The Wild Update 1.19 is finally here in Minecraft, and with it comes something from deep, deep underground. On the surface there may be sweet little Allay and funny Goats, but if you want adventure and peril you'll only find that in the Deepslate caves of the Deep Dark.
The mysterious Warden boss may be one of the hardest mobs you will encounter, being difficult to find, survive and defeat. This list will tell you everything you need to know if you decide to go spelunking in Ancient Cities.
7
Finding The Warden
To get the chance of coming eye-to-eye, or rather eye-to-blank-face, with the wandering Warden you'll need to dive down to around -50 on the Y axis and spelunk until you come across the blue-green mold of the Deep Dark. Most of the blocks here drop experience when mined, and they regrow when mobs die near a Shrieker Catalyst, so this stuff is completely farmable.
Very rarely will you stumble upon an Ancient City at this depth, which can span up to 200 blocks and is usually only sporadically lit with Soul Lanterns as lichen refuses to grow among the mold. These structures are the hunting grounds of Wardens, which can spawn over and over so long as there isn't another Warden within 45 blocks.
6 How To Summon The Warden
You don't need to be in an Ancient City, but they often have plenty of the Deep Dark blocks necessary to summon a Warden. They only need a one by three block space to dig up into, and light level below 11. It takes a few seconds for a Warden to pull its way through solid blocks and emerge next to the Shrieker that called for it.
A single player needs to set off any Shrieker three times within ten minutes to summon a Warden, and though other mobs can set off Shriekers they won't count towards the summoning.
5
The Warden's Behavior
It takes six seconds for the Warden to answer the Shrieker's third call, digging into the nearest appropriate space to the block. The Warden emits the Darkness effect every six seconds in a 20 block radius which lasts for twelve seconds. From there it will sniff the air, detecting any player within sixteen blocks.
Then it counts on sound or vibrations to track something down. It will follow up on vibrations from other mobs and items but prioritizes anything a player does so watch your step!
4 Fleeing From The Warden
Crouching is your best friend, as it silences your movement making it easier to get away from the detection range. Outside of sixteen blocks the Warden can't hear you but it will wander around listening, so keep moving away. Outside of 20 blocks the Darkness effect won't reach you, making it much easier to stay safe.
The Warden has a melee attack that deals between 16 and 45 hearts, ignoring resistances and disabling shields. If the player towers up or builds a wall, then the Warden emits a sonic boom ranged attack causing six to fifteen hearts of damage. The Resistance buff from Turtle Master potions does help against this. Your best bet is being at least fifteen blocks away on the X axis (horizontal) and 20 blocks on the Y axis (vertical) as none of its attacks can reach you there. Then simply fire away with arrows until it drops.
3 What Does The Warden Drop?
Its drops are pretty appalling for the amount of danger you put yourself in, which may be to discourage players from attempting to farm this mob. Upon a player or tamed wolf killing a Warden it will drop five experience orbs and a Sculk Catalyst. These Catalysts can be found throughout the Deep Dark, a creamy block with the blue-green dripping across the top, and can be picked up with Silk Touch, a much easier task!
These are the blocks that spread the Deep Dark when experience orbs from a mob drop nearby, so can be used to create your own experience farm somewhere safer. Most of the blocks in the Deep Dark drop experience when mined, so farms for this will be plentiful.
2 Avoiding The Warden
Sound made by items and mobs (including the player) activate the Sculk Sensors unless you walk on Wool. This can be any kind of Wool block, and the cities often have huge piles of them lying around on the periphery. Breaking blocks also counts as a noise, so make sure to only destroy blocks aren't within nine blocks of a Sensor.
Crouching removes the sound of footsteps, so use this mechanic to swiftly remove the Sculk Shriekers as there are usually fewer of those than Sensors. Without the Shriekers the Warden can't be summoned and players can move freely through the city. If, however, there's a sneaky Shrieker on top of the structure that you miss and the Warden arrives, quickly crouch and walk at least 30 blocks away. The Darkness effect will take over, so either remember your surroundings and make a break for it or drink a bucket of milk to remove the effect. After a minute it will despawn.
1 Why Risk It?
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So the Warden's drops are terrible and not worth fighting for, why visit the Ancient Cities then if it's so much hassle? The edges of each city contain ruined buildings, each with a chest inside. There are also altar like areas with water and candles that have between two and four chests. Here can be found stacks of candles, Amethyst Shards and Glowberries, but more importantly, Music Disc Shards for a brand new disc, as well as Echo Shards.
The Enchantment Swift Sneak is only available in these chests, and can be applied to Leggings to speed up your crouching speed. There are also really beefed up Diamond Hoes down here for some reason. If you really want to Indiana Jones this place, try to find the mysterious City's Basement, located beneath the Indestructible Deepslate Portal behind secret piston doors. The architecture is also a great reason to look for an Ancient City.