Labs are the permanent research tree of The Tower. Each research costs coins and, more importantly, real time in one of up to five lab slots. This page covers what the slots cost, how switching, rushing and boosting work, how Labs Speed and Labs Coin Discount stack, and every research line in all eleven categories with its max level and what it does.
Updated
- Lab slots
- 5 4,900 gems for slots 2-5
- Research lines
- 160 11 categories
- Labs Speed at Lv 99
- x2.98 multiplies with relics
- Max cell boost
- 8x 1,000,000 cells per hour
How labs work
The first lab opens when you reach Tier 1 Wave 30. From then on every research level has two prices: a coin cost paid up front and a timer that occupies one lab slot until it finishes. Early on coins are the limit. Later the timers stretch into weeks and months, and the number of slots you have running becomes the real bottleneck. An empty slot is lost progress, so keep all of them busy.
Most research is hidden until you clear the matching milestone. The unlock column in the tables below shows the tier and wave where the wiki documents one.
Lab slot costs
| Slot | Gem cost | Running total |
|---|---|---|
| Lab 1 | Free (Tier 1 Wave 30) | 0 |
| Lab 2 | 100 | 100 |
| Lab 3 | 400 | 500 |
| Lab 4 | 1,400 | 1,900 |
| Lab 5 | 3,000 | 4,900 |
All five slots cost 4,900 gems. The second and third are cheap and worth buying almost immediately. The last two are 4,400 of the 4,900, which is why gem guides alternate them with card slots instead of rushing straight to five.
Research features
- Switching: tap a running lab to swap it for a different research. The coins are refunded and the time already served is kept, shown as a green timer. You pay the coins again when you resume it.
- Auto Research: the small clock icon left of the progress bar queues the next level of the same lab as soon as the current one finishes.
- Lab Search: type a name in the search bar when picking a research instead of scrolling.
- Lab History: the History tab lists completed labs in order with the date and time each one finished.
Rushing with gems and boosting with elite cells
Gem rush
Gems finish a lab instantly. You can only buy out the whole remaining time, and longer timers get a built-in discount, so rushing one week-long lab is cheaper than rushing seven one-day labs. The base rate is 7.5 gems per hour.
| Time left | Gems | Gems per day | Discount |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 hour | 7.5 | 180 | 0% |
| 1 day | 163 | 163 | 9% |
| 1 week | 1,000 | 142.9 | 21% |
| 30 days | 3,550 | 118.3 | 34% |
| 90 days | 8,000 | 88.9 | 51% |
| 360 days | 25,000 | 69.4 | 61% |
The cost is capped at 25,000 gems for anything over 360 days. The wiki marks this table as predating the gem rush efficiency update, so treat it as the baseline before that bonus.
Every lab you fully complete (a gold box on the lab screen) adds 0.015x to your gem rush efficiency, additively. The more research you have maxed, the fewer gems a rush costs.
Elite cell boosts
Elite cells buy a speed multiplier on a single lab for 1, 8 or 24 hours. Open the lab, tap Speed Up, pick a duration and a multiplier from 1.5x to 8x. The price is a flat hourly rate, so 24 hours costs exactly 24 times the 1 hour price.
| Boost | 1 hour | 8 hours | 24 hours | Cells per extra lab-hour |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1.5x | 15 | 120 | 360 | 30 |
| 2x | 100 | 800 | 2,400 | 100 |
| 3x | 840 | 6,720 | 20,160 | 420 |
| 4x | 3,360 | 26,880 | 80,640 | 1,120 |
| 5x | 11,900 | 95,200 | 285,600 | 2,975 |
| 6x | 60,000 | 480,000 | 1,440,000 | 12,000 |
| 7x | 250,000 | 2,000,000 | 6,000,000 | 41,667 |
| 8x | 1,000,000 | 8,000,000 | 24,000,000 | 142,857 |
The last column divides the 1 hour price by the research time gained (multiplier minus 1).
