Bowler

"This big blue dude digs the simple things in life - Dark Elixir drinks and throwing rocks. His massive boulders roll through their target, hitting everything behind for a strike!"

Summary

 * The Bowler is unlocked from the Frozen Peak (Arena 8).
 * He is an area damage, medium-ranged troop with high hitpoints and moderate damage.
 * A Bowler card costs 5 Elixir to deploy.
 * He throws massive boulders which roll linearly behind their target to hit more troops.

Strategy

 * The Bowler has a similar attack to The Log, knocking back troops in a similar manner to the Fireball, but in a linear motion, and not stopping until its range has been completed.
 * When defending against a Bowler that is on the player's side of the Arena, NEVER place the defensive card in front of him, as there is the risk of incurring damage to the tower. Instead, plant the unit(s) in the center, so the boulder is directed away from the tower.
 * The Ice Wizard can easily take down a lone Bowler if placed two tiles to the side and three tiles above the Arena Tower.
 * It is important to place the Bowler correctly, as to make the most use out of his linear rolling attack. For example, if there is a big push with many low hitpoint troops hiding behind a tank, then the Bowler should be placed directly in front of the tank so his boulder will roll over all the troops behind it.
 * The Bowler is a very effective counter to cards that spawn other units such as the Barbarian Hut and Goblin Hut, as he constantly pushes the spawned units back and deals damage to all of them.
 * He is an excellent counter to a push. He damages the tank and the backup. More importantly, his boulder separates the backup from the tank (Giants and Golems aren't affected by pushback), making them easier to finish off.
 * When defending against a Bowler, Minions and Minion Horde can quickly take him out, as the Bowler only hits ground troops. It is also possible to surround the Bowler with cheap units due to his slow, linear attack.
 * Barbarians work very well when surrounding him, due to their damage.
 * Since surrounding the Bowler can destroy him easily, the player should use strong splash units to take out the units surrounding the Bowler.
 * He has a slow hit speed and low damage per second, so the player might need to back it up with troops with fast attack speeds and hard hitters such as the Musketeer and the Witch.
 * He can take out the Witch with ease because he can also hurt the Skeletons.
 * When used properly, he will suffer minimal damage and still make a good counter-push.

History

 * The Bowler was added to the game on 4/7/16 with the Tournaments Update.
 * On 24/8/16, a Balance Update decreased the Bowler's Elixir cost to 5, decreased its hitpoints by 7%, and its damage by 10%.
 * On 19/9/16, the September Update changed his description. The description used to say "This big blue dude digs the simple things in life - Dark Elixir drinks and throwing rocks. His massive boulders bounce off their target, landing behind for a double strike."
 * On 1/11/16, the November Update changed the Bowler's sound effects.

Trivia

 * He is the first troop that can push back other troops with its attack, and also the first one with a linear rolling attack that can go right through units.
 * The description was taken from Clash of Clans, though there actually isn't Dark Elixir in the game.
 * Also, before the September Update, the description used to be wrong, as the boulder rolls, not bounces.
 * Although the Clash Royale Bowler is similar to his Clash of Clans counterpart, in Clash Royale his rocks actually roll while in Clash of Clans they bounce.
 * When throwing his boulder, he says "Wheeee!"
 * He waddles like a penguin when he walks, perhaps due to the relative weight of his boulder.
 * The Bowler's deploy sound reuses that of the Grand Warden from Clash of Clans.
 * The Bowler, Sparky, and Bomber are the only ranged troops who can't attack air. Coincidentally, all of the mentioned troops deal area damage.

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