The Critters n' Crawlers mod for Minecraft 1.20.1 (Forge) throws in a bunch of North American animals and creepy mythical creatures to spice up temperate and cold biomes. It’s a project by Fae_Stricken_Fool and endcollector to make forests and snowy areas feel more alive with both friendly critters and dangerous crawlers. It’s got over 331.9K downloads and works with biome mods like Biomes O' Plenty and Terralith. You’ll need Geckolib for animations, which comes with newer versions (2.2.0+).

Installation

  1. Get Forge:
    • Grab Forge for Minecraft 1.20.1 from its official site.
    • Fire up Minecraft with the Forge profile to make sure it’s working.
  2. Download the Mod:
    • Snag the latest version (like 2.2.4) from CurseForge or Modrinth.
    • If Geckolib isn’t included, download it separately.
  3. Set It Up:
    • Find your Minecraft folder (like %appdata%/.minecraft on Windows).
    • Drop the mod’s .jar file (e.g., Critters n' Crawlers-2.2.4-mc1.20.1.jar) into the mods folder. Make the folder if it’s not there.
    • Toss in Geckolib’s .jar too if needed.
  4. Start the Game:
    • Launch Minecraft with the Forge 1.20.1 profile. The mod should kick in, adding new mobs and items.
  5. Server Setup (Optional):
    • For multiplayer, put Forge and the mod files in the server’s mods folder. Everyone playing needs the mod installed too.

Mobs

This mod adds Critters (chill or neutral animals) and Crawlers (scary or folklore-based baddies). Here’s the rundown:

Critters (Passive/Neutral)

  • Elk: Chill, hangs out in forests and plains.
  • White-Tailed Deer: Mellow, shows up in temperate spots; drops deer leather for crafting.
  • Giant Boar: Laid-back, roams forests.
  • Snake (Harmless): No threat, just slithers around.
  • Snake (Venomous): Bites if you get too close; hunts mice and rabbits.
  • Goose: Calm, sticks near water.
  • Black Bear: Cool unless you mess with it.
  • Grey Wolf: Won’t attack unless you bug it; fixed in 2.2.0 to not fight its own kind.
  • Coyote: Chill but hunts small critters; got a new look in 2.2.0.
  • Wolverine: Neutral, updated model recently.
  • Beaver: Chill, added in 2.2.0, lives by rivers.
  • Ringtail: Easygoing, found in temperate areas.
  • Cougar: Can be tamed, fixed taming effects in 2.1.1.
  • Mouse: Tiny and harmless, snake food.
  • Turkey: Struts around forests.
  • Caribou: Relaxed, lives in cold biomes.

Crawlers (Hostile/Appeasable)

  • Chupacabra: Attacks on sight, no chill.
  • Skinwalker: Scary, got a new model in 2.2.0; tough to deal with.
  • Squonk: Spawns in swamps and taigas at night, super ugly and cries a lot but won’t hurt you. Can be calmed down. Drops nothing. Inspired by lumberjack stories and Pennsylvania’s Squonkpalooza.
  • Howler: Hunts you down.
  • Wendigo: Big bad mythical creature; health wasn’t fully balanced early on.
  • Sasquatch: Roams forests and attacks.
  • Bewitched Grey Wolf: Magical wolf you can calm down.

Mob Behavior Key

  • Passive: Never fights.
  • Neutral: Fights back if you start trouble.
  • Appeasable: Hostile but can be tamed or calmed (like Squonk).
  • Defensive: Attacks if you get too close (like venomous snakes).
  • Hostile: Comes after you (like Wendigo).

Items and Features

  • Crafting Stuff:
    • Deer Leather, Raw/Parcooked/Cooked Game: Dropped by animals, used for crafting like buckskin armor.
    • Antler: Added in 2.2.2, probably for crafting or decor.
  • Buckskin Armor: New armor set from 2.2.2.
  • The Effigy Block: Lights up or uses heads to weaken crawlers (works with off-hand in 2.2.2).
  • Music Discs:
    • “Hills” by FaeStrickenFool.
    • “Wreck of The Old 97” by Vernon Dalhart, G.B. Grayson, and Henry Whitter (public domain).
  • Particles: Added Snowflake, Blood, and Blood Splash in 2.2.2.
  • Field Guide: A handy GUI for mob info; fixed in 2.2.2 to work with JEI.

Gameplay Tips

  1. Exploring:
    • Check out forests, taigas, and swamps to see new mobs. Critters like elk make things lively, but watch out for crawlers like Wendigo.
  2. Fighting:
    • Use the Effigy block to nerf crawlers like Chupacabra.
    • Bring weapons at night since Howlers and Sasquatches don’t mess around.
  3. Taming:
    • Cougars and Bewitched Grey Wolves can be tamed. Check the Field Guide for what items to use.
  4. Spawns:
    • No spawn rate settings, but you can tweak them with datapacks if you know how.
  5. Bugs:
    • Report problems on CurseForge or Discord since the mod’s still being worked on.