The price climbs far faster than the speed. A 1.5x boost buys an extra half hour of research for 15 cells. A 2x boost buys one extra hour for 100. So the efficient order is to put 1.5x on every running lab first (75 cells per hour across five labs), then raise all of them to 2x (500 per hour), and only then go higher. Jump tiers only when your cell income refills the cost before the boost runs out.
- Boosts can be set to re-queue automatically from the Speed Up menu.
- A boost timer only counts down while a research is slotted in that lab.
- Cells come from elite enemies. See Currencies for drop rates, and use the Battle Report Analyzer to track your cells per hour.
Labs Speed and Labs Coin Discount
Two Main Research labs make every other lab cheaper, and both run to level 99.
Labs Speed unlocks at Tier 1 Wave 150 and adds 0.02x per level, ending at x2.98. It does not shorten its own levels. Relics that grant lab speed do apply to it, and they multiply with the research rather than add: a x1.25 relic bonus with x2.98 from the lab is x3.725 in total, not x3.23. That is why lab speed relics are among the most valuable event rewards. Labs Speed does not count toward the event mission that asks for lab time.
| Level | Research speed |
|---|---|
| 1 | x1.02 |
| 10 | x1.20 |
| 25 | x1.50 |
| 50 | x2.00 |
| 75 | x2.50 |
| 99 | x2.98 |
Labs Coin Discount unlocks at Tier 1 Wave 30 and takes 0.30% off per level, ending at 29.70%. It applies to every lab except itself.
Main Research
Main Research holds the account-wide conveniences and discounts. Game Speed and the two lab labs above pay back the fastest. The three workshop discounts each reach 49.50%, which halves the coin cost of an entire workshop tab.
| Lab | Max Lv | What it does | Unlock | At max |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Game Speed | 7 | Raises the maximum game speed, which also speeds up every timer-based ability. | T1 W30 | x5.0 |
| Starting Cash | 99 | More cash in hand at the start of each round. | T1 W30 | 495 |
| Workshop Attack Discount | 99 | Cuts the coin cost of attack workshop upgrades. | T1 W40 | 49.50% |
| Workshop Defense Discount | 99 | Cuts the coin cost of defense workshop upgrades. | T2 W50 | 49.50% |
| Workshop Utility Discount | 99 | Cuts the coin cost of utility workshop upgrades. | T2 W60 | 49.50% |
| Labs Coin Discount | 99 | Cuts the coin cost of every other lab. | T1 W30 | 29.70% |
| Labs Speed | 99 | Multiplies research speed for every other lab. | T1 W150 | x2.98 |
| Buy Multiplier | 4 | Adds x5, x10, Max and x100 buttons for buying workshop levels in bulk. No discount. | T2 W20 | x100 |
| More Round Stats | 1 | Adds extra end-of-round statistics and the Battle History of your last 20 runs. | T1 W250 | Unlock |
| Target Priority | 2 | Level 1 lets you pick one enemy type to focus. Level 2 lets you sort every type, plus closest and Spotlight. | T4 W150 | 2 levels |
| Presets | 5 | One preset type per level: Card, Workshop, Bot, Module, then Guardian presets. | T1 W400 | 5 preset types |
| Workshop Respec | 1 | Lets you reset the workshop for 150 gems and get back the coins originally spent. | T4 W30 | Unlock |
| Reroll Daily Missions | 1 | Lets you swap a daily mission for a different one for 5 gems. | T4 W30 | Unlock |
| Workshop Enhancement | 1 | Opens the Workshop Enhancement tabs. Costs 5B coins. | T12 W60 | Unlock |
| Enhancement Coin Discount | 100 | Cuts enhancement coin costs. Three separate labs: Attack, Defense and Utility. | T21 W60 | 30.00% |
A value of "Unlock" means the lab is a one-time feature unlock.
