Semi-Automatic

"Attacks 3x as fast!"

- In-game description

 is the 3rd upgrade of Path 3 for the Sniper Monkey in BTD6. This upgrade allows the Sniper Monkey to fire three times as fast. Compared to BTD5's Semi-Automatic Rifle upgrade, a Sniper Monkey with Semi-Automatic will shoot substantially faster; it shoots 3x faster than Even Faster Firing, equating to ~6.12x faster than an unupgraded Sniper. It still cannot pop Frozen or Lead Bloons without Full Metal Jacket.

Besides attacking faster, crosspathing with Shrapnel Shot increases the pierce of its shrapnel from 2 to 3.

It costs $2,975 on Easy, $3,500 on Medium, $3,780 on Hard, and $4,200 on Impoppable.

Appearance
When upgraded to Semi-Automatic, the Sniper wears a more filled beret, colored orange by default, and wears grey earmuffs and two light-grey bandoliers across the monkey's torso. The sniper's rifle muzzle is thickened, and the orange bands on the rifle still remain. On the official portrait, the monkey is peeking through a pair of binoculars.

Crosspathing with Path 1 upgrades, changes the beret to receive two colored stripes on the beret, the beret's primary color being the crosspath and the stripe color remains orange. Adding Night Vision Goggles will give the monkey night vision goggles. Adding Shrapnel Shot will add an explosion symbol to the beret.

Summary
Similar to the Semi-Automatic Rifle upgrade from BTD5, the main strength of the Semi-Automatic upgrade in BTD6 comes from its high accuracy for its single-target DPS. Although highly dependent on crosspathing in order to benefit the most out of this upgrade, both crosspaths are highly effective for their own special purposes. Crosspathing with Path 1 makes it an effective single-target DPS tower for a decent price, while crosspathing with Path 2, particularly with the Shrapnel Shot upgrade, makes it highly effective as a long-ranged cleanup tower against groups of weaker bloons.

The 2-0-3 Semi-Automatic upgrade is generally a more efficient option at overall DPS than the opposing Deadly Precision upgrade with the 3-0-2 crosspath. With exception of beating Ceramics, the tripled attack speed of the 2-0-3 Semi-Automatic generally outweighs the performance of just under 3x more damage per unit time from a 3-0-2 Deadly Precision.

Likewise, the 0-2-3 Semi-Automatic upgrade is generally a more efficient option at overall DPS than the opposing Bouncing Bullet upgrade with the 0-3-2 crosspath. 0-2-3 Semi-Automatic is weaker against denser groups of bloons compared to 0-3-2 Bouncing Bullets, and is slightly less effective at synergizing with Alch buffs compared to the other, but a 0-2-3 Semi-Automatic has the advantage of adjusting positions far quicker, allowing it to not waste as much of its potential popping power from waiting between each shot. It is worth a note that although a Semi-Automatic uses up buffs from Berserker Brew and Stronger Stimulant far faster than with other Sniper upgrades, a 0-2-3 Semi-Automatic paired with either two is still overall the better option for grouped popping power on maps with multiple lanes.

The one other advantage of Semi-Automatic is that it can be further upgraded to Full Auto Rifle for even more increased overall DPS, further enhancing its overall anti-stalling power, just like for Semi-Automatic.

Tips

 * This upgrade when combined with Large Calibre is good accurate DPS at single-target MOABs. It is helpful at chipping away at earlier MOABs, but it deals too little damage versus stronger blimps to become useful.
 * Unlike in BTD5, it is not possible to purchase both the damage crosspath (Full Metal Jacket or Large Calibre) and Night Vision Goggles at the same time. It is usually better off to go for the Path 1 upgrade crosspaths, but it is still effective cleanup with the Path 2 upgrade Shrapnel Shot, due to its high attack speed.
 * The Semi-Automatic upgrade is an excellent choice for anti-stalling earlier rounds without MOAB-class bloons, particularly with the 2-0-3 Semi-Automatic crosspathing, although 1-0-3 will do just as fine if supported by other towers to clean up. To achieve this particular purpose, set it on Strong for the maximum DPS.
 * Alternately, use the 0-2-3 Semi-Automatic, and set the Sniper on the First target priority. Unlike the opposite crosspath, 0-2-3 Semi-Automatic makes effective cleanup against weaker groups of bloons.

Trivia

 * Although the upgrade name suggests that the sniper rifle becomes semi-automatic, the monkey still operates the bolt to re-chamber.
 * In BTD6, the Semi-Automatic upgrade icon features two large magazines of long pointed high-calibre bullets. In contrast, in BTD5, the upgrade icon features three darts zooming past in sequence.
 * Semi-Automatic gains a pair of earmuffs instead of a new black metal helmet.
 * The black metal helmet is now a feature that the next upgrade, Full Auto Rifle, receives. Even then, the black metal helmet is not the same design.
 * This upgrade is one of few upgrades that attacks exactly 3x faster than their predecessors, the others being Overdrive and Glue Hose.
 * Artillery Battery used to attack exactly 3x faster than Heavy Shells, but this is no longer the case due to a buff to its attack speed (4x instead of 3x).
 * The pose used by Semi-Automatic upgrade in BTD6 is similar to the Night Vision Goggles upgrade in BTD5.
 * It is one of the only Tier 3 upgrades that cost the same as their BTD5 counterpart. Other examples include: Double Shot, Neva-Miss Targeting, Glue Hose, Cluster Bombs, MOAB Mauler, Submerge and Support, Razor Rotors, Flash Bomb, and Cleansing Foam.
 * Semi-Automatic is the only Tier 3 Sniper Monkey in BTD6 to wear no pants. Deadly Precision has black leg compressionwear, while Bouncing Bullet wears camoflague trousers.