Critical Tower Defense Tier List (V0.87)

Storyline / Context

• The video is not a narrative storyline. It’s a Critical Tower Defense (CTD) v0.87 tower tier list where the creator ranks many towers based on perceived power level, consistency, usefulness in events vs. normal modes, and how balance changes (e.g., sniper nerf, priest nerf, reworks, and perk interactions) affected them.

Gameplay Highlights & What the Creator Emphasizes

• Event vs. normal mode performance: Several towers are praised for events but downgraded for main modes due to inconsistencies or weaker leak/boss handling.
• Meta dependency: Some towers are described as strong only when “supported” by a current meta—especially cliff tower metas.
• Perks and synergy: Rankings repeatedly hinge on whether a tower’s effectiveness depends on specific perks and how it pairs with other towers.
• Economy tower management: Economy towers are judged not only by payout, but by how much maintenance/upgrading attention they require.
• Boss/leak control vs. pure DPS: The tier decisions often balance whether a tower can reliably handle leaks and bosses, not just raw damage.

Tier List Takeaways (Ranked Towers)

(Only includes towers mentioned in the subtitles, with their stated tier.)

S Tier

• Artisan – “absolutely unstoppable,” strong DPS + buffs + portability; first S tier.
• Farmer – placed and forgotten economy style; upgrades later (“upgrade it five waves later”).
• Prophet – more damage than Cyborg (per the creator); “you can never have enough of them.”
• Shocker – “so much damage,” described as the “final boss of DPS.”
• Ducky – legendary and very strong when used correctly; drawback: “delusional fans” misusing it.
• Soul Master – strong across early/mid/late; top crowd control; good for new players.
• Recon (April Fools Recon) – stated as not D-tier, but “bad” and practical in some scenarios; generally ends up around C overall, with confusion noted.
• Vanguard-adjacent melee rank: Related towers are A-tier / High A-tier (see below).

A Tier

• Bandit – versatile; specifically praised with role swap + “Dead Eye Bandit” potential.
• Blaster – strong DPS but overshadowed by Prophet/Cyborg; placed in B (creator explains why not lower).
• Grenadier (with Promotion explosions perk) – perk makes it near S; good for leak clearing and boss shredding.
• Priest – after nerf, “demoted from S to A,” still a great buff tower.
• Programmer – reliable and consistent (“Toyota of CTD”).
• Gunner – good tower, but DPS “a little too low.”
• Frost Reaver – high A tier (fun and capable beyond freezing, but not S).
• Hunter (overall for what it’s used for) – high B (the creator highlights its buff-range role; tier placement differs by context).
• Spearman (with fervent beats) – strong early-mid; “high B tier.”
• Smuggler / Sniper / Others are not listed as A here; they fall into different tiers below.

B Tier

• Recon – good historically, especially in events, but “nothing special.”
• Archer – solid cliff buff tower; after sniper nerf “felt unusable.”
• Bandit – noted as A tier (so not B), but other entries around it are considered B.
• Blaster – B tier for DPS value.
• Cyborg – S-worthy in power, but “too common,” preventing a practical “above S” result; still stated as deserving nothing below S (later statements are mixed; net impression: extremely strong).
• Gun(n)er – B tier.
• Grenadier – without perks: bad; with Promotion explosions: A tier (as described).
• Hot Rash – low C (so not B).
• Miner – B tier; best economy claim for hard/normal, but high maintenance.
• Hunter – high B tier.
• Sniper – B tier (post-nerf); versatile but less DPS than before.
• Eradicator – C tier (situational).
• Thief – B tier (consistency issue).
• Gun(n)er / Hired Dread Eye – stated as B tier after nerf.
• Scarecrow – B tier (beast in events, out of main-loadouts).
• Spearman – high B tier.
• Smuggler – C tier (so not B).
• Smuggler / Samurai and related towers are placed into tiers below B (context-dependent).

C Tier

• Archer – C tier (directly stated).
• Cryolator – C tier (“so mid”).
• Bomber – D tier (therefore not C) and heavily criticized; referenced here for contrast.
• April Fools Recon – confusion; generally C tier by the end of its section.
• Ninja – C tier (early game fine, but damage too low).
• Tempest – low C tier (limited usage compared to newer options).
• Inferno – C tier; expensive “bang for your buck” argument.
• Samurai – high B tier (so excluded from C in that section).
• Eradicator – C tier.
• Samurai / Technomancer / etc. are A/B/C depending on what’s stated elsewhere.

D Tier

• Cryolator noise issue – not D; it’s C.
• Bomber – D tier (fell off hard; poor value even with synergy).
• Incinerator – D tier (“boom, he’s already dead”).
• Juggernaut – D tier.
• Hot Rash – low C tier (mentioned here but not truly D).
• Recon (April Fools?) – not D; it’s C.
• Snowman – C tier.
• Thief (Minor) – actually B tier (so not D).
• Toxicator – explicitly “sucks” and D tier all day.

Other A/B/C Specifics

• Technomancer – A tier.
• Warrior – high C tier.
• Samurai – high B tier (great aura/midgame, but not “spam-ability”).
• Soul Master – A tier (explicit).
• Vanguard – A tier.
• Phantom – not a formal tier label in the subtitles section, but implied as a superior leak cleaner than Vanguard after Vanguard is ranked.
• Warrior – high C tier (reiterated).
• Eradicator – C tier (reiterated).

Key Strategies / Tips Mentioned

• Use towers according to their intended lane:
  • Some towers are valued for leak management (e.g., Vanguard vs. Phantom comparison).
  • Others are valued for boss shredding and DPS (e.g., Grenadier with Promotion explosions, Shocker, Prophet/Cyborg).
• Don’t rely on towers that became weak after nerfs:
  • Archer described as unusable after sniper nerf.
  • Priest demoted after its damage buff was reduced.
  • Sniper reduced DPS vs. pre-nerf era (still usable, just not top-tier).
• Avoid misusing “correctly usable” towers:
  • Ducky is strong only when used properly; misuse can cause losses (linked to Ducky misplaying).
  • Toxicator is dismissed as not something “special” players use—called simply bad.
• Perk-centric value spikes:
  • Grenadier becomes dramatically stronger with Promotion explosions.
  • Bandit becomes versatile with role swap and “Dead Eye Bandit” potential.
• Economy tower workload:
  • Miner is strong but high maintenance; requires frequent upgrading.
  • Farmer is praised for low effort: place it, then upgrade later waves.

Gamers / Sources Featured (at the End)

• No other specific gamers, channels, or named sources are mentioned as guests or references in the subtitles provided.
• The only referenced “source” is the creator persona: “the ultimate assembly of critical tower defenders” (a title-style phrase). The creator also references their own experience, without naming external gamer sources.