CHIMPS

CHIMPS is the hardest standard mode in Bloons TD 6 and the last medal on every map. You play rounds 6 to 100 with one life, and the name lists everything you lose: no Continues, no Hearts lost, no bonus Income, no Monkey Knowledge, no Powers and no Selling. Every dollar comes from popping bloons and end-of-round bonuses, and every tower you place stays there for the rest of the game. This guide covers the exact rules, the rounds that end most runs, and a plan that works on most maps.

CHIMPS rules explained

• Rounds and cash: you start on round 6 with $650 and win by beating round 100.
• Prices: CHIMPS uses Hard prices (8% above Medium), not Impoppable prices. A Dart Monkey costs $215 instead of $240.
• No Continues: you cannot pay Monkey Money to continue. Instead, solo games offer Retry Last Round, which rolls you back to the start of the round you lost.
• No Hearts lost: one life, and no way to gain more. Any leak ends the game. Corvus's Soul Barrier still works because it is not a normal life.
• No Income: Banana Farms cannot be placed, and anything that makes money without popping is disabled or useless. Benjamin's cash abilities, Supply Drop cash, Lead to Gold and Jungle's Bounty give nothing. You still get the normal end-of-round bonus. Golden Bloons do not appear.
• No Monkey Knowledge: every tower and hero uses its base stats. Free Dart Monkeys, extra starting cash, Pre-Game Prep and cheaper upgrades are all gone.
• No Powers: this includes Insta Monkeys.
• No Selling: towers cannot be sold. A Support Chinook can still move towers, and sacrifices for a Sun Temple, Adora or a Paragon still work.

Premium bonuses such as Double Cash are also switched off. The rules make CHIMPS a pure test of planning: what you buy, when you buy it and where you place it.

Unlocking CHIMPS and rewards

CHIMPS unlocks on a map when you beat Impoppable there. The chain is Hard Standard, then Alternate Bloons Rounds, then Impoppable, then CHIMPS.

• Monkey Money: the same as Impoppable, 300 on Beginner, 600 Intermediate, 900 Advanced and 1,200 Expert for the first win. Mo' Monkey Money does not apply because Monkey Knowledge is off.
• Insta Monkey: beating round 100 always gives one.
• Medal: a skull medal next to the Impoppable medal. It is black if you never retried a round or quit to the menu during the run, and red otherwise. A black CHIMPS medal plus every other medal on the map gives a Black Border (see Difficulties).
• Achievements: Bloons Master (1 CHIMPS map: 250 Monkey Money and 1 Knowledge Point), Superior Bloons Master (5 maps: 1,000 and 2 points) and Ultimate Bloons Master (15 maps: 2,000 and 4 points). There are also challenge achievements such as 2TC, beating CHIMPS with only two towers.

Why CHIMPS is so hard

Three things stack up against you. First, money per pop drops hard as the game goes on: from round 51 pops are worth 50%, from round 61 20%, and from round 86 just 10%. The cash you earn before round 60 pays for most of your late game. Second, you cannot sell, so a bad early tower is dead money forever and you cannot convert early defence into a late-game carry. Third, after round 80 freeplay scaling kicks in: Ceramics become Super Ceramics, bloons speed up every round, and MOAB-class health rises by 2% of its base value per round. The round 100 BAD has 40% more health than its base value.

CHIMPS round-by-round danger list

These are the rounds that end most runs. Knowing them lets you buy the right answer one or two rounds early.

• Round 6: Greens arrive the moment you press play. Your first tower must pop them without help.
• Round 24: the first Camo bloon, a single camo Green. Have camo detection by now.
• Round 28: six Lead bloons. You need a damage type that pops lead.
• Round 33: camo Reds and Yellows in a group, a real test of your camo coverage.
• Round 36: camo regrow Greens mixed into 140 Pinks.
• Round 40: the first MOAB with 200 health. Single-target MOAB damage or a strong area tower is required.
• Rounds 45 to 47: fortified Leads, camo Purples and camo Pinks. Purples ignore fire, energy and plasma, so magic-heavy builds need a sharp or normal damage source.
• Round 51: camo Ceramics.
• Round 59: 50 camo Leads plus regrow Ceramics. Many mid-game defences break here.
• Round 60: the first BFB.
• Round 63: 122 Ceramics and 75 Leads in a dense rush. The first big ceramic check.
• Rounds 64 and 66: groups of Fortified MOABs.
• Round 67: camo regrow fortified Ceramics.
• Round 74: another heavy ceramic round with camo regrow fortified Ceramics.
• Round 75: seven BFBs and fortified MOABs.
• Round 76: 60 regrow Ceramics bunched together. Weak spots in your ceramic damage show here.
• Round 78: the biggest ceramic rush before freeplay, including 72 camo Ceramics and a BFB.
• Round 79: 500 regrow Rainbows plus fortified BFBs.
• Round 80: the first ZOMG.
• Round 81: 17 BFBs, and every Ceramic is now a Super Ceramic.
• Rounds 85 to 88: multiple ZOMGs.
• Round 90: the first DDTs, fast camo blimps that also resist sharp and explosive damage, plus camo regrow fortified Leads.
• Round 93: six DDTs with fortified BFBs.
• Round 95: 30 DDTs, 50 fortified MOABs and huge camo regrow Purple and fortified Lead groups. The DDT check.
• Round 97: two fortified ZOMGs.
• Round 98: 30 fortified BFBs and 8 ZOMGs, the heaviest blimp round before the finale.
• Round 99: 60 MOABs and 9 fortified DDTs.
• Round 100: the BAD, which breaks into ZOMGs and DDTs when it pops.

