Chicken Jockey

This article would benefit from the addition of isometric renders.

 

Please remove this notice once you have added suitable isometric renders to the article.
The specific instructions are: Add renders of all zombie villager, drowned, and zombified piglin mounts, add zombie donkey, mule, zombie horse, and skeleton horse jockeys, plus some rare examples of armored or trident jockeys with different (variant) mounts.

Chicken Jockey

View all renders

Health points	All riders: 20HP × 10 Ridden mob: See ridable mobs
Attack strength	Easy: 2.5HP × 1.25 Normal: 3HP Hard: 4.5HP × 2.25
Spawn	Zombie rider: Anywhere a baby zombie can spawn Zombie Villager rider: Anywhere a baby zombie villager can spawn Husk rider: Anywhere a baby husk can spawn Drowned rider: Anywhere a baby drowned can spawn Zombified Piglin rider: Anywhere a baby zombified piglin can spawn

{
    "extratext": "View [[#Gallery|all renders]]",
    "title": "Chicken Jockey",
    "images": [
        "Chicken Jockey.png",
        "Chicken Plains Zombie Villager Jockey.png",
        "Chicken Husk Jockey.png",
        "Chicken Drowned Jockey.png",
        "Chicken Zombified Piglin Jockey.png"
    ],
    "rows": [
        {
            "field": "'''All riders:''' 20<span class=\"hidden-alt-text\">HP</span><span class=\"nowrap mc-hearts\"><span class=\"iconbar pixel-image nowrap\" style=\"--icon-offset:-1px;\" title=\"1  heart\">(link to File:Heart (icon).png article, displayed as 9px|link=|alt=❤️)</span> × 10</span><br>'''Ridden mob:''' See ridable mobs",
            "label": "(link to Health article, displayed as Health points)"
        },
        {
            "field": "Easy: 2.5<span class=\"hidden-alt-text\">HP</span><span class=\"nowrap mc-hearts\"><span class=\"iconbar pixel-image nowrap\" style=\"--icon-offset:-1px;\" title=\"1  heart\">(link to File:Heart (icon).png article, displayed as 9px|link=|alt=❤️)</span> × 1.25</span><br />Normal: 3<span class=\"hidden-alt-text\">HP</span><span class=\"nowrap mc-hearts\"><span class=\"iconbar pixel-image nowrap\" style=\"--icon-offset:-1px;\" title=\"1.5  hearts\">(link to File:Heart (icon).png article, displayed as 9px|link=|alt=❤️)(link to File:Half Heart (icon).png article, displayed as 9px|link=|alt=💔)</span></span><br />Hard: 4.5<span class=\"hidden-alt-text\">HP</span><span class=\"nowrap mc-hearts\"><span class=\"iconbar pixel-image nowrap\" style=\"--icon-offset:-1px;\" title=\"1  heart\">(link to File:Heart (icon).png article, displayed as 9px|link=|alt=❤️)</span> × 2.25</span>",
            "label": "Attack<br/>strength"
        },
        {
            "field": "'''Zombie rider:'''<br>\nAnywhere a baby (link to zombie article, displayed as zombie) can spawn<br>\n'''Zombie Villager rider:'''<br>\nAnywhere a baby (link to zombie villager article, displayed as zombie villager) can spawn<br>\n'''Husk rider:'''<br>\nAnywhere a baby (link to husk article, displayed as husk) can spawn<br>\n'''Drowned rider:'''<br>\nAnywhere a baby (link to drowned article, displayed as drowned) can spawn<br>\n'''Zombified Piglin rider:'''<br>\nAnywhere a baby (link to zombified piglin article, displayed as zombified piglin) can spawn",
            "label": "(link to Mob spawning article, displayed as Spawn)"
        }
    ],
    "invimages": []
}

A chicken jockey^[1] and various other jockeys are the rare appearance of a baby zombie or husk, or a baby zombie villager, drowned, or zombified piglin‌^{[JE only]}​^{[upcoming BE 26.0]} riding a chicken‌^{[JE only]} or most common mobs.‌^{[BE only]}

Spawning

In Java Edition, chicken jockeys spawn directly in the world, like all other mobs. In Bedrock Edition, baby zombies and certain variants do not spawn directly but instead mount other nearby mobs.

Direct spawning

This feature is exclusive to Java Edition.

 

Each baby zombie, baby zombie villager, baby husk, baby drowned or baby zombified piglin that spawns naturally has a 5% chance to check for an existing chicken within an approximately 10×6×10 (L*H*W) box centered on the baby's spawn location and spawn riding one of those chickens if there are any. If it fails that 5% chance, there is an additional 5% chance of the baby spawning mounted on a new adult chicken.

