Terraria Wiki
Advertisement
Terraria Wiki

Skeletron Prime is the Hard Mode equivalent of Skeletron. It is comprised of a head and four arms, each with different HP, power, defense and attack patterns. In total, he has 59,000 health.

There are two ways to spawn Skeletron Prime:

  1. If Skeletron Prime has not been defeated in a particular world, it will sometimes spawn at night on its own. If this happens, then it will be heralded by the message "You feel the air getting cold around you..." appearing at dusk. So long as the player is not underground, the boss will spawn shortly after this message appears.
    • If the player is underground when they receive this message, Skeletron Prime will only spawn if they arrive above ground at the time he would normally spawn. If they venture above ground after that time, he will not spawn.
  2. Using a Mechanical Skull (not to be confused with Suspicious Looking Skull) at night will spawn Skeletron Prime.

When killed, he will drop about 20-40 Souls of Fright, 14 Gold Coins, and 5-15 Greater Healing Potions. He will also drop 20-30 hallowed bars and has a rare chance to drop a Skeletron Prime Trophy, or a Skeletron Prime Mask. Like Skeletron, the hands do not drop anything.

If all players are killed, Skeletron Prime will disappear underground. The only way to see him again is to summon him.

 	Terraria_-_Skeletron_Prime_Solo_Adamantite_Armor_Terraria_HERO 	 			  

Overview[]

Skeletron Prime is comprised of five individual parts: the head and four different limbs. This makes it the most complex Boss in Terraria yet. Although The Destroyer has even more parts, it's a worm, which means that every part is the same.

Skeletron Prime Head[]

This is the part with the most HP and is also the main part of the boss: when this part is destroyed, Skeletron Prime is defeated. Its attack pattern is the same as Skeletron: it will usually keep its distance from the player, but will periodically start spinning and lunge at them for increased damage and defense. However, unlike Skeletron, it will extract spikes from its head when attacking, which give it a slightly larger range, so care must be taken to not get too close. Do acknowledge that also unlike Skeletron, its defense goes up during its spinning attack.

Prime Laser[]

The Prime Laser orbits around the head, shooting a low-damage beam at the player every time it is facing them. With 6,000 HP and a low amount of defense, it is the least threatening of the boss's weapons, although it is not to be underestimated. It will sometimes lock on to the player and shoot several beams in succession, so active dodging is recommended.

Prime Cannon[]

The Prime Cannon is slightly more resistant than the Laser (7,000 HP) and will periodically shoot prime bombs that deal average damage to a player (about 30 per shot with a full Adamantite set). Depending on its own state and that of the other limbs, it will start replacing the single shots with volleys of 3-5 cannonballs, so it is best to keep moving, especially when the boss is directly above the player. The bombs inflict the Debuff "Confused" and other ailments.

Note: The cannon balls only explode on contact with a solid block, and will pass straight through Wood Platforms, so standing on an aptly-built line of them will render this weapon useless. Using a form of flying (Gravitation Potion, for example), will also allow you to avoid the cannon's balls.

Prime Vice[]

The Prime Vice is Skeletron Prime's main melee weapon. When near the player, it will make a lunge at them. It has 9,000 HP and greater defense than the ranged weapons, and also has a rather large hitbox, so it will likely intercept part of the bullets shot at the head.

Prime Saw[]

The Prime Saw is the boss's most dangerous weapon. It has 9,000 HP, the most defense of all limbs, and its attack is a lunge at the player that, when it connects, scores a rapid streak of powerful hits. As long as the Prime Saw is on the field, extra care should be taken in order to prevent getting too close, lest the player quickly loses a lot of health to this attack. A Cross Necklace can be used to lessen the damage done by this weapon due to the fact that it increases the duration of invincibility after being attacked.

