Drills
Drills are the Hardmode alternative to pickaxes. Like pickaxes, drills are tools used to remove ("mine") blocks and furniture, normally converting them from placed form to item form. They cannot remove background walls (which requires a hammer instead) nor cut down trees or cacti (which requires an axe or chainsaw). They also double as basic melee weapons. Drills generally have a shorter range than pickaxes but mine blocks much faster.
When evaluating the practical efficiency of a drill, two stats should be taken into consideration: Pickaxe power and mining speed. Higher pickaxe power causes a drill to deal more "damage" to blocks per hit, and lower mining speed values mean that the drill hits blocks more frequently. The use time attribute can safely be disregarded, because it reflects the weapon animation and is not related to the hits for mining.
Types
There are 13 different types of drills, all of which are Hardmode-exclusive.
Name | Max Block | Pickaxe power |
Axe power |
Damage | Bonus | Use time | Mining speed |
Knockback | HM | Rarity | Sell | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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Cobalt DrillInternal Item ID: 385 | ![]() ![]() |
110% | - | 10 | −1 range | 15 (Very fast)
|
7 | 0.5 (Extremely weak) (Desktop, Console and Mobile versions) / 0 (No knockback) (Old-gen console and 3DS versions) | ✔️ | ![]() |
1 GC8 SC |
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Palladium DrillInternal Item ID: 1189 | ![]() ![]() |
130% | - | 12 | −1 range | 15 (Very fast)
|
7 | 0.5 (Extremely weak) (Desktop, Console and Mobile versions) / 0 (No knockback) (Old-gen console and 3DS versions) | ✔️ | ![]() |
1 GC44 SC |
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Mythril DrillInternal Item ID: 386 | ![]() ![]() |
150% | - | 15 | −1 range | 15 (Very fast)
|
6 | 0.5 (Extremely weak) (Desktop, Console and Mobile versions) / 0 (No knockback) (Old-gen console and 3DS versions) | ✔️ | ![]() |
1 GC62 SC |
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Orichalcum DrillInternal Item ID: 1196 | ![]() ![]() |
165% | - | 17 | −1 range | 15 (Very fast)
|
5 | 0.5 (Extremely weak) (Desktop, Console and Mobile versions) / 0 (No knockback) (Old-gen console and 3DS versions) | ✔️ | ![]() |
1 GC98 SC |
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Adamantite DrillInternal Item ID: 388 | ![]() ![]() |
180% | - | 20 | −1 range | 15 (Very fast)
|
4 | 0.5 (Extremely weak) (Desktop, Console and Mobile versions) / 0 (No knockback) (Old-gen console and 3DS versions) | ✔️ | ![]() |
2 GC16 SC |
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Titanium DrillInternal Item ID: 1203 | ![]() ![]() |
190% | - | 27 | −1 range | 15 (Very fast)
|
4 | 0.5 (Extremely weak) (Desktop, Console and Mobile versions) / 0 (No knockback) (Old-gen console and 3DS versions) | ✔️ | ![]() |
2 GC52 SC |
![]() |
Chlorophyte DrillInternal Item ID: 1231 | ![]() |
200% | - | 35 | - | 15 (Very fast)
|
4 | 1 (Extremely weak)
|
✔️ | ![]() |
4 GC32 SC |
![]() |
DraxInternal Item ID: 579 | ![]() |
200% | 110% | 35 | −1 range | 15 (Very fast)
|
4 | 4.75 (Average)
|
✔️ | ![]() |
4 GC40 SC |
![]() |
Vortex Drill(Desktop, Console and Mobile versions)Internal Item ID: 2774 | ![]() |
225% | - | 50 | +2 range | 15 (Very fast)
|
2 | 0.5 (Extremely weak)
|
✔️ | ![]() |
7 GC |
![]() |
Nebula Drill(Desktop, Console and Mobile versions)Internal Item ID: 2779 | ![]() |
225% | - | 50 | +2 range | 15 (Very fast)
|
2 | 0.5 (Extremely weak)
|
✔️ | ![]() |
7 GC |
![]() |
Solar Flare Drill(Desktop, Console and Mobile versions)Internal Item ID: 2784 | ![]() |
225% | - | 50 | +2 range | 15 (Very fast)
|
2 | 0.5 (Extremely weak)
|
✔️ | ![]() |
7 GC |
![]() |
Stardust Drill(Desktop, Console and Mobile versions)Internal Item ID: 3464 | ![]() |
225% | - | 50 | +2 range | 15 (Very fast)
|
2 | 0.5 (Extremely weak)
|
✔️ | ![]() |
7 GC |
![]() |
Laser Drill(Desktop, Console and Mobile versions)Internal Item ID: 2798 | ![]() |
230% | - | 35 | +11 range | 25 (Fast)
|
6 | 4.75 (Average)
|
✔️ | ![]() |
10 GC |
Effectiveness
Block | ![]() |
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---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
![]() |
1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
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2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 1 |
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1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 1 |
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2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 1 |
![]() |
- | 3 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 |
![]() |
- | - | 3 | 3 | 2 | 2 |
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- | - | - | - | 3 | 3 |
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- | - | - | - | - | 2 |
![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
Notes
- Unlike a pickaxe, whose animation (swinging around the player) will be the same no matter where the player "aims" it, a drill will follow the cursor. Although more realistic, this detail may cause digging to become slightly harder because the cursor is nearly always obscured by the drill head.
