| “ | Converts the Dart Monkey into a slower attacking Spike-o-pult that hurls large spiked balls. Each ball can pop lots of Bloons and rebounds off obstacles. | ” |
| ~ In-game descripion |
Spike-o-pult is the third upgrade of Path 1 for the Dart Monkey in Bloons TD 6. With this upgrade, the Dart Monkey becomes a catapult operator, hurling bouncy spiked balls that pop many more Bloons, last longer, and bounce off obstacles, with the capacity to re-hit the same target multiple times upon bouncing. Each Spike-o-pult ball pops up to 18 Bloons (19 with 
Extra Dart Pops), deals 2 damage, and can pop Frozen Bloons. Just like its BTD4 and BTD5 counterparts, this upgrade decreases attack speed and projectile speed. Attack cooldown increases from per 0.95s to 1.15s, projectile speed from 300 to 150, projectile size increases from 2 to 5, and lifespan increased from 0.25s to 1s. Range increases by 4.8 units (32 to 36.8), an equivalent of +15% range.
This upgrade costs $255 on Easy, $300 on Medium, $325 on Hard, and $360 on Impoppable.
Description[]
Overview[]
Spike-o-pult hurling a spiked ball that pierces many bloons, and the operator reloading the Spike-o-pult
The monkey exchanges darts for spiked balls that are hurled from a catapult called a Spike-o-pult. The Spike-o-pult is more specifically a simplified design of an onager, a type of catapult known for hurling payloads from a bowl bucket attached to its supporting arm. The catapult has a wooden base and wooden arm, has a stone bowl bucket to support the black spiked balls it hurls, some rope wrapped around the end of the arm with the bowl bucket, and wooden wheels supported by stone rims and axles. There appears to be no rope supporting the catapult's mechanisms at all. When attacking, the monkey, which now operates the catapult, will launch the catapult each time. The monkey no longer wears any clothing or accessories and instead is similar to a 0-0-0 Dart Monkey without the dart.
When given crosspaths, the monkey does not receive accessories, and are instead painted on the catapult. With Path 2 crosspaths, the base of the catapult changes color to green (Quick Shots) or red (Very Quick Shots). With Path 3 crosspaths, the middle of the catapult's arm is painted green (Long Range Darts) or red (Enhanced Eyesight).
Spike-o-pult switches the darts for small spiked balls with 18 pierce, Shatter type, (able to pop Frozen but not Lead) and 2 damage, as well as the ability to bounce off obstacles and potentially re-hit Bloons. However, it also decreases attack speed, changing attack cooldown from 0.95 seconds to 1.15 seconds. The ball also moves slower and lasts longer. Range is slightly increased.
Targeting Priorities[]
Spike-O-Pult targets bloons using the standard targeting priorities. It shoots a straight movement projectile.
- 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.
Adding Enhanced Eyesight adds Camo Prioritization, allowing all its attacks to prioritize Camo Bloons over other types when this secondary targeting option is active.
Full Popology[]
Statistics[]
- Updated as of Version 44.0
- Base stats
- Ball:
- Projectile, shatter type, 36.8 range, 1.15s attack cooldown, 2 damage, 18 pierce, 150 projectile speed, 1s projectile lifespan, 5 projectile radius. Can rehit the same target if Ball bounces off an obstacle.
- Crosspathing interactions
- 3-1-0:
- Ball attack speed increased (1.15s → 0.9775s)
- 3-2-0:
- Ball attack speed increased (1.15s → 0.9775s → 0.7666s)
- 3-0-1:
- Gains +8 range (36.8 → 44.8)
- Projectile lifespan of Ball increased by 15%
- 3-0-2:
- Gains +8 range (36.8 → 44.8 → 42.8)
- Projectile lifespan of Ball increased by 20%
- Projectile speed of Ball increased (150 → 180)
- Base tower gains camo detection, and all new attacks can affect camo
- Monkey Knowledge interactions
Increased Lifespan: Projectiles shot from Dart Monkey have increased lifespan.- Extra Dart Pops: Increase projectile pierce by 1. By default, 3-x-x goes from 22 to 23.
