3.1 Royal Giant Cycle

Introduction

This deck has a fast cycle, being able to cycle just as fast as 3.0 X-Bow. It has great synergy with the Fisherman + Hunter, fast cycle to out-cycle opponent's counter(s) to the RG, and having a solid defense.

Deck Information[]

Deck Created by: Micah Martins 4July

Minimum Recommended King Level: 10

Maximum Recommended King Level: 14

Arena Required: Miner's Mine (Wrong?)

Average Elixir Cost: 3.1 (Wrong?)

More Statistics: Go to Deck Builder

Card Roles[]

Royal Giant: RG is your win condition. It can be used to bait out the opponent's counters to it, then use your cheap cards to quickly get back to another one before they get back to their counter. In addition, it can punish opponents who are down a ton of elixir.

Fisherman: Fisherman works great with the Hunter. The Fisherman pulls troops in, so that the Hunter can deal maximum damage, while the Fisherman slows the troop down to prevent a lot of damage on the Hunter with its (fish?) effect. It can be used to activate king tower with any non-air win condition, and can just pull non-air win conditions away from your tower. It is also your main tank, so you can use it to tank damage from splash units.

Hunter: Hunter works well with the Fisherman, as stated above. The Hunter does not have a crazy amount of health, so it would be optimal to have something distracting the unit you want to destroy, then placing down the Hunter to wreck the unit. It isn't a very good offensive troop, due to its slow attack speed and medium health. However, it can support an RG well, being able to take out both air and ground swarms, while shredding troops placed near the Hunter.

Tesla: Tesla is your defensive building. Use it to pull building-targeting troops, so that instead of defending them while they are on your tower constantly dealing damage, the Tesla can soak up hits. If they're using Golem/Lava Hound and place their Golem/Lava Hound in the back, Tesla immediately (or go RG to punish then go Tesla); so that if they use a spell on it, you can get back to another one.

Skeletons: Skeletons are your main swarm, so you can use them to tank damage from single-targeting units. In addition, they have good DPS for just one elixir, so you can use it on top of any troop that either cannot hit Skeletons or is distracted for a while by something else. You can surround certain splash units so that it takes 1/2 hits in order for it to completely kill the Skeletons. Alone, it can counter Bandit, Musketeer, Mini PEKKA, and Wall Breakers.

Electro Spirit: The Electro Spirit is a good card in this deck, since by itself it can counter swarms pretty well, reset targets, stun units, and tank some shot(s) from certain troops. It gives the opponent easy king tower activations with minimal damage, but king tower activation doesn't matter and doesn't affect any of your cards with the exception of Fisherman, which rarely gets to the tower anyways.

The Log: The Log is your only small spell. It isn't a good idea to cycle it at the start of the game, since the opponent could be running log bait. If they aren't running log bait, cycle it, although if it seems to provide good defensive value, use it. It can be used to delay troops to (sometimes) decrease/prevent damage, stop charges (Prince, Dark Prince, Battle Ram, and Ram Rider's), and it is the only card that can stop the Mega Knight jump. In order to stop a Mega Knight jump, log before it hits the air and when it is preparing to jump.

Fireball: Fireball is your big spell. It is a good idea to learn the interactions.

Strategy and Tips[]

Starting off the match (0 min - whenever opponent plays a 5+ elixir card)[]

You may cycle Fisherman, Electro Spirit, Skeletons, or Fisherman in the back. All of the ones listed except for Skeletons will force out a response, or give you some damage. Don't make the first big play, and just cycle your cards.
It's usually a good idea to not cycle Log, since the opponent could be using log bait, and can result on a lot of damage on your tower.
Don't cycle your Hunter either, since it can easily be dealt with due to its slow attack speed and moderate health. It is best to save it for use on defense, as it can be much more valuable on defense than on offense.

