The Grand Thunder Bird

Type	Boss
Environment	Surface
AI Type	The Grand Thunder Bird AI
Damage	20 (melee); 60 (dash)
Max Life	1500 / 2200
Defense	5
KB Resist	100
Immune to	File:Shade-Hold.png
Coins	35

“

You didn't see any giant bird shadows while you were out in the desert, did you?

— The Desert Acolyte

The Grand Thunder Bird is the earliest boss available to the player and has the lowest health, defense and damage of all the bosses. Despite this, the player is advised to obtain basic equipment before attempting to defeat the Grand Thunder Bird.

Spawn

The Grand Thunder Bird does not spawn on its own, and requires the player to summon it with the Grand Flare Gun. Storm Flares are required as ammunition, and will only be consumed on a successful use. It can only be summoned and fought in the Desert biome during the day.

Behavior

The Grand Thunder Bird hovers a few blocks above the player, flying from left to right. It increases its flying speed when its life falls below 45%. From its high angle, it launches a continuous series of attacks at players, as well as summoning Hatchlings to attack the player.

Attacks

With a loud screech, the Grand Thunder Bird brings down bolts of energy that fall from the sky. It is worth noting that the Grand Thunder Bird begins the battle with this attack almost immediately after it has been summoned.
The Grand Thunder Bird will level itself to its target's vertical position and prepares itself for its charge attack, signaled by it trembling. After a period of charging, The Grand Thunderbird dashes horizontally at great speed in an attempt to ram the player. This attack can be halted with a melee strike while the Grand Thunder Bird is in the process of charging it.
The Grand Thunder Bird possesses a second charge attack that is similar to its first one, albeit it does not take as much time to charge and deals less damage. This variant of its charge spawns a large number of Hatchlings in its wake that swarm the player.
Once the Grand Thunder Bird reaches quarter health, it will start shooting projectiles at the player in bursts of three that deal moderate damage. These projectiles look similar to the bolts of energy the Grand Thunder Bird summons from the sky.

In Expert Mode

The Grand Thunder Bird will drop bolts of lighting that generate tornadoes upon colliding with a block, akin to its old battle behavior. These tornadoes travel horizontally to the left and right of the impact zone and deal moderate damage. The tornadoes travel for two seconds, are not affected by gravity and can pass through blocks. As the Grand Thunder Bird's health gets lower, it increases the frequency it drops these tornado generating bolts.

Summons

Image	Name	Condition
File:Hatchling.png	Hatchling	Above 25% life

Aftermath

Defeating the Grand Thunder Bird for the first time will allow the Desert Acolyte to arrive if provided suitable housing.

Notes

If the targeted player is not within direct line of sight of the Grand Thunder Bird, it will begin shooting streaks of electricity at the hiding player. These streaks pass through tiles and deal a large amount of damage.
After the 1.4.1.0 update, the Grand Thunder Bird is the only boss that is not shown dying (i.e. in an explosion of body parts like most bosses) when defeated, as it simply flies away.

Tips

For strategies on defeating the Grand Thunder Bird, see Guide:The Grand Thunder Bird strategies.

The Grand Thunder Bird will always start the battle by bringing down bolts of energy raining from the sky, so it is advised that players disperse the area as soon as they fire the Grand Flare Gun.
Players should make use of platforms or vertical outcrops in order to avoid the Grand Thunder Bird's charge attacks. Though risky, players can interrupt and cancel the charge with a well-aimed melee strike.
Though a nuisance in large numbers, it is advised to keep a number of Hatchlings alive for the sole purpose of them possibly dropping hearts upon death to provide players with a source of healing.
In Expert Mode, the tornadoes spawning bolts dropped by the Grand Thunder Bird will pass right through platforms, allowing you to use a platform arena to avoid the attack and make the fight easier.

History

1.4.3.8: Updated particle effects and battle music.
1.4.1.0: Updated the sprite, music, and fight mechanism.
1.2.5.0: Encounter is now more difficult.
1.2.0.0: Introduced.