Story Mode – UTD Guide (Progression, Maps, Rewards, Difficulty, Team Builds)
Story Mode is the primary campaign of Universal Tower Defense (UTD). It guides new players through progressively harder battles while rewarding resources that grow your roster. It stays relevant for veterans as a practical farming loop for gems, unit experience, relic pieces, and evolution materials.
This is a static wiki guide. For math checks, use calculators: Mode Fit (TTK vs time limits), DPS (unit damage + traits), and Team (baseline validation). If values are missing, you can override manually in calculators.
Unlock & entry requirements
Story Mode is commonly available from the start of the game. You select a stage/map, pick an act, choose a difficulty, and enter solo or co-op. Unlocking later acts typically requires clearing earlier acts first.
- Act progression: Acts are cleared in order within a stage. Clearing a stage unlocks the next stage.
- Co-op: Story Mode is often playable solo or with friends. Enemy scaling may increase with more players, but coordination can make higher difficulties easier.
- Difficulty unlocks (community-reported): Hard unlocks after clearing all story acts on Easy; Nightmare unlocks after clearing all acts on Hard. Always verify in-game because unlock conditions may change by patch.
- Difficulty meter (%): Some versions include a difficulty percentage slider that increases enemy strength for increased rewards. Exact scaling is not fully captured in the dataset—use manual targets in Mode Fit.
Story maps (from local dataset)
Names follow community sources and may have aliases.
Note about stage names
Some community guides describe Story Mode as 3 stages with 6 acts each (e.g., “Ninja Forest” → “Marine Base” → “Hollowed Moon”). Your in-game stage list may differ—treat this as a progression example, not an official guarantee.
Gameplay rules & loop
Objective
Defend your base through a fixed set of waves (commonly 15). If enemies leak to the base, you lose and must retry. The final wave typically includes a boss themed to the map.
Waves & pacing
- Early waves: weak fodder; use cheap defenses to stabilize.
- Mid waves: tankier mobs, sometimes special enemy types (fast, shielded, air).
- Late waves: boss + tougher escorts; requires focused DPS and control.
- Wave skipping: many lobbies allow skipping downtime between waves if all players agree—great for farming but risky if you’re not ready.
Building & resources (Yen)
- Place units and upgrade them using Yen earned from kills/waves.
- Balance economy vs. upgrades: early over-upgrading is often wasteful, but under-upgrading causes leaks mid/late.
- If you have an economy/farm unit, place it early to maximize total Yen generated over the run (then consider selling it late to fund boss upgrades).
Enemy scaling
Enemies scale by act/stage and difficulty. Higher difficulty percentage (if available) increases HP/damage further. Exact scaling is not fully captured in the dataset, so use Mode Fit with manual boss HP/time targets as a safety check.
Rewards
Clearing a Story act rewards progression resources. Exact amounts and drop rates vary by patch; treat numbers as community-reported and verify in-game.
- Gems (summoning currency): One of the main reasons players farm Story. Difficulty settings and percentage sliders (when present) can increase gem rewards.
- Player EXP: Levels your profile and may unlock features (team slots, access, perks).
- Unit EXP: Deployed units gain EXP; leveling usually grants stat points to allocate (damage/range/cooldown).
- Evolution materials: Many evolutions require items that are commonly reported to drop from Story bosses.
- Relics: Story acts commonly drop body/legs pieces; some sets require head pieces from other modes. Higher difficulties improve odds/tiers. Use Relic Build to compare set bonuses.
- Trait items (indirect): Story isn’t usually the primary reroll source, but achievements tied to story progress can grant rerolls.
Difficulty levels (Easy vs Hard vs Nightmare)
Precise multipliers are not stored in the dataset. This section is qualitative and based on common community descriptions.
| Difficulty | Enemy scaling | Rewards | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Easy | Baseline | Baseline | Best for learning maps and leveling early units |
| Hard | Higher HP/damage (TBD) | Improved drops/EXP (TBD) | Good stepping stone before Nightmare; rewards become more meaningful |
| Nightmare | Highest HP/damage (TBD) | Best drops/tiers (TBD) | Endgame farming; expects strong traits/relics and tight execution |
If your run fails due to scaling, reduce difficulty or use Mode Fit to estimate whether your DPS clears within realistic HP/time targets.