Attack, Defense and Utility Research
These three categories mirror the workshop tabs. Most of them are multipliers: each lab level raises both the amount a workshop level gives and the workshop cap, so a x3.00 Damage lab triples whatever you bought with coins. A few add a flat amount instead, which the table calls out.
| Lab | Max Lv | What it does | Unlock | At max |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Damage | 100 | Multiplies workshop Damage, both the per-level step and the cap. | T1 | x3.00 |
| Attack Speed | 99 | Multiplies workshop Attack Speed. | T1 W30 | x2.98 |
| Critical Factor | 99 | Multiplies workshop Critical Factor. | T1 W30 | x3.97 |
| Range | 80 | Multiplies workshop Range. The lab screen has a slider to run a lower level. | T2 W30 | x2.60 |
| Damage/Meter | 99 | Multiplies workshop Damage/Meter. | T3 W30 | x2.98 |
| Super Crit Chance | 50 | Adds flat Super Crit Chance on top of the workshop value. | T5 W200 | +5.00% |
| Super Crit Mult | 40 | Multiplies workshop Super Crit Mult. | T5 W200 | x1.80 |
| Max Rend Armor Multiplier | 30 | Raises the cap on stacked Rend Armor above the base 800%. | T13 W10 | 1550% |
| Light Speed Shots | 1 | Projectiles reach their target instantly. An enemy standing in the line of fire takes the hit instead. | T7 W10 | Unlock |
| Lab | Max Lv | What it does | Unlock | At max |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Health | 100 | Multiplies workshop Health. | Start | x4.00 |
| Health Regen | 100 | Multiplies workshop Health Regen. | Start | x4.00 |
| Defense Absolute | 100 | Multiplies workshop Defense Absolute. | Start | x4.00 |
| Defense % | 50 | Adds flat Defense % on top of the workshop value. The total is capped at 98%. | T5 W30 | +10.00% |
| Orb Speed | 20 | Adds to workshop Orb Speed. | T3 W80 | +2.00 |
| Land Mine Damage | 20 | Adds bonus percent damage to land mines. | T6 W30 | +200% |
| Land Mine Decay | 35 | Land mines last longer before exploding on their own. | T6 W30 | +17.5 |
| Shockwave Size | 20 | Adds to workshop Shockwave Size. Has a slider to run a lower level. | T3 W50 | +1.00 |
| Orb Boss Hit | 10 | Orbs damage bosses for a percent of their total health. | T6 W750 | 2.00% |
| Wall Health | 50 | Adds to the wall health percentage from the workshop. | T8 W10 | +100% |
| Wall Rebuild | 20 | Shortens the wall rebuild timer. | T8 W10 | -200.0s |
| Wall Regen | 30 | The wall regenerates a percent of tower Health Regen. | T10 W70 | 300.00% |
| Wall Thorns | 20 | The wall deals a percent of tower Thorn Damage when hit. | T10 W70 | 20% |
| Wall Invincibility | 10 | The wall cannot be damaged for a few seconds after it rebuilds. | T12 W10 | 10.0s |
| Wall Fortification | 60 | Lets Wall Regen heal the wall past its maximum health. | T14 W60 | 1200% |
| Garlic Thorns | 10 | Vampires take a percent of your thorn damage every second while they use their ranged attack. | T2 W1000 | 5.0 |
The six wall labs are explained in the Workshop guide.
| Lab | Max Lv | What it does | Unlock | At max |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cash Bonus | 99 | Multiplies workshop Cash Bonus. | T1 W30 | x2.98 |
| Cash/Wave | 99 | Multiplies workshop Cash/Wave. | T1 W30 | x2.98 |
| Coins/Kill Bonus | 99 | Multiplies workshop Coins/Kill Bonus. | T1 W30 | x2.98 |
| Coins/Wave | 99 | Multiplies workshop Coins/Wave. | T1 W30 | x2.98 |
| Interest | 99 | Multiplies workshop Interest/Wave. | T2 W80 | x2.98 |
| Max Interest | 15 | Raises the cap on interest paid per wave. The cap starts at $50. | T2 W80 | $15,000 |
| Package After Boss | 1 | A recovery package spawns after every boss wave. | T3 W200 | Unlock |
| Recovery Package Amount | 20 | Adds to workshop Recovery Amount. | T6 W150 | +8.00% |
| Recovery Package Max | 20 | Adds to how far above max health packages can heal. | T6 W150 | +20.00% |
| Recovery Package Chance | 20 | Adds to workshop Package Chance. | T6 W150 | +4.00% |
| Enemy Attack Level Skip | 20 | Adds to the workshop chance to skip an enemy attack level. | T11 W200 | +2.00 |
| Enemy Health Level Skip | 20 | Adds to the workshop chance to skip an enemy health level. | T11 W200 | +2.00 |
Ultimate Weapon Research
This is the largest category with 39 labs. Each one belongs to a single Ultimate Weapon and only matters once you own it. The economy labs come first for most players: Golden Tower Bonus, Black Hole Coin Bonus, Spotlight Coin Bonus and the two Death Wave bonuses all multiply together when their weapons overlap.
