Quick Links
Terrariais a complex game, full of secrets and unlockables. One of the most important things for a player to unlock are its Town NPCs, who can offer a variety of unique items and services that may provide mechanical benefits and/or make fun clothing and furniture available.
Best Pre-Hardmode Weapons in Terraria
There’s a vast amount of weapons to choose from in Terraria’s pre-hardmode and this list outlines the best of the best.
Some of these NPCs are more or less essential, while others can easily be skipped if you’re looking to rush to the Moon Lord himself. Whatever your priorities, below is an explanation of each NPC’s unlock conditions and a quick overview of some of their best offerings.
Pre-Hardmode NPCs
Below are all the NPCs obtainable pre-Hardmode (meaning before one kills the Wall of Flesh boss). Keep in mind that new NPCs will only move inif a valid house is available for them, with a tool to check if a particular room counts as valid housing available from the Inventory menu. In multiplayer, only one player needs to fulfill a character’s requirements for them to move in (one of many reasons Terraria makes for a good co-op game, just like these gameshere).
By default, the Guide will spawn in a player’s world from the start and respawn whenever there is a valid house available.
The Guide is something of a meme in the Terraria community as useless, but he can be talked to for tips and can be used to see all recipes associated with any item in your inventory. This makes him fairly useful to beginners, at least if not using wikis and similar outside resources. He is also a necessary sacrifice to fight the Wall of Flesh.
The Merchant can move into a player’s world once the total of all money in all players' inventories in that world exceeds 50 silver, making him one of the earliest NPCs most players meet after the Guide.
The Merchant sells various items, with his stock evolving as the player hits certain milestones. Early useful items to purchase include the Piggy Bank (which has a shared inventory with all other Piggy Banks in the world), an Iron Anvil (if a player is struggling to find enough iron to make one), and a Mining Helmet (which produces light around the wearer).
The Nurse is another early NPC who can move into a world once a Merchant is present and the player has upgraded their health at least once, pushing it above the initial 100 maximum.
The Nurse can be paid to fully heal the player. This allows foran extremely powerful strategy during boss fights if one positions her home near the intended arena, as this healing can be administered mid-fight. The cost of this healing is proportional to the amount one is healing and increases as certain bosses are defeated, but it is typically what most players would consider affordable.
Demolitionist
The Demolitionist can move into a world once a Merchant is present and a player in that world has explosives in their inventory (typically a grenade or bomb).
The Demolitionist is often quite useful, as he provides ready access to grenades, bombs, and dynamite. Bombs can quickly mine most blocks, and dynamite can mine even more types of block.
Dye Trader
The Dye Trader can move into a world if a player has picked up any items related to dyes, such as Yellow Marigold or Red Husk.
The Dye Trader is mostly an NPC that allows one to change their aesthetic through dyes, which don’t provide any mechanical benefits. One can also trade him Strange Plants for special, animated dyes. He can also drop an Exotic Scimitar on death, which is a decent if somewhat unremarkable early game weapon.
The Angler is an NPC who can move into a home once he is discovered in the world. He will spawn randomly around either ocean, either on a beach or floating on the water, sleeping. Speak to him to wake him up and he can then move in.
The Angler offers fishing quests, requiring the player to fish in particular biomes for special quest fish not normally obtainable. Returning these special fish to him will result in various rewards,with a number of unique rewards only available after completing a certain number of questsand some only available once a player has entered Hardmode.
The Zoologist moves in once 10% of the Bestiary has been filled, which happens automatically as one defeats enemies and talks to NPCs. You don’t need any special items to start adding entries into the Bestiary.
The Zoologist is a merchant who mostly sells pets, vanity items, and decorations that don’t provide mechanical benefits. Some of her stock is only available after beating certain bosses, during certain phases of the in-game moon, or once certain completion milestones are reached in the bestiary. She does eventually offer the Digging Molecart, which automatically digs and lays track after enough of the Bestiary is completed, as well as the Jousting Lance in Hardmode, which deals damage based on speed and can hit pretty high for when it’s obtainable (if one has a way to consistently move quickly).
