Cruel Owen Quarrel on Jun 10, 2015 wrote:

Hello everyone! Cruel Owen Quarrel here with a question a bit different from the type of stuff I usually ask, but still a valid question I think.
I have seen many posts about people soloing the Tower- Not specifically about the tower, but mentioning soloing it. Since it is generally such a pain to find good team members (besides some of the awesome people on the message boards and three other guys yesterday who were amazing) or people willing to join you or sometimes anyone at all, I think this might be a good strategy for me.. if I can get it to work. I would say I'm at least decent when it comes to combat, but when it comes to min-maxing or strategizing, I don't have that much experience. I would very very much appreciate any tips at all anyone might have for soloing, whether it be good companions (I am a Privy if that helps; my Presidio companion is Lucky Jack but I got Malik and S.M. Arson) or gear or strats for the dreaded Nefarious 5 or anything. I've seen quite a few people mentioning that the robes are amazing, but all I seem to get are things I already have or the Disciple Cap or Big Guns/Revive Power Armor (don't get me wrong, those are fantastic powers but I usually never find myself needing multiple of them).

As a sidenote, I apologize to the mods and everyone for my excessive posting but it feels nice to be part of a community and be able to hold discussions. Thank you everyone for reading this, and for all of my other posts. As always any feedback would be immensely appreciated and I hope you truly have a fantastic week :D

Cpt. Cruel Owen Quarrel, Level 65 Celestial Nomad

If your a Privy, stay back and let them come to you. The battle boards in the tower aren't that big so you won't have to wait long for the action to begin lol. The Tower battles are no different from any other battle really. Take out at least one target each round so that you will suffer less damage which each enemy attack. Place your Battle Zeal at the top of your rotation. Keep your Valor's Fortress ready to go when you see a companion in trouble. Have some good heals with you because those group heals that Privateers have don't really help much. Also, even though there's nothing really wrong with the companions you are using, I would suggest a change in your line-up. It's never a bad idea to have a ranged unit with you. Bonnie is an excellent choice because she also has a heal and a dodge reducing multi-target attack. I would use Buccaneer companions that have the Buccaneer Smash/Charge power to reduce the accuracy of the enemy and because they have high health and do hefty damage. At some point, you're probably going to have to quit buffing and actually enter into the fray so any gear that gives you Vicious Charge or Assassins Strike would be good to have. Having a Walk in Shadows is always a good thing too, especially when it comes time to battle the Nefarious Five. Being able to land that big hit on the Privy when you come out of hidden is a good way to go and you won't get charmed that way. I always go into the battle with the Five knowing that my companions are usually toast so I always use Kan Po or Keisuke for their hidden and heals and Bonnie for her heal as well. Good luck.

I posted about solo'ing the nefarious five mostly as a challenge. Because, for me as a player, I haven't found much of the game challenging. And the parts that are, pretty much require a party (like the smuggler's arena- after the first couple waves anyway).

I wouldn't recommend solo'ing it, unless you want to do it for the challenge.

Max DeGroot on Jun 11, 2015 wrote:

I'm not keen on the idea of soloing Moo Manchu's Tower. You can probably get through most of the floors, but the Nefarious floor would almost require you to hire henchmen, as well, as the final battle against Moo Manchu. I don't see the sense of spending crowns to accomplish that.

Can you even hire henchmen against the Nefarious 5 and in the final battle against Moo Machu?

It's been a while since I gave the Tower a run, but I didn't think henchmen were allowed in either one of those battles. At least I'm pretty sure they weren't when I ran the tower....way back when. I'd be curious to know if that has since changed, since I may not get enough time to get that far into a tower run, any time soon.

i have been part of a team of three, and once a pair that completed moo tower, however never have i thus far been able to solo and finish it those terra cotta are rough but i may try again in the future...now that i have crowns for a henchman and am now max level...
huge thumbs up to those who can and have though, for a fun run grab at least one friend

stormy jen

It requires a lot of summon doubloons, a lot of time as battles can take twice as long, a lot of rare gear and a lot of pure luck.

Virtuous Dante Ramsey

Voodoo Cornelius on Jun 12, 2015 wrote:

Yes you can.

So, last night I decided to give ol' Moo a long overdue run for his money...just to prove to myself that I wasn't full-on crazy. I went into the Towah as a duo consisting of my Buccaneer & my son's Buccaneer-- with our lowly, non-Tower gear (minus a couple not-too-impressive trinkets & baubles from the 2 previous runs).

I arrived safely at the Nefarious 5 & low & behold, I was without a doubt, unable to use henchmen-- not from the start & also not once Keisuke Yagi took a nap, after several rounds had passed. There simply was no option to click on the 'henchmen silhouette' throughout the entire battle (which was a smashing success, by the way). Although they left me diddly, even upon using a 'few' crowns on the SCC....how nefawious!

So, I blazed on up the Gregarious Towah & had a meeting with the mad cow in charge. Once again I was unable to use/purchase any henchmen during the entire battle with him. Not before, not during & not even after dear sweet Barnabus dozed off. Once again, there was no option to use or purchase one at all for either pirate & they both lost one companion each. This is just how I had remembered it in all of my other 'whopping 2, duo runs'.

