Damage

Damage types are categorized into melee, ranged, magic weapons and since 1.2, summoning weapons. Different armor types and consumables provide bonuses for different types of weapons, summarized below.

Melee
Melee is a type of close ranged attacks. All melee weapons have no usable ammo. All melee weapons (with the exception of throw/spin weapon types) attack with the player fairly close to the target.

Ranged
Ranged is a type of far ranged attacks. All ranged weapons (with the exception of the harpoon) have usable ammo. All ranged weapons attack with the player far away from the target.

Consumable Weapon Type
Consumable weapon types are a closer form of ranged weapons. They are usually a thrown weapon type that don't go as far as bullets

Magic
Magic is a special weapon type that has multiple different magical effects. Magic weapons require mana to be used. Some, such as the Rainbow Rod cast a controllable projectile. Others cast a spread of projectiles.

Summon
Summon is a new, uncommon type of damage dealt by summoning weapons like the Pygmy Staff or the Hydra Staff.