The Villager Recruits Mod completely transforms the way villagers interact with you by allowing you to hire and train them in a variety of military professions. Instead of villagers being only passive NPCs, this mod gives them real purpose and allows them to join your team as loyal defenders. To get started, you’ll first need to find an Armorer or Weaponsmith that has reached at least level 2. From them, you can purchase the new profession blocks introduced by this mod, which are essential for recruiting villagers into your army.

There are three unique profession tables that villagers can use to change roles. These include the Recruit’s Table (decorated with a sword), the Bowman’s Table (marked with a bow), and the Shieldman’s Table (with a shield). Each of these tables gives a villager the ability to switch into a specific combat role, ensuring that your defenses can be tailored exactly the way you want.

When a villager without a profession interacts with one of these tables, they will automatically adopt the corresponding role. From that moment, you can right-click the villager to officially hire them into your personal guard. This makes recruitment easy and seamless, especially if you are building a village defense system.

Once hired, recruits have customizable inventories where you can equip them with armor, weapons, and shields. By default, recruits begin with simple leather armor, but they can be upgraded with iron, diamond, or even netherite to greatly improve survivability. Similarly, their weapons can be upgraded, making them far more effective in combat. Recruits also carry nine inventory slots, allowing them to pick up and store dropped items automatically. This not only helps them sustain themselves but also assists you by keeping extra resources safe.

You can control their combat behavior by setting them to Neutral, Aggressive, or Passive stances. In Aggressive mode, they will hunt down and attack enemies that threaten your base. These settings let you build either a disciplined army or a wandering patrol force, depending on your strategy.

The mod provides detailed commands for each recruit. On the left side of their menu, you’ll find combat-related settings such as whether they raid villages, attack specific mobs, or defend your home. On the right side, commands focus on positioning, such as holding ground, following you, or patrolling an area. With this level of customization, you can organize full military squads, divide them into patrol groups, and defend your base with precision tactics.

Recruits also have a progression system. They gain XP, increase their level, and track their total kills. By placing food or potions in their inventory, they will automatically use these items to heal or boost themselves during battle, making them highly autonomous allies.

Bowmen Recruits excel at ranged combat. You can position them on towers or walls to act as archers, sniping enemies before they even reach your defenses. To lock them in place, simply lead them to a vantage point and command them to hold position.

Shieldmen Recruits are the tanks of your army. With higher HP and an automatic shield when recruited, they provide front-line defense and can absorb enemy blows while your other recruits deal damage from behind. Upgrading their gear makes them incredibly resilient, perfect for players who want strong defensive units.

Additionally, pressing the R key opens a quick command wheel, allowing you to give instant orders to a group of recruits. This is extremely useful for large armies, as it avoids the need to individually command each soldier. You can coordinate massive battles and keep full control with just one key press.