Tesla Tower: Stats, Upgrades, Tips: The Tesla in Blockade Brigade: 600 gold, up to 5 bolts a shot plus chain jumps. Every level, heat and cooling, research and FAQ.

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

Advanced Tower

Tesla Tower

Chain lightning hits multiple enemies. Strong vs shields.

600 goldGround + AirResearch 25000

The Tesla throws lightning. Every shot strikes one enemy at level 1 and up to 5 at level 10, each bolt at full damage, then the lightning jumps on from the first enemy hit to the next one nearby, 1 jump at level 1 and up to 5 at level 10, each jump doing 50% of the one before. Bolts hit instantly, ground and air, and when there are fewer enemies than bolts the spare bolts all land on the last one, so a lone big enemy takes every bolt. Like the Cannon, it heats up: every shot adds heat, and from level 2 a Tesla firing nonstop overheats unless water or a Cold Snap cools it.

Tesla Tower
Build your own Tesla

Attributes Level 1, on the ground

Cost
600 gold to build
Unlock
25,000 XPXP to research it (main menu, Upgrades & Research)
Sell value
450 gold 75% of the gold spent on it; all of it back within 15 seconds of placing
Can hit
Ground & Air
Damage
15
Fire rate
1/s
DPS
15 damage a second, one hit on one target, before armour
Range
5 2.5 tiles
Targets at once
1 bolt
Power
uses 22 when firing · 1 on standby Full power only while it has a target. Switch it off to free its power.
Heat
+55 °C a shot Overheats at 400 °C, fires again at 250 °C. Nonstop fire at this level peaks at 378 °C: stays cool
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 Teslas 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, Capacitor, 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

Where enemies bunch up

The chain jumps only to an enemy close to the last one hit and inside the Tesla's range. Corners, crossings and a Cold Snap's snow keep enemies packed, so every jump finds a target.

Against big enemies

Each shot throws as many bolts as its level allows, and with only one enemy in range every bolt hits it. A level-10 Tesla lands 5 full-damage bolts a shot on a lone enemy.

Against shields

Each bolt hits a shield for 15 extra damage (5 extra against armour). That bonus does not grow with the level, so it counts most on young Teslas; Shield Damage cards add more.

Build in rows and go high

Each Tesla on the four sides of another gives it +15% damage and +10% fire rate (up to +60% and +40%), and connected Teslas need 25% less power each. Each level of hill or platform adds +8% damage and +0.5 range; on bare grass it loses 5% damage.

Keep it cool

From level 2 a Tesla that fires nonstop overheats on its own. Water 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 see what your Tesla ends up doing: each bolt, the whole shot with its chain, and its heat, 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 55 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 + 55 / (1 - exp(-cooling / (fire rate x 6))) and its average at 20 + fire rate x 55 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 - 55 / (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: 25,000 XP; its upgrades: 120,000 XP for all.

  • Tesla Voltage: +10% a level, 5 levels (+50%), 250, 750, 2,000, 6,000, 15,000 XP
  • Tesla Capacitor: +6% a level, 5 levels (+30%), 250, 750, 2,000, 6,000, 15,000 XP
  • Tesla Arc Distance: +6% a level, 5 levels (+30%), 250, 750, 2,000, 6,000, 15,000 XP
  • Tesla Deep Wound: +1% a level, 5 levels (+5%), 250, 750, 2,000, 6,000, 15,000 XP
  • Tesla 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

  • Each shot fires bolts at full damage (1, 1, 2, 2, 3, 3, 4, 4, 5, 5 for levels 1 up); with fewer enemies the spare bolts hit the last one again. Then the lightning jumps on from the first enemy (1, 1, 1, 2, 2, 3, 3, 4, 4, 5 jumps), each jump 50% of the one before.
  • DPS on one enemy = damage x bolts x fire rate. On a crowd = damage x (bolts + the jumps' shares) x fire rate.

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..10
  • r.<stat>.<N>: research level 0..5 of a research item (damage, fire_rate, range, 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 is one bolt, and damage per second here is one bolt's (damage x fire rate): a shot throws as many bolts as its level allows, plus the chain. Power is what it needs while it has a target (1 on standby). The last two columns are for nonstop fire.

