Skeleton Army

"Summons an army of skeletons. Meet Larry and his friends Harry, Gerry, Terry, Mary, Ledoot, etc."

Summary

 * The Skeleton Army is unlocked from the Training Camp (Tutorial).
 * It spawns 21 single target, melee Skeletons with very low hitpoints.
 * A Skeleton Army card costs 4 Elixir to deploy.

Strategy

 * Due to their high numbers, the Skeleton Army is effective against slowly attacking, high hitpoint opponents such as the Giant, Prince and Mini P.E.K.K.A.
 * Another benefit is the Skeleton Army's cost of 4 Elixir, making it a very versatile card that can give you an Elixir advantage in almost any case. (Most tanks will be killed for a 1-4 Elixir advantage, mini-tanks are Elixir neutral.)


 * While being powerful in numbers, they are very weak against splash damage. This means that Bombers, Valkyries, Arrows, Fireballs, Poisons, Fire Spirits, and Zaps are extremely effective against them and will most likely wipe them out instantly. Thus, they are generally not used in higher Arenas, as most opponents have many splash troops and large area spells. In addition, they can be outclassed by other swarms like the Minion Horde and Barbarians which do more damage, have more health, and in the former's case can't be attacked at all due to being an air troop.
 * Even a small group of for example Spear Goblins and/or Minions can destroy the group one by one.
 * The Skeleton Army can force the enemy to use their splash spell, allowing you to deploy other swarms of low hitpoint troops to deal high damage.
 * However this may not be wise because it generally costs less Elixir to destroy the Skeleton Army than deploying it.
 * Zap, Arrows, Fire Spirits, and Bombers are the best as they also give elixir advantage. Valkyries, Poison and Fireballs require the same amount of elixir. Using Witch or Wizard gives your enemy a 1 elixir-advantage, but they will generally be at full health after eliminating the Skeleton army, so may not be a bad choice. Spear Goblins can also be used against a "lone" skeleton army is in your side of the arena.
 * The Skeleton Army is not recommended to use offensively, as they can be easily wiped out with spells such as Arrows, and are most effective as a distraction.
 * Keep in mind that, if by some chance the Skeleton Army manages to get on a tower, it will deal unfathomable damage to it.
 * If the opponent has left the game, a Skeleton Army can do immense damage to crown towers, without being countered by other opponent troops.
 * The Skeleton Army is best paired with troops like Witch, Prince or any other troop with high damage.
 * It can also be used to protect a P.E.K.K.A, Royal Giant, Giant or other heavy troop when attacking.
 * If you use Mirror with a Skeleton Army, and if your opponent has no AoE cards are available, the they will be instantly routed.
 * 3 Skeletons cost 1 Elixir, while 21 cost 4. Playing the Skeleton Army profits 19 more Skeletons with 3 more elixir. However, splash units and spells can still easily end them.
 * It can be used as a lure for the opponent's Zap or Arrows before you throw a Goblin Barrel. This won't work, however, if the opponent has a way to take out you Skeleton Army and/or Goblin Barrel (such as a Mirrored Zap or Arrows).
 * Also in either case, you'll be losing a plenty of elixir, meaning it may not be a very good strategy.
 * During double-elixir period, the Skeleton Army can be used to great effectiveness if the opponent is forced into wasting their AoE cards. You can play the Skeleton Army along with Rage as this increases the skeletons' attack as well as travel speed, leaving little room for the opponent to counter.
 * In general, the Skeleton Army should not be used to counter cards that deal Death Damage, as the death of the latter card will often result in only 3-4 skeletons surviving, although this will always give you a positive Elixir trade (double the Elixir if used to counter a Golem, 2 elixir extra for Giant Skeleton)

History

 * On 19/2/16, a Balance Update increased the Skeletons' hitpoints and damage by 11%.
 * On 18/5/16, a Balance Update increased the Skeletons' hitpoints and damage by 5%.
 * On 4/7/16, the Tournaments Update increased the number of Skeletons spawned to 21 (from 20).
 * Clash Royale said that the fourth Skeleton from the Skeletons card joined the Skeleton Army, making it from 20 to 21.
 * This newly joined Skeleton is named "Ledoot", according to the updated description.
 * This is a nod to a popular meme, the Skull Trumpet.
 * This is a bit of an odd name, because the player can infer that all of the other skeletons' names end with the letters "-ry".
 * The spawning pattern now gets compressed when the card is deployed by the river.
 * Previously skeletons would spawn on top of the river and even in enemy territory.

Trivia

 * The Skeleton Army is one of the 9 cards associated with Skeletons.
 * The skeleton 'Larry' in the Skeleton Army's description is a reference to the Clash of Clans commercial Larry.
 * It is the only Epic swarm card, with the Minion Horde and other swarm cards being Common.
 * When deployed, the Skeleton Army takes up the most space out of any card.
 * However, Arrows have enough radius to cover the entire swarm.
 * It also contains the most number of troops.
 * Each skeleton has a diagonal scar over their left eye if the player looks closely.
 * It will actually deal a lot of damage. When all of the level 8 Skeleton Army's skeletons are damaging one target, it does a staggering 1281 (21*61=1281) DPS, many times more than the record-holding P.E.K.K.A. at max level.

Armée de squelettesSkelettarmeeАрмия скелетовOrda di scheletri