So, does anyone know whether henchmen are disabled during a duo run? Because I am 100% certain, without a doubt, that there was no option, & has been no option for me every time I have run the Towah with my Buccaneer & my son's Buccaneer, for those 2 battles. Or are they possibly disabled in those 2 battles, when you are 'duo-boxing' (as in using 2 pirates on separate, yet shared, accounts)? Or did I need to lose more than 1 companion (on the same pirate) in the battle with Moo, in order to use a henchman? For the Nefarious 5, there was no option at all, even once I lost my sole companion. Or are henchman only allowed against the Nef. 5 & Moo, during a full team run?

I wonder if Ratbeard would have time to comment or shed some light in regards to this, or perhaps some of the more seasoned Towah runners.

DuranteRamses87 on Jun 19, 2015 wrote:

Hiring henchmen ruins the fun and lessens the victory in my mind but that's just me.

Virtuous Dante Ramsey

Honestly, sometimes I hire a henchman because I may never get to fully experience the other classes. My life is quite busy and hectic, so maxing out 4 other classes, very well may never happen. I quite probably won't get to see the goodies a max-level Swash, Privy, Musket and Witchy have to offer.

Hiring a henchmen isn't always about saving your bacon, I enjoy getting to see the other classes up close and personal and being able to control them. Plus, it adds a lot of new 'toying around with strategy' elements to a battle, that are fun to mess around with, which again I may never have time to explore. Even if it may lessen a victory it may be the only way I get to witness the glory of the other classes and learn as much about them as possible. I have hired them when I certainly didn't need to, just for fun, but it was neat getting to see the great powers that they possess-- something I may not experience for a very long time.

I in no way need or want to hire henchmen against the Nef. 5 or in the battle with Moo. It was merely stated that you could and I have seen that you actually can not, at least in my experiences. So, I'm curious as to which is right-- you can hire them against the Nef. 5 and Moo, or you can't-- or if there actually are specific scenarios in which you can't hire them in those 2 battles.

Honestly, henchmen have saved my hide many times. In fact, they're the only reason I was able to save Billy the Kidd.
Picture this:

Owen laughed triumphantly as he entered the Frogerale compound; as long as he had his crew of friends with him, these stupid corrupted toads wouldn't know what hit him.
At least, that's what he thought.
10 attempts later, the young captain was inwardly sobbing as his roster was drained and both Romba and Nanu Nanu went down in one round. As the warden finished the battle with a shot that rendered Owen unconcious, he swore that he would not lose again. He awoke in the sweet, refreshing waters of the life fountain in Santo Pollo. He grunted as he got out and dried off his lawman outfit and tapped his chin, thinking of a strategy. Then, it hit him.. Literally. I'm serious. A brick was literally thrown at his stomach and he looked at the piece of paper written on it:
"Hey! Stupid! There's these guys called henchmen and they help you win really tough battles! So buy them! -B and Mr. G"
Owen grunted and wondered if those two even knew how fragile the fourth wall was now, with them constantly breaking it. Despite his qualms with the odd duo, Owen listened to them and walked into the nearest Crowns shop. He walked into the backroom where all of the mercenaries came to find a captain, and where the henchmen came to serve. He spotted a particularly deadly-looking Swashbuckler wearing Mooshu-styled gear.
"Hey! You!" Owen, as straightforward as he was, stomped on over to the pirate. He was in a bad mood because all of his friends were injured and so he was forced to resort to this.
"I don't care who you are, what you specialize in, or who you're from. All you need to know is I have 500 crowns and they're all yours if you help me kick some amphibian butt. Deal?"
And so it was.

Too long, didn't read; I was mad because I was bad and henchmen saved me.

Cpt. Cruel Owen Quarrel, Level 65 Magnificent Seventh

anecorbie on Jun 14, 2015 wrote:

Soloing the Tower, why? Because it's there. The attempt alone will teach you much about tactics and your determination.
I have not yet been able to defeat the Nef-5.

For the nefarious battle I was equipped with the following:
Leonidas' helmet
Captain Blood's Jacket
Gladiator's gaiters
Blades of Shade
Bauble which gives an extra heal
Brain thief ring
Dutchman's charm which gave weapon mastery and ghostwail
Death's bargain
and a pet which gave brutal charge, elusive, and extra dodgy (very handy!)

I killed them in the following order:

Buccaneer
Swashbuckler
Witchdoctor
Musketeer
Privateer

I started by casting the blood's flames and if your lucky the buccaneer will walk into them killing himself. He likes to do that for me. My companion for this battle was Kawil Doomclaw who can injure the swashbuckler pretty good before he dies. Your typical hide attack can finish him off after dancing with the added epic of death's bargain a few times and bombing him.

Usually Ben places himself in the middle of the board. This gives him a good radius. Try to stay outside of it. Sato's glasses can port you to a far point. Hit him with ranged attacks. If a summon comes up on your doubloons why not take advantage of that.

After that the battle is pretty standard. Keep yourself shielded. Be patient. This battle can be a long one. Don't give up. I know you can win. Try to equip gear that gives you a fort. Now, I have a research appointment in PA and I need to catch a train! Later!