Guide:The Destroyer strategies

The Destroyer is one of the bosses unlocked when the game enters Hardmode. It is extremely strong, dealing very high damage to the player even when the player has high-tier armor. It is generally recommended as the first boss to fight following the Wall of Flesh.

Terrain Preparation
The type of preparation you'll be making depends on your approach. If you are using melee, The Destroyer is best fought on an arena consisting of tall walls with multiple layers of Wood Platforms. This will allow players to move around the arena freely, and to keep a good watch on where the boss is. If you are using ranged, pick a wide, open, flat area, with plenty of clear space for flying and dodging. The Destroyer can clear a lot of vertical space. Like any other burrowing enemy, it can only control its movements in tiles/blocks.

It may be useful to summon and kill Eye of Cthulhu (he will die in a matter of seconds when engaged with hardmode guns) before summoning the destroyer in order to spawn an extra one-use pool of Hearts.

Armor
Mythril Armor or higher is highly recommended for this fight, as The Destroyer hits quite hard. Note that full Adamantite armor will reduce damage from body segments down to 17 or so, making this boss fairly easy to solo if you do plenty of mining first. Titanium armor is also incredibly effective against the destroyer, because of the invincibility after hitting an enemy. However, the player will need to take a lot more time gathering resources to make a full set of titanium armor.

With melee adamantite armor, while having all accessories reforged to "Warding", one of them being the Obsidian shield, and with Ironskin potion buff up - the body will only do 2 damage per hit. If you also have the Cross Necklace equiped, you will take less damage than you heal with Regeneration potion even while standing in the Destroyer's body. This also eliminates the "threat" of taking bigger hits from his head, as the chance that it hits you while not being invincible from taking the body hits is almost non-existant.

But it is not necessary to maximize defense for this fight. Using a piercing weapon (for example the Adamantite Glaive) will result in "unintentional" killing of many of Destroyer's harmless Probes, providing a plentiful source of healing hearts. That makes this fight very easy also in non-melee armor sets, with the lack of "Warding" equipment, or without the use of potions.

Weapons
Different weapons can have different usefulness against this boss. Any flail or spear that usually would be useless may be useful in this battle, as the Destroyer is a long worm enemy, not a smaller flying enemy.

Melee
The destroyer is the easiest of the 3 bosses for a melee character, going down easily with the Dao of Pow shot across his body with potions such as Ironskin Potion, Regeneration Potion and Thorns Potion. An easy way to beat him can be seen in the video above, using dart traps and an adamantite glaive. As of version 1.2, The Ice Sickle is a great choice as it does continuous damage. Combine this with a potion such as Flask of Ichor and the fight should only last a couple of minutes. This is demonstrated in the video below.

Ranged
If you've collected a Clockwork Assault Rifle from the Wall of Flesh then it would be a good idea to use this against The Destroyer; but if you do not have one, a shotgun will also be useful due to high damage and multiple shots. Piercing rounds such as Meteor Shot can hit multiple segments on each shot, dramatically increasing damage output. Crystal Bullets are also a very good choice, since each of the shards that break off also deal damage (Around 10-20 per shard) to the boss, and the shards pierce. If the assault rifle is not available, then an Adamantite Repeater loaded with Unholy Arrows or Hellfire Arrows should do fine. Ranged characters should equip some form of wings as they should probably spend most of the fight high in the air.

Hellfire Arrows will hit 4-5 parts in most cases. Holy Arrows do slightly less damage per hit, but summon 3 fast, penetrating stars, easily making up for the lack of brute power. Holy Arrows also have the added benefits of helping to control Probes/mobs that spawn during the fight and possible re-use. The true downside to Holy Arrows is acquiring them: Pixie Dust is easy enough to farm from Pixies, but you also need Unicorn Horns from Unicorns, which are a rarer spawn. On the bright side, 1 Horn = 35 arrows. (Hellfire Arrows are easy to acquire since they can be purchased for one silver per arrow from the Demolitionist in hard mode.)

A Clockwork Assault Rifle could be viable with Crystal Bullets, though that method may take a while due to The Destroyer's fairly high defense ratings. It might pay to keep that weapon to deal with the Probes and mobs, however. (Note: I've personally attempted this with a Megashark and Crystal Bullets, as I was trying to farm Soul of Might. While viable, damage over time suffers from the Megasharks lower damage. It'll work. It just takes longer. The Clockwork Assault Rifle is comparable to the Megashark. I wound up switching back to my Repeater and Arrows.)

A Ranger Emblem helps a bit with the extra damage. Also, if possible, a Star Cloak is advisable. You will get hit often, so taking advantage of that fact by returning the favor in the form of stars helps. The Destroyer is very long, so you're bound to hit it.

