Ninja Kiwi released Bloons TD 6 in June 2018 and has kept adding to it ever since, past 25 monkey towers split across the Primary, Military, Magic and Support categories. Every tower has three upgrade paths of five tiers, but you may only take two paths and the second one caps at tier 2, which is the single rule that shapes every strategy in the game. Rounds run to 100 in standard play, with the MOAB arriving at 40, the BFB at 60, the ZOMG at 80, the DDT at 90 and the BAD at 100.
This guide covers everything you need: core mechanics, the best builds, equipment worth investing in, location progression, and the tips that actually make a difference.
Core Mechanics
Two path upgrade limit
A tower can reach tier 5 on one path while a second path is capped at tier 2, and the third path stays empty. Those two crosspath tiers are not filler: the extra pierce or attack speed they add is often worth more than the tier 4 upgrade you skipped.
Bloon properties and immunities
Black and White bloons resist explosions and freezing, Lead resists sharp attacks, Purple resists energy, magic and fire, and Camo cannot be targeted without detection. Monkey Village path 2 answers most of this, with Radar Scanner at tier 2 for camo and Monkey Intelligence Bureau at tier 3 for the rest.
Monkey Knowledge and hero levelling
Monkey Knowledge points are permanent account upgrades that reduce costs and add small buffs, and heroes gain levels inside a match while only one hero may be placed. Both are disabled in CHIMPS, which is why CHIMPS clears feel so different from normal runs.
Cash income and the Banana Farm
Cash comes from popping and from round end bonuses, and the Banana Farm converts early spending into a much bigger late defence. Monkey Bank on the middle path compounds interest inside the bank, while Monkey Wall Street on the bottom path collects for you.
CHIMPS ruleset
CHIMPS stands for no Continues, no Hearts lost, no Income, no Monkey Knowledge, no Powers and no Selling. One life, rounds 6 to 100, and every placement is permanent, so the mode is really a test of whether your opening spending was correct.
For a deeper dive into how these systems interact, see our Bloons TD 6 combat guide.
Builds Overview
| Build | Tier | Playstyle | Key Stats |
|---|---|---|---|
| Primary | A | Versatile approach | Balanced stats |
| Military | A | Versatile approach | Balanced stats |
| Magic | A | Versatile approach | Balanced stats |
| Support | A | Versatile approach | Balanced stats |
| Heroes | A | Versatile approach | Balanced stats |
For full build breakdowns with gear and stat priorities, see our Bloons TD 6 builds guide. For rankings, check the tier list.
Equipment Guide
| Equipment | Why It Matters | Best For |
|---|---|---|
| Dart Monkey | The cheapest tower in the game and the one everyone underrates. | Opening rounds on any map, and cheap Primary category filler for Sun Temple sacrifices. |
| Ninja Monkey | Fast, cheap and camo capable without any support. | Camo rounds and the mid game stretch from round 40 to 60 before the big towers come online. |
| Alchemist | A support tower disguised as an attacker. | Any build with one strong damage core that you want to hit roughly twice as hard. |
| Banana Farm | The income tower. | Long games, freeplay pushes and any mode where income is legal. |
| Super Monkey | Expensive and worth it. | Rounds 80 and beyond, where one enormous tower beats five medium ones. |
Dart Monkey: The cheapest tower in the game and the one everyone underrates. Crosspathed early darts carry the first twenty rounds, and the top path finishes at Crossbow Master for real single target output.
Ninja Monkey: Fast, cheap and camo capable without any support. Shinobi Tactics on the top path buffs every other ninja nearby, so three ninjas together outperform three ninjas spread out.
Alchemist: A support tower disguised as an attacker. Its brews add damage and attack speed to nearby monkeys, and the top path ends at Permanent Brew so the buff never expires.
Banana Farm: The income tower. Top path scales raw banana production toward Banana Central, the middle path runs Monkey Bank interest, and the bottom path reaches Monkey Wall Street for automatic collection.
Super Monkey: Expensive and worth it. The top path climbs through Sun Avatar to Sun Temple and True Sun God on sacrifices, the middle path reaches The Anti-Bloon, and the bottom path ends at Legend of the Night.
Full breakdowns in our Bloons TD 6 weapons guide.
Location Progression
| Location | Level Range | Key Rewards |
|---|---|---|
| Monkey Meadow | Beginner difficulty | Easy CHIMPS black border, safe build testing |
| Cubism | Beginner difficulty | Fast round clears, good farm practice |
| Geared | Advanced difficulty | Advanced map medals, higher XP per round |
| Dark Castle | Expert difficulty | Expert medals, strong monkey XP |
| Muddy Puddles | Expert difficulty | Expert medals, CHIMPS bragging rights |
Monkey Meadow: The beginner map everyone starts on. One long looping path, unlimited placement space and no obstructions, which makes it the right place to test a new build before taking it somewhere cruel.