The Dryad will move into a world once a player has defeated one of the three early bosses: the Eye of Cthulhu, Eater of WorldsorBrain of Cthulhu (depending on the biome a world spawned with), or Skeletron.
The Dryad can track the spread of Corruption, Crimson, and Hallow in a world, although she is most important as a merchant. The Dryad sells a number of highly useful items, including Purification Powder, various seeds, and Planter Boxes. She provides one of the easiest ways to make artificial Corrupt or Crimson biomes, as, during a Blood Moon, she will sell powder and seeds which spreads the world’s associated “bad” biome onto vulnerable blocks (or the opposite “bad” biome, if she is housed in a Graveyard biome).
The Painter moves into a world once that world has a population of at least four other NPCs that have already moved in.
He is a merchant who sells various paintings, paint, and wallpapers depending on a variety of conditions, none of which have any mechanical benefit. He can drop a fairly forgettable weapon, the Paintball Gun, if killed.
The Golfer is a strange NPC that can be found in the Underground Desert biome, moving into a suitable house once spoken to.
The Golfer exists almost exclusively as a merchant for players who want to construct custom golf courses in their world, with a few aesthetic/vanity items also potentially available (some of which require getting high golf scores to unlock). He has very little mechanical value, although he can sell keys to the Golf Cart mount once you defeat Skeletron and achieve a gold score of 2000 (which is rarely worth it in terms of speed and progression, unless you enjoy golfing).
Arms Dealer
The Arms Dealer will move in once a player has obtained either a gun (typically from an orb or heart) or bullets.
The Arms Dealer is an excellent NPC for players interested in ranged builds, staying fairly relevant for most of the game, as he’ll sell silver or tungsten bullets (depending on the metal that naturally spawns in a world) in Hardmode (or pre-Hardmode, during a Blood Moon).His Minishark is a decent weapon to fight Skeletron, and it can later be upgraded into the excellent Megashark in Hardmode.
Tavernkeeper
The Tavernkeeper is locked behind defeating the Eater of WorldsorEye of Cthulhu, randomly appearing unconscious in a player’s world once either is beaten. Talk to him to recruit him and move him into an appropriate house.
This NPC (who is part of a crossover with Dungeon Defenders 2) is interesting in that he unlocks the Old One’s Army event, a minigame where one defends a crystal from waves of enemies. This event earns player medals, which can then be used to purchase some powerful sentry summon weapons and armor. The most powerful of these items, which only unlock in the store after defeating Golem, are theoretically quite good, although many players choose to skip them as they require playing the associated event enough to earn 150+ medals if you want a full set of the strongest armor he can sell. His Defender’s Forge, available at 50 medals, is basically a Piggy Bank but with a separate inventory, which some may find useful if you want to have a large pool of items available to you at all times.
Best Accessories To Equip In Terraria
Terraria has an overwhelming amount of trinkets and gadgets that all count as accessories, and this list shows the best of them all.
The Stylist is an NPC who can be randomly found trapped in Spider Nests mini-biome, stuck in cobwebs. She’ll join you once rescued.
This NPC will allow you to change your appearance, offering a variety of hairstyles and colors. While not particularly useful mechanically, she does offer some styles not available during character creation. The Stylish Scissors she can drop on death are unlikely to be very helpful to a player by the time she is unlocked.
Goblin Tinkerer
The Goblin Tinkerer can be recruited after a Goblin Invasion, randomly spawning in the Cavern layer of a world.
The Goblin Tinkerer isone of the most useful NPCs in the game, selling Rocket Boots (which allows for an early boosted jump) and the Tinkerer’s Workshop (which allows you to combine certain accessories, combining their effects into one item). He can also be paid to Reforge items, which rerolls an item’s modifier. Because of this function, a player with enough money (and reforging can be expensive) is able to get any modifier they want on their gear, although the roll is random and thus the process of targeting a specific modifier may take some time.
