Modifiers

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For player-created game enhancements, see Mods.
For a full overview of all weapons and the possible modifiers they can receive, see List of possible modifiers.

A modifier, also known as a prefix (although in some languages it becomes a suffix), applies permanent changes to an item's statistics. It changes the name of an item by adding a prefix to the item's name (displayed when selected in the hotbar and in its tooltip), such as "Adept", "Godly", or "Broken" (e.g. "Demonic Minishark"). A complete list of all 83 modifiers can be found below. Hovering the cursor over an item with a modifier in an inventory slot will show the modification details beneath the item's description.

  • Accessory modifiers will grant a bonus to one of the player's stats, such as defense, movement speed, or maximum mana. The modifier is applied as long as the accessory is equipped. Certain accessory-like items that cannot be placed in an accessory slot (e.g., a Cell Phone), cannot receive modifiers.
  • Weapon modifiers alter the statistics of that particular weapon, and can affect up to five statistics. The effects of a given modifier can be all positive, all negative, or mixed. Tools that damage enemies, such as pickaxes and hammers, may also have these modifiers. Weapon-like items that do not inflict damage (e.g., a Bug Net) and consumable weapons (e.g., Shurikens) cannot gain modifiers. On Old-gen console version Old-gen console and 3DSNintendo 3DS version, Bananarangs and Light Discs are stackable and thus cannot gain modifiers either.

Most but not all weapons and accessories will receive a modifier upon the item's creation. Modifiers can be added or changed afterwards by the Goblin Tinkerer's Reforge function.

Initial modifiers

All weapons and accessories that can obtain a modifier have up to a 75%[1] chance of receiving a random modifier upon the item's creation: Naturally generated in a Chest, crafted, looted from a grab bag (excluding Presents), or dropped by a slain enemy. Items produced by fishing (e.g., Rockfish or Balloon Pufferfish), opening Presents (e.g., Candy Cane Sword), and completing Angler quests (e.g., Angler Earring) never get initial modifiers, though they can be reforged to gain a modifier.

(Desktop, Console and Mobile versions) Items purchased from NPCs never have any modifiers, due to the ability to refund items (selling them back for full price before closing the menu) introduced in 1.4.0.1.

(Old-gen console and 3DS versions) No modifiers are visible on an NPC's shop stock, but one can be supplied when the item is bought (its purchase price will be unaffected). However, an item that a player sells to an NPC will keep its modifier, and if repurchased in the same trading session, the modifier will be unchanged.

For a weapon's initial modifier, there is a "mercy" mechanic that reduces the chance of penalties:[1] If a weapon's initial modifier is one of a list of "bad" modifiers, it has a 2/3 (66.67%) chance of being voided, and the item will be created without a modifier. This can sharply reduce the chance of having a modifier at all, but does so by eliminating only bad modifiers. The modifiers considered "bad" for this purpose are: Tiny, Terrible, Small, Dull, Unhappy, Awful, Lethargic, Awkward, Inept, Ignorant, Deranged, Broken, Damaged, Weak, Shoddy, Slow, Sluggish, and Lazy. Note that some usually-unwanted modifiers are not included in this "mercy" list: Shameful, Intense, Annoying, and Frenzying.[2]

Accessories do not have any "bad" modifiers regardless, only lesser bonuses.

Reforging

Reforging is a service provided by the Goblin Tinkerer, which applies a new, random modifier to an item in exchange for coins. It will add a modifier to an unmodified item or replace an existing modifier. It will never leave an item without a modifier. All eligible modifiers have equal chances, without the "mercy" filtering of initial modifiers.

The Goblin Tinkerer charges one-third of the item's current buy value, which is 5/3 (166.67%) of its sell price or 1/3 (33.33%) of its base value. The Discount Card or its upgrade, the Greedy Ring(Desktop, Console and Mobile versions), can be used to lower reforge costs by 20%. Existing modifiers affect an item's value, so items with poor modifiers are cheaper to reforge, while reforging an already well-modified item will be more expensive. (Desktop, Console and Mobile versions) The price is also adjusted according to the Goblin Tinkerer's current happiness.

