10 Terraria Tips and Tricks for New Players

Terraria is a remarkable sandbox game with a devout fan base.

It represents a sublime mix of exploration, crafting, combat, and survival. Players are thrown into a procedurally-generated world and forced to fend for themselves. They have a lot of freedom to pursue a host of different goals in a wide-open environment.

But, you shouldn’t let the cartoonish visual style fool you.

Newcomers face an unforgiving environment with a steep learning curve. They may initially struggle to figure out the basics like what components are required to build items, machines, and structures.

Well, the good news is we’ve complied Terraria tips and tricks for you. This is your guide to navigating the 2D side-scrolling environment of Terraria with winds in your sails.

1. Setting It Up

Character creation is the first phase you need to go through.

Don’t get stressed right away because all the options are purely cosmetic. You can have fun with appearance, but it doesn’t affect the gameplay in any way.

When it comes to difficulty, you want to go for the Softcore option. We know it sounds quite wimpy. However, it comes with the right amount of challenges for beginners.

Another thing to decide on at this point is the world size. We would recommend small or medium for one simple reason. It makes your hunt for essential components much easier.

2. Sticking the Landing

After you join a Terraria server and create a character, you appearing on the surface.

You always start pretty barebones. A Copper Shortsword you have isn’t overly useful, even against petty Slimes lurking around. Your best friends are a Pickaxe and an Axe.

The latter is used for chopping trees, which should be your first order of business.

So, start swinging that thing like there’s no tomorrow. Your main objective is to bring enough trees down and acquire material (wood). It allows you to set up the base and survive the first night in this world.

3. From the Ground Up

Building a protective base before nightfall is the next vital endeavor to undertake.

Assuming you collected enough wood, you can choose your location— a stretch of level ground. Under your inventory menu, there’s a crafting menu. Choose a Workbench there, which is the mainstay of all simple crafting projects.

Standing close to it allows you to pick additional options in the crafting menu. Before that though, eliminate any Slimes wandering around to be able to work in peace.

Wooden Walls are your top priority, as you can’t have a proper house without them. You want to go for a large footprint because it supports multiple rooms. Once that is sorted out, enclose yourself with the roof.  

4. When the Night Falls

A day/night cycle is the ebb and flow of life in Terraria.

The night is when much stronger monsters of the Overworld come to pray on players. That’s why we’ve already constructed that big boxy shelter. Provided you haven’t left any cracks in it, you’re pretty much safe.

Note that you can create a Wooden Door to avoid trapping yourself inside. And don’t worry— most monsters can’t open it.

You will also notice it’s rather dark inside your new abode. To remedy the situation, head out to kill a Slime and obtain some gel. You can use it for the torch, which gives you nice illumination in and around your home.

5. Tools of the Trade

Next off, make sure to craft a Wooden Sword and a Wooden Hammer.

The first weapon will enable you to take on stronger enemies. It has a wider attack range, which makes combat way easier beginners. On the other hand, Wooden Hammer is your most useful tool in the early game.

It smashes crafted items, removes background objects, and shapes blocks.

After that, you can start thinking about additional crafting options. Furnace and Iron Anvil expand their spectrum considerably. But, to build them you first need Stone and Iron.

That means one thing— venturing out and digging!

6. Digging Ever Deeper

It’s time to step outside and close the door behind you.

Find a suitable spot for a diagonal shaft stretching downward. The reason not to dig straight down is that’s where the biggest trouble lies. Steer away from those perilous realms for now.

Start with a stair-step shaft around twenty blocks deep. Next, switch to horizontal tunnel digging and explore any caves and caverns you stumble upon. They should contain small deposits of Copper, Stone, and Iron.

Bottlenecks in tunnels are the best places to face and destroy enemies. If you end up dying, get back to the place of your demise to reclaim your goods.

Leaving torches here and there can create a trail of breadcrumb taking you safely home.

7. Onward and Upward

Beyond this early-game stage is a world of limitless possibilities.

It’s always a good idea to build better equipment and tools with the components you collected.

So, arm yourself to the teeth using your newly acquired metallic resources. You’ll need some advanced combat gear to face the monstrosities of the underworld. Venture to the first two subterranean Strata and see how you hold up.

You can also explore the surface for health-boosting items like mushrooms.

Continue upgrading and sprucing up your base of operations. If you build proper empty houses, you will attract friendly NPCs. They offer various services to your character.

More power you!

Time to Utilize Those Terraria Tips and Tricks

Terraria is a challenging and immersive sandbox experience.

Beginner-friendly Terraria tips and tricks we provided should allow you to hit the ground running.  

In a nutshell, you need to get cracking with your tools and gather enough wood to build a shelter. Then, you launch reconnaissance missions and familiarize yourself with the environment around you.

Over time, you should be able to become the well-equipped prospector, a force to be reckoned with.

We haven’t even mentioned wonders like Floating Islands, Underground Jungles, and the Kingdom of Hades. Head there once you’re armed with knowledge and tools.  

Excavate and spelunk your way to glory and untold treasures.  

Feel free to contact us if you have any lingering questions about playing on our servers.