Updated for Town Hall 18 (October 2026).
Air Bombs is a Builder Base anti-air defense, unlocked at Builder Hall 4, that lobs explosive barrels at flying troops every 3 seconds. Each barrel hits hard, 270 damage at level 1 and 636 at level 10, and splashes 1.5 tiles, but its range is only 7.5 tiles and it ignores ground troops completely. You get one, and it maxes at level 10 with Builder Hall 10.
Not to be confused with the Air Bomb trap in the Home Village, which the barrels are modeled on.
How Air Bombs work
Air Bombs launch one barrel at a time at an air troop. The barrel flies slowly toward its target and explodes on contact, hitting everything within 1.5 tiles. Because of that slow flight, fast air troops such as Beta Minions can sometimes outrun a barrel. Since Builder Base 2.0 (May 15, 2023), a barrel that has not reached its target within 10 seconds simply explodes instead of chasing it forever.
- Range: 7.5 tiles.
- Attack speed: one barrel every 3 seconds.
- Splash: 1.5 tiles.
- Targets: air only.
- Size: 3×3. One per base.
The stack of barrels on the building is decoration. It does not show how much ammunition is left.
Air Bombs levels and stats
| Level | Builder Hall needed | Damage per barrel | DPS | Hitpoints | Cost (Builder Gold) | Build time |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 4 | 270 | 90 | 1,000 | 300,000 | 6h |
| 2 | 4 | 297 | 99 | 1,100 | 320,000 | 12h |
| 3 | 4 | 327 | 109 | 1,250 | 340,000 | 1d |
| 4 | 4 | 357 | 119 | 1,400 | 360,000 | 2d |
| 5 | 5 | 393 | 131 | 1,600 | 1,200,000 | 3d |
| 6 | 6 | 435 | 145 | 1,850 | 1,500,000 | 5d |
| 7 | 7 | 477 | 159 | 2,100 | 2,400,000 | 7d |
| 8 | 8 | 525 | 175 | 2,350 | 3,400,000 | 8d |
| 9 | 9 | 579 | 193 | 2,600 | 4,400,000 | 10d |
| 10 | 10 | 636 | 212 | 2,900 | 5,400,000 | 12d |
Where to place Air Bombs
Pair them with Firecrackers. The two cover each other’s gaps: Air Bombs are slow and short-ranged but hit groups hard, while Firecrackers fire quickly at long range against single targets. There are no spells in the Builder Base, so an attacker cannot knock out both with one well-placed spell the way they could in the Home Village.
- Neither one shoots ground troops, so keep a ground defense such as the Double Cannon covering them.
- Put a Crusher next to them. It holds up the skeletons a Drop Ship drops while the Air Bombs work on the ship.
- Keep them away from the edge. Air Bombs are a strong counter to Night Witch bats, so ground armies that open with Night Witches will try to reach and kill them early.
- An air-mode Mega Mine nearby adds a big burst of damage on whatever comes for your anti-air.
From Builder Hall 6 you also decide which stage gets the Air Bombs. See the Builder Base guide for how stage limits work.
How to beat Air Bombs
- Send ground troops first when the Air Bombs sit near the edge. Sneaky Archers can shoot it while cloaked, and Raged Barbarians kill it fast. If it is deep inside, this costs too many troops to be worth it.
- Spread your air troops so each barrel only hits one. This works well with Baby Dragons, whose Tantrum ability boosts their damage when no other air units are close by.
- Use a Drop Ship as a shield. It can take several barrels while lighter air troops get to work on other buildings.
- With only 7.5 tiles of range, Air Bombs can often be avoided. If you cannot take them out, deploy your air troops on a side where their path stays out of range.
Air Bombs changes, and the Home Village version
Air Bombs came with the original Builder Base on May 22, 2017, and got new levels with each Builder Hall release up to level 10 on May 15, 2023. That same Builder Base 2.0 update added the 10-second limit on barrel flight time.
In 2026, a crafted version of Air Bombs appeared in the Home Village. It was one of the three Crafting Station defenses in Crafting Phase 3, from April 1 to July 31, 2026, with 30 levels and its own module upgrades. On May 26, 2026 its range went from 9 to 11 tiles and its attack speed improved. That phase has ended, so the crafted Air Bombs is not in the current Crafting Station rotation.
Air Bombs FAQ
Can Air Bombs hit ground troops?
No. Air Bombs only target air troops.
What Builder Hall unlocks Air Bombs?
Builder Hall 4. You can only build one.
What is the range of Air Bombs?
7.5 tiles in the Builder Base.
Sources: Supercell release notes (Builder Base 2.0 full patch notes (Supercell, May 15, 2023)) and in-game data.
