Lightning Tower: Stats, Upgrades, Tips: The Lightning in Blockade Brigade: 125 gold, chain lightning that hits ground and air. Chains, shock, Overcharge, heat, every level and FAQ.

Plain-text version for AI assistants: https://blockadebrigade.com/llms-page-towers-lightning.txt. Site guide: https://blockadebrigade.com/llms.txt

Advanced Tower

Lightning Tower

Chain lightning, shock stacks, overcharge

125 goldGround + AirResearch 15000

The Lightning strikes one enemy from the sky and the bolt jumps on to the next, and the next: up to 4 enemies a strike at level 1 and 8 at level 5, each jump hitting for 85% of the one before. Every enemy it hits is shocked and keeps taking damage for 2 seconds, and a strike that reaches 4 or more enemies overcharges for a bonus hit on all of them. At 125 gold it hits ground and air and does extra damage to shields. It is made for crowds, and it runs hot: every strike adds 85°C, so a Lightning that fires nonstop overheats at every level unless water or a Cold Snap cools it.

Lightning Tower
Build your own Lightning

Attributes Level 1, on the ground

Cost
125 gold to build
Unlock
15,000 XPXP to research it (main menu, Upgrades & Research)
Sell value
93 gold 75% of the gold spent on it; all of it back within 15 seconds of placing
Can hit
Ground & Air
Damage
25
Fire rate
0.7/s
DPS
18 damage a second, one hit on one target, before armour
Range
5.5 2.75 tiles
Targets at once
4 enemies in one strike
Power
uses 18 when firing · 1 on standby Full power only while it has a target. Switch it off to free its power.
Heat
+85 °C a shot Overheats at 400 °C, fires again at 250 °C. Nonstop fire at this level would climb to 421 °C: overheats, needs 1.1x cooling
Cooling
Water beside it 1.5x, +0.5x each more (up to 3x)A connected row shares up to 12 water tiles. A Cold Snap over it: 2x to 6.5x. A cooling pump appears on its base by water.
Neighbours
+15% damage, +10% fire rate eachSame-type towers on its four sides, up to four (+60% / +40%). Connected Lightnings need 25% less power.
Platforms
+8% damage, +0.5 range a level of heightSmall +1, Medium +2, Large +3, up to 3 stacked. Hills up to 15 (above 5 is rare).
Ground
Grass: −5% damageNo penalty on rock, or on a platform (it stands on steel, even over grass)
Level parts
Base: 1 green level light, plate 01
Research
5 items, 5 levels each250 / 750 / 2,000 / 6,000 / 15,000 XP a level, 120,000 XP for all. Voltage Boost, Capacitor Speed, Arc Distance, Deep Wound, Poison
Cards
Damage, Fire Rate, Range, Deep Wound, Poison, Armor Damage, Shield DamageEnd-of-wave cards: up to 5 of each a game, then Endless cards

Base numbers: no research, cards or neighbours. (+n) is the change from the level before.

How to use it

Feed it crowds

One strike hits up to 4 enemies at level 1 and one more for each level (8 at level 5). A lone enemy gets one hit; a packed group gets the whole chain, the shock on every one of them and, from 4 enemies, the Overcharge bonus.

Slow them together

A Cold Snap bunches enemies up so the bolt has someone to jump to, and its snow cools the Lightning at the same time.

Range decides who the chain can reach

Every enemy in the chain must be inside the Lightning's own range, and each jump reaches 3.5 at level 1, +0.3 a level. Toward an enemy this Lightning has already shocked it reaches +2 further.

Build in rows and go high

Each Lightning on the four sides of another gives it +15% damage and +10% fire rate (more fire rate also means more heat). Each level of hill or platform gives +8% damage and +0.5 range, and the jumps reach further too. On bare grass it loses 5% damage, unless it stands on a platform.

Keep it cool

Strikes come slowly but each one is hot, so even a level-1 Lightning overheats if it never stops firing. One water tile beside it or a Cold Snap over it fixes that (below).

Build it

Pick a level, research, end-of-wave cards, where it stands and what cools it, and how many enemies the bolt can reach, and see what your Lightning ends up doing: the first hit, the whole chain, the shock and the Overcharge, worked out the way the game does it. Share the build with a link.

