Comanche Defense

[Source]

Comanche Defense is the 4th upgrade of Path 3 for the Heli Pilot in Bloons TD 6. Comanche Defense upgrades its darts and missiles, and additionally is capable of summoning up to three mini-Comanches that move in depending on how far bloons reach in terms of bloon track progress, split among 25% thresholds. Each summon only happens once per round.

Each mini-Comanche shoots darts and missiles with higher overall stats to the main Comanche and they follow the targeting priority of the parent Comanche. After 15 seconds of being summoned, mini-Comanches may leave unless another bloon threshold is met, in which the duration resets. There is a cooldown of 25 seconds before the mini-Comanches can become summoned again, unless reset by bloons reaching a certain threshold.

The Heli Pilot itself receives various upgrades to greatly enhance its DPS. Each missile is shot every 1.0s instead of 3.0s, has 30 pierce and 3 damage on top of +2 damage to Ceramics and MOAB-class, while retaining 18 blast radius. Darts deal 2 damage and pierce up to 3 bloons each. The shove effect is stronger on larger blimps (MOAB: -130%/-141%, BFB: -100%/-111%, ZOMG and DDT: -78%/89%)

The mini-Comanches shoot three 1 damage 4 pierce darts every 0.228 seconds and a missile per mini-Comanche every 3 seconds with 60 pierce each that deal 4 damage and +2 damage to Ceramics. Mini-Comanches fly 30 units faster than the main Comanche.

This upgrade costs $7,225 on Easy, $8,500 on Medium, $9,180 on Hard, and $10,200 on Impoppable. If this tower is nearby Level 6+ Rosalia's workshop, this upgrade costs $6,500 on Easy, $7,650 on Medium, $8,260 on Hard, and $9,180 on Impoppable.

Description

Overview

All helicopters in this upgrade and its successor, including mini Comanche helicopters, are based on the RAH-66 Comanche helicopter. All of these Comanche helicopters are colored grey in camouflaged patterns. The rotors of all of the Comanche Defense's helicopters are similar in shape to the MOAB Shove.

With this upgrade, the Heli Pilot is able to summon up to three mini-Comanches that move in depending on how far bloons reach in terms of bloon track progress. The mini-Comanches come with fast-shooting three-spray darts and a missile per mini-Comanche with 80 pierce each that deal +2 damage to Ceramics and MOAB-class. Darts from mini-Comanches pierce up to 4 bloons per dart. Whenever bloons reach a certain percentage of the map, the main Comanche Helicopter calls in a number of mini Comanche Helicopters armed with missiles and darts to aid it in battle. If bloons reach 25% of the map, one mini-Comanche is summoned, two if bloons reach 50% of the map, and three if bloons reach 75% of the map. Each summon only happens once per round. After 15 seconds from being first summoned, the mini-Comanches will leave the screen immediately, unless the bloons again reach their thresholds, where the duration will simply reset. There is a cooldown of 25 seconds before the mini-Comanches can become summoned again, unless reset by bloons reaching a certain threshold.

The Heli Pilot itself receives various upgrades to greatly enhance its DPS. Each missile is shot every 1.0s instead of 3.0s, has 30 pierce and 3 damage on top of +2 damage to Ceramics and above, while retaining 18 blast radius. Darts from the main helicopter deal 2 damage and pierce up to 3 bloons each.

Targeting Priorities

Comanche Defense utilizes touch-based mobility and self-mobility to move around the screen with different flight targetings. Its main attack shoots straight movement projectiles, which originate from the Heli Pilot with its independent range like an ordinary tower.

• Follow Touch / Follow Mouse: Moves to where the player taps. On desktop versions, Follow Touch instead becomes Follow Mouse, which will make the Heli Pilot move to wherever the cursor is currently at.
• Lock In Place: Stops the Heli Pilot where it is when the Target Priority is selected. Can be adjusted to choose a different locked location.
• Patrol: Patrols between two spots chosen by the player. Can be adjusted to choose different points.
• Pursuit: Equivalent to the target priority First, except the Heli Pilot will follow in front of the bloons while shooting them. It is unlocked with the purchase of the second upgrade on the first path, with the same name as the target priority. Once upgraded to the respective upgrade, it automatically switches to this target priority.

