Dungeon

The Dungeon entrance, including the Old Man.

A typical dungeon structure on a large map

The Dungeon is a vast underground brick labyrinth that is generated on World creation, either on the far right or left of the map. It begins at an above-ground entrance structure resembling a castle, and extends down to the deeper Cavern depths. It can appear in a variety of colors, which the game randomly picks when the world is first created. A single Dungeon is generated in each world. Accessing the Dungeon requires first defeating Skeletron (see Access below).

The Dungeon contains unique enemies, whose spawn rates increase the deeper a player travels. There are also several Chests containing both Dungeon-only loot (listed below) and standard underground loot. A Golden Key is required to open each of these, which can be obtained from Pots, Dungeon Slimes, and from other Chests in the Dungeon. These keys can also be saved for later use in opening Floating Island Chests.

A unique characteristic of the Dungeon is that it is densely furnished with placed items that can be retrieved by the player (using a Hammer) for later use. These items include Books, Water Candles, Chain Lanterns, Switches, Dart Traps, and Spikes. The bound Mechanic will also be found here, and can be freed when spoken to.

Several Dart Traps are Wired to Pressure Plates throughout the Dungeon, providing an extra hazard to both players and enemies. One of these is often found above-ground at the Dungeon's entrance. Chain Lanterns are also found wired to Switches, and some are switched off. You can right-click on these switches for a quick light source, instead of having to place your own. All of these items can be freed and picked up for later use by the player.

Access

In order to gain unrestricted access to the Dungeon, Skeletron must first be defeated. Skeletron is summoned by speaking to the Old Man who guards the Dungeon entrance at Night. The "curse" option will display, which will turn the Old Man into Skeletron when clicked. Speaking to the Old Man during the Day will not allow you to fight Skeletron.

The Dungeon can be entered but not fully explored before Skeletron is defeated. Traveling below zero depth in the Dungeon before Skeletron has been defeated will trigger multiple Dungeon Guardians, who will kill you with a single hit.

Dungeon
Enemies	Unique treasures	Unique drops
Angry Bones Blazing Wheel Cursed Skull Dark Caster Dungeon Slime Spike Ball	Aqua Scepter Magic Missile Blue Moon Cobalt Shield Handgun Muramasa Shadow Key	Golden Key Bone (from Angry Bones, Cursed Skull and Dark Caster) Through plundering: Book Dungeon Brick Dungeon Brick Wall Dart Trap Pressure Plate Wire Spike Water Candle Chain Lantern Switch Water Bolt

Notes

• The Dungeon will always be on the side of the map opposite the Jungle. If you're looking for the dungeon and run into a Jungle, turn around and go the other way.
• A player is considered to be in the Dungeon if they're below the depth of -4 feet and standing in front of any naturally-placed Wall, if there are at least 250 Dungeon Bricks on screen.
• You may also farm wires from the dungeon by using a wire cutter.

Anomaly: Sometimes a Dungeon may stretch all the way down to the Underworld.

Anomaly: The Corruption may generate through a Dungeon. This renders immediate access impossible without Explosives, Purification Powder or a Nightmare Pickaxe or higher.

Bug: Very rarely the Old Man may not spawn, allowing immediate access to the Dungeon.

History

• 1.1: Now generated with traps and light sources wired to switches.
• 1.0.6:
  • Dungeons should no longer spawn in the Ocean.
  • Dungeons now spawn with more Spikes and less lighting.
  • Some items no longer spawn in Dungeon as these were meant for non-Dungeon areas.
  • Chests are now locked and must be opened with a Golden Key.
  • New enemies:
    • Blazing Wheel
    • Dungeon Slime
    • Spike Ball
• 1.0.5:
  • Entering the Dungeon before defeating Skeletron now spawns Dungeon Guardian instead of Skeletron’s head.
  • Common Chests are now replaced with Gold Chests.
• Pre-Release: Introduced.