Combat profile
Documented for Minecraft 26.3 / NeoForge. Values below are base attributes; entity configuration and wave scaling can change wave-spawned mobs.
The attack attribute is not the fixed Nexus damage. Entity ID: invmod:guardian. Timings assume 20 ticks per second.
Aquatic combat and Nexus beam
It retains vanilla Guardian swimming, charged attacks on living targets and defensive spikes. It also targets player allies and remains persistent while Nexus-bound.
When bound to an active Nexus and without a living attack target, it approaches the Core and charges a visible beam within 16 blocks. Each completed beam deals 2 Nexus damage. Moving out of range or stopping the goal clears the charge. This block-targeted beam does not perform a line-of-sight check, so a wall alone does not protect a nearby Core.
The Guardian charge lasts 80 ticks (about 4 seconds); the Elder Guardian takes 60 ticks. Deal with aquatic attackers before they get close to the Core. A Player Nexus instead makes the owner the living combat target.
Environmental spawns and egg
Guardians and Elder Guardians are excluded from direct wave-budget purchases, including custom theme pools. During wave spawning, an IM Drowned spawn in water has a 10% chance to become a Guardian. This also applies after a normal IM Zombie spawn has been changed to Drowned by water. This is a spawn-time substitution, not a timed transformation of an existing IM Drowned.
The active-Nexus vanilla replacement path separately gives a vanilla Drowned in water a 10% Guardian replacement chance; otherwise it becomes IM Drowned. Such a replacement starts with maximum and current health equal to 30% of the source mob’s maximum health. Ordinary vanilla Guardians are not directly converted by this path.
For a direct spawn, use invmod:guardian_spawn_egg or /summon invmod:guardian. See aquatic invaders for the relationship to the wave roster.
Evolution after squid kills
A Nexus-bound IM Guardian that kills a Squid rolls an evolution chance of min(current wave, 100)%: 1% at wave 1, 20% at wave 20, and 100% from wave 100. An unbound Guardian does not evolve this way.
It is replaced by an IM Elder Guardian, retaining the Nexus link, position, motion, name, AI-disabled state and its fraction of remaining health. Evolution does not fully heal it: a half-health Guardian becomes a half-health Elder. This is independent of the periodic extra boss purchase.
IM Mini Squid is a separate amphibious invader with face attachment and drowning attacks; its water-only wave spawn and Squid drops are documented on its own page.
Drops
The mod delegates to the corresponding vanilla loot table: 0–2 Prismarine Shards before Looting, a possible Cod or Prismarine Crystals roll, plus the vanilla rare fish roll on player kills. Looting and smelting conditions apply. These entities do not inherit the IM living-mob 25% Small Remnants drop.
Prismarine Shards
Possible Prismarine Crystals