Variants&Ventures expands Minecraft’s hostile mob roster with four biome-specific variants that blend seamlessly into the world. Created by Faboslav, this mod introduces the Gelid, Thicket, Verdant, and Murk as new takes on classic Zombies and Skeletons, each with unique abilities tied to their environment. With nearly 10 million downloads, the mod has become a staple for players who want more environmental variety in their encounters.
Each variant spawns naturally in appropriate biomes and brings distinct combat mechanics. You can also find their spawners in dungeons beneath the right biomes and in Trial Chambers. This guide covers all four mob variants, their special abilities, spawn locations, and what they drop.
Gelid – The Frozen Zombie
The Gelid is a frost-covered Zombie variant found in cold biomes. It has 4 attack damage and 2 armor, making it slightly tankier than a standard Zombie. When a Gelid attacks, it inflicts a freezing effect lasting 7 to 14 seconds depending on world difficulty. This freeze effect stacks quickly in combat and can leave you vulnerable.
Gelids spawn in Deep Frozen Ocean, Frozen Ocean, Frozen Peaks, Frozen River, Ice Spikes, Snowy Taiga, Grove, Snowy Plains, and Snowy Beach biomes. They replace 80% of Zombie spawns in these areas by default. Gelids can also throw Snowballs at range, giving them a unique hybrid combat style among Zombies.
Defeating a Gelid drops 0-2 Rotten Flesh with a 2.5% chance for an Iron Ingot, Carrot, or Potato when killed by a player. Dungeon spawners in cold biomes have an 80% chance to become Gelid spawners, and Trial Chambers can contain Gelid spawners as well.
Thicket – The Jungle Zombie
The Thicket is a vine-covered Zombie that lurks in jungle biomes. Its attacks inflict Poison for 5 seconds, dealing continuous damage after the initial hit. The Thicket itself is immune to Poison, so you cannot turn its own effect against it with Splash Potions.
Thickets spawn throughout all jungle biomes, replacing 80% of standard Zombie spawns by default. The poison effect makes them notably more dangerous than regular Zombies, especially when facing multiple at once. I recommend bringing Milk Buckets or a Golden Apple when exploring jungles at night.
Loot drops match the Gelid: 0-2 Rotten Flesh guaranteed, with a 2.5% rare drop chance for Iron Ingot, Carrot, or Potato. Thicket spawners can appear in dungeons beneath jungle biomes and in Trial Chambers.
Verdant – The Jungle Skeleton
The Verdant is a moss-covered Skeleton archer that fires Poison-tipped Arrows. Each arrow inflicts 5 seconds of Poison on hit, making ranged combat significantly more punishing in jungle biomes. Unlike normal Skeletons, Verdants cannot freeze or convert into Strays when exposed to Powder Snow.
These archers spawn in all jungle biomes, replacing 80% of Skeleton spawns by default. The poison arrows make them a priority target in combat. Shields become essential since blocking an arrow prevents the poison application entirely.
Verdants drop 0-2 Arrows and 0-2 Bones on death. When killed by a player, they have a chance to drop 0-1 Arrow of Poison. This makes them a renewable source of Poison Arrows without needing to brew them yourself. Verdant spawners appear in jungle dungeons and Trial Chambers.
Murk – The Sunken Skeleton
The Murk is an amphibious Skeleton that lives in warm ocean waters. It has 16 health compared to the standard Skeleton’s 20, but compensates with unique aquatic abilities. Murks swim naturally underwater and can navigate between land and water seamlessly. They only attack during nighttime or when their target is submerged in water.
Murks spawn exclusively in Warm Ocean, Lukewarm Ocean, and Deep Lukewarm Ocean biomes, appearing at least 5 blocks below sea level. They come in three coral-themed variants: Purple, Red, and Yellow. Each variant determines what coral type you can harvest from them.
Shearing Murks for Coral
Murks can be sheared with Shears to harvest coral, similar to shearing a Sheep. Each shearing yields 2 coral items based on the Murk’s color variant. Purple Murks drop Bubble Coral or Dead Bubble Coral. Red Murks drop Fire Coral or Dead Fire Coral. Yellow Murks drop Horn Coral or Dead Horn Coral.
Once sheared, a Murk cannot be sheared again. Standard drops include 0-2 Arrows and 0-2 Bones. Murk spawners can appear in Trial Chambers but not in ocean dungeons.
Vanilla Mob Improvements
Beyond the new variants, Variants&Ventures improves spawning logic for existing biome-specific mobs. Strays now properly spawn in cold biomes replacing 80% of Skeletons. Husks appear more consistently in desert biomes with 80% replacement rate. Bogged spawn throughout swamp biomes at the same rate.
The mod also adds dungeon spawner variants for these vanilla mobs. Dungeons in cold biomes can have Stray spawners, desert dungeons can have Husk spawners, and swamp dungeons can have Bogged spawners. All spawn rates and features are fully configurable through the mod’s config file or in-game settings menu.
Combat Strategy Tips
For Gelids, avoid prolonged melee combat since the freezing effect stacks and slows your movement. Fire Aspect weapons counter their frost theme thematically and help offset frozen ticks. Keep distance when possible since they can throw Snowballs.
Against Thickets and Verdants in jungles, Milk Buckets clear poison quickly. A Shield blocks Verdant arrows entirely, preventing poison application. Golden Apples provide regeneration that outheals poison if you find yourself overwhelmed.
Murks are safest to engage on land during daytime since they become passive. If you need coral, approach with Shears ready before combat starts. In water, their navigation advantage makes them dangerous, so draw them onto beaches when possible.
Conclusion
Variants&Ventures adds meaningful environmental variety to Minecraft’s combat encounters without overcomplicating things. Each new mob fits naturally into its biome while offering distinct mechanics worth adapting to. The configurable spawn rates let you tune the experience to your preference, and the improved vanilla mob spawning makes existing variants feel more relevant.
