Dungeon Guardian

Dungeon Guardian

 Classic

 Expert

 Master

Statistics

Type	Flying Enemy
Environment	Dungeon
AI Type	Head
Damage	1000 / 2000
Max Life	9999 / 19998
Defense	9999
KB Resist	10000%

Drops

• Item (Quantity)Rate
• Bone Key
  100%

• Internal NPC ID: 68

For strategies on defeating a Dungeon Guardian, see Guide:Dungeon Guardian strategies.

Dungeon Guardians are enemies that guard the Dungeon against intruders. If a player enters the Dungeon without first killing Skeletron and travels below zero depth (a horizontal border separating the surface from the underground), one or more Dungeon Guardians quickly fly at the player, dealing 1,000 damage each, which effectively kills most players instantly. Dungeon Guardians are large, very fast, and travel through all blocks.

Any player who attacks a Dungeon Guardian, regardless of the weapon or other equipment, will deal only 1 damage, or 2 for critical hits.

Dungeon Guardians are immune to the Poisoned, Venom, On Fire!, Cursed Inferno, Confused, Penetrated, Celled, Daybroken and Shadowflame debuffs, but are not immune to Bleeding.

Quick Answers

What is the role of the Dungeon Guardian in Terraria?

The Dungeon Guardian in Terraria serves as a formidable protector of the Dungeon. This enemy, which resembles Skeletron's head, is designed to guard against intruders. If a player enters the Dungeon in a world where Skeletron has not been defeated and travels below zero depth, one or more Dungeon Guardians will quickly fly at the player.

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How much damage does the Dungeon Guardian deal in Terraria?

The Dungeon Guardian in Terraria deals a whopping 1000/2000/3000 damage with each hit. This makes it one of the most formidable foes in the game, capable of instantly killing most players if they are unprepared. So, if you're planning to face this guardian, make sure you're well-equipped and ready for a tough battle!

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What happens if a player enters the Dungeon in a world where Skeletron has not been defeated?

If a player dares to enter the Dungeon in a world where Skeletron has not been defeated, they're in for a nasty surprise! Dungeon Guardians, the formidable guardians of Terraria, will spawn and attack the player. These dungeon guards are practically invincible and can generally kill most players with a single hit. So, it's best to hit da bricks, skeleton, and defeat Skeletron before venturing into the Dungeon!

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Why is the Dungeon Guardian considered a high threat in Terraria?

The Dungeon Guardian in Terraria is considered a high threat due to its formidable attributes. It guards the Dungeon against intruders and quickly flies at any player who enters the Dungeon in a world where Skeletron has not been defeated. The Dungeon Guardian deals a whopping 1000/2000/3000 damage each, which can instantly kill most players if they are unprepared. It's also very fast, traveling at around 41 mph in all directions, and can travel through all blocks. Furthermore, any player who attacks a Dungeon Guardian will deal only 1 damage, or 2 for critical hits, making it a tough enemy to defeat. This is why it's often referred to as one of the '3000 hit guardians'.

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What strategies can be used to defeat the Dungeon Guardian in Terraria?

Defeating the Dungeon Guardian in Terraria requires some strategic planning. One effective method is to lure the Dungeon Guardian into a circular hoik and throw a boomerang, which prevents it from reaching the player while constantly taking damage. Another strategy involves purchasing teleporters from the Steampunker NPC and laying them out apart from each other. The Portal Gun can also be used to keep the player constantly teleporting, making it nearly impossible for the Dungeon Guardian to hit them. Additionally, the Dungeon Guardian is vulnerable to the Frostburn, Stunned, and Bleeding debuffs, which can be used to the player's advantage.

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Notes

• If you have maximum defense you can survive one hit from the dungeon guardian. (Not required, Beetle Armor with 91 defense and max Beetle shell damage reduction of 45%. Not tested with lower defense.)
• To be considered in the Dungeon, you must be in front of a dungeon wall. Simply having a large number of dungeon bricks on-screen will not count as being in the Dungeon.
• The Dungeon Guardian will override all Dungeon spawns, so the Bound Mechanic and Angry Bones are impossible to come across, even if the player somehow endures the Dungeon Guardian.
• The Dungeon Guardian will not spawn unless you are completely below zero depth and are standing in front of a naturally-spawned dungeon wall.
• It travels at a speed of 41 mph so using a Cosmic Car Key is useful against it as the UFO mount travels at the same speed. The Unicorn Mount's speed reaches 61 mph.
• There can only be up to 15 spawned at any given time.
• The Dungeon Guardian can drop hearts and mana.

