Guide:Pumpkin Moon strategies
The Pumpkin Moon is a post-Plantera Hardmode event triggered by activating the Pumpkin Moon Medallion. The event is very rewarding if you can successfully keep pace, providing a large amounts of money and good weapons by the end of the night.
However, the event is also difficult and requires a lot of preparation.
The Event
Type | |
---|---|
Environment | |
AI Type | Mourning Wood AI |
Damage | 120/180/270 (contact) [1] 100200300 (Flaming Wood, health ≥ 25%) 150300450 (Flaming Wood, health < 25%) 80160240 (Greek Fire, health ≥ 25%) 100200300 (Greek Fire, health < 25%) |
Max Life | 14000/18200/23205 |
Defense | 34 |
KB Resist | 100% |
Immune to |
Coins | 1 GC2 GC50 SC |
---|
- Item (Quantity)Rate
- Higher item drop chances in later waves [2]
- Spooky Wood (15–30 (Desktop, Console and Mobile versions) / 30–50 (Old-gen console and 3DS versions)25–4030–50)100%
- 2–20%5–20%
- 2–20%5–20%
- Stake Launcher
- + Stake (30–60)
2–20%5–20% - 2–20%5–20%
- 2–20%5–20%
- Mourning Wood TrophyDuring Wave 15 and up[3]25–50% (Desktop, Console and Mobile versions)
100% (Old-gen console and 3DS versions)27.77–67.77% - Witch's Broom(Desktop, Console and Mobile versions)
- Hexxed Branch(Desktop, Console and Mobile versions)
- Mourning Wood Relic(Desktop, Console and Mobile versions)
- Flaming Wood
- Greek Fire 1
- Greek Fire 2
- Greek Fire 3
Hurt | |
---|---|
Killed | |
Flaming Wood | |
Greek Fire |
- Internal NPC ID: 325
- Internal Projectile ID: 325, 326, 327, 328
The event consists of 20(Desktop, Console and Mobile versions) / 15(Old-gen console and 3DS versions) waves, with the final wave lasting until the end of the night. As the event goes on, stronger enemies and unique bosses will appear.
During the first few waves, a large number of Scarecrows, Hellhounds and Splinterlings will appear. These enemies only have average stats, so a weapon with good crowd control abilities will clear the first waves fairly fast.
The first miniboss, the Mourning Wood will start appearing on wave 4. This enemy will walk towards the player, and then shoot Flaming Wood when it stops moving. It can also leave Greek Fire on the ground. While it can prove to be rather easy to kill, on later waves many of them will spawn, so one can easily get overwhelmed by their projectiles.
From wave 5 the Poltergeists and Headless Horsemen will start appearing. These are weaker than the Boss enemies, but much stronger than the average ones. Even if they are not a threat by themselves, they can be very dangerous combined with the minibosses.
On wave 7, the main Boss of the Event will appear, the Pumpking. It behaves similarly to Skeletron; attempting to stay above the player and attacking with the blades on its arms. The most dangerous attack it has are its Flame Scythes: a large, highly damaging projectile that speeds up over time, similar to Demon Scythes. It's rather slow for a boss enemy, so it can be easily outran and dodged by moving in wide circles.
The further the player has progressed, the more boss enemies will be able to spawn at once, and their chance to drop an item will also increase. On the final wave, up to seven of each boss can appear, and they will always drop an item and their respective trophy.
Preparation
General Tips
This content is transcluded from Guide:Practical tips § Combat.
- For nocturnal bosses, starting the battle just after the sun sets (7:30 PM) will provide the maximum amount of time to defeat the boss. In Hardmode, the Moon Charm and/or Moon Stone and their upgrades are also useful at night.
- Boss battles can be won or lost before the battle ever starts. Choose your equipment and have it ready; find and/or make potions and placed buffs; use the highest-tier food you have available; set up an arena appropriate to the boss; learn the strategies for the boss you're facing.