How the configurer works it out (formula, card values, share-link format)

How the game adds it up

  • Damage: level base x (1 + neighbours x 0.15) x (1 + height x 0.08) x ground (0.95 on bare grass, else 1) x (1 + research %) x (1 + cards % + Endless %)
  • Fire rate: level base x (1 + neighbours x 0.1) x (1 + research %) x (1 + cards % + Endless %)
  • Range: level base + height x 0.5 + level base x (research % + cards % + Endless %)
  • Dps: damage x fire rate, one hit on one target, before splash, afflictions and armour
  • Rule: Every source multiplies damage and fire rate; cards and Endless cards of one stat add into one percent. Range percents are all of the levelled base, added.
  • Cooling: 1 + (Cold Snap - 1) + water. Cold Snap: 2x at level 1, +0.5x a level (only the strongest powered one counts). Water: +0.5 for the first tile, +0.5 each more. A tower counts its own water (up to 4 sides); in a connected chain it counts the chain's water, up to 4 + 1 per extra tower in the chain, never over 12.
  • Heat: Each shot adds 85 C; between shots the heat above 20 C drains by exp(-seconds x cooling / 6). Nonstop fire levels off with its hottest point, just after each shot, at 20 + 85 / (1 - exp(-cooling / (fire rate x 6))) and its average at 20 + fire rate x 85 x 6 / cooling. A shot that takes it to 400 C overheats it: it stops firing until it has cooled to 250 C. Cooling needed to never overheat = -fire rate x 6 x ln(1 - 85 / (400 - 20)).

End-of-wave cards

Each wave offers 3 cards. Up to 5 cards of each stat a game, then that stat comes only as grey Endless cards (a random amount in the range shown). Percent per card:

CardNormalCommonRareEpicLegendaryMythicalEndless
Damage2%5%10%15%25%35%1-5%
Fire Rate2%5%10%15%25%35%1-5%
Range2%5%10%15%25%35%1-5%
Deep Wound1%1%2%2%3%3%1%
Poison1%1%2%2%3%3%1%
Armor Damage2%4%6%8%10%12%2%
Shield Damage2%4%6%8%10%12%2%

Research

Unlock: 15,000 XP; its upgrades: 120,000 XP for all.

  • Voltage Boost: +10% a level, 5 levels (+50%), 250, 750, 2,000, 6,000, 15,000 XP
  • Capacitor Speed: +10% a level, 5 levels (+50%), 250, 750, 2,000, 6,000, 15,000 XP
  • Arc Distance: +10% a level, 5 levels (+50%), 250, 750, 2,000, 6,000, 15,000 XP
  • Lightning Deep Wound: +1% a level, 5 levels (+5%), 250, 750, 2,000, 6,000, 15,000 XP
  • Lightning Poison: +1% a level, 5 levels (+5%), 250, 750, 2,000, 6,000, 15,000 XP

Where it stands

  • Each same-type neighbour on its four sides: +15% damage, +10% fire rate (up to 4).
  • Each level of height (hill + platforms): +8% damage, +0.5 range.
  • Bare grass: damage x0.95 (no penalty on rock, or on a platform: it stands on steel, even over grass). One tile is 2 range units.

This tower's own rule

  • One strike reaches up to 4, 5, 6, 7, 8 enemies (levels 1 up); each jump does 85% of the hit before (never under 30%). Crits: x1.5, 8, 10, 12, 14, 16% chance.
  • Shock: every enemy hit takes 15% of the damage every 0.5 s for 2 s (a new hit restarts it). Overcharge: a strike that hits 4 or more enemies gives each of them 50% of the damage on top.

Worked examples

Share-link format

A build is the page address + #build: + parts joined by ~, in any order; parts left out are 0 / none. Opening the link loads the build and scrolls here. Links shared from the page also carry ?utm_source=...&utm_medium=...&utm_campaign=tower_build&utm_content=... before the hash; they are optional.