Reforging can be accessed by talking to the Goblin Tinkerer and choosing "Reforge" from the options, then placing the item to be reforged in the box that appears below the inventory. Below the listed cost is a small gray hammer Reforge.png that, when clicked, reforges the item for the listed price.

In the Old-gen console version Old-gen console version and Mobile version Mobile version, items are reforged by clicking the reforge button after speaking to the Goblin Tinkerer. It will pull up the inventory and highlight items that can be reforged (ones that cannot are hidden by a shadow). Hover the cursor over the item that is to be reforged and press the reforge button.

Notes

  • Modifiers can raise or lower the rarity of an item by up to two tiers. They can also raise its value by up to 210% (to more than three times the original value), or lower it by up to 69% (to about one-third of the original value).
  • The percentages displayed via in-game tooltips may vary depending on the item's base stats, since those percentages are determined after rounding. For example, the Murderous modifier (+7% damage) on a Handgun will display a 8% damage increase, while on a Magic Missile it will display a 6% increase.
    • Item stats are always rounded to the nearest integer. Due to floating point inaccuracies, if a modifier would seemingly leave a stat ending in .5, it will round down for 0.9x and 1.15x modifiers (e.g. +10% speed, +15% damage) and round up for 0.85x and 1.1x modifiers.
  • The modifiers of items used in crafting have no effect on the crafted item. Any modifier given to the newly crafted item will be completely random.
  • A weapon cannot get a modifier that affects a stat it does not have. For instance, only ranged weapons can have their velocity modified and only magic and summoning weapons can have their mana cost modified.
    • Furthermore, a weapon can only get a modifier if all of its changes have an effect on the weapon after rounding. For example, weapons that deal no knockback cannot receive modifiers that affect knockback, and magic weapons with very low mana costs cannot receive modifiers that affect mana cost.

Accessory modifiers

"Hard" redirects here. For other uses, see Hard (disambiguation).
"Lucky" redirects here. For the buff, see Lucky (buff). For the game mechanic, see Luck.

Accessory modifiers are only active while the accessory is equipped in a non-vanity slot. Nearly every accessory item can be reforged, with the exceptions of the Guide Voodoo Doll, Clothier Voodoo Doll, and all the Music Boxes. Unlike weapons, accessories can only receive beneficial modifiers. Modifiers cannot be legitimately obtained on armor. Accessories can have one of the following 19 modifiers attached to them:

Effect Modifier Stat change Tier Value
Defense Hard+1+1+10.25%
Guarding+2+1+21%
Armored+3+1+32.25%
Warding+4+2+44%
Critical strike chance Precise+2%+1+21%
Lucky+4%+2+44%
Damage Jagged+1%+1+10.25%
Spiked+2%+1+21%
Angry+3%+1+32.25%
Menacing+4%+2+44%
Movement speed Brisk+1%+1+10.25%
Fleeting+2%+1+21%
Hasty+3%+1+32.25%
Quick+4%+2+44%
Melee speed Wild+1%+1+10.25%
Rash+2%+1+21%
Intrepid+3%+1+32.25%
Violent+4%+2+44%
Mana Arcane+20+1+32.25%

The average value boost for all accessory modifiers is +27.75%. Accounting for the 25% of items that start with no modifier, the average is +20.81%.

Weapon modifiers

These modifiers only apply when the weapon is being used. Weapons and tools that have no knockback cannot get modifiers that change knockback; examples include many guns (such as the Minishark), (Old-gen console and 3DS versions) drills, and the Magical Harp.

(Old-gen console and 3DS versions) The stackable weapons Light Disc and Bananarang cannot have modifiers.

Universal

"Damaged" redirects here. For the game mechanic, see Damage.

Flails, spears, yoyos(Desktop, Console and Mobile versions), boomerangs, chainsaws, drills (including the Drax) and the Chlorophyte Jackhammer can only have universal modifiers, because they cannot have their speed modified.

Universal modifiers can also be found on all other weapon types. The best universal modifier is Godly or Demonic. The two modifiers only differ in knockback, a stat that is not considered very useful (or even beneficial) in many situations. The difference in knockback is also negligible enough that Godly and Demonic can be treated as the same modifier.

