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Husk sprite

Husk

hostile
Read 1 biome entry, 5 drop rows the game rolls on death, attributes from the game's own entry for it against Java 26.2.

Ours, not the game's own: how a husk behaves. Bedrock v1.26.40.05 differs: spawn weight 80 on Java against 240 on Bedrock; groups of 4 on Java against 2 to 4 on Bedrock. Checked 2026-08-22, and here is how we check.

Health
20
10 hearts
Damage
3
normal difficulty
XP Drop
5
experience
Added In
1.10
version

Overview

A Husk is a hostile mob: it will attack players on sight whenever it is able to reach them.

Look for the Husk across the Overworld; it is tied to Desert.

Its defining trait is simple: zombie variant that does not burn in sunlight.

With 20 HP (10 hearts) on its bar, killing one rewards 5 experience.

Players have been encountering the Husk since the 1.10 update.

One thing worth knowing: Unlike zombies, husks do not burn in sunlight.

Knowing how the Husk behaves is mostly about survival: recognising it early and reacting correctly is what keeps a night-time excursion from ending in a respawn.

Damage by Difficulty

Easy
2
Normal
3
Hard
4

Spawning

In the wild, the Husk is generated in Desert.

That single-biome restriction means Desert is the only place to look; if you are not there, you will not find one, so locating the biome is the real task.

Spawns at light level 0 in desert biomes on sand blocks. Replaces 80% of zombie spawns in deserts.

Pay attention to lighting: a light level of 0 is required, which is exactly what makes torch placement such an effective way to suppress or encourage these spawns.

Naturally spawned husks will despawn over time when no player is nearby; naming one with a name tag or leading it away on a lead keeps it permanent.

For a reliable Husk farm, set your spawning floor within the biomes above and light everything else nearby so spawns funnel to one spot.

Spawn Biomes

Where the Husk spawns

Desert is where it stands strongest: weight 80 on the monster list and 15.5% of it, arriving 4 at a time. There it shares the list with Creeper at 100, Slime at 100, Spider at 100, Parched at 50 and Skeleton at 50 and 4 more, 515 weight together, of which 80 is husk. That is the whole list.

BiomeWeightShareGroup
Desert8015.5%4

Drops

Killing a Husk produces the following loot:

Nothing here is guaranteed: a kill can give you 0 to 2 Rotten Flesh, 1 Rabbit's Foot only in specific situations, 1 Iron Ingot (rarely, 2.5% chance), 1 Carrot (rarely, 2.5% chance), and 1 Potato (rarely, 2.5% chance).

You also collect 5 experience for every Husk you defeat.

Farming husks is the standard way to stockpile rotten flesh in quantity.

The Looting enchantment on your sword raises the quantity and, for many of these items, the drop chance of the rarer rolls, so it is well worth using when you grind this mob.

With nothing guaranteed, output is swingy: over many kills the averages hold, but any single Husk may give you little, so farm in volume rather than expecting a jackpot each time.

ItemCountChanceConditions
Rotten Flesh0 to 2not every killLooting III up to 5
Rabbit's Foot0 to 1situationalLooting III up to 4
Iron Ingot12.5%player kill
Carrot12.5%player kill
Potato12.5%player kill, cooked when burnt

That Rabbit's Foot row is not its own: the rabbit drops 1.

Husk attributes

AttributeValue
Armour2 points
Size0.6 x 1.95 blocks
Eye height1.74 blocks
Tracking range8 chunks
Follow range35 blocks
Experience5
Health20 points
Movement speed0.23
Attack damage attribute3

The Husk does not stand alone on these numbers: the drowned on the same 35 follow range.

Husk: 0.23% of its category, rank 46 of 52

On 1 of the 66 biome lists (1 spawn entry in total), and 0.23% of every spawn the game puts in its monster group is a husk.

64 husk kills fill a stack of 64 Rotten Flesh, because the ranges Minecraft Java 26.2 rolls for it come out at 1 per kill before Looting. Carrot runs at 0.025 a kill, 2560 husk kills for a stack of its own. 2 further rows sit under those, down to 0.025 Potato per husk and 2560 kills a stack. 3 of those 4 rows (Carrot, Iron Ingot, and Potato) only roll when a player lands the killing blow, so a husk killed by a fall or another mob averages 1 item instead of 1.075.

ItemAverage per kill
Rotten Flesh1

4 situational rows left out. How this average is worked out

Full swings to kill a husk, at 20 health behind 2 armour points.
WeaponAttack damageFull swingsSwings per 64 Rotten Flesh
golden sword,wooden sword46384
stone sword55320
iron sword64256
diamond sword,golden axe,wooden axe74256
netherite sword83192
diamond axe,iron axe,stone axe93192
netherite axe103192

Attack damage per weapon, read from the Java 26.2 tool data

The 2 armour points on a husk are already in that column: they cut a 4 damage swing to 3.68, worth 1 extra swing at the cheap end, and 3 rather than 2 at the expensive one. Coming the other way, a husk hit is 15% of a player's 20 health, 7 of them a full bar, all out of the husk's 3 damage on Normal. On Easy the same husk hit is 10%, on Hard 20%, so 10 hits against 5. The zombie and zombie villager match every number above, health, attack and yield alike, so the number of rows the game rolls for them is the honest way to tell a husk apart: 5 rows here against 6 rows for the zombie and 4 rows for the zombie villager, counted over those rows themselves.