Strategy: early game → mid game → boss
Early (Waves 1–5)
- Open with an economy/farm unit if you have one.
- Place a cheap defender to stabilize the lane.
- Prioritize coverage: long path time & multi-hit opportunities.
- Avoid over-upgrading too early; bank Yen for later spikes.
Mid (Waves 6–10)
- Add a second DPS or AoE clear unit.
- Prepare for air waves if the map includes them.
- Deploy supports once you have a DPS core placed (buffs compound).
- Stop investing in economy late; shift toward combat upgrades.
Late (Waves 11–15 + boss)
- Save Yen for emergency upgrades on the boss wave.
- Focus fire the boss; debuffs and stuns buy time.
- Consider selling farms late to fund final DPS spikes.
- Position for maximum boss exposure to your kill zone.
Tip: If you’re optimizing farm runs, you want consistent clears—not the maximum difficulty you can barely survive. Find your stable “sweet spot”.
Team building
Don’t chase exact unit names unless you’re following a specific tier list. For Story Mode, archetypes matter more: economy, wave clear, boss kill, support, and anti-air coverage.
New player loadout (4 slots)
- Economy/Farm unit (if available): place early.
- Primary AoE DPS: wave clear and consistent damage.
- Secondary DPS / anti-air: cover flying waves or tougher elites.
- Flex: support (buff/CC) or extra DPS depending on what you own.
If your roster is limited, pick the best damage you have and focus upgrades on a core carry.
Advanced blueprint (6 slots)
- Economy unit (farm) with an economy-boosting trait if available.
- Main carry (single-target burst) for bosses.
- AoE clear carry for waves.
- Buffer support (damage/range/cooldown support).
- Crowd control / debuff support (stuns, slows, shred).
- Flex slot: utility, extra DPS, or specialized anti-air.
Consider relic set bonuses to push Nightmare clears. Example sets in the wiki: Berserk Shinigami · Sun God
Common mistakes (and fixes)
- Ignoring economy: Place your farm/economy unit early (if you have one) so you aren’t Yen-starved later.
- No air defense: Always bring at least one unit that can hit air if the stage spawns flying enemies.
- Spamming weak units: A few upgraded core units usually outperform many unupgraded placements.
- Skipping traits/relics: Hard/Nightmare typically expects traits and relic bonuses. If data is missing, use manual overrides and test impact in calculators.
- Pushing difficulty too early: If Hard/Nightmare is unstable, farm easier runs to level units and improve consistency, then push percentage upward.
Advanced optimization tips
- Farm the easiest act at your highest stable difficulty: Base rewards are often similar; speed matters.
- Use calculators to plan instead of guessing: DPS tab for unit output; Mode Fit for TTK checks; Team for composition validation.
- Optimize stat points: DPS units usually want damage; supports may prefer cooldown/range depending on kit.
- Time buffs/debuffs for wave 15: Save short-duration boosts for the boss kill window.
- Automation disclaimer: Some players discuss macros/auto-runs. We do not endorse automation; check game and Roblox rules before using any tools.
Calculator shortcuts
DPS Calculator
Estimate unit DPS with traits and manual stat overrides when dataset fields are missing.
Mode Fit
Check your time-to-kill vs a boss HP and time limit target (manual inputs supported).
Team Validator
Pick up to 6 units and see baseline combined DPS and missing-data warnings.
Upgrade Planner
Budget Yen with manual steps (upgrade trees are still missing in the dataset).
FAQ
How do I unlock Hard and Nightmare difficulty?
Commonly reported: Hard unlocks after clearing all Story acts on Easy; Nightmare unlocks after clearing all acts on Hard. Verify in-game because patch rules can change.
Which act is best for farming?
Often the best is the fastest act you can clear consistently at a high difficulty percentage. Use Mode Fit to choose a stable difficulty target.
Do relics drop in Story Mode?
Yes, Story Mode is commonly reported to drop body/legs relic pieces. Head pieces may be tied to other modes. Drop rates are not fully tracked in the dataset.
Why does the calculator differ from in-game?
The calculators use simplified models and the dataset is incomplete (missing ability models and some stats). Use manual overrides and treat results as estimates.
Can I play Story Mode solo?
Usually yes. Co-op can help with higher difficulties, but scaling and coordination vary by patch.