Guide:Surviving in the Jungle

The Jungle is one of the hardest areas to survive in Terraria, as it has some of the toughest enemies in the game along with increased  spawn rates. The majority of the Jungle spans Underground, which is where the most of its treasures and hazards are located.

If you're new to Terraria, then you will find exploring the Jungle very hard: Man Eaters will reach out to you through walls and the Hornets can shoot their stingers at you which may inflict the Poisoned debuff. Even the Jungle Slime packs a lot more life than most slimes. Therefore, navigating the Jungle safely usually entails taking it slow and not trying to run past enemies, and tunneling around dangerous areas to reach the treasures.

In Pre-Hardmode, the Jungle is usually tackled after dealing with Corruption or Crimson, and can be done before or after visiting the Dungeon, but it's usually avoided before going into the Underworld.

In Hardmode, the Jungle can be explored at any time, but it's usually done after defeating the Mechanical Bosses, as it's mandatory to defeat Plantera and Golem and to obtain Chlorophyte.

= Pre-Hardmode =

Recommended Gear and Items

 * At least 300 Health.
 * The Flaming Mace, Starfury, Enchanted Sword, Gold/Platinum Bow, Musket/The Undertaker, Flinx Staff , Thunder Zapper , and Gem Staves are all good options.
 * Fossil Armor is the best option for rangers.
 * Gem Robes with a Wizard Hat are ideal for mages.
 * Flinx Fur Coat is great for summoners.
 * Silver or better armor is useful for all classes, sporting high defense.
 * The Royal Gel can be helpful, should the player have access to it; it will turn Jungle Slimes neutral, leaving only the Man Eaters and Hornets to deal with.


 * Items to bring


 * At least a stack of Lesser Healing Potions. If you can craft the Healing Potions, bring these instead.
 * At least two stacks of torches.
 * Piggy Bank or Safe to store extra loot.
 * On later visits, Platforms may be useful to block vines.
 * Due to Hardmode corruption mechanics, avoid using Stone Block if possible.
 * Optionally, Rope Coils or Glowsticks for larger caverns; a Bug Net, for catching bait; and a bed/chest/walls to set up a forward base closer to the biome; however these are less important than the other items.

The First visit
The Jungle is located either left or right, and it's opposite to the Snow and Dungeon. If you find the Snow, go to the other side to find the Underground Desert and past it, the Jungle. (Note that in 1.4, Underground Deserts aren't guaranteed to have visible entrances, so it is better to look for the snow biome and then go the other way if you find it.)

The Underground Jungle is located directly below the surface, and there are usually cave entrances to it. On versions, the threat of Dragon Snatchers make the Surface Jungle a lot more dangerous, so the player should quickly go underground.

The enemies found in the Underground Jungle are harder to deal than in any other biome, especially since most of them will the player. Additionally more enemies will spawn compared to the regular Cavern, but less than the Dungeon. It is easy to die in this environment, so caution and knowledge of how to deal with the enemies is advised. The most dangerous enemies are:


 * Hornets will fire stingers that can be hard to see due to them being small and blending in with the background. This attack inflicts the Poisoned debuff, which will slowly kill a player as well as stopping their natural regeneration. They will rarely drop the Bezoar, an accessory which provides immunity to the poison. A good tactic if using it is to equip it in a social slot to save an inventory slot and an accessory slot. When the poisoned debuff gets applied, just swap it in the accessory slot with an another accessory and then again swap it with that accessory in the social slot. This will remove the poisoned debuff.
 * On versions, a variant called Dragon Hornet will appear. This new enemy has the same behavior but with higher stats, making it more dangerous.


 * Man Eaters have a lot of health and damage and they are immune to knockback. They don't move a lot, but it is easy to get caught off guard by them due to their ability to go through blocks. They can easily be dealt with by latching and staying above them with a hook or rope. They have a small chance to drop Vines when killed.


 * Spiked Jungle Slimes are more dangerous than any other slime, due to their ability to shoot poisonous spikes. They should be killed with a long-range weapon while standing far away, as they can easily do a lot of damage up close.


 * The player will also find Beehives in the jungle, which will spawn Bees when destroyed. Despite their very low health, these enemies should not be underestimated, as they hit harder than what it may look, they can poison the player and can be hard to hit without a Melee weapon.
 * Remember to bring bottles because if you find honey you can get a good supply of Bottled Honey, which is easier than farming glowing mushrooms.

In the Pre-Hardmode Jungle, there are three things to do: Get Jungle Spores, find Ivy Chests and the Queen Bee's hive.

Jungle Spores can be found anywhere underground, and their position is easily given away by its glow. With these, the player can make strong weapons such as the Blade of Grass and Thorn Chakram for melee users, the Snapthorn for summoner users, Jungle Armour for mage users and also useful equipment such as the Ivy whip which is a powerful hook providing three hooks.

Ivy chests appear in Jungle Shrines or Living Mahogany Trees, the former of which can be seen with the glow of the Green Torch placed in them. They contain many useful items that can't be found anywhere else, such as the Boomstick or the Staff of Regrowth.

The Queen Bee's hive is found anywhere underground. It should be accessed with caution and good gear, as it is very easy to accidentally summon the boss with an attack. If the player finds Honey and Honey blocks around the Jungle, it means the Queen Bee's hive is close.

Melee players may also want to find a Sharpening Station in the Underground Cabins, as it provides a free buff which will slightly increase the damage of Melee weapons.