Early Game (whenever opponent plays a 5+ elixir card - 2 mins)[]

This is a good time to out-cycle your opponent's counter to your RG, since elixir generates slowly.
This time is a good opportunity to identify what deck the opponent could be playing. It is not very easy to master this, but as you play more around the 6.5k trophy range (below that it's pretty much random midladder decks) you'll start to recognize decks when only a few cards are played by the opponent. For example, an Ice Wizard + Tesla probably means Ice-Bow, and Bandit + Royal Ghost likely means PEKKA Bridge Spam.
The opponent's pushes shouldn't be too big, but if the opponent overcommits, or you are up a lot of elixir, RG at the bridge immediately so that they have little elixir to defend it. This is called "punishing" the opponent, and can result in a ton of damage on the opponent's tower, while forcing out a response to minimize the opponent's push.
You should never Fireball cycle, since it is a huge investment, considering that taking out a princess tower will not result in an immediate victory, and that elixir generates slowly. If the tower is on relatively low health, consider log cycling if you do not need log on defense.

Middle Game (double elixir)[]

It is harder to out-cycle your opponents, since they have more elixir and can put down more cards to get back to their counters faster, while your RG moves at the same speed. However, don't be afraid to attempt to out-cycle if their deck is significantly slower than yours, as getting damage here if you haven't got a significant damage advantage is crucial.
You might consider going RG in the back, then cycling to another RG to overwhelm your opponent. They will likely (since most decks aren't cycle decks) have time to place down only a couple of counters and can result in a ton of damage on a certain side. It doesn't really matter that you have an RG going to the healthiest princess tower, since the opponent will have to simultaneously defend both sides and you're pretty much guaranteed to get damage on both towers.
Since elixir is generated faster, it will be harder to punish your opponents, but don't be afraid to if you have a significant elixir advantage.
If it's hard to break through and you have gotten a significant damage lead, you might consider only defending, spell cycling in triple elixir, and go for a draw and win through the tie breaker. If you haven't gotten a significant damage lead, try to break through with double RG to overwhelm your opponent (see above).

Late Game (triple elixir)[]

If you are at this stage, it probably has proven difficult for you to break through, and since elixir will be generated faster, it is even harder to punish opponents. If you already have a good damage lead, consider spell cycling the opponent and win through the tie breaker.
You should only play defense and spell cycle, since the chance of your RG breaking through is slim, due to the speed of elixir generation. However, it is still possible to overwhelm your opponent with double RGs, so you might consider trying that if you are at a damage disadvantage, or have a very slight damage advantage.

Matchups[]