Accessories should be reforged to either increase defense (if you're not good at evasion) or damage (if you're a decent dodger.) An Obsidian Shield is advised for the increased defense and no-knockback effect. Speed accessories are good for players who find the probes are attacking them too much.

If you have already defeated Skeletron Prime and have made the Flamethrower, it is a ridiculously powerful weapon against the destroyer due to its spreading flames.

Magic
Magic users are going to have extremely low defense, and are going to have the hardest time with this fight. If you have a Demon Scythe then it is highly advised to spam it like crazy, with the help of several Mana Regeneration Potions. A Laser Rifle is also a good choice because of its high rate of fire, but won't deal nearly as much damage as the Demon Scythe.

A Magical Harp is extremely effective due to its penetrating effect, slow travel speed, and high damage. With Hallowed Armor, good reforges, and appropiate potions, it is possible to defeat The Destroyer in under 20 seconds with the Magical Harp. This, however, is possibly problematic; a magical harp requires Souls of Sight, coming from the twins, a potentially harder boss.

Crystal Storm is also useful for its fast, damaging projectiles, which will ricochet across the Destroyer's body when well aimed.

Potions and Buffs

 * Hunter Potion - Depending on your setup, this can be very helpful to track The Destroyer movements underground and dodge it. Also makes sighting mob spawn easier since this is a night fight.
 * Ironskin Potion - A combination of melee adamantite armor, ironskin potions, and an obsidian shield will reduce probe damage to around 20 and body damage to a paltry 10.
 * Bowl of Soup - Further stat boosts.
 * Swiftness Potion - Easier dodging.
 * Thorns Potion - Most of the damage you will be taking will be from contact with the boss.
 * Regeneration Potion - Survival boost.
 * Flask of Ichor - This will cause your melee attacks to reduce The Destroyer's armor by 20, causing you to deal an extra 10 damage.

Shine Potions and Night Owl Potions are helpful, but not really essential. They just make sighting other mobs and the terrain easier. Featherfall Potions and Gravitation Potions are also useful if you want more control while in the air or have limited access to the three flight accessories.

The Fight
The Destroyer is almost exactly the same as the fight with the Eater of Worlds, in that it digs around and launches up at you every chance it gets. Just sidestep the body and keep wailing away at it. Occasionally it will launch a few volleys of Death Lasers at everyone fighting him. These hit for about 15-20's on players with 40-50 defense. The Destroyer also spawns Probes throughout the fight. It spawns them very often at first, and then the spawn rate slows down a good bit as you kill them off. Probes drop a 20HP Heart when killed at a 100% drop rate, so for the most part health isn't an issue with this fight, combined with the regeneration potion, and any health potions you have.

The Probes are both a blessing and a curse. A curse as they get in your way and can attack you for decent damage with their lasers (a bit more if you collide with them). They are a blessing in disguise, however, as they can be a source of health by killing them when you have less than full health: They can drop Hearts for later healing. The same can be said of the regular mobs that spawn during the fight. Careful management of Health Potion usage and Heart collecting will keep you nice and stocked on health (along with use of the Regeneration Potion.) Just drop to the ground when it's relatively clear and gather some. The Hunter Potion will let you see The Destroyer in the ground, so you'll know if you have to evade instead or can keep going for the hearts.

If you're fighting on a wide, flat plain, it might pay to occasionally just run across it until The Destroyer appears. Doing so might cause it to spread a large portion of its body along the ground, making it an easy target from above. If you have the horizontal space (and speed), make use of it by flying a decent distance back and forth instead of only staying in a particular (horizontal) area to help spread its body out. The more of the body you can keep exposed (and accessible to attacks), the more opportunities you have to deal damage.

On the other hand, if you want to hit the ground (say for gather Hearts), you can fly straight up and hover a while until The Destroyer jumps straight up at you. You can then drop to the ground quick to gather what you need/want while the The Destroyer recovers from its attack attempt. It takes a while for it to loop back around from a high jump. Remember, outside of solid blocks/tiles, burrowing enemies have little control of their movement. This give you the time to take a breather or collect some pick-ups on the ground.

Like most other bosses, if everyone is killed The Destroyer leaves. The Destroyer will also leave if you cannot kill it before sunrise. After a few minutes of bashing away at its health, the machine will fall, but be warned that the loot spawns at the head when killed. Since Souls are not affected by gravity, this can make them very difficult to find after the fight has ended.

