Tier 2 upgrade

Horned Owl

Horned Owl (0-0-2) grabs Ceramics and detects Camo. A cheap round stall for ability cooldowns in CHIMPS and Boss Events.

The Horned Owl is strong enough to grab Ceramic Bloons, and has keen eyes that can detect Camo Bloons.

In-game description

Stats

Main attack

Damage: 1 (minimum Beast Power) 2 (maximum Beast Power)
Pierce: 8 (minimum Beast Power) 16 (maximum Beast Power) 1 (minimum Beast Power, ceramic) 2 (maximum Beast Power, ceramics)
Attack speed: TBA
Range: 50 (control beast range)

Sharp
Camo: Yes

How to use Horned Owl

Horned Owl replaces the Gyrfalcon and raises Beast Power to 3, with a maximum of 6. It gains Camo detection, more pierce and a larger grab radius, and it can now grab Ceramic Bloons: 1 at a time, up to 3 at Power 6. Each Ceramic uses extra pierce. Merges improve attack speed, pierce and flight speed, and at max power damage rises from 1 to 2. Bird beasts from Horned Owl onward can gain extra range from Handlers merged anywhere on the map.

When to buy it

Horned Owl is an excellent, cheap Ceramic stall:

In late-game CHIMPS, a low-power Owl is often used to stall rounds so abilities have time to recharge.
In Boss Events, it can stall tier 1 boss rounds.
At Power 6 it can pick up 3 Ceramics at once, which helps against the round 40 MOAB contents.

If you use it as a stall, avoid max Beast Power, because the extra damage pops Bloons you wanted to hold. Its Camo popping is weak, so pair it with real Camo coverage.