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This is more of a story question than actual gameplay or strategy. I have been reading the wiki and some other websites but I have not found an answer to this.

From what I understand is that Minecraft consist out of 3 dimensions. There is the Overworld, the Nether, and the End.

The Overworld is home to us, and our usual mobs. We have the ability to move to other dimensions, the other mobs don't.

The Nether is home to a new set of mobs. We can go to their dimension, but they pretty much stay there.

At last there is the End, home to the Enderman. Unlike all other mobs in the they do have the ability to travel multiple dimensions. This brings me to the following questions:

  • Why do Enderman choose to come to the overworld and just pick up blocks?
  • Why are they not traveling to the Nether and pick up blocks there?

Maybe there is no better answe than:

it's just a game and that's how it's programmed

. but maybe someone has a cool story behind this.

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This makes me wonder if you have ever been to the Nether.. No one likes it there.. It's annoying as all can be. If you had the ability to choose where to go would you really want to hang around those stupid ghasts??? :D – James Jun 6 '12 at 16:40
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Minecraft is specifically designed not to have a story - or, more accurately, for the each player to assume their own story. The same type of questions could be asked about every aspect of the game - where did your character come from? Why is everything square? What's with creepers / abandoned mineshafts / jungle temples / etc. – Keaanu Jun 6 '12 at 16:43
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On a related note , the coming 1.3 patch will add low chance of zombie pigmen spawning near nether portals. – rpedroso Jun 6 '12 at 17:01
@Keaanu You are absolutely right about this. When I think of it not much makes sense. I guess the Enderman were just the first thing that I question, but there is much more to question. But I guess you are right that they leave it up to you to decide. As I read trough the wiki it explains how certain things happen, but it does not connect the dots. – Saif Bechan Jun 6 '12 at 19:30

closed as not constructive by Mr Smooth, Ronan Forman, Keaanu, fredley, John the Green Jun 6 '12 at 23:50

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1 Answer

up vote 6 down vote accepted

A simple explanation...

Travel between dimensions in Minecraft is always mediated by portals. Gaining access to The Nether requires that you build a Nether Portal out of obsidian blocks, and since Endermen can't move obsidian blocks, they can't build the portal to get there.

However, movement between The End and The Overworld is possible for Endermen because:

  1. End Portals already exist by default in Overworld Strongholds.
  2. The Ender Dragon has the ability to create a portal leading from The End to The Overworld, as evidenced when it is killed by the player.
  3. Also, Endermen just spawn normally in the Overworld. If you were to stand on one side of a nether portal with an enderman on the other side and look at him, he would walk forward and travel to the nether, which mobs can do as of 1.4.2.
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Yeah this is absolutely true. Thanks for your explanation. – Saif Bechan Jun 6 '12 at 19:23

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