Ghost Types and Behavior

This guide focuses on ghost behavior in Haunted Dorm, including how they patrol, choose targets, when they start knocking, and how knock speed scales.

These base mechanics heavily influence survival and tower placement.

👻 1. Core behavior

Ghosts broadly follow:

✔ 1) Patrol → Approach → Knock → Empowered knocking

Overall flow: follow weighted routes → reach door → start knocking → if not repelled, continue empowered knocking

✔ 2) Weighted patrol paths

Ghosts don’t roam randomly; they follow weighted routes:

Main corridors (high weight)
Intersections (high weight)
Along walls (medium)
Deep in room blocks (low)

Rooms near corridors are contacted more.

🏚️ 2. Target selection

Ghosts prefer:

⭐ The nearest door (top priority)

If you’re near patrol routes, you’re high risk.

⭐ Door sound sources (important in multiplayer)

If a teammate’s door is being knocked, you’re relatively safe due to “sound attraction.”

⭐ If knocking fails → ghosts repatrol

They won’t idle forever; if damaged or pressured, they may disengage briefly.

🔨 3. Knock mechanics

From extensive player tests:

✔ Fixed rhythm (~1s per knock)

Doors lose HP steadily.

✔ Knock speed increases over time (late)

Stronger ghosts knock faster.

✔ Knock damage scales with game time

After ~10 minutes, knock strength rises sharply.

✔ Slow Tower affects approach time, not knock frequency

😨 4. Empowered ghosts (mid/late)

As time passes, ghosts enter an empowered state:

Faster patrols
Faster knock rhythm
Higher knock damage
Harder to repel with Pillow
More likely to lock onto low-door rooms

A built-in difficulty escalation.

🧟 5. Main types

Although not formally classified, behaviors group into:

👻 Type 1: Common ghosts (basic patrol)

Features:

Most frequent early
Stable knock rhythm
Lower HP

Threat: ⭐⭐
Counter with Pillow Cannons.

👁️ Type 2: Empowered ghosts (auto mid/late)

Features:

Faster movement
Faster knocking
Thicker HP

Threat: ⭐⭐⭐
Upgrade doors + add Lightning.

🔥 Type 3: High-difficulty ghosts (specific modes)

Features:

Hard to repel
Focused knocking
Can chain attacks

Threat: ⭐⭐⭐⭐
Needs Slow + Lightning.

🩸 Type 4: Dream Hunter

The only ghost with a clearly distinct behavior set (see dedicated guide).

Features:

Prioritizes players
High speed
Burst knocking
Most targeted pressure

Threat: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ (max)

🧭 6. Phase changes

🟦 Early (1–4 min)

Slow patrols
Mostly common ghosts
Low pressure

🟨 Mid (5–9 min)

Empowered ghosts join
Knock speed rises
Low-door rooms can be broken quickly

🟥 Late (10+ min)

Empowered ghosts frequent
Fast patrols + strong knocking
Non-maxed doors can break in seconds
In multiplayer, multiple ghosts may swarm one room

Most failures happen here.

🪓 7. Adapting defense by ghost

⭐ Vs common ghosts:

2 Pillow Cannons suffice

⭐ Vs empowered ghosts:

Door level 2+
Preferably add Slow

⭐ Vs high-difficulty ghosts:

Add Lightning
Multi-Pillow formations

⭐ Vs Dream Hunter:

Slow mandatory
Lightning top priority
Door upgraded early to high level

🛡️ 8. Final defensive summary

Common → Pillow Empowered → Door + Pillow High-difficulty → Slow + Lightning Dream Hunter → Slow (must) + Lightning (must) + High door

Identify ghost type and match the right towers to dramatically increase survival.

🎯 Closing

Ghost behavior follows a fixed “patrol → approach → knock → empower” flow.
Mastering this lets you:

Time the pivot to defense
Choose tower build order more precisely
Avoid late-game door breaks

Understanding behavior is key to higher win rates.

HAUNTED DORM

Ghost Types and Behavior: Patrols, Targeting, and Threat Levels