Therefore, in a chicken-free environment, each baby zombie has a 4.75% chance of spawning directly as a chicken jockey. If chickens are present, this chance increases to 9.75%.

Taking into consideration the fact that each type of zombie has a 5% chance of spawning as a baby, each spawned zombie has a 0.2375% chance of directly spawning as a chicken jockey in a chicken-free environment. If chickens are present, the chance increases to 0.4875%.

Chickens that are mounted by zombies despawn naturally, cannot lay eggs, and drop 10XP experience instead of the usual 1–3XP. If a jockey spawns riding a new chicken, the variant of the chicken depends on the biome it spawns in. If a jockey spawns riding an existing chicken, the chicken keeps its NBT data (variant, health, custom name, age, etc), but its IsChickenJockey tag is set to 1.

Chicken jockeys can sometimes spawn with equipment. Zombie, zombie villager and husk chicken jockeys may spawn holding an iron sword, iron spear, or iron shovel, and wearing armor. Drowned chicken jockeys may spawn holding a trident, fishing rod, or nautilus shell. Zombified piglin chicken jockeys always spawn holding a golden sword or golden spear.

Although chickens take damage from standing on magma blocks, zombified piglin chicken jockeys still spawn on them, killing the chicken and leaving just the baby zombified piglin.

Zombified piglin chicken jockeys do not become hostile if the chicken is attacked or killed.

Due to the biomes the riders spawn in, husk and zombified piglin chicken jockeys can only spawn with a warm chicken, unless they spawn riding an existing chicken. If a zombified piglin chicken jockey spawns from a Nether portal block, the variant of the chicken depends on the biome the portal block is located in.

Mounting

This feature is exclusive to Bedrock Edition.

 

In Bedrock Edition, 15% of naturally spawned baby zombies, baby husks‌^{[until BE 26.0]}, and ‌in Bedrock Edition 26.0​^[upcoming] baby drowned and baby zombie villagers, can mount other mobs when spawned. This includes baby zombies summoned by monster spawners and spawn eggs. Such a mob can be summoned with the minecraft:as_baby_jockey spawn event.

The following mobs can be mounted:

Due to a bug, baby zombified piglins jockeys don't spawn properly.^[2]

Due to another bug, in Bedrock Edition 26.0​^[upcoming], baby husks can no longer mount mobs as jockeys.^[3][4]

Drops

The baby zombie (or variant) and the ridden mob each drop the same items they normally would. If the baby zombie or baby husk‌^{[BE only][5]} is killed by a player or tamed wolf while riding a chicken, it also drops the Lava Chicken music disc. Note that the jockey must be a zombie, not a zombie villager, husk,‌^{[JE only]} drowned, or zombified piglin, and it must ride a chicken.

Behavior

The jockey’s behavior is controlled by the rider.

• Chicken jockeys fall slowly and do not take fall damage, like normal chickens.
• The ridden mob can run through 1 block high gaps if its hitbox allows it. The rider suffocates unless the above block is transparent.
• The rider can pick up/equip items if capable.
• Chickens (unless spawned with commands without the IsChickenJockey tag) do not lay eggs.^[6] However, they can still breed with other chickens, and the offspring do lay eggs. In Bedrock Edition, if a baby zombie or a variant mounts a normal chicken, the chicken stops laying eggs. If the rider is killed, the chicken starts laying eggs again.
• Zombie riders (both the riders and ridden mobs^[7]) despawn like regular hostile mobs.
• In Java Edition, the chicken acts like a regular passive mob again if the rider is killed, but still does not lay eggs and may despawn.
• Only the ridden mob needs a name tag to prevent both the ridden mob and rider from despawning.
• Curing a zombie villager jockey:
  • In Java Edition: turns it into a villager chicken jockey. The baby villager continues to ride the chicken if it grows up^[8] or turns into a witch.
  • In Bedrock Edition:​^{[upcoming BE 26.0]} dismounts the villager riding the jockey after it has been cured.

