Top 5 Minecraft mobs with multiple variants

Minecraft is a game with many mobs. As of update 1.20, there are more than 80 unique mobs in the game, with three more coming in update 1.21. However, many also have different types and variations, pushing the number of mobs even higher.

The five Minecraft mobs with the largest number of unique types are detailed below, with some reaching truly huge numbers of types.

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5 Minecraft mobs with the most variants

5) Sheep

A rare natural pink sheep (Image via Mojang)

Sheep makes the list of Minecraft's most varied mobs for one simple reason: the plethora of different colors of dye found in the game. There are 16 dyes in the game, each of which has an associated color of sheep. Players that dye their sheep can then shear dyed wool rather than having to die each wool block. This, in turn, makes dyed sheep a great way to farm wool.

Some of these less common wool colors, such as brown and pink sheep, can even be found naturally, though they are some of Minecraft's rarest occurrences.

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4) Skeletons

A skeleton with an enchanted bow (Image via Mojang)

Skeletons are the first among the hostile mobs on this list. The regular skeleton has distinct spawn types, including left-handed, armored, and enchanted variants. Additionally, regular skeletons can occasionally spawn riding spiders, which are dangerous spider jockeys.

However, skeletons also have two different mobs based on them, including the stray and the yet-to-be-released Minecraft bogged. These two skeletons are biome-specific, with strays being found in colder climates and bogged being found in swamps and trial chambers.

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3) Zombies

A zombie holding a door they destroyed (Image via Mojang)

Zombies might seem like they do not have a lot of different variations. There are only baby zombies, regular zombies, drowned, and husks, after all, right? Wrong. Zombies can also be:

• Left-handed
• Armored
• Equipped with a weapon or tool
• Can pick up items
• Can break doors
• Can be baby
• Can be a jockey
• can have enchanted weapons, tools, or armor

But even that is not the extent of just how many different types of zombies there are in Minecraft, as there are also zombie villager variants. This combination of different traits helps ensure that zombies feel unique, keeps players on guard at all times, and totals enough types to land them the third spot on this list.

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2) Villagers and Illagers

Villagers and illagers make up a lot of different types of mobs (Image via Mojang)

Villagers represent another large jump in variety. There are seven different biome designs for villagers, with each biome village type having a different variant for each of Minecraft's 15 professions, including unemployed and nitwit villagers. Then, each of these villager types has a zombie variant. But it does not stop there, as there are also babies for these previously listed types.

However, what manages to push villagers above zombies are their mortal enemies: the illagers and witches. There is a lot of discussion around the exact relationship between the two types of mobs, but if one accepts that they all fall under the same umbrella, this mob type also includes these variants:

• Evokers
• Pillagers
• Vindicators
• Witches

All in all, there are more than 400 types of villagers, making them the game's second most varied mob.

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1) Fish

Fish is by far the most varied mob in Minecraft. In fact, there are more tropical fish types in the game than all other mobs and varieties combined several times over. There are four main types of fish: cod, salmon, pufferfish, and tropical fish. But tropical fish have a lot of different sub-types.

Tropical fish, found in the game's warm oceans, mangrove swamps, and beautiful, lush caves, have 2700 different naturally occurring combinations of shapes and colors. This lands fish as the most varied mob by a huge margin.