Orcs Must Die! Unchained – FAQ/Walkthrough

5 Star Walkthrough Introduction

Rift Lord

What changes in Rift Lord?

There are only a few new minions that appear in Rift Lord:

• Lyzander - A boss minion, who revives dead minions (the boss minion Vitality does this too, so this shouldn't be new to you).
• Tubifore - Another boss minion, who destroys Barricades (again, not new, as Orfum does this too).
• Fire Giants - A regular minion that shows up on a few maps. The Fire Giants have an "aura" that you can't see, which damages Barricades. So trying to funnel these minions with Barricades is a very dangerous thing to do. Due to this, you generally want to make killing them a priority. You do actually see two of these in Master Water Garden, but they're much more of a threat to your Barricades on some of the Rift Lord maps.

That's about it though. Realize that this is pretty much end-game content, and everything is accessible to you now (it's just a matter of randomness at this point). Since you do have access to everything, and the maximum recommended level for Rift Lord is 75, there is a little bit of expectation that you have some familiarity with the game. Hopefully you understand most of the game by now, as you'll need to be on point for a number of maps (not all, but a good amount of them).

So nothing really new to be found, but expect very difficult mixtures of minions (as well as a lot of them) with high HP and damage.

Par Times will be the toughest to acquire in Rift Lord, so do keep that in mind. If you're having problem with the Par Time, you just may need to level up more to deal more damage. Traits, Parts, and upgrading traps to tier 7 is less of a luxury now, as it's nearly a requirement.

Preparing for Rift Lord

I will still try to do the maps in a "minimalist" fashion, and try my best not to use Traits or Parts, and keep my Account Level within the recommended range of the map. I will also attempt to keep my traps to a maximum of tier 6.

I will point out though that this is very difficult to do, as the game should have given you something decent to work with by now. Granted, that is still based off of RNG, but you can always buy more Heroes to get another Victory Chest for more chances of whatever it is you're looking for.

If you did not notice, I bought 2 Heroes (Brass and Midnight) about halfway through Master. My current Skull count as of the completion of Rift Lord Baths is 39,253. I have not purchased any currency from the Store, but I have been pretty stingy on upgrading traps.

You should have bought at least 1 Hero by now, and I would be very surprised if you haven't. I mostly bought my Heroes because I had to level significantly to get through Master, and I had pretty much completed everything with the 3 starter Heroes. By buying a new Hero, it is the most efficient, because it gives you more chances at Traits, Parts, and Traps, while still giving you Skulls.

I haven't done any Endless maps, nor have I done a single Chaos Trial, nor have I played a single Sabotage match. So if you somehow have less than I do, that means you either bought more Heroes than I did (which is fine), or you upgraded more traps than I did (which is fine too, as long as you're not upgrading things you never use).

I would recommend always having a reserve of about 12,000 Skulls, assuming you have more than that at the moment. This way you can always buy one of the Heroes if you run out of maps to clear. Heroes are important here, because the grind to the maximum recommended level (75) is going to be a long one. In reality though, you'll want to try to get above 75, as it will make things easier to 5 Star.

It does get boring, but the most efficient way to play is still taking every new Hero through every map, from Apprentice to Rift Lord. By now, the experience from Apprentice and War Mage is fairly useless, but it's still better than nothing. War Mage still has some decent Traits available in it, as well as some Traps that start showing up there (like Floor Scorcher and Grinder) so it's not entirely useless.

A couple of final points:

• Start thinking about upgrading what you use regularly to tier 7 - This is only when you have a comfortable amount of Skulls to spend, and again, I would recommend making sure you're never going to be below 12,000 Skulls, unless you have a ton of Heroes to clear maps with.
• After tier 7, Gibs will be earned - If you have a tier 7 trap, and a chest rewards you with that same trap, you will receive Gibs instead. Gibs are a special currency used only in the Premium Shoppe section of the Store. The "Trap Chest" and "Part Chest" are very good here (although they cost 4,000 Gibs), as they will each reward 1,000 Skulls, plus some rare Traps/Parts.
  • With Gibs in mind, you may want to upgrade your secondary traps to tier 7 as well - Again, this is only when you feel you can spare the Skulls for it. For me, the Floor Spikes is a good example of what I mean; I don't normally use it that much, but I do use it on occasion. It's also a trap that shows up on Apprentice (meaning I can find it on any difficulty) and it's common. This means that getting it to tier 7 will provide a good chance that a chest will reward me with Gibs instead, which I can then save up for more Skulls via the Premium Shoppe chests.
  • However, keep in mind the amount you see in chests is tied to how many Gibs you receive - The number amount you are awarded in chests ("x44" or whatever) is the amount of Gibs you will receive, but there is a multiplier depending on the Rarity of the trap. In other words, for a "Common" trap, like Floor Spikes, the Gibs reward is 1:1 - if you receive 44 Floor Spikes, you will receive 44 Gibs instead. It increases more with a rarer trap, so you may see the game give you a couple of hundred Gibs for an Epic trap.
• I recommend to start using the Ceiling Ballista - This means that you should try to get it upgraded to whatever level the rest of your traps are when you can spare the Skulls. The Swinging Mace is still viable for the rest of the game though (although I use Ceiling Ballistas for Throne Room), so if you don't feel like giving it up quite yet, that's fine. I do think that the Ceiling Ballista does trump it eventually though, because of its fantastic range.
• Getting Par Times becomes about utilizing every second you have - This means you need to be comfortable enough with the map to be placing traps and Barricades before the gate opens which means you'll need to start to placing traps during other waves. This also means that having good traps is ideal - it will allow you to ignore whatever minions are currently on the map, giving you time to go to another gate to start setting it up.
  • Do not waste time with Go breaks - Immediately starting every wave is ideal. However, this again, means you need to get comfortable and familiar with the waves. I sometimes don't start it immediately, because I know I need a little extra time just to get to the gate, or to place a few traps/Barricades down.

The Baths

Account Level: 49

Hero used: Blackpaw

Traps used:

• Great Wall Barricade (tier 3)
• Tar (tier 4) - XP Siphon Part
• Brimstone (tier 5)
• Floor Spikes (tier 5)
• Arrow Wall (tier 5)
• Floor Scorcher (tier 3)
• Dragon's Lance (tier 2, used only for this map)

This can probably be done at a lower level than this, as it's all about damage here. Since I'm not using Traits and Parts (well, besides the XP Siphon), I obviously have to compensate somehow, so I had to level up a bit from Master Shark Island.

You also don't necessarily need Dragon's Lance, as you may have picked up a Ceiling Ballista. I don't use Ceiling Ballista here because it is the first map of Rift Lord, and I can't assume viewers have it yet (even if it is "Common" rarity).

The only specific thing to mention in terms of trap placement is the small overhangs that are next to the pillars in the northern part of the map - Use these for Dragon Lances or Ceiling Ballistas. Placing them at these overhangs means that they'll cover the entire northern room, and then you can continue to place them at the ceiling of the chokepoint. Other than potentially placing Arrow Wall above the gate, just place all your floor traps appropriately.

Personally, I don't think they really wanted you to 5 Star this map right as you enter Rift Lord, as the Par Time is REALLY hard to get at this Account Level. It's much easier just to come back later. I barely get it by about 5 seconds, and believe me, it was work. I had to be really aggressive, and sometimes that's tough to do with how much damage the minions are dishing out (especially those Orc TNT Archers, who killed me once).

For those that actually want to try at a lower level - I use Unchained on wave 8, 11, and 14. If you're mostly killing things right out of the gate, you should be in good shape. You still want to trap south of the Guardian though, as it's better to continue the damage at the gate and let your traps take care of what gets by (and hopefully your traps do more damage than mine). There will also be a wave of Earth Elementals at wave 8, and you need to make sure those runners die.

Maximum Security

Account Level: 51

Hero used: Max

Traps used:

• Great Wall Barricade (tier 3)
• Tar (tier 4)
• Brimstone (tier 5)
• Floor Scorcher (tier 3)
• Arrow Wall (tier 5)
• Swinging Mace (tier 4)
• Grinder (tier 4)

This map isn't too bad if you know how to place the Barricades, but you do have to make sure you protect them, otherwise you'll end up failing it pretty fast.

Barricade strategy - Block off the north entrance to the Rift. After the first wave, place Barricades in a straight line just east of the western Guardian (it starts at the corner of the "U" bend). This allows you to funnel all the NW minions into a wall of Grinders, while also extending the path of the minions from the other gates (which in turn allows you to force them into 2 walls of Grinders). You do have to be careful on that first wave though, as you get a fairly large group of Kobolds in it.

In order to protect your north Barricades, place a decoy in that corridor just next to the north gate. This should force all of the Kamikaze Kobolds from the north gate (as well as the Firelings) to go for it instead. Make sure to replace it as it gets destroyed.

On wave 7, you'll get a group of Orc TNT Archers from the north gate. Do NOT engage them at the north gate, or your Barricades might be destroyed. You also want to make sure you do NOT put a Guardian down at the northern spot for this same reason.

From wave 8 all the way to the end, you get groups of 3 Kamikaze Kobolds from the north and/or east gate. On wave 8, they'll be from both north and east; on wave 9 and 10, they'll be from the north; from wave 11 to 13, they'll come from the north, then east.

On wave 8, there does seem to be a couple of Orc TNT Archers mixed in with the Kamikaze Kobolds (from the north) so stick around towards the east gate just to make sure you don't get shot at.

You'll also get a group of Firelings (after the Kobolds) so try to be there to destroy them if you don't feel confident in your traps/decoy. You don't see me go up there to kill them, because honestly I thought they were Orc TNT Archers, hence why I looped around the bend instead. I also start off wave 8 trying to trap the western area a bit more....you may not want to do that if you don't feel confident in your traps.

On waves 9-14, the rest of the Kamikaze Kobolds shouldn't be too much of a threat (if you've trapped enough) since they only come in groups of 3. The ones that come from the east gate are a bit more of a threat, as you can't put a lot of floor traps down in that area. Just be mindful of them and try to be around when they spawn.

On the last wave, you get Firelings, Fire Elementals, and Urza from the north. You can use Unchained here (if you have it) for Urza, but as you can see in the video, it's not required. Just make sure you're killing those Firelings and try to fight the Elementals away from your Barricades as best you can.

Tubifore will also show up on the last wave, at the east gate. For whatever reason he decided to go south and loop all the way around instead of going for my north Barricades, so hopefully he'll do that for you too. I would certainly use Unchained (if available) if he decided to go for the north Barricades instead.

