Introduction
Terraria, a sprawling sandbox adventure game brimming with exploration, crafting, and intense combat, offers players a vast array of armor sets, each catering to different playstyles. Among these, the Necro Armor stands out as a particularly appealing choice for those eager to embrace the art of summoning. This set, readily obtainable relatively early in the game, provides a significant boost to minion capacity and damage, allowing players to command small armies of skeletal servants and other summoned creatures. If you are looking to get into the summoner class, then Necro Armor is a great place to start.
Ready to command an army of skeletons in Terraria? The Necro Armor is your starting point for a potent summoner build, offering surprisingly effective minion power early on. This guide will delve into the intricacies of the Necro Armor, exploring its stats, crafting requirements, combat applications, and its place within the larger progression of Terraria’s summoner class.
What is the Necro Armor?
The Necro Armor is an early-game armor set designed specifically for the summoner class. It consists of three pieces: the Necro Helmet, the Necro Breastplate, and the Necro Greaves. Each piece not only provides defensive stats but also contributes to the armor’s overall summoning capabilities.
Visually, the Necro Armor evokes a sense of macabre elegance. The pieces are primarily a dark gray color, with bone-like protrusions and accents. It’s a visually distinct set that clearly communicates its focus on necromantic power.
Let’s break down the stats for each piece:
- Necro Helmet: Provides a modest defense boost and increases your maximum minion capacity by one.
- Necro Breastplate: Further enhances your defense and again increases your maximum minion capacity by one.
- Necro Greaves: Adds to your defensive capabilities and slightly increases your movement speed, a crucial attribute for summoners who need to maintain distance from enemies.
The Necro Armor also features a set bonus, activated when all three pieces are equipped. This bonus significantly increases your minion damage, allowing your summoned creatures to deal more potent blows to your enemies. This damage bonus is crucial in the early game. The Necro armor allows your minions to scale quickly in damage and can become incredibly effective against early game bosses.
Overall, the Necro Armor provides a balanced combination of defense, minion capacity, and damage, making it a highly valuable asset for aspiring summoners. Its accessibility early in the game further solidifies its place as a foundational element for this playstyle. However, the necro armor does have some downsides. This is especially true later in the game. The low defense offered will start to become a liability as you traverse through harder difficulties and enemies. You will need to avoid damage as a summoner.
Crafting the Necro Armor
Crafting the Necro Armor is a straightforward process, requiring relatively common materials that can be found early in the game. This ease of access is one of the key factors that makes the Necro Armor so appealing.
You will need the following materials:
- Bone
- Cobweb
Material Locations
Let’s explore where to find each material:
Bones are primarily found in the Underground and Caverns layers. They are dropped by skeletons, which are very common enemies in these areas. The deeper you delve, the more skeletons you are likely to encounter. Using a Water Candle or Battle Potion can further increase the spawn rate of enemies, including skeletons, making bone farming more efficient.
Cobwebs are also abundant in the Underground and Caverns layers. They are the sticky decorations that are littered through the caves. They can be harvested simply by hitting them with any weapon. Cobwebs are generally very easy to acquire in large quantities.
Once you have gathered the necessary materials, you’ll need a Loom to craft the Necro Armor pieces. Looms are typically found in generated houses in villages, or you can craft one yourself using wood.
Crafting Recipes
Here are the crafting recipes for each piece of the Necro Armor:
- Necro Helmet: Bone and Cobweb
- Necro Breastplate: Bone and Cobweb
- Necro Greaves: Bone and Cobweb
Each piece of the armor requires a specific amount of bones and cobweb. This information can be found in the crafting interface once you stand near a Loom.
Crafting Guide
Here’s a simple step-by-step guide:
- Explore the Underground or Caverns layer to find Skeletons and Cobwebs.
- Defeat skeletons to collect bones.
- Harvest Cobwebs.
- Locate or craft a Loom.
- Stand near the Loom and open your crafting menu.
- Craft each piece of the Necro Armor using the appropriate materials.
Necro Armor in Combat
The Necro Armor significantly influences your combat strategy, shifting the focus towards strategic minion deployment and positioning. As a summoner, your primary role is to support your minions, ensuring they are in the best position to deal damage while you avoid direct confrontation.
Pairing the Necro Armor with the right minions is crucial. Early-game options like the Flinx Staff are good choices. The Flinx Staff summons small, furry creatures that deal surprisingly high damage. The Slime Staff is another option, summoning a bouncing slime to attack enemies. The Imp Staff, craftable with Hellstone Bars, is also a great choice, summoning an imp that shoots fireballs.
Combat Strategies
Here are a few combat strategies to consider:
- Positioning: Maintain a safe distance from enemies, allowing your minions to absorb the brunt of the attacks. Use your increased movement speed from the Necro Greaves to dodge incoming projectiles.
- Minion Management: Keep an eye on your minions’ health and position. Recalling and re-summoning them can be useful to reposition them or protect them from danger.
- Buffs: Utilize potions and other buffs to enhance your survivability and minion damage. Endurance Potions, Ironskin Potions, and Summoning Potions can be very helpful.
The Necro Armor’s strengths lie in its early-game accessibility and significant minion damage boost. It allows you to tackle early bosses like the Eye of Cthulhu and the Eater of Worlds with relative ease. However, its low defense is a major weakness. As you progress further into the game, you’ll need to rely heavily on dodging and movement to avoid taking damage.
Alternatives and Upgrades
While the Necro Armor is a great starting point, it’s important to consider other armor options and potential upgrades as you progress.
Other early-game armor sets include the Jungle Armor and the Meteor Armor. The Jungle Armor provides a boost to mana and magic damage, making it suitable for mages. The Meteor Armor reduces the mana cost of the Space Gun, making it an ideal choice for players who want to utilize this weapon.
The Necro Armor is a great choice for those wanting to be summoners. It provides the early minion damage and extra slots required to get started on this journey.
As you delve deeper into Terraria, you’ll find stronger summoner armor sets. The Bee Armor, crafted with Bee Wax, offers a significant increase to minion damage and is a natural upgrade from the Necro Armor. Later on, the Obsidian Armor, crafted with Obsidian and Silk, provides even greater minion damage and defense.
Tips and Tricks
Here are some tips and tricks to maximize the effectiveness of the Necro Armor:
- Bone Farming: Create a skeleton farm by building a long, flat platform in the Underground layer. Use Water Candles and Battle Potions to increase spawn rates.
- Cobweb Farming: Explore spider caves to gather cobwebs quickly. Bring a fast melee weapon to clear out the spiders.
- Accessories: Equip accessories that further boost minion damage, such as the Bewitching Table or the Papyrus Scarab.
- Movement: Practice your movement and dodging skills. The Necro Armor’s low defense means you’ll need to be agile to survive.
Conclusion
The Terraria Necro Armor is a fantastic entry point into the world of summoning. Its accessibility, minion damage boost, and increased minion capacity make it a valuable asset for early-game summoner builds. While its low defense presents a challenge, strategic gameplay and careful positioning can overcome this weakness.
If you’re looking to command an army of summoned creatures in Terraria, the Necro Armor is the perfect place to start. So, gather your bones and cobwebs, craft your armor, and unleash your minions upon the world! Experiment with different minion combinations, accessories, and buffs to discover the full potential of the summoner playstyle. Now go forth and start your journey as a summoner!
