I’m taking a break from development this week as I am focused on other things. So instead I decided to recommend some mods I enjoy using in my personal mod pack. In keeping with the theme of the next update to the butterflies mod, here are some mods that improve villagers.
I’ve provided links to CurseForge for most of these mods, since that seems to be the most popular platform. I use CurseForge’s launcher to play modded Minecraft, but you can also try using Modrinth, or just download and install the mods manually.
If you’ve been following my blog, you know that I use Forge, but most of these mods are also available for Fabric as well.
Villager Names and Death Messages
I’ve already talked about these two mods before, so I won’t go into too much detail here. I just wanted to briefly mention them as they fit the theme of the other mods in this article. Simply put, Villager Names gives all villagers names, and Villager Death Messages sends death messages to the chat if they die.
The power of a name has impact. When villager #14 dies, you can just replace them with a new villager. But if Pete dies, Pete is gone forever. The new villager will have a new name, because the new villager isn’t Pete. Pete is never coming back because you let him die. You monster.
With minimal gameplay impact, these mods work well in a vanilla+ modpack, which is exactly what they were designed for. It does offer a slight advantage for technical players, since you will know if a villager has died in your (e.g.) Automated Iron Farm. It also removes the fun of naming villagers yourself, although you can always rename them if you really want to.
But if immersion into the world is your goal, then this is a great addition to your mod list.
Random Village Names (and Areas)
Areas is a mod that allows you to use signposts to define areas. When an area is defined, the name of the area will be displayed in the UI to any players as they enter and leave the area, RPG-style.
Expanding on this is the Random Village Names mod, which places Area signposts to give villages unique names. This adds a bit of character to the world, as you don’t just discover another plains village, you find Alderrdeen, a pine village by the river.
Towns and Towers
Towns and Towers is a mod that adds more modern looking villages to the world. These towns add a bit more character to the world. With white andesite walls, brick roofs, and stone brick paths, these new towns add an interesting new look to villages you can come across while playing the game. The best thing is, these new villages work with the Random Village Names mod, among others, so they actually get names given to them as well!
Some people might not like the more modern look of these towns. They don’t fit the same style as the simple cobblestone and wooden structures of other villages. So if you’re looking for something that is closer to vanilla-style then this mod probably won’t work.
That being said, the layout and type of buildings do fit the same structure of Minecraft villages. Adding some more advanced and larger towns does add variety to the world. And as it doesn’t change the actual mechanics of villagers, this mod works in a less lenient Vanilla+ mod list (Vanilla++ perhaps?).
Smarter Farmers
Modern towns still need farmers, however, and this mod not only improves the way villagers farm crops, but also makes them compatible with modded crops. If you play with mods such as Farmer’s Delight, this mod will help integrate the vanilla villagers with any modded items. Now you can have the villagers actually use those tomatoes from your farming mods as well!
Smarter Farmers will make the game easier if you play with modded crop blocks, since a natural consequence is that you can now automate all of the crops! It will also make breeding villagers a little easier since you will be able to use more items to do it.
Still, unless you are fanatical about being challenged, this is a fun addition to any mod pack and makes farmer villagers much more compatible with all of your farming mods.
Sawmill
While this isn’t a mod focused on villagers, I’ve included it because it adds a new villager based on its new block. The sawmill is basically a wood version of the stonecutter, allowing you to craft wooden items directly from wood or wood planks.
Recipes are generated based on other mods you have installed, so it should work with most custom trees and items from other mods as well. Trees and wood from the likes of Biomes O’ Plenty, The Twilight Forest, and others will have recipes generated that can be used in the sawmill.
Most recipes attempt to use only a single log, basically allowing you to skip the steps in between. For example, instead of making planks, then making some sticks, then crafting 3 signs; you can just use a single log block to craft 2 signs. Or you could make a chest directly from a log, skipping the planks.
The mod does make it easier to craft wood-based recipes, and some recipes will work out a little bit cheaper, just as the stonecutter does. You can make a boat using a single log instead of 5 planks, as an example. So if you’re worried about making the game too easy, then this might not be the mod for you.
If that’s not a concern, then this mod adds a fun new crafting method to the game that isn’t too overpowered. And as a bonus you get a fancy new villager with some wood-related trades. The villager comes with a building that will spawn in villages, so when you visit Alderrdeen, you might find a carpenter is already living there!
Guard Villagers
If you think iron golems aren’t enough then this mod is for you. Guard villagers will now spawn in towns to defend them. These guards will wear leather armour and carry crossbows, swords, and shields to help protect your new farmers and carpenters against zombie hordes and pillager raids.
Guard villagers will spawn in any village, even modded villages. So the new villages you’ll find in Towns and Towers will also be protected by these brave soldiers. Fighting alongside the iron golems, villages will be easier to defend in general. If you want a pillager raid where you fight with allies, then these guards will be a great help.
Again, this does make the game easier, so those of you up for a more challenging game of Minecraft may not want to install this mod. It’s also has less of a vanilla feel, since villagers aren’t the defenseless tradesmen they are in the base game. But they can be a fun addition if you want villagers to have some more autonomy.
More?
I’m still on the hunt for mods that can improve villagers. I tend to try and stick to simpler mods that maintain the feel of vanilla Minecraft, and these mods do just that, in my opinion. For sure there are some mods out there that will work well with these mods, and I’m constantly on the lookout for anything I can add to the growing collection of mods I play with. If you know of any mods that might work well with the ones I’ve listed above, then let me know!
In some ways I find curating mods to play with just as fun as developing a mod. Slowly curating a unique experience that complements my own work, combining the work of the many skilled modders that work on these amazing mods. Moving forwards, things will only get even more fun.