Witch Doctor
The Witch Doctor is a pre-Hardmode NPC that many players unlock relatively late, as he requires defeating the Queen Bee (and thus one needs to explore the Underground Jungle and find the Hive mini-biome).
Early on, he often goes unused (although his Blowgun has some limited applications), but he offers a number of useful summoning upgrades after a player defeats Hardmode’s Plantera. His Hercules Beetle, in particular, is going to be useful for most Summoner Builds. Also of note is that he can sell a Bewitching Table (an excellent piece of furniture for summoners which temporarily boosts your maximum minion count) if a Wizard (discussed later) is also in the area, but these tables are obtainable for free pre-Hardmode if one explores the Dungeon.
The Clothier is an NPC who can move in after Skeletron is defeated (and who the game more or less confirms is the Old Man who summons Skeletron, now freed from his curse).
The Clothier is a vendor who sells many different vanity items, with the requirements to unlock particular items in his store varied and too long to discuss here. Beyond defending himself from monsters like other Town NPCs, he doesn’t offer many mechanical benefits (although he offers some particularly cool clothing when in a Graveyard biome).
The Mechanic is an NPC who can be found bound in the Dungeon, once you defeat Skeletron. Once rescued, she will move into an available home.
The Mechanic is a vendor focused on wiring and mechanisms. Most importantly, she sells the tools needed to wire and adjust your own contraptions, allowing for a number of useful boss arena and grinding setups. Of particular note is that the items she sells can allow you torun a signal to a Heart Statue, which will then spawn hearts, although there are many other ways wires and mechanisms can be used to your advantage beyond this.
Party Girl
The Party Girl will move into a world when 8 or more Town NPCs have already moved into the world. She is often one of the last pre-Hardmode NPCs to arrive, and it isn’t unusual for her to arrive in Hardmode if one hasn’t thoroughly recruited other Town NPCs.
The Party Girl is a vendor focused on “fun” items, including harmless fireworks, a Fog Machine, and a Bubble Wand. One of the few things she offers is mechanical benefit that can be obtained by speaking to her during a Party event (which can’t have been started through a Party Center). She will give the player a Slice of Cake, a furniture item that will grant a significant mining and speed boost for two minutes when used. Because it’s a furniture item (with unlimited uses) rather than a food item, it is useful for boss arenas, with no real downside to its use.
Hardmode NPCs
The following NPCs are only available once you have entered Hardmode:
The Wizard is an NPC who can spawn underground in Hardmode; he needs to be freed and can then move into a free house.
As a vendor, he sells a number of good items focused on magic, including Greater Mana Potions, Spell Tomes (which can be used to make the grossly named but genuinely good Golden Shower spell), and the Ice Rod (which can deal damage and make temporary blocks of ice). The Crystal Ball he sells can be used to receive a buff to magicandas a workstation to create a few recipes, including the Endless Quiver and Endless Musket Pouch.
Best Wings In Terraria
From the Harpy Wings to the Empress Wings, these are the best sets of wings available in Terraria.
Tax Collector
The Tax Collector requires a player to delve into the Underworld once Hardmode has been unlocked. Then, one must find a Tortured Soul, a rare enemy of little value if you just kill him. However, this enemy can be sprinkled with Purification Powder, turning him into the Tax Collector. This process doesn’t need to be repeated if the Tax Collector later dies.
The Tax Collector slowly collects money based on the world’s living population of Town NPCs, which he will store, and a player can then talk to him to collect. While he does have the chance to drop a weapon if killed, it isn’t of practical use in Hardmode.
The Truffle is an NPC that requires a player to manipulate biomes to recruit, as he will only move into a Glowing Mushroom Biome that is on the surface layer. The easiest way to do this is typically to lay out mud blocks and strategically place Mushroom Grass Seeds around the mud. The planted grass will spread and, once 100 blocks in the area are covered in Mushroom Grass, the biome should change. Theoretically, this only requires one seed if you have a continuous string of mud (as grass spreads), although the process will go much faster if you use several at once.
