The Destroyer

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"You feel vibrations from deep below..."

The Destroyer is a Hardmode Mechanical Boss that is essentially harder version of the Eater of Worlds. Like the Eater of Worlds, The Destroyer is a very large Worm. Though it appears to be similarly made up of many segments, individual segments cannot die, and The Destroyer will not split apart into multiple enemies. The entire body has a single shared Health, and will remain at full size until it is killed.

The Destroyer is summoned using a Mechanical Worm at Night. Night time is the only condition required for summoning. It must be killed before dawn, otherwise it despawns. In the PC version, it can also spawn randomly on any given night once Hardmode begins, if you haven't defeated it yet in the current world. Its arrival is announced via the message, 'You feel a quaking from deep underground...', or 'You feel vibrations from deep below...'.

Each of The Destroyer's segments contains a red-lit Probe, which are independent flying enemies that are launched periodically as The Destroyer takes damage. They fire lasers at the player, both while within The Destroyer and when detached. Probes can be killed individually once detached. If the red light is missing from a segment, it means the Probe was already launched from that segment.

In the PC version, the Destroyer's body is immune to all debuffs, though launched Probes are not.

Tips

 * The Destroyer is generally considered the easiest of the Hardmode bosses, despite it being the Hardmode version of the mid-difficulty Eater of Worlds. It is still rather difficult compared to pre-Hardmode bosses, but is nevertheless the easiest way to farm Hallowed Bars and Soul of Might, and can be a good way of making money.
 * Since the 1.2.3 update, the Destroyer is now on par with the 2 other mechanical bosses in terms of difficulty, as all of its version 1.2 nerfs were undone, the head deals more damage than the pre-1.2 version, and probes are no longer guaranteed to drop hearts on death. Proper Arena preparation can reduce the difficulty significantly, however.
 * The Destroyer is the only one of the three "mech" bosses whose movement can be somewhat confined. Being a worm-type, it needs blocks in order to maneuver, and will not launch high above-ground as much as it tends to stay low. By standing on a bridge of Wood Platforms high above the ground, The Destroyer will not reach the player as often, and the player can fire down on it through the platforms. With a high enough bridge, the boss may never make contact with the player at all, even though its easier flying Probes will.
 * Penetrating weapons are most effective: the Poison Staff, Flamethrower, Demon Scythe, Star Cannon, Ice Sickle, Nimbus Rod, Dao of Pow, Golden Shower, Magical Harp, or even Boulders. Additionally, using ammo like Meteor Shot, Hellfire Arrows, Jester's Arrows and Holy Arrows can deal damage to multiple parts, causing more damage.
 * If you have a sizable cache of Grenades, they can be effective.
 * For farming purposes, the use of strong, penetrating endgame weapons like the Paladin's Hammer or the Heat Ray can kill the Destroyer in less than 10 seconds, if appropriate modifiers and accessories are used. The Rainbow Gun can also dispatch him in 2 or 3 shots.
 * Prior to 1.2.1.2, The Destroyer was a very efficient way to make money, as of the aforementioned version he was granted immunity to all debuffs. Using a Flask of Gold and affecting all of his segments with Midas will make him drop around.
 * The Destroyer has the most health of any current boss (80,000)

History

 * Drops now appear at the location of the segment that was closest to the player on defeat, instead of from the head.