  • l<N>: tower level 1..5
  • r.<stat>.<N>: research level 0..5 of a research item (damage, fire_rate, range_radius, deep_wound, poison)
  • c.<stat>.<digits>: end-of-wave cards of one stat, one digit per card = its rarity (0 Normal, 1 Common, 2 Rare, 3 Epic, 4 Legendary, 5 Mythical); at most 5 a stat
  • e.<stat>.<amount>x<count>: Endless cards of one stat: count cards of +amount% (only once that stat has 5 cards)
  • n<N>: same-type neighbours touching it, 0..4
  • h<N>: height: hill + platform levels, 0..15
  • g: standing on bare grass (no platform)
  • s<N>: level of the Cold Snap over it, 0 = none (1..10)
  • sp0: that Cold Snap has no power (it cools nothing)
  • w<N>: water tiles beside it, 0..4 (sides not taken by neighbours)
  • k<N>: towers in its connected chain, itself included (at least neighbours + 1)
  • kw<N>: water tiles beside the whole chain

Every level

Base numbers: no research, cards, height or neighbours. Damage per second here is the first hit only (damage x fire rate): every other enemy the chain reaches takes 85% of the hit before it, plus the shock and, from 4 enemies, the Overcharge. Power is what it needs while it has a target (1 on standby).

LevelUpgradeTotal spentDamageFire rateDPSRangePowerNonstop fire peaks atCooling it needs
1build 125125250.7/s185.518421°C1.1x
2200325370.82/s305.922482°C1.3x
3320645490.94/s466.325543°C1.5x
45121,157611.06/s656.729604°C1.7x
58191,976731.18/s867.132665°C1.8x

Levels 1-2Level 2 costs 200 gold and adds one more enemy to every strike, plus 13 damage per second on the first hit alone. Already hot: firing nonstop, even level 1 needs 1.1x cooling.

Levels 3-5Each level adds one more jump (up to 8 enemies) and a little more jump reach, and every hit, shock and Overcharge grows with the damage. Upgrade the Lightnings that face the biggest crowds; level 5 alone costs 819 gold.

Heat and cooling

Water

1.5x

One water tile beside it; +0.5x for each more, up to 3x. A connected row shares up to 12.

Cold Snap

2-6.5x

Inside a powered Cold Snap's range, level 1 to 10. Only the strongest one counts.

Both

2.5x

A level-1 Cold Snap and one water tile: the two add up.

Nonstop fire, no cooling overheats at 400°C

Level 1421°C
Level 5665°C
  • Every strike adds 85°C to the tower. Between strikes it cools back toward 20°C, fastest when it is hottest: each second it sheds about 15% of its heat above 20°C.
  • Few strikes, big jumps: fired nonstop, the heat climbs by 85°C with every strike and falls back in between. At level 1 it touches about 420°C just after a strike once it has been firing a while, so after about 13 strikes in a row it overheats; at level 5 it takes only about 7.
  • At 400°C it overheats: it shows OVERHEATED, smokes and stops firing until it is back under 250°C. That takes about 3 seconds on its own, 1.5 seconds in a level-1 Cold Snap's snow.
  • Water beside it: one water tile next to the Lightning makes it shed heat 1.5x as fast, +0.5x for each more, up to 3x with water on all four sides. Connected Lightnings share their water: a row counts one more water tile for each Lightning after the first, up to 12 tiles. No water? The bulldozer's Dig makes a water tile.
  • A Cold Snap over it: inside a powered Cold Snap's range a hot tower sheds heat 2x as fast at Cold Snap level 1, +0.5x for each level after (6.5x at level 10). Only the strongest Cold Snap over it counts. Its slow also keeps enemies bunched for the chain.
  • How much it needs: firing nonstop, a level-1 Lightning needs 1.1x cooling and a level-5 one 1.8x: water on two sides (2x) or a level-1 Cold Snap (2x). With four Lightnings beside it, a level-5 one needs 2.6x: water on four sides (3x) or a level-3 Cold Snap (3x). One water tile is enough up to level 3.
  • See it in the game: the tower panel's heat gauge says up to which level it fires nonstop without overheating with the cooling it has, and shows how hot it is and what is cooling it, and while you place a Lightning its ghost shows the cooling that spot gets, before you pay. A Lightning with nothing to strike cools by itself.

Research

Research (main menu, Upgrades & Research) makes every Lightning you build stronger. Each item has 5 levels for 250, 750, 2,000, 6,000 and 15,000 XP (24,000 XP for all 5).