| Lab | Weapon | Max Lv | What it does | At max |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Golden Tower Bonus | Golden Tower | 25 | Adds 0.15 to the Golden Tower coin multiplier per level. | +3.75 |
| Golden Tower Duration | Golden Tower | 20 | Adds 1 second of Golden Tower per level. | +20.0s |
| Black Hole Damage | Black Hole | 10 | Black Hole deals a percent of enemy total health per second. Protectors do not reduce it. | 2.00% |
| Extra Black Hole | Black Hole | 1 | A second, identical Black Hole spawns on the opposite side of the tower. | Unlock |
| Black Hole Coin Bonus | Black Hole | 20 | Coin multiplier for enemies that die inside a Black Hole, whatever killed them. | x11.00 |
| Black Hole Disable Ranged Enemies | Black Hole | 1 | Ranged enemies inside a Black Hole cannot fire. Unlocks at T14 W20. | Unlock |
| Death Wave Health | Death Wave | 30 | Raises the cap on bonus max health gained from Death Wave kills. | 1250% |
| Death Wave Coins Bonus | Death Wave | 20 | Coin multiplier on enemies hit by effect waves or killed by Death Wave. | x2.50 |
| Death Wave Cell Bonus | Death Wave | 20 | Elite cell multiplier on enemies hit by effect waves or killed by Death Wave. | x3.00 |
| Death Wave Damage Amplifier | Death Wave | 30 | Each effect wave hit makes that enemy take more Death Wave damage. | +50.00x |
| Death Wave Armor Stripping | Death Wave | 10 | Each effect wave hit removes armor stacks from an enemy. | 10.00 |
| Spotlight Coin Bonus | Spotlight | 20 | Coin multiplier for enemies killed inside the Spotlight, whatever killed them. | x3.00 |
| Spotlight Missiles | Spotlight | 18 | The tower fires missiles on a timer, using Smart Missiles damage. Level 1 fires every 19 seconds. | every 2.00s |
| Chain Lightning Shock | Chain Lightning | 1 | Chain Lightning can shock enemies so they take more damage. Starts at 2.50% chance and x1.10. | Unlock |
| Shock Chance | Chain Lightning | 30 | Higher chance to apply shock. | 17.50% |
| Shock Multiplier | Chain Lightning | 14 | Shocked enemies take more damage. | x1.66 |
| Chain Thunder | Chain Lightning | 30 | Enemies deal 10% less damage for every 6% of health Chain Lightning has taken off them, up to the lab cap. Unlocks at T16 W60. | 90% |
| Lightning Amplifier - Scatter | Chain Lightning | 30 | Each consecutive Chain Lightning hit on a Scatter adds bonus damage. Unlocks at T16 W60. | x37.5 |
| Missiles Despawn Time | Smart Missiles | 20 | Missiles stay alive longer before disappearing without a hit. | 20 |
| Missiles Explosion | Smart Missiles | 1 | Missiles deal area damage. Starting radius 0.30. Opens Missiles Radius. | Unlock |
| Missiles Radius | Smart Missiles | 20 | Bigger missile explosion radius. | 1.30 |
| Missile Amplifier | Smart Missiles | 25 | Each missile hit raises the damage of the next missile on the same target (additive). | 38.50 |
| Missile Barrage | Smart Missiles | 1 | Once per run you can manually launch 20 missiles at once. Opens Missile Barrage Quantity. | Unlock |
| Missile Barrage Quantity | Smart Missiles | 6 | More missiles per barrage. | 50 missiles |
| Recharge Missile Barrage | Smart Missiles | 7 | Missile Barrage recharges after a number of waves. Unlocks at T14 W60. | 200 waves |
| Chrono Field Duration | Chrono Field | 30 | Longer Chrono Field duration. | +30.00 |
