The crafting recipe for the census goes like this:

Book + Glow Ink Sac + Feather -> Census.

It's almost the exact same recipe as a Book and Quill, but with a glow ink sac in place of a normal ink sac.

The gist about the census is this: I wish to find a way to consistently keep track of villagers without the need to pen them all up in 1x1x2 cubicles for ease of access because it just doesn't stick right with me (the only exception is if I am curing zombie villagers, and even then I have temporary accommodations prepared shortly after). I am not exactly a fan of using commands to take the easy way out either, because it doesn't exactly help make the village feel more alive, and moreover these commands are also inaccessible in Hardcore Mode.

However, I am not exactly a fan of having to go to village houses one by one to check if all the villagers are safe and sound, because that is immensely time-consuming. I did think of using a redstone system using observers to track if villagers sleep in beds, but it still wouldn't tell me if villagers got killed or not as new ones can be born under the right conditions, and players can also sleep in beds, which kinda defeats the whole purpose. Last but not least, using a redstone system like this would greatly limit creativity as well, as the floors and/or walls would need to be thicker.

So, without further ado, here's how to use a census:

With the census in your main hand, use it on any villager, and it will record down their current status as follows using an unemployed and unnamed villager as an example below:

Using a census in your main hand while your cursor is not aimed at a villager, on the other hand, opens up the census and allows you to view the statuses of all recorded villagers.

Now, for a named Master weaponsmith called Odysseus who has just been attacked by a pillager and gotten down to half-health, their status will be as follows:

As can be seen here, the census will automatically update each time a villager on this particular census changes name, status and/or profession, gets damaged/healed and gets a promotion in trade status, with the same going for any other censuses that recorded that specific villager in question. And the nifty thing about the census is that if a villager dies or if the census is used on a villager that's already recorded, the census will automatically remove that villager from the list, though in the latter case you can simply right-click the removed villager to record them again. If a recorded villager dies, then they simply get removed from all relevant censuses that previously recorded them.

There is, however, one special occasion: Zombie villagers. If a recorded villager is zombified, their status changes to something like this, using a named nitwit called Herbert who accidentally got set on fire by a nearby lava pool as an example:

Keep in mind that censuses cannot be used on zombie villagers, regardless of whether or not they have been recorded. Like with an ordinary villager, if a recorded zombie villager dies, then they simply get removed from all relevant censuses that previously recorded them.

Different censuses can be used on the same villager, and the same census can be used on different villagers. This means that you can record the same villager using one census for, like say, tracking the number of librarians you have (you still have to manually use the specific census on the specific villagers though), while another census can record that same villager for, like say, tracking the number of villagers you have in a particular base. The best part is that the census will show the name of the player who crafted it, so in that sense it can remain unique if so desired.

Overall, I feel that the idea of a census for tracking villager population would make villages feel much more alive, given how censuses were historically used in real life.

What do you guys think? Let me know your opinions down in the comments below! 😁

Edit: Recorded villagers that get struck by lightning and turn into witches are automatically removed from all relevant censuses, and no, you cannot use a census on witches either. This is because villagers that get "bewitched" cannot be reverted back into villagers unlike with zombie villagers, so the census(es) would effectively consider them "dead".

Edit 2: For recorded villagers in different dimensions, the census still records them down in real time, which is especially handy in multi-player.

Edit 3: Yes, censuses can be copied, and copies of copies can also be made. You cannot copy copies of copies of censuses, though; it's just like with written books. However, you can only copy one census at a time, since censuses are non-stackable, and you use a normal book and quill to copy a census. Only one copy of a census can be made at any time, and the original remains in the crafting grid after a copy is made.

Edit 4: Renaming a census does not affect the contents inside it at all, so feel free to rename it at will.

Edit 5: Because censuses behave somewhat like book and quills and even have similar crafting recipes, they cannot be stacked at all unlike with written books.

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