 Current |
Legacy |
Description
Expert Mode is the second hardest gamemode out of the main five, second only to Endless Mode. It features numerous exclusive enemies alongside a total of 7 bosses; consisting of the Predator, the trio of Phoebus, Zeus, and Artemis, the VX-Drone, Destructor, and finally the Eradicator MK II+, who is the final boss.
It is the second of the main gamemodes to feature enemies with the 
Airborne attribute as well 
Laser and 
Golden Resistance. Additionally, damaging enemies appear much earlier and more frequently, and their damage can quickly pile up without cheap baits or sources of healing; especially with the bosses past the Predator. Because of these factors, the player is required to have several specific towers in their loadout, including early game towers with cheap 
Air Targeting and 
Stealth Detection, late game DPS towers that can avoid the later enemies' resistances, and towers that can provide healing or act as cheap baits.
In accordance with its difficulty, Expert Mode awards a massive sum of 
Gold and XP, and is a great way for endgame players to grind those resources. Additionally, upon defeating them for the first time, the player will be awarded an achievement for each of the bosses, which can be claimed to earn even more Gold and XP alongside badges of the same name.
Tower Perks
- Ranger costs 40% less.
- Missile Trooper costs 30% less.
- Operator costs 25% less.
- Shotgunner costs 35% less.
- Grenadier costs 10% less.
Strategies
Loadout
Players should generally include the following in their loadout:
- A strong but cheap single-target DPS tower (e.g. Laser Gunner, Golden Ranger or Jet Trooper)
- Should be able to detect air enemies and/or be able to ignore a resistance.
- Should be able to
- A strong DPS tower (e.g. Juggernaut or Top Path Railgunner)
- Any support towers. (e.g. EDJ or Mobster for death cashback.)
- A powerful Air Targeting tower (e.g. AA Turret or Top Path Railgunner)
- Medic for healing
- Very expensive but powerful towers like Golden Juggernaut, Combat Drone, and Helicopter can also be included.
General Game Plan
- General Overview
- Early game towers that do not do or can ignore resistances to
Bullet damage while also having cheap air targeting and stealth detection are necessary to beat the first couple of waves. Tower options that can do all of these include Laser Gunner and Golden Ranger, though combinations of towers such as a spawner and AA Turret can be used to the same effect.
- Although damaging enemies appear early, their damage usually will not be enough to kill one's towers. If necessary however, 1-2 base level Medics should be able to suffice.
- If one wishes to use cheap baits against the X Soldiers, then they need to be placed further away from the main defense due to them only targeting the most expensive tower in range.
- Specific Waves
- Important waves include the following:
- Wave 7: Debut of the X Soldier; a high health enemy and the first to deal damage.
- Wave 9: Debut of the Exosuit Zombie; a high health enemy with an 85%
Bullet Resistance. - Wave 11: Debut of the Skull Drone; the first airborne enemy, which can also damage towers if they're too close to the path.
- Wave 12: The appearance of numerous Stealth Quicks; the first stealthed enemies.
- Wave 14: Debut and appearance of several Grenadiers; spawner enemies.
- General Overview
- By the start of the mid-game, the defense should be sufficient in countering airborne and damage resistant enemies. However, faster and higher health enemies will begin appearing; necessitating towers with high range and/or the ability to stun. Such options include top path Laser Gunners, Railgunners, and XWM Turrets, as well as bottom path Golden Rangers and Helicopters of either path.
- It also by this point that players should start placing down support towers such as EDJ.
- By Wave 29, players should start placing 4-2 Medics or baits as well as more air defenses if they have not already. This is not only to survive the wave itself but also to prepare for the following wave, where Phoebus, Zeus, and Artemis make their debut.
- On Wave 30, players should set all air targeting towers to either Last or Weakest in order to kill Artemis as soon as possible due to her massive damage output. Furthermore, due to the said damage Artemis is capable of dealing, players should expect substantial losses to their main defense. The others meanwhile should be more bearable to deal with, though Phoebus may necessitate stunning from boss-stunning abilities if he starts getting out of range.
- Specific Waves
- Important waves aside from the aforementioned ones include the following:
- General Overview
- The last third of Expert Mode is where enemies with heavy resistances to Laser and Golden damage will begin appearing. As such, DPS towers that do not deal those damage types or can ignore the resistances to them are necessary. Such options include Juggernauts, XWM Turrets, and Helicopters.