(Old-gen console and 3DS versions) Among drills, only some of them can obtain the Godly modifier, since not all drills have knockback. The best damage-increasing modifier for other drills is Demonic, although it is unlikely that a drill would be of much use in combat.

There are 14 universal modifiers.

Displayed values in-game may differ due to rounding.

Modifier Damage Critical strike chance Knockback Tier Value
Keen-+3%-+1+12.36%
Superior+10%+3%+10%+2+64.51%
Forceful--+15%+1+32.25%
Broken−30%-−20%−2−68.64%
Damaged−15%--−1−27.75%
Shoddy−10%-−15%−2−41.48%
Hurtful+10%--+1+21%
Strong--+15%+1+32.25%
Unpleasant+5%-+15%+2+45.81%
Weak--−20%−2−36%
Ruthless+18%-−10%+1+12.78%
Godly+15%+5%+15%+2+111.63%
Demonic+15%+5%-+2+60.02%
Zealous-+5%-+1+21%

The average value boost for a random Universal modifier is +17.12%. Accounting for the 25% of items that start with no modifier and the reduced chance for a negative modifier, the average is +19.05%.

Common

Swords (including Shortswords) and all weapons that deal ranged, magic, or summon damage can have these modifiers.

There are 10 common modifiers.

Modifier Damage Speed Critical strike chance Knockback Tier Value
Quick-+10%--+1+21%
Deadly+10%+10%--+2+46.41%
Agile-+10%+3%-+1+35.96%
Nimble-+5%--+1+10.25%
Murderous+7%+6%+3%-+2+44.54%
Slow-−15%--−1−27.75%
Sluggish-−20%--−2−36%
Lazy-−8%--−1−15.36%
Annoying−20%−15%--−2−53.76%
Nasty+5%+10%+2%−10%+1+16.87%

The average value boost for Universal and Common modifiers together is +14.75%. Accounting for the 25% of items that start with no modifier, the average is +11.06%.

Melee

"Large" and "Small" redirects here. For the world option, see world size.
"Light" redirects here. For things that produce light, see light sources.
"Legendary" redirects here. For the world difficulty of the same name, see For the worthy#Difficulty.

Almost all melee weapons that are swung overhead (swords, pickaxes, hammers, axes, and hamaxes) along with shortswords and whips(Desktop, Console and Mobile versions) can be reforged with these modifiers, in addition to common and universal modifiers. With the exception of shortswords (including Starlight), all melee weapons that are not swung upon use (such as spears, flails, and yoyos(Desktop, Console and Mobile versions)) cannot receive these modifiers. The Copper Axe and Wooden Hammer can receive any of these modifiers except for those that affect damage. The Terrarian cannot receive any melee modifiers, though it can gain a special "Legendary" modifier that provides different stats.

There are 16 melee modifiers.

Displayed values in-game may differ due to rounding.

Modifier Damage Speed Critical strike chance Size Knockback Tier Value
Large---+12%-+1+25.44%
Massive---+18%-+1+39.24%
Dangerous+5%-+2%+5%-+1+31.47%
Savage+10%--+10%+10%+2+77.16%
Sharp+15%----+1+32.25%
Pointy+10%----+1+21%
Tiny---−18%-−1−32.76%
Terrible−15%--−13%−15%−2−60.49%
Small---−10%-−1−19%
Dull−15%----−1−27.75%
Unhappy-−10%-−10%−10%−2−46.86%
Bulky+5%−15%-+10%+10%+1+16.62%
Shameful−10%--+10%−20%−2−37.27%
Heavy-−10%--+15%-+7.12%
Light-+15%--−10%-+7.12%
Legendary+15%+10%+5%+10%+15%+2+209.85%

Counting the Universal and Common modifiers, the average value boost for melee modifiers is +13.13%. Accounting for the 25% of items that start with no modifier and the reduced chance for a negative modifier, the average is +15.34%.

Ranged

Almost all ranged weapons can be reforged with one of the following modifiers, in addition to common and universal modifiers. Ranged weapons with zero knockback (such as the Minishark or low-tier bows) cannot receive a modifier that alters knockback, even if their ammunition deals knockback.

There are 12 ranged modifiers.