Melee
The destroyer is the easiest of the 3 bosses for a melee character, going down easily with the Dao of Pow shot across his body with potions such as ironskin, regen and thorns. An easy way to beat him can be seen in the video to the right, using dart traps and an adamatite glaive. (If you wear a full set of Adamantite armor with your favorite accessories, along with a Philosopher's Stone, Cross Necklace, and Cobalt Shield, simply craft the Dao of Pow, summon the Destroyer, then throw your flail up in the air; wherever it lands, go and stand on it. The Destroyer will dig towards you, and will fly through you and the Dao of Pow, giving massive amounts of damage while, with the high defense armor, you will only need to use a potion once or twice during the fight. It is also recommended to reforge the flail to Godly status, allowing you to defeat the Destroyer 3 times in one night.)

Ranged
Fly. The trick is to stay above The Destroyer and not get trapped under it. If you do, take the hit from the body and get out from under it. It's VERY long and can easily turn back in on itself and not give you breathing room. Also, if you're using Hellfire Arrows, you run the risk of killing yourself from the AoE damage. Keep at range and above it as much as you can while letting loose fire on it. Even if you can't see it, keep firing if you at least know the general direction it's in. It's long, so "spray and pray" is actually a viable and effective tactic. Remember that you are very likely to hit him. (If you hear the metallic "clinking" hit sound effect, just keep shooting in that direct until you see it again or the sound changes.)

A secondary weapon for use against the Probes and mobs can be handy, especially if using Hellfire Arrows as your main weapon. The Probes follow you, so you can easily damage yourself with Hellfires if they rush in to close right before you fire on them (or get in the way when firing on The Destroyer.) It's even more important if you end up on the ground. Inadvertently firing at your feet with Hellfires can easily ruin the fight for you.

Magic
For magic users, the point of the fight is to line projectiles up to hit the maximum number of segments. Don't ever stop firing, and bring plenty of Mana Potions. The Mana Flower is also a useful addition.

Hasnain's Melee stragety
You will need: -At least 10 greater healing potions -night's edge or any kind of melee weapon that deals 40 damage or more -Heart statue (If you run out of Greater healing Potions) -Mythril Armor or Higher -Ironskin Potions -Bowl of soup -regeneration potion

Method:

Step 1: Craft a mechanical worm.

step 2: summon the destroyer.

step 3: Try to make sure that you don't touch the boss as you will take A LOT of damage. So It's easier to just stand right next to the boss and click like crazy.

step 4: When you see probes be sure to kill them because they will drop hearts which is useful for your health.

This boss fight only lasts about 8-10 minutes, so you shouldn't worry that this boss is TOO strong.

I hope this strategy worked out for you guys.

Krazl's Spam Melee Method
Requirements: Dao of Pow, Adamantite armor, Band of Regeneration, Cross Necklace, Regeneration Potion(s), Ironskin Potion(s), Meteorite ore xOnehundred-ish

Optional: Star Cloak, Spectre Boots, Angel Wings/Demon Wings, Healing Potion(s), Bowl of Soup

Step 1: Prepare for battle!

Create a single line bridge of meteorite preferably Onehundred-ish or more blocks long. If preferred wall off the edges and place doors at the bottom. This arena will be used for all of the hardmode bosses.

Step 2: Fighting Smart

Instead of flying around with antigravity potions and using ranged weapons, make sure you do not have an obsidian skull/shield/horseshoe equipped. As such you will constantly be taking 1 damage from standing on the meteorite floor and will be invincible for most of the fight (as of 1.1.1 monster damage takes precedence, however this will still work because the monster damage will not override the invincibility if you were hit before the Destroyer damaged you.). Focus on doing damage with the Dao of Pow and simply avoid the mouth as much as possible, killing probes if/when you need hearts. Avoid jumping as this usually causes you more harm than simply standing on the meteorite for 1 damage. I recommend crafting the Light Disc x5 with the rewards from this boss. If you hate farming shadow/light souls simply make an artificial meteor biome in the underground hallow and corruption and hang grappled above it while holding a water candle.

There is a straightforward video tutorial of someone using a similar method here:

MushrooMars' Death-by-Music method
Requirements: AT LEAST Mythril Armor, with hood, a Magical Harp, a Mana Flower, 99 Greater Mana Potions, under 5 Greater Healing Potions, other accessories of your choice (reccommended: Sorcerer Emblem, Cross Necklace, all with Arcane prefix)

Step 1: Don't bother preparing; you won't need to. While it does increase your chances of winning to create an arena that lessens the effect of the Death Laser barrages, I went out one night and decided "I'm going to fight The Destroyer", crafted the Mechanical Worm, and beat The Destroyer.