- Players should have several max-level air targeting towers in time for Wave 35, which is the debut of the VX-Drone; the second airborne boss to appear. Those in combination with baits or Medics should be able to destroy it with little issue.
- Wave 40 is where the Destructor appears, alongside another VX-Drone. However, the DPS towers, supports, and existing air defenses one would have by that point should be able to easily destroy both bosses.
- By Wave 42; the final wave, players should already have numerous max-level DPS towers alongside 5-2 Medics and/or baits in order to defend against the Eradicator MK II+. Additionally, all air targeting towers should be set to Weakest targeting to destroy his spawned Missile and Healing Drones as quickly as possible (Though this does not apply to the AA Turret, which has the
No Ground Targeting (Towers & Units).). From there, it is just a matter of spamming DPS towers and replacing your supports before he is defeated.
- Specific Waves
- Important waves aside from the aforementioned ones include the following:
- Wave 32: Debut of the Titan Charger; a fast high health enemy with heavy resistances to laser and golden damage.
- Wave 33: A horde of Revived Monsters; necessitating extremely heavy DPS and/or splash.
- Wave 36: A massive swarm of Pilots.
- Wave 37: Debut of the X Juggernaut, an enemy with heavy resistances to Laser and Golden damage which can also deal heavy AoE damage.
- Wave 38: A massive swarm of Revived Abominations supported by Speed Deployers.
Power-up Rewards
Upon completing Wave 42, players receive three power-up rolls from the following weighted table:
| Power-Up | Weight |
|---|---|
| Healing Field | 90/232 (~38.8%) |
| Recon Drone | 50/232 (~21.6%) |
| Air Strike | 32/232 (~13.8%) |
| Health Crate | 30/232 (~12.9%) |
| Cash Crate | 14/232 (~6.0%) |
| A-10 Strike | 8/232 (~3.4%) |
| AC-130 Support | 5/232 (~2.2%) |
| Raptor Storm | 2/232 (0.9%) |
| PunkBuster Missile | 1/232 (0.4%) |
- Roll Explanation
- Each roll is independent and drawn from a weighted random distribution, where each reward's weight affects how likely it is to be selected. On win, three rewards are rolled independently from this distribution; duplicates are possible.
Enemies
Note: A debut wave of "N/A" means the enemy does not appear naturally, instead being spawned by a previous one.
Wave 1
Wave 2
Wave 4
Wave 7
Wave 9
Wave 10
Wave 11
Wave 13
Wave 14
N/A
N/A
N/A
Wave 16
Wave 17
Wave 18
Wave 20
Wave 21
Wave 22
Wave 25
Wave 27
Wave 27
Wave 28
Wave 29
Wave 29
Wave 29
Wave 30
Wave 30
Wave 30
Wave 32
Wave 35
Wave 37
Wave 37
Wave 39
Wave 40
Wave 42
N/A
N/A
Wave Structure
This Section is a Stub
This section is lacking necessary information and requires further revising to be up to standard, which you can help remedy through editing it. Once it is complete, you may remove this
{{SectionStub}} notice from this page.Missing Content: Enemy counts and stat boosts
The waves follow these timings:
| Wave | 0 |
1-11 |
12 |
13-15 |
16 |
17 |
18 |
19 |
20-21 |
22-23 |
24 |
25 |
26 |
27-28 |
29 |
30 |
31-32 |
33 |
34 |
35 |
36 |
37 |
38 |
39 |
40 |
41 |
42 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Timer | 00:14 |
00:59 |
01:29 |
00:59 |
01:29 |
00:59 |
02:09 |
00:59 |
01:29 |
00:59 |
01:29 |
00:59 |
02:19 |
01:59 |
03:39 |
05:19 |
01:29 |
02:59 |
00:59 |
04:59 |
00:59 |
02:19 |
01:29 |
03:09 |
05:59 |
03:19 |
00:00 |
Notes:
⠀⠀●⠀Bolded names indicate an enemy's debut.