- Prepare your Boss-fighting arena with adequate lighting, Campfires and Heart Lanterns for health regeneration, and Stars in Bottles for mana regeneration if you use magic. Bast Statues(Desktop, Console and Mobile versions) will provide a significant defensive boost. Garden Gnomes(Desktop, Console and Mobile versions) and (Desktop, Console and Mobile versions) (if underground) proper torch placement will reduce damage taken and increase damage dealt due to the luck. The Torch God's Favor(Desktop, Console and Mobile versions) helps with this. Honey pools can also be used for extra health regeneration.
- (Desktop, Console and Mobile versions) Sunflowers provide the Happy!(Desktop, Console and Mobile versions) buff to nearby players, which grants a +10% movement speed bonus and 17% reduction in enemy spawn rate.
- Always carry around a stack of the highest-tier healing potion available, as relying only on natural Health Regeneration is not a good idea. Depending on the game stage, this can include items such as Lesser Healing Potions or Honeyfins. On the Desktop, Console, and Mobile versions, Restoration Potions are healing potions with a shorter cooldown.
- Likewise carry mana potions, if you use Magic.
- The Strange Brew(Desktop, Console and Mobile versions) is also an option, which yields very similar healing abilities to Healing Potion with added chances to trigger periods of invulnerability upon consumption.
- On the Old-gen console version and Nintendo version, Restoration Potions can save a slot, but will likewise trigger both cooldowns.
- It is suggested to build houses for the Dryad and the Nurse NPCs in your arena. The former casts the Dryad's Blessing(Desktop, Console and Mobile versions) buff, which increases your defense and provides you with a thorns-like effect, while the latter can heal and remove debuffs instantly, at the cost of some coins.
- Bosses are displayed on the Minimap: Follow the boss's icon to track it when you're struggling to find it. You can identify the boss icons by checking their respective wiki pages.
- Once you have freed the Mechanic in the Dungeon, you can use Wire to enhance your arena with Traps and helpful Heart and Star Statues. The former helps to damage the enemies, though be careful to set them up correctly in order not to hurt yourself during the battle. The latter will spawn heart and star pickups, respectively. Connect these devices to timers to activate them infinitely.
- In Hardmode, the Brand of the Inferno(Desktop, Console and Mobile versions) and Sergeant United Shield(Desktop, Console and Mobile versions) can be used to parry incoming contact damage.
- It may be useful to summon and kill the Eye of Cthulhu or King Slime before summoning any harder boss in order to spawn an extra one-use pool of Hearts. Note that this will prevent any Heart Statues from spawning new Hearts.
- Remember to use the Sharpening Station(Desktop, Console and Mobile versions), Ammo Box(Desktop, Console, Old-gen console and Mobile versions), Crystal Ball, Bewitching Table(Desktop, Console and Mobile versions), War Table(Desktop, Console and Mobile versions), and Slice of Cake(Desktop, Console and Mobile versions) before you go to explore or battle bosses/invasions. These will give boosts that are useful to have, with the first five being class-specific. They give Sharpened(Desktop, Console and Mobile versions), Ammo Box(Desktop, Console, Old-gen console and Mobile versions), Clairvoyance, Bewitched(Desktop, Console and Mobile versions), Strategist(Desktop, Console and Mobile versions), and Sugar Rush(Desktop, Console and Mobile versions), respectively.
Terrain Preparation
This content is transcluded from Guide:Arena.
The Pumpkin and Frost Moons are much easier to handle with the proper arena.
A flat surface about 168 blocks wide (See NPC spawning) will focus all spawns on the arena. Above it there should be a long platform of the same width, high above the ground in order to keep grounded enemies out of reach.
Since the player will mostly focus on the Bosses on the later waves, Lava pit and Traps may be helpful to take out the weaker enemies more easily. However, on higher difficulties the Traps' low damage is practically useless against the higher-health enemies, making them almost a liability due to the invincibility frames they provide and the risk of being hit by them and taking massive damage in the process.
It's also a good idea to make a room with a Bed near the Arena, so in case of death you can quickly get back to it.
Gearing up
The event can be summoned at any time post-Plantera, but it can be done after Golem.