Displayed values in-game may differ due to rounding.

Modifier Damage Speed Critical strike chance Velocity Knockback Tier Value
Sighted+10%-+3%--+1+35.96%
Rapid-+15%-+10%-+2+60.02%
Hasty-+10%-+15%-+2+60.02%
Intimidating---+5%+15%+2+45.81%
Deadly+10%+5%+2%+5%+5%+2+75.38%
Staunch+10%---+15%+2+60.02%
Awful−15%--−10%−10%−2−52.6%
Lethargic-−15%-−10%-−2−41.48%
Awkward-−10%--−20%−2−48.16%
Powerful+15%−10%+1%--+1+11.45%
Frenzying−15%+15%----−4.45%
Unreal+15%+10%+5%+10%+15%+2+209.85%

Counting the Universal and Common modifiers, the average value boost for ranged modifiers is +21.27%. Accounting for the 25% of items that start with no modifier, the average is +15.95%.

Magic and summoning

"Celestial" redirects here. For other uses, see Celestial (disambiguation).

Almost all magic weapons and summon weapons (excluding whips(Desktop, Console and Mobile versions)) can be reforged with one of the following modifiers, in addition to common and universal modifiers. Magic or summon weapons with zero knockback (such as the Nimbus Rod and Blade Staff(Desktop, Console and Mobile versions)) cannot receive any modifier that affects knockback. Magic weapons that consume 3 mana or less will not receive any modifier that decreases mana usage.

There are 12 magic modifiers.

Displayed values in-game may differ due to rounding.

Modifier Damage Speed Critical strike chance Mana Cost Knockback Tier Value
Mystic+10%--−15%-+2+60.02%
Adept---−15%-+1+32.25%
Masterful+15%--−15%+5%+2+92.83%
Inept---+10%-−1−19%
Ignorant−10%--+20%-−2−48.16%
Deranged−10%---−10%−1−34.39%
Intense+10%--+15%-−1−12.58%
Taboo-+10%-+10%+10%+1+18.59%
Celestial+10%−10%-−10%+10%+1+43.5%
Furious+15%--+20%+15%+1+11.94%
Manic−10%+10%-−10%-+1+18.59%
Mythical+15%+10%+5%−10%+15%+2+209.85%

Counting the Universal and Common modifiers, the average value boost for magic modifiers is +20.20%. Accounting for the 25% of items that start with no modifier, the average is +15.15%.

Complete list

Only swung melee weapons and shortswords can have their size modified. Only ranged weapons can have their velocity modified. Only magic and summon weapons can have their mana cost modified. Certain weapons cannot have their speed, knockback, damage, or mana cost modified.

Displayed values in-game may differ due to rounding.

