TDS Reforged Pulse Trooper

The Pulse Trooper is a rapid-fire energy tower designed to shred through armored enemies while maintaining consistent DPS against softer targets. Its armor-piercing capability makes it uniquely valuable against enemy compositions that feature heavy shielding or plating.

Role and positioning

Pulse Trooper fills a versatile DPS role with a specialization in armor piercing. Unlike standard towers that deal reduced damage against armored targets, Pulse Trooper ignores a percentage of enemy defense, making it consistently effective against all enemy types. This makes it a reliable choice in modes where enemy armor varies or where specific waves introduce heavily-armored units.

Position Pulse Trooper to maximize coverage of the most armored enemies in each wave. Its rapid fire rate also makes it effective against swarms, though its true value emerges against tough individual targets. Corner placements work well when armored enemies must navigate around obstacles, increasing their time within range.

Stats and upgrade path

Stat	Base	Max	Notes
Damage	22	65	Solid per-hit damage
Attack Speed	3.5/s	5.5/s	Very fast fire rate
Armor Pierce	20%	50%	Percentage of defense ignored
Range	11	15	Good coverage range
DPS	77	358	Scales with attack speed and damage

Upgrade priority: Armor Pierce first for anti-armor specialization, Damage second for raw output, Attack Speed third for consistency. The armor pierce stat is what distinguishes Pulse Trooper from other rapid-fire towers, so prioritizing it first ensures you’re getting the full value of the tower’s unique capability.

Understanding armor piercing mechanics

Armor piercing works by ignoring a percentage of enemy defense when calculating damage. For example, with 50% armor pierce against an enemy with 100 defense, only 50 defense is factored into damage calculations. This means Pulse Trooper’s effective damage against armored enemies is significantly higher than towers without armor piercing at equivalent raw damage values.

The math compounds favorably against high-defense enemies. An enemy with 200 defense that would reduce a non-piercing tower’s effective damage by 200 points only reduces Pulse Trooper’s effective damage by 100 points when at max armor pierce. This makes Pulse Trooper particularly valuable in late-game modes where enemy defense scales dramatically.

Advanced strategies

Pulse Trooper excels when positioned to hit the same armored targets repeatedly. Unlike burst towers that need to switch targets frequently, Pulse Trooper’s rapid fire rewards sustained focus on single tough enemies. This makes it ideal for boss waves where extended fights against high-defense enemies are common.

In co-op, Pulse Trooper’s armor piercing benefits the entire team when enemies are shared. If multiple players position Pulse Troopers on the same tough enemy, the combined armor pierce effect can essentially nullify the enemy’s defense, dramatically increasing team damage output.

Best modes for Pulse Trooper

• Hardcore — Armored enemies in later waves demand armor piercing; Pulse Trooper’s sustained DPS handles armored targets that would otherwise require specialized counters
• Fallen Mode — Modifier combinations often include armor bonuses that make armor piercing more valuable
• Death Invasion — Rapid fire handles large enemy counts effectively, and the armor pierce provides bonus damage against any armored variants in the swarm
• PVP Mode — Armor piercing counters opponent defensive investments; if opponents build defense-heavy loadouts, Pulse Trooper’s pierce ignores those advantages

Loadout pairing

Pulse Trooper works well with:

• Saboteur — Further defense reduction amplifies already-pierced damage. The combination is multiplicative: Saboteur reduces what remains after Pulse Trooper’s pierce
• Golden Minigunner — Combined DPS overwhelms single targets; Pulse Trooper handles the armor while Golden Minigunner provides raw damage
• Slowing Towers — Slower enemies stay in range longer for sustained fire, maximizing the benefit of rapid attack speed
• Boomerang Tower — Multi-hit coverage handles groups while Pulse Trooper focuses armored targets

Comparison with other DPS towers

Pulse Trooper’s rapid fire gives it consistent DPS that doesn’t rely on ability cooldowns or crit chance. Compared to burst-oriented towers like Enforcer, Pulse Trooper provides more predictable damage output at the cost of lower peak burst potential. Against unarmored enemies, Pulse Trooper performs comparably to standard towers while also offering armor pierce as a bonus. Against armored enemies, Pulse Trooper significantly outperforms standard alternatives.

Common mistakes

• Prioritizing damage over armor pierce, reducing the tower’s unique value
• Placing Pulse Trooper in positions where enemies pass through quickly rather than lingering
• Expecting burst damage rather than leveraging its sustained DPS strength
• Overlapping with other rapid-fire towers instead of combining with complementary damage types

FAQ

How does armor piercing work? Armor piercing ignores a percentage of enemy defense when calculating damage. 50% armor pierce against 100 defense enemies means only 50 defense is factored into damage calculations.

Is Pulse Trooper better than standard towers against unarmored enemies? Pulse Trooper’s base stats are competitive with standard towers, and its armor piercing never hurts—even against unarmored enemies, you’re dealing full damage with no penalty.

What targeting works best? First for focus fire on the toughest target, though Pulse Trooper’s rapid fire makes it effective in any targeting mode.