Zombie

A Zombie is a hostile mob that closely resembles the player. Zombies spawn in dimly or lesser lit areas, and will attack the player by slowly moving toward them, touching them and thereby inflicting damage. Like Skeletons, Zombies catch fire in sunlight.

Villagers are constantly attacked by Zombies at night-time, but Iron Golems (and players and possible pet Wolves that live in NPC Villages) will defend them.

Appearance
Zombies have green skin, empty eye sockets, and identical clothing to the player and humans. They are 2 blocks tall, 1 block wide, and 0.25 blocks thick.

Uses
When killed, Zombies drop 0-2 pieces of Rotten Flesh. These can be eaten, but have an 80% chance of giving the player food poisoning. Rotten Flesh can safely be used to heal and breed tamed Wolves without any risk of the wolf being poisoned.

Prior to Beta 1.8, Zombies dropped 0-2 Feathers.

Since Snapshot 12w06a, Zombies will sometimes drop Iron Ingots, Helmets, Shovels, and Swords. These items will only drop from Zombies killed by the player.

After Snapshot 12w07a, the drop rate of these items mentioned above was reduced.

Behavior


Zombies moan when wandering around aimlessly, but snarl and gurgle when attacking or injured. Zombies spawn in groups of 2-6 and will pursue the player on sight. Zombies like to emerge from dark places when you least expect it so be cautious when moving deep into a dark cave. Up until Snapshot 12w03a, Zombies made no attempt to avoid obstacles, including sheer cliffs, and would simply try to jump over anything in their path. After Snapshot 12w03a their AI was improved, helping them to better find their way around or over some obstacles. Unlike Skeletons, Zombies do not try to avoid being hit, and continue to pursue the player even when being counter-attacked. Zombies can sometimes deal damage through a closed door, as shown on the picture to the right. This is because when they occupy the space of the door, the game considers their hits as reaching past the door into an adjacent block. The behavior of the zombies after Snapshot 12w03a is demonstrated in this video.

At dawn (when the Sun is 15 degrees or more above the ground), Zombies will catch fire once exposed to direct sunlight. However, being in water negates the effects of direct sunlight, preventing them from burning. If they exit water, they will again be vulnerable to direct sunlight. Sufficient shade protects them, as will rain. As of Snapshot 12w04a, Zombies and Skeletons will make some attempt to seek out the cover of nearby trees or caves, or enter bodies of water to protect themselves from burning up.

Since Snapshot 12w06a, Zombies will attempt to break down doors, continuously banging on them. On Hard and Hardcore difficulties, Zombies can successfully break down Wooden Doors. Iron Doors are always safe from Zombie attack and destruction. Zombies will attack Villagers within 16 blocks of themselves, ignoring the hazard of direct sunlight. The villager(s) will attempt to flee from pursuing zombies. Once a zombie has focused on an NPC villager, the zombie will ignore any other villagers until his target is eliminated. That means that zombies won't always be chasing the nearest villager.

Like most mobs, zombies will always float on water even if their target is below them.

Combat
Zombies do not pose much of a threat unless encountered in large groups or in a narrow space. A player on sufficiently high ground can repeatedly hit a Zombie as it approaches, knocking it away each time it comes close. If the player is being pursued by several Zombies, then it is necessary to knock each one away in turn so that no single Zombie can close in. If a player is in a small room with several Zombies and no escape route, it is advisable to use a blocking and slashing technique; this slowly kills the Zombies while reducing the damage they inflict.

As of Beta 1.9 Pre-release 5 Zombies, Zombie Pigmen, and Skeletons can be damaged by Splash Potions of Healing. A good method to use against attacking hordes of Zombies is to herd them into a group, then throw 3 or 4 Splash Potions of Healing at them. Not only will it kill the Zombies, it will heal any nearby players. Unless there are very large numbers of Zombies, this method is likely to kill them all.

Another way to deal with Zombies is to back away from them in sneak mode. As Zombies are faster than a sneaking player, they will close in and can be repeatedly knocked away with an attack just as they enter range. Meanwhile, the use of sneak mode reduces the risk of a fall while moving backwards.

A more risky method of killing Zombies is to simply "spam the mouse" with a sword. Since Zombies cannot deal much damage very fast, swords of any kind can reduce their health quickly. However, be advised that a wooden sword will take the longest and will break faster, so upgrade to stronger materials as soon as possible.

Defensive Measures
Like Skeletons, Zombies are vulnerable to daylight, lava, fire, and contact with cacti. Surface Zombie populations can be controlled if the player regularly sleeps in a bed at dusk, since Zombies will spawn at night if given the chance to do so. Lava moats and cacti are not as effective as they used to be, as the AI has been improved somewhat.

Should a player be trapped on the surface outside at dusk, they can dig a single block wide pit 3 blocks deep, seal off the top with a block, and wait for morning light to burn away the undead before climbing out. However, this leaves the player vulnerable to creepers that may have spawned in the area due to their immunity to sunlight.

The Player can also kill Zombies and all hostile mobs (except Endermen) by using a bow from a distance so the player will not be attacked or killed.

If the player places a door rotated so having one "closed" appears "open" and vice versa, Zombies will not attempt to break them, simply standing in front of them if they wish to enter.