Tips

For more elaborate strategies on defeating Dungeon Guardian, including weapon and arena recommendations, see Guide:Dungeon Guardian strategies.

• Because of the extreme effort that must be done to defeat a Dungeon Guardian, and also because its only drop, the Bone Key, isn't very useful, there isn't much point in defeating a Dungeon Guardian unless one wants bragging rights(or is bored, wants a challenge or practice at dodging).
• Killing a Dungeon Guardian is possible, though it would take thousands of hits due to its absurdly high defense. (The Phantasm Bow and Luminite Arrows are recommended, because of the buildup that can easily drain his health by hundreds a second) Combined with the fact that you generally need to contend with multiple Guardians at once, victory is extremely unlikely unless you prepare carefully for the encounter.
• High speed and critical chance are crucial for fighting the Dungeon Guardian, as every hit will do 1 damage, and every critical hit will do 2 damage.
• Dungeon Guardians will adhere to the same spawn limits as any other enemy: if there are too many monsters on-screen at once, they will not spawn.
• An efficient and fast way to defeat the Dungeon Guardian is by using the Phantasm with the Endless Quiver. Although each hit will deal 1-2 damage, the high firing rate and additional homing arrows provide enough damage to deal about 75 damage per second on average. This combined with the UFO Mount and the Stardust Cell or Stardust Dragon can take out Dungeon Guardians in about 5 minutes. This time can be lowered if you do not miss any arrow shots even when turning at the world border.
• The player can outrun the Dungeon Guardian with the Unicorn Mount. The Unicorn Mount's speed reaches 61 mph, faster than the Dungeon Guardian, so the player will need to stop to allow the Dungeon Guardian to catch up.
• Use of a Life Drain is particularly effective against the Dungeon Guardian, as the Life Drain can deal 5 damage a tick.
• Another good way to kill the Dungeon Guardian is to lure it into a circle of ropes, keep going around the ropes. Then, throw a boomerang in the middle. The Dungeon Guardian will stay in the middle, while taking damage from the boomerang.
  • However, the Guardian's speed will almost always overtake the player. This strategy is best done with a circular hoik. (see Travel for more details)
• In  Mobile version the Chlorophyte Shotbow combined with Heart Arrow while wearing full Frost Armor (as the Dungeon Guardian is not immune to Frostburn debuff) can be a good way to defeat the Dungeon Guardian.
• In Expert mode, Dungeon Guardians will have double the health and deal double the damage. Due to this, it is recommended to try and defeat the Dungeon Guardian on a normal world to save time and further troubles.
• If you have android or IOS invincibility mod, you can easily defeat it with tizona, because Dungeon Guardian isn't immune to bleeding. It cause 32 damage per second.

Trivia

• Originally, actual Skeletron Heads were used to guard the Dungeon. Killing all Skeletron Heads would count as defeating Skeletron, so the Dungeon Guardian was created to repair this unintentional behavior.
• Despite being intended to be unbeatable, it is not invincible like Spike Balls, Blazing Wheels, and True Eyes of Cthulhu are.

History

• 1.3.0.1:
  • The speed of Dungeon Guardians and any other mobiles with the Dungeon Guardian Al (Skeletron and Skeletron Prime during day) has been buffed to move faster when flying in clear air.
  • If the Dungeon Guardian is going through blocks then its speed slows down.
  • When trying to outrun it with asphalt blocks, the Dungeon Guardian will chase you down and keep a certain distance near the player until you stop or if it goes through blocks

• 1.2.3:
  • The AI-reset problem has now been fixed, causing Turtle armor to no longer deal massive damage. The damage is now reduced to 1, like all other attacks.
  • Defense raised from 9000 to 9999.

• 1.2.0.3: Damage reduced from 9000 to 1000, to prevent Turtle armor from dealing too much damage, however the exploit still works due to the Dungeon Guardian's AI resetting the damage (see [Discussion of this exploit] for details).

• 1.2: Now drops a Bone Key upon death.

• 1.0.5: Introduced, replacing Skeletron Heads as the Dungeon's guards.

References

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