Hog Rider: This is one of the cheapest win conditions out there. It's fast, can jump over rivers, and has a large range of sight. Against Hog cycle decks, it is typically a good idea to not try to out-cycle the opponent, as you'll just be wasting your time. Remember to keep on cycling back to the Tesla since they will likely try to out-cycle you. Against Hog EQ, place your Tesla high so that they can't get Earthquake value with the tower. If they decide to use Earthquake on your Tesla, Skeletons and an Electro Spirit should finish it off.
X-Bow: Most people either hate it or love it. You can easily out-cycle Ice-Bow with this deck, so it won't be difficult to take out their X-Bow. However, X-Bow cycle decks are more difficult. Try and apply pressure with your RG in single, then defend in double elixir, since RG is your only good counter to it, and without it the opponent can, and probably will break through with the X-Bow. If you don't have your RG in cycle, consider going for a Tesla with a few supporting units.
Mortar: Mortar is essentially a less annoying version of X-Bow. It can easily be taken out with a Tesla, but usually they'll support it, so be prepared with a Log or an Electro Spirit to help out the Tesla. Against Mortar bait, have your Log prepared for the Goblin Gang and Fireball for the Mortar. It's a pretty easy matchup, since you can just counter the Mortar for a -2 trade, although you get a very healthy RG as counter push.
P.E.K.K.A. Bridge Spam: This is actually a rather difficult matchup since they have P.E.K.K.A. to wreck your RG, then a full health P.E.K.K.A. as counter push. Play defensive, and try to out-cycle the opponent's P.E.K.K.A., as they don't have a good counter to it otherwise and the deck doesn't have a building.
LavaLoon: This is a rather easy matchup, as you have your Hunter to shred through air troops, and the Hunter is great at taking out both the Lava Hound itself and the pups that spawn upon death. If you wish to use the Hunter for another reason, then the Electro Spirit is also great at taking out the pups that spawn. As for offense, use RG at the bridge same-lane immediately after they put down their Lava Hound, in order to punish the opponent. Save your Hunter for when the Lava Hound + Balloon combo is played, as it can absolutely shred it.
Lava Clone: Same general rules apply as stated above, but keep your Electro Spirit to chain onto everything and kill all the swarms. The Hunter might help in taking out the clones too.
Golem Beatdown: Golem Beatdown is a very hard matchup. On defense, Tesla immediately after they Golem so that you can get back to another in case they use Lightning on it. Try to place it high, so that the opponent cannot get Lightning value with both the Tower and the Tesla. The Hunter is very effective at taking out the Bats that spawn from the Night Witch, and the same goes for the Electro Spirit as well. As for offense, RG opposite lane if they use Golem in the back, in order to punish them. If they have ignored it, try to defend as best as possible until overtime, since you will probably have taken their tower.
Graveyard: Use a Tesla to distract the tank that they play for the Graveyard, or if needed, Hunter in front of the tower, so that it can kill nearby troops, tank some shots from the Skeletons and after that kill some Skeletons as well. You should go opposite lane, so that they can't use their counter push to tank for their Graveyard, or will otherwise result in damage dealt earlier rendered useless. If necessary, you can tower trade, as the king tower will be activated and it will be very hard for the opponent to win.
- Bonus tip: if you're facing against Splashyard, you can position your Fisherman so that it will hook the Bowler towards it, and then so that the bowling balls coming from the Bowler hit the Fisherman and roll all the way to the king tower, resulting in a pretty much inevitable defeat for the opponent. This is a genius tip that will usually help you win against any Graveyard + Bowler deck.
Sparky Goblin Giant: This shouldn't be too difficult, since you have Skeletons to distract the Sparky for up to two hits and the Electro Spirit to either tank a hit or reset the Sparky. A Tesla + Hunter on defense is a good idea to prevent both the Goblin Giant from getting onto your tower, and the Hunter + Tesla will survive to (hopefully) wreck the Sparky. As for offense, try to not to go RG into a Sparky, as you will get only a few shots on the tower and they will have a full health Sparky along with other units counter pushing towards your tower.
Classic Log Bait: This is another rather difficult matchup, since they can easily Rocket cycle while using Inferno Tower to counter your RG for a positive elixir trade. Save your Log for the Goblin Barrel, and Hunter for the Goblin Gang. Try and out-cycle the opponent's Inferno Tower, apply pressure so they can't Rocket cycle, and do not give them Rocket value with your tower.
Midladder Deck: This part is for all you midladder players facing against Mega Knight, Wizard, Balloon, Freeze, Rage + Elite Barbarians, etc.. You can easily out-cycle most midladder decks, so use that to your advantage. Mega Knight can easily be countered with a Tesla + Knight combo, although you might want to use Knight + Hunter if they have a win condition that requires pulling with the Tesla. Wizard or Magic Archer should almost always be Fireballed. Be prepared for pretty much anything, such as Freeze or Rage. You never know what they could be using.

Finishing Tips[]

Do not spell cycle with one of your spells or cycle one of your cards if it is needed on defense. This can cause much more damage on your towers than dealt by the troop/spell.
Be prepared for spells. This is important. For example, if you place Skeletons to counter a Sparky, they could use a Zap spell on the Skeletons and the Sparky could lock on to a crucial defensive unit.
A "cycle deck" is not necessarily defined by the elixir cost. For example, if a deck was full of 3 elixir cards, the average elixir cost would be 3.0, making it seem like a cycle deck. This is not the case though. It is mainly defined by fairly cheap tank and anti-air cards, along with at least two one elixir cards. It depends on the lowest elixir required to get back to a certain card, but since you probably need to play more than your cheapest cards, the other cards should be relatively cheap as well.
Tesla placements
- When defending against non-building targeting troops in general, the best position would be to place it 3 tiles from the river and in the middle of the arena. This position will pull almost any troop, so it can provide good defensive value. Although it seems like the perfect placement for the Tesla, some troops will bypass and the Tesla can easily be sniped with most ranged units.
- Another riskier position is something 4 tiles from the river. This will pull less troops, but can be great at pulling tanks the maximum distance, and preventing the opponent from sniping the Tesla with certain ranged units. Some units can still snipe it if something else is allowing the Tesla to stay above ground.
- Those are the main positions, but there are many others that are simply too specific to go over.