probably my favorite skin option, because it adds value to the "Bane of Arthropods" enchantment and is also the cutest li'l guy. Look at him! D'aww, he's so cute.

Anglerfish
Drops: Prismarine Shard. Prismarine Crystal (very rare), Glowstone Powder (very rare). I liked the idea of an Anglerfish that drops glowing compounds.

Octopus
Drops: Ink sacs? Honestly I don't have a lot of ideas for super-valuable things for this guy to drop. If you do, let me know.

Angola
Drops: Bucket of milk, enchanted boots [depth strider], kitten [auto-named Fisher]. This is a really weird idea.

In theory, all variations may also drop: boats, enchanted fishing rods, or leashes.

Minecraft Idea: Thanatomnicon

 So recently, I realized that Minecraft combat is basically like Fight Club. You choose your own level of involvement. The bosses are all totally optional and require quite a bit of work to even fight. Nearly half the "enemy" mobs in the game require aggression on the player's part to draw aggro, and once you've got a proper base established, realistic involvement with hostile mobs revolves entirely around the player's schedule.

So I thought it would be cool if we could take this a step further. First, players must craft the Thanatomnicon, the Minecraft Book of the Dead, from 3 Bones, 5 Rotten Flesh, and 1 Book, and perhaps enchanted it at an Enchanting Table.

 

This dread book might have some value as an expensive piece of equipment (I haven't decided whether it should do anything on its own yet), but right now it exists as the primary ingredient in the Thanatomnicon Podium, a tool block that can be used to summon Zombie Raids. Craft a Thanatomnicon Podium (1 Thanatomnicon, 3 nether brick, 3 soul sand) and incur the Curse of Thanatomnicon from the GUI.

The Thanatomnicon Podium basically behaves like a reverse bed: when all players on a server use it, it turns day to night and starts a zombie siege.

Not challenging enough? What if it also summoned a rainstorm, so that even if you survive the night, the zombies won't be killed by daybreak? Still not challenging enough? Well then! Rather than having the horde attack for a preset limit, the Thanatomnicon won't stop summoning new zombies (and skeletons, and witches) until it is placated! Enemies in the horde now drop Magic Words. Combine 9 magic words into the the Spell of Placation, and the Thanatomnicon will stop summoning enemies.

You want me to keep going? Okay, then rather than using the Spell of Placation on the original Thanatomnicon--the one you activated to start this whole mess--an Angry Spirit will be spawned within a 70 block radius (on the X/Y axis) of each activated Thanatomnicon, and you have to go find him and use the spell on him (fighting zombies on the way) to turn off the Raid.



If you want to contribute to the discussion, feel free to comment here, or on the Minecraft Forum Post available here.

The Plight of the Endermen

The Endermen are a tragic species. They hail exclusively from The End, and their origin of their arrival here is a mystery. I believe that the Old Deep Ones uncovered the secret to accessing that moonlit place where the Endermen are born, and upon piercing the veil between worlds tore it irreparably. We are mostly unharmed for the abuse of the Old Deep Ones, but the Endermen paid a dread penalty. For they are natural teleporters, capable of bridging vast distances with no apparent effort, capable of transmitting themselves through obstacles with disarming ease.

Teleportation is not without its dangers, and as a man might fall into a well from which he cannot escape, so too do the Endermen fall into our world. How strange and horrible it must be, to see the weird creatures who stride across our native soil. The creeper, the spider, the dead men reanimated for dread purpose. Our vast oceans of water, as dangerous to the Endermen as the noxious lava oceans in the Nether are to us. The poisonous rain that falls from the sky! The water vapor in the air must prickle their skin; it is little wonder that they prefer the cold, lonely deserts.

The Endermen are fearfully private creatures and many times I have fought one of the giant bastards when our eyes met over the windswept dunes. They leap fiercely into battle, their eyes flashing a violaceous light and they pursue me relentlessly. I am the better armed, of course, with my axe and my sword, but there is a twinge of regret every time one of the giant men finally collapses to the sand. I bear them no ill will; certainly I have done the same to every monster that ever gave me a cross glance. And to them... I am sure that I am the monster.

On the edges of this place, on the Plains of Mool,  I met with other survivors and we traded stories of the Endermen. One man, pirate and brigand, claimed that all the Endermen carry jewels on their person. Another, a man of abiding charity who provided me shelter on the Plains, claimed that there are strange strongholds in the world, buried by time or men which contain the Portals that the Old Deep Ones used to invade The End. I have seen a stronghold, mouldering beneath Swamp of Sung, infested with silverfish and Skeletons, although whether or not it contains such a portal I cannot say. The Butcherwoman claimed that the Endermen's jewels can activate the portals.

But I know that I have seen the Endermen on inscrutable errands in the night. Pawfuls of sand, dirt... to what end I do not know, but sometimes I suspect they're building something in the dark, dry heart of the desert. Is it a shelter from this cruel world? Are they trying to build a portal, so that they can return home?

Creeper

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