Plantera

 is a Hard Mode boss fought within the Underground Jungle biome. In order to summon Plantera, the player must first defeat all three Mechanical Bosses (The Twins, The Destroyer, and Skeletron Prime). After doing so, the player must then destroy a small pink bulb found in the Underground Jungle known as Plantera's Bulb. There is no limit to the number of bulbs in a world; after all of them have been destroyed, more will spawn. Plantera will get stronger if you fight it on the surface.

1st Stage
Plantera's main body appears to be a massive pink flower bulb, much like the summoning bulb. It uses 3 vines to grab onto solid terrain to move itself. These vines can also inflict damage, If you were to make it chase you into the daylight, it would move faster than normal in the open daylight than underground. It shoots sharp leaves that do relatively little damage, which fire faster as its HP drops. There is also an intermediate stage at around a quarter of its HP lost, where it starts shooting pink spiked balls that bounce off of walls, making it almost suicidal to fight in tight spaces. The fire rate of the spiked balls also gets faster as it approaches the second stage.

2nd Stage
After losing half of its HP, Plantera loses its petals to reveal a carnivorous plant-like body, and a multitude of vines (besides the 3 used for movement) which behave similarly to the Wall of Flesh's The Hungry. It stops shooting projectiles at this stage and increases its speed and decreases in defense. This is a perfect time to use Ichor based weapons (Which needs the Crimson to be loaded in your world or brought from another world with Crimson in it) to decrease its defense even more to kill it faster.

General
As of 1.2.1.2, it is no longer advisable to fight Plantera on the surface or outside of the Underground Jungle, since it enrages and deals far more damage than usual. When enraged, Plantera is capable of killing the player instantly when hit, even with projectiles. It may be possible to defeat it using a surface technique, or similarly kiting it to a different biome (such as the Underworld), however top tier equipment and weapons would be required. Take care to ensure the location you engage Plantera isn't at the edge of the Underground Jungle or above a depth of 0 (use a Depth Meter or GPS to check). Both of these things can trigger an unexpected enraged boss, significantly lowering any chance of survival regardless of the strategy.

Arena Method
This method is executed by simply excavating a large area in which the player can fight Plantera. This method will work well with most gear loadouts and can be a simple yet effective way of defeating it. By digging out a large circular space (The Underground Jungle has a multitude of similar spaces that only require a little cleaning up) and placing rows of platforms across its diameter, it becomes possible to apply different kinds of boss strategies such as Kiting. For this strategy it is advisable that the player uses buff potions and places health regeneration items such as Campfires and Heart Lanterns down around the arena.

This method is recommended if you do not have access to powerful equipment (such as gear that requires you to defeat Plantera) yet and need a reasonably easy way of challenging this boss with a good chance to win.

On a side note, another way to kill it using the open area arena strategy is to lure Plantera into the Lihzahrd Temple. The player would have to first destroy all of the traps and spikes and after doing so the player would then summon Plantera and run down a pre-excavated tunnel leading into the Lihzahrd Temple were the player would then have the vital space to defeat Plantera.

Tank Method
There are two ways to kill it with this method. For endgame-geared players, equipping full Turtle Armor, having Warding on all accessories for extra defense, and throwing Godly Vampire Knives repeatedly while standing in one location is generally the easiest way to conquer Plantera. The use of a Cross Necklace or Star Veil can help significantly with this. When done properly, the player shouldn't ever be more than 50 health below max, but it can be beneficial to place a spawn point near the location of the fight to ensure that Plantera will not despawn should the player die if something goes wrong.

The second method is where a player must wear a full set of turtle armor while equipped with wings, an ivy whip (or a grappling hook both work really well) and crystal or cursed bullets. Fly around the arena and make sure he follows the player with turtle armor. The other players can then follow Plantera and attack it from behind. You can find gaps in his attack pattern to heal using health potions. Also it is a good idea to put multiple campfires down to give your team a buff during the battle. Repeat this method as many times as you want or until he is dead.

Hellevator Method
For this method, a vertical shaft (see Hellevator ) at least 2 blocks wide will be dug from the top of the Underground Jungle down to where lava pools begin to appear. Make sure neither end of the shaft is outside the biome. This doesn't take too long as mud mines up fairly quickly and the biome usually contains many open areas to which excess water can drain. The ideal location for this shaft would be in the center of the Jungle so that it can be quickly reached from anywhere a Plantera's Bulb is found. It could also be placed between two major Jungle cave systems in which the Bulb might spawn.

