*Letters, Birds and Wax stamps*
This suggestion includes six new items, one new mob, and two drastic changes.
All items have something to do with communication, and are used to write letters.
I will reply on questions, and look at your suggestions,
so I can keep changing the suggestion whenever needed.
I would like the following things added to the game:
NEW ITEMS:
Paper and Quill
This item is used to write letters in Minecraft,
and it is very similar to the Book and Quill.
It is crafted by combining Paper, Ink sac and feather,
No matter the order of the items.
Right clicking with the item in your hand gives you a GUI,
which is similar to the one of the Book and Quill.
One difference is that the Paper and Quill’s GUI shows only one page,
where the Book and Quill shows a complete book.
Another difference is that the Letter and Quill has a button “Finish” instead of “Sign”
and that instead of a “Title” you can fill in an “Addressee” (The person you write to).
Letter
After finishing your writing, the Paper and Quill turns into a Letter.
This item is no more than a piece of paper which you can read.
A letter can’t be crafted, and can only be obtained by finishing a Paper and Quill.
You should also be able to copy letters,
just by combining Paper and Quill and a finished Letter in a crafting table,
no matter the order of items.
Just like this you should be able to copy books,
by combining Book and Quill and a finished book in a crafting table,
no matter the order of items.
Scrolling over this item gives you some information:
First line: Letter
Second line: From Notch
Third line: For Dyzalonius (If “Dyzalonius” would be his addressee)
Wax
This item is used to make Sealed letters with so called “Wax stamps”,
which I will explain later on in this suggestion.
It can be created by smelting sugarcane in a furnace.
Maybe later on wax can get another use,
but I can’t think of one having something to do with this.
Sealed Letter
A Sealed letter is very similar to a normal one, but then it is sealed. :3
Sealed means that there is a Wax stamp on the letter,
which can be useful if you don’t want to spread your news to everyone.
This item can be crafted by combining a Letter and a piece of Wax in a crafting table,
No matter the order of the items.
Now when you open the letter you will first get the letter GUI,
But this time you will be asked to break the seal (which can’t be undone).
After breaking this seal, you can read it like it is a normal letter,
and the name changes to “Unsealed Letter”.
The name can’t be simply changed to Letter again,
because then nobody would know there was a seal on there,
then it could have been a normal letter.
Scrolling over this item gives you some information:
First line: Sealed Letter
Second line: From Gandalf
Third line: For Dyzalonius (If “Dyzalonius” would be his Addressee)
Unsealed Letter
This item is no different than the normal Letter,
The only difference is his name, and his image.
The image suggests that this is/was a Sealed Letter,
and the name is a good indicator that the seal has been broken.
You can’t craft this item as it can only be obtained by breaking a Sealed Letter.
Scrolling over this item gives the same information as with a normal Letter,
but then with a different name of course.
Bird post
The Bird post is used to let tamed birds sit on,
and to let birds travel to other Bird posts when you want them to.
It can be crafted by putting a stick on a fence, in that order.
Right clicking the floor with this item will place the item,
which really isn’t more than a stick on a fence.
If you place the item, a GUI will popup similar to the one of a sign,
which will ask you to name the post.
If there is a bird sitting on the Bird post, and you right click the bird, then the bird will come off.
If there is a bird sitting on the Bird post, and you right click the Bird post itself,
you are trying to send the bird away to another Bird post:
Another GUI will popup which asks you to fill in the name of a Bird post, or some coordinates.
(when you do this, the bird goes to the Bird post closest to these coordinates.)
(dont know this for sure)
This can be very handy, when you want to send Letters to people,
because if you right click a bird with a Letter/Sealed Letter/Unsealed Letter,
the bird will have the Letter in a little pocket around his leg,
which can be obtained by right clicking the bird again.
The arrow points at the place where the bird should sit.
NEW MOB:
Bird
As is explained earlier, the bird is a mob that can bring letters around.
Apart from that it has wings; it behaves a lot like a cat:
It is very shy, and won’t come close to people,
unless you stand still holding seeds (they love seeds).
If you hold seeds, the bird will come close,
after which you can give him the seeds, and tame him.
