Gusts of wind blow Bloons off the track away from the exit.
”
~ In-game description
Druid of the Storm is the 3rd upgrade of the 1st path for the Druid in Bloons TD 6. This upgrade gives the Druid an additional tornado attack, which deals no damage but each can blow back up to 24 bloons and are shot every 2.5 seconds. The tornado moderately seeks at bloons in a similar manner to Monkey Sub's homing darts. Its super-cold tornadoes can only target and affect non-blimp bloons except Purple and White properties, but including Lead Bloons, blowing affected targets backwards between 100 to 200 track units. Tornadoes move at 90 units per second and last for up to 100 units by default. Tornadoes each have a projectile size of 16. Blowback effects will remove glue and frozen status effects. Additionally, the tornadoes always ignore bloons it cannot target, preventing wastage of the blowback if there is an absence of blowable bloons. Damage buffs can also applies to tornadoes.
Level 9+ Obyn Greenfoot increases projectile size of all attacks from Druid of the Storm by +20% and improves attack speed of the tornado attack by +33%.
Druid now wears a light-blue hooded robe, with a rope tied at the waist to secure the robe. The Druid still keeps the same staff as the preceding Heart of Thunder upgrade. In the upgrade portrait, the Druid also has wind surrounding itself.
Crosspaths change the appearance of the Druid of the Storm. For Path 2 crosspathing, Thorn Swarm adds a woody bracelet with thorns around it, and Heart of Oak adds a shield on the monkey's left hand. For Path 3 crosspathing, a gem is added on the monkey's forehead, green with Druidic Reach and red with Heart of Vengeance, and Heart of Vengeance also adds a black crown around the Druid's head.
Druid of the Storm adds a tornado attack that sends bloons backwards. The tornadoes home towards bloons with a slight curvature. It also zaps bloons with lightning and throws hardened thorns, much like its preceding Heart of Thunder upgrade. Tornadoes are cold magic, as shown by its inability to affect Purple and White properties, but are cold enough to affect Lead properties.
Targeting Priorities[]
Druid of the Storm targets bloons using the standard targeting priorities. Its main thorn attack shoots straight movement projectiles.
First: Targets the first bloon visible within its range.
Last: Targets the last bloon visible within its range.
Close: Targets the closest bloon visible within its range.
Strong: Targets the strongest bloon visible within its range.
Lightning targets bloons based on the current targeting priority of the Druid, and forks at bloons based on an algorithm that attempts to follow a similar targeting priority. It is not certain whether lightning forking dynamically follows the Druid's targeting priorities or if lightning forking is locked on a specific targeting such as Close.
The tornado attack utilizes aggressive seeking and aims according to targeting priority.
Costs[]
Updated as of Version 44.0. Listed prices exclude external buffs, any sacrifices, and Monkey Knowledge.
This upgrade's prices (or included crosspath's prices) are affected by the following MK: Warm Oak, Better Sell Deals
Strategy[]
Summary[]
The Druid of the Storm upgrade allows the Druid to combat tougher bloons by repeatedly setting back their progress, as the Druid benefits by having Bloons be forced back and re-enter its range. The tornado attack can be used as a supportive tool to assist the overall defense. While other towers focus on MOAB-Class Bloons, the Druid can extend the defenses' area of coverage and buy time in strategies that do not have optimal damage dealers. Ceramic Bloons are excellent targets to knockback due to their health layers, and therefore additionally work well for blowing away Super Ceramic Bloons in Rounds 81+.
The Druid of the Storm lacks internal camo detection, requiring a secondary tower to decamo or cover for its lack of vision. Unless given the 3-2-0 crosspath, tornadoes can be detrimental against Regrow rounds, where insufficient damage in empty regions may result in a Regrow Farm, although some players may take advantage of this to deliberately set up Regrow Farms.
Tips[]
The 3-0-2 crosspath is usually better for giving the Druid with greater attack speed, which also improves its blowback potential. 3-2-0 can be helpful if Regrow Bloons are a problem, since both the lightning and tornado attacks can strip Regrow too. While 3-2-0 does also allow the Heart of Oak pierce-per-life-gained benefit to improve pierce of the tornado, this benefit is useless on game modes with banned life regeneration.
Druids of the Storm are better placed such that they cover a large portion of the track, in order to make the most of its blowback effects across the game. This is unlike strategies for utilizing BTD5 Summon Whirlwind.
Because the tornado has no penalty against Ceramics, unlike Downdraft (extra pierce consumption) or Distraction (half blowback quantity), Druid of the Storm excels in the late-game against Super Ceramics.
Obyn Greenfoot is a great choice of hero when going for Druids of the Storm, as he buffs attack speed of them substantially in addition to bonus pierce when placed within his range.
Compared to similar blowback options for Super Ceramics, Druid of the Storm is rather cheap but fairly reliable at blowing away multiple bloons at once from a localised range. For comparison, two Druids of the Storm cost the same as a single 0-3-2 Downdraft.
Even though the tornadoes can home, it is still a good idea to set the Druid along a straight line so that its tornadoes can better utilise maximum pierce.
Version History[]
Balance Changes[]
May also insert all the Obyn-specific 3+xx buffs as well, because synergy adjustments?
Simple price buff, to compete against other blowback options especially Downdraft. Druid of the Storm, in addition to a small price buff, also got a small rework aimed at consistency of its blowback. Additionally, Version 38.0 reworked Druid of the Storm to seek aggressively at bloons, in order to compete against Downdraft and sort of replace the role of BTD5 Bloonjitsu's blowback potential.
