Witch

A witch is a hostile mob that uses harmful splash potions as ranged weapons and positive potions on itself.

Spawning
Witches spawn in the darkness, in swamp huts, during raids and when lightning strikes villagers.

A witch may spawn in the Overworld above opaque blocks at a light level of 0. They can spawn in all biomes except mushroom fields and deep dark.



Every swamp hut spawns a witch and a cat inside during world generation, they never despawn. Otherwise, only witches spawn in the 7×7×9 volume that is the hut in Java Edition. This is the size of the roof and one block over the porch, from one level below the floor of the hut to two blocks above the roof. Witches spawn on only one block within the swamp hut in Bedrock Edition.

Witches always spawn as part of raids starting from wave 4 $$ or wave 3 or 4 $$ depending on the world difficulty.

When lightning strikes within 4 blocks of a villager, it transforms into a witch. A witch transformed from a villager cannot despawn or be changed back into a villager. This witch attacks the player with its potions, even if the player traded with it before.

Drops
A witch drops 1 to 3 experience orbs if killed by a player or tamed wolf. Witches have the largest loot table of any mob, making 1–3 drops of 0–2 items each, for a maximum of 6 items total. The odds of a witch dropping the maximum amount of items possible without a Looting enchantment are 1 in 81 (1.2%). A witch drops:
 * (25% chance)
 * (12.5% chance)
 * (12.5% chance)
 * (12.5% chance)
 * (12.5% chance)
 * (12.5% chance)
 * (12.5% chance)

Each level of Looting increases the maximum items dropped by one for each of the 1–3 drops, leading to a maximum of 5 items per drop and a maximum of 15 items total. No Looting averages 2 items per kill, Looting I averages 3, Looting II averages 4 and Looting III averages 5.

If a witch is killed while drinking a potion, the potion has a 8.5% chance of dropping, increased by 1% for every level of Looting. A witch drops one of the following:

Behavior
Despite being similar in appearance to villagers, witches cannot open doors or use cauldrons. Witches pursue players within 64 blocks. They use level 1 potions in combat, throwing splash potions offensively and drinking potions defensively. These potions are the same as ones obtainable through brewing, with the same duration. Witches have infinite potions in their stock, even when transformed from a villager and not having had any potions equipped in their inventory.

Each potion is thrown within 10 blocks and in a 3-second interval.
 * Witches throw a splash potion of slowness if the player is 8 or more blocks away and does not already have the slowness status effect.
 * Witches throw a splash potion of poison if the player's health is at least and is not already poisoned.
 * Witches have a 25% chance of throwing a splash potion of weakness if the player is 3 or less blocks away and does not already have the weakness status effect.
 * If none of the above conditions are true, witches default to using a splash potion of harming, which does magical damage.

On each 0.05 second, when the witch is not already drinking a potion, it may choose to equip and drink a potion. Drinking the potion takes 1.6 seconds and slows down its moving speed. It does not attack during this time.
 * When 80% under water and lacking water breathing, there is a 15% chance of drinking a potion of Water Breathing.
 * When on fire or the last damage taken in the past 2 seconds was fire damage, there is a 15% chance of drinking a potion of Fire Resistance.
 * When not at full health, there is a 5% chance of drinking a potion of Healing, which heals.
 * When 11 or more blocks from a target and lacking Swiftness, there is a 50% chance of drinking a potion of Swiftness.

Witches are 85% resistant to magic: Poison, Instant Damage, evoker fangs and the Thorns enchantment. $$, witches are immune to poison, Fatal Poison and to their own thrown harming potions.



For decoration, witches have a 1.5% chance every second to spawn 10 to 44 purple particles above their heads, named “witch” $$ or “witchspell” $$.

$$, witches that participate in a raid seek out illagers and ravagers and throw splash potions of Regeneration of 45 seconds or Instant Health if they have or less. $$, witches participating in a raid do not heal other illagers, but still attack the player, iron golems and snow golems. If the raiders kill all the villagers in a village, witches "celebrate" their victory. In Java Edition, any witch can join a patrol if sufficiently near a patrol captain. These witches are hostile towards villagers, wandering traders and iron golems if in their sight.

Witches do not retaliate when attacked by evoker fangs, illagers or harming potions from other witches in Java Edition. Instead, they drink a beneficial potion. $$ witches throw negative splash potions at any mob that attacks it, including other witches and illagers, which leads to fights if an illager hits the witch by accident.

ID




Entity data
Witches have entity data associated with them that contains various properties.




 * See Bedrock Edition level format/Entity format.
 * See Bedrock Edition level format/Entity format.

Trivia

 * The witch is based on Baba Yaga, a witch from Slavic folklore who also lives in a swamp hut.
 * When the subject of witches dropping sticks was brought up, Dinnerbone jokingly replied that it's because witches are made of wood. He later explained that it was a reference to this scene from Monty Python and the Holy Grail.
 * Witches do not use the equipment in their swamp huts, but they can be used by players.
 * A witch fits through two block tall gaps, despite being taller than two blocks with its hat.
 * When drinking a potion, a witch's nose lifts and points forward. A witch's nose slightly wiggles when idle.
 * Witches have small mouths hidden under their noses. During their potion-drinking animation, this mouth becomes visible from the side.
 * Witches cannot drown underwater and require a long time to die in lava or fire. Witches are difficult to kill via suffocation or cacti, due to their frequent use of healing potions as well.
 * A witch is neither considered an illager nor a villager.
 * Witches are passive toward villagers and wandering traders although their potions can hit one by accident.
 * Before the Java 1.18 update, witches have an unused purple hat layer in their texture file, similar to the illusioner's hat.
 * The same hat layer is also present in the vindicator and evoker's texture files, where it is also unused.
 * These hat models also used to exist in the nitwit, librarian and priest's textures before the Village and Pillage Update.
 * In the Village and Pillage update artwork banner, the witch in the picture has its arms unfolded like a pillager, despite this being impossible in-game.
 * In Java Edition, witches can ride any mob via commands, including boss mobs. In Bedrock Edition, witches cannot ride ravagers, as the witch is not considered an illager. 
 * Like other villager-like mobs, witches don't stick their legs forward when riding a minecart, a boat or another mob. Their legs seem to sink in these entities visually.
 * Witches despawn instantly in peaceful difficulty.
 * $$, they don't attack each other, even if hit accidentally by another witch's potion. A witch damaged by another witch's potion drinks a healing potion instead, same as damaged by an illager. $$, witches locate targets even if they are behind blocks, are hostile to snow golems and iron golems and attack each other if damaged by another witch's potion.