Tamed birds follow you around until you tell them not to, right clicking them will let them sit,
and right clicking again will let him fly again (not that high, like two blocks high).
If a bird follows you, and you right click a Bird post, the bird will sit on that,
after which you can use the bird to send messages (go back to “Bird post” for more info).
If birds send messages, they should make a sound when they arrived.
Also, birds that travel from post to post, should not be prevented from arriving,
as this would make this communication form to unreliable.
Some people asked if they should be hunted by ocelots or bats,
I say no, because this also makes this communication form to unreliable.
Birds should have path finding AI which should guide them to other Bird posts,
if bird posts aren't reachable, people should not be able to find it when they look for this bird post,
trying to send a message.
I haven’t thought about the birds health, or whatsoever.
I think that the bird should look like the bird from Mo’s creatures,
and then in different colors.
I don’t really know yet.
This is a bird from Mo's Creatures, this is what the bird should look like
(just all colors)
BIG GAME CHANGES:
Distance related chat
I guess I will have to explain this:
When I stand in my house in Minecraft, and someone else stands a thousand blocks away,
he should not be able to see what I type in chat. And when we stand together in my house,
he should be able to see that. There should be like 2 chat options:
Normal & Whisper:
Normal to just speak to other people in a certain radius (In approximately 64 blocks).
Whisper to really whisper to other people who are close (In approximately 8 blocks).
You should be able to switch between those two options with a hotkey,
also should this be seen on your screen in the lower left-hand corner,
with a letter: N or W, so you know if you are talking out loud or not)
Explanation in some detail:
If I use chat, I type text, for now lets call that text "sound".
So when I say something in chat, i produce a sound.
From where I stand (source of the sound), the sound has a strength of 64.
(If this strength is 0, people won't read your chat.)
If the sound has to reach through a block, this strength goes down, for example:
If I stand 8 blocks away from someone, without any obstacles between that person and me,
the strength goes down by 8 (8 x 1 air = 8). He will hear me.
If I stand 8 blocks away from someone in a cave, with only stone between him and me,
the strength goes down faster, by 64 (8 x 8 stone = 64). He will not hear me, the strength is 0.
Sound will always look for the shortest way, which may be through blocks.
But the strength of the sound decreases faster through solid blocks
than through air/water/lava/slabs/stairs/etc.
Through solid blocks, sound decreases with 8 per block,
and through unsolid blocks, sound decreases with 1 per block.
This will make Minecraft a bit more realistic (I am not saying that is always better),
and that stimulates people to send letters to each other.
This also lets Minecraft be even more like the Middle Ages,
which Minecraft is certainly going to look like.
This also has some disadvantages for certain servers,
which could be solved by adding an option in Server Properties, asking the Owner to enable or disable distance related chat (default = true)
It is just as easy as it sounds; I would like to add a Microphone option to the game,
to chat with other people in multiplayer.
this also works with the Distance related chat, but now it works a bit different:
With normal chat, you can’t see someone his chat when you are 65 "strength" away,
and when you are 64 "strength" away you can.
With Microphone chat, this should be smooth.
Explanation is some detail:
Instead of having the sudden difference between READ chat, and DON'T READ chat,
there is a smooth transition, so standing next to someone gives a louder sound than when you stand very far away from someone (but still in a 64 strength radius).
This should also be depending on the strength of your sound:
Standing next to someone (64 strength), should have 110% volume.
Standing far away (0 strength), should have 10% volume.
And standing even further away (>0 strength), should have 0% volume.
Per strength the volume should go up with 1,5625%,
And the volume should start at 10% when at 0 strength.
With this major change to the game
there should also be an option or command to mute people who annoy you,
so people don’t rage quit because someone plays a song on the background.
Though, you should still be able to see thát they are chatting,
so you know he is still muted by you.
When you mute someone, you only mute his microphone chat, not his normal chat.
That is important, so people don’t get fully ignored.
Please let me know if you like or dislike this suggestion,
and also why or why not, so I know where to focus on.
All suggestions are welcome!
Please contribute by making pictures.