| Chrono Field Damage Reduction | Chrono Field | 1 | The tower takes 10% less damage while Chrono Field is active, applied after Defense Absolute. | Unlock |
| Chrono Field Reduction % | Chrono Field | 30 | Raises that damage reduction. | 25.00% |
| Chrono Field Range | Chrono Field | 20 | Extends Chrono Field beyond tower range. | +60.00 |
| Swamp Radius | Poison Swamp | 30 | Bigger Poison Swamp. | +1.2 |
| Swamp Stun | Poison Swamp | 1 | Enemies entering a swamp have a 5% chance to be stunned for 1 second. Opens the two labs below. | Unlock |
| Swamp Stun Chance | Poison Swamp | 30 | Higher stun chance. | 80.0% |
| Swamp Stun Time | Poison Swamp | 30 | Longer stun. | 10s |
| Swamp Rend - Basic Enemies | Poison Swamp | 30 | Swamp damage to basic enemies is increased by a percent of their current rend. Unlocks at T16 W50. | 90% |
| Swamp Rend - Additional Enemies | Poison Swamp | 11 | Each level extends Swamp Rend to one more enemy type, from Ranged up to the fleet enemies. Unlocks at T16 W50. | 11 enemy types |
| Inner Mine Blast Radius | Inner Land Mines | 20 | Bigger inner mine explosions. | +2.00 |
| Inner Mine Rotation Speed | Inner Land Mines | 20 | Inner mines orbit the tower faster. | +16.00 |
| Inner Mine Stun | Inner Land Mines | 1 | Exploding inner mines stun nearby enemies for 2.5 seconds. | Unlock |
| Inner Land Mine - Chrono Jump | Inner Land Mines | 10 | A mine that hits an enemy gains charge time, multiplied by how often that enemy has hit a mine. Needs Inner Land Mines+. | 50s |
The wiki does not list unlock milestones for most of these. They appear after the weapon is unlocked, and four one-level labs open the follow-up labs noted in the table.
Stone costs and upgrade levels for the weapons themselves are on the Ultimate Weapon reference.
Card, Perk and Bot Research
| Lab | Max Lv | What it does | Unlock | At max |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Second Wind Blast | 4 | Clears a percent of spawned enemies when Second Wind triggers. | T3 W150 | 100% |
| Double Death Ray | 30 | Chance for a second Death Ray beam opposite the first. | T3 W300 | 30% |
| Extra Orb Adjuster | 1 | Lets you move Extra Orb orbs mid-round, out to 1.3x tower range. Disabled while a boss is alive. | T6 W50 | Unlock |
| Extra Extra Orbs | 2 | More orbs from the Extra Orb card. | T6 W80 | +2 orbs |
| Energy Shield Extra Hit | 2 | Extra Energy Shield charges. Charges recharge one at a time. | T4 W300 | +2 charges |
| Super Tower Bonus | 30 | Multiplies the Super Tower card bonus. | T8 W300 | x1.90 |
| Recharge Second Wind | 7 | Second Wind recharges a number of waves after it triggers. | T14 W60 | 400 waves |
| Recharge Demon Mode | 7 | Demon Mode recharges a number of waves after it is used. | T14 W60 | 300 waves |
| Recharge Nuke | 7 | Nuke recharges after a number of waves. | T14 W60 | 300 waves |
| Card Mastery (one lab per card) | 9 | Levels the mastery effect of a single card. | After mastery unlock | 9 levels each |
The three Recharge labs turn once-per-run saves into repeatable ones. Each level shortens the wait, from 1,500 waves down to 300 for Demon Mode and Nuke and from 2,000 down to 400 for Second Wind. Card Mastery labs are covered on the Card Mastery reference.