Step 2: Simpler is better. So fight that way. The battle pretty much consists of holding down left click and prioritizing Probes over the worm itself. Because Probes drop hearts 100% of the time, you can actually tank most of the damage you receive as long as you chase those hearts. Don't forget about your Healing Potions if you get too low on health. Remember that the closer to yourself you click, the slower the projectiles of the harp move. Use this to your advantage. As long as you have everything you need, you can fight The Destroyer twice in one night using only the Magical Harp.

Chainsaw Method
Requirements: Minimally Mythril Armor (with a helmet), although Adamantite Armor (again, with a helmet) is vastly preferred. You'll also want around 10 Greater Healing Potions. As far as accessories go, have a Cross Necklace, a Cobalt Shield or Obsidian Shield, a Philosopher's Stone if you can, and a Warrior Emblem. Some of these accessories (i.e. NOT the Shield) can be omitted, but every one you omit makes the fight harder (especially the Warrior Emblem). You might want wings for mobility and a sword to kill the Probes with; this sword can be a Phasesaber, a Breaker Blade, an Adamantite Sword, or even Excalibur if you've killed The Destroyer before. It doesn't really matter, just have a sword (Even a Fiery Greatsword will do!). Finally, you need this method's namesake: a Chainsaw, preferably of the Adamantite variety. If you've made one, a Drax can be used, although it isn't that much better, and has the problem of ripping apart any arena you've built to fight him in.

Step 1: Get all that stuff, or as much of it as you think you need. I personally pulled this off without the Warrior Emblem, but I had a Ruthless Adamantite Chainsaw for maximum damage output. I also had Adamantite Armor and all of my accessories were very well reforged (+4% damage or +4 defense). Basically, your mileage may vary if you omit too many items, but it can be made up for.

Step 2: Make a simple arena with multiple layers of Wooden Platforms. Walls are optional, and the wider the platforms are, the better. The arena isn't necessary on the damage side but helps with survival.

Step 3: Fight. The strategy here is to stand next to his body when he erupts from the ground with your chainsaw running. Every single one of his segments will pass through it and take damage multiple times, resulting in potentially thousands of damage. If he crosses himself, then position yourself to attack the crossing point, resulting in double damage. In fact, if you're good, you can maneuver to make him cross himself. Use the sword (you have one, right? If you don't the chainsaw works) to deal with the probes. Of course, you'll be swimming in a sea of healing and hurting, so try to stay afloat. But also try not to use any healing potions unless you really need to. Although this method is designed to maximize damage output, dodging is still a necessity, especially being sure to not stand directly in The Destroyer's body while cutting him up. You'll also want to avoid his head if possible (because it does massive contact damage); this is where the arena comes in handy. Once his health gets low, make sure to kill him where his head is above ground (and preferably in sight).

Flamethrower Method
Requirements: I assume you'd have Adamantite Armor if you killed Skeletron Prime, but you might not. At least have Mythril Armor. Here you have a choice between a helmet and a mask. The helmet provides superior defense, but the mask makes you deal more damage with the Flamethrower (which you obviously need). You need approximately the same accessories as you need for the Chainsaw Method, except you'll want a Ranger Emblem instead of a Warrior Emblem. You're still going to be fighting up-close. You'll want at least 250 Gel for ammunition, but bring 400 just to be safe.

Step 1: Get all of the required stuff, or as much of it as you think you need. Because the Flamethrower has even higher damage output when used correctly, you may be able to omit more.

Step 2: Make an arena as described in the Chainsaw Method.

Step 3: Fight. Like the Chainsaw Method, get up close to him when he erupts from the ground, except in this method you coat him in flames. Try to aim the Flamethrower such that it points as parallel to his body's direction of travel as possible, rather than perpendicular; this makes it deal more damage. Sweep the Flamethrower around to take care of Probes, and like the Chainsaw method, be sure to grab all the health and try not to be hit by The Destroyer's head or body. Also like the Chainsaw Method, make sure to keep track of his head's location and kill him only when it's above ground.

Random's Sniper Method
Requirements: Any gun (although a minishark or better is recommended), and a large supply of ammo (meteor or crystal bullets offer the best results). It is unnecessary to bring anything else, however range damage boosting equipment and potions are highly recommended.

Step 1: Before the fight, build a platform high above where you plan to fight. Wings, Rocket Boots, and an Ice Rod are the easiest way to achieve this. The platform should be roughly 175-200 feet above the ground, and no less than 30 blocks wide.

Step 2: Summon the Destroyer and make your way up to your platform as fast as possible. Once there, remove a single block in the middle of it, and proceed to fire your weapon straight down through the hole. If your platform is high enough, the Destroyer will not be able to get close enough to hit you. Furthermore, due to the mechanics of the probes they will only separate directly below you, and subsequently be killed by your stream of bullets.