The Truffle is an important NPC for particular builds, selling the Autohammer, which is needed to make Mini Nukes and Shroomite Bars. He also sells a decent spear and hammer.
The Pirate is a vendor who appears once players have repelled at least one Pirate Invasion.
The Pirate has a somewhat limited inventory, with what was once a very good item he sold, the Explosive Bunny, being removed from sale (the item is now crafted and more difficult to get on mass). His Cannon and (once you have the Party Girl recruited) the Bunny Cannon are of limited use, as they are immobile and must be triggered through wiring, although boss arenas can sometimes be designed with their limitations in mind.
Steampunker
The Steampunker can move in once someone in the world defeats a mechanical boss.
She sells several items of note, including the Clentaminator (a device that, in conjunction with the solutions she sells, spreads different biome types around the target area), a Jetpack, special wings, various mechanisms that allow for fairly complex contraptions (such as logic gates and conveyor belts), and more. Much of what she sells is linked to the moon phase, biome, or ongoing event, so be sure to check her inventory often.
One of the final unlockable NPCs, the Cyborg requires you to have defeated Plantera, at which point he will move in.
The Cyborg sells some interesting “fun” items, notably a drone and FPV Goggles (which cause your view to follow the drone when worn). He also sells various types of rocket ammunition (including some particularly powerful rockets during the Solar Eclipse event) and Nanites, an item needed to make powerful Nano Bullets.
Special NPCs
The NPCs discussed below are of special note. Note that the Princess and Santa Claus require you to be in Hardmode:
The Princess is a special NPC who will only appear whenevery other Town NPC except Santa Claus is alive and in your world. She doesn’t require that you have every pet or slime to appear.
Unless spawned in worlds created specifically using certain secret world seeds (which are beyond the scope of this article), the Princess is another NPC who doesn’t sell anything of mechanical benefit, just some clothes, a unique pet item, and furniture. If killed, she can drop the Resonance Scepter, a fairly powerful magic item that spawns damaging circles at one’s cursor (although not through blocks). Its value in progression is debatable, as it requires recruiting virtually all the Town NPCs in the game and there are other powerful items that may be easier to get, but it’s worth considering if one is recruiting the necessary NPCs anyway.
Many have a soft spot for the Princess as she was part of a big update after fans were toldmultiple timesthe game had had its last update. Barring MMOs, few games have seen as many updates as Terraria (only Dwarf Fortressand Minecraftcome to mind).
Santa Claus
Santa Claus is a special NPC who can move in once you have defeated the Frost Legion. Ordinarily, he willonlymove in for a single in-game day after you complete the Frost Moon event (keeping in mind you must also have first defeated the Frost Legion), as signaled when that event gives the message “The spirit of Christmas spreads cheer…” (something a few ofthese gamescan also do). However, as long as the Frost Legion has been defeated, he will also appear from December 15 – December 31, where he can survive indefinitely for the entirety of that period. At the end of the Christmas season (or a single day, if spawned out of season through the Frost Moon event), he will suddenly die for no apparent reason.
Santa sells Christmas-themed items of no mechanical benefit.
Town Pets and Slimes
Town Pets and Town Slimes are NPCs that offer virtually no special benefits, although they count as a NPC for the purpose of the population (without counting as neighbors) and they can live in houses already occupied by standard Town NPCs.
Town Pets become available through pet licenses sold by the Zoologist, with a cat, dog, and bunny available. The dog and bunny require hitting 25% and 45% Bestiary completion respectively.
The Town Slimes have more specific conditions before they move in:
Best Hardmode Weapons in Terraria
After defeating the Wall of Flesh, Terraria throws you into an unforgiving, cruel hardmode, but these weapons help you through it.
