The Complete Melee Class Guide for Terraria

In Terraria, the melee class offers a visceral, high-damage playstyle that rewards players for engaging enemies up close. This comprehensive guide will walk you through every aspect of melee combat, from weapon choices to boss strategies, all while ensuring that you thrive in every stage of the game.

1. Introduction to the Melee Class

The Melee Playstyle: Strengths and Weaknesses

The melee class shines when fighting enemies directly. With high-damage, high-defense options, melee players thrive when they can get close to their foes. However, melee players must balance their offense with smart defensive play to mitigate the risk of being overwhelmed by enemy attacks.

Strengths:

-Durability: Melee-focused armor provides higher defense than other classes, allowing you to withstand more damage.
-High Single-Target Damage: Melee weapons, particularly swords and yoyos, can deal devastating damage to bosses and tough enemies.
-Weapon Variety: The melee class has access to a wide range of weapons, from fast-swinging swords to long-reaching spears.

Weaknesses:

-Limited Range: Until later in the game, melee players have to be close to enemies to deal damage, which exposes them to higher risks.
-Mobility Dependency: Players must rely heavily on movement and accessories to dodge attacks and reposition quickly.

Overcoming Early-Game Challenges

In the early game, melee players might struggle due to low-tier weapons and minimal defense. To compensate for this, focus on crafting better gear as soon as possible and learn to dodge enemy attacks efficiently. Consider using multi-hit melee weapons like flails and yoyos to engage enemies from a safer distance while maintaining a melee approach.

2. Melee Weapon Overview: Choosing the Right Tool for the Job

Each melee weapon type in Terraria has its unique advantages, making them ideal for different situations.
Early Game (Pre-Hardmode):

Swords:
-Shortswords offer quick jabs but lack range and damage. Replace them with Broadswords as soon as possible.
-Legendary Platinum Broadsword: This early weapon is easy to craft and is effective against the early bosses like the Eye of Cthulhu.

Spears:
-Spear and Trident: Perfect for controlling groups of enemies due to their range and ability to hit multiple targets. Use spears in confined spaces where you can safely poke at enemies from a distance.

Boomerangs:
-Enchanted Boomerang: This versatile weapon can deal ranged damage while still benefiting from melee buffs. It’s a great option for players looking to stay safe early in the game while dealing consistent damage.

Flails:
-Ball O' Hurt: This weapon is a great tool for dealing damage to multiple enemies at once, making it an ideal choice for taking on the Eater of Worlds. Flails can be used in tunnels and narrow spaces, making them particularly effective in controlled environments.

Yoyos:
-Amazon: Crafted from jungle resources, this yoyo allows for high-range sustained melee damage. The Amazon is great for bosses that move erratically or need to be attacked from a distance while remaining mobile.

2.1 Hardmode

Swords:
-Excalibur and True Night’s Edge: These swords provide excellent melee damage and have auto-swing, making it easier to continuously damage enemies.
-Terra Blade: This late-game sword combines high damage with ranged sword beams, providing a safe option for dealing damage from afar. A must-have for any melee player.

Spears:
-Gungnir and Chlorophyte Partisan: These long-reaching spears are ideal for crowd control and hitting enemies at a distance, allowing for a balance between defense and offense in open areas or during large boss fights.

Flails:
-Drippler Crippler: The slow but high-damage flail is great for Hardmode events and can take out groups of enemies with ease.

Yoyos:
-Yelets and Terrarian: The Terrarian yoyo is one of the most powerful weapons in the game, capable of dealing massive DPS from a distance while still counting as melee damage.

Weapon Tactics:

Mob control: Use flails and yoyos to keep enemies at bay while still dealing damage from a distance.
High DPS: Swords with high attack speed or auto-swing are excellent for dealing sustained damage to bosses.
Crowd Control: Spears and flails are perfect for dealing with groups of enemies due to their sweeping attack range and multi-target capabilities.

3. Armor and Accessories: Building a Strong Foundation

Pre-Hardmode Armor:

-Iron/Lead Armor: Simple and accessible, providing basic defense while you gather resources for better gear.
-Molten Armor: Your first major upgrade, crafted from Hellstone, Molten Armor offers the highest defense in Pre-Hardmode and gives a 17% melee damage boost, making it essential for tackling the Wall of Flesh.