Notes: I used an average of 700 crystal bullets per kill, using a 26 damage Clockwork Assault Rifle. The fight takes about half the night. The only damage I took was when I decided to finish things at close quarters to make sure that I could see the head when it died (so as to avoid searching for the loot).

(180 blocks is NOT high enough :( .)

200 block is risky use 300 to be super safe

Note: this works extremely well, but the new explosive bullets are easier to obtain than crystal and do something similair.

1337_MLG_PRO's Strategy: A Ranger's PoV
Now, here's the best part about this that you're going to just LOVE. You don't need an arena. This is an endgame ranger setup, so your gear should look like this: Hollowed Helm, Chest, Graves Angel Wings, Ranger Emblem, Spectre Boots, and cloud in a balloon are recommended. Flamethrower, Megashark, and hallowed repeater are great weapons for this fight, ammo should be crystal bullets, cursed arrow, and gel. Unreal prefixes on the weapons are recommended, also. Grav pots highly recommended Okay, that was gear, here's the actual fight: You want to keep flying. If you have grav pots, spam keys 'W' and 'S'. If not, keep on flying with your angel wings. Once again, this can be anywhere, best on a flat surface. Spam your flamethrower, megashark, and hallowed repeater. Do not worry about ammo, that's the thing you should worry about the least during a fight like this. ALT WAY: Make 2 giant dirt walls and continue to ivy whip, hook, or grapple them instead of flying.

Good luck!

Longbow73's Strategy: The Assisted Suicide Method
I'll start off by saying this: the Magical Harp, since its projectiles can pierce infinite enemies, is an excellent weapon against the Destroyer.

Equipment Recommendations: Magical Harp, at least 1 Star and 1 Heart statue (the more the better), at least Mythril armor (you do not need to wear a hood! Wear the helmet for defense.), some random solid blocks, wires, wrench, one 5 second timer, 1 door, 1 switch, and wood platforms.

The Stadium: Very, very simple. Make a box or some shape that will allow your statues to simply spam hearts and stars on you, so you will never run out of health or mana, providing you don't have shoddy armor. Hook up the statues to the timer, and the timer to a switch.

The Fight: As soon as the fight starts, hit the switch and close the door. You should now be locked into your small room, gaining health and mana the whole time. Simply spam the Magical Harp in all directions. The notes will bounce around the room, and the Destroyer will run himself to death against all the notes. Bring any potions you want, it doesn't matter. It's so easy it's practically an assisted suicide!

Note: Don't worry about the lasers or the Probes; you will not need the hearts they drop. The lasers will be blocked by your little room walls, and if the Probes come in, they're dead anyways.

TwoEdgedDeath's Early-On Strategy
This strategy is for the people, like myself, who have some trouble finding the later ores. Read on if this is you. None of what I include is NECESSARY. This is only a few pointers.

Equipment Suggestions:
 * Cobalt Armor, Demon Wings, Spectre Boots, a Star Cloak, and any sort of Cobalt Shield should work, but it helps if you reforge some of those to have the 'Warding' prefix. A reforged Phasesaber, a reforged Clockwork Assault Rifle, and a non-reforged Star Cannon seem to give, in my opinion, the best early on DPS.

Stadium (a.k.a Arena):
 * A short flattened area anywhere on the ground, about 60 blocks long, preferably not in The Corruption or The Hallow. Put down 15 Heart Statues, with 2 spaces in between each., and place a Pressure Plate to the immediate right of each statue. Wire each plate up and you're done!
 * NOTE:** I have used this setup for all of the pre-Hardmode bosses, and the Wall of Flesh (This one was a bit longer) very efficiently.

The fight: Profit!
 * Call The Destroyer and fight. Just shoot and swing and whatever else you want. When your health gets low, run on some of the plates to gather a few hearts.

DerpyMuffinz sky survive method
Simple Build a platform about halfway to the space (cant tell exact height D:) Make it stone or something and get a hole in the floor Adamantite armor is reccomended but cobalt works good Get a repeater (reccomended) and some hellfire arrows Shoot destroyer through the hole Done :) He will ocasionaly get in your "house" but just smack him with something and repeat :)

J.R. Mintz use the force method
So as you can probably tell from the title you will be using the lightsaber/Phasesaber. You will need 1 ranged weapon, preferably a Megashark though a repeater wil work. And about 500 ammo for it. Or a magic weapon with some potions and a Mana Flower. 1 Phasaber, (Excalibur works too but I prefer to use the lightsaber). 1 Cross Necklace. 1 Grapple. 1 Meteorite or Hellstone. Melee style Adamantite Armor. 1 Star Cloak. 1 Demon Wing or Angel Wing 1 Cobalt Shield (it has to be Cobalt not Obsidian or else this strategiy is useless.) 2 or 3 Greater Healing Potion A flat surface about 30-40 blocks wide Philosopher's Stone recommended but not required. The best part! NO BUFF POTIONS REQUIRED.