Behavior & Combat

In the field, zombie variant that does not burn in sunlight. Inflicts Hunger effect on attack. Converts to zombie if submerged in water.

It is one of the few mobs that wears armour: 2 points, which takes about 8% off every hit it receives.

Its combat profile is 20 health (10 hearts) with attacks dealing 2 on Easy, 3 on Normal and 4 on Hard.

When fighting back, remember it is weak to Smite enchantment and Healing splash potions.

A sword enchanted with Smite shortens the fight considerably against this mob.

Daylight is no help against this one, but the undead rule still is: the Healing splash potions its own weakness list names damage it, a Potion of Harming would heal it, and the 2 armour points it wears do nothing about either one.

The practical takeaway is to respect its strengths, exploit the weaknesses listed above, and you will rarely lose a fight you choose to take.

Weaknesses
Smite enchantmentHealing splash potions

Husk commands

Cheats have to be on in that world before the husk appears. It needs 0.6 by 1.95 blocks of space to stand in.
CommandWhat it does
/summon minecraft:huskPuts a husk on the block you are standing on.
/give @p minecraft:husk_spawn_eggHands you the husk spawn egg, so you can place husks where you want them.
/kill @e[type=minecraft:husk]Removes every husk that is loaded around you.

Entity id minecraft:husk, spawn egg minecraft:husk_spawn_egg.

Husk farm

Everything about a husk farm follows the husk spawn rule. Spawns at light level 0 in desert biomes on sand blocks. Replaces 80% of zombie spawns in deserts.

Of the 1 biome spawn list the husk stands on, Desert gives the husk its largest share at 15.5%, so a husk platform there fills faster than the same build anywhere else.

The game puts 4 husks down per roll, so a wide husk floor beats a tall one.

Each kill is worth 5 experience and up to 2 rotten flesh, or 5 with Looting III, and that figure is what decides how big the husk farm has to be.

5 experience per killRotten Flesh up to 2, 5 with Looting IIIDesert at 15.5%

Husk version history

8 June 2016 is the day the husk arrived, in Minecraft 1.10, and the husk has been part of the game for 10 years since.

2 other mobs here came with it: the polar bear and the stray. Of the 88 mobs we list, 39 were in the game before the husk and 46 arrived after it.

The husk numbers here come from Java 26.2, the version running now, and not from the one that introduced it.

What Husk sounds like

Turn subtitles on and every husk sound names itself in the corner of the screen. These are the 4 lines a husk can put there, and you can play any of them yourself with /playsound minecraft:entity.husk.ambient master @p.

Subtitle lines for the husk, as the game writes them.
SoundWhat you hear
entity.husk.ambientHusk groans
entity.husk.hurtHusk hurts
entity.husk.deathHusk dies
entity.husk.converted_to_zombieHusk converts to Zombie

Advancements that need Husk

2 advancements ask for husk by name, and each of them counts other mobs too.

  • Monster HunterKill any hostile monster
  • Monsters HuntedKill one of every hostile monster

Husk: common questions

Health icon
How much health does a Husk have?

A Husk has 20 health points, which is 10 hearts on its health bar. It is one of the few mobs that wears armour: 2 points, which takes about 8% off every hit it receives.

Rotten Flesh item sprite
What does a Husk drop?

When killed, a Husk drops 0 to 2 Rotten Flesh, 0 to 1 Rabbit's Foot in specific situations, 1 Iron Ingot (2.5% chance), 1 Carrot (2.5% chance), and 1 Potato (2.5% chance), along with 5 experience.

Husk spawn egg item sprite
Where do Husks spawn in Minecraft?

Husks spawn in Desert. Spawns at light level 0 in desert biomes on sand blocks. Replaces 80% of zombie spawns in deserts.

Combat icon
How do you defeat a Husk?

To defeat a Husk, target its weaknesses, it is vulnerable to Smite enchantment and Healing splash potions, while dealing with its 20 health (10 hearts).

Combat icon
How much damage does a Husk deal?

A Husk deals 2 damage on Easy, 3 on Normal and 4 on Hard difficulty.

Experience icon
How much XP does a Husk drop?

A Husk drops 5 experience points when killed.

Husk spawn egg item sprite
How do you summon a Husk in Minecraft?

With cheats on, /summon minecraft:husk puts a Husk on the block you are standing on. /give @p minecraft:husk_spawn_egg hands you the husk spawn egg instead, so you can place husks where you want them.

Husk sprite
What sound does a Husk make in Minecraft?

Switch subtitles on and the game names every husk sound itself: "Husk groans", "Husk hurts", and "Husk dies", and 1 more. The first of those plays with /playsound minecraft:entity.husk.ambient master @p.

Iron Sword item sprite
Which advancements need a Husk?

Monster Hunter and Monsters Hunted ask for a husk. Monster Hunter wants you to kill any hostile monster.

Rotten Flesh item sprite
Can you farm husks in Minecraft?

Yes, and the spawn rule decides the shape of it. Spawns at light level 0 in desert biomes on sand blocks. Replaces 80% of zombie spawns in deserts. Every husk is worth up to 2 rotten flesh, or 5 with Looting III, so the size follows the number you need.