Guide:Queen Slime strategies

The Queen Slime is an optional early Hardmode boss fought in the Hallow. She is the hardmode version of King Slime.

Spawn Conditions
Queen Slime can be summoned by using a in The Hallow, which is found in the Underground Hallow in the same places that  spawn.

The Fight
In her first phase, Queen Slime jumps around in a similar fashion to King Slime, though much faster. She periodically summons Crystal Slimes, Heavenly Slimes, or Bouncy Slimes. Crystal Slimes will shoot several crystals upwards, Heavenly Slimes will fly towards the player and Bouncy Slimes will fire bouncing shots towards the player. After a few jumps, she does one of two things, chosen at random:


 * Will stay in one place for a few seconds, before jumping very quickly towards the player and attempt to stomp them, dealing high damage.
 * Will stay in one place for a few seconds, before firing 6 Regal Gel that bounce twice before breaking. Sometimes, she will perform this attack multiple times in a row.

Killing the smaller slimes should be a priority during this phase, as they can quickly overwhelm the player.

When at 50% health, Queen Slime will grow wings and begin to fly like a Slimer. Her AI also changes:


 * She will occasionally shoot  Regal Gel in 10 directions.
 * She will occasionally attempt to fly above and drop down onto the player.

Terrain Preparation
Queen Slime shoots out bouncing projectiles that can be a challenge to dodge, especially in the second stage. Fighting in an off-ground arena with platforms on the bottom will allow the projectiles to fall out safely. For example, a Sky Bridge consisted of platforms is extremely recommended. If you have Lava Waders or its upgrades, it may be a good idea to use bubble and lava instead of platforms, as the neither the Queen Slime in the first phase nor the slimes she summons can stand on them. This will come at the cost of slowing down each time the player moves through the lava. Alternatively, setting up a basic arena, and using the gravity strategy (Under specific strategies) is perfectly suitable.

Armor

 * provides solid stat bonuses and the powerful Titanium Barrier.
 * forgoes the special set bonus for higher stats. Melee and ranged users can swap to and  for even higher stats.
 * provides roughly the same melee/ranged bonuses as Adamantite or Titanium, and inflicts a useful Frostburn debuff that is often strong enough to kill spawned slimes with only a single scratch.
 * provides acceptable stats with a set bonus that helps killing the spawned slimes.
 * provides lower stat bonuses, but the greatly increases natural regeneration.
 * becomes a great choice if you have already defeated a Mechanical Boss, since the buff does wonders for survivability.
 * is a good choice for Summoners due to the increased minion slots.
 * is a useful alternative for whip users due to its massive increases to whip speed and range.
 * is a viable armor set for both summoners and mages due to the efficiency of its set bonus.

Weapons
It's important to have weapons that can deal with the crowd of slimes that she summons, as well as weapons that can reach her in her winged form.


 * For Melee users
 * The is good because of its accuracy and bouncing projectiles.
 * The is extremely effective at taking out the Queen's minions during it's first phase, however it has trouble keeping up in the second phase.
 * Flails such as the, or  are useful in this fight for their high amount of damage and reach
 * The or  are also good as its projectiles deal decent damage and long range.
 * The or  (or  if you already defeated a Mechanical Boss) are good weapons as well.
 * For Ranged users
 * The or  with  is useful due to its high damage output and its semi-homing ricochet ability, which can kill all of the nearby slimes that are summoned.
 * The, while also being useful for killing the smaller slimes, can still do a hefty amount of damage to the Queen Slime when paired with / and a.
 * The are weaker but still strong alternatives.
 * The, and  have better stats but lack arrow variance.
 * The is extremely powerful against the Queen Slime when used with Crystal Bullets and supported with Ichor; however it has issues against the Slimes. The  is a stronger alternative but requires the defeat of The Destroyer.