Items necessary for this method are Wings or other flight & slow-fall item and a Grappling Hook or similar item. Weapons used for this method are the the best damage ranged weapons or spells available to the player. The Hallowed Repeater paired with Chlorophyte Arrows is sufficient. High Armor ratings, the Cross Necklace, and the Philosopher's Stone are of course beneficial.

To begin the battle, destroy a Plantera's Bulb and kite the boss to the Hellevator, taking care not to get too far away causing it to despawn. Then fall/fly slowly down the shaft while Plantera chases the player, constantly shooting it with ranged weapons or spells. If it begins to get too far away, attach to the wall with the grappling device until it catches up, then resume slow-falling, shooting all the while. When the bottom is reached, simply fly back up through the shaft and attach to the wall to shoot Plantera as it catches up. When the top is reached, fall/fly back down and continue as before. Plantera doesn't follow the player in straight lines, so many of its attacks will miss since they do not pass through the walls.

This method works very well for Plantera's second form if it is dealing too much damage for the player to keep up healing while using the Tank method without Vampire Knives.

Teleporter Tunnel Method
An easy but expensive way to beat Plantera is by digging a long horizontal tunnel in the jungle, and attaching two Teleporters on both sides. Then, using a Megashark with Crystal Bullets or, for end-game players, the Terra Blade is also recommended. Shoot it while it approaches and teleport to the other side when it gets too close. Repeat the process until it dies. Hallowed Armor or better should be used since this method does not guarantee complete safety. Also any extra damage items will speed up the process. Otherwise, nothing else is needed for this method. Other viable weapons for this method would be the Golden Shower or Ichor Bullets paired with a Megashark or better. Beware, Plantera will despawn after Teleporting if the tunnel is longer than 150 blocks.

Spiky Ball Trap Method
After killing Plantera and accessing the temple for the first time, a Spiky Ball Trap is easy to set up, and results in a high damage quick method that costs no money (assuming the trap materials are collected at the end). As spiky ball traps work on a 3 second delay, a 3 second timer can be used in order to output the most balls without needing any active input from the player.

Stynger Method
After killing Plantera and having gained access to the Jungle Temple, the player will need to kill the Golem and obtain the Stynger. The most efficient way to kill Plantera with the Stynger, is to build a large tunnel from the east to the west of the Jungle, because the projectiles the Stynger shoots will explode on the top and bottom of the tunnel, severely damaging Plantera, it is advised to use Shroomite Armor for full ranged damage. Also, you will need Frostspark or Lightning Boots so you can easily run away. The choice of accessories is the player's, but keep in mind that you need ranged damage.

Note: The tunnel makes it easier, but it is still quite possible with just a large room and the Stynger.

Magnet Sphere Method
After defeating Plantera and unlocking the Hard Mode Dungeon, an easy way of defeating Plantera is to keep doing circles around Plantera and casting Magnet Sphere with the Spectre Set. This should allow you to keep healing while doing massive damage to Plantera.

Trivia

 * It has been stated that Plantera's name is a reference to the band Pantera.
 * Redigit stated on Twitter that Plantera's theme is the "most epic thing in game".
 * In Swedish, the term "Plantera" means "Planting", as in planting a plant.

Bugs

 * Nimbus Cloud will prevent Vampire Knives from healing off of damage dealt to Plantera. (Tested multiple times while using the Turtle Armor and Vampire Knives strategy).Plantera_bulb_near_surface.png
 * Plantera's Bulb may spawn very near the edge between Jungle and Underground Jungle, causing Plantera to enrage immediately when the bulb is broken, making it harder to kill.
 * Sometimes Plantera can spawn enraged, even in the underground jungle, leading inexperienced players to believe this is the default mode of Plantera.
 * Plantera may disappear randomly during the boss fight. Plantera may also disappear if the player moves too far away from it.
 * Plantera may instantly despawn if a player moves away from the area he was in directly after breaking the bulb. To avoid this, you may stay still until one of Plantera's hooks arrive.
 * Plantera's Bulb may spawn in a Non-Jungle biome, making Plantera despawn instantly if the Bulb is broken.