Solar Flare Armor – The Best Pre-Moon Lord Armor in Terraria
If you‘re gearing up to face the Moon Lord and take on Terraria‘s most intense post-Moon Lord challenges, the Solar Flare armor set is your best bet for survivability, DPS, and well-rounded performance.
Crafted from Luminite bars and Solar Fragments dropped by the Moon Lord and Solar Pillar, Solar Flare armor offers unmatched defense and melee power before the final boss.
Solar Flare Armor set bonus causes large explosions during combat
Below I‘ll compare all the endgame armor sets in depth, along with optimal pairings. As a passionate Terraria gamer myself, Solar has proven most reliable for taking down expert/master Moon Lord, daytime Empress of Light, dungeon defenders, and pesky bosses like Duke Fishron.
Overview of Post-Lunar Event Tier Armors
The four endgame "Tier 3" armors crafted at the Ancient Manipulator from Moon Lord drops all provide excellent offensive and defensive capabilities. Which is right for you depends on playstyle and class.
| Armor Set | Crafting Materials | Defense | Set Bonus |
|---|---|---|---|
| Solar Flare | 59 Luminite Bars + 45 Solar Fragments | 78 | Periodic solar explosions during combat |
| Vortex | 59 Luminite Bars + 45 Vortex Fragments | 70 | Ranged ammo conservation + 30% chance not to consume ammo + stealth damage boost |
| Nebula | 59 Luminite Bars + 45 Nebula Fragments | 60 | +25% magic and minion damage, -15% mana usage |
| Stardust | 59 Luminite Bars + 45 Stardust Fragments | 50 | 5 extra minion slots + minions target enemies much faster |
While stats tell part of the story, personal playstyle matters too. Let‘s analyze each armor set in-depth:
Solar Flare – Jack of All Trades Melee Armor
With 78 base defense and Thorium mod compatibility, Solar Flare armor is inarguably the best overall pre-Moon Lord armor for defense and DPS. The explosive set bonus wrecks bosses and events.
However, Solar Flare is still outclassed in magic/minion/ranged capabilities by class-specific armors like Nebula and Stardust. It makes an excellent fallback for mixed class players though, boosting all melee and whips.
When combined with endgame melee weapons like the Infinity Blade, Solar Eruption or Eye of Cthulu yoyos, few enemies stand a chance against this armor‘s sheer resilience and close-quarters devastation.
Pair With: Warrior Emblem, Melee speed/crit accessories like the Fire Gauntlet, EoC shield and Master Ninja Gear for mobility.
Nebula – Mage Armor with a Bite
Optimizing mana usage and magic damage, the Nebula set is tailored for mages relying on high DPS spells and weapons. The set bonus spawns damaging worms when hit too, complementing your magical arsenal.
With lower base defense than Solar but better damage potential, Nebula demands an evasive playstyle. Utilize wings, hooks and speed accessories to avoid hits while bombarding enemies safely.
Combining Nebula with the quintessential Last Prism laser absolutely melts Moon Lord and invading events. The mana cost reduction is a godsend for spell spam too. You‘ll have enemies fleeing from clouds of deadly magical homing projectiles in no time!
Pair With: Mana Flower, Celestial Cuffs, Magic Cuffs, mana regen potions to fuel your endless magical barrages. Sorcerer Emblem tops it off nicely as well.
Vortex – Ammo Efficient Ranged Deep Striker
Going invisible and picking off bosses from a distance with an Ultrabright Rainbow Gun sounds nice doesn‘t it? That‘s exactly the Vortex armor‘s specialty.
While less flashy than mages, Vortex Ranger builds excel by optimizing ammo usage for endless gun and rocket spam. The 30% not to consume ammo set bonus takes this further, sometimes negating ammo use altogether!
Once enemies close in, Vortex‘s stealth set bonus kicks in: +45% ranged crit and +15% ranged damage when invisible. This also pairs wonderfully with the Xenopopper‘s bubbles to boost DPS against Moon Lord‘s core.
Add sniper/teleport accessories like Asgard‘s Valor and the Ranger Emblem, and Vortex Rangers become ruthlessly efficient armor penetrating machines.
Pair With: Ammo Box/Ammo Reservation Potions, Ranger Emblem, Sniper Scope, wings for aerial distance shots
Stardust – Minion Master Army Builder
While less exciting alone, a Stardust Summoner becomes an unstoppable force once their minion army joins the fray. With 5 extra minion slots (10 total) and massively boosted minion speeds, Stardust turns bosses into walking pincushions.
At only 50 defense, avoiding hits is critical for Stardust summoners. Focus on keeping distance and buffing minions rather than direct combat. The Staff of the Mech Worm‘s barrage alone will shred Moon Lord with Stardust‘s bonuses.
An overlooked benefit is Stardust‘s fantastic crowd control from herded enemies. Supplementing Stardust with sentry summons and whips/flails to control hordes creates extremely safe environments for all classes too in events/invasions!
Pair With: Summoner Emblem, Summoning & Wrath potions, Obsidian/Spinal Tap armor spikes, Necromantic Scroll, Pygmy Necklace, additional minion gear
Pick Your Set Based on Class & Playstyle!
While Solar Flare is the best generalist armor for survivability and flexible builds, the other post-Moon Lord sets have unique specialized strengths.
Choose armor supporting your favorite Terraria class and gameplay style. Nebula allows spell spammers to trivialize events through endless magical explosions. Vortex enables strategic ranged snipers to pierce deeply and conserve ammo. And Stardust transforms summoners into master puppeteers commanding mighty minion armies.
The core takeaway is Solar Flare‘s all-around potency for multiplayer and solo melee/whip builds. But ultimately having fun while dishing out damage is what matters most!
Let me know in the comments if this guide helped you choose your optimal pre-Moon Lord armor set!