A Jailer Guardian at the western spot will work wonders, and I would highly recommend it if you have one. You can certainly replace the Guardians as they die here, as you should have a ton of coin to spare.

If you're having trouble, consider bringing in an upgraded Haymaker (if you have one) with the Stunning Accumulator Part equipped. That is what I normally use on this map instead of the Swinging Mace (you can place it in the exact same spots). It really does wonders in terms of crowd control, as it will help your western Guardian survive more, and the minions will be constantly pushed around in the eastern corridor with all of the Grinders.

Throne Room

Account Level: 54

Hero used: Max

Traps used:

• Barricade (tier 6) - Reflective Armor and Subsidized Parts
• Floor Scorcher (tier 4)
• Brimstone (tier 6) - XP Siphon
• Tar (tier 5) - XP Siphon
• Floor Spikes (tier 6)
• Arrow Wall (tier 6) - Burning Resonator
• Ceiling Ballista (tier 2)

Traits used:

• Uncle Killed By Giant
• Soldiers Took My Horse

So clearly, you can't mess around here, given how much I had to use. I must have attempted this map without the Traits and Parts about 2 dozen times, and I could not get the Par Time no matter how I set it up or what traps I used. Do realize though, that if you don't have the Traits or Parts, it can be compensated by simply having a higher Account Level, and/or higher tier traps.

This map is absolutely ridiculous to say the least. It is a significant jump in difficulty, and personally I find the next maps (until Confluence) to be no where near as idiotic as this one. I would HIGHLY recommend coming back at a higher level here, as it's VERY hard to get the Par Time, and there are a huge amount of things that destroy your Barricades, which can really mess things up.

If you did manage to get lucky and pick up the "Wall Building PHD" Trait, it'll be very helpful here. Having your Barricade (whichever one you decide to use) up to tier 7 and having the "Double Struts" Part equipped will go a long way in keeping them up.

The first question you may ask is - Why regular Barricades instead of Great Wall? For one, I didn't have enough to get Great Wall to tier 6. Two, I will be using decoys, and being able to place a single one is much easier (since it's smaller) and it will cost me less to replace the decoy.

Barricade strategy - Still the same one I use in other difficulties, which forces all the minions to go into the NE corner. Since you will see a ton of Firelings and Gnome Destroyers, you will most likely need decoy Barricades covering the southernmost Barricades (try to place them just northwest of them, at the bend). I would always recommend replacing these as soon as they get destroyed. You can also try to put down an extra one somewhere in that corridor where the SW gate is. The easternmost Barricades don't normally get threatened for some reason, but do realize the Fireling/Gnome Destroyer behavior is really odd on this map.

Floor traps are put in backwards - I start with Tar, then Floor Spikes, then Brimstone, then Floor Scorcher. It helps in the SW because the Floor Scorchers will flip them into the acid. For the north, I was doing it my regular way, and for some reason the minions would have trouble standing back up, which I thought was costing me time.

Other than that, it's difficult to say what I do exactly because I do a lot of it on the fly. Put down as many Arrow Walls and Ceiling Ballistas as you can; make sure you're putting down Arrow Walls at the north "island" and try to get a good amount of Ballistas at the SW gate as well as the NE corridor where they will all funnel.

I put down 2 Brimstone on both bridges (eventually), and I put down 2 Floor Scorchers just south of the south bridge, which allows them to get flipped into the acid. I would also recommend trying to trap the western lane of the north "island" because they will wander down there on occasion, but I wouldn't prioritize it, just do it when you think you can.

The activated Swinging Mace trap that is above the bridges can be helpful here, but realize it is BUGGED as of this patch. It doesn't always happen, but sometimes the mace will hit a minion into the east wall (where the mace comes from), and the minion will stay alive, and be placed on the other side of that wall, near NE Guardian. You really have to watch the mini-map for this, as it can lead to lost Rift points. They actually fixed this in a previous patch, but it has apparently made a reappearance in 2.6.

As for waves - On wave 3, I would recommend using Unchained if you get Dwarf Priest or Chaotic Kobold, as they'll make things more difficult and cost you time. If you don't get either of those, you can use Unchained on wave 4, because it's a very large wave that you probably won't have the traps for yet.

Wave 6 has your first group of Gnome Destroyers from the SW gate, and you should be there to try to take them out as best you can. You will get a group of Satyrs before they show up though, but hopefully you've put down enough traps to let them go. If not, your option is to try to clear the Satyrs first, and hopefully the Gnome Destroyers will go after your decoy instead without harming your real Barricades.

I use Unchained again at wave 7, for the large group of giants. This is more optional depending on your damage output though, so if you feel like you can clear them quicker, save it for the next wave. Be really careful of the Order Mages here, as there are a couple of them mixed in with the giant group. I've died there before because I couldn't see them (or the fireball they'll shoot at you) through all of the giants.

Wave 9 is the hardest wave in my opinion. The entire wave consists of nothing but Fire Elementals, but the big trolling thing is how they mixed in Firelings with them at the SW, which makes it very difficult to target the Firelings before they go for your Barricades.

Also on wave 9, you'll get an Unstable Rift. This can be ignored if it spawns in the middle area, but you CANNOT let it open if it spawns in the south, or just north of the eastern Guardian. It spawns a group of Earth Elementals, and if you're around my level, you may not have the damage output to kill them before they get to the Rift. This leaves it to be fairly based on luck; you just have to hope that the Firelings won't get to your real Barricades while you destroy the Unstable Rift if it spawns in either of those two places. The Fireling behavior is a bit strange at times, and I've seen them completely ignore the southern Barricades before.

You can use Unchained at wave 9, but just realize that it may come with a price - since Firelings spawn on each Fire Elemental death, you run the risk of spawning more, which puts your Barricades at risk. If you think you can handle it, then go for it. I would wait to use it until you see where the Unstable Rift is though, as you don't want to use it then be forced to immediately move.

I use Unchained at wave 10 because I knew I needed to use it one more time before the last wave to help with my time. I wanted to use it on wave 9, but I was also worried about any extra Firelings.

Try to have Unchained up again for the last wave, and use it as soon as the SW gate spawns, as you won't need it for the north. The north gate spawns incredibly slowly on the last wave, so try to utilize that time you get before they show up to clear the SW gate. The last bit of trolling occurs at the north gate on the last wave; you get a very small group that comes in after Lyzander, which seems to do nothing but intentionally waste your time.

Restricted Section

Account Level: 55

Hero used: Max

Traps used:

• Great Wall Barricade (tier 5)
• Tar (tier 5) - XP Siphon
• Brimstone (tier 6)
• Floor Scorcher (tier 4)
• Arrow Wall (tier 6)
• Ceiling Ballista (tier 2)
• Grinder (tier 5)

This map isn't very difficult if you know how to place the Barricades, and know that you're going to get a lot of Kamikaze Kobolds. The Kamikaze Kobolds are very deadly here, because if they destroy a single Barricade, it can be nearly impossible to recover from it.

The map simply has a gigantic amount of minions to kill. Thus, the 5 Star is very close, even if you're doing more damage than I am (which you should be). There are a decent amount of Ogres here, so the "Sister Eaten by an Ogre" Trait will help a bit, if you don't have any other damage Traits.

Barricade strategy - Same one as War Mage, and the rest of the traps are set up almost exactly the same. Forcing all of them to go into the SE corner still seems ideal, as it allows you to protect a single area (the SW corner) once all gates are opened. By doing this, it makes it very simple to start an extremely long line of Grinders along the bookshelves, which can be combined with Tar to really slow them down. I would highly recommend bringing the XP Siphon Part on Tar for this reason, because you'll get a huge amount of extra experience due to how many minions there are.

The more vital traps are obviously the Tar and Grinders, followed by the Brimstone and Floor Scorchers. The other traps you see me place in other areas (the Arrow Walls at the eastern Guardian area, and in the NW) are more optional, as it's not really necessary if you have high enough damage. The Arrow Walls near the Guardian will help him survive though, which can be helpful for the Kamikaze Kobolds.

Kamikaze Kobolds - On wave 2, 4, and 7, they'll appear at the SE. On wave 3 and 12, they'll appear from the NE. They will also appear from the north gate on the final wave. I put up the decoy Barricade up north as soon as the gate opens, so I don't need to think about it for the final wave. One decoy will not be enough for all 6 of the Kamikaze Kobolds that will appear though, so you can either place another somewhere, or do as I did and break off to kill the rest once they show up.

On wave 12, you'll see me stay at the south gate instead of going to the NE to take care of the Kamikaze Kobolds. ONLY do this if you're confident, as normally I would go over there to destroy them (honestly I may have spaced out there). If you do go over to kill them, make sure not to get distracted by the minions there, and just immediately go back when they're dead, because the south gate needs to be covered.

On wave 6, Orc TNT Archers will come out of the north gate. Do NOT engage them whatsoever here, and you'll see me just go and hide in the SE corner, allowing them to just get killed by the traps instead. If they do manage to get to the SE they'll be fine to kill there though, but it's ideal if you have enough traps put down to take care of them while they're in the middle.

Wave 10 is the probably the most problematic wave (in a way), as you may get the urgency to destroy the Unstable Rift instead of protecting the south gate. For this reason, you may want to ignore placing down the Ceiling Ballistas until you feel satisfied with all of the Grinder/Tar/Brimstone placements. I knew I didn't have enough damage to leave the south gate alone, so I let the Unstable Rift open. It does just spawn a pack of Kobolds, which will just go in the direction of where you are anyway, but as you can see in the video I could have saved maybe 5 seconds or so if I destroyed it.

I used Unchained on wave 4 (for Bulgod), wave 7 (for clearing purposes) and wave 13 (for Lyzander). In retrospect, I probably should have used it on wave 8 instead of 7, because wave 8 has a Mercenary spawn.

Midnight Market

Account Level: 55

Hero used: Blackpaw

Traps used:

• Great Wall Barricade (tier 5)
• Tar (tier 5) - XP Siphon
• Brimstone (tier 6)
• Floor Spikes (tier 6)
• Arrow Wall (tier 6)
• Ceiling Ballista (tier 2)
• Grinder (tier 5)

Bringing in a tier 5 or higher Great Wall Barricade with the "Subsidized Part" Part equipped will allow you to afford all 4 Great Walls to block off the Rift for the first wave, so I would really recommend that, depending on your damage output. It's really easy for minions to get away from you on that first wave if your damage is low, so be aware of that.

