Bows in Terraria keep their designation as the go-to long-ranged weapons of the classic Ranged Class. Players who want to fight from afar in their Terraria experience can rely on the Bow for more tactical gameplay, scoring hits and crits before enemies even have a chance to strike back.
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For first-timers who are still getting the hang of Terraria gameplay, the game’s many Bows can easily make it overwhelming to create their starting Ranged Class builds. After all, one’s Bow determines a Ranged Class character’s overall DPS. However, knowing which pre-Hardmode Bows can dominate bosses quickly can help players prevail against the game’s fiercest foes.
10 Ash Wood Bow
- Damage: 10
- Knockback: 0
- Critical Chance: 4%
- Use Time: 25
- Velocity: 6.6
- Effect: Arrows
Gamers enjoying their long-ranged gameplay in Terraria should start with the Ash Wood Bow for their early-game encounters. The Ash Wood Bow is the best contender for basic bows due to its lackluster but bearable 10 Damage, especially for a weapon craftable with mere Ash Wood.
As with other straightforward weapons in the game, the Ash Wood Bow could improve its overall performance with the right upgrades. However, among the existing Modifiers in the game, perhaps Demonic would provide the best benefit. Aside from a 15% Damage boost, the Ash Wood Bow can enjoy an additional 5% Critical Strike Chance.
9 Gold Bow
- Damage: 11
- Knockback: 0
- Critical Chance: 4%
- Use Time: 26 (Average)
- Velocity: 6.6
- Effect: Arrows
Players on the lookout for a decently-powerful weapon in the early parts of their Terraria gameplay should consider getting the Gold Bow. This Bow is one of the easiest craftable weapons in the game world, especially for players with plenty of Gold Ores. Although beaten by its equivalent Platinum Bow in speed and power, the Gold Bow remains a solid performer in pre-Crimson and pre-Corruption settings before switching gears for tougher fights against the likes of Plantera.
Being a simple Bow, players can improve the Gold Bow’s combat efficiency with the right upgrades. Since Bows rely heavily on taking out foes from afar, a DPS boost from the Deadly Modifier or an overall base damage buff from the Demonic Modifier could be enough to make the Gold Bow a contender before players craft or obtain more powerful weapons.
8 Platinum Bow
- Damage: 13
- Knockback: 0
- Critical Chance: 4%
- Use Time: 25 (Fast)
- Velocity: 6.6
- Effect: Arrows
Among the earliest Bows players can obtain in their Terraria playthrough would be the Platinum Bow, a straightforward-looking platinum bow with red handles on its limbs. Despite its mediocre 13 Damage, the Platinum Bow is the strongest craftable weapon in the world before the Crimtane-based Tendon Bow or the Demonite-based Demon Bow.
Due to its straightforward nature, the Platinum Bow will depend heavily on extra properties to improve its combat performance. Among the various modifiers in the game, the Platinum Bow can benefit from the boosted DPS of the Demonic Modifier while it can also get more base damage with the Deadly Modifier. Regardless of the build, players should consider switching this Bow for a better one prior to the Golem boss fight.
7 Demon Bow
- Damage: 14
- Knockback: 1
- Critical Chance: 4%
- Use Time: 25 (Fast)
- Velocity: 6.7
- Effect: Arrows
Players who want to use a menacing yet artistic Terraria item should consider crafting the Demon Bow. Crafted via 8 x Demonite Bar, the Demon Bow is considered a direct upgrade to the Gold Bow and Platinum Bow in terms of their classification as ore-based weapons.
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The Demon Bow doesn’t have any particular effects, except perhaps its status of being the last craftable Bow players can create before acquiring materials for the Molten Bow in the Underworld. Its direct counterpart in pre-Hardmode is the Tendon Bow. However, what the Demon Bow lacks in strength is its speed when compared to its rival.
6 Blood Rain Bow
- Damage: 14
- Knockback: 3
- Critical Chance: 4%
- Use Time: 19 (Very Fast)
- Velocity: 18
- Effect: Blood Rain
Players who want a unique early-game Bow in their Terraria experience should consider getting the Blood Rain Bow. Acquired from either a Zombie Merman or a Wandering Eye Fish, this red Bow is stylized to have blood droplets throughout its base that reflect its effects. When consuming one arrow, three trails of blood shoot from the sky. This effectively transforms all arrows into Blood Rain bolts, removing all properties but base damage.
