Enemies of many types run rampant within the Tower of Barbs. Some want to reach the top of the Tower; some consider the Tower their home; and some may not even be sentient. But they all have one thing in common: they want you dead.
Enemies are a significant source of Armor, Weapons, Kill Coins, EXP, and other Items.
Types Of Enemies
Screamers
Screamers are one of the most common enemies found in the Tower of Barbs. They attack you on sight and will investigate player-made gunshot sounds if they're within hearing range. However, they tend ignore other fighting sounds, even gunshots coming from fellow Screamers, which makes them pretty easy to sneak-attack. Screamers with ranged weapons will keep some distance from you, but they're easy to bait around corners by breaking line of sight.
Tubers
Tubers are strange, machine-like enemies originally created by Yotsuyama Bionics. Tubers come in various models that present unique challenges in battle, as well as various difficulty levels, represented by an Mk- number above their names. Most Tubers have a chance to drop a specific rare metal.
- Scratch Tuber: Slow, human-sized, has long metal claws. Scratch Tubers can deal a lot of damage but they're generally easy to dodge.
- Chance to drop Scratch Metal.
- Hovering Tuber: Floats, possesses homing projectiles and a strong drill weapon. Hovering Tubers can execute a powerful downward drill attack, but they get stuck in the ground if they miss. Dodge-roll out of harm's way then attack while they're vulnerable.
- Chance to drop Hovering Metal.
- Bullet Tuber: Humanoid Tuber with extremely dangerous weaponry. From afar, Bullet Tubers will use a laser to aim their machinegun; up close, they'll fire a deadly flamethrower if not killed fast enough. They make no sound, meaning they can easily sneak up and take out a careless Fighter.
- Chance to drop Bullet Metal.
- Bone Tuber: Wiry and extremely fast. Bone Tubers can dash up close from far away almost instantly. They possess a quick spinning attack, a double slashing attack, and a strong rolling attack. They're only vulnerable after attacking, so bait them and get out of the way.
- Chance to drop Bone Metal
- Reversal Tuber: Large, mecha-like Tuber with powerful arms and a shield. Moves slowly but turns quickly, and can punch or perform an earthquake AoE. It is only vulnerable to damage dealt to the back.
- Chance to drop Reversal Metal
- Treasure Tuber: On a motor-bike. Treasure Tubers will flee when seeing the player. After receiving damage it will attempt to self-destruct; kill it quickly, then Press X to stomp it for a Gold Chest. These Tubers are incredibly rare and can replace any other Tuber on a floor. When looking for Treasure Tubers, you can repeatedly enter and leave a floor via an escalator for more chances at a regular Tuber being replaced.
Haters and Hunters
Haters and Hunters are other players' Fighters found within the Tower of Barbs. They tend to be significantly stronger and smarter than Screamers or Tubers, but they also give more Kill Coins and SPLithium. When you get close to their location, they "activate" and begin killing any Screamers or Tubers nearby. They're often loud enough to hear from a distance; even if they're not fighting, they'll often curse to themselves or scream as they stand at their spawn point. This, combined with the fact that Haters and Hunters only have a few specific spawn points on each floor, means that a careful player will often be able to sneak up on (or past) them. Haters' and Hunters' maximum level matches the maximum level of the fighters that a player has unlocked, so they tend to be most dangerous at the beginning of the game and upon unlocking a new Fighter tier.
- Haters: A player's Fighter who died on that floor. This includes your dead Fighters, whom you can defeat to reclaim. Haters' names are displayed in orange text.
- Beware developer Haters. Developer Haters, signified by the "YTYMk-" at the beginning of their name, are spawned when the game can't find any player Haters to spawn. They're usually much stronger than player Haters.
- Hunters: Fighters that have been sent after you by another player through the expedition menu. Hunters' names are displayed in red text and are accompanied by a warning when you enter a floor they're spawned on. Hunters are often sent out naked by players to get expedition rewards without hurting other players, but when fully equipped they can be very dangerous. After encountering a Hunter, the other player will appear in the revenge tab of your expedition menu, allowing you to send a Hunter after them.
Mid-Bosses
Mid-bosses are powerful creatures encountered in specific rooms on specific floors. Upon entering a boss room and triggering a mid-boss's cutscene, all room exits are sealed until the fight ends. Defeating a mid-boss will usually unlock a number of gates required to reach certain floors, as well as the escalator up to the following floor. Mid-bosses have a high chance to drop Faction Metals based on their type (D.O.D. ARMS, War Ensemble, Candle Wolf, or M.I.L.K.) and the color tier of the floor (Blue, Green, Black, or Red). They can also drop equipment or Kill Coins instead. Faction Metals are necessary for upgrading Weapons and Armor, and fighting mid-bosses is one of only four ways to get them (the others being Quests, Gold Chests often found in Trap Rooms, and occasionally as Uncle Prime rewards).
| Mid-boss | Faction Metal | Vulnerability |
|---|---|---|
| COEN | D.O.D. ARMS |  Piercing
|
| JIN-DIE | War Ensemble |  Slashing
|
| GOTO-9 | Candle Wolf |  Blunt
|
| U-10 | M.I.L.K. | ? |
Dons
Dons are the big bosses of the Tower. Each Don presides over a set of ten floors (also known as a district), and defeating each is required to progress to the next set of floors. Thankfully, simply proceeding to a Don's floor won't start their fight; Uncle Death will present you with a big button first, and pressing that button begins the fight.
The Dons' stories are told in issues of Tales From The Barbs. The pages of each issue are scattered throughout the corresponding district.
Jackals
See: Jackals
List of Mid-Boss and Don Encounters
- 3rd Floor: COEN
- 6th Floor: JIN-DIE
- 10th Floor: Max Sharp
- 11th Floor: GOTO-9
- 16th Floor: JIN-DIE
- 20th Floor: Colonel Jackson
- 23th Floor: GOTO-9
- 26th Floor: COEN or JIN-DIE
- 30th Floor: Crowley
- 32nd Floor: U-10
- 34th Floor: COEN
- 36th Floor: GOTO-9
- 38th Floor: JIN-DIE
- 40th Floor: Taro Gunkanyama