Pointers and Behavior[]

  • Unlike most summonable bosses, Skeletron Prime will not despawn at dawn, but, similar to Skeletron, will act like a dungeon guardian, but travels at 65 MPH, ultimately killing them in one blow. It is, therefore, best to summon him just after sunset (7:30 PM in-game). This way, they will have a maximum of 15 minutes to fight the boss.
  • Skeletron Prime will react to most attacks by backing away from the player, often off-screen so using fullscreen mode with a large resolution is recommended.
  • The Vice and Saw will briefly detach from the body whenever they attack the player: this is a good chance to score some hits at the head without the risk of the shots being blocked.
  • Like Skeletron, the hands' hitbox doesn't include the arms, so it is safer and simpler to just jump over them rather than completely move out of the way.
  • Avoid using explosives like Hellfire Arrows or Grenades; a melee attack could suddenly block the projectile and the splash damage could hurt you badly.
    • However, Hellfire Arrows no longer damage the user after an update, so they can be perfectly usable.
  • Each part of the boss can target a different player; This allows a team of players to split them up, causing them to spread out and become less effective.
  • Be careful using rapid-Mana costing weapons as you can run out of Mana very quickly. Always have an alternative like long reach melee weapons (like Vampire Knives, but it's a post-plantera item) or ranged weapons when you do.
  • He is not immune to Ichor nor Cursed Inferno.
  • If you destroy all his limbs quickly, he will be almost completely defenseless. By then, you could easily wreck him.

Strategy[]

  • Since the battle can drag for quite a bit, it is advisable to wear the best pieces of armor available, since Skeletron Prime has a huge arsenal of attacks, it is likely that the player will take many hits during the battle, so maximizing defense should be the main priority.
  • Bring powerful ranged weapons; the Megashark will deal lots of damage quickly, while the Hallowed Repeater (or the Adamantite Repeater if you have not yet defeated any of the Mechanical Bosses) will let you exploit the buff from Archery Potion and use the special attacks of several arrows to quickly deal with all the parts. A Star Cannon can deal large amounts of damage but would require a huge amount of ammunition (Fallen Stars) to be a viable option. Onyx Blaster is a powerful shotgun that is also suited to this strategy. Ichor bullets serve the best, because the Boss is vulnerable to it.
  • For magic users, recommended spells are Golden Shower, Crystal Storm, Nimbus Rod and Cursed Flames.
  • For melee users, a powerful spear like Adamantite Glaive or Titanium Trident is recommended, because you can attack while moving backward and deal thousands of damage easily when Skeletron Prime spins his head.
    • You can use a broadsword as an alternative for the spear, but that will increase the chance of being injured by the head and may cause a swift death.
    • Going Around In A Circle Pattern Can Help
  • If you have the materials, try using Frost Armor, Golden Shower, 5-15 Greater Healing Potions, and a Megashark. Use Golden Shower to give the boss the Ichor Debuff and switch with Megashark for higher DPS. Repeat when the debuff wears off. (Or you can use Ichor bullets)
  • Other than attacking the player and blocking their way, the hands will protect the head against any non-piercing weapon: Holy Arrows, Crystal Bullets and/or the Cursed Flames spell are a good way to pierce through its defenses and damage the head and arms simultaneously.
  • Since Skeletron Prime tends to move back and forth relative to the player, it is best to stand ground in one place (preferably fitted with a heart/star generator) and go after the boss every time it is in range, then coming back down and waiting for it to descend again. Rocket Boots and Wings greatly aid this strategy.
  • Once the boss is down to one or no arms, the head can be easily finished off with a spear or flail, since they can score several hits per use and the head's movement is predictable enough.
  • If you don't want to make an arena, you could also try to fly around with Gravitation Potions and Wings while shooting Skeletron, which also makes it easier to visit the Nurse when necessary without risking her death. Summon Skeletron and fly around dodging.
  • For Melee users, it is recommended to attack Skeletron's arms first, since when those are gone the fight is much simpler.
  • Craft the Golden Shower and hit Skeletron Prime's head (Keep hitting him until you are out of Mana). Then if you have a Megashark and some bullets, aim for his head and shoot him (It can help when he is spinning). Once his head is yellow (because of the Golden Shower), that means he has lowered defense. Keep shooting the Megashark until you are back at full mana or his head has turned back to normal color. Once you have your mana back, hit him with the Golden Shower (you will not be able to use it if you do not have mana). Shoot him with the Golden shower and dodge his attacks, repeating the strategy over again until you defeat him. A tip is to fight Skeletron Prime on a bridge or flat surface.
  • A thing to remember is that Skeletron Prime's head is immune to the Cursed Inferno Debuff, but its hands are not. Bring along Cursed Bullets/Cursed Arrows if you are a ranged user, or the Cursed Flames weapon if you are a magic user. If you are playing console/mobile, you can also use the Sharanga with Wooden Arrows, as the Sharanga will transform the arrows into Spectral Arrows, which are essentially stronger Cursed Arrows.
  • It is not recommended to use the Flower of Fire, as the Prime Vice and Prime Saw can easily block the projectile, and its On Fire! debuff is weaker than the Cursed Inferno.
  • The Crystal Ball's Clairvoyance buff can be useful to Magic users. For melee users or gunners, the Wrath Potion can help. For archers, the Archery Potion may assist.
  • If you are on mobile use the Banarang, it does a lot of damage to him if you know how to aim.
  • Ichor Arrows are effective with any repeater.