- Smart Cursor may be a remedy for this.
- If a drill is used for a minute without stopping, it will stop working and need to be restarted by pressing the ⚒ Use / Attack button again. This is because drills are actually long-lasting channel projectiles when used, similar to the Magic Missile.
- Drills may mine slightly slower than pickaxes because they are not affected by mining speed buffs. Players who want to maximize the speed should avoid using drills, because the benefits provided by mining speed enhancements apply only to pickaxes.
- However, clicking "resets" the digging process, so clicking rapidly on a stronger block (such as Adamantite Ore) can mine far quicker than a pickaxe with no modifiers, albeit with a little more effort.
- Drills damage enemies with a projectile based on an NPC immune timer and not with a weapon collision using the item's usetime (animation time). This makes drills considerably more effective at damaging enemies. The immune timer is flat for all drills and is equivalent to a 10 usetime.Verify
History
- Desktop 1.4.4: All drills that already had no knockback now have a token amount of knockback to obtain better modifiers.
- Desktop 1.4.0.1:
- All drills and chainsaws now dig faster than their non-mechanical counterparts, but have shorter range.
- Additionally, optimized digging loadouts still perform better on pickaxes/axes, but drills and chainsaws will be faster on non-optimized loadouts.
- The Luminite Drills are now obtainable.
- Desktop 1.3.3: Fixed Drills shooting confetti at supersonic speeds when under the effects of the Flask of Party.
- Desktop 1.3.0.1:
- Added Laser Drill, a drill with an especially long (+11) range that drops from the new Martian Saucer.
- Added the unobtainable Luminite Drills.
- Desktop 1.2:
- Added Palladium, Orichalcum, Titanium, and Chlorophyte Drills.
- Drills are no longer materials.
- Each drill now has a pickaxe equivalent, for those who don't like drills.
- Hamdrax renamed to the Drax.
- Desktop 1.1: Introduced with Cobalt, Mythril, and Adamantite Drills and the Hamdrax.
- Console 1.0.933.1:
- Added Laser Drill, a drill with an especially long (+11) range that drops from the new Martian Saucer.
- Added the unobtainable Luminite Drills. (
)
- Console 1.0.750.0:
- Added Laser Drill, a drill with an especially long (+11) range that drops from the new Martian Saucer.
- Added the unobtainable Luminite Drills. (
)
- Console 1.02:
- Added Palladium, Orichalcum, Titanium, and Chlorophyte Drills.
- Drills are no longer materials.
- Each drill now has a pickaxe equivalent, for those who don't like drills.
- Hamdrax renamed to the Drax.
- Console-Release: Introduced with Cobalt, Mythril, and Adamantite Drills and the Hamdrax.
- Switch 1.0.711.6: Introduced with all corresponding drills up to Desktop 1.3.0.1.
- Mobile 1.3.0.7:
- Added Laser Drill, a drill with an especially long (+11) range that drops from the new Martian Saucer.
- Added the unobtainable Luminite Drills.
- Mobile 1.2.6508:
- Added Palladium, Orichalcum, Titanium, and Chlorophyte Drills.
- Drills are no longer materials.
- Each drill now has a pickaxe equivalent, for those who don't like drills.
- Hamdrax renamed to the Drax.
- Mobile-Release: Introduced with Cobalt, Mythril, and Adamantite Drills and the Hamdrax.
- 3DS-Release: Introduced with all corresponding drills up to Desktop 1.2.