If anyone would make a mod containing this,
I would be grateful, let me know!
Thanks for reading
please give +1 reputation,
give support, and comment!
Dyzalonius
OUR SUPPORT:
Axillarymees (+1)
Bijuu546 (+1)
Quote from Bijuu546
I like it! Support.
But instead of adding bird post, I'd rather give a sign this feature. So birds can sit on signs. This way it is really easy to program it, cause a bird would fly to the closest sign with certain word on it (it may be anything, not only the name of addressee. What do you think about it?)
Malloon (+1)
Quote from Malloon
I've got a bit more time now, so I'll make a better comment than my last one.
What I meant was that, if people are 1000 blocks away from each other and they have something important to say, it is just frustrating to send a bird and wonder if the other person got it, or just didn't reply, or the bird got killed etc. I would just prefer to send a message outside of the game, because that is faster and less frustrating. And what I meant with the online thing was that people would have to wait even longer for an answer. But now that I think about it, this could actually be the best way to send a message to someone who isn't online, without having to walk all the way. So..... 1/2 Support. I'm on the fence now.
The problem I see with this is that the other bird posts may be underground or somewhere inaccessible, where the bird couldn't possibly have got to them. Without loaded chunks is isn't possible to check, either. If it works by teleporting the bird from post to post, we may as well have some sort of ender messaging mojo service and be done with it.
I think this is a good idea; One that I had myself a few months back, but I couldn't be bothered to post it (before you say anything about me being lazy in that regard, change your signature and you may).
It should be worked out a bit more, I think, because it creates a major gameplay change. My idea was this: "Sound" travels to each other player within the correct radius in two ways.
1. The shortest path there is, even if this means going through blocks.
2. Through the shortest path in the air.
The sound that arrives is 1+2. Now, sound diminishes as it travels, -1 for every block of air it passes through and most transparent blocks, such as stairs, half slabs, repeaters etc., -2 for every wood or glass block, -4 for dirt and stone, etc. I'll post some pictures if it is unclear what I mean.
If the sound, which had started out with a strength of 64, reaches another player with a strength of 48-33, one third of the letters are replaced with a space, or a dash, or something which is appropriate.; If it reaches a player with the strength of 32-17, two thirds of the letters are replaced by the same symbol and if it reaches a player with a strength of 16-1, all of it is unintelegable.
In whisper mode you also start with a strength of 64, but sound is decreased much more strongly. -4 in air, -8 in wood or glass, -16 in stone etc. This means people within four block can hear you well, people 5-8 blocks away from you can only understand 2/3rds of it, people 9-12 blocks away can only understand 1/3 of it and people 13-16 blocks away can't understand any of it, but may choose to ask:
"What are you whispering about?"
There could also be a shout and an lip-movement: The shout makes air only decrease it by 1/2, etc. and the lip-movement makes air decrease it by 16, etc.
The microphone thing would work in a similar way, except it would be making the sound quieter.
Anyway, if this were added, I would fully support birds.
Quote from Malloon
Full support.
I just though that with the chat, you could, for the most part, guess what was said. This replicates the real world, as you can't always here everything, or sound is muffled through a cave wall, etc. But I guess it could become annoying, especially if you can't know where the speakers are.
SkarmorySilver (+1)
Quote from SkarmorySilver
Support, if only because it's a reasonable purpose for birds as a mob. That and the fact that I love birds~
Maybe the birds make a sound that a letter is delivered. But bats shouldn't hunt birds, the small ones primarily eat insects. Ocelots, though...
Maybe the individual perches may have their locations stored for you to use. When you right click the bird on the perch you could open an interface indicating which perch the bird will fly to. The pathfinding AI should also avoid caves, probably avoiding any solid blocks entirely while airborne.
The birds could also have different random colors and patterns like horses, so you can invoke color coding for your convenience in multiplayer servers.
Minecraftdeas (+1)
Link (+1)
Clayxros (+1)
Quote from clayxros
Warning, I'm going into critic mode!
