Guide:Surviving in the Corruption

Surviving in the Corruption can be tricky for new players. It holds powerful enemies, deep chasms, and can spread across the world. There are things in the Corruption that are needed to progress through the game. One example is the that can be broken to summon the Eater of Worlds, which is needed in order to craft Shadow armor and, most importantly, the Nightmare Pickaxe.

Recommended Gear

 * Have at least 200 health. Magic users should have at least 100 Mana.
 * It is recommended to have at least Silver armor or Tungsten armor. Gold armor or Platinum armor are better although much harder to obtain.

Weapons

 * Melee users should bring or  at minimum, or  if Eye of Cthulhu has already been defeated.
 * or should definitely be used if obtained.
 * An or  are also great at keeping Eater of Souls at bay.
 * Ranged users should bring a or  with . They are easy to craft and farm, as Ice is very easy to obtain, and Torches can be bought from the Merchant.
 * Magic users should bring at least Sapphire or Emerald Staff. or  are the best available.
 * Throwing users should bring a bunch of, as they aren't too difficult to obtain. can also be used, although they may damage the player if used recklessly.
 * If Pinky has been killed, should be crafted, as they are very powerful throwing weapons.

Miscellaneous

 * Bring with you at least a half stack (15 out 30) of . Some should be brought as a Mage.
 * A Grappling Hook is highly recommended. They can help you navigate the chasms.
 * It is also good to bring or Platforms, as they help when climbing out of the chasms.

Exploring the Corruption
The Surface of the biome is home to the deep Chasms that lead to Shadow Orbs and Demon Altars. These pits make it very hard to navigate in the early game, as an accidental fall can easily lead to a death by Fall damage. The most common enemy found will be the Eater of Souls, with the more uncommon Devourer spawning occasionally.


 * Eater of Souls are flying enemies that will fly out of reach, then charge the player. They are much harder to deal with in a pack, and they can knock a player into a chasm.
 * are worm enemies that will pop out of the ground to attack the player. They can be detected by the noise they make while travelling underground. Like with many other Worm enemies, the best way to kill these is to attack them with a piercing weapon.

In the Corruption's many chasms, the will be found. They let off a faint glow which will allow the player to easily locate them, but can only be reached initially by use of or  purchased from the Dryad. They can then be destroyed by using a Hammer or Explosives.

Destroying the orbs will drop a random item and give you the following messages:


 * When the first Orb is broken, "A horrible chill goes down your spine..." will appear;
 * When the second one is broken, "Screams echo around you..." will appear;
 * When the third one is broken, the Eater of Worlds will spawn, with "Eater of Worlds has awoken!" appearing.

When killed, The Eater of Worlds drops and, which are then needed to craft Shadow armor and the Nightmare Pickaxe, the latter being important for Game progression.

Hardmode
As soon as the Wall of Flesh is defeated, a diagonal strip of Corruption will appear in the world, and all corrupted blocks such as Ebonstone will start spreading. Much stronger enemies will also start spawning, so surviving in the biome will be much more difficult than before.

The player can use the dropped from the Wall of Flesh to smash. Destroying them will generate new ores, which are almost mandatory to progress in the game. Smashing 9-12 Altars will be more than enough for most of Hardmode, since more than that won't generate too many new ores. Breaking altars will swarm the player with, so they should be very quick when doing so to avoid dying.

Altars are also crafting stations, so it isn't a bad idea to leave one for the special recipes requiring them.

Note that smashing Altars has a chance to corrupt a random block in the world. This will barely affect its overall spread speed, but it can infect areas the player tried to protect.

After the altars are smashed, the Corruption should be avoided until better gear is obtained, since Pre-Hardmode weapons and armors won't be enough to deal with the new enemies.

Recommended Gear
At the bare minimum, the best Pre-Hardmode armors of the player's class should be used, such as Molten armor, Necro armor, Jungle armor or Wizard set and Bee armor for Melee, Ranged, Magic and Summoner users respectively. Armors made with Hardmode materials should definitely be used if obtained.

The player should also get a strong Hardmode weapon before venturing in. There are many choices depending on the class used:


 * Melee users should grind for an in the Snow biome as it can be easily obtained at the beginning of Hardmode and will last until the Mechanical Bosses are defeated. A Sword or Spear made with the new ores will also do fine against them.
 * A Ranged character is better off with the dropped by the Wall of Flesh or a  alongside . The  made with the new ores will also do just fine against them.
 * A Mage may want to farm for a, made with a Hallowed Desert's materials. They can also fish for a or use use the  dropped by the Wall of Flesh.
 * Summoners will need a and, made with a Spider Cave's materials.

Underground Corruption
With good gear, it is easier to survive in the Underground Corruption, but still challenging. Once the diagonal strip has been located, the main thing to do is to find a good area to farm and, as the two will be needed for many recipes in early Hardmode.

The best place would be a wide, open area with a safe, enclosed area where the player can take cover from enemies and heal. If no such place is found, with a couple or Explosives it can be built.

The Player will also have to deal with new, stronger enemies:


 * Corruptors are the Hardmode version of Eaters of Souls, as they possess the same AI but with the added ability to shoot a projectile, the Vile Spit. They are the most common enemies, and with their high health and damage stats they can be dangerous to the player. Their projectile can be destroyed by the player's attacks and it does not go through blocks, so these traits can be exploited to take them out more easily.


 * are the Hardmode version of Devourers, with a longer body as well as higher health and damage. They are more common than Devourers were in Pre-Hardmode, so the player should always watch out for them. Like any other Worm type enemy, the sound of them digging can be heard when they spawn, and any explosive or piercing attacks will easily take them out. They drop Cursed Flames when killed.


 * s can be considered a Hardmode version of Mother Slimes, as they have higher health than the average Slime, and they spawn multiple Slimelings when killed. Compared to the other enemies, they aren't too big of a threat.
 * The is a flying variant which will spawn a Corrupt Slime when killed.


 * act like most Plant type enemies such as the Angry Trapper, with the added ability to shoot a cursed fireball, which inflicts the Cursed Inferno Debuff. They deal a lot of contact damage, and the Cursed Inferno will drain the Player's health as well as stopping their regeneration. The fireballs cannot be destroyed like the Vile Spit, but they also can't go through blocks. They also drop Cursed Flames when killed.


 * are a very rare enemy that can go through blocks, and can inflict the Cursed debuff on hit. While this status effect can be devastating, they will stop moving if attacked, so they are fairly easy to deal with.


 * are by far the toughest things you'll see here, even compared to the Eater of Worlds. (The EoW may have twice the total health, but that's split into segments, and biome mimics have many times the EoW's defense and damage.  Also the EoW is slow and predictable, while biome mimics are fast and aggressive.)  They do drop great items when killed, but given their threat level, killing them is not an option until you have much better gear.

Pre-Hardmode enemies can also still spawn, but at a lower rate than before.