Modifier Damage Speed Critical strike chance Mana Cost Size Velocity Knockback Tier Value
Large----+12%--+1+25.44%
Massive----+18%--+1+39.24%
Dangerous+5%-+2%-+5%--+1+31.47%
Savage+10%---+10%-+10%+2+77.16%
Sharp+15%------+1+32.25%
Pointy+10%------+1+21%
Tiny----−18%--−1−32.76%
Terrible−15%---−13%-−15%−2−60.49%
Small----−10%--−1−19%
Dull−15%------−1−27.75%
Unhappy-−10%--−10%-−10%−2−46.86%
Bulky+5%−15%--+10%-+10%+1+16.62%
Shameful−10%---+10%-−20%−2−37.27%
Heavy-−10%----+15%-+7.12%
Light-+15%----−10%-+7.12%
Sighted+10%-+3%----+1+35.96%
Rapid-+15%---+10%-+2+60.02%
Hasty-+10%---+15%-+2+60.02%
Intimidating-----+5%+15%+2+45.81%
Deadly+10%+5%+2%--+5%+5%+2+75.38%
Staunch+10%-----+15%+2+60.02%
Awful−15%----−10%−10%−2−52.6%
Lethargic-−15%---−10%-−2−41.48%
Awkward-−10%----−20%−2−48.16%
Powerful+15%−10%+1%----+1+11.45%
Mystic+10%--−15%---+2+60.02%
Adept---−15%---+1+32.25%
Masterful+15%--−15%--+5%+2+92.83%
Inept---+10%---−1−19%
Ignorant−10%--+20%---−2−48.16%
Deranged−10%-----−10%−1−34.39%
Intense+10%--+15%---−1−12.58%
Taboo-+10%-+10%--+10%+1+18.59%
Celestial+10%−10%-−10%--+10%+1+43.5%
Furious+15%--+20%--+15%+1+11.94%
Keen--+3%----+1+12.36%
Superior+10%-+3%---+10%+2+64.51%
Forceful------+15%+1+32.25%
Broken−30%-----−20%−2−68.64%
Damaged−15%------−1−27.75%
Shoddy−10%-----−15%−2−41.48%
Quick-+10%-----+1+21%
Deadly+10%+10%-----+2+46.41%
Agile-+10%+3%----+1+35.96%
Nimble-+5%-----+1+10.25%
Murderous+7%+6%+3%----+2+44.54%
Slow-−15%-----−1−27.75%
Sluggish-−20%-----−2−36%
Lazy-−8%-----−1−15.36%
Annoying−20%−15%-----−2−53.76%
Nasty+5%+10%+2%---−10%+1+16.87%
Manic−10%+10%-−10%---+1+18.59%
Hurtful+10%------+1+21%
Strong------+15%+1+32.25%
Unpleasant+5%-----+15%+2+45.81%
Weak------−20%−2−36%
Ruthless+18%-----−10%+1+12.78%
Frenzying−15%+15%------−4.45%
Godly+15%-+5%---+15%+2+111.63%
Demonic+15%-+5%----+2+60.02%
Zealous--+5%----+1+21%
Legendary+15%+10%+5%-+10%-+15%+2+209.85%
Unreal+15%+10%+5%--+10%+15%+2+209.85%
Mythical+15%+10%+5%−10%--+15%+2+209.85%

Tips

See below for the best possible modifiers for each weapon or weapon type.

It is straightforward (but sometimes expensive) to force a given modifier, by reforging the item until it receives the desired modifier. Note that reforging has no "memory": Upon each reforge, there is an equal chance of getting any of the modifiers possible for that item, including the modifier it currently has. A casual guess at "how many tries will it take" is likely to be misleading, because statistics are tricky: In practice, it is better to consider that at any given moment, there is a 50% chance of getting any specific modifier in a given number of tries:

  • 10 tries for weapons with only the 14 universal modifiers
  • 13 tries for accessories with their 19 modifiers
  • 16 tries for weapons that can also have the common modifiers (24 modifiers total)
  • 25 tries for weapons with magic or ranged modifiers (36 total)
  • 28 tries for weapons with melee modifiers (40 total)

Being willing to accept more than one modifier will speed things up sharply. For example, if the player accepts either a Lucky or Menacing modifier for boosting their offense, it will take half as much time to reforge compared to reforging the accessory to Menacing specifically. Similarly, if there are three different modifiers for a melee weapon that will do, there is a 50% chance of getting one of them in only 10 tries. Weapon modifiers that are widely considered "good enough" include Godly, Demonic, Ruthless, Deadly, and Masterful.

This all applies regardless of how many tries have been made before. The above numbers make no account of modifiers forbidden for individual weapons, but that will just make the process faster.

It is technically possible to make a profit when reforging a weapon once from a bad modifier to a good one, but reforging will normally result in an average monetary loss.

When autopause is enabled, the name of the reforge will not show up above the player's head until the game is unpaused. However, one can get a sense of the modifier's value by looking at the reforge cost, potentially speeding up the process. It is a good idea to check the modifier only when the reforge cost is expensive enough to indicate a potentially good modifier.

For example, an Avenger Emblem will normally cost 14 GC40 SC to reforge if it is Menacing, Lucky, Quick, Violent, or Warding. If aiming for one of those modifiers, one can immediately skip any reforges of lesser value and only check when the displayed cost is 14 GC40 SC.

Similarly, if reforging a sword to Legendary, it is a good idea to make a mental note of how much the weapon costs to reforge when it is Godly/Superior/Demonic, and only stop reforging once the cost exceeds that amount.

