What makes this tower defense different
In most TD games you watch from above. Here you are on the field as a hero, and that changes the strategy. Towers earn experience while you or your companion stand on them, so where you stand matters as much as what you build. You manage three resources: gold builds towers, wood comes from Mills where the wood economy is on, and Technology buys specializations. On top of that sit your talent trees, your gear and your hero class.
1. Build the maze first
Walls cost 50 gold and every other tower can be built on top of one at a discount, so a Wall is never wasted. Lay out a long, winding path before you spend on damage. Every extra tile of path is more time each enemy spends under fire, for every tower you own. Turn the maze back on itself where you can, so towers placed at the bends cover two stretches of path at once.
Mine the Crystals that sit where you want your maze. Each costs a little gold and pays it back in Technology.
2. Cover ground and air
Not every tower can hit every enemy. Towers that hit flying enemies: Arrow, Wizard, Coin, Fire, Ice, Poison and Tesla. Towers that only hit ground: Cannon. The Wizard is the reverse case: it only hits air. A maze full of Cannons will be overrun by the first flying wave, so pair splash damage with something that covers the sky.
3. Stand on the towers that matter
Towers rank up from kills and from your hero and companion standing on them during waves. They reach Rank 2 at 100 XP, Rank 3 at 300, Rank 4 at 600 and Rank 5 at 1100, and each rank multiplies damage by 1.5. That makes focus better than spreading out: pick one or two towers on the busiest stretch of path and stand on them. The Fire scales especially well with ranks. Talents such as Command, Mentorship and Haste reward standing on a tower, and the Mage's Mana Infusion skips the wait.
4. Spend Technology on specializations
Combat towers have three specializations each, at 50 Technology apiece. A Research tower pays Technology every wave, and mining crystals adds more, so build one early. Pick specializations for the job each tower does: extra targets for towers on crowded stretches, slows and stuns at the start of the maze, and raw damage near the end.
5. Run an economy
Mines pay gold every wave, Mills pay wood (in the campaign and PvP), and Research pays Technology. Every level starts with one Mine already placed. Economy towers don't fight, so build them early while waves are light; the income adds up over a long rift. The Resource talent tree makes them stronger: Gold Digger and Bonds add gold, and Banker makes Mines cheaper.
6. Slow it, then kill it
Ice slows everything it hits and Tesla can stun, which buys every other tower more time. Put control early in the maze and damage after it. Several upgrades pay off for this order: Ice's Bitter Cold makes slowed enemies take more damage, and the Cannon's Crushing Impact deals extra damage to enemies that are already slowed or stunned. A Support tower in the middle of the group makes them all attack faster.
7. Plan for bosses
Bosses take the most focus. The Coin is the best single-target tower and deals true damage. The Slayer talent and the Boss Damage gear stat raise damage against bosses only, and the Archer's Marked Prey makes one enemy take more damage from everything. Bosses take damage from the Mage's Arcane Surge but can't be stunned by it.
8. Gamble on the Rift Wheel
Once a tower reaches Rank 5, you can stand on it and pay 1,000 gold to spin the Rift Wheel. Either the tower gains its own Ultimate, or it transmutes into another tower type at the same rank with that type's Ultimate. Spin on a tower in a spot where any strong tower would help, since you won't always get the one you started with. How cursing works.
9. Split roles in co-op
With up to four players in online co-op, you can cover more of the maze than one hero can. One player can run the economy and Mills, which pay wood to the whole party. Another can hold the main killing zone, and others can handle control and bosses. Classes fit naturally: the Knight for control, the Archer for bosses, the Engineer for the maze and the Mage for ranking towers. See co-op, the shared hubs and the Arena for more.
Keep going
Browse every tower's stats and upgrades, plan a build in the talent calculator, or check the FAQ.