A useful Retro Tower Defense tower list has to answer more than “what names exist?” It should tell you what each owned tower does, where the tower currently comes from, and whether the information was verified after the latest update. Plaything Games confirms that towers can come from Summoning, Missions, Events, and Trading, but it does not publish a complete live roster with statistics. This page therefore treats the in-game collection and tower cards as the final authority.
Starter towers documented by the community
Community documentation reports that new accounts receive Doombringer, Bloxxer, Sniper, and Paintballer. That is a practical first roster to check, but it is not an official permanent promise. Record the four names visible on a fresh account before planning around them, because onboarding grants can change.
- Doombringer: test as a general opening damage option and record its current placement cost.
- Bloxxer: inspect its target pattern and decide whether it fills single-lane or group coverage.
- Sniper: compare its long reach with its attack interval and total upgrade cost.
- Paintballer: test how reliably its coverage handles clustered early enemies.
These are role prompts, not claimed current statistics. A patch can alter costs, range, cooldowns, or upgrade paths while leaving the tower name unchanged.
Build the live list from the collection screen
Open every owned tower and record its exact display name, rarity, role text, tier or path, placement limit, and source. Then open the current Summon banner, Mission rewards, event interface, and shop. A tower that appears in the collection but not in any current source should be marked “owned legacy” or “return unknown,” not “obtainable now.”
Community indexes describe ranks including Common, Uncommon, Rare, Epic, Legendary, Unique, and Heroic. Use the rarity shown on the live card if it disagrees. Do not infer rarity from a border color in a thumbnail, and do not merge two tiers of the same character into one row.
Sort towers by combat job
The most stable list structure is functional. Put cheap opening placements in early defense, repeatable lane damage in sustained damage, high-impact finishers in boss or burst, and buffs, control, or resource generators in support/economy. One tower may qualify for two roles; name the primary reason it earns a slot.
For each candidate, run the same difficulty and map. Record the round cash needed for a useful upgrade state, not only maximum-level output. Note the length of path covered, number of targets reached, special detections, ability downtime, and whether the tower needs another unit to function well.
Acquisition routes to verify
Summoning is official, but banners can rotate. Missions are official, but their requirements and rewards should be read from the current mission card. Events may close or move rewards. Trading transfers an eligible item between players but does not prove the item is still obtainable from its original source.
Codes, Tower Paths, shop bundles, passes, and cross-experience badge rewards may add further routes. For any of these, save the exact live label and date. Never tell a player to buy, reroll, or trade for an item based only on an old video thumbnail.
Minimum record for every tower
Use one row per distinct playable version:
- Exact tower and tier name.
- Rarity and primary role shown or observed.
- Current acquisition route and whether it is open.
- Placement and upgrade costs from one dated run.
- Range, attack interval, targets, and special effect text.
- Map, difficulty, modifiers, and party size used for the test.
Keeping context prevents a good Endless support from being mislabeled as the best beginner placement, or a rare collectible from being presented as the strongest combat unit.
How to use this list
New players should start with the Best Starter Towers decision process. Players comparing investments can use the dated Tier List, which separates performance from availability. If you are missing a documented tower, check Summoning, Tix, and current event pages before considering a trade.
Confidence: the game identity and four official acquisition families are Official. Starter names and rank vocabulary are Community reported. Individual live stats and availability need in-game testing after each update.