How to Beat the Eye of Cthulhu in Master Mode

In this guide I’ll be covering the Eye of Cthulhu, the second boss in the game. Although he’s normally pretty easy on classic mode, he has an insane dash attack on Master Mode that’ll become almost impossible to avoid.

I’ll show you the best strategy to beat him, and the best gear to use for the fight.

Recommended Gear

So the first thing you need to do is get the best armor you can at this point. It’ll either be Gold armor or Platinum armor depending on the ore that spawns in your world. You can’t get that many good accessories at the moment, but a Blizzard in a Bottle is one of the best things to use. For the fight I had Terraspark Boots Equipped, but you honestly don’t even need those.

For a weapon you’ll either want a Musket or the Undertaker, since both work extremely well. You get these by blowing up Shadow Orbs or Crimson Hearts with bombs. 

One thing you will need though is a good grappling hook like the Ruby Hook. This helps you use the arena to evade the Eye’s attacks.

Arena Setup

For this strategy to work, you need to set up an arena with wooden platforms a good distance apart. I like to make it 4 or 5 layers high, but you can add more to make it easier. So now what you need to do is build a house with a bed in it at the edge of the arena. Let the Nurse spawn in here, and have a good amount of money in your piggy bank for healing.

Along the arena, place some campfires and even heart crystals if you have enough of them by now. I didn’t use any buffs just to show you how well this strategy works, but buffs will make it even easier.

Boss Strategy

Start the fight using a Suspicious Looking Eye, and the boss will spawn and start summoning his minions. Throughout the fight, you’ll want to eliminate as many of the small enemies as possible, or else they could kill you in the middle of the fight.

Keep running away from the Eye and dodging, all while shooting him with your weapon. At the halfway point, he starts to go into his second phase, and it’s a great opportunity to damage him while he spins.

At this point, he starts doing dash attacks, which you can avoid at first by using the grappling hook. After a little bit though, they become impossible to dodge, which is where the Nurse comes in. When you get to about half health, spawn in the Nurses house and quickly heal. 

I like to do it at half health since you die so quickly on master mode. Keep doing this and dodging his attacks until you beat him, and once you do you’ll receive the amazing Shield of Cthulhu accessory and Master Mode trophy.