A player’s effectiveness in battles in Terraria largely depends on what kind of weapon he uses, as well as what fighting style is preferable for him.
Each of them has its own unique mechanics and features. In this article, you can familiarize yourself with the main parameters and characteristics of these types, as well as learn about their advantages and disadvantages in relation to each other.
Melee weapons in Terraria
Melee weapons are weapons dealing melee damage that are used in close- to medium-ranged combat. Their main feature is that when used, they do not consume mana or projectiles.
These include swords, spears, jousting lances, yoyos, flails, and boomerangs. The seventh category includes things that cannot be categorized. Tools can also deal melee damage, however, they will not be as effective as weapons.
Melee weapons can be obtained by crafting, dropped as a reward, and can also be found in the treasury.
This category is effective against ground enemies in small numbers. The most effective melee weapons will be in one-on-one battles.
Ranged weapons in Terraria
Ranged weapons are weapons which are used in ranged combat. The defining trait of ranged weapons is their requirement of ammunition.
Ranged weapons are roughly categorized into bows, repeaters, guns, and launchers. There are also ranged weapons, which at the same time do not belong to any of the above categories, and also are not interpreted as unambiguously ranged weapons (for example, a boomerang). We should also mention consumable long-range projectiles like shurikens, snowballs, etc.
Ranged weapons can be crafted, dropped as a reward, and found in the treasury.
This category is effective against flying enemies in small numbers. The most effective ranged weapons will be in one-on-one battles. On rare occasions, Ranged weapons will also be effective against large groups of enemies (in case it does AOE damage, such as Rocket Launcher).
Magic weapons in Terraria
The magic weapon type is a kind of subcategory for Melee and Ranged types. Magic weapons are used in medium- to long-ranged combat. Their main feature is that when using each of the weapons of this type, the player spends a certain amount of mana. Due to their unusual and unique forms of attack, the majority of magic weapons can hardly be categorized into different types. We can definitely talk about the presence of at least three explicit types – Wands, Magic guns, Spell tomes.
Magic weapons can be obtained by crafting, dropped as a reward, and can also be found in the treasury.
For example, staves that fire magic projectiles will be effective against flying enemies, and most Spell tomes will be effective against groups of ground opponents.
Melee vs Ranged vs Magic weapons in Terraria
Having dealt with the main properties and characteristics of these three types of weapons, we can compare them with each other, identifying the advantages and disadvantages concerning each other.
First of all, it should be noted that all three types of weapons can be obtained by all methods available in the game, i.e. by crafting, as a reward for defeating the boss and also to be found in the treasury. Each of them has its category of modifiers, which positively or negatively affects the parameters of the weapon. In Terraria, the player can also equip accessories, buffing weapons, enhancing the effects of magic, etc. The same applies to armour sets, which are divided into classes and give buffs to one or another category of weapons.
A key feature of Melee, Ranged and Magic weapons is how they are used and what they need to do it. If the use of Melee weapons does not require additional resources, then with ranged and magic everything is more complicated. Ranged requires certain projectiles, depending on the weapon. These can be bullets, arrows, etc. For magic weapons, mana is required, and the amount of mana available to the player at a certain time will determine how effectively he can use this magic weapon.
Depending on the type of weapon, it also depends on how effective it will be against enemies. This does not prevent the player from using the same weapon on all opponents, however, resistance, speed, movement pattern, etc. do not dispose to this.
Summing up, it should be noted that there is no definite answer as to which of these three types of weapons is better. Each of them, like each weapon, in particular, has its own characteristics, as well as advantages and disadvantages. Depending on the situation, the type of enemy, their number, the player must independently choose which weapon he should use in a particular case. The choice of ranged, melee and magic weapons depends on the user’s playstyle, as well as his personal preferences. Luck will play an important role since in many respects it will depend on it when and what weapon the player will receive.