[CRITIC MODE ACTIVATED]
The idea in itself is really good. The birds can't make you fly, they add some much-needed Aesthetics to Minecraft, and things get more interesting. The only part that bothers me is the "limited chat radius" idea. I like how people can hear you wherever you are, it comes in handy. Plus, alot of servers have that. It only makes things complicated frankly. Also, you must consider that, other than birds flying around, the letter thing would only be used in Multiplayer. I do like this though, because I can, for instance, send a letter to a miniature base I have far away. When i arrive there, i can look at the letter I sent and see what I have to do there, or if I need to collect something from that area. This idea as a communication/memo tool has a lot of promise, and I support it. I will not, however, support the limited range chat part. that is all.
P.S. I'm adding this topic to my Aesthetic Mobs thread, since this has birds in the exact context I'd like.
Fabianzzz (+1)
Mark227 (+1)
Packerdan (+1)
Quote from Packerdan
I really like the Letters and Birds, although the chat visibility is a definite no. I play on servers that are 10's of thousands of blocks diameter, and not being able to talk to people unless they're right next to me would ruin the game for me. Now the birds could still send the sealed letters, stuff you don't want on public chat and want players to have a log of (Co-ordinates to your house, or mob farm, etc.) Also I think the sealed letter should only be openable at first by the sender and the receiver.
Overall I think this is a very nice, well thought out suggestion!
Wind2011 (+1)
Quote from wind2011
I like the letters and birds idea, birds would add something to the sky. There could also be mailboxes, witch the letters are stored in.
Skua (+1)
Quote from Skua
Yep. I just like the RPG feel and concept of your suggestion thats all. Think it deserves attention by members of Mojang. Simple, really.
JamieGre (+1)
Vadagar (+1)
Quote from vadagar
nice
Killer13307 (+1)
Quote from killer13307
On lan games when you open the server you should be able to the chat from normal (how it is now) to it having sound (how you suggested). I support.
JSX (+1)
Quote from JSX
Absolutely supported, all of it. From the main draw to the system for distance-restricted chat, all of it seems fitting to the Minecraft "theme". It's place would probably be best on the harder/more realisticly inclined spectrum of survival servers and roleplaying servers, and the distance-restricted chat would also be useful for adding some dynamics to PvP just imagine some clan discussing thier attack plans, thinking they are safe from others hearing them, not knowing of a hidden spy overhearing their discussion.
Mr_Simba (+1)
Quote from Mr_Simba
This is adorable. Support.
This may have been said already (most likely), but maybe add one slot for adding an item into the letter for sending too. This would be awesome on servers, especially PVP. You could see someone's bird and try to intercept it to shoot it down. So good for RP.
Azreef (+1)
Miopic (+1)
Enosphorous (+1)
Quote from Enosphorous
I love this idea - it'd sure make SMP a lot more fun if you could send birds with messages to friends.
My friends would probably kill the bird though. ;p
Slime Slab, made with Adobe Photoshop Elements 5.0 Here's a banner, please put it in your signature to attract more readers: 
make sure to post the URL elsewhere in your signature so people don't just get horribly lost looking for this post.
3
- Light Rainstorm
- Light Rainstorm with Thunder
- Heavy Rainstorm
- Heavy Rainstorm with Thunder and Lightning
The first two would be your tranquil and enjoyable weather patterns.
2
I have Windows 8, that's all anyone needs to bash Microsoft.
1
Flesh the concept out further, make it something that people would love to see inside their home. Bonus points if it has a practical application beyond vanity, but that's not necessarily needed either.
1
To those who aren't supporting the idea, your reasons are absurd.
1: You do not know what these rails look like.
2: Minecraft is not predominantly realistic.
3: The potential for griefing is not, unto itself, a reason to exclude something from the game...or we wouldn't have TNT, Lava, and anything else that can potentially kill someone. If you don't like that potential being in your experience...there are servers that do not permit griefing, find one.
I believe you guys are grasping at straws in a wild attempt to defend your position; you don't have to. If you don't like the idea, just don't support it and express your distaste. There is absolutely no reason to try and come up with absurd reasons to validate your dislike of the idea...you're entitled to just not like it.