This is another map that seems to be more about just dealing enough damage. I would say Blackpaw is really good here, as he can keep things in place a little better than some other Heroes; he's melee, which means minions will group up to him more; his Thin The Herd upgrade can keep things slowed down; his summoned Gnolls can help keep things in place as well.

Barricade strategy - I do the same thing as War Mage, and force them all into the eastern lane. There are no Barricade-destroying minions here, with the exception of the Fire Giants. The Fire Giants are not an issue at all though, unless you're using Barricades to force minions into other traps.

As for the traps, if you bring in what I use, you can't use the same line that I do in most other maps. The Brimstone has to be spread out a decent amount because the damage won't stack with other Brimstones that are placed. I would certainly put 2 down at the north gate though, because that's where all the Earth Elementals will come from.

In the video, you see that I do get a little overwhelmed by the minions at times. In clears of this map with other characters, I've noticed that I think the main problem is I rely pretty heavily on Ceiling Ballistas, which may be a mistake. What I have done in other clears is place down a long line of Tar (2 side by side) starting at the east gate, all the way down west until the small set of stairs. This won't do anything for the Earth Elementals, but the biggest issue on this map are the small Earth Elementals getting away as you try to clear everything else. By having the other minions cluster at one point of the map, this allows you to cover the spot just south of the "Kitchen" Guardian, allowing you to pick off the Earth Elementals that manage to get by everything.

You can still use Ceiling Ballistas of course, I would just recommend not using as many as you see me put down. If your Ceiling Ballistas (or your damage overall) is better than mine though, it might be a moot point.

A breakdown of the waves isn't really necessary here, as it's pretty straight forward if you have enough damage. I will mention the Unstable Rifts though:

Unstable Rifts - The first one is at wave 3, which I let open because I knew I didn't have enough damage to leave the eastern lane alone. Do be careful here if you do let it open on wave 3, as it does spawn a group of Firelings. This may not be an issue if you can clear the wave in time though, as you see me get there right as it opens, thus making it irrelevant. Even if they do manage to spawn and destroy a Barricade, my guess is that you'll have enough time to replace it.

The second is at wave 7, and it spawns later in the wave, allowing you to clear most (if not all) of the minions before having to destroy it.

The last one is at wave 11, which can be safely ignored if you wish, because it just spawns 2 Water Dragons, which are not worth Rift points.

On a final note, obviously bringing in the Cook/Bartender will really help you clear the minions.

Par Time is very forgiving here, which is a nice change, so you don't need to feel as rushed. I cleared this with about a minute and a half to spare.

Banquet Hall

Account Level: 56

Hero used: Max

Traps used:

• Great Wall Barricade (tier 5)
• Tar (tier 5) - XP Siphon
• Brimstone (tier 6)
• Floor Scorcher (tier 4)
• Arrow Wall (tier 6)
• Barricade (tier 6)
• Grinder (tier 5)

Traits used:

• Sister Eaten By An Ogre

This can be tough, as the Par Time can be difficult to earn without really high damage. For this reason, my Barricade strategy changes a bit, which does help, but being familiar with the waves helps significantly as well. There is a little more strategy involved here, as wave 6 throws a lot at you at once, and being prepared for it can really help.

Barricade strategy - It looks a little strange at first, but I forego placing Barricades that the spot just NE of the Rift. This seems a little dangerous, but for some reason, it's irrelevant on the first wave. What I do instead is block off the western lane that enters the SE corner, and instead force all the minions into a line along the easternmost wall.

You will want to block off that NE entrance to the Rift as soon as wave 2 stars though, and it's blocked off in a specific manner - Place a Great Wall on both sides of the "island/wall" just NE of the Rift. Then place another Great Wall that blocks the staircase that is located just to the east of that island/wall.

The reason why you do this is because of the Par Time. This forces the minions to take a shorter pathway to the east (they'll only go about halfway down this western area with this placement), which will save you some time. After that, just continue to build your Great Wall line along the easternmost wall, and just have it go all the way up as much as you can (ideally all the way up to the NE gate).

This does take a lot of coin management though, so Parts such as Subsidized Parts, or any of the cost-reduction Traits will help here. As for the floor traps on the easternmost lane, I do that specifically too - 2 Tar (with Grinders) then a Brimstone, then a Floor Scorcher, then just repeat it over and over.

As I said, being familiar with the map and the waves will help tremendously here. So here's a breakdown of the most problematic waves, and what to do:

Wave 3 - First set of Kamikaze Kobolds from the NW. This is one reason why I bring a single Barricade, as you can place one right at the NW gate (right where they come in on that western lane) so they can blow that up instead. I have put a single Barricade down before just in the western area, but be warned I have seen them completely ignore it and go straight south.

Wave 5 - First set of Orc TNT Archers from the NW. Do NOT engage these things up close, as it will really screw up your line of eastern Barricades. What you see me do is just sit in the SE corner, and I kill them from the longest distance that I can manage. Watch your cross-hairs though, as Max cannot handle sustained fire from a distance. Release the primary attack as your cross-hairs grow so you can get better accuracy.

Wave 6 - This is the real test, and you really should have Unchained saved for it. As wave 5 ends, IMMEDIATELY head up and place 2 single Barricades, in a diagonal, at the NW gate (again, at the start at the western lane). This is to preoccupy Orfum, and this is the second reason why I bring in single Barricades; by placing 2 singles, you can keep him away from your other Barricades while you deal with everything else.

Wave 6 will also spawn a Mercenary (from the NE) and an Unstable Rift. There's a RNG factor here, as a Dwarf Priest spawn is very problematic. If you get a Dwarf Priest, I would immediately use Unchained and try to kill him. This can be extremely difficult sometimes because he will cluster himself within all the other minions. If you're Max, it is okay if you miss In Your Faces, just try to kill him as soon as possible. I get Chaotic Kobold, and this can be a problem too, but I did manage to get him without using Unchained. You can use Unchained for the Chaotic Kobold too, but if he gets away, you have to make the decision whether or not you want to hunt him down. He will more than likely head toward the Rift first, so he may not be much of a threat for a while.

Any other Mercenary you can probably ignore (Bouncer Bear could cause problems though), and you can immediately go destroy the Unstable Rift. So the order is Mercenary (if dangerous), then Unstable Rift, then clear out what minions you can at the eastern lane, then Orfum. Depending on what Mercenary you get, you can either kill it after the Unstable Rift, or after you clear the minions (somewhat) in the NE. You need to keep an eye on Orfum, as because you need to go kill him as soon as he's done with the NW decoys.

Wave 7 - The rest of the map is not nearly as bad, but on wave 7, you do get Kamikaze Kobolds from the NE. These are not a big deal, because they should just destroy one of your "funnel" Barricades, which won't do anything but cost you a little bit of damage output. Make sure to replace them though once the wave ends.

Wave 7 also spawns another set of Orc TNT Archers from the NW though, so you need to do the same thing as before and try to pick them off from the SE corner. You should have a decent amount of traps along the easternmost wall at this point though, so they shouldn't be as difficult to get rid of.

Between wave 7 and 11, try to get some traps down in that area in the middle (that spot just north of the Guardian area) where the NW minions pass through, as it will help with the Par Time.

Before wave 11 stars, try to get a couple of Brimstone on both of the entrances at the NW gate, as you'll get a really annoying line of Kobolds on wave 11.

Wave 11 - This is the last wave to really mention, because you'll get more Orc TNT Archers from the NE gate, but you'll also get this extremely drawn out trickle of Kobolds from the NW. In order to do this efficiently, I cover the NW gate instead of the NE, so I can help clear out the Kobolds while not putting my Barricades at risk. Although, as you can see, I should have left the NW gate earlier than I did, because a handful of minions managed to get through my eastern line of traps. It still worked out though, as they were mostly pretty damaged at that point.

Wave 12 - Not a very long wave, but again you'll get Kamikaze Kobolds from the NE, and eventually some Orc TNT Archers from the NW. It's fine if the Kobolds destroy your Barricades, and you can be aggressive with the Orc TNT Archers if you're short on time (just don't die) because they trail in near the end, meaning your Barricades won't make much difference at that point.

Although this map is difficult, realize that it's only difficult with what I come in with. By coming in at a higher Account Level, with tier 7 traps, and decent Parts/Traits, you significantly reduce the difficulty of this map.

Confluence

Account Level: 59

Hero used: Max

Traps used:

• Great Wall Barricade (tier 5)
• Tar (tier 5) - XP Siphon
• Brimstone (tier 6)
• Floor Scorcher (tier 4)
• Arrow Wall (tier 6)
• Swinging Mace (tier 5)
• Grinder (tier 6)

Traits used:

• Grandmother Eaten By Troll

I think this map was built for Max. The biggest issue with this map is the coin generation, as it is extremely low, and it can be difficult to trap both areas decently. Bringing in Max can really help because of this, but also bringing in Subsidized Parts, or any of the cost-reduction Traits will help.

There will also be a huge group of Kobolds on a couple of different waves, which again, Max is great for. Since he attacks so fast, he clears them out very quickly (particularly with the "Persistent" upgrade at level 10).

Barricade strategy - I block off the NW entry to the Rift, then block the hall just NW of that, so they will get manipulated to walk down the lane where the Guardian is, then walk back. When the NE gate opens (wave 5) I block off the SE entry to the Rift, and then I place a couple of Barricades just north of the NE Guardian spot to force them into Grinders.

The first thing you'll see is that I don't trap the NW lane very much. The reason for this is because I'm trying to preserve my coin; having more damage in the NE is better, because the minion's path gets a little strange over there. The NW gate also doesn't need it quite as much, particularly if you bring one of the "Anchor" Guardians, which will help the damage.

I put down a lot of Tar for a few reasons - It has a low cost; it slows down the Kobolds; and I get the extra experience from the XP Siphon. You will eventually want to trap more than what I have, but what I have down should be enough for the first 4 waves, as the NW gate closes upon wave 5. I would recommend using Unchained for wave 4 though, just due to how long it is.

Having over 9,000 (!) coin for wave 5 I think is ideal, because putting up a couple of Grinders and Arrow Walls can go a long way when the NE gate initially opens. What you'll see is that around 1/3 of the minions will decide down the SE lane...but they'll get to the corner and realize they can't go that way, and come back up. This is primarily what affects the Par Time using this strategy, as having them walk back there, and come back up, does waste some time. However, if you can put enough traps down, you can reduce the time you're wasting having to hunt them down.