History

Development

Java Edition

Java Edition
1.7.4			13w49a				Added chicken jockeys.
1.7.5							Chickens that are part of chicken jockeys can now despawn when no longer ridden.
1.8			14w02a				Chicken jockeys no longer lay eggs.
1.9			15w35a				Zombie villagers now retain their professions and clothes, which have a tattered appearance. This has caused zombie villager chicken jockeys to have a changed appearance, as well.
1.10			16w20a				Added a baby husk jockey variant.
1.13			18w11a				Added a baby drowned jockey variant.
1.14			18w43a				The texture of zombie chicken jockeys has been changed.
							The texture of husk chicken jockeys has been changed.
							The texture of zombie pigman chicken jockeys has been changed.
							The texture of drowned chicken jockeys has been changed.
			18w50a				Zombie villager chicken jockeys now have different clothes in desert, jungle, plains, savanna, snowy, swamp and taiga biomes.
							Zombie villager chicken jockeys no longer have a profession.
							Giants now use zombie AI so they can be spawned as giant chicken jockeys.
			19w03a				Reverted the changes made to giants from 18w50a, removing giant chicken jockeys.
							Existing giant chicken jockeys now appear as adults.
1.16			20w09a				"Zombie pigman jockey" has been renamed to "zombified piglin jockey".
							The model and texture of zombified piglin jockeys have been changed.
			20w22a				The model of zombified piglin jockeys has been changed, again.
			pre4				The model of the zombified piglin jockey wasn't positioned properly due to a bug.
1.16.2			20w30a				The model of the zombified piglin jockey has been fixed.[9]
1.21.5			25w06a				Chicken jockeys now spawn as warm or cold chicken variants in their respective biomes.
							Baby zombie villagers now spawn as warm or cold chicken variants in their respective biomes.
							Baby husks now spawn as the warm chicken variant.
							Baby drowned now spawn as warm or cold chicken variants in their respective biomes.
							Baby zombified piglins now spawn as warm or cold chicken variants in their respective biomes.
1.21.7			Release Candidate 1				Zombie chicken jockeys now drop the Lava Chicken music disc when killed by a player or tamed wolf.

Bedrock Edition

Pocket Edition Alpha
v0.11.0			build 1				Added baby zombies and chicken jockeys.
			build 2				Added baby zombie pigmen and their chicken jockeys.
v0.12.1			build 1				Added baby zombie villagers and their chicken jockey.
v0.14.0			build 1				Overhauled the jockey mechanics. Baby zombies, baby zombie villagers, and baby zombie pigmen that are not jockeys already now have a 15% chance of becoming able to mount certain mobs, including chickens, when angered.
v0.15.0			build 1				Added baby husks which can become a chicken jockey.
v0.16.0			?				Baby zombie pigmen can no longer mount mobs.
Bedrock Edition
1.10.0			beta 1.10.0.3				The texture of zombie chicken jockeys has been changed.
							The texture of husk chicken jockeys has been changed.
							The texture of zombie villager chicken jockeys has been changed.
							Zombie villager chicken jockeys no longer have a profession.
1.21.70 Experiment Drop 1 2025			Preview 1.21.70.22				Added cold and warm chickens, which can be mounted by baby zombies, baby zombie villagers, and baby husks.
1.21.93							Zombie chicken jockeys now drop the Lava Chicken music disc when killed by a player.
1.21.120			Preview 1.21.120.20				Zombie chicken jockeys now drop the Lava Chicken music disc when killed by a tamed wolf.
1.21.130			Preview 1.21.130.20				Baby zombie villagers and baby husks can no longer mount chickens and adult zombies, however can still find other mounts.
			Preview 1.21.130.26				Baby husks can once again mount chickens and adult zombies.
							Baby zombie villagers can no longer mount mobs as jockeys.
Upcoming Bedrock Edition
26.0			Preview 26.0.27				Baby zombie villagers can once again mount mobs as jockeys.
							15% of baby drowned that spawn now find mobs to mount.
							Due to a missing spawn event, baby zombified piglins jockeys don't spawn correctly.
							Also, due to a bug, baby husks no longer mount mobs as jockeys.[4]

Legacy Console Edition

Legacy Console Edition
Xbox 360	Xbox One	PS3	PS4	PS Vita	Wii U	Switch
TU31	CU19	1.22	1.22	1.22	Patch 3		Added chicken jockeys.
TU60	CU51	1.64	1.64	1.64	Patch 30	1.0.11	Baby zombies can now ride most mobs, that match as bedrock edition's. However, normal chicken jockeys are still spawned.
			1.90				The texture of chicken jockeys has been changed.
							The texture of baby zombie pigman jockeys has been changed.

New Nintendo 3DS Edition

New Nintendo 3DS Edition
0.1.0							Added chicken jockeys.

Issues

Issues relating to "Chicken Jockey" are maintained on the bug tracker. Issues should be reported and viewed there.