A popular method of protecting your shelter from Zombies in Hard/Hardcore mode without wasting iron is to place a fence gate and wooden pressure plate in front of your door. That way, the Zombie cannot get to the door to break it, and you stay protected from the arrows of Skeletons and the detection of other mobs as you would with a door in your shelter.

History
Zombies were the second (after humans) and fastest mob in Survival Test in the game until Spiders were added, and could run as fast as the player. They would occasionally appear wearing armor, but this had no protective effect on their health. When killed, Zombies gave 80 points each to the player. During this period, Zombies also had arm swinging animations when they attacked. This was removed in Indev for unknown reasons.

The Zombies' armor was removed in Indev. From Indev through Beta 1.7.3, Zombies dropped 0-2 feathers upon death. Before chickens existed in Minecraft, Notch confessed that he made Zombies drop feathers because he had no idea what they should have dropped when killed.

As of the 12w03a release, the Zombie's AI was improved, giving them a much better sense of direction when pursuing the player, allowing them to navigate obstacles, and even small mazes if constructed, to get to the player. They were also given the ability to 'see' through windows, the first mob able to do so intelligently, not counting Spiders, who are able to see through all blocks.

As of the 12w04a release, the Zombies' AI was improved to cope with catching fire in sunlight. If a Zombie is exposed to sunlight and bursts into flames, it will search for a body of water to douse the flames. The same goes for skeletons, whose AI has been improved also, so they run for shelter when exposed to sunlight.

As of the 12w06a release, Zombies will chase and attack Villagers, attack doors (Breaking them on Hard and Hardcore difficulties), and will sometimes drop Iron Ingots, Helmets, Shovels and Swords. Sometimes Zombies will attack villagers in preference to the player, and will always choose the shortest way to the target, even if there is a door in the way.

In the Pocket Edition Alpha 0.2.0, Sheep and Zombies were added, making them the first mobs in PE.

Bugs

 * Zombies will stand still in daylight if it is raining. This bug makes them appear 'scared' to move as if they feared catching on fire, even though the rain would douse the flames.
 * In Pocket Edition Alpha 0.2.0, some Zombies will not catch fire in the sunlight.
 * In Pocket Edition, Zombies can attack the player through doors if the player is standing directly in front of it and cannot move any further. This also means the player can attack the Zombie the same way.
 * Zombies won't run away from sunlight.
 * Zombies sometimes start spinning around in circles randomly.
 * If a zombie is trying to break down a door to kill NPC villagers or players, if you walk in front of the zombie which is trying to break down a door, they inflict damage on you and the zombie still isn't hostile to you if pursuing NPC villagers or other players.
 * A zombie can be harmed if in a building packed with NPC villagers and there's no room for a zombie to move around in a building.

Trivia

 * If a Zombie is in water, it will not catch fire and die, regardless of the light level. However, the moment it exits the water and re-enters direct sunlight, it will ignite, it shares this trait with its relative: the skeleton.
 * Because a Zombie has identical dimensions to the player model, the Zombie's skin can easily be used as a player skin and vice versa.
 * A Giant is an unused variation of a Zombie that can only be spawned through third party programs or SMP commands. Its behavior is identical to the Zombie's, but it has 50 hearts of health, deals 8.5 damage in a single hit, and is unable to damage the player unless they are right beneath it.
 * Since Minecraft Beta 1.9 Pre-release 5, a Splash Potion of Fire Resistance can be used to prevent Zombies from burning in direct sunlight.
 * A Zombie hit by a Splash Potion of Harming will gain health, and when it is hit by a Splash Potion of Healing it will lose health. Zombies are unaffected by Splash Potions of Regeneration and Poison.
 * Zombie armor has no durability score, which means it can never 'wear out' the way player armor does. Two points of armor gives 8% damage reduction from most sources. This means the player would need to deal  physical damage to kill a Zombie. When dropped from a height of 23 blocks, a Zombie would have its health dropped to half a heart but still takes two unarmed hits to kill. As unarmed hits deal half a heart each hit, the first hit would be reducted by the armor and send the zombie's health down below half a heart, thus a second hit is required. There is no one-hit (unarmed) method to kill Zombies in a falling trap.
 * In the Snapshot 12w04a, when spawning a Zombie in daylight with an egg on Soul Sand, it will not catch fire.
 * When killed in the day while raining, a Zombie might make a "hiss" sound, due to the fact that it will catch on fire and immediately be burned out.
 * In Snapshot 12w07b, the "horde" of Zombies spawned to attack villagers spawns regardless of light level.
 * During the day in Pocket Edition, Zombies do not catch fire. They are harmed as if hit by the player. Zombies may sometimes stay under large, shaded rock archways.
 * Even if attacked by an "accidental" arrow by a Skeleton, the Zombie will still be focused on attacking the player.
 * Since Zombies can only attack by "touching" the player, the player can defeat a Zombie by hand. However, be wary as this takes a long time so you have to remain sure that there are no Skeletons or Creepers in the area.
 * Zombies can climb ladders, but will only do so if their pathfinding runs them into one.
 * Zombies are currently the only hostile mob in the Pocket Edition.
 * If a zombie walks over multiple cakes, it will jump and spin around while still very slowly chasing the targeted player.