- Bonus Monkey!: Each game starts with a Free Dart Monkey.
- Come On Everybody!: Primary towers attack 5% faster if all are below tier 3, and cost 5% less if all are tier 3 or 4.
- Monkey Education: All Monkeys XP earn rate increased by 8%.
- Better Sell Deals: All Monkeys sell for 5% more. Increases sell potency from 70% to 75%.
- Veteran Monkey Training: All Monkeys reload time reduced by 3%.
Attack Interactions[]
- See also: Attack Interactions/Bloons TD 6/Primary
- Updated as of Version 38.1
- Base attack(s)
- Ball:
- Shatter
- Single Projectile
- Straight Attack
- Bounce
- Contact Damage
- Extra Damage (2)
Costs[]
- Updated as of Version 44.0. Listed prices exclude external buffs, any sacrifices, and Monkey Knowledge.
| [Module | Data] | Purchase | Sell | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Costs | Easy | Medium | Hard | Impoppable | Easy | Medium | Hard | Impoppable |
| Upgrade (3-X-X) | $255 | $300 | $325 | $360 | - | |||
| Total (3-0-0) | $730 | $860 | $925 | $1,035 | $511 | $602 | $648 | $725 |
| Crosspath (3-1-0) | $815 | $960 | $1,035 | $1,155 | $571 | $672 | $725 | $809 |
| Crosspath (3-2-0) | $975 | $1,150 | $1,240 | $1,385 | $683 | $805 | $868 | $970 |
| Crosspath (3-0-1) | $805 | $950 | $1,020 | $1,145 | $564 | $665 | $714 | $802 |
| Crosspath (3-0-2) | $975 | $1,150 | $1,235 | $1,385 | $683 | $805 | $865 | $970 |
This upgrade's prices (or included crosspath's prices) are affected by the following MK: 
Bonus Monkey!, 
Better Sell Deals
Strategy[]
Summary[]
Spike-o-pult possesses very high pierce and damage compared to its low cost. To maximize its substantial pierce, it is best placed along straight lines to pop many bloons along the line. Dart Monkeys with the Spike-o-pult upgrade attack slower, however, so placement is key. It is decent on maps with obstacles, such as on Hedge or Moon Landing, because the spiked balls can bounce off walls and rehit bloons upon achieving this. Its frozen-popping can be useful in combination with Ice Monkeys. Otherwise, this upgrade generally serves as a stepping stone to Juggernaut.
Tips[]
- Because of its great pierce and damage for its cost, a Spike-o-pult is useful in Race Events, especially with the Path 2 crosspaths for the higher attack speed.
- Try to set it along a straight line so that it can pop as many bloons as possible to make use of its high pierce.
- Spike-o-pult balls can pop Frozen Bloons, so adding an Ice Monkey would not be detrimental. In addition, an Ice Monkey helps slow down the progress of bloons while Spike-o-pult cleans up.
- Generally, Spike-o-pult appreciates more from the Path 2 crosspath so that it attacks faster. Path 3 crosspath offers more range, a camo detection upgrade, and more projectile speed and lifespan, which altogether would help improve its bouncy strengths on maps with lots of obstacles.
- The extra range should help Spike-o-pult reach those hard-to-reach obstacle zones, such as inside the craters of Moon Landing.
- On the bottom of Cornfield, there is a secret spot where you can place Dart Monkeys; use that spot for the Spike-o-pult. Its projectiles will bounce off the same two walls many times, making it a good shredding option for this map.
Version History[]
Balance Changes[]
Spike-o-pult is cheaper than it did in BTD5, but remains underused, despite balance changes buffing it by a fair bit. Normally, this upgrade is used the most on Race Events that enable this upgrade, although less than other options. Otherwise, it's usually just a stepping stone for Juggernaut.
The Version 25.0 nerf is insignificant once the upgrade is unlocked anyway, and only affects newer players. It swapped XP requirements with Crossbow to encourage newer players to try that upgrade instead.
It soon got a buff to deal bonus raw damage in v41.0, alongside a range buff in v42.0 to likely avoid indirectly harming directional aim when upgraded to further upgrades, but v44.0 reduced its pierce slightly to reduce strength in Race Events.