The Slow Method
Simply explore the jungle by digging through the mud, or placing blocks to keep yourself "sealed" inside a protective layer of dirt. Hornets cannot fly or fire through blocks. Man Eaters can pass through blocks, but they are rooted to one position, and are predictable. Simply keep extending your tunnel until you get to the position where your sword can just barely reach the Man Eater when it bobs outwards, and hit it when it comes within range. A good weapon for this method is the Vilethorn, since it can fire through the walls. Then, when ready, break down your bunker, and go fighting again. Rinse and repeat as you advance.

As you go, place torches everywhere - this gives you the chance to actually run and fight later without worrying so much about the darkness.

Reworking the Terrain
Similarly to the previous, just work upon trying to cut away any major obstacles to your movement, and light up the place as well as possible. Place blocks and doors in positions that tactically block off the enemy or give yourself breathing room; flatten terrain, drain water, add torches, and otherwise make a better fighting platform to explore.

It is ideal to make the roof fully obstructed with with stone slabs or platforms to prevent the nuisance of vines and Beehives from spawning as obstructions. A good multi-grapple hook is very helpful for reaching the ceiling. Alternatively, double click with a hammer to slope the grass block and prevent them from attaching. Finally if neither of these are possible, at least block off any 2x2 placement spots for the beehives by making the ceiling as uneven as possible, by placing mud blocks every other tile (B-B-B). This also applies when digging sideways tunnels, which should have a double height 5/6 tile ceiling to allow jumping to avoid monsters or thorns, again fully lined with stone slabs to prevent vines blocking vision.

Apart from thorns, which have much lower damage than the monsters, the floor does not present much danger. In fact where possible it is best to flatten it, this makes it easier to spawn bushes for bait. This does have the useful side effect of possibly making it easier to see thorns (although it may also be necessary to place lighting and a wall for contrast).

= Hardmode = The Underground Jungle in Hardmode is one of the most dangerous biomes of the game. Below you'll find all the hint and tips needed to progress through it, until you get to defeat Plantera and get access to the Jungle Temple.

Recommended Gear
The Underground Jungle can be explored at any time, but there's no real reason to do so until the Mechanical Bosses are Defeated, since nothing very special can be obtained without Chlorophyte, which requires the Pickaxe Axe.


 * Titanium or Hallowed armor are the best available. Palladium and Orichalcum sets can still be viable with their strong set bonuses. Summoners are still limited to Spider armor.
 * If Tier 2 of the Old One's Army has been defeated, then the Tavernkeep's armors can also be used.
 * For a Melee character, the best weapons are the Amarok, Shadowflame Knife, Light Discs, Ice or Death Sickle, and the Mushroom Spear.
 * The best choices for a Ranged user are the Megashark, the Hallowed Repeater and the Daedalus Stormbow, with Crystal bullets and Holy/Ichor Arrows.
 * Mages can use the Sky Fracture, Crystal Serpent, Magical Harp, Nimbus Rod and the Shadowflame Hex Doll. It is also good to use a Golden Shower to increase the damage of the main weapons.
 * Summoners only have the Spider or Optic staves, alongside the Queen Spider Staff or one of the .On the, there are also the Sanguine Staff and the Blade Staff and Whips available.
 * Mobility accessories like Wings, the Frog Leg or the Shield of Cthulhu should be brought to avoid the enemies, as well as damage boosting ones such as the Emblems to kill them faster.
 * Defensive accessories like the Worm Scarf, Charm of Myths or Ankh Shield are very useful as well.

Exploring
It is very hard to survive in the new Jungle due to the extremely strong enemies that can now be found, mainly the Derplings and Giant Tortoises. There isn't much to do in the surface, so it's recommended to quickly go underground as the Derplings will stop spawning.

Once underground, the main thing to do is to mine Chlorophyte with the Pickaxe Axe or Drax. With Mining and Spelunker Potions it is easily acquired. The player will need a lot of it, since it's required for Chlorophyte armor and some of the strongest weapons available, as well as being used for Post Plantera equipment.

While mining, the player may find Plantera's Bulb, which can be easily seen since it glows in the dark. The bulb should not be touched until the player feels ready to fight Plantera, as breaking it will summon the boss.

Life Fruits may also be found, and they should be collected since the extra health is extremely useful for bosses.

Enemies
Just like every other biome in Hardmode, the player will find many new enemies, the most dangerous being:


 * As mentioned above, the Derplings due to their high damage, health, and knockback resistance, as well as being very mobile. However they are much taller than the average enemy, so they can't go through player tall spaces. They do not spawn Underground.


 * Giant Tortoises are slow, and their attack is predictable. However, they do massive damage and can easily catch a player off-guard if they attack offscreen. They are also very hard to kill due to them also having high health and knockback resistance. When killed, they have a chance to drop Turtle Shells, which are required for Turtle armor. Even though the set is overall less useful than Chlorophyte armor, melee players should still look for it as it is required for Beetle armor.


 * Angry Trappers are the Hardmode version of Man Eaters. They are more aggressive and have higher stats, but unlike their counterparts they are vulnerable to knockback, making them rather easy to deal with.
 * Moss Hornets are the Hardmode version of regular Hornets, having higher stats but the same behavior. They are still dangerous but can be killed like their Pre-Hardmode variant


 * Arapaimas will only spawn in water, and will do so more frequently than other enemies. Like the Piranhas, when the player submerges, they will engage, and their high stats and numbers will easily overwhelm a player. Water should be avoided because of them.