For the most part, you don't want to actually hunt them down as they move to the SE, but proactively try to prevent them moving down there in the first place. For the ones that get by, just let them go and come back up, because you need to pay attention to the minions going towards the Guardian, especially if there are not a lot of traps down. Whenever you see the "next wave" countdown, you know you're okay to let them path back up, as they're not really wasting much time at that point.

After wave 5, I put down a couple of Floor Scorchers at the NE bridge, then a Brimstone (put down another if you have the coin) to help with the damage at the gate. At the end of wave 6, you'll see me put down a Grinder just north of the "Forge" Guardian spot that's in the SE; this is a good place for it, because it will not only catch the minions from the NE gate going down, but the minions from the SE gate that will go up.

On wave 7, the NW gate opens again, and I would say this is a good place for your next Unchained, as it also spawns a Mercenary. By clearing the NE gate faster, it allows you some time to catch up to the minions in the NW, which you may need if your damage is as low as mine is. The traps that I have in the NW aren't enough for the 4-5 Trolls that survive at the end of the wave, so I would recommend watching that gate as best you can to make sure they don't make a lot of progress toward the Rift. You may get tempted to trap the NW further for this reason, but realize that not only does the NW close again on wave 8, but it's the only gate open on wave 10, so you can trap it then.

Wave 8 and 9 has the entry of a very large group of Kobolds, which should be easy to take care of as long as you're covering the NE area.

As stated, wave 10 has just the NW gate open again, so use this time to put more traps down. I only put a couple of Brimstone down, as it should suffice for now. I stay away from putting traps on the bridge because of the Hobgoblin Shamans, as they will most likely just heal the minions through the damage. The gate closes again at the end of wave 10.

I use Unchained at wave 11 because I think it's best; it's a decently long wave, and you don't really need it much for later waves, although saving it for wave 13 is an option as well. By using it at wave 11, I could have managed to get Unchained one more time at the last wave if I killed more near my traps, but chances are you won't get that option if you use it at wave 13.

Wave 12 is very simple, and you don't want to waste Unchained for Urza, as he spawns near the end of the wave. Just as long as you kill the Fire Elementals near the SE gate, you'll be fine.

For wave 13 and 14, start off in the NW, but keep an eye on the minions from the NE gate. You'll want to try to clear as much as you can, but move over to the NE as soon as the minions there start to get close to the Guardian. These last 2 waves should be fairly simple as long as you watch the NE.

Frostbite

Account Level: 61

Hero used: Max

Traps used:

• Great Wall Barricade (tier 5)
• Tar (tier 5) - XP Siphon
• Brimstone (tier 6)
• Floor Scorcher (tier 4)
• Arrow Wall (tier 6)
• Swinging Mace (tier 5)
• Grinder (tier 6)

Traits used:

• Soldiers Took My Horse

This map is difficult, because the Par Time kind of requires you to place traps before the gates open. On the positive side, this map hasn't changed pretty much at all from Master, so the exact same set-up from Master can be used.

I do leave room for others to improve on my time; coming in with tier 7 traps and more Traits/Parts will obviously help things. Different Guardians would help too, as a Temple/Jailer Guardian would help clear the SW and SE gates better. Although the Priest Guardian might do frost damage (I'm not sure) he can still freeze minions, which is helpful.

Barricade strategy - The same as Master, and as I said there, it's a bit difficult to describe in text. The idea is to force the minions in the north down the middle, and then use Barricades to force them into a single lane along the walls, where you can use Grinders. In the SE, I use a single Great Wall to force them to path north around the "island", and in the SW I just place Barricades in between the columns/walls to force them to take a longer path out of the area, which also forces them to along the walls, which is good for Grinder placements.

This map gives an extremely generous amount of coin, so use it to try to trap the north area really well before you move onto the other gates, as the north area will have a ton of minions, and you're not going to be able to cover them as the southern gates open. What I do is place an extra pair of Floor Scorchers and Brimstones on the NW bridge, as it should help reduce their numbers.

Breakdown of waves:

Wave 3 - Two Mercenaries at the same time from the NW, which you should save Unchained for. You see me use Unchained late, because I knew I didn't need it for Pride Assassin, but Bouncer Bear can be a huge annoyance. Unfortunately Bouncer Bear decided to camp the gate, so I ended up using it later just to take care of him.

Wave 4 - First Unstable Rift will spawn, and mine was really convenient. This should play out the exact same way as Master though, so you should consider just letting it open if you know you can't get it with ease. The minions from the NE are much more important to get rid of, but if your traps are decent, you may be able to go after the Unstable Rift instead with less concern.

Wave 6 - I use almost all of this wave to start setting up traps in the SE, as I felt that I had enough down in the north for the majority of the minions. I go back when I use the majority of my coin. It may be smarter (if you have the coin) to place the floor traps at the SE gate first, rather than do it as I did and trap the Guardian area first. This way you can start wave 7 sooner than I did, because I used the Go break to trap the gate.

Wave 7 - Two Mercenaries at the same time again, from the SE. Again, I highly recommend Unchained to clear them, as they can be a potential problem. Not much else to say about this wave, as I just cleared the SE and the nothing in the north managed to survive.

Wave 8 - I use the beginning of this wave to start placing traps and Barricades in the SW. There will be another Unstable Rift, which was convenient once more for me. I believe it is just another group of Pride Hunters though, so you may not necessarily need to hunt it down. If it does spawn in the north, you can destroy it if you want (as I go north after I put a few traps down in the SW), but do be mindful of where you're standing, because of the Dwarf Grenadiers.

Wave 9 - I use Unchained to help clear the SW, because I didn't feel like it was trapped very well, and I felt confident that Unchained would be back up for the last wave. If you start to see the minions in the SE move around the Barricade, that's the cue to head over there to make sure nothing gets by, as they have the shortest route to the Rift.

Wave 10 - I start by covering the SW again, but be aware that TNT Archers will show up at the end of the group. You do not want to engage them near the Guardian, as you will run the risk of destroying the Barricades. Instead, just back up to where the minions will path, and once you've cleared a good portion of the group, just move on to the SE, then move to the north, then pick off whatever was left from the SW.

Wave 11 - What I should have probably done was replaced the Guardian, but for whatever reason I decided not to. No minions to really note in this wave, but I do the exact same thing as wave 10; clear the majority of the SW, then go to the SE, then go to the north.

Wave 12 - Having Unchained up for this is very beneficial. This time I would recommend being in the northern area for 2 reasons: One, an Unstable Rift will spawn, and it'll more than likely be in the northern area. Two, Iceberg, the boss minion, will show up in the NE, and he's quite the damage sponge, so I wanted to try to get some damage done to him.

Wave 12 does get a little stressful at the end, as I get a few minions that manage to get close to the Rift. Realize though that having better traps (and better damage overall) will help prevent that, as I would imagine having my Tar at tier 6 could have potentially helped with that, given how much of it I use.

As a brief comical note - You see me pause the game for a split second at the end. I do this because I glanced at my time, and I thought I was going to miss the Par Time by 1 second, so I was thinking I had to restart. The match ends the second I pause it though, hence why it looks kind of ridiculous. I do get the Par Time at exactly 13:45, so this is pretty tough with this minimalist set-up.

Gates of Thuricvod

Account Level: 61

Hero used: Max

Traps used:

• Great Wall Barricade (tier 5)
• Tar (tier 5) - XP Siphon
• Brimstone (tier 6)
• Floor Spikes (tier 6)
• Arrow Wall (tier 6)
• Swinging Mace (tier 5)
• Grinder (tier 6)

Floor Spikes replace my Floor Scorchers here, because of all the Fire Fiends. Floor Scorchers are probably still viable if they are higher than mine (mine are still tier 4), but I felt like mine weren't upgraded enough to do any real damage.

Yet another map that isn't too bad (overall) to defend, but getting that Par Time forces you to use just about every second you can. Push Traps unfortunately aren't very viable here, as the NW/NE gates will spawn large minions at the front of their groups. I will point out being comfortable with jumping onto the pillars in the lava (to get to the NE/NW gates) does help a lot.

Barricade strategy - The same as War Mage, but with a few additions. I still block off the SE entry to the Rift (at the beginning of wave 5), but you will need to put another one down further south (near the SE gate) as a decoy (which I do in wave 10). You do get Firelings on the last wave, so you need to plan for them. I also place 2 more Barricades to slightly extend the minion's path; again, this is for the last wave, as the Fire Fiend Warlocks, for some reason, will sometimes immediately go for the Rift, ignoring the Guardian.

Breakdown of waves:

Wave 1 - At the end of this wave, you should have enough to place down exactly 6 Tar traps in a line at the NW gate. Once the Tar has been placed, go back to clearing the middle.

Wave 2 - At the end of this wave, you should have enough to place down 2 Swinging Maces at the NW gate. You'll see me jump up the pillars to do so here, but it's not really necessary to place the Swinging Maces (just aim at the ceiling) although moving up to the NW can ensure you're placing them above the Tar correctly.

Wave 3 - At the end of this wave, I repeat the same thing in the NE that is in the NW; 6 Tar traps and 2 Swinging Maces. I have enough for 3 more Tar traps, so I place them as well. At the start of wave 4 I wait around for a little to get some coin, and I place one more Swinging Mace above that 3 Tar.

Wave 4 - The north gate spawns first, then the NW, then the NE. There is a bit of a delay between the arrival of each group, so you can use that to put down 3 more Tar (plus another Swinging Mace) in the NW.

Wave 5 - I decided to use Unchained at the start of this wave to save time. By immediately starting the wave, you can use the time before they break down the gate to place the SE Barricade and put down a couple of the traps in the SW corridor. Once the minions break through, use Unchained to quickly clear them. The north gate group takes a while to arrive, so by clearing the SW group fast, you can use that time to place more traps down in the SW corridor.

Wave 6 - Try to clear as much as you can in the SW before heading to the north. In the video, a couple of Fire Elementals get pretty close to the Rift, but I realized I should have just left the SW sooner than I did. In the SW, I basically clear everything but 1 minion, which was probably more than needed.

Wave 8 - Similar to wave 6, clear the majority of the minions in the south before heading north. Minions come from the north first in wave 9, so use that time to place a few more traps in the middle lane.

Wave 9 - Urza spawn in the north, but don't use Unchained for him, as you'll need it for wave 10. Once the north is mostly cleared, head back down south. At the end of this wave, you should have the coin to place 2 more Barricades near the Guardian/Rift to extend the minions path a little.