- Initial release (compared to BTD5)
- Spike-o-pult pierce increased (18 → 22)
- Spike-o-pult costs less ($500 → $300)
- Spike-o-pult can deal more damage to Ceramics (1 → 2)
- 12.0
- Spike-o-pult now bounces off obstacles
- 20.0
| “ | Dart Monkey at its core is an early game focus tower, so we added some projectile speed options to try and help with its tendency to miss faster Bloons. Spike-o-pult's rate was also increased and damage type changed to shatter to be more versatile of a stepping stone in niche setups saving for Juggernaut | ” |
| ~ Ninja Kiwi |
- Spike-o-pult now can damage Frozen Bloons.
- Spike-o-pult attack speed penalty decreased (1.25s → 1.15s). Does not affect Juggernaut.
- 25.0
| “ | For new players, camo is the first real game mechanic that presents a wall for new players. To combat this we have swapped the initial unlock costs of Spike-o-pult & Crossbow to nudge new players more towards upgrading down the camo path for Dart Monkeys first. | ” |
| ~ Ninja Kiwi |
- Spike-o-pult XP requirement increased (1900 XP → 2100 XP)
- 38.0
| “ | Spike-o-pult not re-hitting targets after a rebound in the same way as Juggernaut isn’t as fun so we’re allowing this functionality to occur earlier now. | ” |
| ~ Ninja Kiwi |
- Spike-o-pult now allows re-hitting targets after bounces
- 41.0
| “ | Spike-o-pult is too weak for how slow it is. | ” |
| ~ Ninja Kiwi |
- Spike-o-pult damage increased from 1 to 2. Does not affect Juggernaut (2).
- Spike-o-pult ceramic bonus no longer gives +1 Ceramic damage. Does not affect Juggernaut (+4)
- 42.0
| “ | Players have found Spike-o-pult’s lower range to sometimes cause issues leading into Juggernaut due to very specific placement being required to aim the attack on this path and how that aiming changes along with increased range, while quite a niche problem we feel it’s fair enough to match the range across these upgrades to address this concern. | ” |
| ~ Ninja Kiwi |
- Spike-o-pult range increased from 32 to 36.8. Juggernaut range remains unchanged at 36.8.
- 44.0
| “ | Spike-o-pult’s piercing power in the extreme conditions is too cost effective compared to the Juggernaut so we’re tweaking these slightly to keep Juggernaut as a proper upgrade in Races. [...] | ” |
| ~ Ninja Kiwi |
- Spike-o-pult pierce decreased from 22 to 18
Bug Fixes and General Changes[]
 |
This section is incomplete. You can help by expanding it. |
- 33.0
- [Undocumented] Description changed from "Converts the Dart Monkey into a Spike-o-pult that hurls a large spiked ball instead of darts. Good range, but slower attack speed. Each ball can pop lots of Bloons and rebounds off obstacles." to "Converts the Dart Monkey into a slower attacking Spike-o-pult that hurls large spiked balls. Each ball can pop lots of Bloons and rebounds off obstacles."
Extra Notes (Version History)[]
- Version 42.0 had a similar balance change to BTDB2's Version 2.0.4, which also transferred the range bonus from Juggernaut to Spike-o-pult.
- Version 38.0 has been ported to BTDB2's Version 2.2.0.
Gallery[]
Official artwork[]
Other languages[]
| Language | Name | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| English | Spike-o-pult | |
| German | Nagelkatapult | |
| Polish | Kolcopulta |
Trivia[]
- Contrary to the regular Bloons games, the Spike-o-pult pops Frozen Bloons, but the spiked balls from the Spiky Bloon do not.
- In BTD6, the Spike-o-pult upgrade is the cheapest Tier 3 upgrade for the upgrade alone.
- The Spike-o-Pult's description used to indicate that it gave extra range, when this was not actually this case. This was fixed in update 33.0. That being said, Version 42.0 now actually gives a range boost to Spike-o-pult, albeit not quite accurate enough to be "good" range.
- In contrast, its Battles 2 counterpart retains the old description about "good range" but the upgrade itself actually provides extra range.
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||