Both the Heli Pilot's main attacks and mini-Comanches always default on First based on the range of the helicopters' weaponry. The shove effect is locked on Close.

Mini-Comanches are always set to the same flight option as the parent Comanche. They will behave in the following manner if set to a particular flight targeting:

• Follow Touch / Follow Mouse: Moves to where the player taps. On desktop versions, Follow Touch instead becomes Follow Mouse, which will make the mini-Comanches move to wherever the cursor is currently at. If no cursor/touch is involved, the mini-Comanches stay on the edges of the screen.
• Lock In Place: Stops the mini-Comanches where it is when the Target Priority is selected. Can be adjusted to choose a different locked location. Will always travel towards the locked location.
• Patrol: Patrols between two spots chosen by the player. Can be adjusted to choose different points. Will always travel between two spots.
• Pursuit: Equivalent to the target priority First, except the mini-Comanches will follow in front of the bloons while shooting them. It is unlocked with the purchase of the second upgrade on the first path, with the same name as the target priority.

Full Popology

Statistics

Updated as of Version 45.0

Base stats

• Landing Base has a rectangular footprint of 27x27. "Dummy range" of 22. Upon placement, spawn Heli Pilot as the main tower.
• Heli Pilot moves at a flight speed of 40. Can be set on Follow Touch / Follow Mouse, Lock In Place, or Patrol Points. Creates Dart and Missile projectiles from centre of Heli Pilot if detecting bloons within range. Apply Shove if within range of MOAB-class bloons. Activate Mini-Comanche Wave if track distance threshold reaches 25%, 50%, or 75%, and if a certain track distance threshold is not already activated during a round.
  • Follow Touch / Follow Mouse: move towards wherever the screen was last touched, or wherever the cursor is on screen.
  • Lock In Place: move towards the locked location, otherwise stop moving
  • Patrol Points: move between two points
• Dart:
  • Projectile, sharp type, 54.6 range, spray of 2, 0.456s attack cooldown, 2 damage, 3 pierce. Projectile size of 3. Projectile speed of 416, projectile lifespan of 1s.
• Missile:
  • Projectile, explosion type, infinite range, 1.0s attack cooldown, 18 blast radius, 1 damage, +2 Ceramic and MOAB-class damage, 30 pierce. Moderate homing, projectile speed of ???, projectile lifespan of ???s.
• Shove:
  • Zone, normal type, targets only slowable MOAB-class, 0 damage, 1 impact, ??? radius, adds Shove knockback (MOAB: -130%, BFB: -100%, ZOMG: -78%, visible DDT: -78%).
• Mini-Comanche Wave:
  • Passive, summon one Mini-Comanche at 25% track distance threshold, two Mini-Comanches at 50% track threshold, three Mini-Comanches at 75% track distance threshold. For each of the thresholds, duration of 15 seconds, cooldown of 25 seconds after duration ends, max once per round.
• Mini-Comanche:
  • Mini-Comanche moves at a flight speed of 70. Follows flight pattern of Heli Pilot. Creates Mini-Comanche Dart and Mini-Comanche Missile projectiles from centre of Mini-Comanche if detecting bloons within range.
• Mini-Comanche Dart:
  • Projectile, sharp type, ??? range, spray of 3, 0.228s attack cooldown, 1 damage, 4 pierce. Projectile size of ???. Projectile speed of ???, projectile lifespan of ???s.
• Mini-Comanche Missile:
  • Projectile, explosion type, infinite range, 3.0s attack cooldown, 18 blast radius, 4 damage, +2 Ceramic damage, 60 pierce. Moderate homing, projectile speed of ???, projectile lifespan of ???s.

