Refractor

Article

Gallery

Description

The Refractor is a DPS-oriented tower capable of easily shredding most enemies, especially ones that lack Laser Resistance, and even gains the ability to Ignore Obstacles at 1-X, letting it be placed in advantageous positions. It is a powerful late game tower that requires high maintenance, as various bosses prioritize the Refractor due to its high price and health. Furthermore, its extraordinarily high upgrade costs make losing a Refractor very punishing, as it costs a whopping $1,000,000 to max out its bottom path, not to mention the Dynamic Price Scaling that comes with it. On the other hand, its massive range, health, unmatched DPS and Ignore Obstacles when upgraded to 1-5/2-5 allow it to be placed far from danger and shred through enemies like no other tower can. Note that it cannot be buffed by any damage buffs, including by the Damage Field.

Upgrades

Refractor's Top Path chains its beam from target to target, making it better for multiple targets compared to the bottom path, albeit this beam will deal damage to the other nearby targets close to the target the Refractor is targeting, chained targets receive reduced damage until the Max Level, where they will receive full damage.

Its Bottom Path is much more DPS Focused, increasing its damage the longer it attacks an enemy up to 3.5x its normal damage for 14 seconds with a cooldown of 22 seconds, making it an excellent choice against high health enemies, albeit having a hefty price tag of $1,000,000 Cash just to max out not including the Dynamic Price Scaling, making it extremely punishing if it happens to die.

• Top Path
• Bottom Path

$8,750

CELL REFUSION

+250.0 Health

+9.0 Damage

+5.0 Range

Ignore Obstacles

$17,500

FUSION CORE

+450.0 Health

+12.0 Damage

-0.05s Reload Time

+2.0 Range

$43,500

BEAM SPREADER

+2,750.0 Health

+15.0 Damage

+3.0 Range

Stealth Detection

+1.0 (50% chain damage)^[1] Chain Count

$110,000

CHAIN REACTION

+4,000.0 Health

+60.0 Damage

Stun Immunity

+2.0 (60% Chain Damage) Chain Count

$235,000

ATOM DIFFUSER

+7,000.0 Health

+110.0 Damage

+13.0 Range

+3.0 (100% Chain Damage) Chain Count

$7,000

DAMAGE INCREASE

+150.0 Health

+10.0 Damage

$19,000

DAMAGE MULTIPLIER

+300.0 Health

+17.0 Damage

$55,000

DESTRUCTOR BEAM

+3,500.0 Health

+50.0 Damage

+8.0 Range

Stun Immunity

+1.8^[2] Damage Over Time Max Multiplier

+15.0 Damage Over Time Duration

+8.5 Damage Over Time Cooldown

$157,500

CORE FUSION

+6,750.0 Health

+125.0 Damage

+10.0 Range

Stealth Detection

+0.6 Damage Over Time Max Multiplier

+2.0 Damage Over Time Duration

-0.5 Damage Over Time Cooldown

$1,000,000

CALAMITY BEAM

+15,000.0 Health

+450.0 Damage

+8.0 Range

+1.1 Damage Over Time Max Multiplier

+2.0 Damage Over Time Duration

+14.0 Damage Over Time Cooldown

Dynamic Price Scaling ($8,000^[3])

Damage Over Time Stats

Level	Interval 1	Interval 2	Interval 3	Interval 4	Interval 5	Interval 6	Interval 7	Interval 8	Interval 9	Interval 10	Interval 11	Interval 12	Interval 13	Interval 14	Interval 15	Interval 16	Interval 17
2-3	9.5	18.5	27.4	36.5	45.9	55.3	64.8	74.2	83.7	93.1	102.2	108.0	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A
2-4	25.2	51.0	76.2	101.9	127.1	152.9	178.1	203.6	229.1	254.5	279.8	305.5	331.2	356.7	364.0	N/A	N/A
2-5	108.6	218.0	323.1	428.8	538.2	644.0	753.3	861.9	971.3	1,080.6	1,190.0	1,295.0	1,400.8	1,500.6	1,616.0	1,721.7	1,775.0