Best modifiers

Weapons

Due to various limitations with certain weapon classes, determining the best possible modifiers may not be as simple as comparing statistics, and players can waste money trying to acquire modifiers that are impossible to achieve for their given weapon. The following is an easy rundown of the most desirable possible modifiers for each weapon or weapon type in most situations:

Category Modifier Damage Speed Critical strike chance Mana cost Size Velocity Knockback Tier Value
Melee weapons that are not swung overhead
((Desktop, Console and Mobile versions) excluding shortswords and the Terrarian)
Godly+15%-+5%---+15%+2+111.63%
Whips(Desktop, Console and Mobile versions) and all other melee weapons Legendary+15%+10%+5%-+10%-+15%+2+209.85%
Tools (such as pickaxes, axes, or hammers) Light-+15%----−10%-+7.12%
Ranged and magic weapons with no knockback Demonic+15%-+5%----+2+60.02%
All other ranged weapons Unreal+15%+10%+5%--+10%+15%+2+209.85%
All other magic weapons Mythical+15%+10%+5%−10%--+15%+2+209.85%
All other summon weapons Ruthless+18%-----−10%+1+12.78%

The best overall melee modifier is Legendary, which is only applicable to broadswords and shortswords. The best modifier for all other melee weapons (such as spears, flails, yoyos(Desktop, Console and Mobile versions), and unique melee weapons like the Scourge of the Corruptor) is Godly or Demonic. The Terrarian can obtain a special version of the Legendary modifier unique to it.

The best overall ranged modifier is Unreal. The best modifier for ranged weapons with no base knockback (such as the Minishark or low-tier bows) is Demonic or Deadly. Although the Harpoon is classified as a ranged weapon, it cannot receive the Unreal modifier; its best modifier is Godly. The Chain Gun fires so quickly that it cannot receive any modifier that increases its speed by 10% or less. As such, its best modifier is Rapid, with Godly and Demonic as more ammo-efficient alternatives.

The best overall magic modifier is Mythical. The best modifier for magic weapons that are unable to inflict knockback (such as the Nimbus Rod) is Demonic. If the player bears low maximum mana, Masterful may be preferred over Mythical, or Mystic over Demonic. Some magic weapons, such as the Clinger Staff, Magnet Sphere, and Rainbow Gun, create a long-lasting projectile that remains active after switching weapons. The critical strike chance of these weapons is calculated based on the magic weapon currently being held, meaning that base damage is the only stat that matters, and therefore their best modifier is Ruthless.

The best overall summon modifier is Ruthless. The reduced mana cost, increased speed, critical strike chance, and knockback provided by Mythical are less useful: Summon weapons use mana only for the initial summoning, minions cannot deal critical hits, and their knockback is negligible even with modifiers. The Ruthless modifier offers the most effective minion boost, by increasing the minion's damage per hit the most. The best modifier for whips is Legendary.

For the purposes of mining and resource collection, the best modifier for tools such as pickaxes, hammers, and axes is Light. Note that for many tools the Legendary modifier gives the same tool speed increase as Light due to tool speed being rounded down to the next whole number. The Legendary modifier is superior in these cases as it also provides increased damage, critical strike chance, size, and knockback over the Light modifier, though the impact is relatively low given that mining tools are rarely used for combat.

With Lucky Coin

If the Lucky Coin or any of its upgrades is equipped, it is desirable to hit enemies as often as possible, dealing as little damage as possible, in order to maximize the income. The following modifiers reduce the weapon damage the most, yielding more coins per enemy:

Damage type Modifier Damage Speed Mana cost Knockback Tier Value
Melee Damaged−15%---−1−27.75%
Ranged Frenzying−15%+15%---−4.45%
Magic Manic−10%+10%−10%-+1+18.59%
Summon Broken−30%--−20%−2−68.64%

Accessories

Effect Modifier Stat change Tier Value
Defense Warding+4+2+44%
Mana Arcane+20+1+32.25%
Critical strike chance Lucky+4%+2+44%
Damage Menacing+4%+2+44%
Movement speed Quick+4%+2+44%
Melee speed Violent+4%+2+44%

Menacing, Lucky, and Warding are generally agreed to be the most consistently useful accessory modifiers.