⠀⠀●⠀Shield boosts are based off of base health.
| Wave | Layout | Advisor / Dr. Xenon Dialogue | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | ●⠀11× Normal |
|
"Commander! Dr. Xenon is sending new forces that we have never seen before! Higher end towers like Laser Gunner and Railgunner are needed." |
| 2 | ●⠀14× Normal ●⠀1× Quick |
|
"Eradicator MK II has been rebuilt and upgraded. Medic is vital to the team, along with heavy hitters such as Railgunner and XWM Turret." |
| 3 | ●⠀11× Normal ●⠀4× Quick |
|
"Our Intel doesn't show much on Eradicator MK II. However, we know another boss is arriving, Destructor. We need the best defense we can get." |
| 4 | ●⠀8× Quick ●⠀7× Slow |
|
"Placing towers in the back is not a bad idea. Be sure to upgrade your towers' range!" |
| 5 | ●⠀20× Normal ●⠀12× Quick |
|
"Plenty of Quick enemies, don't let them leak by!" |
| 6 | ●⠀15× Slow ●⠀5× Quick |
N/A | |
| 7 | ●⠀7× Quick ●⠀1× X Soldier |
|
"X Soldier enemies detected, they will fire upon nearby ground towers! One of them isn't a problem, multiple of them are! Take them out fast." |
| 8 | ●⠀17× Quick ●⠀1× X Soldier |
|
"Remember, towers will heal back to full HP overtime if left undamaged, and different towers have different HP values!" |
|
|
"You can also bait enemy attacks with cheaper towers like John so your more valuable towers don't get hit! Medic is also a great counter." | ||
| 9 | ●⠀2× Exosuit Zombie ●⠀2× Quick ●⠀1× X Soldier |
|
"Exosuit Zombie zombies detected! These guys have a bunch of resistances, even Energy resistance used by Golden Towers. We need towers that don't use Bullet type to take them down." |
| 10 | ●⠀40× Quick ●⠀1× Heavy Titan |
|
"Heavy Titan detected, [sic]Railgunner is a great option to get rid of this big foe. Laser Gunners or Golden Ranger can make quick work of this enemy too!" |
| 11 | ●⠀4× Exosuit Zombie ●⠀3× Skull Drone |
|
"Air Enemies detected! Skull Drone will also attack nearby towers too close to the main path! Laser Gunner is a great counter, [sic] buy the "Advanced Tech" upgrade to shoot them!" |
| 12 | ●⠀2× Heavy Titan ●⠀25× Stealth Quick ●⠀3× Skull Drone ●⠀17× Quick ●⠀7× Skull Drone |
|
"Heavy Titans with air enemies,[sic] we need a balance of both air detection and heavy hitters. Do not forget about your anti-air capabilities!" |
| 13 | ●⠀7× Buzzard ●⠀1× Heavy Titan ●⠀1× X Soldier ●⠀12× Quick |
|
"Buzzards inbound! They are more tanky than Skull Drones but don't attack. Don't place towers too close to the main path! More Skull Drones may be sent." |
| 14 | ●⠀8× Exosuit Zombie ●⠀2× Grenadier ●⠀3× Buzzard |
|
"Exosuit Zombie Zombies and Grenadiers detected,[sic] along with some Buzzards. Laser Gunner's "Laser BR" upgrade provides more than enough range to chew them all down." |
| 15 | ●⠀15× Buzzard |
|
"Buzzard rush! If air enemies are too problematic, consider investing into the AA Turret. Targets and Destroys air enemies effortlessly [sic]." |
| 16 | ●⠀3× Heavy Titan ●⠀2× Revived Boss 1 ●⠀6× Exosuit Zombie |
|
"Be ready Commander! I have a bad feeling about next wave,[sic], a jumping Stealth threat approaches. If you can, purchase the "Reinforce[sic] Tech" upgrade on Laser Gunner." |
| 17 | ●⠀1× Jumper ●⠀1× Stealth Jumper |
|
"Jumper Detected[sic]! These guys jump across the map and evade all hits while in the air! Don't let them bounce to the end of the map!" |
|
|
"Jumpers can also jump over your units and mines on the path! These guys are super annoying,[sic] Laser Gunner's Shock Rounds are extremely effective at stopping them." | ||