Voltage Boost

+10% damage a level, +50% at level 5. The chain, the shock and the Overcharge all grow with it.

Capacitor Speed

+10% fire rate a level, +50% at level 5. More strikes means more heat, too.

Arc Distance

+10% range a level, +50% at level 5. More enemies are inside its reach for the chain; the distance of each jump does not change.

Lightning Deep Wound

Each level: enemies a Lightning hits take 1% more damage from every tower for 4 seconds (5% at level 5). Every enemy in the chain gets it. Wounds from different kinds of tower add up.

Lightning Poison

Each level: every hit, on every enemy in the chain, leaves poison worth 1% of the hit's damage every second for 4 seconds (5% at level 5). Poison goes straight to health, past shield and armour.

Height and ground

  • Each level of height: +8% damage and +0.5 range.
  • Hills: up to 15 levels on every map; above 5 is rare.
  • Platforms (small +1, medium +2, large +3) stack up to 3 high: up to 9 more levels, on flat ground or on a hill. Research unlocks the sizes and stacking.
  • Highest it can stand: 24 levels, +192% damage, +12 range.
  • On grass: −5% damage; no penalty on rock, or on a platform (it stands on steel, even over grass).

Lightning FAQ

How many enemies does one Lightning strike hit?

Up to 4 at level 1, one more for each level, 8 at level 5. The first enemy is the one the tower aims at; the bolt then jumps to the nearest enemy it has not hit yet, within 3.5 at level 1 (+0.3 a level, more from high ground) and inside the tower's own range. Each jump hits for 85% of the hit before it.

What does shock do?

Every enemy the bolt hits is shocked: for 2 seconds it takes 15% of the strike's full damage every 0.5 seconds (60% in all), even the last enemy in the chain. Hitting it again restarts the shock; it does not stack. A shocked enemy also pulls this Lightning's next chains: the bolt can jump 2 further to reach it.

What is Overcharge?

When one strike reaches 4 or more enemies, every enemy in the chain takes a bonus hit of 50% of the tower's damage. At level 1 that needs a full chain; from level 2 the chain is longer than it needs to be.

Do two Lightnings share their shocked enemies?

Each Lightning only follows its own shocks: an enemy shocked by one does not pull the other's chain. But both shocks hurt it, so two Lightnings on the same crowd still add up.

Why did my Lightning stop firing?

Most often it overheated: it shows OVERHEATED and smokes, and fires again once it has cooled to 250°C (about 3 seconds). Every strike adds 85°C, so even a level-1 Lightning overheats after about 13 strikes in a row. Or it is short of power: it needs 18 power at level 1 and 32 at level 5.

Can the Lightning hit flying enemies?

Yes. It hits ground and air, and one chain can jump between flyers and ground enemies.

Is the Lightning good against shields and armour?

Shields, yes: every hit in the chain does 15 extra damage to a shield. Armour soaks its hits like any other; research Lightning Poison, which goes straight to health, or put a Magnet nearby to tear the armour off.

Does range research make the bolt jump further?

No. Range lets the Lightning strike further away and lets the chain reach more enemies, since every enemy in the chain must be inside its range. The length of each jump grows with the tower's level and with high ground.

At what level will my Lightning start to overheat with the cooling it has?

The tower panel works it out for you: under its heat gauge it says "Fires nonstop without overheating up to level N; from level N+1 it overheats" (or "at every level"), or, if it already overheats, how much more cooling it needs. It uses the Lightning's fire rate at each level and the cooling it has right now (Cold Snaps in range, water beside it), and it changes when you add or upgrade a Cold Snap or add water. Nonstop fire is the worst case: with gaps between enemies it stays cooler.

How much power does a Lightning use when it has nothing to shoot?

Only 1: with no target it stays on standby, lights and radar on. It uses its full power only while it has a target: 18 at level 1, 32 at level 5 (the tower panel says "uses N when firing, 1 on standby"). If the grid cannot give it that, it stays on standby too: it keeps tracking enemies but cannot fire (LOW POWER). The panel's Switch off button turns it off completely: it draws nothing and does nothing until you Switch on again, so you can choose which towers run when power is short.