2
I'd rather see it as a new ore myself, but I understand the reasoning behind this... It's the same material, just colored differently, and neither have a purpose beyond vanity...so it would be pretty redundant to have two types of useless, beyond vanity purposes, ore. It would, however, provide a lot more than you'd get through a crafting concept...and more to mine in the Nether. Just saying, I see why a crafting concept was made rather than a suggestion for a new ore.
1
Bossception.
2
Name: Tiki
Health Points: 10 (
Attack Strength:
- Easy: 2 (
- Normal: 3 (
- Hard: 4 (
Spawn: Jungle Biome (Frequently near Lava.)
Drop:
- Cocoa Beans (4-8) 50% chance.
--> Rare Elite Droprate (4-8) 30% chance
- Jungle Sapling (2-4) 40% chance.
--> Rare Elite Droprate (2-4) 30% chance
- Gold Nugget (2-4) 8% chance.
--> Rare Elite Droprate (2-4) 35% chance
- Blowgun (1) 1% chance.
--> Rare Elite Droprate (1) 5% chance
- Blowgun Darts (5-10) 1% chance.
Basic Mechanics
- Unaffected by sunlight.
- Low health
- Low initial damage.
- High cumulative damage.
- Poison ticks do not stack, but additional hits will reset the timer.
- Rare, elite, version sets spike traps. Visual coming soon...
- Spawns exclusively in jungle biome and most frequently around lava, even if it's under ground, within jungle biomes.
Trap Mechanics: (Elite Tiki only)
- Each Tiki rare spawn will dig one trap six blocks deep, and two blocks wide.
- Each trap is covered with a false leaf block, slightly off color.
- Trap Blocks last for two seconds before falling apart when something stands atop of them, the sound of snapping twigs will be heard as a warning to the player.
- The bottom of these pits have spike traps that deal 2 (
- All Tiki will place false leaf blocks back over traps that have been triggered.
Behavioral Pattern:
Native to the jungle biomes, Tiki are a tribal race of hostile creatures who worship lava as their chief deity. Gold, being found quite often within close proximity to lava, is believed to be a gift from their god and is thus coveted above all else. Cannibalistic in nature, they perceive players as a potential threat and source of meat for their insatiable hunger; they're a far easier prey than the elusive Ocelot that's quite keen to avoid them and agile enough to thwart their traps.
Quite the clever hunters, they use a combination of poison and traps to take down their prey. Blowguns are fixed within the nose of their masks, each dart tipped with a toxic substance created through the secretions of some unknown animal or insect. They always maintain their distance and use their projectiles as a means to entice the player into carefully laid spike traps. The tactics make them a formidable foe, and while the darts of one Tiki may not be much of a threat...packs of these creatures can become quite a challenge that requires an abundant supply of milk.
Rare Blowgun Drop:
On very rare occasions, the blowgun of a Tiki drops upon death and isn't damaged beyond repair...allowing the player to acquire the weapon. It functions in the exact same way as it does for the Tiki, dealing damage equivalent to the difficulty setting of your world. It can be repaired with reeds (sugar cane) but the darts can't be crafted through regular means. Instead, players who wish to replenish their dart stock must slay additional Tiki and hope that they drop some.
Possibility: (Not needed, but might be cool.)
Tiki villages could be worked into the game, providing them with a place to rest between hunts and socialize with one another...along with granting an interesting facet to the jungles themselves for us to stumble upon, and instantly regret stumbling upon. I would imagine these locations to be a combination of small huts, tree houses, and caverns leading below the surface into a subterranean temple system with a small shrine to their god: lava.
Possibility 2: (Not needed, but could make them a little easier to bypass if need be.
Seeing as how Tiki are so dangerous when in groups, and covet gold as a gift from their god, it may be an interesting mechanic to make them so that they do not attack players who adorn full gold armor unless attacked first. Furthermore, perhaps a player in all gold armor can trade with Tiki in exchange for gold nuggets...giving that player access to who knows what. Granted, the blowguns and darts should not be traded by the Tiki as they're a very rare drop and should kept that way. Or, at the very least, it should be extremely expensive if they are traded.