Crosspathing interactions

• 1-0-4: Dart attack spawn locations adjusted, now simultaneously shooting double sprays of two. Mini-Comanche Dart projectile count increased from 3 to 5.
• 2-0-4: Gains Pursuit targeting and modifies Patrol Points to also gain a stadium-shaped range of Pursuit
• 0-1-4: Flight speed of Heli Pilot increased from 40 to 70, improves Shove knockback (MOAB: -141%, BFB: -110%, ZOMG: -89%, visible DDT: -89%). Flight speed of Mini-Comanche increased from 70 to 100.
• 0-2-4: Gains camo detection.

Monkey Knowledge interactions

• Airforce Upgrades: All T3+ Heli Pilots get +1 pierce.
  • Base pierce increased from 3 to 4.
  • Missile pierce increased from 30 to 31.
  • Mini-Comanche dart pierce increased from 4 to 5.
  • Mini-Comanche missile pierce increased from 60 to 61.
• Elite Military Training: All Military Monkeys get a one-off +1000 XP and earn XP in-game 5% faster permanently.
• Military Conscription: First military tower costs only ⅔ of the original cost.
  • Heli Pilot base cost from $1,360, $1,600, $1,730, and $1,920 → $910, $1,070, $1,160, and $1,285 on Easy, Medium, Hard, and Impoppable, respectively.
• Advanced Logistics: All Military Monkeys base costs reduced by 5%.
  • Heli Pilot base cost from $1,360, $1,600, $1,730, and $1,920 → $1,290, $1,520, $1,640, and $1,825 on Easy, Medium, Hard, and Impoppable, respectively.
    • If Military Conscription is also enabled, the final cost will be $845, $990, $1,070, and $1,190.
• Monkey Education: All Monkeys XP earn rate increased by 8%.
• Better Sell Deals: All Monkeys sell for 5% more. Increases sell potency from 70% to 75%.
• Veteran Monkey Training: All Monkeys reload time reduced by 3%.

Attack Interactions

WIP This section or article is currently a work in progress (WIP), and therefore under construction. Please bear with us while our editors improve the page.

See also: Attack Interactions/Bloons TD 6/Military

Updated as of Version 44.0

Base attack(s)

• Dart:
  • Sharp
  • Straight Spray (2)
  • Straight Attack
  • Touch-Based Mobility
  • Flying

Costs

Updated as of Version 46.0. Listed prices exclude external buffs, any sacrifices, and Monkey Knowledge.

This upgrade's prices (or included crosspath's prices) are affected by the following MK: Military Conscription, Advanced Logistics, Better Sell Deals

Strategy

Summary

The Comanche Defense requires a good backup defense in order to be usable. While the 18.0 update spawn mechanics do make it more controllable as to when the mini helicopters spawn, it still tends to be weak if not all three Comanches are on screen. A significant portion of the Comanche Defense's power is in the summoned Comanches, which makes it somewhat lackluster for its price tag whenever they are not present. It is a usable stepping stone to Comanche Commander, particularly if the correct synergies are utilized, advancing the mid-game on single-lane maps and maps with only one active lane per round (e.g. High Finance, Infernal). However, is quite inefficient on maps with multiple lanes, and relies largely on external buffs to be considerably cost-effective.

Similar to Comanche Commander, Comanche Defense is a decent synergy with Pat or Gwen, but it is very dependent on those two Heroes to become at least somewhat powerful, not to mention that there is some downtime between mini-Comanche spawns. However, it partners very well with Geraldo's buffs, even his Jar of Pickles.

Compared to Apache Dartship, Comanche Defense's DPS has a wider DPS potential. While all mini-Comanches are present, the total DPS is superior compared to an Apache Dartship even ignoring price differences. That being said, Comanche Defense's wide DPS spectrum does make an improperly utilized Comanche Defense lose all its value. Trading off reliable DPS for a less costly defense, for both the saveup to the respective Tier 4 and Tier 5, Comanche Defense can be usable in mid-to-long maps such as Bazaar and Chutes when combined with other support DPS.