Now to fight him. First Summon him. Next grapple on to the Meteorite or Hellstone and swing your Phasesaber like crazy. Then when you get low on health jump off the block and kill probes with your ranged weapon to get hearts. Drink a healing potion if you have to. When he gets low on health finish him off with the ranged weapon, preferably with his head above ground so you don't have to dig for the souls. If you have a friend to help you, Great! That helps a lot. With my friend to help me I can beat him with just Cobalt Armor and a Megashark.

Zwander's Dao of Pow Setup
  Adamantite Armor (Melee headgear)  Dao of Pow (Reforged as Godly, the highest possible for a flail)  Potions   Hunter potion  Ironskin potion    Cross Necklace   Star Cloak</li>  Cobalt Shield/Obsidian Shield</li>  and two other accessories of your choice, preferably not ones that increase knockback, as this will make killing the drones take longer.</li> </ul>

IMPORTANT: The total defense from accessory modifiers should be 16+. ie: 3 warding, 1 hard, and 1 armored. or 3 warding, and one something else, preferably a damage modifier.

Simply summon, buff yourself, and keep the Dao of Pow lying on the Destroyer at all costs. The stars from the Star Cloak will rip through him as as you get hurt, and the Cross Necklace will double your mercy invincibility, effectively halving the number of times you get hit. This combined with the armor, accessories, and Ironskin Potion, will reduce the damage taken to reasonably manageable levels. The Hunter Potion simply shows his position so you can adjust yours accordingly.

If this isn't working for you (somehow), just wire two heart statues up to a pressure plate and stand on it at all times. The Destroyer will come at you anyway, and when you lose some health, just jump. This will give you (up to) 40 hp every ten seconds.

I hope it works :D

Bly's Boulders method
This is an extremely quick and easy way to defeat the Destroyer. It is recommended for anyone who can't find hardmode ores, or is just lazy.

What you need to begin with is about 3000 Stone Blocks. Turn those into 500 Boulders at the Tinkerer's Workshop. Then set up a small skybox out of whatever material you like, but make a 2 block wide hole in the floor and put 2 Wood Platforms there. Summon the Destroyer.

Now is the easy part! Just hold down the mouse button and spam boulders onto the Destroyer when he's under you. You will need a melee weapon to fight the probes. I suggest any hardmode sword, but if you don't have one, then the Dao of Pow. That was the first hardmode melee weapon I got.

That's all there is to it! Each boulder does about 500+ damage, especially when the Destroyer has his length along the ground.

Happy Soul of Might farming!

Lezrec's "Angle" Method
Now you will need good armor for this, Adamantite Armor is suitable, Cross Necklace is required. Get a Phasesaber, set up a 20x10 box about 50 blocks above your house, with platforms to get down. Summon the Destroyer and wait for it to come. It should come at an angle if you stand in the middle, forming a weird "O" and get in the inside of it. Swing your Phasesaber and you should be doing suitable damage. The benefit of this is probes are likely not to shoot lasers and along with that, you are multitasking, killing probes and damaging the Destroyer. If the body is about to hit you and is not running out any time soon jump out of the O. Remember to use your Potions as soon as you can as you will likely have close calls.

Hope this helps!

Boss Farming Method
Required Items:  Cross Necklace</li> Demon Scythe (For farming the Destroyer)</li> Strong enough armor to only take 1 damage from slimes.</li> </ul> Construct an open oval like structure as seen here. Make sure it's low enough to the ground that the Destroyer can jump through it easily. Place about 40 dart traps around the inner perimeter such that they fire inward. The T like structure at the bottom middle of the oval needs to have a 3 square gap. Two heart statues and one star statue are situated three blocks below the T and a slime statue is located within the T's gap. All of the statues and traps are wired to a 1 second timer. (This structure is actually intended for use against all three hard mode bosses.)

When the fight against the Destroyer starts, you will spend most of your time either inside the T or on the platform under the T. Fire the Demon Scythe downward at the Destroyer. When the Destroyer jumps up through the structure, jump up inside the T, take one point of damage from the slimes, and drop back down to the lower platform to keep shooting. If too many hearts land outside the lower structure you may need to grab them so your statues keep producing. If for some reason you take too much damage, jump into the slimes and wait a few seconds for the statues to heal you. If done properly, you'll rarely drop more than 50 hit points in the fight.