Notes[]

  • At dawn, Skeletron Prime gains an incredible damage and defense boost. Thus, players should refrain from summoning him close to dawn and instead, summon him right after dusk.
  • There is a chance that any monster during Hard Mode will drop the Mechanical Skull if the boss has not been defeated in that world.
  • It seems Skeletron Prime, as well the other two mechanical bosses, only starts its natural spawn attacks at night after the first demon altar is destroyed. This has not been confirmed.
  • Prime laser,Prime saw,Prime vice,and Prime cannon all used to be a boss on mobile and dropped only Greater Healing Potions.This has changed and the arms no longer drop anything on death,nor count as a boss
  • Very rarely, when killing the Prime vice, instead of saying, ''Prime Vice has been defeated!'' It would rather say:''Prime Voice has been defeated!'' As no longer being a boss, it does not have a death quote.

Trivia[]

  • Skeletron Prime has a head and hands made of metal, while its arms remain made of bone.
  • The name seems to be a reference to Megatron and Optimus Prime from the Transformers franchise, as well as Skeletor from the He-Man television series.

Bugs[]

  • It is possible that when he dies, Skeletron Prime will vanish, not drop anything, and his limbs can still be attacked for a few seconds despite him being dead.
  • Rarely, Skeletron Prime will not spawn when the player has used the Mechanical Skull or the message, "The Air Is Getting Cold Around You...", has appeared.
    • The player can force this to happen by saving and exiting as soon as the icon, "The Air Is Getting Cold Around You...", appears. After this is done, the player can reload the world without Skeletron Prime spawning.
  • Sometimes the Hallowed bars will just disappear when they are collected (needs confirmation, possibly mobile only).
  • Icon xbox360 Icon ps3 Sometimes at dawn, Skeletron Prime (Guardian form) will fly above you and make it easy to kill him with a sword, however, you only do 1 damage.
  • Icon xbox360 Icon ps3 Sometimes when fighting: The Destroyer, The Twins, Ocram, and Skeletron Prime all at once, he will disappear.
  • Sometimes, if the player wears Turtle armor (full set) at dawn and the boss rushes the player, the 9999 damage will instantly defeat a player, but, due to the Turtle Armor's high Thorns Effect, Skeletron Prime will also be defeated, and drop the items, even if he has 9999+ health or an absurd amount of defense.
  • Icon xbox360 Sometimes when flying up to world height and making Skeletron disappear above the screen, Skeletron Prime will lose all his body parts except for his Saw.
  • Rarely, Skeletron Prime will spawn without arms. Skeletron has this bug as well.

Update Info[]

v1.3.5

  • Sprite updated.

v1.3.0.1

v1.2.3

  • Now drops Skeletron Prime Mask.
  • Fixed a bug where destroying the Prime Cannon killed Skeletron Prime.
  • Increased health of all Prime limbs.

v1.2.1.1

v1.2

  • Can now sometimes spawn arbitrarily at night after defeating the Wall of Flesh, indicated by receiving the message "You feel the air getting colder around you..." at dusk.
  • Now drops Skeletron Prime Trophy.
  • Reduced health of all Prime limbs and head.

v1.1

  • Added to the game.