| 18 | ●⠀1× Super Heavy Titan ●⠀20× Quick (  450%)●⠀20× Quick ( 350%)●⠀2× Buzzard (  +100%)●⠀1× Jumper |
|
"Super Heavy Titan detected, we need heavy hitters with range like Railgunners. Towers like Helicopter will struggle due to their bullet resistance." |
|
|
"Artillery can also make fine work. The explosive damage it does is big enough to hit air enemies as well!" | ||
| 19 | ●⠀3× Stealth Exosuit Zombie ●⠀3× Stealth Buzzard ●⠀3× Stealth Grenadier ●⠀1× Stealth Heavy Titan ●⠀1× Stealth Jumper |
|
"Always be aware of resistances! Laser Gunner and Golden Ranger may work for now, but later there can be new threats that will require other damage types!" |
| 20 | ●⠀2× Super Heavy Titan ●⠀1× Speed Deployer ●⠀2× X Soldier ( 100%)●⠀3× Jumper |
|
"Speed Deployer detected,[sic] these guys will throw a pad that speeds up enemies that walk over it!" |
| 21 | ●⠀30× Slow ( 250%)●⠀1× Revived Smasher ●⠀15× Skull Drone ( 100%)●⠀1× X Soldier ( 100%) |
|
"Revived Smasher spotted! It has way more health and resistance to melee, and his smash now deals damage! He can also target units on the path!" |
| 22 | ●⠀30× Quick (250%,100%,+25%) ●⠀1× Purgatory ●⠀1× Jumper |
|
"Purgatory enemies are here. They can detect stealth, but the real threat are to air towers! Pull back your Helicopters before they get shot down!" |
|
|
"Use ground troops to handle Purgatory enemies! Purgatory enemies shot down many of our aircraft trying to assist another assault in Asia." | ||
| 23 | ●⠀8× Jumper (100%) ●⠀3× Stealth Jumper |
|
"Jumpers! Laser Gunner Shock Rounds can put a stop to them, or enough high-damage towers like Railgunners and Golden Rangers." |
| 24 | ●⠀2× Super Heavy Titan (40%) ●⠀3× Stealth X Soldier ( 150%)●⠀1× Speed Deployer ●⠀5× Revived Boss 1 ●⠀1× Super Heavy Titan |
|
"Keep in mind for later boss fights, you can sell towers if you see they're about to be killed. You can save some money this way!" |
|
|
"Towers like Medic are valuable to have as they can heal towers mid-fight, preventing them from being killed!" | ||
| 25 | ●⠀2× Exosuit Zombie ●⠀1× Bounded |
|
"Bounded detected! His arms are locked when he spawns, slowing him down. However, he will be freed shortly and make a run for the base! Stop him!" |
| 26 | ●⠀6× Super Heavy Titan ●⠀5× Stealth Jumper ●⠀3× Buzzard ●⠀1× Speed Deployer ●⠀8× Stealth Revived Boss 1 ●⠀6× Stealth Exosuit Zombie ( 200%)●⠀1× Revived Smasher ( 30%)●⠀4× X Soldier ( 200%,100%)●⠀2× Stealth Jumper ( 50%) |
|
"EDJ is an extremely vital tower to have. EDJ can provide not only firerate buffs, but also discounts. Upgrading to "Cosplay Party" will save you a lot of money!" |
| 27 | ●⠀150× Quick (200%,200%) ●⠀2× Revived Monster ●⠀1× Purgatory ( 45%)●⠀8× Armored Runner |
|
"Revived Monsters detected. They are super tanky and slow: Railgunners make quick work of them. Armored Runners coming in later! Juggernaut's "Power Minigun" upgrade can destroy them." |
| 28 | ●⠀1× Revived Monster (120%) ●⠀1× Multiplier 1 ●⠀1× Stealth Bounded ●⠀12× Buzzard ( 50%,+75%) |
|
"Multiplier spotted! Most of these have been eradicated, but some still linger around. Cloned enemies do not provide any cash!" |
| 29 | ●⠀1× Revived Abomination (110%) ●⠀1× Revived Monster ( 35%)●⠀4× Pilot ●⠀2× Predator ( 50%)●⠀1× Stealth Purgatory ( 45%)●⠀10× Jumper ( 100%)●⠀5× X Soldier ( 200%)●⠀2× Stealth Purgatory ( 45%)●⠀3× Armored Runner ●⠀7× Buzzard ( 200%)●⠀1× Revived Abomination ●⠀1× Revived Monster ●⠀1× Stealth Bounded ●⠀1× Stealth Speed Deployer |
|