LevelUpgradeTotal spentDamageFire rateDPSRangePowerNonstop fire peaks atCooling it needs
1build 600600151/s15522378°Cnone
29001,500331.15/s385.526428°C1.1x
31,3502,850511.3/s66631477°C1.3x
42,0254,875691.45/s1006.535527°C1.4x
53,0377,912871.6/s139740576°C1.6x
64,55612,4681051.75/s1847.544625°C1.7x
76,83419,3021231.9/s234848675°C1.8x
810,25129,5531412.05/s2898.553724°C2x
915,37744,9301592.2/s350957774°C2.1x
1023,06667,9961772.35/s4169.562823°C2.3x

Levels 1-2One bolt a shot and 1 jump. Level 1 stays cool firing nonstop; from level 2 it needs a little help, and one water tile (1.5x) is enough up to level 4.

Levels 3-10Every odd level adds a bolt (up to 5) and every even level a jump (up to 5), on top of more damage, fire rate and range. Against a crowd or a lone big enemy, a high-level Tesla hits far harder than the one-bolt column shows.

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 1378°C
Level 10823°C
  • Every shot adds 55°C, however many bolts and jumps it throws. Between shots the coil cools back toward 20°C, fastest when it is hottest: each second it sheds about 15% of its heat above 20°C.
  • Fired nonstop, it climbs to a peak just after each shot, where the heat it adds matches the heat it sheds. A level-1 Tesla peaks at about 380°C; at level 2 (1.15 shots a second) it reaches about 430°C, past the limit.
  • 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 Tesla makes it shed heat 1.5x as fast, +0.5x for each more, up to 3x with water on all four sides. Connected Teslas share their water: a row counts one more water tile for each Tesla after the first, up to 12 tiles.
  • A Cold Snap over it: inside a powered Cold Snap's range it 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, and its snow also keeps enemies bunched for the chain.
  • Faster fire means more heat: fire-rate research, cards and neighbours all add shots. A level-10 Tesla firing nonstop needs 2.3x cooling, and with four Teslas beside it 3.1x: a level-4 Cold Snap (3.5x).
  • 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 Tesla its ghost shows the cooling that spot gets. A Tesla with nothing to shoot cools by itself.

Research

Research (main menu, Upgrades & Research) makes every Tesla you build stronger. The Tesla itself costs 25,000 XP to research first. Each item has 5 levels for 250, 750, 2,000, 6,000 and 15,000 XP (24,000 XP for all 5).

Tesla Voltage

+10% damage a level, +50% at level 5, for every bolt and every jump.

Tesla Capacitor

+6% fire rate a level, +30% at level 5. More shots means more heat, too.

Tesla Arc Distance

+6% range a level, +30% at level 5, and the lightning jumps that much further between enemies too.

Tesla Deep Wound

Each level: enemies a Tesla hits, by bolt or by jump, take 1% more damage from every tower for 4 seconds (5% at level 5). Wounds from different kinds of tower add up.

Tesla Poison

Each level: every bolt and every jump leaves poison worth 1% of its 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).

Tesla FAQ

How many enemies does the Tesla hit?

Each shot throws one bolt at level 1, one more at every odd level, up to 5 at level 10, each at full damage on its own enemy. Then the lightning jumps on from the first enemy hit: 1 jump at level 1, one more at every even level, up to 5. Each jump does 50% of the one before and goes to the nearest enemy close enough that it has not yet hit in that chain, inside the Tesla's range.

What happens when only one enemy is in range?

Every bolt hits it. A level-10 Tesla lands 5 full-damage bolts on it each shot, about 2,080 damage a second before armour and shields. The jumps need a second enemy close by.

Is the Tesla good against shields and armour?

Each bolt hits a shield for 15 more damage and armour for 5 more; jumps carry their share. The bonus is the same at every level, so it matters most on a young Tesla. Shield Damage and Armor Damage cards raise it.

Why did my Tesla stop firing?

Most often it overheated: it shows OVERHEATED and smokes, and fires again once it has cooled to 250°C (about 3 seconds). Or it is short of power: LOW POWER means it can track but not fire, NO POWER means it does nothing. It needs 22 power at level 1 and 62 at level 10.

How do I stop my Tesla overheating?

Water beside it, a Cold Snap over it, or both. Firing nonstop, a level-10 Tesla needs 2.3x cooling: water on three sides (2.5x) or a level-2 Cold Snap (2.5x). Only the strongest Cold Snap over it counts: two don't add up, but water adds on top of one. With gaps between enemies it runs cooler.

Can the Tesla hit flying enemies?

Yes. It hits ground and air, and a jump can go from a ground enemy to a flying one and back.

At what level will my Tesla 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 Tesla'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 Tesla 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: 22 at level 1, 62 at level 10 (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.