 * For Magic users


 * The is a high damage weapon that can be used for most bosses at this point in the game, but it uses a lot of mana very quickly, so a lot of mana potions will be required.
 * The also deals respectable DPS, especially if using the Blessed Apple mount in the second phase, as Queen Slime will ram into all of the projectiles.
 * The is extremely useful for killing large groups of slimes with little aiming required. It also provides a noticeable increase to regeneration, but it shouldn't be used primarily for healing due to its lackluster performance against single targets and high mana drain.
 * The can provide some additional DPS against all targets. Casting it immediately before starting the fight is a decent option, as it does not constantly drain mana and its clouds linger for a significant duration.
 * The is a decent choice all around, being able to hit Queen Slime herself easily as well as effectively deal with her slime minions, although it is a bit harder to aim properly in the second phase.
 * The deals very high damage, but is only really useful in the second phase: During phase one, it is too hard to control which enemy it targets, often hitting a slime minion instead of Queen Slime herself (or vice-versa). In phase two, it becomes useful against Queen Slime if you can follow her closely, as the minion slimes are far less likely to be right next to her when she is flying.
 * The can deal high damage to the Queen Slime because of her large size, but it will not deal with the smaller slimes well.
 * The is useful in this fight, as with most Hardmode boss fights, for its defense-lowering ability, although as a penetrating weapon, it is also reasonably useful on its own for clearing out the slime minions.
 * If you have fought The Twins beforehand, the crafted from the souls is one of the best options for fighting Queen Slime, due to the AoE damage and piercing in addition to it's homing capabilities, letting you kill all the minions quickly while constantly dealing damage to the Queen Slime. If you do not have the Rainbow Rod, the  is a good, yet less damaging alternative.
 * Some weapons which are best suited for close-quarters are less useful in this fight, as keeping a safe distance from Queen Slime is paramount for Magic users:
 * The cannot poison the boss nor her slime minions, and while it deals respectable damage still, its limited range makes it an unwise choice for use against the boss, and its inaccurate spread makes it hard to use against the small minion slimes.
 * The dropped by  can deal good damage to Queen Slime and the slimes she summons because of its piercing ability. However, its short range makes it extremely dangerous to try to use against the boss herself, as it leaves the player too open to her melee attacks.


 * For Summoners
 * The is the best staff for this fight, due to its high drop rate, damage and aerial tracking, which allows it to consistently hit Queen Slime through out the second phase. Keep in mind that the  is a rare and formidable enemy in its own right.
 * , despite being a pre-Hardmode summon weapon, receives a buff in Hardmode that makes it viable for Queen Slime, especially when paired with the.
 * Whips, primarily the  and, while not very reliable as primary weapons, greatly increase minions' damage with their damage tags. Their effectiveness increases with the use of Flasks, especially Ichor Flasks.
 * The has very high DPS when used as a main weapon if both the player and their minions are attacking the same target. However its short range makes it a risky choice unless using Obsidian Armor.
 * The 's snowflake effect and long range can be useful for clearing out minions in Phase 1. In Phase 2, if minions such as the Spider Staff cannot hit Queen Slime, then whips may be your only damage source; in this situation, Cool Whip does the most damage.
 * Using Firecracker for the first phase and Cool Whip for the second phase, with Obsidian Armor, is better than using either one alone when using weaker minions such as the Spider Staff and Imp Staff.
 * The is the highest damage summon weapon available at this point in the game if no mechanical bosses have been defeated, but obtaining it requires a lot of luck, and it may be easier or wiser to forego it in favor of more easily-obtainable options. The  is a slightly weaker alternative that is much easier to get. Note that both minions struggle greatly against her second phase due to their lack of flight.
 * This weakness can be somewhat remedied by using the Imp Staff for the 2nd phase, by banishing your ground summons and summoning weaker, but aerial Imp summons.
 * The can help quite a lot with dealing with the many minion slimes, depending on where you place its sentries.