"Its a rush! Predators and Pilots inbound! Along with dozens of other foes! Don't forget to bait Predator attacks and have air defense!" |
| 30 | ●⠀1× Phoebus ●⠀1× Zeus ●⠀1× Artemis ●⠀5× X Soldier ( 300%)●⠀1× Purgatory ( 50%)●⠀1× Revived Monster ( 30%)●⠀3× Purgatory ( 200%) |
|
"Phobeus, Zeus and Artemis are here. Phobeus will charge, using his shield to take no damage. Zeus will shock, Artemis will support. Take Phobeus out first!" |
|
|
"Be aware of Phobeus, he is highly explosive when killed! Sell towers that are too close to him to save some money!" | ||
|
|
"Artemis is a flying miniboss,[sic], we need heavy anti air capabilities to take her down! Railgunner's top path max upgrade can target air threats!" | ||
| 31 | ●⠀1× Revived Smasher (200%,40%,+20%) ●⠀2× Speed Deployer ( 150%)●⠀5× Bounded ●⠀10× Armored Runner ( +10%)●⠀8× Jumper ( 350%) |
|
"Great work Commander, a bit of a breather here. Prepare for more air enemies and tankier threats." |
| 32 | ●⠀4× Titan Charger ●⠀12× Pilot |
|
"Titan Chargers! They are heavily resistant to both Energy and Laser damage! Bullet or explosive damage will destroy them!" |
| 33 | ●⠀1× Titan Charger ●⠀16× Revived Monster ( 150%)●⠀1× Purgatory ●⠀1× Bounded ( 150%) |
|
"Tons of Revived Monsters! Do not forget about Titan Chargers,[sic]I fear there will be more. Juggernauts will be able to counter them effectively." |
|
|
"Titan Chargers also punch through our troops and vehicles: they don't lose much health to ramming units on the path!" | ||
| 34 | ●⠀24× Stealth Jumper (350%,300%) |
|
"Jumper rush! They're all stealthed. Railgunners and Laser Gunners can handle them. You can also use Laser Gunner's Stealth Sensor ability to uncloak them!" |
| 35 | ●⠀10× Pilot ●⠀50× Buzzard ( 400%,+100%)●⠀1× VX-Drone ●⠀20× Skull Drone ( 700%) |
|
"VX-Drone detected! There are only aerial enemies this wave! VX-Drone has a powerful laser and mortar,[sic] the mortar targets the most valuable tower in the area!" |
| 36 | ●⠀42× Pilot (100%,+10%) |
|
"Pilot rush! We need heavy anti air! Next wave, prepare for heavy resistances that will make Railgunners struggle." |
| 37 | ●⠀2× X Juggernaut ●⠀4× Purgatory ( 150%)●⠀1× Damage Deployer ●⠀1× Titan Charger ●⠀1× Revived Smasher ( 100%)●⠀1× Revived Monster ( 220%,50%) |
|
"X Juggernauts detected! They're heavily resistant to Laser and Energy resistance! Juggernaut or XWM Turret will make quick work of them. Be wary of their flamethrowers!" |
| 38 | ●⠀80× Revived Abomination ●⠀3× Speed Deployer ( 100%) |
|
"Abominations inbound! It's a rush! Have multiple EDJs and ensure your towers are always buffed with her ability!" |
| 39 | ●⠀3× X Juggernaut ●⠀5× X Ordinal ●⠀12× X Soldier ( 400%,500%)●⠀3× X Juggernaut ( 150%) |
|
"It's an assault! X Juggernauts and X Ordinals need to be countered by towers that don't use Laser or Energy attacks!" |
| 40 | ●⠀5× Titan Charger (50%) ●⠀1× Destructor ●⠀6× Purgatory ( 100%)●⠀1× Damage Deployer ●⠀2× X Juggernaut ●⠀1× VX-Drone ●⠀1× X Ordinal |
|
"Destructor sighted! He has a powerful EMP attack that will destroy any nearby Helicopters! His jetpacks can be used to jump across the map!" |
|
|
"XRT Railgunners are extremely effective against Destroyer. Also be sure to place down Medics if you can!" | ||
| 41 | ●⠀23× Stealth Titan Charger |
|
"Commander! It's another rush! Stealthed Titan Charger-" |
|
"Tsk, so annoying of Advisor to spoil my surprise like this, isn't it, "Commander"?" | ||
|
"I studied how the GDA vanquished my previous Eradicator MK II. It was almost too easy to develop Energy resistance." | ||
|