  • Quick can be slightly useful early on, but as the player transitions from grounded to aerial movement, the modifier becomes obsolete because movement speed only has a minimal effect on air speed.
  • Violent is a useful modifier for whips and certain melee weapons (such as the Terra Blade), but most projectile-based melee weapons do not actually attack at a faster rate with higher melee speed.
  • Arcane can help early magic users with low maximum mana, but later in the game, Arcane's effective Mana Sickness reduction does not offset the loss of DPS caused by not running a better modifier.

To briefly summarize the information listed below:

  • Menacing is better than Lucky if:
    • The player is a pure summoner or relies heavily on minions for DPS.
    • The player is using sentries against the Old One's Army.
    • The player is using a weapon with low base damage, and/or the enemy has high defense.
  • Lucky is better than Menacing if:
    • The player has very high damage bonuses but low critical chance bonuses (for example, offensive Beetle armor).
    • The player is using offensive Spectre armor, whose set bonus always deals 400 DPS on average but is able to crit.
  • Warding is better than either Menacing or Lucky if:
    • The player's defense is already very high.
    • The player is getting hit frequently for relatively low damage.

For increasing DPS, the choice between Menacing (damage) and Lucky (critical chance) has long been the subject of extensive debate among the player base. Mathematically, balancing damage and critical strike chance gives the highest DPS in theory:

  • Menacing and Lucky modifiers each simply add their bonuses if there are more than one of the same, but their effects multiply with each other.
    • On their own, five Menacing accessories will increase DPS by 1.20 × 1.04 = 24.8%.
    • On their own, five Lucky accessories will increase DPS by 1.00 × 1.24 = 24%.
    • Three Menacing and two Lucky accessories will increase DPS by 1.12 × 1.12 = 25.44%.
  • However, the above logic does not account for enemy defense:
    • Against enemies with nonzero defense, damage bonuses are more powerful because they reduce the proportion of damage lost to enemy defense. This means that optimal DPS is achieved by adding enough damage bonuses to offset enemy defense, then splitting the remaining bonuses between damage and crit chance.
    • Against enemies with incredibly high defense like the Dungeon Guardian, all damage is reduced to 1 with critical hits dealing 2 damage, so increasing crit chance is the only way to improve DPS.

Taking these factors into account, the best modifier between Menacing and Lucky is the modifier that corresponds to the stat that the player currently has less of, while also accounting for stats from accessories, armor, buffs, and damage reduction from the enemy's defense (as a percentage of the weapon's base damage after weapon modifiers).

As an example:

  • A melee user with the offensive variant of Beetle armor, Fire Gauntlet, and Warrior Emblem, using a Legendary Terra Blade, would have +71% damage and 17% crit chance. If they were fighting the Empress of Light, her 50 defense would reduce the effective bonuses by 25 ÷ (85 × 1.15) = 25.6%, resulting in +45.4% damage and 17% crit chance. Since the damage bonuses greatly exceed the crit bonuses, they should use Lucky modifiers instead of Menacing.
  • A magic user with the healing variant of Spectre armor, Celestial Emblem, and Magic Power Potion, using a Mythical Razorblade Typhoon, would have +10% damage and 17% crit chance. If they were fighting the Empress of Light, her 50 defense would reduce the effective bonuses by 25 ÷ (85 × 1.15) = 25.6%, resulting in -15.6% damage and +17% crit chance. Since the crit bonuses greatly exceed the damage bonuses, they should use Menacing modifiers instead of Lucky.

While there is no combination of Menacing and Lucky that provides optimal DPS in all situations, players will usually end up with significantly more damage bonuses than crit bonuses when running offensive sets, which may or may not offset the fact that most enemies have defense. Most melee, ranged, and magic loadouts will benefit roughly equally from both modifiers. However, all-Menacing is a superior choice for both pure and hybrid summoners, since summoning weapons cannot benefit from crit bonuses. For the same reason, players are also advised to use an all-Menacing build when fighting the Old One's Army, since most of the total DPS will be dealt by sentries.

