A meteorite in Terraria is a special type of ore that appears after a specific event – the fall of a meteor. You won’t find it anywhere right after the natural generation of the world; it only shows up when a meteor crashes onto the surface at a random location, leaving behind a crater filled with meteorite blocks.
For a meteorite to fall, one condition must be met: in your world, one of the major pre-Hardmode bosses must be defeated – the Eater of Worlds (if your world generated with the Corruption biome) or the Brain of Cthulhu (if your world generated with the Crimson biome). Only then does the game enable the generation of meteor crash sites.
From a meteorite, you can mine Meteorite Ore and then smelt it into Meteorite Bars, which are essential crafting materials for unique pre-Hardmode equipment, such as the Space Gun or the Phaseblades.
1. Defeat the Boss
The first step you need to take is to defeat one of the early bosses connected to the evil biome in your world. Depending on whether you got Corruption or Crimson, you’ll be facing a completely different opponent.
Eater of Worlds in Corruption biome
The Corruption biome is a dark, decayed area characterized by purple grass, rotten stone blocks, thorny vines, and aggressive monsters. Every world generates with one such evil biome, and in a Corruption world you can summon the Eater of Worlds in two ways:
- Destroying 3 Shadow Orbs – these orbs are found inside the deep chasms of the Corruption. Breaking three of them will trigger the boss to spawn.
- Using Worm Food – this item can be consumed inside the Corruption or Underground Corruption to summon the Eater of Worlds at any time.
The Eater of Worlds itself is a massive worm made up of many body segments, each with its own health bar. When a middle segment is destroyed, the worm splits into two smaller worms, which continue the fight.
Brain of Cthulhu in Crimson biome
The Crimson biome has a fleshy, blood-red aesthetic, with pulsating blocks and infection-themed monsters. If your world generated with this biome, that’s where you need to go to summon the Brain of Cthulhu, using one of two methods:
- Destroying 3 Crimson Hearts – red hearts found deep within the branches of the Crimson.
- Using a Bloody Spine – this item can be used within the Crimson or Underground Crimson at any time.
2. Locate the Meteorite
When the message “A meteorite has landed!” appears, the real challenge begins – you must find the crater and explore it carefully. The place where the meteorite has fallen turns into a mini-biome, where flying enemies spawn that can pass through blocks and relentlessly chase the player. The meteorite always lands on the surface of the world, in a random location chosen according to a few rules. A crater will never appear right next to the spawn point, inside a settlement, or at the edges of the map. It usually strikes relatively flat ground, creating a distinctive hole filled with glowing blocks.
As you approach the area, you’ll notice that standing on these blocks inflicts damage unless you have proper fire protection. The crater can also be spotted on the map as a clearly contrasting patch against the surrounding biomes. It’s important to remember that until you mine out most of the ore, Meteor Heads will continuously harass the player, making exploration even more difficult.
