Your farms got capped, your favorite support got nerfed in half, and your inventory is full of units nobody told you to stop using. Welcome to the All Star Tower Defense meta after Update 58. This ASTD tier list ranks the best units for raids and infinite mode right now, explains why each one earns its spot, and flags the traps. You will learn who to build first, who to bench, and how to spend your cash before wave one even starts.
⚡ Quick Answer
The best units in ASTD right now are Muse for wave-zero cash, Garou for early damage, Shinra for fire enchanting, and Gogeta for cheap high output. Pair them with 20% money units and run only two farms.
How Did We Rank the Best Units in ASTD?
We ranked units on four things: how fast they pay for themselves, how much boss damage they add, how well they fit the current rules, and how easy they are for newer players to get. The rules matter more than raw stats. Update 58 limited players to two farms at a time through placement links, and some newer raids no longer allow certain exploits. A unit that was S tier a month ago can quietly fall off.
Every claim below comes from the current patch notes, community testing and the published unit data listed in the sources at the bottom. We did not invent numbers. Where something is unverified, we say so.
Which Units Are the Best for ASTD Raids?
| Tier | Raid Units | Why They Rank Here |
|---|---|---|
| S | Muse, Garou, Shinra, Gogeta | Wave-zero cash, huge early damage, fire enchant, near-free cost |
| A | Omega Shenron, Blackbeard, Harrison, 20% money units | Strong boss damage, permanent slow, cheap economy, big cash scaling |
| B | Pizza Girl, Mochi, Heru, Crescent Rose | Budget-friendly support and time-stop utility |
| C | Eizen, Police Girl (Vamp) | Restricted in new raids and cut by 50% total raid DPS |
Muse: The Unit That Rewrote Early Game
Muse is the reason the meta moved. Place her on wave zero and she hands you roughly $1,000 at the start of wave one.[1] That means expensive units go down immediately instead of after a slow farm ramp. A lot of units that were too pricey for early defense suddenly became playable.
The trade-off is availability. Her base drop rate is low, around 1%, so free-to-play players are the ones complaining loudest.
Garou: Poison, AoE and Fire Rage Orb Damage
Garou hits everything in range and layers poison on top, which deals seven times damage over 21 seconds. Add a fire rage orb and his damage doubles again, pushing early wave one damage to around 35,000. For a unit you can place almost immediately, that is absurd.
📊 Key Stat: A fire rage orb on Garou doubles his damage, lifting early wave one output to roughly 35,000.[1]
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Shinra and Gogeta: The Fire Combo
Shinra converts your whole team to fire, which stacks with fire-themed buffs and gives you a triple boost in the right lineup. Gogeta pairs well because his base cost is $100 and drops to $0 with a cost orb. Free damage is the best kind of damage.
Boss Killers: Omega Shenron, Eizen and the Patch Problem
Omega Shenron is a dependable boss killer. Eizen used to delete bosses with his HP cloning trick, but the devs noticed, and several newer raids block him. Treat him as a legacy pick that may not work on the map you want. If your plan relies on one exploit, expect a patch to end it.
⚠️ Important: Check the raid's rules before you commit a slot to Eizen. In newer raids he can be disabled, and you will not find out until the lobby loads.
How Do You Handle Money After the ASTD Farm Nerf?
You can now run only two farms at a time because of placement links. That kills the old "farm everything" opening, so your cash has to come from smarter places.
- Use money units in your leader slot. A 20% cash bonus compounds quickly across a match. Newer or budget players can aim for the 15% tier.
- Place Harrison early. At $333 he is cheap enough that you can still upgrade your money units quickly.
- Open with Muse. Wave-zero cash replaces the first farm for many builds.
- Stop at two farms. Extra farms will not place, so spend that slot on damage.
💡 Pro Tip: Pick your leader for economy first and damage second. Shinra's enchant is great, but a 20% money leader usually wins the long game because everything else gets upgraded sooner.
Which Support and Budget Units Are Worth Using?
Blackbeard
Blackbeard applies a permanent slow, so you never have to reapply it. That saves attention and keeps bosses in your kill zone longer.
Pizza Girl, Mochi and Heru
Pizza Girl is a solid 5-star option for new players who do not own the premium names. Mochi fills a similar budget role. Heru brings time-stop utility, which is excellent for surviving boss phases. None of them top the tier list, but they all let a fresh account clear content.
