Capturing a Wandering Trader in Minecraft primarily involves building a specialized trap that exploits their pathfinding towards bells and uses clever block mechanics to guide them to a collection point. This method allows you to reliably obtain their valuable leads and access their unique trades.
Why Capture a Wandering Trader?
Wandering Traders are unique, temporary mobs that offer several benefits upon capture:
- Leads Acquisition: They always spawn with two leashed llamas. Capturing the trader provides an easy way to acquire leads, which are essential for moving other mobs.
- Unique Trades: Wandering Traders offer exclusive items and blocks, such as saplings from rare trees, packed ice, various dyes, and even exotic plants like coral blocks, often unavailable through regular Villager trades.
- Mob Collection: For players who enjoy collecting all types of mobs, a Wandering Trader is a unique addition to an in-game zoo or display.
Building an Automated Wandering Trader Trap
The most effective way to capture a Wandering Trader involves creating a specific trap design. This design leverages their attraction to bells and uses water streams for transportation.
Key Principles of the Trap
The trap works by:
- Attraction to Bells: Wandering Traders will often pathfind towards bells, making them a central lure for the trap.
- False Paths with Trapdoors: Trapdoors can be manipulated to appear as solid ground, tricking the trader into walking over a designated drop-off point.
- Water Stream Transportation: Once the trader falls, a water stream guides them to a safe and controlled collection area.
- Isolated Location: Building the trap in an area where other mobs cannot easily spawn increases the efficiency of capturing only the Wandering Trader.
Materials Needed
To construct a basic Wandering Trader trap, you will need:
- Building Blocks: A good quantity of any solid block (e.g., cobblestone, stone bricks, dirt) for the platform and structure.
- Bell: At least one bell to attract the trader.
- Trapdoors: Several trapdoors (any type works) to create the false floor.
- Water Buckets: Two or more buckets of water to create the flowing stream.
- Light Sources (Optional but Recommended): Torches, glowstone, or sea lanterns to illuminate the platform and prevent other hostile mob spawns if not over an ocean.
- Enclosure Materials: Blocks for your collection pen (e.g., glass, fences).
Construction Steps
Follow these steps to build your Wandering Trader capture system:
- Choose a Non-Spawning Location: Build your trap platform over somewhere that can't spawn mobs, such as the Ocean. This ensures that the only mobs spawning or pathfinding to your trap are likely to be Wandering Traders, minimizing interference. The platform should be sufficiently large (e.g., 9x9 or 11x11 blocks) to allow traders to spawn nearby and pathfind.
- Create the Main Platform: Construct a solid, flat platform at a suitable height above the water or non-spawning area.
- Place the Bell: Position a Bell in the middle of your capture platform. This will act as the primary lure for the Wandering Trader.
- Dig the Collection Hole: Immediately around the bell, dig a hole that is one block deep and extends outwards. This hole will be where the trader falls. Ensure this hole is large enough for the trader and their two llamas.
- Install Trapdoors: Place Trapdoors around the hole at the same level as your platform. These trapdoors will serve to trick Wandering Traders into walking over it.
- Method A (False Floor): Place the trapdoors such that when they are closed, they form a continuous, seemingly solid floor over the hole. When a trader steps onto these closed trapdoors, a redstone mechanism (or manual trigger) can open them, causing the trader and llamas to fall.
- Method B (Edge Drop): Place the trapdoors along the edge of the hole, opened upwards, so they appear as solid blocks at foot height. The trader pathfinds onto them, then the trapdoors are closed or activated to drop them. The reference suggests them walking over it, implying Method A is more aligned.
- Create the Water Stream: At one end of the hole, place water to create a Water stream in that hole which will transport the trader to the player. This stream should flow consistently towards your designated collection point. Ensure the water flow is deep enough to carry all three mobs.
- Design the Collection Point: At the end of the water stream, build a secure, enclosed chamber or holding pen. This area should be well-lit to prevent hostile spawns and tall enough to prevent the trader or llamas from jumping out. You might use glass blocks to observe your captured trader.
- Automate (Optional): For more advanced setups, use redstone to automatically open/close the trapdoors when a trader is detected (e.g., with a pressure plate or observer block) or simply trigger them manually when a trader appears.
Practical Considerations for Success
- Trader Spawning Mechanics: Wandering Traders spawn randomly near a loaded player, approximately every 10-20 in-game minutes (20000-40000 ticks) if specific conditions are met (no other trader nearby, player chunk loaded, etc.).
- Llama Management: The two llamas accompanying the trader are always leashed. Once the trader is captured, you can easily acquire the leads by breaking them or killing the llamas. If you wish to keep the llamas, ensure your collection pen is large enough.
- Despawning: It's important to note that Wandering Traders will despawn after 2-3 in-game days, even if they have been named with a name tag. Trading with them will only delay their despawn for 8 in-game minutes. Therefore, a capture system is primarily for temporary access to their trades and leads, not for permanent preservation of a specific trader.
- Illumination: Keep the capture platform well-lit to prevent other hostile mobs from spawning, especially if not built over a non-spawning area like an ocean.
By following these steps, you can effectively capture Wandering Traders in Minecraft, gaining access to their unique items and valuable leads.