Trivia

• In Java Edition, the chance for a baby zombie villager to spawn wearing full enchanted diamond armor holding an enchanted iron sword in its left hand while riding a chicken is about 1 in 2.91082×10²², however it is still not the rarest jockey.
• In Java Edition, the rarest mob is the zombie villager chicken jockey from abandoned jungle village with fully enchanted diamond armor, jack o'lantern, leader attributes, and an enchanted iron sword in its left hand.
• In Bedrock Edition as of 26.0, there are 3074 possible zombie (variant) riders, when including all mob variants. This does not include different armor configurations for zombies, husks, and zombified piglins, wolf sound variants, and statistics.
• Zombified piglin chicken jockeys can spawn from portals in the Overworld.
• A chicken jockey is the main protagonist of the openings for MINECON Live 2019 and Minecraft Live 2020.

Gallery

Renders

Chicken jockey

This section would benefit from the addition of more images.

 

Please remove this notice once you have added suitable images to the article.
The specific instructions are: Replace husk with warm chicken, while other chicken variants can occur this is the most common since warm chickens spawn in deserts.

• 
  Zombie
• 
  Zombie on Warm Chicken
• 
  Zombie on Cold Chicken
• 
  Husk
• 
  Drowned
• 
  Plains Zombie Villager
• 
  Zombified Piglin on Warm Chicken, the common zombified piglin jockey in Java Edition.
• 
  A zombie villager chicken jockey, wearing full enchanted diamond armor and holding an enchanted iron sword in its left hand. This is one of the rarest possible jockeys in Java Edition.
• 
  A zombie chicken jockey with diamond armor and a diamond sword.

Mounts

This feature is exclusive to Bedrock Edition.

 

With baby zombie riders:

• 
  Adult zombie jockey
• 
  Adult zombie villager jockey
• 
  Adult husk jockey
• 
  Adult zombified piglin jockey
• 
  Pig jockey
• 
  Cow jockey
• 
  Mooshroom jockey
• 
  Sheep jockey
• 
  Wolf jockey
• 
  Ocelot jockey
• 
  Stray cat jockey
• 
  Horse jockey
• 
  Panda jockey
• 
  Spider jockey
• 
  Cave spider jockey

With baby husk riders:

• 
  Adult husk jockey

With baby zombie villager riders:

With baby drowned riders:

With baby zombified piglin riders:

Screenshots

• 
  A baby zombie inside a chicken before 1.7.4 and in 14w25b.
• 
  A zombie pigman chicken jockey before 1.16.
• 
  A chicken jockey with some other chickens walking around.
• 
  Chickens can still lay eggs while being ridden when spawned with commands without the IsChickenJockey tag.
• 
  A chicken jockey named "Dinnerbone".
• 
  A baby zombie villager chicken jockey.
• 
  The chicken hitbox below the zombie.
• 
  Hitting from below leaves the zombie unharmed.
• 
  The four variations of chicken jockeys using "Grumm" or "Dinnerbone" name tags.
• 
  The zombie on the chicken jockey (pre-1.8) has picked up an egg that the chicken laid.
• 
  A chicken jockey in Bedrock Edition.
• 
  A chicken jockey that broke into a house.
• 
  A drowned chicken jockey.
• 
  A zombified piglin chicken jockey in the Nether before 1.21.5.
• 
  A detached chicken jockey.
• 
  A chicken jockey's zombie burning up in the sun.
• 
  A baby zombified piglin chicken jockey spawned by a monster spawner.
• 
  Chicken jockey found in a cave.
• 
  A baby zombified piglin riding an existing baby cold chicken.
• 
  A giant chicken jockey

Mojang screenshots

• 
  The first image of chicken jockeys.
• 
  An image that inspired the chicken jockey.
• 
  An image that inspired the chicken jockey.
• 
  A chicken jockey in a chicken pen.

In other media

• 
• 
  Chicken jockey artwork.
• 
  Chicken jockeys artwork.
• 
  Animation of a chicken running, created for the Mounts of Mayhem trailer
• 
  Chicken jockey animated artwork.
• 
  A chicken jockey trying to keep up with an array of minecarts.
• 
  Chicken jockey from the Mobestiary.
• 
  Lego Minecraft chicken jockey.
• 
  Flippin' Figs figure of a chicken jockey.
• 
  A chicken jockey in Minecraft: Story Mode.
• 
  The chicken jockey in A Minecraft Movie.
• 
  Chicken jockeys racing.
• 
  A chicken jockey in the Mounts of Mayhem key art.
• 
  A chicken jockey tower in Minecraft Dungeons

References

External links

• "Meet the Chicken Jockey" by Emily Richardson – Minecraft.net, October 10, 2017.

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