Sniper Rifle

Type	Weapon
Uses ammo	Bullets
Damage	185 / 128 (Ranged)
Knockback	8 (Very strong)
Critical chance	29% / 19%
Use time	36 (Very slow) /; 49 (Extremely slow)
Velocity	16
Tooltip	Shoots a powerful, high velocity bullet; Right click to zoom out
Rarity
Sell	8
Research	1 required
Use	https://terraria.gamepedia.com/File:Item_40.wav

The Sniper Rifle is a Hardmode, post-Plantera ranged weapon that fires a bullet with extremely high damage and velocity, though at a far slower rate of fire than most ranged weapons, and cannot auto-fire (except on the Mobile version). It also has a "zoom" ability. The Sniper Rifle has a 8.33*1/12 (8.33%) / 15.97*23/144 (15.97%) chance to be dropped by Skeleton Snipers, who most commonly spawn in Dungeon areas with Slab Walls during Hardmode after Plantera has been defeated.

The Sniper Rifle's "zoom" ability is functionally identical to that of the Binoculars and the Rifle Scope and its upgrades. It allows the screen to scroll temporarily in the direction of the cursor, essentially extending the viewing range in one direction.

Zoom is activated via one of the following methods:

Desktop version: Hold the right-click button.
Console version: Hold the right stick.
Mobile version: Tap-hold.
3DS version: Move the C-Stick ( users only).

The Sniper Rifle has a base 29% / 19% critical strike chance, as opposed to the usual 4%. It is one of the few weapons lacking auto-fire on the 3DS version. In this category include the Bananarang, and a select few others.

Its best modifier is Unreal, but due to its already-high critical strike chance, the Ruthless modifier may be preferred to maximize damage instead.

Notes[edit | edit source]

A demonstration of the Sniper Rifle's zoom on a Target Dummy.

The Rifle Scope, Sniper Scope, or Recon Scope can stack with the Sniper Rifle's zoom ability to increase zoom, though only slightly. The exact increase depends on the player's game screen resolution. For example, at 800×600, view is increased by 3 tiles; at 1680×1050 by 7 tiles; at 1920×1080 by 15 tiles.
Musket Balls and Silver/Tungsten Bullets fired from this weapon gain the visual effects (but not damage) of High Velocity Bullets. All other ammo types travel at normal speed, and retain their usual appearance.
Zooming will update the Minimap (the same holds true for the Rifle Scope, Sniper Scope, Recon Scope, and Binoculars).
Holding the Sniper Rifle, Binoculars, or any weapon that supports zooming when a Rifle Scope is equipped will change the range at which enemies spawn around the player.
On the 3DS version, the scope glitches the player's sights and makes nearby entities vibrate rapidly.

Tips[edit | edit source]

The Sniper Rifle pairs especially well with the following bullet types, as they help to compensate for its low rate of fire:
- Chlorophyte Bullets, as their homing ability allows easy hits, particularly useful with the Rifle's slow rate of fire.
- Crystal Bullets, as the shards produced can potentially hit multiple targets, and their vastly increased base damage allows them to contribute more significantly to damage output.
- Exploding Bullets, which will hit multiple targets at once with splash damage. However, the Sniper Rifle's enormous base damage also makes Exploding Bullets far more dangerous to use; one misplaced shot can remove around half of a player's health.
- Luminite Bullets, which can be devastating against a whole line of enemies.
- Meteor Shot, which pierces once, effectively doubling the Sniper Rifle's damage output when used against crowds. Its slow rate of fire ensures that enemies do not benefit from piercing invincibility frames.
The Sniper Rifle's main strengths – damage and critical chance – are boosted even further when utilizing the stealth effect of Vortex armor or Shroomite armor, enabling most non-boss enemies to be killed in one shot.
The Sniper Rifle is useful against enemies that teleport when hit, like Diabolists, Necromancers, and Nebula Floaters, due to the high one-shot damage that would usually kill them instantly.
- Nebula Floaters usually take more shots, but they are generally fought in open areas. Chlorophyte Bullets are invaluable in this case.
It is possible to achieve over 100% critical strike chance with the following setup:
- Vortex armor in stealth mode – 47%
- Unreal modifier and base critical strike chance – 34%
- Sniper Scope – 10%
- Destroyer Emblem – 8%
- Celestial Shell – 2%

Additionally, utilizing the damage bonus of a banner, it is possible to deal a devastating 2280 damage to an enemy in one hit.

It is also possible to attain more than 600 base damage and even 700 in Master Mode due to the extra possible accessory slots with the following setup:
- Vortex armor with stealth mode on
- Menacing Destroyer Emblem
- Menacing Avenger Emblem
- Menacing Sniper Scope
- Menacing Ranger Emblem
- Menacing Recon Scope
- Menacing Celestial Shell
- Any other Menacing accessory

Wrath Potion and Well Fed can raise this number even farther.

Utilizing all of the above and a banner, it is possible to deal 3513 to an enemy in one hit.

The Sniper Rifle has a surprisingly low sell value for its power and rarity, making potential reforge costs lower.

Trivia[edit | edit source]

The Sniper Rifle has the highest base critical strike chance of any weapon in the game, beating the Obsidian Swordfish by 5%. It is also tied with the Revolver for highest ranged velocity. While it additionally has one of the highest base damages in the game, it is still beaten by the Zenith, Meowmere, Terrarian, Bunny Cannon, Dynamite, Explosives, and the Holy Hand Grenade. As a ranged weapon however, it is mostly unparalleled.
It can be considered a post-Plantera upgrade of the Dart Rifle on Desktop, Console, and Mobile, and a Hardmode upgrade of the Musket on Old-gen console and 3DS.
The Sniper Rifle, Uzi, and Venus Magnum all share a tooltip.
A Coin Gun using Platinum Coins has the same damage per shot, but it fires 5 times faster, making its effective DPS five times higher than that of the Sniper Rifle.