Sorcerer Tower Defense How to Get Projection Sorcerer (Naoya)

Projection Sorcerer is the Update 31.0 [NAOYA] headline Special Grade in Sorcerer Tower Defense—the Head of Hei craft players chase through Culling Game colonies. Official and community recipes agree on the core sink: collect 10 Projection Fragments, then craft Naoya at the Culling desk. This guide covers fragment farming, contracts, why Frame Shatter matters versus Justice and Lightning, and how to keep the grind alive during Update 32.0 Anniversary without abandoning colonies.

Patch context: Update 31.0. Mode fundamentals: Culling Game. Broader evolve map: Evolves & Ascended Grade. Loadout ranks: Best Units by Mode.

What you are crafting

Projection Sorcerer (Naoya) is a Special Grade boss specialist, not a generic wave-clear filler. Kit fantasy from the live design:

• Every hit builds Projection Stacks on the focus target.
• At 24/24 stacks the enemy locks into a frozen frame.
• Frame Shatter then deals massive damage plus a percent of current HP—the bigger the boss, the harder it hurts.
• Supporting abilities accelerate stacks: Forced Frame (multi-target locks), Smash Kick (large instant stack dump, often cited around eight stacks), and Barrage (flurry damage + stack pace). Max level adds a map-wide speed / pressure ultimate.

That percent-current-HP beat is why lobbies park him on elites and raid spikes instead of asking him to solo trash forever. Pair him with splash (Claws, Explosive, curse AoE) so packs die while he stacks the tank.

Official Projection Sorcerer (Naoya) showcase — Sorcerer Tower Defense

Step-by-step obtainment

1. Unlock Culling Game content from Update 31 and enter the colony sequence with a board that can survive tempo spikes.
2. Fight Projection encounters inside colonies. Fragment drop rates scale with progress—community tables describe roughly 2% early climbing toward 100% in the final colony.
3. Bank Projection Fragments until you hold 10. Do not scrap orbs or mis-spend fragments on vanity before the craft.
4. Optional contracts — from about colony 3 onward you can buy a Projection Contract that guarantees a fragment on the next eligible colony clear. Use contracts when you are one or two fragments short and hate RNG, not as your only plan from fragment zero.
5. Open the Culling craft UI and create Projection Sorcerer. Favorite the unit immediately.

Exact shop prices and contract text can hotfix—read the in-game panel each session. Hearts still matter: greed-wiping a late colony can reset progress and cost more time than waiting for a safer clear.

Culling Points and the HeadOfHei code

Colonies pay Culling Points alongside fragments. Spend points on contracts and craft-related shop rows before cosmetics. Free point injections help:

• Redeem working codes on the Codes page. HeadOfHei is the Culling-flavored string commonly tied to Culling Points—confirm it is still marked Working before you rely on it.
• Stack visit / update codes the same day so you are not farming points from zero after a wipe.
• Keep Anniversary currencies (Update 32 Coins / Crystals) in a separate mental wallet so you do not burn Culling Points on the wrong shop.

Colony roles while you farm fragments

Before you own Projection

• Carry: Strongest Sorcerer (or Awakened if owned), King Of Curses line, or your best Special Grade.
• Splash: free Claws Sorcerer from the 31.0 battle pass; premium Explosive Sorcerer if you bought the track.
• Economy: any farm unit that repays before the leak wave on long colony runs.
• Goal: consistent clears > flashy wipes. Fragment rates reward volume.

After you craft Projection

• Park Projection on the lane that sees bosses and high-HP elites first.
• Keep one splash tower covering the same path so frozen frames are not wasted on a lone target while a pack leaks elsewhere.
• Upgrade Forced Frame / Smash Kick breakpoints before vanity double-placements.

Mode placement detail and Anniversary overlap notes: Culling Game.

Why Projection vs Justice vs Lightning

Unit	Best job	Craft flavor
Projection Sorcerer	Boss / elite percent HP + frame locks	10 Projection Fragments
Lightning Sorcerer	Raw Special Grade DPS pressure	Lightning fragments
Justice Sorcerer	Contract-linked carry / legal kit fantasy	Justice fragments + contracts

If you can only finish one Culling craft soon, finish Projection first. He changes how tanky colony bosses feel more than another generic DPS craft. Lightning is the natural second board piece; Justice should line up with contract completion so fragments do not sit unused. None of the three replaces Ascended Grade ceilings like Strongest Sorcerer (Awakened)—they sit beside that path on the Evolves map.

Frame Shatter play tips

• Do not sell Projection mid-fight to “fix” a bad placement—stack progress resets with the unit.
• Focus-fire the same boss so stacks reach 24 instead of smearing hits across three elites.
• Use Smash Kick when a boss is mid-stack to jump toward Shatter instead of waiting on auto attacks alone.
• In co-op, call who owns the boss lane so two players do not split Projection stacks across different targets.
• Trait rolls that boost damage or ability uptime belong here after craft; avoid dumping premium traits on temporary colony fillers.

Pairing Update 32 Anniversary without quitting Culling

The 2nd Anniversary patch adds piñatas, Anniversary Traits, and festive units. Smart accounts run both tracks:

• Spend a daily block on Anniversary Coins / Crystals and event codes.
• Spend another block on Culling colonies until the 10 Projection Fragments are done.
• Test Dance Floor / Party / Cursed Sorcerer in a low-stakes colony before they replace Projection on your main boss lane.
• Do not convert every gem into festive pity while fragments sit at 7/10—finish the craft, then celebrate.

Projection did not retire when Anniversary launched. He remains the Update 31 boss answer on many Best Units Culling boards.

Efficient weekly plan

1. Redeem Codes including HeadOfHei while it works.
2. Clear heart-safe colonies; stop when hearts are low instead of forcing a reset.
3. Buy a Projection Contract only when the math beats raw RNG for your remaining count.
4. Craft at 10 fragments the same session—do not leave the craft unfinished overnight if you might mis-spend loot.
5. Trait and upgrade Projection, then resume Lightning / Justice or Ascended Grade raids.

Mistakes to avoid

• Entering Culling with only Normal-stage habits and zero splash.
• Ignoring drop-rate scaling and quitting after early-colony dry spells.
• Trading away your only Projection copy before trait rolling.
• Confusing Projection Fragments with Reverse Energy Shards or Divine Wheels (Evolves).
• Abandoning colonies entirely for Anniversary week one—your 10-fragment goal will still be waiting when banners cool down.

Related pages

• Culling Game
• Evolves & Ascended Grade
• Update 31.0
• Best Units by Mode
• Tier List
• Codes
• How to Get Strongest Sorcerer
• Hell Mode

Farm clean colonies, count to ten fragments, craft Naoya, and let Frame Shatter delete the bosses that used to stall your account.