Cipher methods Symbols
Illageralt (Minecraft Dungeons)
Illageralt is the official alphabet of the Illager people in Minecraft Dungeons (Mojang Studios / Microsoft Game Studios, 26 May 2020), the action-RPG spinoff of the Minecraft franchise. The Illagers are the dark-fantasy branch of the Villagers: Pillagers (crossbow archers), Vindicators (axe assassins), Evokers (vex spell-casters), Ravagers (battering-ram mounts) and the Arch-Illager, the game’s main antagonist.
The alphabet is an angular runic script evoking the Scandinavian Futhark but with a more straight-edged, menacing style — consistent with the Illagers’ military aesthetic. It appears on Pillager banners (flags carried atop outposts), paintings in the Woodland Mansion libraries, and inscriptions of the Soggy Swamp and Cacti Canyon.
Unlike the Enchanting Table (which uses the Standard Galactic — see our dedicated entry), Illageralt is specific to Minecraft Dungeons and has been carried over into secondary inscriptions in Minecraft Java Edition since update 1.19.
How does the alphabet work?
The cipher uses a monoalphabetic substitution: every letter of the plaintext is replaced by a glyph drawn from a fixed correspondence table. It is one of the oldest cryptographic techniques on record — already described in antiquity (Caesar cipher, ~50 BC) — and the most directly readable family for a beginner.
The table holds 26 glyphs for the Latin letters, 10 digits and 4 punctuation marks (! . , ?) — exactly what appears in-game on banners, paintings and runic inscriptions.
Cryptographic strength: weak. Because every plaintext letter always maps to the same glyph, the cipher falls to a frequency analysis in a few dozen words (in both English and French, E remains the most common letter, an immediate entry point). Monoalphabetic substitutions are therefore used today for their decorative, playful or pedagogical value — not to protect real information.
Historical and modern usage
- Minecraft Dungeons (2020) — on Pillager banners, Mansion paintings, Soggy Swamp inscriptions.
- Minecraft Java Edition (since 1.19, 2022) — a few secondary inscriptions.
- Minecraft community — used in build videos, RP servers, Pillager cosplay.
- Pedagogy — example of a spinoff alphabet expanding a major game’s lore.
Related variants
- Standard Galactic (Minecraft Enchanting Table) — see our entry, the ‘real’ main Minecraft alphabet.
- Futhark — see our entry, the historical runic alphabet that inspired Illageralt.
What are the weaknesses?
- Monoalphabetic substitution — immediate frequency analysis.
- Documented alphabet — public table on Minecraft Wiki and dCode from year 1 of the game.
- Close runic glyphs — risk of confusion between runes differing by one stroke.
The 26 glyphs
The 10 digits
The punctuation marks