Gallery[]


Monsters (Hardmode Monsters are in italic)
Slime Monsters Baby Slime · Black Slime · Blue Slime · Corrupt Slime · Crimslime · Dungeon Slime · Green Slime · Hoppin' Jack · Ice Slime · Illuminant Slime · Jungle Slime · Lava Slime · Mother Slime · Pinky · Purple Slime · Red Slime · Sand Slime · Shadow Slime3DS · Slimeling · Slimer · Spiked Ice Slime · Spiked Jungle Slime · Toxic Sludge · Umbrella Slime · Yellow Slime
Goblins Goblin Archer · Goblin Peon · Goblin Scout · Goblin Sorcerer · Goblin Thief · Goblin Warrior · Goblin Summoner
Undead Monsters Angry Bones · Armored Skeleton · Big Boned · Blue Armored Bones · Bone Lee · Dark Caster · Doctor Bones · Heavy Skeleton · Hell Armored Bones · Rusty Armored Bones · Short Bones · Skeleton · Skeleton Archer · Skeleton Commando · Skeleton Sniper · Tactical Skeleton · The Groom · Tim · Undead Miner · Undead Viking · Vampire Miner3DS · Zombie
Humanoids Chaos Elemental · Clown · Dark Mummy · Light Mummy · Mummy · Nymph · Possessed Armor · Shadow Mummy3DS Spectral Elemental3DS · Spectral Mummy3DS · Werewolf
Mages Dark Caster · Fire Imp · Goblin Sorcerer · Tim · Rune Wizard · Desert Spirit
Plant Monsters Angry Trapper · Dragon Snatcher3DS · Clinger · Man Eater · Snatcher
Burrowing Monsters Bone Serpent · Devourer · Digger · Giant Worm · World Feeder · Tomb Crawler · Dune Splicer
Flying Monsters Angry Nimbus · Antlion Swarmer · Arch Demon3DS · Big Eater · Big Stinger · Bird · Cave Bat · Corruptor · Crimera · Crimson Axe · Cursed Hammer · Cursed Skull · Demon · Demon Eye · Dragon Hornet3DS · Dragon Skull3DS · Dragon Stinger3DS · Drippler · Eater of Souls · Enchanted Sword · Floaty Gross · Flying Fish · Gastropod · Ghost · Giant Bat · Giant Cursed Skull · Giant Flying Fox · Harpy · Hellbat · Hornet · Ice Bat · Ichor Sticker · Illuminant Bat · Jungle Bat · Lava Bat · Little Eater · Little Stinger · Meteor Head · Moss Hornet · Pixie · Raven · Red Devil · Shadow Hammer3DS · Spectral GastropodConsole · Voodoo Demon · Vulture · Wandering Eye · Wraith
Swimming Monsters Angler Fish · Arapaima · Blue Jellyfish · Corrupt Goldfish · Crimtane Goldfish · Goldfish · Green Jellyfish · Orca3DS · Pink Jellyfish · Piranha · Shark · Squid
Hopping Monsters Bunny · Corrupt Bunny · Crimtane Bunny · Derpling · Giant Shelly · Giant Tortoise · Herpling · Ice Tortoise · Mimic · Slimes
Mini-Boss Monsters Arch Wyvern3DS · Dreadnautilus · Wyvern
Boss Monsters Brain of Cthulhu · Duke Fishron · Eater of Worlds · Eye of Cthulhu · King Slime · Empress of Light · Queen Slime · Golem · Ocram3DS · Plantera · Queen Bee · Skeletron · Skeletron Prime · The Destroyer · The Twins · Wall of Flesh · Mourning Wood · Pumpking · Everscream · Santa-NK1 · Ice Queen · Martian Saucer · Lunatic Cultist · Nebula Pillar · Solar Pillar · Stardust Pillar · Vortex Pillar · Moon LordFinal Boss
Boss-Related Monsters Dungeon Guardian · Leech · Probe · Servant of Cthulhu · Servant of Ocram3DS · The Hungry
Immortal Blazing Wheel · Spike Ball
Projectile Burning Sphere · Chaos Ball
Other Albino Antlion3DS · Angry Tumbler · Antlion · Antlion Charger · Antlion Swarmer · Crab · Crawdad · Jungle Creeper · Mr. Stabby · Salamander · Snow Balla · Snowman Gangsta · Unicorn
Advertisement