Wave 10 - The NE/NW gates open again, but if you trapped it like I did they shouldn't be an issue at all. Focus on clearing the south, and when they're gone put down the decoy Barricade near the SE gate. Earth Elementals will spawn from the north gate, as well as Gaeadin. As soon as you hear/see "Gaeadin has entered the battlefield" use Unchained to help clear all of them.

Wave 11 - This is a dangerous wave because there's a bit of randomness involved. Orc TNT Archers will spawn from the SE, and obviously you don't want to pick a fight with them near the Barricades. However, because the corridor doesn't give you a lot of room to move, even fighting them away from the Barricades can result in a quick death. If you have better traps than I do, they may just be able to take care of the majority of the southern minions, but what you see me do is just try to assist clearing until the TNT Archers get closer to the corridor. For whatever reason, the TNT Archers didn't really pick a fight with my Guardian, so that's a bit random. You may need to replace the Barricade next to the Guardian if it gets destroyed.

Wave 12 - At the beginning of this wave you get some free time, so I use it to place more traps in the middle. This turned out to be useless, and what I should have done is use that time to place more Tar in the NE/NW lanes. You do want to cover the middle, to kill the Fire Imps (as they can get away from the Guardian) until Tubifore comes out. I then go to the NW to help clear that lane, then the NE, then I go south as soon as I see them moving through the SW corridor. I use Unchained once I head south just so I can quickly help clear the minions, in order to protect the Rift from the NW minions that managed to survive.

Par Time is managed with almost 45 seconds to spare, and this is with no Traits, so I can imagine it can be improved upon.

Temple Graveyard

Account Level: 65

Hero used: Midnight

Traps used:

• Great Wall Barricade (tier 5)
• Tar (tier 5) - XP Siphon
• Brimstone (tier 7)
• Floor Scorcher (tier 5)
• Arrow Wall (tier 6)
• Barricade (tier 6)
• Grinder (tier 6)

Traits used:

• Grandmother Eaten By Troll
• Enjoys Pain

I do use Midnight for this map instead of Max, because I firmly believe it cannot be done at this Account Level without Midnight. It may be possible if everything is at tier 7, with decent Parts/Traits.

So I was really irritated with this map. As you can see in the beginning, I had cleared it with Max. I came in with Max, had 3 damage Traits (Sister Eaten By An Ogre, Killer Buzz, and Bear Hugs) and the Overachiever Trait (which starts you at level 2, and the slot bonus is movement speed); I was using a Grinder with Burning Resonator, Viscous Tar with Subsidized Parts and XP Siphon, and a Brimstone with XP Siphon. I missed the Par Time by 2 seconds. To say the least, I was pretty pissed off.

In turn, I removed all of that nonsense, kept Sister Eaten By An Ogre (and used my Tar with XP Siphon), added Enjoys Pain, and proceeded to rock the hell out of the map with Midnight. I beat the Par Time by almost 10 seconds. That is ridiculous.

My thought is that this is either not a 56-65 map (minions might be stronger than this) or the minions enter the map is such a delayed fashion that it affects the Par Time (like with Docks at Eventide).

The short of it is, you have two options - Either use Midnight at a lower Account Level, or use Max at a higher Account Level. It can be done with Max, but you will need to be above the suggested level range, period. Believe me, I've attempted this enough times with Max to know. I even tried with Blackpaw, and I was still completing it with 15+ seconds over Par Time.

I will make another video showing a different method with Max, but I will more than likely come back at Account Level 70, and possibly with one or two more tier 7 traps. It'll just take me a while to experiment with what the minimum is to complete it with Max.

Anyway, the Barricade strategy is exactly the same as War Mage, only that I don't snake them in the NE corner (although I still snake them into the Guardian area). The reason for this is the Kamikaze Kobolds that will appear on wave 8 and 11. Instead, I just put down Tar at the NE gate to slow things down.

Wave 2 - At the end of this wave, start to trap the NW corner. I place a Great Wall to block the southern lane, forcing them all against the column, where I put up a Grinder.

Wave 5 - Stay at the SW gate for Tubifore, then clear the minions there until the NW minions show up. Ensure that you place a couple of Tar/Grinders at the entryway to the NE corner, because there will be Kobolds at some point. At the end of this wave, you'll see me put Grinders and a Tar at the NE gate, this is actually a bit of a mistake, as I should have used that coin to put up Barricades to snake minions into the Guardian area (as I do at the start of wave 7).

Wave 8 - Kamikaze Kobolds from the NE, dispose of them quickly and try not to die while doing it. Use Unchained after the Mercenary shows up (either kill the Mercenary with it and/or clear the wave with it).

Wave 9 - You'll see me do a jump, then Dash and Slash, to get to the second Unstable Rift that appeared in the corner. If the Unstable Rift does show up there....don't do that, unless you feel confident in it, as you can walk to it and be fine. I was actually just experimenting to see if it would work.

Wave 10 - Start at the south gate, as the minions appear there first. When they're mostly cleared, head to the NE. I hide around the column where the Guardian is because of the stupid archers.

Wave 11 - Kamikaze Kobolds will appear again from the NE. This time though, there will be more than 3, and there's a Mercenary from the same gate. I use Unchained here, mostly because I don't want to potentially kill myself on the Kobolds. The final wave countdown begins at 12:31, so that's a good time to be around. If the final wave starts at 13:00 or over, chances are you won't make the time.

Wave 12 - Start at the west gate, then clear the majority of it and work on the NW. The NE will spawn last, and it is a fairly smaller group than the rest of the wave.

Since this is the first time I have a video of Midnight, a few pointers:

• Prowl increases movement speed by a slight amount. Use it to traverse long distances on the map.
• Use Prowl, then Dash and Slash, to stun everything hit by Dash and Slash. Midnight gets bonus damage against stunned target, so melee as much as you can afterwards.
• Vital Strikes takes practice to be accurate with, but it's worth it. For some reason it's hard to hit the Unstable Rifts with it here (as you see on wave 3). Vital Strikes also gets bonus damage if used with Prowl.
• My upgrades are Killer Instinct (level 2), Sa-Meow-Rai Armor (level 4), Slash-N-Dash (level 7), and Thrill of the Kill (level 10).

You may be curious about how to do this with Max, if you don't have Midnight quite yet. It is possible to complete this as Max, but I would highly recommend coming back at a higher Account Level. If this is how you'd prefer to 5 Star this, I have a set-up for it too:

Account Level: 72

Hero used: Max

Traps used:

• Great Wall Barricade (tier 5)
• Viscous Tar (tier 5) - XP Siphon and Subsidized Parts
• Brimstone (tier 7) - XP Siphon
• Floor Scorcher (tier 5)
• Arrow Wall (tier 6)
• Swinging Mace (tier 5)
• Grinder (tier 6)

Traits used:

• Killer Buzz
• Sister Eaten By An Ogre

The difference here between my Midnight video is how I place my Great Walls. In the southern part of the map, the Great Walls are placed in a manner that forces the minions from the SW to walk into the "cemetery" area, where the weird purple mist is. These areas actually do damage (which is stated in the map description, if you read it), which helps deal additional damage. The damage is not really that significant, but it does allow you to deal extra damage without any additions besides the Great Walls.

In the NE corner, the Great Wall placements are also different. At the start of wave 6, I start by placing 2 Great Walls next to each other, starting at the western wall (just next to the stairs) and forcing the minions into a single lane to enter the eastern Guardian area. It's completed by the start of wave 7, by then placing one at a diagonal, then placing another horizontally at the top. That last one serves two purposes - It not only forces minions into a single lane along the wall, but it also becomes fodder for the Kamikaze Kobolds in case they manage to get by. If that Great Wall is destroyed, it means little, as they are still forced into a single lane via the other Barricades.

Wave 5 - Stay at the SW gate for Tubifore. Once he's dead, move up to the NW to place more traps before they start to show up.

Wave 6 - As stated, I begin to place my Great Walls in the NE. There is another Mercenary during this wave; if you get Chaotic Kobold, consider leaving him alive (if you can't kill him quick) until the NW minions are cleared. If a problem, try not to use Unchained, but it is potentially an option. Unchained will be much more useful at wave 8 though.

Wave 7 - As stated, the Great Walls in the NE are placed. NE gate opens, but there are not many minions that come out of it, so it's not entirely necessary to place many traps in the NE yet.

Wave 8 - First set of 3 Kamikaze Kobolds from the NE. They are the first to appear, so make sure you pick them off as they show up. If your Great Walls get damaged, I would recommend replacing them at the end of the wave. A Mercenary will appear after the Kamikaze Kobolds, and you'll also get a lot of minions that will want to kill you here (Gnolls and Cyclops Mages), so I would recommend using Unchained to kill the Mercenary or help to clear the wave (ideally both). You will see me use the column that's next to the entry the minions have to take to enter the Guardian area, which is helpful to break line-of-sight for any potential Cyclops Mages coming by.

Wave 9 - West gate opens. I get a couple of Brimstone down at the entrance to the gate, plus a Fire Scorcher, plus an Arrow Wall. After those are down, try to place traps in the western Guardian area. Once most of the Ogres are down, destroy the 2 Unstable Rifts.

Wave 10 - Stay at the SW gate, as they appear first. Try to clear the SW minions before the NE minions appear, and then head up to the NE. There are a ton of Archers that will come at the end of the NE group. Again, try to use that column where the minions are forced to go, so you can potentially hide behind it to break line-of-sight if they start shooting.

Wave 11 - 2 different sets of Kamikaze Kobolds, having 3 in each set. The issue is that they also come in as a Mercenary appears, plus a lot of other minions, which makes them difficult to kill before they get to the Barricades. I use Unchained for this purpose; to try to clear everything I can in hopes I will get the Kobolds in the crossfire. Try to kill the Mercenary while Unchained, but again, don't chase it down if it gets away from the NE. Replace any Great Walls that get destroyed.

Wave 12 - Start with the west gate, and you can mostly leave the southern minions alone. NW gate will spawn next, then finally the NE. I had Unchained up again towards the end, but I didn't use it just to show it wasn't required at that point.

