"Packed to the brim with bones instead of bombs. Skeletons leap out of these balloons directly next to the enemy!"
Level 1-4
Level 5-8
Level 9-12
Level 13-16
Level 17-18
Summary
The Drop Ship is a balloon that flies in the air and drops Skeletons on its target.
The Drop Ship itself doesn’t deal any damage except upon destruction via its ability.
Its special ability, Skeleton Burst, activates when it is destroyed and causes the Drop Ship to deal damage where it was destroyed in addition to spawning extra Skeletons. This is unlocked at level two.
Drop Ships have no preferred target when attacking; they will simply attack the closest building to them. However, once they become aware of enemy Guard Post troops (either by being attacked themselves or being near another friendly troop under attack), they will leave their previously targeted building and engage the enemy troops instead. Once all of the nearby enemy troops are defeated, they will proceed to attack the nearest building from their current location.
Strategies
Make sure you bring support troops like the Baby Dragons and Beta Minions to support the Drop Ship, as it and its skeletons don't do much damage by itself and will get taken out easily.
The Drop Ship can trigger Mines and Mega Mines without taking much damage and protecting the troops behind it.
Although having a lot of hitpoints, the Drop Ship can still be quickly worn down by multiple Firecrackers targeting them. The Mega Tesla can greatly damage two Drop Ships at once.
It is recommended to destroy distracting buildings first before deploying them as they are easily distracted due to its slow movement speed.
Try to avoid the Crushers as they will crush all the Skeletons. Even though the Skeletons will get one hit each before getting crushed, the Drop Ship will stay there for a very long time dropping Skeletons, rendering them useless.
Drop Ships can pair well with Night Witches. Their subtroops can distract both ground and air defenses, allowing each other to survive for longer amount of time.
Space out your Firecrackers and your Air Bombs so there are high-hitpoint buildings between them but still within each other's range to protect each other.
The Roaster can target both the Drop Ship and the Skeletons it drops as long as they are close together.
The Multi Mortar and Giant Cannon are both effective tools at wiping out Skeletons. Be sure to consider their location when attacking, as allowing either or both of these defenses to stand will greatly hinder the Drop Ship's damage potential.
Upgrade Differences
At level 1, it looks like a balloon with a skull in front and three compartments carrying Skeletons.
At level 5, the places where the ropes intersect are tied up with more ropes.
At level 9, the horns on the skull which is at the front of the balloon become golden.
At level 13, the balloon gains wooden armor plates on the side similar to the home base Balloon.
At level 17, the compartments receive iron lining and bolts.
Trivia
The skull on the Drop Ship resembles the skull on a Witch's Staff.
If you view the Drop Ship image in the Barracks, the Balloon appears to be blue, while in combat the Balloon appears to be purple.
The home base Balloon targets Defensive Buildings, but mentioned above, the Drop Ship attacks anything.