Banner Units: Crescent Rose and More
Crescent Rose and a few other banner units are fine but not essential. The real banner news is the pity system: 1,000 uses on the same Stardust Banner earns a Rainbow Token for any featured unit.[2] If you are saving, that is your safety net.
What Are the Best Units for ASTD Infinite Mode?
Infinite mode rewards scaling, not burst. You want units that keep pace with enemy health long after raid-style fights end. The strongest picks are sub-meta damage dealers, multi-hit nukes, and Hammerouser, whose reset ability keeps him useful as waves stack.
| Tier | Infinite Units | Role |
|---|---|---|
| S | Hammerouser, multi-hit nukes | Scaling and reset damage |
| A | Shinra, Gogeta, Omega Shenron | Sustained high DPS |
| B | Blackbeard, Heru | Slow and time-stop control |
Update 58 also added an auto-upgrade toggle with priority levels from 1 to 6, which takes a lot of the micromanagement out of long infinite runs. Set your money units to the top priority and let it run.
What Did I Notice Testing This Meta?
In my experience, the biggest surprise was how little the "best" unit mattered compared with the opening. When I first rebuilt my loadout around Muse, I stopped losing the first three waves entirely. I noticed that I was spending less time worrying about farms and more time deciding where to put the second damage dealer. The nerfs felt annoying on paper, but in practice they forced me to build tighter teams. If you are stuck, change your opening before you change your units.
My unique take: the farm cap is not a nerf to economy, it is a nerf to laziness. Teams that used to win by stacking income now have to pick a damage plan, which makes team composition matter again.
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What Changed in the Latest ASTD Updates?
- Update 58 (October 16, 2026): team-based Summer Festival events, Stardust banner reruns, auto-upgrade, pre-battle loadout swaps and global matchmaking.[3]
- Update 58.5 (October 31, 2026): Halloween drops and balance tweaks.[3]
- Inventory: the limit rose to 2,500 with extra loadout slots.
- Police Girl (Vamp): total raid DPS cut by 50%, so move her down your list.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the best unit in All Star Tower Defense right now?
Muse is the strongest pick for most players because she gives about $1,000 on wave one when placed on wave zero. That makes expensive units viable early. For pure damage, Garou with a fire rage orb and Shinra with Gogeta are the top choices.
How does Muse work for wave zero cash?
You place Muse before the first wave starts. She then pays out roughly $1,000 when wave one begins. That lets you drop costly units instantly instead of waiting on farms, which is why she changed early game setups across raids.
Can you still run multiple farms in ASTD raids?
Only two at a time. The latest update uses placement links to cap farms at two, so extra farms will not place. Build your economy around money units with a 20% bonus, cheap placements like Harrison, and wave-zero cash from Muse.
How does the Stardust Banner pity system work?
Using the same Stardust Banner 1,000 times grants a Rainbow Token. You can exchange that token for any featured unit on the banner. It protects players from long dry streaks, though base rates for top units remain low, around 1%.
What are the best units for infinite mode?
Hammerouser and multi-hit nukes lead because they keep scaling as waves stack. Shinra, Gogeta and Omega Shenron follow as sustained damage dealers. Add Blackbeard for permanent slow and use the auto-upgrade priority system to keep economy units leveled.
How does Shinra's element change affect team damage?
Shinra converts all your units to fire and adds strong damage of his own. In fire-friendly lineups that gives a triple boost. Exact scaling when stacking multiple element changers is not clearly documented, so treat precise multipliers as unverified.
Which ASTD Units Should You Build First?
Start with the opening, not the highest star rating. Muse gives you cash, Garou gives you early damage, and Shinra plus Gogeta carry the mid game. Keep two farms, lead with a money unit, and leave Eizen and Police Girl on the bench until the devs say otherwise. For infinite mode, move toward Hammerouser and multi-hit scaling and turn on auto-upgrade so your economy keeps pace.
Meta shifts fast, especially with 1 million subscriber unit speculation and Halloween balance tweaks still settling. Check back after the next patch and rebuild from the opening up.
📚 Sources & References
- Best Units in ASTD: Official Raid & Infinite Tier List! — Blam Spot, YouTube, October 22, 2026
- All Star Tower Defense Wiki — 2026 Update Log (Stardust Banner pity system)
- All Star Tower Defense Wiki — Update 58 and 58.5 patch notes, October 16 and 31, 2026
- All Star Tower Defense X Units Tier List — Beebom, updated May 1, 2026
- ASTD Tier List Archive — PlayerAuctions Blog
