Cannon Cart

“A Cannon on wheels?! Bet they won't see that coming! Once you break its shield, it becomes a Cannon not on wheels.”

The Cannon Cart card is unlocked from Hog Mountain (Arena 10). It is a single-target, medium-ranged troop with moderate hitpoints and damage output. Half of its health comes from the cart that carries the Cannon, and the other half is the actual Cannon's health. When the cart breaks, the Cannon Cart loses its wheels and becomes a stationary Cannon. The first portion of its health is represented by a shield which behaves identically to shields belonging to the Dark Prince and Guards, being able to absorb excess damage. When the cart is broken, it behaves like a building with a lifetime of 30 seconds. Troops that target buildings, such as the Giant, will begin to target the Cannon Cart when its cart is broken. Additionally, it will no longer be affected by cards that affect only troops, such as the Clone or the Ram Rider's snare. A Cannon Cart card costs 5 Elixir to deploy.

Strategy

Since the first form isn't a building, the Cannon Cart is not a substitute for the Cannon. It is quite difficult to control when the Cart enters its second form, so it can't consistently pull building targeting troops to a favorable position.
Despite both forms having a large amount of combined health, the Cart being rendered immobile once its first form has been defeated means that it is best to put the Cannon Cart behind a tank or other high-hitpoint troops such as the Giant, like glass cannon cards. The tank will absorb all damage and the Cannon Cart will clear away units attacking the tank and eventually the Tower. Keep in mind that this combo is very vulnerable to swarms, so it is advised to bring an area damage spell or troops.
The Cannon has enough health to survive an equivalent level Fireball or Mini P.E.K.K.A.'s swing. Its Cart also has enough health to survive one of them. The Mini P.E.K.K.A. will still fully counter it, but its health will be too low for a threatening counterpush.
If the player does not need to attack any time soon, they can spell down a Cannon Cart placed in the back with the opponent's Princess Tower and force it to start decaying immediately. A Lightning, Rocket, or a Fireball combined with The Log can all defeat the Cart's first form. Although this is a slight negative Elixir trade, the tower damage gained is enough to offset this.
Placing a Cannon Cart in the middle of the opponent's territory when they have one Princess Tower destroyed can be a great strategy. The Cannon Cart's fast movement speed will make it quickly lock on to the remaining Princess Tower, dealing great damage if left ignored. However, if the opponent expects this, they may play a card pre-emptively to stop it, causing the Cannon Cart to be a waste of Elixir. This is easier for them to do at a low cost due to the fact that the Cart will be in range of both the King's Tower and the Princess Tower when placed as far forward as possible.
Mini-tanks or high-damage units like the Knight or the Mini P.E.K.K.A. are great counters to Cannon Cart. They can survive multiple hits while dealing great damage to Cannon Cart, destroying it. However, the Cannon Cart can counter these units with the help of Crown Towers, even being able to stop a Mega Knight despite its jump attack as long as at least two Crown Towers are helping.
The cheapest card combo to counter a Cannon Cart crossing the river alone is the Ice Spirit combined with Skeletons. When it is about to roll within range of the player's Princess Tower, the player should deploy the Ice Spirit immediately followed by Skeletons. The Ice Spirit will tank one shot, freeze it, and the Skeletons will damage it down to its second form, where it will then be chipped down by the player's Princess Tower. This is a +3 Elixir trade, but it is very delicate; the opponent may use a spell to neutralize the combo, and allow the Cart to connect to the tower. Since this is unreactable, the player should keep in mind when they can thwart this combo. Using a different card all of a sudden to counter the Cart can make the opponent react wrongly, spelling something that isn't vulnerable like a Knight.
The Ice Golem is the cheapest single card counter to the Cart with the help of a Princess Tower, and is harder to work around due to its higher health. For the best results, the Ice Golem should be timed so that it begins distracting the Cart the moment the Princess Tower begins targeting it, and it should be placed in such a way that the Ice Golem's death damage also chips at the cart and slows it.
Swarm cards like the Skeleton Army and the Guards are effective at countering this card, since the Cannon Cart can only attack one target at a time, causing it to be overwhelmed and destroyed.
The Cannon Cart has enough firepower to destroy an equivalent-level Goblin in one hit. It is a good card for clearing away small units one by one so that the rest of a push can follow.
The Cannon Cart moves very fast and is difficult to redirect due to its long range and its immunity to knockback (besides The Log), so it can be used to surprise an opponent at the start of the game or when they have little to no Elixir. This is especially devastating if a spell is at the ready to defeat any swarms, one of the simplest methods of dealing with the Cart.
A Cannon Cart can be strong when paired up with Graveyard due to its fast movement speed and high combined hitpoints, being able to distract the opponent's tower for a sufficient amount of time.
The Cannon Cart can be used to counter a Goblin Barrel, due to its ability to one-shot them, letting the Goblins get no more than two or three hits. However, because of its cost, the player should try to counterpush with the Cannon Cart to try and even the Elixir deficit or to try and deal damage to a Princess Tower, as otherwise it is a waste of potential.

History

The Cannon Cart card was added to the game on 5/8/2017.
The Cannon Cart card was made available as a one-time reward from a special 2v2 Cannon Cart Draft Challenge that started on 28/7/17. Through this challenge, the Cannon Cart could be unlocked one week before the official release.
From 31/7/17 through 3/8/17, the Shop had a special offer where players could buy up to six Magical Chests at the normal price that guarantee at least one Cannon Cart.
On 9/10/17, the October 2017 Update increased the Cannon Cart's hitpoints and shield hitpoints by 5%. The same update also fixed a bug where troops would stop targeting the Cannon Cart or get stuck behind a broken Cannon Cart.
The 20/6/18 Update moved the Arena to unlock the Cannon Cart from Hog Mountain (Arena 10) to Builder's Workshop (Arena 6).
On 6/8/18, a Balance Update increased the Cannon Cart's cannon phase lifetime to 30 sec (from 20 sec) and made the cannon phase deploy faster when the shield is destroyed, and the Cannon Cart immune to knockback.
On 3/9/18, a Balance Update decreased the Cannon Cart's range to 5 (from 5.5).
On 5/11/18, a Balance Update decreased the Cannon Cart's hitspeed to 1.3 seconds (from 1.2 seconds).
On 28/1/19, the January 2019 Update moved the Arena to unlock the Cannon Cart from Builder’s Workshop (Arena 6) back to Hog Mountain (Arena 10).
On 4/2/19, a Balance Update increased the Cannon Cart's hitspeed to 1.2 seconds (from 1.3 seconds).
On 1/7/19, a Balance Update increased the Cannon Cart's hitspeed to 1 second (from 1.2 seconds), increased its range from 5 to 5.5, and decreased the damage by 17% from 203, to 168 at tournament standards. It also increased the base hitpoints and shield hitpoints by 1.5%.
On 2/3/20, a Balance Update increased the Cannon Cart's damage by 5%.

Trivia

The stats of this card and its dropped cannon are now identical or very close to the stats of a Cannon, after the Balance Update on 1/7/19.
A Cloned Cannon Cart will drop a Cloned Cannon, making it the only Building which can be Cloned.
A cloned Cannon Cart in its building form will degrade over time, just like building cards, making it the only cloned troop with a health bar.
The Cannon Cart, Dark Prince, Royal Recruits, and Guards are the only cards that have a shield in addition to their own hitpoints. However, the Cannon Cart is the only unit to not share the same amount of shield hitpoints as the other three shielded units.