Attribute Scaling

Attribute Scaling

Attribute scaling determines how mob stats increase with level. This system allows precise control over health, damage, speed, and other attributes.

Location

Attribute scaling is defined inside structure, biome, or mob override blocks:

{
  "structure": "minecraft:stronghold",
  "attribute_scaling": {
    "minecraft:generic.max_health": {
      "base_bonus": 10.0,
      "per_level": 0.5,
      "operation": "addition"
    }
  }
}

Field Reference

Field	Type	Default	Description
base_bonus	Double	0.0	Flat bonus applied at level 1
per_level	Double	0.0	Bonus added per level
operation	String	"addition"	How the bonus is applied
max_bonus	Double	null	Maximum total bonus (optional)

Operations

Addition

Adds the calculated bonus directly to the attribute:

final_value = base_value + bonus

Example: A zombie with 20 HP at level 50:

{
  "minecraft:generic.max_health": {
    "base_bonus": 10.0,
    "per_level": 0.5,
    "operation": "addition"
  }
}

Bonus = 10 + (0.5 × 50) = 35 Final HP = 20 + 35 = 55 HP

Multiply Base

Multiplies the base attribute value:

final_value = base_value × (1 + bonus)

Example: A zombie with 3 attack damage at level 50:

{
  "minecraft:generic.attack_damage": {
    "base_bonus": 0.0,
    "per_level": 0.02,
    "operation": "multiply_base"
  }
}

Bonus = 0 + (0.02 × 50) = 1.0 Final damage = 3 × (1 + 1.0) = 6 damage

Multiply Total

Multiplies after all other modifiers:

final_value = (base_value + additions) × (1 + bonus)

Useful for percentage-based scaling that stacks with other effects.

Additive vs Percentage: Picking the Right Operation

This is the single most important decision when tuning scaling, especially in modpacks with high-HP modded mobs and bosses.

addition adds a flat amount that ignores the mob's base stat. A rule of +2 HP per level gives every mob the same bonus:

Mob	Base HP	At level 68 (+136 HP)	Result
Zombie	20	+136	156 HP (×7.8 — brutal)
Modded boss	350	+136	486 HP (×1.4 — barely noticeable)

The same number is overpowering for weak mobs and trivial for tanky ones. You cannot tune a flat health bonus that feels right for both vanilla mobs and modded bosses at once — this is the classic "my big boss barely scaled" problem.

multiply_base scales relative to each mob's own base stat, so every mob gets proportionally stronger:

Mob	Base HP	At level 68 (+4%/level = ×3.72 bonus)	Result
Zombie	20	×4.72 total	~94 HP
Modded boss	350	×4.72 total	~1652 HP

Both stay threatening at their own scale. For max_health and attack_damage, prefer multiply_base — this is what the bundled example datapack now uses (+4%/level health, +3%/level damage).

Keep addition for stats whose base value is often 0 — armor, armor_toughness, knockback_resistance, attack_knockback. multiply_base of 0 is always 0, so a percentage does nothing for these. Movement speed is also usually left additive (small steps) to avoid runaway speeds.

Want one mob to scale harder than the rest? Don't crank the shared rule — that buffs everything. Put a stronger attribute_scaling block (or attribute_multipliers) inside a per-mob mob_overrides entry. See "Scaling specific mobs harder than the rest" on that page.

Supported Attributes

Vanilla Attributes

Attribute ID	Description	Base Value (Zombie)
minecraft:generic.max_health	Maximum HP	20.0
minecraft:generic.attack_damage	Melee damage	3.0
minecraft:generic.armor	Damage reduction	0.0
minecraft:generic.armor_toughness	Armor effectiveness	0.0
minecraft:generic.knockback_resistance	Knockback reduction (0-1)	0.0
minecraft:generic.movement_speed	Movement speed	0.23
minecraft:generic.follow_range	Detection range	35.0
minecraft:generic.attack_knockback	Knockback dealt	0.0
minecraft:generic.attack_speed	Attack cooldown	4.0

Modded Attributes

You can use any modded attribute if it's registered properly:

{
  "some_mod:custom_attribute": {
    "base_bonus": 10.0,
    "per_level": 1.0,
    "operation": "addition"
  }
}

Calculation Examples

Health Scaling

Goal: Double health every 100 levels

{
  "minecraft:generic.max_health": {
    "base_bonus": 0.0,
    "per_level": 0.01,
    "operation": "multiply_base"
  }
}

Level	Multiplier	Zombie HP
1	1.01	20.2
50	1.50	30.0
100	2.00	40.0
200	3.00	60.0

Flat Health Bonus

Goal: +5 HP per level

{
  "minecraft:generic.max_health": {
    "base_bonus": 0.0,
    "per_level": 5.0,
    "operation": "addition"
  }
}

