Guide:Crabulon strategies

Crabulon is a Pre-Hardmode boss that is usually fought after defeating the Eye of Cthulhu. Crabulon can be spawned with a Decapodita Sprout while in a Glowing Mushroom biome.

This guide will mention items exclusive to Expert and Revengeance Mode with no special formatting and will follow the intended progression.

Terrain Preparation
Fighting Crabulon in a naturally generated Glowing Mushroom biome can be difficult, so it is recommended to either modify an existing biome to make it more suitable for the fight or to create an artificial Glowing Mushroom biome from scratch. Note that the arena still requires to be underground, as Crabulon will enrage if it is fought above ground or outside the Glowing Mushroom biome. A row of platforms roughly 15 blocks up from the ground can serve as a way to easily move around Crabulon.

Armor

 * Victide armor is generally preferred at this point for all classes.
 * A Wizard Hat, combined with the Diamond Robe and Jungle Pants is the best combo for Mages at this point due to its massive mana pool and damage potential.
 * However, full Jungle armor can be used if the player prefers higher defense.
 * Using a Gypsy Robe instead of the Diamond Robe trades mana usage reduction for damage and critical strike chance.
 * Obsidian armor or Gladiator armor can be used over Victide for rogue players due to their higher defense and damage boosts. Ninja armor can also be used for its high offensive stat boosts to rogue.

Accessories

 * Luxor's Gift greatly increases damage output for all classes.
 * As a summoner, use the Magical Conch to summon the glyph, as that will give it higher damage.
 * A double jumping accessory such as the Sandstorm in a Bottle will drastically help in dodging Crabulon's attacks.
 * A Shiny Red Balloon or even better, the Bundle of Balloons will increase mobility even further.
 * The Frog Leg, or Aero Stone can be used to boost the power of each jump for additional mobility.
 * The Hermes Boots, Sailfish Boots or Flurry Boots are good options for additional speed. The upgrades of Hermes Boots also provide flight, making them even better for movement.
 * The Counter Scarf and the Shield of Cthulhu are useful for making quick turns and evasive maneuvers.
 * Mage players should use the Mana Flower and the Celestial Cuffs to quickly recover mana.
 * Summoners can boost their minion damage with the Spirit Glyph or Voltaic Jelly.
 * Rogue users will find the Raider's Talisman useful to boost their damage output.
 * The Coin of Deceit has an inferior damage increase, but doesnt have the downside of having to be charged.

Melee

 * The Bladecrest Oathsword can make quick work of Crabulon due to its high base damage and spinning projectile.
 * Alternatively, the Seashine Sword can be used, though it has an inferior damage output.
 * The Eutrophic Shank is a short-ranged option that deals high damage to Crabulon.
 * The Riptide can deal decent damage to Crabulon due to its long airtime and aqua streams.

Ranged

 * The Barinade can deal decent damage to Crabulon when paired with Frostburn Arrows or Unholy Arrows.
 * The Minishark and the Pumpler is very effective against Crabulon when paired with Acceleration Rounds.
 * Using the Pumpler's right click ability to lay some pumpkins before the fight is a good way to get a slight headstart.

Mage

 * The Acid Gun is extremely powerful for this fight due to its high damage and ability to pierce, allowing players to damage Crabulon while putting its Crab Shrooms to the side.
 * Spell tomes such as the Frost Bolt, Water Bolt, and the Coral Spout are extremely powerful against Crabulon.
 * The Storm Spray can make quick work of both Crabulon and its Crab Shrooms.

Summoner

 * The Seabound Staff can deal decent damage to Crabulon due to its quick attacks.
 * The Magical Conch will also deal massive damage, but it requires the player to stay on the ground and can be inconsistent depending on the terrain.
 * When paired with the Shark Tooth Necklace, the Belladonna Spirit Staff deals great damage to Crabulon.
 * The Frost Blossom Staff can take care of the Mushroom Spores that Crabulon summons.

Rogue

 * The Crystalline can deal good damage to Crabulon, and can quickly take care of its Shrooms.
 * The Seafoam Bomb deals decent damage to Crabulon due to its lingering bubbles.
 * The Dune Hopper does well against Crabulon because of its piercing, although it may be hard to obtain due to its rarity.
 * The Scourge of the Desert has a bit less damage, but is much more common.

Classless

 * The Marked Magnum is a good choice for all players to reduce Crabulon's damage reduction in Revengeance Mode or higher.

Miscellaneous

 * The Tesla Potion is very helpful against Crabulon's spores, as the damage it causes and the freezing effect can easily decimate them.
 * The Well Fed buff provides a useful all around stat boost.

The Fight
Crabulon will spawn on top of the player when summoned. Crabulon will remain passive for 5 seconds or until it takes over 100 damage, then the fight will begin. Crabulon starts by slowly walking towards the player, use this time to damage Crabulon as much as you can. It will pause shortly after and begin to fire Crab Shrooms. The more you damage Crabulon, the more Crab Shrooms are fired, and the faster they travel. A distinct noise is made when Shrooms are fired, so if Crabulon is off screen, you should be able to recognize if it fired its shrooms. Crab Shrooms will also slowly float towards the ground, but they can be easily destroyed in a few hits.

Crabulon will also occasionally jump towards you, increasing in height depending on how high you are from it, Crabulon has very high contact damage and you should take note whenever it jumps. Strafing left or right can dodge Crabulon's jumps. Crabulon will always jump three times.

Crabulon's final attack is a Shroom volley where many Crab Shrooms rain down towards you. These easily can be dodged by squeezing in-between them, but keep in mind that Crabulon and the Crab Shrooms will still be a threat during this phase.

Crabulon has no second phase. Thus, the same steps you took throughout the fight should be repeated.

In Death Mode, the boss will move quicker, fire even more Crab Shrooms, and attack more often as it loses health. The primary strategy players take should not change from these however.

General Tips

 * A Hook can save your life by resetting your jumps and by preventing fall damage with a well-timed grapple.
 * It might be a good idea to position your spawn near the Nurse, as Crabulon cannot despawn and has slow horizontal movement speed. This means you can recall back and heal, effectively giving you infinite health, provided you have enough coins.
 * Don't leave too many Crab Shrooms alive, as they float slowly and can quickly overwhelm you if left unattended.
 * Killing them is especially beneficial to Mages as Crab Shrooms will drop Mana Stars.