Tau Defense

Tau Defense is a tower defense RTS built around varied strategies and maps. You place towers and gadgets to stop enemies, adapting your defenses as both sides reshape the terrain.

Dynamic terrain

The map can change during a match. Enemies may dig through weak rock to create shortcuts, while you can drill obstacle tiles to alter the map to your advantage. These changes create new strategic options.

Towers and gadgets

Each tower has a distinct role. Shock damages shields only, Laser damages health only, Gun can damage both, and Pyro damages health even while an enemy’s shield is intact. Area-damage towers work well against dense crowds, while Gun attacks enemies one at a time. In narrow single lanes, Spike and Glitch traps can be used without blocking the path.

The Train and Grinder can eliminate a large part of the enemy force if you build a maze that takes advantage of them. Core Mint supports a strategy that starts with a tight budget and gradually increases your energy output through careful moves.

Bosses

The campaign features surreal bosses with different effects: Healing Lips give enemies Kisses of health, a Constipated Eye randomly spoils towers, and a Restless hand wavers over destroying towers. The Haunted Tree is accompanied by guardian ghosts.

Campaign

A central campaign track introduces game mechanics one at a time before branching into 11 missions. These missions use maps with high crystal counts; Crystals are the currency you use to encode your strategy. The campaign focuses on offering varied strategies rather than grinding for XP.

Create and play maps

You can create and play custom levels in the built-in editor, which was also used to design the campaign levels and gives you access to every game mechanic. The editor integrates with Steam Workshop, where you can also play community-designed maps.