Old Thread:
This is based off my old concept, which you can read here: Old Tiki Mob
Throughout the massive duration of time between posts, I figured that the lava trap may have been a bit excessive due to the fact that items would have been lost upon death, so now it's a spike trap. I think this is much more fair and balanced, allowing players to reclaim their items if they fall victim to these little masked hellions.
3
Now on Reddit: HERE!
Health Points: 50 (
Attack Strength:
- Easy: 5 (
- Normal: 10 (
- Hard: 15 (
Spawn: Nether (Primarily atop Netherrack.)
Drop:
- Bones (1-5) 40% chance.
- Rotten Flesh (1-5) 30% chance.
- Nether Wart (1-5) 10% chance.
- Ogre Heart (1) 10% chance.
- Pigman or Zombie Pigman Head (1-2) 9% chance.
- Cockatrice Egg (1) 1% chance.
Behavioral Pattern:
The Nether Ogre is a dangerous creature that frequents areas away from Nether fortresses...where it actively hunts its primary source of nurishment, Pigmen and their zombified equivalents. While appearing slow and sluggish...these gluttons are capable of frightening bursts of speed whenever they set their eyes on potential prey, and their dedication towards pummeling that prey into paste is unmatched.
Although much larger than the player, these brutes are extremely strong...giving them the ability to bash Netherrack into pieces; they do this in two ways. The first is what you would expect from these giants, a downward slam with both fists when they have finally caught up to you; this devastating blow leaves a small crater in the ground that looks as follows:
Their second method of breaking netherrack comes in the form of actually pursuing the player. This was suggested in the previous incarnation of the idea to ensure that players couldn't simply carve themselves a little nook to easily defeat the lumbering horrors. If a player tries to escape down a narrow, small, tunnel that the Ogre can't fit through...they will proceed to punch the Netherrack and slowly make their way towards the player...causing a path of devastation in their wake.
They're extremely aggressive, and dangerous, creatures that should be approached intelligently...preferably from a high altitude with an enchanted bow. Thankfully, their not very subtle with their presence; what with the guttural sounds and gross grunts giving away their position along with the tremendous stomping sound of their steps as they patrol the Nether in search of prey.
- Possibility: (This is not needed, it's just an idea.)
Seeing as how Zombie Pigmen appear to retain some of their intelligence, and this mob alluding to the possibility that the Ogre is the reason why they're now zombies to begin with, I was thinking that Zombie Pigmen should flee from Nether Ogres...who will, in turn, actively pursue them unless a player gets their attention by coming too close or attacking.
If the player does attack...it's possible that the Zombie Pigmen could engage the Nether Ogre alongside the player...rallied by the player taking the initiative. While their intelligence may not be significant after their deaths, they do seem intelligent enough to make decisions...even if on a primitive, animalistic, level. So, I think that this could be logical to implement.
It may result in the Nether Ogre becoming even stronger, however, if it turns out players can easily dispatch them through this method. I'm okay with that...other players may not be.
Ogre Heart Drop:
The Ogre Heart is a fairly rare drop that can be combined with an Awkward Potion to create a Berserker Potion. This potion adds: 50% damage to all melee attacks, with or without weapons, Increases player's movement speed, sprinting speed, and jumping length by approximately 10%, and increases the speed of hunger depletion by 5%.
The potion lasts 1 minute.
- Possibility: (This is not needed, it's just an idea.)
If Nether villages are ever added, and if the Pigmen are used as the villagers, perhaps Nether Ogre hearts could be used as a currency to trade with them instead of emeralds. It's very unlikely that Pigmen would value emeralds, but the hearts of a creature that actively hunts them is probably something they would value a great deal...especially, from a lore perspective, if these hearts could be used in potions to give them a bit more strength in battle against these lumbering gluttons.
Again though, just a thought...
Rare Cockatrice Egg:
While Pigmen are the primary source of nourishment for Nether Ogres, Cockatrice eggs are also incorporated into their diets whenever possible. It's not too often that these lumbering brutes manage to get their grubby hands on such a savory morsel due to the fact that these small creatures are quite rare and equally elusive. Still, from time to time, a Cockatrice finds itself with no other choice than to abandon a nest to the grotesque glutton that had managed discovering it. This is because, unlike other creatures, the sheer size of the Ogre is simply far too much for the petite Cockatrice...despite the petrification capabilities of its gaze. Because of this, a player has a rare chance of procuring these eggs for themselves upon slaying a Nether Ogre; eating it isn't recommended...