Highlands

Account Level: 66

Hero used: Max

Traps used:

• Haymaker (tier 2, new for this map)
• Tar (tier 5) - XP Siphon
• Brimstone (tier 7)
• Floor Scorcher (tier 5)
• Arrow Wall (tier 6)
• Ceiling Ballista (tier 4)
• Grinder (tier 6)

Traits used:

• Sister Eaten By An Ogre

One word: Haymakers. Seriously, they make this map so much easier. The reason why is because of their fantastic crowd control, and you really need it for the NW gate minions in particular. I know Haymakers have an "Epic" rarity, but that's why I used a tier 2 (as it was also all I had). It is possible to do this without Haymakers, but chances are you are going to need to come back with better damage if you don't bring them. If you do have a better Haymaker than I do, consider using the "Stunning Accumulator" Part, as it will help with your damage output.

Highlands is interesting, because you can see that specific minions come from specific gates. The north gate generally consists of Ogres (including Fire Giants) and Hobgoblin Shamans; the NE generally consists of Kobolds (including Kamikaze Kobolds); the NW generally consists of Fire and Earth Elementals.

So as you can see, Barricades are more or less worthless here, hence why I don't use them. Haymakers are great for 2 reasons: In the north, they'll keep Hobgoblins from healing. In the NW, they are the only crowd control (that I know of) that works against both Earth and Fire Elementals.

In the north: I make a "L" shape with the Haymakers (total of 5) so it covers both the entry and exit of that small room. Once I have the floor traps and Haymakers down, I add a couple of Ballistas. Try not to spend all your coin at the start of wave 3, as you'll need a little to trap the NE gate.

In the NE: I put down 2 Floor Scorchers where the minions enter, then I put down 3 Tar at the exit so it lines up with the wall, with the addition of Arrow Walls. Afterwards, place down Brimstone on the bridge. When you have the coin, place down a Ballista and a line of Tar over the bridge to help slow Kobolds down. Eventually you will want 2 more Brimstone (right before the Guardian) and utilize the 2 ceilings for Ballistas (the one above the 3 Tar, and the one above the Guardian).

In the NW: It starts off the same way as the north, with a line of 3 Haymakers covering the exit. I start the "L" shape again, but only use 1 Haymaker, as I can't afford any more. Try to get a line of Tar underneath the Haymakers as well. Add a few Ballistas when you can. Eventually you'll want to add more Haymakers (I do this at the start of wave 11).

After that basic set-up is complete, I basically just try to evenly distribute Ballistas among each lane, while adding in Tar and Arrow Walls here and there.

Unstable Rifts - They appear at wave 3, 6, and 12. You will need to go get them immediately as they spawn, especially if they are at the other side of the map. If you don't, chances are it'll open before you get there.

Unchained - I use my first at 8, as I don't have enough in the NW to take care of the Fire Elementals (and I'm nearly dead). I only use Unchained a second time, during the last wave so I can kill Bulgod and the north gate minions quickly.

On wave 1 - Don't try to kill anything with your Primary unless you're shooting a Hobgoblin. If you try to kill any of the Ogres or Orcs with your Primary, the Hobgoblins will probably just heal it immediately. What I do is try to use In Your Faces a couple of times against the Ogres to thin them a bit.

On wave 7/8 - In the NW, I also use the Boulder Chute trap that's at the top of the stairs. I only do this because I know my damage sucks, and it does help slightly just to keep the Fire Elementals preoccupied for a second. Another option is to just put a Guardian down to keep them slowed down.

I always cover the NE gate first when it's open, then move to the north gate, then finally the NW. This is due to the Haymakers being able to keep things at bay while I cover the other gates. The NE is priority because of how many Kobolds there are, and chances are your traps won't be enough to catch all of them.

On wave 9, you get a second group of Kobolds in the NE that follows the first group. If you've trapped the NE enough, you should be able to leave them alone.

For the first time with Max, I take the "Endorsements" upgrade at level 2. This is mostly because the extra coin really helps, but if you're using any of the cost-reduction Traits (Smashing Deals would help tremendously here), you should be fine without it.

I also take "Bad at Self-Reflection" at level 7 because I thought it might help more with the Fire Elementals. Although it didn't seem to work quite as well as I hoped, it's still helpful if you use Can't Touch This a lot like I do.

If you're not aware, the Firelings do not count for Rift points, so you can let them get into the Rift if they're close. They are worth some coin though, so it's optimal to just kill them.

Avalanche

Account Level: 66

Hero used: Max

Traps used:

• Great Wall Barricade (tier 5)
• Tar (tier 5) - XP Siphon
• Brimstone (tier 7)
• Floor Scorcher (tier 5)
• Arrow Wall (tier 6)
• Barricade (tier 6)
• Grinder (tier 6)

Not too bad of a map, as it can be trapped in the exact same way as the Master version. What is different is that the gates will open up in a different order; it'll be east gate first, then west, then north, then NW. The composition of most minion groups is fairly similar to what is found on Master though.

First thing you'll notice - Mercenary on the first wave. This can be a problem depending on who you get, as you'll see me struggle immensely with Human Image (can you believe his clone walked into my shot?). Realize that Boulder Chute trap can work wonders to slow down the minions as you deal with the Mercenary. There's a good chance that Unchained will be up as well at some point during the first wave, so you should use it if things get problematic (Unchained isn't too necessary for the rest of this map).

The west gate opens on wave 4, but there is no Go break for it, so you need to prepare the east gate with traps so you can leave it alone for the most part. There isn't much that spawns from the west on wave 4 (it has like a dozen or so Grizzlies) but it does also spawn a Mercenary. At the end of wave 3, I only manage to place down a Brimstone, Great Wall, and a Tar (I get the Grinder in during the wave), and it seems to work out. Ideally though, it's better to try to get 2 Floor Scorchers and Brimstone down at the bridge where they enter (which I do once the Grizzlies are dead).

Wave 5 will spawn Kamikaze Kobolds, which is why the Fire traps are nice on that bridge. TNT Archers will spawn first though, so what you see me do is try to get their attention from the wall. By doing this, not only can you keep them in place to potentially kill them, but as a result the Kobolds will be the first to activate your traps (instead of the TNT Archers) and they should be less of an issue. You do have to be careful about their shots though, as you obviously don't want them to hit your Great Wall. When the Kobolds are dead, feel free to back up closer to the Guardian so you don't risk your Great Wall.

On wave 6, I start to block off the northern area just like I do in Master. You can start to Barricade the "Barracks" area if you want as well, but wave 6 does spawn a very large amount of regular Kobolds in both gates. If you feel less confident in your traps, keep an eye on the mini-map and cover one of the gates.

Wave 7 will open the north gate, but realize that again, it doesn't spawn many minions, so you don't need to trap the Barracks area very much, particularly if you place a Guardian and pay attention to make sure they're not getting close to the Rift.

There's really not much else to say about this map. The only other trap addition, versus my Master video, is the Great Wall just east of the "Kitchen" Guardian. I do this to force all of the minions south, where they will walk along the wall (if they get that far), where I set up a Tar/Grinder combo.

I also still trap the NW corner some, close to where the minions path near the Great Wall Barricade. Everything else is just extra; try to find spots where you think will help (I trap the boat in the NW a little, and I put a couple of Brimstone down where the N/NW gates merge). I could have probably used a few more traps in the west, but it still worked out.

The only other time I use Unchained is wave 11, to help clear the NW. The group of minions is quite large there, and I figured it would help my time.

Par Time is great here, as I have about 30 seconds to spare, and I could have used Unchained one more time to cut it down even further.

Castle Gates

Account Level: 68

Hero used: Blackpaw

Traps used:

• Great Wall Barricade (tier 5)
• Tar (tier 5) - XP Siphon
• Brimstone (tier 7)
• Swinging Mace (tier 5)
• Arrow Wall (tier 6)
• Big Game Hunting Ballista (tier 1, new for this map)
• Grinder (tier 6)

As you can see, I use Big Game Hunting Ballista for the first time here, because you will get a ton of Mercenaries, and it really helps (even at tier 1) to get the extra damage against them. For this reason, this map can be a little random at this level, because you will get Mercenaries in pairs, which really could mess things up, depending on which pair you get.

I used Blackpaw again here because I felt he had better damage than Max. His Thin The Herd upgrade at level 4 will certainly help things if you manage to get the Chaotic Kobold, as well for Swiftyhooves that appears on wave 10.

Wave 1 - Barricaded like Master, forcing minions to go into the NE area with the Guardian. The Brimstone placement is fairly deliberate; I place it on the corner of the doorway, as that is where they path (watch the ghosts). Other than that there's not much coin to place anything else besides the 2 Tar at the gate. The minions enter the map at the 32 second mark, if you're wondering how I timed my summoned Gnolls.

Wave 2 - Place 2 Big Game Hunting Ballistas to cover the eastern gate. This should help with the Mercenary, but just realize you do not want to get too distracted by whichever Mercenary shows up (particularly the Chaotic Kobold); you more than likely will not have a lot of traps down, which means you need to focus on the minions (it also means the Chaotic Kobold won't affect much). If it is a Mercenary that is actively trying to kill you, try to kill it in range of the Ballistas.

Wave 3 - I try to trap the southern gate some, but do try to get at least a Brimstone down, as you'll eventually get Earth Elementals out of this gate. I use Unchained here because it will significantly help with the pair of Mercenaries that spawn. Try to be right at the gate for the Fire Fiend Warlocks, because they work like Archers and won't attack you in melee range.

Wave 4 - I do something kind of slick here, but you can do it differently. I stay at the eastern gate to deal with the Firelings, and then quickly move to the area west of the Guardian to place down more Great Walls to extend the minions pathway. It is just possible to place the Great Walls during the time that you have before wave 4 (in retrospect, that's what I should have done, instead of placing the Tar/Arrow Walls) or you can even just place a decoy Great Wall at the eastern gate (although realize you'll be wasting the little coin you have with it).

Wave 5 - As the wave starts, I place 2 more Great Wall at the entrance to the Guardian area, to extend the pathway of the minions that come from the north (as they have the shortest route to the Rift). This also serves another function, which is to get the Firelings that will spawn to destroy these instead of the more important Barricades that are to the west.

Wave 6 - Mercenary and Lyzander will show up, and you can use Unchained if things get out of hand. Do realize that you will get Gaeadin and Urza on wave 8 though.

Wave 7 - At the start, I place a decoy Barricade at the eastern gate (for the final wave). Earth Elementals from the south, Fire Elementals from the north. Get the Barricades replaced once the wave is finished.

Wave 8 - Urza and Fire Elementals from the north, Gaeadin and Earth Elementals from the south. If you didn't use Unchained at wave 6 (or it's up again) you can use it here, but realize that you get 2 Mercenaries on the next wave.