Hardmode Armor Progression:

-Cobalt Armor / Palladium Armor: As soon as you enter Hardmode, mine these ores to craft your first set of Hardmode armor. Palladium’s regeneration boost makes it great for surviving tougher enemies.
-Adamantite Armor / Titanium Armor: These armor sets offer high defense, with Titanium Armor providing a dodge buff that can be crucial in avoiding damage during tough boss fights.
-Hallowed Armor: Grants better defense and adds melee bonuses. Ideal for taking on the mechanical bosses.
-Beetle Armor: One of the best melee armor sets in the game, Beetle Armor comes in two variants—high defense or increased melee damage. Switch between the two depending on your needs for survivability or damage output.
-Solar Flare Armor: The pinnacle of melee armor, Solar Flare provides immense defense and a dash ability for quickly closing the gap between you and enemies. Perfect for the final stages of the game.

Essential Accessories for Melee:

-Feral Claws / Power Glove / Mechanical Glove: Each of these accessories increases melee speed and damage, crucial for maximizing your DPS.
-Warrior Emblem: Obtained from the Wall of Flesh, this emblem provides a flat 15% boost to melee damage and is one of the best early Hardmode accessories.
-Fire Gauntlet: Combining the benefits of the Mechanical Glove with added fire damage to melee attacks, this accessory boosts both your damage and your ability to deal damage over time.
-Shield of Cthulhu: This accessory is indispensable for its dash ability, allowing you to quickly reposition in battle and avoid damage.
-Frozen Turtle Shell / Worm Scarf: Both offer damage reduction, essential for surviving long fights and reducing the strain on your health pool.

4. Full Game Progression and Strategy

Pre-Hardmode Progression:

-Early Exploration: Focus on gathering resources for basic armor and weapons. Prioritize mining ores like iron and gold to craft your first set of armor and a broadsword.
-First Bosses: The Eye of Cthulhu and Eater of Worlds are your first major challenges. Use the Platinum Broadsword or Amazon Yoyo to deal consistent damage while dodging their attacks.
-Molten Gear: Before facing the Wall of Flesh, craft Molten Armor and the Fiery Greatsword from Hellstone. These will provide the defense and damage needed to transition into Hardmode.

Hardmode Progression:

-Mining and Crafting: Once you defeat the Wall of Flesh, start mining Cobalt and Palladium to craft new armor. Focus on upgrading to Adamantite or Titanium armor for increased defense.
-Mechanical Bosses: For the mechanical bosses (The Twins, Skeletron Prime, The Destroyer), focus on using fast-attacking weapons like Excalibur or Gungnir combined with Adamantite Armor and melee-boosting accessories.
-Plantera and Golem: After defeating the mechanical bosses, go into the jungle to find and defeat Plantera. Use Beetle Armor for increased damage or defense during the fight. The Golem fight can be trivialized by using the True Night's Edge or Terra Blade.
-Endgame and Moon Lord: After obtaining Solar Flare Armor and weapons like the Solar Eruption, take on the Moon Lord. Use mobility-enhancing accessories like Wings and the Shield of Cthulhu to avoid his devastating attacks while dealing sustained melee damage.

5. Advanced Tactics and Arena Setup

Arena Setup for Boss Fights:

-Platforms: Build platforms across your arenas to allow for free movement and dodging while still being able to attack bosses.
-Heart Lanterns and Campfires: These offer regeneration boosts and should be placed strategically to ensure healing throughout the battle.
-Honey Pools: Small honey pools can grant health regeneration buffs, perfect for long, drawn-out boss fights.
-Traps and Statues: Place traps like Dart Traps and Flame Traps to deal additional damage to bosses or waves of enemies, particularly in events like the Pumpkin Moon or Frost Moon.

6. Buffs and Potions for Melee Success

Buffs are crucial for maximizing your potential in Terraria. Here are the most important potions for melee players:

1.Ironskin Potion: Increases defense by 8, a vital boost in long fights.
2.Regeneration Potion: Slowly regenerates health over time, perfect for sustained fights.
3.Swiftness Potion: Increases movement speed by 25%, helping with dodging and positioning.
4.Wrath Potion: Boosts all damage by 10%, an essential potion for increasing your melee output.

7. Why Play Melee and Support This Guide

The melee class offers an unparalleled sense of strength, durability, and raw damage output. Whether you're taking on hordes of enemies or a single powerful boss, mastering the melee class in Terraria is both challenging and rewarding. If this guide has helped you in your journey, consider supporting it by rewarding points on Steam. Your support helps me continue to create valuable content for the community, and it also rewards me for my time and effort!

[Rowdy]

@bigzthegreat the genius admires simplicity, the moron admires complexity.

[bigzthegreat]

Wrong. Melee is the most boring, simple ape minded class that promotes sitting in a chair and facetanking the attacks of literal gods and eldritch creatures.

[Merry]

can't do the first moon lord fight with solar armor; solar armor requires luminite, which is only dropped by Big Moon

[Ничтожество]

@DeftNerd Ranger Damage

[DeftNerd]

why is the harpoon gun not melee?