Bloon Area Denial System (BTD6)

"4-barreled auto-cannon that can be set to attack automatically."

- In-game description

Bloon Area Denial System (also known as BADS or B.A.D.S) is the fourth upgrade of Path 3 for the Dartling Gunner in Bloons TD 6. It upgrades the Buckshot Dartling Gunner into a mounted four-barreled auto-cannon, each barrel shooting out six-spray buckshots per shot, with each barrel shooting every 0.375s (every 0.25s with 0-2-4) alternating between each barrel from top to bottom. Upgrading to the Bloon Area Denial System upgrade also grants a new target priority "Independent Targeting" that allows all four barrels to independently shoot First, Last, Close, and Strong.

Unlike most Dartling Gun upgrades, the Bloon Area Denial System is taller, so some of its higher barrels can reach over certain Line of Sight obstacles where its lower barrels cannot. It does not necessarily mean its top barrel can ignore Line of Sight, however.

It costs $10,200 on Easy, $12,000 on Medium, $12,960 on Hard, and $14,400 on Impoppable.

Appearance
This upgrade places the Dartling Gunner at the top of a tall cylindrical tower, which comprises of rotating barrels. The tower alternates in blue and white colors, with four yellow trapezoidal feet for reinforcement. The Dartling Gunner wears a blue helmet with two yellow ribs on top and yellow ear coverings.

There are several inconsistencies between the in-game model and the upgrade portrait. The barrels are grey and green in-game, while the barrels are grey and yellow in the upgrade portrait. The helmet in-game has a yellow circle on the front, while the helmet in the upgrade portrait has a yellow badge with a red circle on the front. The upgrade portrait resembles a X-0-4 Dartling Gunner more than a 0-0-4.

Summary
Bloon Area Denial System is an effective all-round option at popping various types of non-Lead bloons. It attacks 4x faster because of alternating attacks from each barrel. Under Alchemist buff conditions it consumes buffs 4x faster, but it is still a lot slower than most Dartling Gunners. Combined with its good pierce, Bloon Area Denial System is a good mid-game option at countering various bloon types.

Besides its increased number of barrels, the added "Independent Targeting" target option allows the Bloon Area Denial System to become capable of acting as an ordinary limited-range tower with multiple target priorities per shot.

Tips

 * Like its previous upgrade Buckshot, the best crosspath for Bloon Area Denial System is 0-2-4 in most cases, for the increased attack speed and in-built camo detection. However, since it attacks a lot faster than Buckshot, 2-0-4 still possesses decent consistency and can utilize the Laser Shock effect better, making the Bloon Area Denial System better at concentrated damage.
 * Alchemist buffs such as Stronger Stimulant are very useful in conjunction with Bloon Area Denial System to allow it to attack faster and deal greater overall damage. Likewise, Pat Fusty is a good option because of its good attack speed and many projectiles per shot.
 * In fact, this tower benefits dramatically from the Stronger Stimulant boost, multiplying its damage by 2x-3x.
 * Setting target priority to "Independent Targeting" can allow the player to focus micro on other towers such as Dartling Gunners, Mortar Monkeys, Heli Pilots, or Banana Farms.
 * Treat it further as a limited range tower with this upgrade, as it produces a lot of overall DPS in spite of its limited range.
 * When using the "Normal" or "Locked" targeting, Bloon Area Denial System essentially acts as a 4x faster Buckshot.

Trivia

 * Bloon Area Denial System is the only upgrade in BTD6 that does not at all resemble an existing BTD5 upgrade of the same name. In this case, the old BTD5 Bloon Area Denial System resembles the Rocket Storm upgrade except with triple rockets per shot for the main attack, with a different ability rocket deployment system, and without the potential to stun bloons with the activated ability (if the "Gorgon Storm" MK is active).