Unlike similar rain projectile weapons such as the Daedalus Bow and the Meteor Staff, the Blood Rain arrows tend to spread on a wide angle, making them inaccurate against single targets. However, players can circumvent this caveat by using the weapon on larger enemies such as Terraria bosses, and with high-damage ammo such as Shimmer Arrows.
5 Tendon Bow
- Damage: 19
- Knockback: 1
- Critical Chance: 4%
- Use Time: 30 (Average)
- Velocity: 6.7
- Effect: Arrow
Not all Bows in a player’s Terraria experience have exceptionally-powerful effects, with the Tendon Bow having decent damage without necessarily boasting difficult-to-follow mechanics. Despite its somewhat edgy spiked appearance, the Tendon Bow is not a Terraria event-exclusive item and has 19 Damage with an arcing trajectory.
This is the Crimson biome’s craftable Bow via Crimtane Bars, as opposed to the Demon Bow in the Corruption biome crafted with Demonite Bars. Not much is notable with the Tendon Bow save for its average damage, making it a decent craftable Bow to use before creating the more powerful Molten Fury in the Underworld.
4 Hellwing Bow
- Damage: 22
- Knockback: 5.5
- Critical Chance: 4%
- Use Time: 13
- Velocity: 6
- Effect: Hellwing
When players spend enough time in their Terraria gameplay gathering Shadow Chests and Obsidian Lock Boxes, they may obtain the Hellwing Bow. This red Bow has a bat for a body and converts Wooden Arrows into Hellwings. The Bow doesn’t convert other arrows, therefore allowing them to retain their status effects and base damage. However, all arrows get fired within a 30-degree cone in front of the player.
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The Bow’s spread makes it inaccurate at long distances. Still, its high firing rate makes the Hellwing Bow extremely efficient at closer-range fights against bosses. The Hellwing Bow is the fastest Bow and second-fastest bow-type weapon in the game, losing only to the Repeater weapon the Stake Launcher.
3 The Bee’s Knees
- Damage: 23
- Knockback: 3
- Critical Chance: 4%
- Use Time: 23 (Fast)
- Velocity: 8
- Effect: Bee Arrow
Players can count on their Terraria experience to give them some of the most unique-looking items in the game, with the Bee’s Knees providing such an example. Taking the form of a bow stylized to have a bee head, players can acquire this pre-Hardmode Bow from the Queen Bee. True to its theme, the Bee’s Knees shoots Bee Arrows, essentially a line of bees. When they impact, they disperse into three bees that home into their projectiles.
Gamers who want to maximize their Bee’s Knees should equip a Hive Pack that gives each shot a 50% chance to become a potent Giant Bee that moves faster and provides a heavy knockback. This fast-firing nature makes the Bee’s Knees exceptionally powerful against most bosses in the game.
2 Molten Fury
- Damage: 31
- Knockback: 2
- Critical Chance: 4%
- Use Time: 22 (Fast)
- Velocity: 8
- Effect: Flaming Arrows
Bearing an appearance of a bow about to be melted by lava is the Molten Fury, one of the most potent craftable weapons in a player’s Terraria experience. Molten Fury is created via a Crafting Station with 15 x Hellstone Bars and converts Wooden Arrows into Flaming Arrows.
When used this way, Flaming Arrows that hit opponents suffer the On Fire! debuff that stops Health regeneration on top of 4 Damage per second. Molten Fury shares this property of transforming arrows into flaming variants with the Phantom Phoenix, a Hardmode Bow.
1 Sharanga
- Damage: 36
- Knockback: 2
- Critical Chance: 4%
- Use Time: -
- Velocity: -
- Effect: Spectral Arrows
It’s no surprise that a weapon named after a god’s armament is one of the most potent Bows in a player’s Terraria gameplay even before Hardmode, courtesy of Sharanga. Players can only acquire the Sharanga after crafting it with 10 x Hellstone Bars and 2 x Molten Fury. When used, Sharanga transforms arrows into Spectral Arrows, which is where its special property kicks in.
On top of Sharanga’s potent base damage is the Spectral Arrows inflicting Cursed Inferno on enemies. Afflicted enemies stop their Health regeneration, receive 10% more knockback, and receive 24 Damage per second.
Terraria is playable on PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, Android, and iOS.
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