"You won't survive him this time, Commander. I've rebuilt him with many new weapons, armor and abilities. All designed to completely eradicate the GDA." | ||
| 42 | ●⠀1× Eradicator MK II+ |
|
"Now, behold my finest creation... the Eradicator MK II+!" |
|
"I finally resolved its... overheating issue. If you somehow manage to breach through his armor, he'll detonate the damaged armor to continue his destruction!" | ||
|
|
"Once I'm done with you, I'll deploy more units across the globe, spreading as much carnage as I can. But don't worry Commander... you won't live to see that." | ||
Music
| Source | Title | Audio |
|---|---|---|
| Ambience
|
Reindustrialize - Original Soundtrack of Tower Defense X - TDX OST | |
| Eradicator's Cry - Original Soundtrack of Tower Defense X - TDX OST | ||
| Failed Propaganda - Original Soundtrack of Tower Defense X - TDX OST | ||
| Ranger Rave - Original Soundtrack of Tower Defense X - TDX OST | ||
| Snare Tension - Original Soundtrack of Tower Defense X - TDX OST | ||
| Replay - Original Soundtrack of Tower Defense X - TDX OST | ||
| Reevaluate Your Next Moves - Original Soundtrack of Tower Defense X - TDX OST | ||
| Glacier - Original Soundtrack of Tower Defense X - TDX OST | ||
| Hostile Sands - Original Soundtrack of Tower Defense X - TDX OST | ||
| Found Troops | ||
| Silence before Storm | ||
| Slow March | ||
| Total Wasteland | ||
| Wave 30
|
Vehicular Positive Reinforcement - Original Soundtrack of Tower Defense X - TDX OST |
Badges
OBTAINABLE
Obtained by defeating Phoebus
From the sun, obtainable on Wave 30 in Expert.
OBTAINABLE
Obtained by defeating Zeus
From thunder, obtainable on Wave 30 in Expert.
OBTAINABLE
Obtained by defeating Artemis
From the hunt, obtainable on Wave 30 in Expert.
OBTAINABLE
Obtained by defeating Destructor
Destruction no more, obtainable on Wave 40 in Expert.
OBTAINABLE
Obtained by defeating Eradicator MK II+
Dr. Xenon did not figure out the core overheating problem. Obtainable on Wave 42 in Expert.
Gallery
Gamemodes
Image before selecting the Expert gamemode.
Image when hovering over the Expert gamemode.
Victory/Defeat Screen
Victory render for the Expert gamemode featuring an X-5 Cryo Blaster, an X-5 John and 5-X Toxicnator.
Icons and Thumbnails
Expert Mode Game Icon
Other
Expert Mode's matchmaking image.
Expert Mode's medal.
Expert Mode's original name.
Trivia
- This is the first main gamemode to be reworked.
- Reworked Expert Mode is also the first non-event gamemode to feature airborne enemies, and is among the first 2 gamemodes in general to have enemies with
Golden Resistance, alongside Endless Mode.
- Reworked Expert Mode is also the first non-event gamemode to feature airborne enemies, and is among the first 2 gamemodes in general to have enemies with
- The trailer for the Expert Mode Rework as well as dialogue from Advisor implies it is merely a continuation of Legacy Expert Mode, meaning the latter might still be canonically relevant in the lore.
- A few of the soundtracks used for Expert Mode are also later reused for Nightmare Mode.
- Expert Mode is the only gamemode which features more than 1 narrator. (Advisor and Dr. Xenon)
Update History
- 27 March 2025
- Expert Mode has been reworked.
- 23 May 2025
- 11 October 2025
- 31 October 2025
- Tower Perks has been added to Expert Mode.
- Ranger costs 40% less.
- Missile Trooper costs 30% less.
- Operator costs 25% less.
- Shotgunner costs 35% less.
- Grenadier costs 10% less.
- Tower Perks has been added to Expert Mode.
- 12 June 2026
|
|---|