Minecraft wiki entry for Villager, associated text: All villagers wander from time to time, but for the unemployed and nitiwits, they wander for the majority of their day. A wandering villager chooses a random block and walks toward it, then stands there for a variable amount of time before wandering again. If at any time it detects a job site block it can claim, it does so, assumes the skin for the associated profession, and immediately begins following the appropriate schedule.