Terraria 1.4.5 new summons: the nine whips and the summoner rework
Version 1.4.5, "Bigger & Boulder", landed on 27 January 2026 as the first Terraria content update since 1.4.4 in 2022. It added more than 650 new items, taking the total past 6,000 — and nine of those were new whips, all aimed squarely at the summoner class, which also got a reworked prefix system.
If you play summoner, this is the update you have been waiting for. Here is what actually changed.
What a whip is
Whips are the summoner class's signature weapon, and they work unlike anything else in the game:
- The whip itself deals damage through a sweeping hitbox, hitting everything in an arc rather than a single point.
- The whip summons minions that fight alongside you.
- The summoner stat determines how many minions you can keep alive.
That last point is the class's entire weakness. Without summoner stat, you keep very few minions alive, which is why a whip build under-geared feels useless while the same build with a proper setup feels like the easiest class in the game.
The nine new whips
| Whip | Character |
|---|---|
| Kaleidoscope | Stardust whip. Reliable sweeping damage plus regular minions. Mobile and forgiving |
| The other seven | Spread across the elements, each with its own damage profile and minion behaviour |
The Kaleidoscope is the one with the clearest guide, because it is the stardust whip that pairs with the other stardust gear — see the Kaleidoscope guide.
The summoner prefix rework
The reworked prefix system is the more important half of this update, and the one most guides skip.
Before 1.4.5, summoner prefixes largely pointed in one direction, so there was a single obvious summoner build. The rework made the pool branch out, so there is now more than one viable summoner direction.
What this means in practice:
- You are no longer locked into one prefix combination for good damage.
- Different prefixes suit different weapons, which makes the whip choice more meaningful.
- Older guides that say "take these three prefixes" are now out of date.
Whips versus staves, in practice
The summoner class contains two very different playstyles, and choosing between them matters more than any single weapon.
| Staff | Whip | |
|---|---|---|
| Damage pattern | One powerful minion | Sweeping hitbox plus minions |
| Wants you to | Stand still and watch | Keep moving |
| Scaling | Summon stat and equipment | Summon stat, plus your own weapon |
| Pairs with | A defensive accessory set | A movement accessory set |
| Best when | You want one big number | You want to keep fighting on the move |
Astral weapons are the other half of the story
The nine whips are not the only summon-related content in 1.4.5. The update also added astral summon weapons tied to the Lunar Obelisks, including the Terraprisma — a weapon that fights independently of your own attacks and scales with astral power rather than with minion count.
That is a third way to play the summoner role: with no minions at all. The Terraprisma guide covers the route, and the astral power system is worth understanding because it rewards clearing content during the pillar window rather than farming one boss.
Version note
This guide is written against 1.4.5.8 on PC. Console, mobile and Switch run 1.4.5.8.1. Check the version in your main menu before comparing a summon guide written for a different build — the version differences page has the detail.