The value of Menacing/Lucky vs. Warding is less straightforward to measure. The former directly causes fights to end sooner, while the latter causes players to die slower or potentially even reach a state where they regenerate more health than they lose. Because defense directly subtracts from incoming damage, each point of defense becomes more powerful in proportion to the defense a player already has. A player's natural regeneration can also be considered equivalent to a certain amount of extra health that scales with how long they can stay alive, which makes regeneration more valuable on defensive builds than offensive builds. Outside of situations where enemies deal ridiculous amounts of damage per hit (such as the get fixed boi(Desktop, Console and Mobile versions) seed), defensive builds will generally make boss battles easier than offensive builds, as it is much more realistic to halve the damage taken than to double the damage dealt.

As a rule of thumb, if incoming damage can be reduced to 50 / 75 / 100 damage per hit or lower, each additional point of defense is more valuable than a 1% DPS increase.

As an example, suppose a player has 100 points to invest in any combination of damage, critical chance, and defense, and they are fighting a hypothetical enemy with 0 defense and 60 / 120 / 180 damage. The effectiveness of an all-DPS build and an all-defense build would depend on the difficulty mode as follows:

  • The optimal DPS loadout with 50% damage, 50% critical chance, and 0 defense would kill the enemy 2.25 times faster than normal, regardless of world difficulty.
  • The optimal defensive loadout with 0% damage, 0% critical chance, and 100 defense would survive 6 / 2.67 / 2.25 times longer than normal.
  • Any other combination of stats would result in a lower survival-time-to-kill-time ratio than the defensive loadout (but potentially higher than the DPS loadout on lower difficulties).

In this situation, a purely defensive loadout would be optimal in all difficulties except Master, where it would tie with the DPS loadout. If there were more stats available to be assigned or if the enemy dealt less damage, the defensive loadout would become even more optimal. While assigning stats is obviously never this simple, a good rule to consider is that a player with a large amount of stats to invest can often benefit more by assigning those stats to defense (which has increasing returns) instead of damage or critical chance (which have diminishing returns).

Trivia

  • There are several modifiers with the same name:
    • Two modifiers are named "Quick", one is an accessory modifier providing +4% movement speed, the other is a common weapons modifier providing +10% speed.
    • Two modifiers are named "Deadly". One is a common weapons modifier providing +10% damage and speed. The other is a ranged weapons modifier providing +10% damage, +2% critical strike chance, and +5% speed, velocity and knockback.
    • Two modifiers are named "Hasty", one is an accessory modifier providing +4% movement speed, the other is a ranged weapons modifier providing +10% speed and +15% velocity.
  • There are two universal modifiers with the same effects but with different names, Forceful and Strong.

See also

History

  • Desktop 1.4.0.1: Tweaked the algorithm that determines the change in value of a modified item: Now only takes into consideration the increase or decrease of critical strike chance, instead of the entire, new, changed critical strike chance. Overall, this slightly increased the positive and decreased the negative effects on value.
  • Desktop 1.2.3.1:
    • Fixed bug where modifiers were not getting set properly on a world load.
    • Fixed bug where modifiers would be lost when the player buys an item from the shop with right click.
  • Desktop 1.2.1.2: Critical Strike increase on accessory reforges have been doubled.
  • Desktop 1.2:
    • Reforging items now costs half of the item's buy value. Previously, it cost five times the item's value.
    • Reforging is now available in all languages.
  • Desktop 1.1.1:
    • Items dropped on death for hardcore and mediumcore characters will retain their conditions.
    • Water Bolt and Harpoon can now be reforged.
    • Space Gun is no longer 1 CC to reforge.
    • Spears can no longer have any modifier that increases size.
  • Mobile 1.3.0.7: Removed a modifier called Piercing, which provided bonus damage and bonus critical strike chance. It could be applied to both melee and magic weapons.[3]

References

  1. 1.0 1.1 Information taken from the Desktop version Desktop 1.4.4.9 source code, method Prefix() in Terraria.Item.cs.
  2. Information taken from the Desktop version Desktop 1.4.4.9 source code, field Sets.ReducedNaturalChance in Terraria.ID.PrefixID.cs.
  3. Mobile 1.2.12785 https://forums.terraria.org/index.php?threads/mobile-exclusive-prefixes.48089/