Updated 25 October 2026. Facts on this page come from minecraft.wiki, minecraft.net and the live Artemis PvP server; sources are listed at the bottom.
Pillagers in Minecraft: Patrols, Outposts and Raids
Pillagers are crossbow-carrying illagers found in patrols, pillager outposts and raids. They have 24 health and shoot arrows from range. A patrol leader, the captain, wears an ominous banner; kill one outside a raid and it drops an ominous bottle, which gives Bad Omen and can start a raid. Pillagers make up most raiders in total.
When do pillager patrols spawn?
After about 5 and a half in-game days, small patrols spawn 24 to 48 blocks from a player. Java patrols have 1-5 pillagers depending on regional difficulty, Bedrock patrols 2-5, always with one captain. They attack players, villagers and iron golems, and shoot crossbows from range, so close in fast or use a shield.
Do pillagers respawn at outposts?
Yes: pillagers keep spawning in a large area around a pillager outpost, on Java with no limit beyond normal spawning rules, and some are outpost captains. That makes outposts good for farming ominous bottles and crossbows. See pillager outposts.
What happens when you kill a captain?
A captain always drops its ominous banner, and a captain killed outside a raid always drops an ominous bottle of level 1 to 5, which gives Bad Omen when drunk. Walk into a village with Bad Omen to start a raid; see Bad Omen and Raid Omen.
What do pillagers drop?
Frequently asked questions
When do pillager patrols start?
After about 5 and a half in-game days.
Sources
Every fact on this page was checked against these pages; the wording is ours.