As Mojang increases the numbers of strongholds and dungeons to explore, it becomes more important to discourage players from breaking and adding blocks to make their own safe shortcuts, rather than exploring the strongholds normally. Silverfish are one excellent way of discourage stronghold editing, here's one idea for another.
Ghosts - Neutral Dungeon Mobs
Strongholds, dungeons, and mineshafts could be generated with occasional ghost spawners, which is just a mob spawner that would only create a new ghost mob.
The ghost is a guardian spirit, protecting the place where it died. Initially it completely ignores the player. However it becomes enraged if a player (within a certain range) violates its home by breaking or placing absolutely anything, and will relentlessly pursue that player to kill them. They don't care if you fight other mobs, just if you destroy walls or doors or add your own.
Ghosts would be able to see through walls, would be able to fly, and would be able to pass intangibly through solid walls. So you can't hope to wall them off or pillar to safety. If you anger a ghost it will be able to reach you.
Aside from being able to fly and pass and see through walls ghosts are no more powerful than a zombie, and are vulnerable to all normal attacks. Ghosts also burn in sunlight. So angering a ghost isn't necessarily a death sentence, it's just something you should avoid doing recklessly. If you really want to break a wall in a dungeon you can do it and survive, just be ready for a battle.
If you're within a ghost's range you'd hear a noticeable haunting moan. So you don't have to worry about getting attacked out of nowhere while building or mining.
I think that ghosts could add a lot to Minecraft's ruin exploration, especially if Mojang wants to add more complex redstone traps and puzzles and other things they don't want you to just smash through.
Ghosts - Neutral Dungeon Mobs
Strongholds, dungeons, and mineshafts could be generated with occasional ghost spawners, which is just a mob spawner that would only create a new ghost mob.
The ghost is a guardian spirit, protecting the place where it died. Initially it completely ignores the player. However it becomes enraged if a player (within a certain range) violates its home by breaking or placing absolutely anything, and will relentlessly pursue that player to kill them. They don't care if you fight other mobs, just if you destroy walls or doors or add your own.
Ghosts would be able to see through walls, would be able to fly, and would be able to pass intangibly through solid walls. So you can't hope to wall them off or pillar to safety. If you anger a ghost it will be able to reach you.
Aside from being able to fly and pass and see through walls ghosts are no more powerful than a zombie, and are vulnerable to all normal attacks. Ghosts also burn in sunlight. So angering a ghost isn't necessarily a death sentence, it's just something you should avoid doing recklessly. If you really want to break a wall in a dungeon you can do it and survive, just be ready for a battle.
If you're within a ghost's range you'd hear a noticeable haunting moan. So you don't have to worry about getting attacked out of nowhere while building or mining.
I think that ghosts could add a lot to Minecraft's ruin exploration, especially if Mojang wants to add more complex redstone traps and puzzles and other things they don't want you to just smash through.
I don't know, I've seen a lot of pretty scary ghost stories.
If anything it's zombies that have gotten too much exposure lately.
Poltergeist then maybe? Still, great idea.