Best heroes for CHIMPS

There is no single best hero; pick one that fits the map and your build.

• Quincy and Sauda: cheap, strong early heroes. Sauda has camo detection from the start and her abilities clean up early leaks.
• Obyn Greenfoot: boosts Druids and, at higher levels, all Magic Monkeys in range. Great for Druid and Ninja builds.
• Geraldo: his shop items let you solve specific problems, such as giving one strong tower camo detection with the See Invisibility Potion.
• Etienne: gives all towers camo detection from level 8, which is very useful for the DDT rounds.
• Captain Churchill, Adora and Psi: expensive but powerful damage heroes that help with the late MOAB and BAD rounds on maps where you can afford them.

Avoid Benjamin. His income abilities do nothing in CHIMPS.

Best towers and crosspaths

• Early game: Dart Monkeys, a Ninja Monkey (natural camo detection), a Druid, or a Wizard with Wall of Fire (0-2-0) are cheap and pop well. A Wizard with Monkey Sense (0-x-2) also gets camo detection.
• Support: an Alchemist with Berserker Brew (3-x-x) is one of the best value buys in the game. A Monkey Village with Radar Scanner (0-2-0) gives camo detection, and Monkey Intelligence Bureau (0-3-0) lets nearby towers pop every bloon type, including the lead and black properties of DDTs.
• Ceramic rounds: high-damage area towers such as an Inferno Ring Tack Shooter (4-x-x), Dragon's Breath or Summon Phoenix Wizards, and Glue or Ice towers that slow and weaken bloons.
• Slowing and stalling: Arctic Wind (0-3-x Ice Monkey), MOAB Glue (0-0-3) and Super Glue (0-0-5) Glue Gunners buy time on blimp rounds.
• MOAB damage: Maim MOAB (4-x-x Sniper) stuns blimps, First Strike Capability (0-4-x Sub) deletes big targets, MOAB Mauler and MOAB Assassin Bomb Shooters (0-3-x and 0-4-x) handle early MOABs and BFBs. Beast Handler sharks such as Great White and Orca are strong against groups of MOABs.
• DDTs: a Signal Flare Mortar (0-0-3) can remove camo from DDTs. Pair it with towers that deal damage DDTs do not resist, or with a Monkey Intelligence Bureau.

Check every tower's crosspath on its Pedia page; the right middle-tier choice often matters as much as the main path.

Step-by-step CHIMPS game plan

1. Plan before you press play. Write down your hero, your first three purchases, your camo answer for round 24, your lead answer for round 28 and your MOAB answer for round 40.
2. Rounds 6 to 23: buy the cheapest damage that covers the track entrance and grow it upgrade by upgrade. Do not overbuild; extra early towers are money you never get back.
3. Before round 24: add camo detection that covers the full track, not just one corner.
4. Before round 28: add lead popping. Explosions, fire and normal damage all work.
5. Rounds 30 to 50: this is your best income window. Spend on towers that will still matter at round 80, such as a buff Alchemist, a Village and your main damage carry.
6. Before round 63: test your ceramic damage. If round 59 already felt close, 63 will leak.
7. Rounds 64 to 80: add MOAB damage and stalling in layers. Plan for rounds 76, 78 and the round 80 ZOMG.
8. Rounds 81 to 94: income is tiny now, so every purchase must be your best value. Prepare for DDTs on round 90 with full camo and lead coverage.
9. Rounds 95 to 100: spend everything on raw blimp damage and stalls. Round 98 and the BAD need the most single-target damage of the whole game.

Common CHIMPS mistakes

• Buying towers you plan to "sell later". There is no later.
• Getting camo detection that only covers part of the track.
• Forgetting that Purple bloons ignore fire, energy and plasma attacks.
• Spending heavily on early defence and having nothing saved for the round 50 to 60 investment window.
• Placing slow-down towers where they push bloons away from your main damage.
• Starting a Black Border attempt on a strategy you have never finished once.

Best maps to start CHIMPS

Start on Beginner maps with one long track and open placement, such as Logs, Cubism, Monkey Meadow or End of the Road. Long tracks give your towers more time on each bloon and forgive small mistakes. Avoid maps with several entrances, line-of-sight blockers or very short paths until you have a few wins. Dark Castle is a popular first Expert because its track is long. For full map routes, see our CHIMPS videos on the BTD6 Master YouTube channel.

In Co-op, CHIMPS starts each player with $550, $500 or $450 depending on team size, and a win always gives the black medal.

Frequently asked questions

What does CHIMPS stand for in BTD6?

No Continues, Hearts lost, Income, Monkey Knowledge, Powers or Selling. Each word is a rule that is switched off for the mode.

What are the hardest rounds in CHIMPS?

Rounds 63, 76 and 78 for ceramics, 95 for DDTs, 98 for blimps and 100 for the BAD. Rounds 24, 28 and 40 catch many players early.

Does CHIMPS use Impoppable prices?

No. CHIMPS uses Hard prices, which are about 10% cheaper than Impoppable prices.

Do you get end-of-round cash in CHIMPS?

Yes. Only bonus income is disabled. You still earn cash from pops and the normal end-of-round bonus.

How do you get a black CHIMPS medal?

Beat CHIMPS without pressing Retry Last Round and without exiting to the main menu at any point during the run.

How much Monkey Money does CHIMPS give?

The same as Impoppable: 300 on Beginner up to 1,200 on Expert for the first win, with no Mo' Monkey Money bonus.

What is the easiest map for CHIMPS?

Long single-track Beginner maps such as Logs, Cubism and Monkey Meadow are the usual starting points.