The Terraria 1.4.4 update’s new mini-biome and the liquid found within it are causing wonder among the community thanks to their magical look and incredible effects. The Terraria 1.4.4 update Labor of Love is finally here, bringing another huge series of changes to one of the best crafting games on PC. Players are digging through the latest patch to play around with all the new quality of life features and uncover any secrets not mentioned in the Terraria 1.4.4 patch notes.
One such hidden feature was the new liquid – it was mentioned in passing, but the team didn’t elaborate on what it would be or how it would affect the world. Re-Logic vice president Whitney ‘Cenx’ Spinks mentioned that she considered it the best of the hidden additions, saying she couldn’t wait to see how the community would react to its discovery.
Suffice to say, it’s incredibly cool – and, given its secretive nature, we’re giving you fair warning now that we will dip into spoiler territory below this paragraph, so if you want to go into the new update sight unseen then all we’ll say is to keep an eye out for any shimmering areas you might come across as you explore your new worlds.
Shimmer, then. This new, pearlescent purple liquid can be found in a medium-sized lake in a small biome known as the Aether. This mini-biome will be generated once per new world, and appears somewhere in the cavern layer on the same side of the world as the Jungle biome. You’ll know when you get near it thanks to the incredible visual effect – the dark areas of the background appear to go almost transparent, with sparkles behind that make it seem as though you’re looking into space.
We absolutely don’t want to give away everything that the Shimmer itself can do – though if you’re interested in getting in-depth then the Terraria wiki page for it already features a fairly extensive list thanks to plenty of player testing. Shimmer causes a wide range of magical effects on items and entities that are soaked in it. This includes transforming the appearance of town NPCS, turning enemies into other ones, and in some cases even creating special new items.
These new items include the Vital Crystal, created when you toss a Life Crystal into the Shimmer, that permanently increases your health regeneration, and Ambrosia – a mythical food of the gods crafted by coating any type of food with Shimmer – which can be used to permanently increase both mining and tile placement speed. Certain other items and creatures have unique effects – Falling Stars, for example, will simply bounce off the Shimmer’s surface. It can even be used to craft some unique items, building bricks, and ammo.
Once again, we won’t give away all the secrets of Shimmer, which you can eventually move about and take with you once you’ve crafted a special bucket for it. Get in there for yourself and start chucking stuff in – let us know what your favourite transformations are! If you’re feeling really bold, you might even want to dive into the shining lavender lake for yourself – just make sure you’re prepared for any outcome.
If you’re just getting started with the new update, we’ve got all the Terraria bosses in order so you know what to prepare for. Our Terraria happiness guide should ensure you can max out the favour of your NPC companions, and if you’re already craving something more on top of all the new updates in 1.4.4 then our pick of the best Terraria mods has plenty to keep you going.