All right, first let's talk about loot.
Weapons - There are 4 types of items in terraria (for me), Common, Uncommon, Rare, and UltraRare. The common items are just not that good - a tree could craft/get it. The uncommon items are a bit stronger over the Common items - a zombie would have to mine just to get that. And it would take 15 minutes! The rare and ultrarare items are only on different modes - Rare on HardMode, and UltraRare on Expert. Both are awesome, the UltraRare items are OverPowered!!!

Armor - Again, 4 types - Common, UnCommon, Rare, and UltraRare, each having a better defense on their set.

Accessories - Each accessories have a reason to work with. The Lucky Horseshoe, for example, has an ability to allow NO fall damage whatsoever.

Now let's talk about not dying.

Monsters are basically your run of the mill, old fashioned bullies. They deal a small amount of damage, have a small amount of HP, and have a small amount of defense.

UnderGround Monsters are your medium worries. Bit more damage, bit more HP, bit more defense.

Bosses are your nightmares. They have an ENORMOUS piece of health and defense. They hit like a TANK! King slime is the weakest boss, with (yes, it's still a lot) 2000 hp.

P.S. Here are some Hardmode tools that will help you on the way. The starfury, flying carpet, and featherfall/gravitational potions are VERY useful on your way - falling won't be that effective.

Homes can be entering a statue, and going to a base, or entering someone's mouth and going to a stomach base. Either way, each home must at least look like this -
If you want to add wiring, you need wires. The wires can open/close doors, teleport you, and even make statues come to life!