Wave 9 - At the start, I place another decoy Barricade, but this time at the southern gate (for the final wave). 2 Mercenaries, but the rest of the wave is fairly normal.

Wave 10 - Swiftyhooves from the east, and he'll show up once the wave starts. This shouldn't be an issue with Blackpaw if you took the Thin The Herd upgrade, in combination with the Ballistas. The rest of the wave comprises of Earth Elementals though, so make sure none get by you.

Wave 11 - First (and only) Unstable Rift spawn, and there is plenty of time to destroy it. If you've saved Unchained like I have, this is a good wave to use it on, as wave 12 isn't nearly as large.

Wave 12 - One Mercenary, and the rest of the wave mostly comprises of the Terracotta minions. It's possible to ignore the Mercenary here (probably not Dwarf Priest) as you don't need to kill it to complete the map.

As a final note, be very careful of the Fire Fiend Warlocks. Try to get out of line of sight (by hiding behind a pillar or something) if you start to see them cast their fireball, as it just might kill you in a single hit.

Par Time is really forgiving, as I had a minute and a half to spare, so you don't need to rush as much as I did.

Academy Sewers

Account Level: 68

Hero used: Max

Traps used:

• Great Wall Barricade (tier 5)
• Tar (tier 5) - XP Siphon
• Brimstone (tier 7)
• Floor Scorcher (tier 5)
• Arrow Wall (tier 6)
• Swinging Mace (tier 5)
• Grinder (tier 6)

Not really that bad of a map, but you do get a tremendous amount of Satyrs (I think even more than Master Unchained Fortress) for a few of the waves. Order minions, Grizzlies, and Giants are also present here, if you wish to bring their respective +damage Traits.

Extremely simple for Barricades, as all it needs is one Great Wall to block off the northern entrance to the Rift. In the south, you will see me place a single Great Wall in the flat area between the stairs, to force them into Grinders.

Tar is your friend here, and you'll want to try to get a lot of it down (particularly in the north) for wave 8, as that is when the first wave of Satyrs shows up. The south side should be a little easier to defend if you force them into a single lane with a Great Wall like I did, but Tar is obviously still helpful.

For the Satyrs, don't ever trust your Guardian to kill them, so you do want to be careful of letting them go (even a single one). On occasion, you'll see me just hit the Satyr running past me a single time, and this is to try to activate their shield, so hopefully the Guardian can kill it. Regardless though, I still wouldn't trust the Guardian to do his only job.

So in total, Satyrs are on wave 8 (north), wave 10 (north), wave 12 (south) and wave 14 (both north and south).

For wave 14, Satyrs will be at the south first, but it's a smaller group than usual, then when the minions appear in the north, Swiftyhooves will be among them, but he comes in towards the end. Hopefully you have enough damage output to clear the Satyrs as they show up, so you aren't forced to let anything go just to target Swiftyhooves.

Unchained - I use mine at wave 4 just to clear faster (wave 5 is also an option, as the group is decently large). I use it again on wave 11 and 13, simply because the wave is fairly large and again, I just wanted to clear faster.

Par Time is pretty close for me here (15 seconds), but I felt like I didn't need to work nearly as hard to get it in comparison to other maps.

Crogon Keep

Account Level: 68

Hero used: Max

• Upgrades (that I use specifically for this map): Endorsements (Level 2) and Bad At Self-Reflection (Level 7)

Traps used:

• Great Wall Barricade (tier 5)
• Tar (tier 5) - XP Siphon
• Brimstone (tier 7)
• Floor Scorcher (tier 5)
• Arrow Wall (tier 6)
• Swinging Mace (tier 5)
• Floor Spikes (tier 6)

Traits used:

• Sister Eaten By An Ogre

The good news: This plays out in a very similar manner as the Master version of Crogon Keep.

The bad news: This plays out in a very similar manner as the Master version of Crogon Keep.

Having the 5 Star for the Master version is good practice for this map. In my opinion, the biggest key is just to know the map; how to traverse it, what the trouble waves are, and how to deal with them.

Barricade strategy - Fairly simple, as it's almost identical to my Master video. North gate opens first, so I block off the western entrance to the Rift. Eventually, I put down 3 more Great Walls, one in the middle of the staircase just south of the north gate (which is done at the start of wave 3). The second is placed in the NW, between 2 posts just south of the boat (this is done at the start of wave 6). The last is put down to force the north/NE minions into a single lane in the "Kitchen" area (this is placed at the beginning of wave 10).

Wave 2 - I use the coin from wave 1 to place down traps in the north lane, right next to the teleport.

Wave 3 - I place down a Great Wall in the middle of the staircase that is to the south. I then start to trap the NE gate, as it will open on wave 4. In the video, I place traps in the NE as wave 3 begins, but this is a bit risky, as there is a Mercenary that shows up, as well as an Unstable Rift. An alternative is to destroy the Unstable Rift, and kill the Mercenary, then leave the minions momentarily to trap the NE gate. I also mess up the placement of the floor traps at the NE gate, as I actually wanted to put Floor Scorcher, Brimstone, Floor Spikes, then Tar (and you can see I messed up the alignment as well).

Wave 4 - At the start of the wave, I place another line of floor traps in the NE lane, right before the hallway. I then hop over to the north gate, clearing the majority of the minions, but keeping an eye on the NE minions. I would recommend hopping over to kill the NE minions as the Fire Giants appear from the north, as there are Kobolds from the NE.

Wave 5 - I continue to place down traps in the NE lane, this time in the hallway. Kamikaze Kobolds from the north gate will appear in this wave, so I would recommend to drop what you're doing when they spawn (listen for their sound) and go to the north gate to ensure they die. Afterwards, try to clear the majority of the northern minions before hopping back over to deal with the NE.

Wave 6 - NW gate will open on wave 7, but I do get worried about the NE gate minions. I add a couple of Tar in the hallway, and I also add two Swinging Maces before I start to trap the NW. In the NW, I start off by placing the Great Wall in between the two posts just south of the boat (just like in my Master video), and then leave to clear the minions in the north. There is a Mercenary that comes from the NE on this wave, and again, Chaotic Kobold can potentially cause problems. If he shows up, you may want to break off from the north gate to try to kill him quickly.

Wave 7 - I use the Go break a little to start to trap the NW gate, by placing a line of floor traps. I then try to start the line again on the boat, but only manage the Floor Scorcher and the Brimstone. There will be an Unstable Rift on this wave, destroy it when it shows up. There will also be a Mercenary, which you can deal with as you see fit. I get Chaotic Kobold, and you may wonder why I let him be; it's because I didn't have many traps down in the NW, so I knew he wouldn't cause too many problems. The Chaotic Kobold never puts down crystals right as he enters the map (or it's possibly extremely rare) so I was confident he may just skip over everything I had placed there, which is what happened. I start killing the north minions, then hop over when the NE gets close to the teleport, then I clean up the rest.

Wave 8 - At the start of the wave, I start to trap the corridor that's NE of the western Guardian. During this wave, you'll get Kamikaze Kobolds from the NW gate, but I ignore them. I allow them to blow up the Great Wall near the boat, as that is what I intended to have happen. Instead, I focus on doing what I do in previous waves; clearing the north minions first, hopping over to the NE as they exit the "winding" pathway, then clearing the rest. Also, try not to get owned by the Cyclops Mages like I did. As you clean up the rest of the minions, head towards the end of their pathway by going south first, as you don't want to risk the Rift. I also use Unchained to clean up the large minions, just to speed up the process.

Wave 9 - I use the Go break a little to get to the SE gate (I start the wave right before I reach the Guardian). I place more floor traps in the SE, and add two Swinging Maces as well. Although this area will need to be trapped more, I primarily keep this gate covered, so it's not entirely necessary to place down a ton. Once the SE is cleared, I go to the NE, then clean up the rest. The Trolls get a little far, but if you're worried, consider putting another Guardian at the south spot. If you can start this wave under 12:00, you should be in line for the Par Time.

Wave 10 - I place my last Great Wall to block off the eastern lane of the "Kitchen" area, which forces them to the west instead. This also forces them against the wall, which I use to place down a combination of 3 Tar below a Swinging Mace; I also add a Floor Scorcher that aims down the Tar. I then head to the SE to start clearing. What is very important here, is to ignore the Unstable Rift as the SE takes priority. The Unstable Rift should spawn a group of Gnoll Grenadiers, which means they can freely enter the Rift. Otherwise, it's the same as before; SE gets cleared, NE gets cleared, clean the rest of it up. I would highly recommend using Unchained here, as chances are there will be a ton moving along the south. Try your best to pick off the Shamans, as they will just make it worse if they stay alive.

Wave 11 - This is a bit of a test wave. Two Mercenary spawns (one from north, one from NW), as well as two groups (of 3) of Kamikaze Kobolds from the NW. If you have placed at least as many floor traps as I have in the NW lane (at the NW gate, at the boat, and at the corridor NE of the Guardian), they should die. I would certainly recommend keeping an eye on them of course, and immediately break off from the SE if they start moving towards the western Guardian. It's not a big deal if they blow up the Great Wall in the middle of the stairs, but you will need to replace that one if they get to it. The Mercenaries are a problem, but you're going to have to use your best judgement. If you get Chaotic Kobold, I would consider letting him go until the SE and NE minions were dead. Afterwards, you'll need to backtrack where you think he ran, to ensure there are no crystals placed on your traps.

Wave 12 - I place a line of floor traps and a couple of Arrow Walls at the entrance to the "Kitchen" area. Afterwards I just go back to the same covering rotation: SE, NE, clean up. When I start to clean up the north/NW minions, you'll see me go west, over the Great Walls, instead of going south. I do this because I know there are Shamans in that group, and it's better to get them early, before they start healing the damage from the traps. Don't risk your Rift though, if you see any minions to the south, make sure to get them first instead.

Wave 13 - The Trap Limit is nearly reached, and I don't put down any more traps for the rest of the match. Chances are you'll have a ton of coin, so what you can do (and what I do not do) is put down more Guardians, particularly at the western (if your previous one died), SW, and southern spots. The only thing I would make sure is there is the Great Wall in the middle of the staircase in the north; this is fairly important to have for the last wave. Not much to mention about the minions in wave 13 though, so continue to clear as usual.

