Ancients Awakened/The Broodmother Strategies

The Broodmother is a Pre-Hardmode boss that is an alternate to The Hydra fought in progression. Although its size, appearance, and placing in the boss progression make this boss seem to be one of the most menacing in Pre-Hardmode, this boss is considerably easier than the other three bosses that would normally be fought at this rate.

Terrain Preparation
The Broodmother can always be fought in the bottom of the The Inferno's volcano, and does not require much terrain preparation whatsoever. However, it is recommended that the player, if need be, should place down a campfire and heart lantern in the bottom of the volcano, alongside a few platforms, or even rope.

Armor

 * / are great overall armor sets for any class at the halfway stage of the game.
 * may be a more preferable choice for melee users, due to its damage resistance and high defense.
 * If the player has defeated The Hydra before fighting The Broodmother, is an excellent choice for rangers.
 * is a very powerful choice for mages in the later stages of the game, if players are willing to get the meteorite for it.
 * could be used as an alternative, for greater damage output at the cost of lower defense.
 * is a good choice for summoners, if they are willing to obtain the necessary materials.

Accessories

 * are great for outrunning The Broodmother's flamethrower and geyser attacks.
 * or any of its alternates are a significant help with maneuvering in the volcano's bottom, and can help to avoid Broodmother's attacks alltogether.
 * can aid in damaging the Broodmother by piercing its defense.
 * If The Hydra has been defeated before fighting The Broodmother, the may be a good option, or a possible alternative to the Shark Tooth Necklace.
 * is an all around great option for dodging out of the way of attacks, ramming into The Broodmother to avoid taking damage from rams, and getting in extra damage.
 * is, like the Bulwark, an all around great option, due to the insane damage resistance it provides.

Melee

 * can help with attacking The Broodmother from a safe distance, although may be hard to obtain.
 * is also helpful for maintaining distance if players can get it.
 * is great for taking out the eggs spawned in as well as being able to pierce, and even lay itself down on Dragon eggs (this is done by clicking to fire the flail out, then clicking and holding again).
 * is an amazing source of damage to the eggs and Broodminis, though it is lacking in the ability to hit The Broodmother. It would be a good idea to pair this with the Depthwalker, or with the Incineration.
 * The, when paired with the Exile's Katana, can be a good duo for fighting the Broodmother, as it can hit the Broodmother, alongside hard to reach Dragon Eggs. It would be a good idea to pair this with the Exile's Katana, or with the Flaming Fury.
 * The is a good alternative to the Exile's Katana, but is hindered in usefulness by the On Fire! debuff not being able to affect the Broodmother and her spawns. It would be a good idea to pair this with the Incineration, or with the Depthwalker.
 * The is a good alternative to the Depthwalker, with considerably more damage, but a slightly slower use time. It would be a good idea to pair this with the Flaming Fury, or with the Exile's Katana.

Ranged

 * The, when paired with Jester's Arrows, excel at killing eggs as well as dealing good yet rapid damage to the eggs, Broodminis, and The Broodmother.
 * The, when paired with Jester's Arrows, excel at dealing more burst damage than the Demon Bow, but with the downside of having a slower fire rate.
 * The, with its high damage, can quickly take out the eggs spawned by The Broodmother and deal good damage to The Broodmother itself.
 * , with its high firing speed and moderate damage to both The Broodmother and its eggs, The Undertaker is a good alternative to the Musket.
 * s are a good source of damage against the Broodminis and eggs, as they are able to pierce multiple of them. If the player can line them up, the Broodminis will go down in no time.
 * The will shred through The Broodmother and her summons, making it an excellent choice, should the player have the stars to use it.
 * The is a good source of burst damage, and best be used on The Broodmother instead of her summons. If need be, however, wait for the Broodminis to get close to you, then shoot them.
 * The is a debatably better alternative to the Demon and Tendon bows, as it is better in base use time, and can fire stronger arrows if the player decides against using Jester's Arrows.
 * The, if the player can get Molten Bars before fighting The Broodmother,is a much superior alternative to the previously mentioned bows, both in damage and fire rate.

Mage

 * / with their piercing properties and high damage can make short work of the eggs and Broodminis.
 * is a decent overall option.
 * is a good option for those who wish to primarily focus on dodging, as the homing projectiles of the Mana Blade can allow for a near entire lack of aim and focus.
 * is a good option for fights in open areas like the surface, but, if the player fights in the volcano, it may be hindered in its viability. Although, it still has its use in piercing eggs and Broodminis.
 * is an amazing source of both piercing and debuffs, as it, much like the Golden Shower, fires an infinitely piercing stream of poison, inflicting the Poisoned debuff upon hit.
 * is a good source of burst damage, and explodes upon impact.

Summoner

 * The /  are very powerful summons, even in this part of the game.
 * The is a good option if the player goes out of their way to get it.
 * The, if the player can obtain it, is a good source of damage, even if the burning effect cannot affect The Broodmother and her summons.
 * The is a great choice if the player is fighting in the volcano, as it can be placed anywhere, so it can be placed at around the altitude of The Broodmother, giving it a higher chance to hit her.
 * The is an acceptable choice, if the player is either unable to get the previously mentioned staffs, or prefers them over the previous staffs.

The Fight
The Broodmother will always remain above the player on either their left or right side, and will never intentionally ram into the player. The Broodmother makes up for this, however, with multiple varying ranged attacks, and the ability to spawn in minions.

The Broodmother is able to fire out exploding fireballs, the explosion of each having a moderately large radius. To counter this, if the player is in the volcano's bottom, hide under the "floating island" that looks like a mouth on the mini map. If the fight takes place on the surface, just run in the opposite direction of the Broodmother.

The Broodmother will try to scorch the player with a flamethrower attack from their head, which can ignite them. Again, to counter this inside of the volcano, hide under the "mouth." If the fight is on the surface, do the same thing as you would do with the fireball attack. Occasionally, The Broodmother will make flame geysers burst from the ground. In both fight scenarios, the player can simply stop moving, but should be prepared to jump, just in case.

Finally, The Broodmother will throw out multiple Dragon Eggs. Like Mothron's Eggs,after a certain period of time, the eggs will hatch, spawning in Broodminis. To handle the Broodminis, shoot them until they die.

General Tips

 * The Broodmother will never intentionally ram the player, but will occasionally switch sides when fighting the player.
 * It is recommended that you have at least have 1-2 rows of platforms, as to be able to better maneuver The Inferno's volcano, and to better dodge The Broodmother's attacks in general.
 * If the player does not have a cloud in a bottle, a is a good alternative, if the player knows how to use properly.