Stats Table

• Linear Path
• Cross Path

• Top Path
• Bottom Path

Level	Total Cost	Health	Damage	Reload Time	Range	Chain Count	Chain Damage	DPS	Cost : DPS
0-0	$20,000	1,800	40.0	0.20s	24.0	N/A	N/A	200.0	100 : 1
1-0	$28,750	2,050	49.0	0.20s	29.0	N/A	N/A	245.0	117.3 : 1
2-0	$46,250	2,500	61.0	0.15s	31.0	N/A	N/A	406.7	113.7 : 1
3-0	$89,750	5,250	76.0	0.15s	34.0	1.0	50%	506.7	177.1 : 1
4-0	$199,750	9,250	136.0	0.15s	34.0	3.0	60%	906.7	220.3 : 1
5-0	$434,750	16,250	246.0	0.15s	47.0	6.0	100%	1,620.0	265.1 : 1

Level	Total Cost	Health	Damage	Reload Time	Range	DOT Max Multiplier	DOT Duration	DOT Cooldown	Min DPS	Average DPS	Max DPS	Cost : Min DPS	Cost : Average DPS	Cost : Max DPS
0-0	$20,000	1,800	40.0	0.20s	24.0	N/A	N/A	N/A	200.0	N/A	N/A	100 : 1	N/A	N/A
0-1	$27,000	1,950	50.0	0.20s	24.0	N/A	N/A	N/A	250.0	N/A	N/A	108 : 1	N/A	N/A
0-2	$46,000	2,250	67.0	0.20s	24.0	N/A	N/A	N/A	335.0	N/A	N/A	137.3 : 1	N/A	N/A
0-3	$101,000	5,500	117.0	0.20s	32.0	1.8	15.0	8.5	585.0	825.2	1,053.0	172.6 : 1	122.4 : 1	95.9 : 1
0-4	$258,500	12,250	242.0	0.20s	42.0	2.4	17.0	8.0	1,210.0	2015.0	2,904.0	213.6 : 1	128.3 : 1	89 : 1
0-5	$1,258,500	27,250	692.0	0.20s	50.0	3.5	19.0	22.0	3,460.0	6118.1	12,110.0	363.7 : 1	205.7 : 1	103.9 : 1

Level	Total Cost	Health	Damage	Reload Time	Range	DPS	Cost : DPS
0-0	$20,000	1,800	40.0	0.20s	24.0	200.0	100 : 1
1-1	$35,750	2,200	56.0	0.20s	29.0	295.0	121.2 : 1
2-2	$72,250	2,950	88.0	0.15s	31.0	586.7	123.2 : 1

• Top Path
• Bottom Path

Level	Total Cost	Health	Damage	Reload Time	Range	Chain Count	Chain Damage	DPS	Cost : DPS
3-2	$115,750	5,700	103.0	0.15s	34.0	1.0	50%	686.7	168.6 : 1
4-2	$225,750	9,700	163.0	0.15s	34.0	3.0	60%	1,086.7	207.7 : 1
5-2	$460,750	16,700	273.0	0.15s	47.0	6.0	100%	1,820.0	253.2 : 1

Level	Total Cost	Health	Damage	Reload Time	Range	DOT Max Multiplier	DOT Duration	DOT Cooldown	Min DPS	Average DPS	Max DPS	Cost : Min DPS	Cost : Average DPS	Cost : Max DPS
2-3	$127,250	6,200	138.0	0.15s	39.0	1.8	15.0	8.5	920.0	1296.2	1,656.0	138.3 : 1	98.2 : 1	76.8 : 1
2-4	$284,750	12,950	263.0	0.15s	49.0	2.4	17.0	8.0	1,753.3	3063.5	4,208.0	162.4 : 1	92.9 : 1	67.7 : 1
2-5	$1,284,750	27,950	713.0	0.15s	57.0	3.5	19.0	22.0	4,753.3	9105.3	16,636.7	270.3 : 1	141.1 : 1	77.2 : 1

Badges

REFRACTOR BEAMS

UNOBTAINABLE

Obtained by obtaining Refractor during the Nightmare Launch Event

Get an exclusive Refractor Calamity skin by unlocking the Refractor tower within the first 72 hours of the Nightmare update going live!