| Lab | Max Lv | What it does | Unlock | At max |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Unlock Perks | 1 | Turns perks on in rounds and opens the other perk labs. | Not listed | Unlock |
| Waves Required | 100 | Lowers the base waves needed for the next perk. | After Unlock Perks | -100.00 |
| Standard Perks Bonus | 25 | Strengthens every standard perk. | After Unlock Perks | +25% |
| First Perk Choice | 1 | Guarantees one standard perk of your choice in the first perk offer. | T2 W250 | Unlock |
| Improve Trade-Off Perks | 10 | Improves the upside of trade-off perks (not the ranged enemy one). | T2 W400 | +10% |
| Auto Pick Perks | 1 | A toggle that picks perks for you. | T4 W50 | Unlock |
| Perk Option Quantity | 2 | More perks to choose from in each offer, up to four. | T4 W80 | +2 options |
| Ban Perks | 8 | Removes perks from the pool. Set bans from the home screen. | T5 W40 | 8 bans |
| Auto Pick Ranking | 32 | One more perk in your auto-pick priority list per level. Overrides First Perk Choice. | T6 W10 | 32 ranked |
Everything in the perk tree hangs off the one-level Unlock Perks lab. After that, Standard Perks Bonus and Waves Required are the workhorses: one makes every perk stronger and the other gets you more of them per run.
| Lab | Max Lv | What it does | Unlock | At max |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flame Bot Cooldown | 25 | Cooldown reduced by 1 second per level. | T5 W60 | -25s |
| Thunder Bot Cooldown | 25 | Cooldown reduced by 1 second per level. | T5 W70 | -25s |
| Golden Bot Cooldown | 25 | Cooldown reduced by 1 second per level. | T5 W80 | -25s |
| Amplify Bot Cooldown | 25 | Cooldown reduced by 1 second per level. | T5 W90 | -25s |
| Bot Bot Cooldown | 25 | Cooldown reduced by 1 second per level. | T6 W90 | -25s |
| Flame Bot - Burn Stacks | 5 | Repeat hits stack the burn so it ticks faster. One more stack per hit for each level, capped at 10 stacks. | T10 W50 | 5 stacks per hit |
| Thunder Bot - Linger Time | 20 | The linger effect lasts 0.5 seconds longer per level. | T10 W60 | 13.00s |
| Golden Bot - Duration | 20 | Activation lasts 0.5 seconds longer per level. | T10 W50 | +10.00s |
| Amplify Bot - Duration | 20 | Activation lasts 0.5 seconds longer per level. | T10 W50 | +10.00s |
| Bot Bot Duration | 20 | Activation lasts 0.5 seconds longer per level. | T6 W90 | +10.00s |
The two Bot Bot labs have their own wiki pages but are not yet in the wiki category list.
Module Research
Module labs raise the supply of modules and shards and lower what upgrades cost. The first three open at Tier 4 Wave 70, well before most of the tree, and Reroll Shards alone has 100 levels.
| Lab | Max Lv | What it does | Unlock | At max |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Common Drop Chance | 10 | Bosses drop common modules more often. Base chance is 2%. | T4 W70 | +1.00% |
| Reroll Shards | 100 | More reroll shards per boss drop. | T4 W70 | +100 |
| Daily Mission Shards | 50 | More module shards from each daily mission. | T4 W70 | +50 |
| Unmerge Module | 1 | Lets you split a merged module back apart. | T8 W20 | Unlock |
| Module Shard Cost | 30 | Fewer shards to level a module. | T10 W40 | -30% |
| Module Coin Cost | 30 | Fewer coins to level a module. | T10 W40 | -30% |
| Rare Drop Chance | 10 | Bosses drop rare modules more often. Base chance is 0.5%. | T10 W40 | +1.00% |
| Cannon Effect Bans | 4 | Ban cannon effects from showing up in rerolls. | T10 W40 | 4 bans |
| Armor Effect Bans | 4 | Ban armor effects from showing up in rerolls. | T10 W40 | 4 bans |
| Generator Effect Bans | 3 | Ban generator effects from showing up in rerolls. | T10 W40 | 3 bans |
| Core Effect Bans | 7 | Ban core effects from showing up in rerolls. | T10 W40 | 7 bans |
| Shatter Shards | 5 | More shards when you shatter modules, 20% per level. | T16 W40 | +100% |
| Assist Module Substats | 30 | Raises the efficiency of an assist module's sub-effects. | T19 W50 | 30% |
| Assist Module Bonus | 30 | Raises the efficiency of an assist module's main effect. | T19 W50 | 30% |
The two cost labs each reach 30% off, which adds up quickly at high module levels. The Module Shard Calculator includes both discounts.
