Minecraft: Do illagers need a boss variant?

Illagers have become one of Minecraft's most iconic mob families. During development, they were called "ill-built villagers," which was shortened to "ill-villager," and, finally, to "illager." These hostile mobs seem to have been designed as the big bad group of the Overworld.

From their unique structures, such as woodland mansions and pillager outposts, to raids, illagers have cemented themselves as a formidable force. That said, they still lack a true boss variant to challenge players on a scale like Ender Dragon or the Wither.

Adding an illager boss or pseudo-boss to Minecraft could create more challenges and would not be a bad idea. Let’s look at some concepts for how a boss variant could work.

Note: This article is subjective, speculative, and solely reflects the writer's opinion.

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Pseudo-boss

Illagers are one of the best family of mobs (Image via Mojang)

A pseudo-boss illager could take the form of a berserker or an elite illager. A berserker would be a larger, stronger illager, designed to act as a tank during raids. This mob could have increased health and dealt significant damage.

Similar to how iron golems protect villages, berserkers would protect illagers, making raids more dangerous for players. Alternatively, developers could introduce an illager equivalent of the iron golem, acting as an evil counterpart to this villager-friendly mob.

An illager elite could have multiple phases. This mob would shift between different fighting styles during the battle. It could start as attacking like an evoker, summoning vexes, and casting spells.

After losing some health, it could transition to acting like a vindicator, wielding an axe and charging at players. In its final phase, it could adopt illusion techniques similar to the Illusioner, a mob summoned only through commands.

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Overworld Minecraft boss

Archie is a really good character from the spin-off (Image via Mojang)

The Overworld, despite being the largest dimension in Minecraft, doesn’t have a dedicated boss mob. Adding an illager boss could fill this gap and make it feel more complete.

One option is to adapt the Arch-Illager from Minecraft Dungeons. This boss could reside in a grand illager castle or town. Players will have to defeat waves of illagers guarding the area to enter and reach the boss. The Arch-Illager could use powerful ranged attacks, summon mobs, and teleport to evade players.

Another idea is an illager King, a leader who commands all illagers. Like the Arch-Illager, the King could be found in unique structures, such as a massive fortress. Additionally, biome-specific bosses could add variety.

Ice biomes could feature an Ice Illager King, who uses freezing attacks to slow players, while forest biomes could host a Wind Illager King, who summons powerful gusts to knock players back. These bosses would provide tailored challenges based on the environment, making exploration and combat more dynamic.

Minecraft illagers have immense potential for expansion, and introducing boss or pseudo-boss variants could improve their role in the in-game world.