Instead, the player can hatch this egg themselves: the resulting Cockatrice perceiving them as its parental figure and becoming fiercely loyal. While very weak, their ability to petrify hostile creatures makes them an extremely valuable pet. Furthermore, their immunity to fire and lava makes them far more valuable in dangerous situations like deep subterranean caving and Nether exploration.
Being territorial creatures, however, they won't stick around if a player hatches another Cockatrice. In the natural course of things, a Cockatrice hatches but one egg and the resulting child ultimately leaves the mother once she lays again...this being the period when the young Cockatrice steps out on its own to procure a mate and stake claim upon territory. So, a player can only have one Cockatrice at a time...but could, potentially, procure multiple eggs to save in case their Cockatrice dies...or is somehow lost.
Name:Cockatrice
Health Points: 15 (
Attack Strength: 1 (
Food Requirements for Healing: Meat
Special Abilities:
- Fire Immunity
- Lava Immunity
- Petrifying Gaze
The Cockatrice is a pet that can only be obtained through the rare drop of a Cockatrice egg by defeating Nether Ogres. Similar to dogs in behavior, these creatures will protect the individual who hatched them with aggressive intent...and while weak in comparison to our canine companions, the Cockatrice shouldn't be underestimated. These creatures have a petrifying gaze that they use, periodically, to subdue prey...rendering the target completely unable to: move, attack, use items and access their inventory until the duration of the effect has expired.
The image above shows a Cockatrice in attack mode; while they walk on their legs when traversing terrain...they'll use their tails for support so that they can attack with their claws while engaging the enemy. As would be expected from their home environment, Cockatrices are immune to fire and lava...making them very durable in treacherous landscapes that would, otherwise, result in the death of other beloved pets. Furthermore, the Cockatrice can only be healed by feeding it meat...unlike mundane chickens of the Overworld.
The Old Thread:
If you haven't looked at the Tiki Mob, please do; also comment and vote on the polls because it's greatly appreciated. The Tiki, as well as the Nether Ogre, are old concepts that I have decided to rework because...well...they were posted a long time ago and I wanted to make a few changes. The Nether Ogre got a lot of positive support, but a main gripe with the concept was the lack of interesting drops. While I fully understand that the community is tired of pet suggestions...it's honestly the only thing I could think of and I hope that it was unique enough to justify suggesting. With that said, I hope you enjoy!
The old thread for the Nether Ogre can be found here, in case you were interested in seeing the old rendition and flavor text.
1
That's a shame...the fungal theory was probably the coolest and most interesting possibility out there.
1
I really couldn't care less about the difficulty; it's the lack of consistency that bothers me. Throughout the day, I don't expect to see undead wandering around because they burn...but then I hear that annoying grunt and look down to see a tiny little undead-toddler staring up at me in annoyance. Granted, I stare back at him in annoyance...but there's a fundamental difference between he and I; he is supposed to be on fire.
Now, Aary33 brings up the point of Zombie Pigmen...but they're from another realm and seem to retain a significant portion of their intelligence seeing as how they don't attack us unless we assault them. This leads me to believe that they are remnants and a much stronger variant of undead in comparison...not to mention they're undead from another dimension; Wither Skeletons don't burn either.
Like I said previously, it's not the difficulty that bothers me...it's just the consistency. I would rather see Zombie Pigmen and Wither Skeletons burn than see the Baby Zombie retain immunity to sunlight. If you want to bring the challenge of the Baby Zombie back up, reduce their hitbox to suit the model and, perhaps, incorporate a new "Pregnant" Zombie into the game that releases a Zombie Baby when it dies.
I think reducing their hitbox, if their hitbox actually is normal size, and making them burst from the insides of a new Zombie type upon death would bring back the challenge lost when they aren't immune to fire anymore.