Enemy and Battle Condition Research
Enemy labs make one enemy type weaker at every wave. Each has 30 levels except Protector Damage Reduction with 20. The original set opens around Tier 9 and the three elite pairs at Tier 19 Wave 60.
| Lab | Max Lv | What it does | Unlock | At max |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Common Enemy Health | 30 | Basic enemies have less health. | T9 W10 | -12.00% |
| Common Enemy Attack | 30 | Basic enemies hit softer. | T9 W10 | -12.00% |
| Fast Enemy Health | 30 | Fast enemies have less health. | T9 W20 | -12.00% |
| Fast Enemy Attack | 30 | Fast enemies hit softer. | T9 W20 | -12.00% |
| Fast Enemy Speed | 30 | Fast enemies move slower. | T9 W300 | -12.00% |
| Tank Enemy Health | 30 | Tanks have less health. | T9 W20 | -12.00% |
| Tank Enemy Attack | 30 | Tanks hit softer. | T9 W20 | -12.00% |
| Ranged Enemy Health | 30 | Ranged enemies have less health. | T9 W20 | -12.00% |
| Ranged Enemy Attack | 30 | Ranged enemies hit softer. | T9 W20 | -12.00% |
| Ranged Enemy Range | 30 | Ranged enemies have to come closer to fire. | T13 W80 | -15.00% |
| Boss Health | 30 | Bosses have less health. | T9 W20 | -9.00% |
| Boss Attack | 30 | Bosses hit softer. | T9 W20 | -9.00% |
| Protector Health | 30 | Protectors have less health. | T9 W20 | -9.00% |
| Protector Radius | 30 | Protectors shield a smaller area. | T9 W20 | -9.00% |
| Protector Damage Reduction | 20 | Protector shields block less damage. | T9 W20 | -6.00% |
| Vampire Enemy Health | 30 | Vampires have less max health. | T19 W60 | -12.00% |
| Vampire Enemy Attack | 30 | Vampires hit softer. Does not reduce their drain. | T19 W60 | -12.00% |
| Ray Enemy Health | 30 | Rays have less health. | T19 W60 | -12.00% |
| Ray Enemy Attack | 30 | Rays hit softer. | T19 W60 | -12.00% |
| Scatter Enemy Health | 30 | Scatters have less health. | T19 W60 | -12.00% |
| Scatter Enemy Attack | 30 | Scatters hit softer. | T19 W60 | -12.00% |
Battle Condition labs are late-game research that soften tournament battle conditions. The general lab cuts all of them by 2% per level. The four groups contain one separate lab per condition, each at 1% per level.