Level	Bonus	Zombie HP
1	5	25
10	50	70
50	250	270
100	500	520

Capped Scaling

Goal: Scale damage but cap at +20

{
  "minecraft:generic.attack_damage": {
    "base_bonus": 2.0,
    "per_level": 0.5,
    "operation": "addition",
    "max_bonus": 20.0
  }
}

Level	Calculated	Capped	Zombie Damage
1	2.5	2.5	5.5
20	12.0	12.0	15.0
36	20.0	20.0	23.0
100	52.0	20.0	23.0

Complete Examples

Balanced Dungeon Scaling

Moderate scaling across all stats:

{
  "attribute_scaling": {
    "minecraft:generic.max_health": {
      "base_bonus": 20.0,
      "per_level": 1.0,
      "operation": "addition",
      "max_bonus": 500.0
    },
    "minecraft:generic.attack_damage": {
      "base_bonus": 0.0,
      "per_level": 0.02,
      "operation": "multiply_base",
      "max_bonus": 5.0
    },
    "minecraft:generic.armor": {
      "base_bonus": 2.0,
      "per_level": 0.1,
      "operation": "addition",
      "max_bonus": 20.0
    },
    "minecraft:generic.movement_speed": {
      "base_bonus": 0.0,
      "per_level": 0.001,
      "operation": "multiply_base",
      "max_bonus": 0.5
    }
  }
}

Tank Mobs

High health, low damage, slow movement:

{
  "attribute_scaling": {
    "minecraft:generic.max_health": {
      "base_bonus": 100.0,
      "per_level": 5.0,
      "operation": "addition"
    },
    "minecraft:generic.attack_damage": {
      "base_bonus": 0.0,
      "per_level": 0.01,
      "operation": "multiply_base"
    },
    "minecraft:generic.armor": {
      "base_bonus": 10.0,
      "per_level": 0.5,
      "operation": "addition"
    },
    "minecraft:generic.knockback_resistance": {
      "base_bonus": 0.5,
      "per_level": 0.005,
      "operation": "addition",
      "max_bonus": 1.0
    },
    "minecraft:generic.movement_speed": {
      "base_bonus": -0.05,
      "per_level": 0.0,
      "operation": "addition"
    }
  }
}

Glass Cannon Mobs

High damage, low health:

{
  "attribute_scaling": {
    "minecraft:generic.max_health": {
      "base_bonus": 0.0,
      "per_level": 0.1,
      "operation": "addition"
    },
    "minecraft:generic.attack_damage": {
      "base_bonus": 5.0,
      "per_level": 0.1,
      "operation": "multiply_base"
    },
    "minecraft:generic.movement_speed": {
      "base_bonus": 0.0,
      "per_level": 0.005,
      "operation": "multiply_base",
      "max_bonus": 1.0
    },
    "minecraft:generic.attack_speed": {
      "base_bonus": 0.0,
      "per_level": 0.02,
      "operation": "multiply_base"
    }
  }
}

Speedster Mobs

Very fast, moderate stats:

{
  "attribute_scaling": {
    "minecraft:generic.max_health": {
      "base_bonus": 0.0,
      "per_level": 0.5,
      "operation": "addition"
    },
    "minecraft:generic.attack_damage": {
      "base_bonus": 0.0,
      "per_level": 0.03,
      "operation": "multiply_base"
    },
    "minecraft:generic.movement_speed": {
      "base_bonus": 0.1,
      "per_level": 0.01,
      "operation": "multiply_base",
      "max_bonus": 2.0
    },
    "minecraft:generic.follow_range": {
      "base_bonus": 10.0,
      "per_level": 0.5,
      "operation": "addition",
      "max_bonus": 100.0
    }
  }
}

Config Whitelist

The mod only modifies attributes listed in the config whitelist:

[attributes]
allowedAttributes = [
    "minecraft:generic.max_health",
    "minecraft:generic.attack_damage",
    "minecraft:generic.armor",
    "minecraft:generic.armor_toughness",
    "minecraft:generic.knockback_resistance",
    "minecraft:generic.movement_speed",
    "minecraft:generic.follow_range",
    "minecraft:generic.attack_knockback",
    "minecraft:generic.attack_speed"
]

Add modded attributes here to enable scaling.

Tips

1. Use max_bonus to prevent scaling from getting out of control
2. Test at different levels - what works at level 10 may break at level 500
3. Balance health and damage - too much of either makes combat unfun
4. Consider knockback resistance - high-level mobs should be harder to cheese
5. Movement speed caps - values above 2.0 can cause issues
6. Start conservative - it's easier to buff than to nerf