Brenn's Star Cannon method
Need: Good armor (I used adamantite), Star Cannon, At least 500 fallen stars

Highly recommended: A second ranged weapon, with ammo, Healing potions, Wings, Obsidian Shield (extra defense + no knockback), Hermes boots, Other accessories that you like

First off, make a bridge of wood platforms, 500-1000 blocks wide. The ground should be about 30 blocks below the bridge. Next, spawn the Destroyer. Try to get it to leap parallel to the bridge. When it does, shoot stars down its length. When the Destroyer's head dips back down towards the ground, switch to your second ranged weapon, and keep shooting. Keep trying to get the destroyer to leap up sideways, and when it does, swap back to the star cannon. Unless you have a LOT of fallen stars, don't use the star cannon when the destroyer is not parallel to the platform.

Use healing potions when you need to. Probes can be a good source of hearts, as there is a change that, if they disconnect while you are using the star cannon (which they will likely do, as the star cannon will be dealing massive damage) they may be near-instantly killed, leaving hearts for you to pick up later, when needed. This setup does not require heart statues, although they may be a helpful addition. Reforging the star cannon can also help, but is not absolutely needed.

Good luck!

Linebro's Ice Sickle Method
You will need an Ice Sickle.(The Ice Sickle is a rare drop by Ice Enemies) Adamantite/Titanium armor and Healing potions strongly recommended. Iron skin potion recommended.

Prep: Set up an arena about 20-50 blocks wide and approx. 90 blocks high consisting of wooden platforms and solid blocks on both sides. Make sure you're at full health. And at about halfway up or near the top of the arena summon the destroyer via. Mechanical Worm

Fight: Just steer clear of the destroyer and use the Ice Sickle projectiles to do continuous damage to the destroyer. The ice sickle also kills the probes fast. Don't forget to use healing potions If the Ice Sickle is used effectively the boss fight should not last longer than 3-4 minutes.

Despair's Cannon Method
You will need to have beaten the Pirates to get the Pirate NPC to buy a Cannon and Cannon Balls.

Prep: After getting a Cannon and at least 100 Cannonballs, have a wood platform over a large pit where you will place the cannon pointing upwards. Armour consisting of Adamantite is recommended (Although possible with Molten.) because there isn't much dodging, just pure offense. Also it is best to have a few health pots just in case.

Fight: Summon the Destroyer, because of the worm mechanics and the pit being in place, the Destroyer has a high chance of attacking you from below, so be sure to have your cannon pointed upwards when firing. At Three Hundred damage a tick and being able to deal damage throughout its path, a well placed cannonball into the mess of the Destroyer can deal over 3000 damage (It is possible to one shot the Destroyer). So with this, spam cannonballs upwards, and let the Destroyer eat them. Fight should be over with in a minute.

Note: This method can be used for other Hard-Mode bosses like Skeletron Prime and the Twins. Although it is easier with Destroyer.

fishsicles' Nimbus Rodflstomp Method
As the title suggests, this makes use of the Nimbus Rod's high rate of damage to quickly kill the Destroyer and manage probes.

Items required: Nimbus Rod. I first used mythril melee armour and a Beam Sword, but any melee armour and weapon should do. Potions may be necessary as probes become scarcer.

Prep: Create a long wooden platform about 60, 70 blocks above the ground.

Fight: Stand in the middle of your platform and create a cloud with the Nimbus Rod a good distance above the platform on either side of you. Summon the Destroyer. If your platform is the right height, the Destroyer itself will rarely if ever be able to reach you, but will take damage when moving below your clouds. As probes are released, kill them with your melee weapon; moving through the path of your clouds' attack will make this much easier. Hearts dropped by the probes should keep you alive long enough for your rod to kill the Destroyer.

(A good addition to this method may be to use the full orichalcum armor set as it will deal even more damage)

Sir. Doom's Safety Box Method
DO NOT TANK THIS BATTLE!!

Items needed: -Greater Healing Potion (5-8) -Ironskin Potion -Regenaration Potion -2 Thorns Potion (Optional) -Building Material (I use wood) -A 50-damage dealing sword. -Mechanical Worm -Adamantite Armor (melee set)

First you need to set up a box (20x7) made out of your building material. Make sure this is a good distance away from your npc's -Seal yourself in the box Then wait till night. -Fight!!

This method is suggested because: -The Destroyer's lasers can't hit you (very rare) -When you kill the probes with your sword their life hearts should fall on top or in your box.

Seud's Toilet Power Strategy
This guide revolves around the weapon that my friends and I are calling "The Toilet Power" because of its... similarities with urine (Yellow, continuous stream, affected by gravity and hit enemies become bright yellow and are weakened). Do note that unless you are trading, this requires Ichor, which can only be farmed in the Crimson biome. So if you have a Corruption world, recreate another one or trade some Ichor (You need 30 Ichor to craft the Golden Shower).

