Mob (entity)

Mobs, known as monsters in the code, were hostile mobs that look identical to the players with the default skin.

Spawning
Mobs would generate in random places when a world was generated at Pre-classic. Later, they could be manually spawned by pressing while playing in Classic mode. After approximately 1 minute, they would despawn. After both of these features were removed, they were only spawnable using mods and map editors, but otherwise were not available in vanilla Minecraft.

Drops
Mobs did not drop anything when they die.

Pre-Classic to Classic


Mobs could not change blocks; they would just move around the map aimlessly, walking in slightly imperfect circles and jumping occasionally. While walking, they would flail their arms around and move their head randomly. Mobs were affected by solid blocks, but they were able to walk right through liquids, as if they were air. If the player had a custom skin, any mobs created would still use the default skin and would not assume the look of the player. They would not notice dangers, and because of this they would sometimes jump into the void.

Infdev to Beta 1.7.3
In later versions, mobs would hurt and kill the player, dealing the same damage to the player as the player does with their fist. Strangely, they did not use the punching animation that a normal player would use; they would only run into the player like a zombie would.

ID
Pre-Classic

Infdev

Trivia

 * Mobs were the first mob ever added to the game.
 * Mobs, when spawned, may head to the left for half a second, before turning around to attack the player. Zombified piglins may also do this on occasion.
 * If a mob spawner is placed in Java Edition Beta 1.8 or later, it appears blank and no mobs spawn.
 * Coding for mobs was still present until Java Edition 1.8 (under the generic name "Monster"). Only the mob model was removed in Beta 1.8. Notch also used the name "monster" for the green moboids in his unfinished game: Legend of the Chambered.
 * Mobs use the old player model, so they are actually slightly taller than the player.
 * Despite being taller than the player, mobs looked up at the player when chasing them. This is because their actual hit-box and eye height were shorter than the player's hit-box and eye height.