| Lab | Max Lv | What it does | Unlock | At max |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Battle Condition Reduction | 10 | Weakens every active battle condition except Ultimate Weapon Duration. | T18 W1000 | -20% |
| Group 1: Resistances | 20 | One lab each for Knockback, Thorns, Orb, Plasma Cannon and Death Ray Resistance. | T19 W100 | -20% |
| Group 2: Enemy and spawn buffs | 20 | One lab each for Armored Enemies, Enemy Speed, More Enemies and Enemy Attack Speed. | T20 W60 | -20% |
| Group 3: Enemy ultimates | 10 | One lab each for the Fast, Ranged, Boss, Basic, Tank and Protector ultimates. | T19 W500 | -10% |
| Group 4: Durations and reductions | 10 | One lab each for Ultimate Weapon Durations, Death Defy Down, Energy Shields Down and Enemy Level Skip Reduction. | T21 W1000 | -10% |
Dissonant Echo labs
There are four Dissonant Echo labs, one per Dissonance category: Attack, Defense, Utility and Ultimate Weapon. They take a share of the Dissonance Boost you earned on each tier and apply it to every other tier. Each lab starts at 0.5% and has 20 levels of 0.5%, for a maximum of 10.5%.
The echo from one tier is (Dissonance Boost - 1) x lab percentage, and the echoes from all tiers add together.
| Lab level | Echo share | From a 3x boost | From a 5x boost |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0 | 0.5% | +0.01x | +0.02x |
| 1 | 1.0% | +0.02x | +0.04x |
| 5 | 3.0% | +0.06x | +0.12x |
| 10 | 5.5% | +0.11x | +0.22x |
| 15 | 8.0% | +0.16x | +0.32x |
| 20 | 10.5% | +0.21x | +0.42x |
These are among the longest labs in the game. Level 1 takes 20 days 20 hours at base lab speed and each level adds the same again, so level 20 alone runs past a year before speed bonuses. The coin cost multiplies by 2.25 each level. See the Dissonance Run planner for the boosts themselves.
Frequently asked questions
How many gems do all 5 lab slots cost in The Tower?
Lab 1 is free at Tier 1 Wave 30. Labs 2 to 5 cost 100, 400, 1,400 and 3,000 gems, for 4,900 gems in total.
Does Labs Speed stack with lab speed relics?
Yes, and they multiply. A x2.98 Labs Speed lab with a x1.25 relic bonus gives x3.725. Relics also speed up the Labs Speed lab itself, which its own levels do not.
What happens to my coins if I switch labs mid-research?
The coins are refunded and the time already researched is kept as a green timer. When you resume that research you pay the coin cost again and continue from where you stopped.
What is the most efficient way to spend elite cells on lab boosts?
Run the lowest multiplier on every lab before raising any of them. Five labs at 1.5x cost 75 cells per hour, and 1.5x costs 30 cells per extra lab-hour compared with 100 at 2x and 420 at 3x.
How much does it cost to rush a lab with gems?
The base rate is 7.5 gems per hour. Longer timers are discounted: about 163 gems for a day, 1,000 for a week and 3,550 for 30 days, capped at 25,000. Each gold-boxed lab improves the rate further.
What is the max level of Labs Coin Discount?
Level 99, for a 29.70% discount on the coin cost of every lab except Labs Coin Discount itself.
Sources and credits
The numbers on this page come from the community-maintained The Tower - Idle Tower Defense Wiki and were reorganized and rewritten for Towerstats.org. Wiki text is available under CC BY-SA.
- Laboratory
- Lab Upgrades
- Labs Speed
- Labs Coin Discount
- Lab/Lab Speed
- Lab/Labs Coin Discount
- Echo Lab
- Lab Category/Main Research
- Lab Category/Attack Research
- Lab Category/Defense Research
- Lab Category/Utility Research
- Lab Category/Ultimate Weapon Research
- Lab Category/Card Research
- Lab Category/Perk Research
- Lab Category/Bot Research
- Lab Category/Enemy Research
- Lab Category/Module Research
- Lab Category/Battle Condition
- Game Speed
- Buy multiplier
- More Round Stats
- Target Priority
- Card Presets
- Workshop Respec
- Workshop Enhancement
- Daily Missions
- Lab/Enhancement Coin Discount
- Perk Labs
- Module Labs
- Assist Module Labs
- Wall Labs
- Second Wind Labs
- Defense Percent
- Lab/Swamp Rend - Additional Enemies
- Lab/Spotlight Missiles
- Lab/Bot Bot Cooldown
- Lab/Bot Bot Duration
- Modules
- Gem Guide