Wave 14 - If you have at least 2 minutes for this wave, and have Unchained up, you should be fine. Initially, ignore Tubifore as this is the reason that Great Wall in the north is there. You need to be at the SE gate because if you're not, it will get overrun. I use Unchained to clear the SE minions quickly, which allows me some time to head up to the NE minions and clear the majority of them. I am not confident at all in my traps in the NE, so I try to gauge where Tubifore is and see if I have time to clear almost all of the NE minions before hopping over to kill Tubifore. You should have plenty of time to clear the NE minions (if you used Unchained in the SE) as it will take a while for Tubifore to get to your Great Walls blocking the Rift. Once the NE minions and Tubifore are dead, go meet the minions in the south and clean up the rest.

I finished with almost 45 seconds quicker than the Par Time, so I would say this is more forgiving in time than the Master version.

Eventide Fortress

Account Level: 72

Hero used: Max

• Upgrades (that I use specifically for this map): Endorsements (Level 2) and Bad At Self-Reflection (Level 7)

Traps used:

• Great Wall Barricade (tier 5)
• Tar (tier 5) - XP Siphon
• Brimstone (tier 7)
• Floor Scorcher (tier 5)
• Swinging Mace (tier 5)
• Barricade (tier 6)
• Grinder (tier 6)

Traits used:

• Grandmother Eaten By Troll
• Sister Eaten By An Ogre

I brought in both the normal Barricade and the Great Wall Barricade because it's the most efficient in terms of coin usage. The first few waves can be kind of rough, because you get a lot of tough minions, but the coin generation is fairly mediocre. It is extremely important to have the western side blocked off before wave 4, because that's when a huge wave of Kobolds will show up. At the same time, it's also important to have some traps down in the northern area, because if you don't, it'll really hurt your time.

Barricade strategy - First Great Wall is placed at the top of the small staircase that leads to the "Forge" area. Next, place 2 Great Walls and 1 regular Barricade to block off the pathway directly south of the eastern gate.

Wave 1 - I start off placing my Barricades to force the northern minions westward. My first line of traps (at the north gate) is Floor Scorcher (x2) then Tar (x4). I do this mostly because it's all I can afford, but the extra experience from XP Siphons will help as well. Place a Guardian down at that spot just south of the northern gate, as he'll be helpful.

Wave 2 - Line of floor traps in that first western corridor, just west of the Guardian. I had enough for Floor Scorcher (x2), Brimstone (x2), and Tar (x2). Unstable Rift will spawn on this wave, and it's your choice whether you want to immediately leave or not. I don't leave immediately because I felt I had enough time, but this may depend on where it spawns. Regardless, you don't want it opening, so just make sure you go and destroy it.

Wave 3 - At the start, I place a single Barricade near the NE guardian spot (it doesn't matter where, just as long as it's in that general area). This is a decoy, and it'll be very important soon, so make sure it gets placed down. I then add Floor Scorchers (x2) and Tar (x2) in the eastern corridor. There is a very large wave of minions here, so I use Unchained (right as my Guardian dies) to speed up the clearing.

Wave 4 - Before the wave starts, I add 2 Swinging Maces in the western corridor, plus 2 more Tar. This is a good time to block off the western entry to the Rift, and hopefully you have the coin for it. If not, just block off what you can, and complete it as soon as you get enough coin. The placements start at the stairs (that lead down to a locked door), placing a single Barricade to ensure they don't maneuver down those stairs. Then, at a diagonal from the first Barricade, place a Great Wall. Then place 2 more Great Walls going south (you'll have to adjust slightly for the Guardian spot), then place the last single Barricade at the diagonal from the last Great Wall, so it lines up with the northern single Barricade. An Unstable Rift will also spawn here, but I will admit I got lucky with the placement. Regardless though, it shouldn't matter, as the northern minions will have a significantly long route once you complete the western Barricades.

Wave 5 - Use the Go break to move over to the eastern gate that is now opening. Place two single Barricades, at both corner of the gates, for decoy purposes. This is VERY important, because of Kamikaze Kobolds that will come from the eastern gate. I place 2 because in previous practice runs, for some reason, I had one attempt where a single Barricade wasn't enough. After they are placed, head to the NE for the Kamikaze Kobolds. If you can protect your decoy Barricade in the NE, that's ideal, but it's not entirely necessary (as that's why we placed one down). If it does get destroyed, you'll want to replace it. After, start to head to the western corridor so you can meet the minions along their path. While I'm there, I place Tar (x2) and Grinders (x2) to add some more damage.

Wave 6 - Before the wave starts, I go to the eastern corridor and place Tar (x4) and Swinging Maces (x2). I then put down another Guardian in the same spot as the first (the northern spot). After, immediately start heading south, and you'll want to get to that area in the SW, where that Guardian spot is. Place a Great Wall to block off the lane just east of that Guardian spot, which will force the minions to the south, along that small wall. At this time, you'll more than likely get the Unstable Rift, which you want to destroy. Ideally, try to get 3 Tar down along that southern wall (for the Trolls) before heading to the Unstable Rift. Once the Unstable Rift is destroyed, head back to clear that large group of Trolls. I would recommend using Unchained here, but I save mine until I get to battle level 10 (so I can get Persistent first), but use your best judgment.

Kamikaze Kobolds come from the eastern gate on this wave, but they should just destroy your decoy Barricades instead.

Wave 7 - Before the wave starts, I head back down to that SW spot, so I can add Grinders to the Tar I just placed down. I then place a Brimstone down before the Tar, then add a Floor Scorcher (pointing towards the Tar) just to the west of the Brimstone. Just north of that nearby Guardian spot, I place a Tar under the archway, followed by 2 Grinders. After, I head up to the "Temple" area to start trapping it. In the spots of where the room gets more narrow, place Tar in combination with Grinders (I didn't have much coin to work with at first).

At the end of this wave, I had enough to trap the area with 4 Grinders (total), 4 Tar, 2 Brimstone, and 1 Floor Scorcher. Place the Floor Scorcher so it covers the Brimstone (you don't want to place it so it can potentially flip minions into the teleport). Then I place 2 more Tar at the entrance to the Temple area, as this will become important to slow the Fire Giants down.

Wave 8 - First wave of Fire Giants from the NW, and they'll be accompanied by Lyzander. Ideally the Shamans and Lyzander should die first, but this can be difficult to manage amidst the Fire Giants. So if you need to clear some Fire Giants, do so. The only real goal is to ensure that the Fire Giants do not get to your western Barricades, otherwise that's a problem.

Wave 9 - I add 4 more Tar just southeast of the "Stable" Guardian spot (line them up with the square brick columns) to further slow down the Fire Giants. Stay at the NW gate, because this time you'll get Fire Giants, Shamans, and Orc TNT Archers. Again, try to single-out the Shamans first, then start clearing the Fire Giants. It's ideal to try to get the Orc TNT Archers here as well, but don't risk dying. The Fire Giants still take priority, as the Orc TNT Archers will more than likely die to the traps in the Temple area if you don't bother with them.

After, go back south and start working on clearing the Trolls. Again, I would recommend using Unchained here to speed up the process, as they take forever to kill otherwise. Use your own judgement about when to use Unchained, as I probably should have used mine sooner than I did in the video.

Wave 10 - Before the wave starts, I place down my last 2 Great Walls. They are placed directly north of the southern gate, and they begin at the wall where there are 3 "burlap sacks"; place the first one, horizontally, right that those sacks. Then place the second Great Wall just to the west of the first, which forces all minions to head into the SE corner, where the boat is.

The Unstable Rift spawn is a little tricky here, but realize it is an option to let it open because it only spawns a single Cyclops Mage. However, be mindful of its location because it can spawn in the east, where there are no traps. The priority is the Fire Giants in the NW, so get them first, then if you can, destroy the Unstable Rift, depending on where it is. If it's going to simply merge with the rest of the minions (like how mine did in the SW), simply let it open and kill the Cyclops Mage as you clear everything else. If it spawned in the east, first try to destroy it, but if you can't, simply kill the Cyclops Mage there, and then go back to clearing the rest of the wave.

I didn't have Unchained up for the Trolls this time, but fortunately they have a significantly long pathway to take to get to the Rift, so there shouldn't be much worry about them.

Wave 11 - Immediately get to the south gate, and place a line of floor traps. I place mine at the first spot that they enter the map, but be aware it's very dangerous to do this once the gate opens due to the Ballista. Realize though, it's not necessary to place them right at the gate, and you should be able to place the floor traps slightly north of the gate without getting shot at.

I then place 2 more lines of floor traps; one on the boat just north of the Guardian spot, and one more on the dock just east of the boat (which I mess up in the video). Go back and clear what you can of the southern minions (particularly the boss), before heading to the Unstable Rift. Again, you may need to use your own judgement with the Unstable Rift here; if it spawns further away, and you feel comfortable with the traps you placed down in the SE, you can probably go and destroy it, as the southern minions will take quite a while to get to the Rift (and there's not that many of them). Just make sure to get Scurvy before going to the Unstable Rift.

Afterwards, head back up north to clear the rest. If there is not a single Barricade in the NE area, make sure to go place one down while you're up there.

Wave 12 - Start off by heading to the southern gate to clear up all of the minions there. Once they are cleared (or mostly cleared) start to head up to the NE gate, as Tubifore will show up soon if he hasn't already. If there's a decoy Barricade up there, he should go to that first, making him an easy target. This shouldn't be too worrisome regardless, if you managed to get to the NE gate quick enough. Just make sure he doesn't destroy that Great Wall that leads to the Forge area.

Wave 13 - Before this wave starts, take a second to head to the east gate while you're up in this area to place down 2 more decoy Barricades. On the last wave, Kamikaze Kobolds will appear at the eastern gate, so it's important to have decoys there. Once the decoys are placed, head to the north gate, as you'll get a Mercenary from that gate. Try to kill him as soon as possible, then you'll want to start heading south to clear the southern gate or clear the Trolls. There's a chance a few minions from the south gate survived, so be watchful of the Rift area during this wave if you decide to clear the Trolls instead of the minions from the southern gate.

Wave 14 - I start in the NW, because there are two Fire Giants from that gate. Prioritize the Shamans, then the Fire Giants, then the Armored Ogres. Kamikaze Kobolds should have appeared at the eastern gate, and should have destroyed your decoys. After the NW gate minions are cleared, immediately head to the southern gate (or SE corner, depending on where the minions are) to clear them up. Afterwards, just move in a clockwise fashion, clearing up the rest of the minions - South, SW, W, NW, N.