Technically, Druid of the Storm also was buffed with changes to Heart of Thunder crosspathing interactions, but it's too insignificant for this upgrade for those changes on the other upgrade to be worth mentioning here. It is, however, affected by the Version 17.0 Heart of Oak interaction buff. With various nerfs to other blowback options, and the addition of homing tornadoes, Druid of the Storm has become popular as a local-ranged blowback in late-game scenarios. Since Downdraft's nerf/rework versus Ceramics compared to ordinary bloons in v38.0, Druid of the Storm became a more popular alternative of blowback, albeit local-ranged. Version 44.0 reduced pierce of tornadoes slightly.
17.0
Druid of the Storm's all attacks can remove Regrow from any bloon that touches them with Heart of Oak upgrade.
22.0
Druid of the Storm's all attacks cannot remove Regrow if the damage type doesn't match.
25.0
“
Druid's top path Storm & Ball Lightning upgrades needed a value boost versus other options versus other paths of other tower choices, so these have been given a small price buff for now.
”
~ Ninja Kiwi
Cost of Druid of the Storm decreased ($2000 → $1850).
28.0
“
As an underused crosspath on this tower, Druid's Hard Thorns will now allow them to counter all of its weaknesses instead of just frozen targets. Druid of the Storm has been reworked to more consistently blow targets back due to being stationary and slower firing compared to other upgrades that do a similar task. [...]
”
~ Ninja Kiwi, referring to all upgrades leading to Druid of the Storm
Druid of the Storm minimum blowback distance increased from 33 to 100
Druid of the Storm maximum blowback distance reduced from 300 to 200
Druid of the Storm tornado radius increased from 13 to 16
29.0
“
As a 'druid buffing' hero, Obyn has in actuality been a bottom path druid buffing hero, so we've tweaked a couple extra levels to give more path specific bonuses to other druid paths that weren't benefiting as much from his wizened presence, regardless of whether your Obyn says "Fries" or "Clive". [...]
”
~ Ninja Kiwi, referring to Obyn
Druids of the Storm gain +20% projectile size and +1 MOAB-class damage if Obyn Level 9+ is on screen.
30.0
“
[...] Top path has had a number of buffs to help with both price and consistency in control over regular bloons through higher tiers. [...]
”
~ Ninja Kiwi
Druid of the Storm price reduced from $1850 to $1650
33.0
Affected by Heart of Thunder damage buff
37.0
“
While the tornado doesn't do anything to MOABs, it still spends itself on them which wastes a relatively long cooldown, so addressing this flaw. [...]
”
~ Ninja Kiwi
Druid of the Storm’s Tornado attack no longer targets MOAB-class Bloons
38.0
“
Druid of the Storm is too inconsistent due to placement causing projectiles to intersect the path and spend very little time actually touching Bloons, it is gaining some homing to keep the nados running along the track over the top of Bloons to more consistently utilize their high pierce value. We love how this is working and hope you do, too. [...]
”
~ Ninja Kiwi
Druid of the Storm tornado gains strong homing
Druid of the Storm tornado travel distance increased from 80 to 100
41.0
“
Hard Thorns is useful and often taken for crosspath even if not going for 2xx as lightning is comparatively very expensive for what it offers so moving Thunder's cost out into both the surrounding upgrades.
”
~ Ninja Kiwi
Druid of the Storm price increased from $1650 to $1700
Actual price increase is $0, as Hard Thorns costs $100 more but Heart of Thunder costs $150 less
44.0
“
Druid of the Storm’s base pierce is being reduced to put it more in line with other group Bloon stalling supports, [...]
”
~ Ninja Kiwi
Druid of the Storm tornado pierce reduced from 30 to 24. Does not affect Ball Lightning's tornado (60).
45.0
“
Now that Tornadoes are one of the more popular Bloon Stall choices we looked more into its upgrade progression, tornado projectile speed is being reduced as a benefit to Ball Lightning to prevent tornado outpacing the lightning ball so quickly, and to more suit it as a Cold/Magic themed upgrade plus differentiate from similar supports the weaknesses are changing. [...]
”
~ Ninja Kiwi
Druid of the Storm tornado projectile speed reduced from 90 to 72.
Druid of the Storm tornado damage type changed from Shatter to Arctic. Will still filter targets it cannot affect.
Note: Does not affect the mini-tornadoes from Tiny Tornadoes.
Bug Fixes and General Changes[]
This section is incomplete. You can help by expanding it.
Extra Notes (Version History)[]
Sounds[]
When striking lightning:
[electric zap]
[electric zap]
[electric zap]
[electric zap]
[electric zap]
Gallery[]
Druid using wind to blowback bloons
Crosspathing (Top: Path 2, Bottom: Path 3)
Druid of the Storm with thorn attack, lightning attack, and whirlwind attack simultaneously
v45.0 Tiny Tornadoes blowing back Purple but not with main tornado
v45.0 main tornado not blowing back Purple but not absorbed
v45.0 Tiny Tornadoes blowing back Zebras
v45.0 main tornado not blowing back Purple but not absorbed
Official artwork[]
Upgrade portrait
Upgrade icon
Instamonkey icon
Videos[]
Druid of the Storm straight storms (37.3)
Druid of the Storm hurling straight tornadoes (37.3)
Druid tornado homing BTD6 (38.3)
Druid of the Storm hurling homing tornadoes (38.3)
Druid of the Storm range bug not summoning tornadoes (44.1)
Druid of the Storm tornado bug where the tornadoes don't trigger at edge of Druid's range
Trivia[]
Bloons will be blown back at different speeds, dependent on their default speed. i.e. Pink Bloons will be blown back and begin moving quicker than a Red Bloon.
Because Leads cannot be blown back by Druid of the Storm, a 3-2-0 Druid cannot convert Regrow Leads into normal Leads with the tornado attack.
Druid of the Storm gust of wind can be considered Whirlwind or lesser ranked dust devil.