Cubism: A beginner map with a short winding track, so bloons pass the same towers several times. Short paths reward high pierce placements in the middle rather than long range towers at the edges.
Geared: An advanced map built around rotating gears that carry bloons across the board. Placement windows shift as the gears turn, so towers with long range or infinite range like the Sniper Monkey pull ahead here.
Dark Castle: An expert map with limited placement space and dark areas that block line of sight. Tight geometry means every tower slot counts and support towers must be positioned to reach the damage core.
Muddy Puddles: Four separate entry paths converging on separate exits, with water blocking much of the buildable space. It punishes any strategy that leans on one defensive chokepoint.
See our maps & locations guide for detailed area breakdowns and our walkthrough for the optimal progression path.
Tips That Actually Matter
- Buy the two crosspath tiers before the tier 4 upgrade in most cases. A 2-0-4 Ninja out damages a 0-0-4 Ninja by a wide margin because pierce and attack speed multiply the base attack rather than adding to it.
- Sort out camo detection before camo rounds arrive rather than during them. A Monkey Village with Radar Scanner at path 2 tier 2 covers every tower in its radius, and Ninja Monkeys and Sniper Monkeys with the right upgrades see camo without help.
- Monkey Intelligence Bureau at Monkey Village path 2 tier 3 lets covered towers pop Black, White, Purple, Lead and Frozen bloons. That single upgrade rescues builds that would otherwise stall completely on Purple or Lead rounds.
- Farms only earn back their cost if you buy them early. A Banana Farm placed on round 12 pays for itself many times over by round 60, while the same farm bought on round 55 is close to wasted money.
- Cluster Ninja Monkeys so Shinobi Tactics stacks, and park the Alchemist where its brew reaches all of them. Positioning is worth more cash than an extra tower in almost every mid game defence.
- Place a bottom path Spike Factory at the track exit early so it stockpiles spikes through the quiet rounds. That stockpile is the difference between a leaked BFB costing one life and costing the run.
- Learn the round schedule rather than reacting to it: MOAB at 40, BFB at 60, ZOMG at 80, DDT at 90, BAD at 100. Every upgrade should be in place a round or two before the threat, not during it.
- Sun Temple sacrifices are category based, so what you feed it changes what it does. Feeding Primary towers, Magic towers and Support towers gives different bonuses, and dumping random leftovers wastes the single most expensive decision in the run.
- In CHIMPS you cannot sell, so a badly placed tower is a permanent tax on the run. Plan the first four or five placements before round 6 starts and treat each one as final, because it is.
- For boss events against Bloonarius, Lych, Vortex, Dreadbloon and Phayze, stack every buff onto one damage core. Bosses are single fat targets with skull thresholds that change behaviour, so spread out crowd clear does almost nothing.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
- Buying tier 4 upgrades with no crosspath, which throws away pierce and attack speed that would have cost a few hundred dollars.
- Reaching a camo round with no detection anywhere on the map and watching bloons walk through a full defence untouched.
- Buying the first Banana Farm after round 40, when there is no longer enough time left for the income to compound.
- Spreading towers evenly around the map instead of clustering damage inside Alchemist and Monkey Village buff radii.
- Selling towers to fund an upgrade in modes where selling is legal, then discovering the sold tower was the only thing covering a second track entry.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does CHIMPS actually stand for?
No Continues, no Hearts lost, no Income, no Monkey Knowledge, no Powers and no Selling. You play rounds 6 to 100 with a single life and every placement is permanent.
Which hero should a new player use?
Quincy is free, needs no setup and carries early rounds on any map. Obyn Greenfoot and Striker Jones are cheap follow ups, while Sauda and Adora suit boss events where single target damage matters.
How many upgrade paths can one tower take?
Two. One path can reach tier 5 while the second is capped at tier 2, and the third stays at zero. That constraint is why crosspath choice is discussed as much as tier 5 choice.
When do the big blimps show up?
MOAB on round 40, BFB on round 60, ZOMG on round 80, DDT on round 90 and BAD on round 100. Freeplay past 100 keeps scaling them up in count and health.
Are the boss bloons harder than round 100?
Yes, considerably. Bloonarius, Lych, Vortex, Dreadbloon and Phayze appear in timed boss events with health pools and skull thresholds that trigger new behaviour, and Elite versions raise the numbers further.
More Bloons TD 6 Guides
- Bloons TD 6 Best Builds
- Bloons TD 6 Tier List
- Bloons TD 6 Walkthrough
- Bloons TD 6 Beginner's Guide
- Bloons TD 6 Tips & Tricks
- Bloons TD 6 Weapons Guide
- Bloons TD 6 Combat Guide
- Bloons TD 6 Boss Guide
- Bloons TD 6 Maps & Locations
- Bloons TD 6 Crafting Guide
- Bloons TD 6 Classes & Characters
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