Armor
- For melee, DPS is maximized with the Chlorophyte Mask, Monk's Shirt(Desktop, Console and Mobile versions), and Squire's Greaves(Desktop, Console and Mobile versions)/Valhalla Knight's Greaves(Desktop, Console and Mobile versions).
- Beetle armor with Scale Mail can also be used, but is ideal only when using the Terra Blade.
- Rangers should use Shroomite armor with the headpiece that suits their weapon.
- Shroomite armor's set bonus becomes useless in later waves, so the Shroomite Leggings can be replaced with Tiki Pants for an extra minion or Red Riding Leggings(Desktop, Console and Mobile versions) for a 3% advantage in critical strike chance and 25% summon damage.
- For a mage, the highest DPS is attained by using Spectre armor with Hallowed Headgear in the head slot, using the Spectre Hood only when at low health.
- Dark Artist's Leggings(Desktop, Console and Mobile versions) can be used along with Hallowed Headgear in place of Spectre Pants, but does not facilitate armor switching.
- Summoners should use Tiki armor. They can also switch to the Squire's Great Helm(Desktop, Console and Mobile versions) after summoning, losing two minions to gain constant regeneration greater than that provided by Palladium armor.
Weapons
- For Melee users
- The Flairon is a very strong weapon for both crowd control and single targets. Scourge of the Corruptor works similarly.
- Influx Waver(Desktop, Console and Mobile versions) and Terra Blade are very strong swords. The former should only be used against the bosses, as the latter has better crowd control.
- The Paladin's Hammer is very good for crowds and decent against bosses.
- Possessed Hatchet is fast and deals decent damage, but it becomes ineffective in the later waves, as there will be too many boss enemies for it to handle.
- The Psycho Knife(Desktop, Console and Mobile versions) deals extreme damage to Mourning Woods and other grounded enemies. The Fetid Baghnakhs(Desktop, Console and Mobile versions) are a slightly weaker option.
- If the Empress of Light has been defeated, the Starlight(Desktop, Console and Mobile versions) would be a better choice.
- Vampire Knives can be used to quickly heal in critical situations, but have lower DPS than most other options.
- (Old-gen console and 3DS versions) Once you've killed your first few Pumpkings, the event can be made a cakewalk by using The Horseman's Blade with any type of Statue that summons a hostile mob on a timer in a enclosed safe space above the ground. Using this method will cause the blades effect to activate upon hitting the entity spawned by the statue safe distance allowing the Flaming Jacks summoned by the sword to do all the damage, while allowing the player to remain in safety. This will become troublesome after wave 4 as Mourning Woods will attempt to shoot the player between intervals with their Flaming Wood projectile being able to pass through solid ground. In this time it is recommended to leave the statue chamber, wait for the barrage to end and then retreat back to the statue chamber. This can also be applied to the Frost Moon before wave 11 when the Ice Queen spawns.
- For Ranged users
- Tsunami is one of the best weapons to use. With Holy Arrows, they can deal massive damage to all enemies. Prior to 1.4, the Daedalus Stormbow(Desktop, Console and Mobile versions) is a weaker alternative (it is too weak past 1.4)
- The Electrosphere Launcher(Desktop, Console and Mobile versions), Stynger or Pulse Bow(Desktop, Console, Old-gen console and Mobile versions) are very effective for crowd control.
- The Xenopopper(Desktop, Console and Mobile versions) paired with Crystal Bullets is very strong against the bosses.
- For Magic users
- The Razorblade Typhoon excels against both enemies and bosses.
- The Bubble Gun, Laser Machinegun(Desktop, Console and Mobile versions) or Inferno Fork are good against the bosses.
- The Magnet Sphere, Rainbow Gun, and Nimbus Rod are all very good secondary weapons.
- (Old-gen console and 3DS versions) The Heat Ray is decent for crowd control.
- For Summoners
- Xeno Staff(Desktop, Console and Mobile versions), Tempest Staff or Deadly Sphere Staff(Desktop, Console and Mobile versions) are the best minions available.