Items : - Golden Shower : Mandatory. This is the weapon you'll use for the battle. Bonus points if it is reforged.

- Crystal Storm : Optional. Has a GREAT synergy with the Golden Shower.

- Adamantite/Titanium armor : Mandatory unless you're very good at dodging. As you'll deal magic damage you should craft the Headgear but feel free to craft the Helmet if you need more Defense.

- Potions : Mandatory. Currently (1.2.0.2) Mana potions can be consumed without cooldwon so provided you have enough you can have virtually unlimited mana. So get a few stacks. Do't forget to bring along some healing potions too.

- Mana flower : Recommended. Automatically consumes mana potions, which can be very useful as you don't have to pay attention to your mana.

- Sorcerer emblem : Optional. If you have a spare accessory slot this will increase your damage output by 15%, which is not negligible.

- Wings/Jetpack : Recommended. Most wings must be crafted though if you have 1 Platinium coin and find Hardmode enemies a little hard you can buy one from the Witch Doctor at night (You must have defeated Queen Bee before, this is much easier before hardmode) if he lives in the Jungle. Do note that the Golden Shower will kill Wyverns VERY easily (Same method as The Destroyer), allowing easy collections of Souls of Flight required to craft most Wings. If you somehow defeated another Hardmode boss before, the Jetpack can be purchased from the Steampunker (If she sells the vanity set wait a few in-game days).

- Hermes/Spectre/Flurry boots : Mandatory (Lightning boots recommended). They will give you much needed mobility, both vertical and horizontal. Spectre/Lightning boots are mandatory if you don't have wings - unless you have created an array of platforms - Vertical mobility is a real asset againsts The Destroyer.

- Buff potions : Optional. If you have trouble defeating The Destoryer they can give you the edge you need. Special mention to the Hunter potion that allows you to see The Destroyer when underground, negating its surprise effect.

The key here is to remember that the Golden shower not only has unlimited penetration, but also reduces the target defense, increasing damage dealt with ALL weapons. The arena is fairly simple, you only need a medium-sized flat arena.Unless you're using a Hunter potion you may want yo dig a tunnel underground and fill it with torches so you can see him coming. When he digs out of the ground, fire the Glden Shower and try to hit as many segments as possible to maximize damage. Once most segments are yellow, switch to the crystal storm and watch as his health goes down. Lighting boots will allow you to stand directly where he's heading to get the most damage and juping/running at the last moment to avoid its counterattack. Don't forget to slighlty adjut the angle to constantly apply/refresh the armor reduction effect and hit the probes. When the Destroyer returns under the arena, quickly sweep it yto collect probe hearts and refill your health/mana. If you run out of potions (Do not let that happen) stand still for a few seconds when The Destroyer is underground to regenerate it. Some probes may also drop stars that will refill 100 mana : Don't collect more than necessary if several are on the ground.

Flame's Sky view Strategy
Another good way to conquer the Destroyer is to get way off the ground (Use rope so he can't follow well) Then, make a house so lasers can't hit you. Force your nurse to move to that house so if you're low on health, you can heal. In order to be able to attack, replace some of the floor with platforms. Whenever you see lasers, all you have to do is go to the normal floor. Make sure you have a good sword like the night's edge or the excalibur so when Probes charge at you, you can melee them. A Laser gun is recommended because it has high attack speed and it uses mana as appose to ammunition. You also might want the avenger's emblem for extra damage because although he's hard to die from like this, you only get until sunrise to battle him.

Henri's Noob Guide
This is for those who hate mining. What you will need is a cobalt repeater, a bunch (stack) of Unholy/Jester's(recommended) arrows, Cross Necklace, Possibly Philosophers Stone but unnecessary, a cobalt/obsidian shield, and a frost armor set. Look up Frost Armor for how to get. First of all, you do not need an arena. You do not need heart statues. you can kill him on a hill without falling off. First, collect resources/kill stuff till you get a mechanical worm. Then find anywhere that is not obviously inconvenient. After, Spawn him in. Battle: he will come at you possibly hard but to avoid that, use a grappling hook, sidestep fast away from the possible impact. Then shoot hard at the worm parallel to its body (at him obviously). Do not get constricted by its body. That leads to death. When probes pop out,make them your priority. If you stay this way, the worm will die fast from frostburn but you still need to attack him. Try your best to get all the segments inflicted with frostburn. With the 20 hp the probes drop, you will definitely heal fast. I tried this with the same stuff (but flamethrower but still same effect as repeater) and i didn't get lower than 380 hp. This is the easiest way to kill him because you do more than 2000 damage per second if most segments have frostburn. I hope this is the most helpful of all.