Tips

• The Comanche Defense is most powerful when the smaller Comanche helicopters are around. Without the mini-Comanches, the main helicopter deals more damage than MOAB Shove, but has no extra knockback or other utility.
  • As the smaller Comanche Helicopters automatically pursue the bloons, the Pursuit upgrade is unnecessary, and the main helicopter can be placed somewhere else depending on your needs.
• The smaller helicopters do gain the extra projectiles from Quad Darts, faster movement speed from Bigger Jets and camo detection from IFR.
  • Quad Darts will usually be the choice of crosspath due to it adding much more power to the Comanche.
• For its price, one 2-0-4 Comanche Defense is actually quite strong in the mid-game, even versus grouped Ceramics and groups of MOAB-class bloons, punching above its weight while all three mini-Comanches are active. Once the mini-Comanches are on cooldown, the Comanche Defense underperforms for its cost.
• If relying primarily on Comanche Defense for DPS, it can struggle on sustained rounds, especially for late mid-game rounds such as Round 63, Round 74, Round 75, Round 78, and Round 79.
• Try to micromanage the Comanche Defense to control the timing for which the mini-Comanches come out during a round; the significant downtime and capped uses of calling out mini-Comanches can backfire if not backed up with additional defense.
• The downtime of the mini-Comanche callouts occurs after the full duration of the callout has ended. Effectively, for Apopalypse (which removes all round limits for non-Geraldo things), this phenomenon can be seen as a passive ability with 40 seconds cooldown (15s uptime, 25s downtime, summing 40s) and a max of one use per round.

Version History

Balance Changes

Somewhere, the round limit of mini-Comanches must've changed, possibly v18.0 the max activations per round is now changed to max 1 mini-Comanche spawn of each threshold per round.

Bug Fixes and General Changes

This section is incomplete. You can help by expanding it.

18.0

• [Undocumented] Description changed from "Automatically calls in 3 more Comanches when they're most needed." to "Automatically calls in mini Comanches when they're most needed."

Extra Notes (Version History)

Bugs

Current

• TBA

Patched

• [37.0] Since the update where mini-Comanches followed target priority of the main Comanche, there was an exploitable bug that allowed mini-Comanches to remain permanent. To have exploited this, the Comanche Defense's targeting priority were to be switched just when the mini-Comanches would leave. This was patched in Version 42.3.

Gallery

Crosspathing (Top: Path 1, Bottom: Path 2)

'Our Comanches will blot out the sun', the result of filling the map with Comanche Defense helis

All 3 mini-Comanches sent, pre-18.0

Mini-Comanches entering, pre-18.0

Mini-Comanches exiting, pre-18.0

One mini-Comanche enters

Two mini-Comanches enter

Three mini-Comanches enter

Three mini-Comanches make a comeback knowing that the bloons went over 25% distance

Front-shooting mini-Comanche

Just a single Comanche Defense missile

Enough XP to unlock Comanche Defense

Follow Touch v37.3 Comanche Defense (v37.0 implemented)

Lock In Place v37.3 Comanche Defense (v37.0 implemented)

Patrol Points v37.3 Comanche Defense (v37.0 implemented)

Official Artwork

Upgrade portrait

Upgrade icon

Instamonkey icon

Projectiles

Mini-Comanche missile

Trivia

• It's likely an adaption of the Boeing-Sikorsky RAH-66 Commanche.
• Despite the mini Comanches being called "mini", they have more power than the original Comanche helicopter.
• Prior to Version 18.0, the old mini-Comanche summoning mechanic was as follows: "Whenever the RBE on the map is greater than 2000 RBE, the main Comanche Helicopter calls in 3 mini Comanche Helicopters armed with missiles and darts to aid it in battle. However, this passive ability has a cooldown of 25 seconds. After 10 seconds from being summoned, the Comanches will leave the screen immediately. The mini-copters can spawn once more per round if the round lasts longer than 25 seconds."