Accessories
There are many great accessories available at this point.
 * ,, or  are the best wings available at this stage, but  are reasonable substitutes.  or better will provide better ground movement.  can also be used because they increase the ascent speed of wings. Those two accessories will allow you to move almost freely through the air and on the ground.
 * The or its upgrades prevents knockback, which can be useful in the second phase as projectiles can cover the screen.
 * The is a defensive accessory that reduces damage if your health starts getting low. The Expert mode exclusive  is also effective.
 * The (or ) will make rapid hits more survivable.
 * The enhances survivability by providing regeneration and reducing the duration of Potion Sickness. To reduce the potion cooldown, it only needs to be equipped during the instant a health potion is drunk.
 * An Emblem provides additional damage for your primary damage type;
 * Yoyo fighters should use a, as it doubles a yoyo's damage output, as well as providing 2 extra counterweights that can do a bit more damage.
 * should be used if using a or any Repeater with /.
 * Magic users who wish to rely less on Mana Potions can equip a pair of /. Slimes drop mana stars frequently.
 * provides a generic increase to DPS and is a decent filler accessory.
 * Summoners should be wearing the Pygmy Necklace for the extra minion slot and damage.
 * The Berserker Glove is an excellent accessory for Summoners, due to its defense increase, bonuses to whip speed and size, as well as enabling whip autoswing. Its recommended to reforge this to Warding rather than Menacing due to the massive defensive boost it provides (+12 Defense on Warding), which helps patch up Summoner armors generally low Defense.

As with most situations in general, it is best to reforge your accessories with damage, critical strike chance or defense increasing modifiers.

Potions

 * ,, , and will greatly increase survivability.
 * are very useful for dodging during her second phase, especially when paired with the
 * Any food item that provides the, Plenty Satisfied, or Exquisitely Stuffed buff is helpful.
 * is a must for mages.
 * will increase mobility.
 * and will improve DPS.
 * ,, or  and  will further improve it for Mages, Rangers, Melee, and Summoner users respectively.

Gravitation Potions
Due to her flight allowing her to keep up with you but out of range of her attacks, which are affected by gravity, makes maneuvering with the an extremely effective strategy in the 2nd phase. Use a strong weapon with range, or flying summons such as the Imp or Sanguine staves, and you should fairly easily dodge all her attacks while flipping gravity and falling while hitting her in return. The Slime Mount is recommended for this in order to boost your falling speed in space and quick fall out of range of her if she approaches too closely. This, paired with the can make her second phase a breeze.

Skybridge
Fighting on a long skybridge can make avoiding the spawned slimes much easier. Queen Slime is fairly slow in her first stage, but her winged form can keep up with the mounts summoned by the Goat Skull and Blessed Apple. Be careful if you reverse directions as all previously summoned slimes will still be alive.

Alternatively, during the second stage, Queen Slime follows a fairly predictable pattern. The player can run back and forth on the skybridge, jumping over projectiles, and Queen Slime will remain at roughly the same height the entire time, making targeting easier.

Water Walking on the Ocean
Using Water Walking Boots or its tinkers or Water Walking Potion, Queen Slime can be fought over the Ocean. Her projectiles will sink into the ocean, and 2/3 of the slimes she summon cannot shoot while they are floating.

Make sure to keep moving with this strategy as Queen Slime will repeatedly sink into the ocean and then teleport to your position in the first phase.

Lava Layer
Like nearly all bosses, the Queen Slime is immune to lava, but her minions are not. A thin layer of lava can be used to take out most of her minions. Combined with Lava Waders, Terraspark Boots, Water Walking Potions, or Obsidian Skin Potion, you can easily decimate her.

The Black Spot Mount (Master Mode Only)
The Black Spot is a great mount for fighting the Queen Slime, as it has infinite flight. Using a strong weapon like Dart Rifle with Cursed Darts, it is possible to kill Queen Slime and her minions very fast. Note that Queen Slime can teleport to you in her first phase, so you have to keep on moving to dodge her attacks. Note that in 1.4.1, the Black Spot got nerfed and is not effective against bosses.