- Ballista Staff(Desktop, Console and Mobile versions) and Lightning Aura Staff(Desktop, Console and Mobile versions), or their respective Canes, are the best sentries available.
- The Morning Star(Desktop, Console and Mobile versions) is the best whip available.
- If the Empress of Light has been defeated, the Kaleidoscope(Desktop, Console and Mobile versions) is a better choice.
Accessories
- Wings are important for every boss fight. The best ones available are the Fishron Wings. The Hoverboard's hover ability may also come in handy.
- The Frog Leg makes all wings ascend significantly faster, making dodging attacks easier.
- The Master Ninja Gear greatly helps in dodging the attacks and is recommended for all classes.
- Damage increasing accessories such as any Emblem, the Celestial Shell(Desktop, Console and Mobile versions), Celestial Stone, the Sniper Scope or the Magic Quiver are extremely important for the Moon events.
- The Celestial Cuffs(Desktop, Console, Old-gen console and Mobile versions) will restore mana when hit.
Accessories should be modified to Lucky or Menacing for the event.
Mounts
The use of mounts can save accessory slots that would've been used for mobility.
- The Brain Scrambler(Desktop, Console and Mobile versions) is very helpful, as the Scutlix has very high movement speed, a very high jump and extra laser attacks.
- The Shrimpy Truffle(Desktop, Console and Mobile versions) or Cosmic Car Key(Desktop, Console and Mobile versions) provide permanent but slower flight.
Potions
- Regeneration Potion, Endurance Potion, Lifeforce Potion, and Ironskin Potion will greatly increase survivability.
- Any food item that provides the Well Fed buff is good.
- Heartreach Potion is incredibly useful when picking up the hearts dropped by Mourning Woods or Pumpkings.
- Mana Regeneration Potion is a must for mages.
- Swiftness Potion will increase mobility.
- Rage Potion and Wrath Potion will improve DPS.
- Magic Power Potion, Archery Potion, Ale or Sake(Desktop, Console, Old-gen console and Mobile versions) and Summoning Potion will further improve it for Mages, Rangers, Melee, and Summoner users respectively.
Specific strategies
- The only enemies not immune to Ichor are Scarecrow and Splinterling.
- A very good way to go through waves, until any Pumpkings arrive at wave 7, and even kill some if aiming correctly, is to use a Cannon at a platform 37 blocks high from the ground (where the enemies are) as each Cannonball deals 300 damage, which is devastating for the early waves even for Mourning Woods. In addition, most attacks cannot hit the player.
- Using Dynamite with an explosion-proof arena causes splash damage that can demolish early waves.
- With the Cosmic Car Key, an effective technique against Pumpking is to move in a diamond formation around him while targeting him. This is especially effective if you place sentries such as the Frost Hydra or Queen Spider to deal with enemies below.
- Both Pumpkings and Mourning Wood drop some hearts upon being defeated. In later waves (especially the final one), when you're swarmed by several of these monsters at once, a player with a Cross Necklace, Heartreach Potion, high Defense and a damaging weapon can potentially heal from killing them faster than they can damage you. <
- ↑ Information taken from the Desktop 1.4.0.5 source code,
AI()
inTerraria.NPC.cs
. The relevant part is theaiStyle == 57
block. There may be inaccuracies, as the current Desktop version is 1.4.4.9. - ↑ 2.0 2.1 Pumpkin Moon enemies have a greater chance of dropping loot in later waves than in earlier waves (except for guaranteed drops such as Spooky Wood, and, on the Old-gen console version and Nintendo version, except for trophies – which never drop except in Wave 15 when they will always drop). Information taken from the Desktop 1.4.0.5 source code,
RegisterBoss_PumpkinMoon()
inTerraria.GameContent.ItemDropRules.ItemDropDatabase.cs
. There may be inaccuracies, as the current Desktop version is 1.4.4.9. - ↑ Information taken from the Desktop 1.4.4.9 source code,
PumpkinMoonDropGateForTrophies()
inTerraria.GameContent.ItemDropRules.Conditions.cs
.