After 72 hours of the update going live, this skin will no longer be obtainable.

The exclusive reward will be given out at a later time.

Skins

To see all the upgrades of a skin, see the gallery page.

Skin	Skeleton	Winter Ops	Calamity
Rarity	Exclusive	Epic	Exclusive
Obtainment Method	2025 Halloween Event	Winter Ops Crate	REFRACTOR BEAMS Badge

Strategies

• Medic and/or Shield Tower will be a necessity if one wishes to use the Refractor as their DPS, especially in Nightmare Mode against the Jager and Alpha Predator, especially due to its expensive price.
  • Mobster/Golden Mobster can be used to get any cash back if the Refractor happens to die.
  • The Refractor should always be paired with the EDJ, as it is the only tower that can directly increase Refractor's damage output while also lowering the price of its upgrades.
  • Combat Medic, notably its top path, pairs exceptionally well with the Refractor, saving lots of cash and time from replacing due to its revive mechanic.
• Whilst the Refractor can't have its damage buffed directly, towers that can increase the damage an enemy takes can allow the Refractor to deal more damage, such as Toxicnator's Toxic Blast or Combat Drone's Spotter ability.
• The Refractor can be very dangerous when converted due to its extraordinary DPS; as such it should be sold as quickly as possible if converted.
  • If possible, using the Medic's Uber on the converted Refractor is a more favorable option as it removes conversion without needing to replace the tower.
• If the gamemode lacks allotted cash to use Bottom Path Refractor, Top Path is still a great option as it has 1,820 DPS, still making it a good option to use.
• Refractor is great for Obstacle Heavy maps like Cow Annoyance, or on maps like Vinland.
• Ghost pairs extremely well with Refractor, as she can apply Stealth to the Refractor, protecting it against most attacks from most bosses. If you happen to use the Shield Tower alongside her, keep in mind that the shield does NOT stop attacks from revealing stealth.

Trivia

• The Refractor is the first tower to utilize the "chain" mechanic.
• The Refractor was said by John to have been complete for quite a while, but wasn't released before the Nightmare update because, "it was too overpowered to be put into the game at the time."
  • This was stated around the time of Endless Mode's release.
• Although the Refractor was not released until Nightmare Mode's own release, it has been featured in TDX media before then, like the official trailer and 2024 Halloween Event trailer.
• The 2-5 Refractor has the 3rd highestDPS in game at a staggering9105.3^[4] average DPS when factoring in its damage over time, or up to nearly ~12.750 sustained DPS with the EDJ. This is above the Behemoth Level 5 and only right behind the War Machine III and the Overseer Prime.
• In a development image, the Refractor jokingly had 183K DPS while buffed.
• The Refractor uses a combination of Void and Calamity's energy, which "formed a new powerful energy to be used".^[5]
• Refractor used to have the highest placement cost in the game, being double of that of Warship at $20,000.
  • This has since been surpassed with the release of Golden Warship.
    • It is also the 3rd most expensive tower to max overall, right behind War Machine and Golden Warship.
      • However, the Refractor is theoretically the most expensive tower alongside the XWM Turret, due to it having Dynamic price scaling at max level.
• Refractor is the first tower to gain Ignore Obstacles in an upgrade.
• Refractor was originally going to be able to be buffed by the Medic's Kritz Ability, according to a comment from John, however this was removed before release.

Update History

Notes