Really Balanced Deck

Introduction

Hi there! My name is ShadowDragonDude, and I'm here today with a deck that has it all- splash, win cons, anti-air, anti-tanks, spells and more. This deck has gotten me countless wins, but don't judge me if this deck does not work for you- it IS my first deck, after all. I hope this deck works for you the way it worked for me. Let's take a look.

Deck Information[]

Deck created by: ShadowDragonDude

Minimum recommended King Level: 8

Maximum recommended King Level: 13

Arena Required: Electro Valley (Wrong?)

Average Elixir Cost: 4.1 (Wrong?)

More Statistics: Go to Deck Builder

Card Roles[]

Tower Troop:

Skeleton Army: The Skeleton Army is a great counter to any building targeter- apart from Lava Hound and Electro Giant- and most slow-hitting single-target troops, such as P.E.K.K.A. or its Mini counterpart. If you put it behind a slow but heavy hitting troop, or even a moderately-heavy hitting troop like the Mega Knight, you could use their speed to your advantage and deal a lot of damage to a Tower

Inferno Dragon: The Inferno Dragon, bane of all tanks. Pairing with the Baby Dragon to make the Double-Dragon combo is definitely not something your opponent would want. The Inferno Dragon is really, pathetically weak to swarms, though, so always keep a spell or splasher in hand. However, against fast tanks or mini-tanks, like Mini P.E.K.K.A or Lumberjack, a good idea is to have The Log at the ready to knock them back, or a Skeleton Army to keep the troop distracted. This is because if the troop is faster, or of equal speed to, the Inferno Dragon, it will constantly have to follow the troop, and will get minimized damage output.

Baby Dragon: Ah, the Baby Dragon. Relatively tanky, a splasher, and does quite a decent amount of damage... pretty good card if you ask me. This little dragon can tank for your Inferno Dragon, allowing it to wreck your opponent's tower. However, be prepared if your opponent quickly destroys your Baby Dragon, as quite a few cards can take it down- the Baby-D (Sounds like a gangsta rapper name to me lol) will lose against troops like the Musketeer, Flying Machine or Wizard when on your opponents side of the arena.

Poison: Any good deck should have a spell, and this deck's main spell is Poison. A great crippler, it deals damage over 8 seconds, and can shatter glass cannons (Get it? Shatter glass?), and take down swarms like the Skeleton Army or Goblin Gang. A great strategy? Let's say that your opponent places the Magic Archer at the back. Poison the are he'll walk in, and when he just steps outside of it, Log him back. This is better if they place a combo that involves two similar-hp troops, like Magic Archer + Musketeer, Witch + Wizard, etc, to get maximum value. This spell could be used with Ram Rider- have the spell in hand, and send the Rider in. If they counter with a Skeleton Army, or Minion Horde, use Poison.

The Log: The Log is a great spell to have in any deck, as the knockback, cheap cost and versatility is undeniable. Paired with Ram Rider, it will take care of any swarms that may threaten her, and will push back a charging Prince or his Dark counterpart to minimize damage. It can also be used to cycle, though the overall average cost of the deck may compromise the cycle.

Electro Wizard: The Electro Wizard, AKA the E-Wiz, is a pretty good card to use. His stun will stop a Prince, Dark Prince, or Ram Rider from charging, will reset an Inferno Dragon/Tower's damage ramp-up, and will stop a Sparky from charging up its attack. Dealing spawn damage, he can counter a swarm, and his stun could force your opponent to re-target your Mega Knight instead of your E-Wiz. Not to mention the relatively high damage for a 4-elixir, medium health troop, he is a pretty great card.

Ram Rider: Any good deck should have at least 1 building targeter, and this deck's one is the Ram Rider. Like the Hog Rider or Royal Hogs, she can jump over the river, and her snare will greatly slow any target. What I sometimes do is when the opponent has a slow-but-heavy-hitting troop, like P.E.K.K.A. or Valkyrie (she's just annoying), I spawn a Ram Rider 3 tiles diagonally away. This will make the troop follow, until the Rider snares them, and nearly immobilizes them. The Ram Rider is also your main win condition. Your goal is to get the Rider to connect to the Tower and get a few hits in.

Mega Knight: Probably the most annoying card to play against, the Mega Knight, in my opinion, is one of the best legendary cards in all of Clash Royale. Dealing a lot of spawn damage, this card is great on defense and offense alike, and his splash damage will get rid of any swarms. He has a lot of health, and can tank for anything. When he jumps, he does so much damage, and can quickly take out pretty much any card, 1v1. Except maybe a P.E.K.K.A. or Sparky, but still he is pretty good..

Strategy[]

Putting a Skeleton Army behind a Mega Knight is a great strategy. The speed of the Army will push the tank faster towards a Tower, and the results could devastate your opponent. A Skeleton Army can take down anything from a Hog Rider to a Prince. Unless they have splash of course.
Another strategy is to place the Ram Rider behind your King Tower. When she charges, place the Mega Knight at the bridge. The charging Ram Rider's speed will push the Mega Knight, and since he has a big splash radius, he'll take care of any swarms. The Rider's snare can also affect air troops, and slow down anything. You might want to have a Poison ready for air troops. Remember, your main goal in that push is to get the Ram Rider to connect with the Tower, charging or no.
Place the Skeleton Army behind your King Tower to invest in a push. When the Army gets to the bridge, place the two Dragons at the bridge. They will tank for the army, and have the potential to devastate a Tower. However, you must be mindful of spells, and high-damage splashers, like Wizard or Executioner. You would want to put the Baby Dragon in front of the Inferno Dragon, as the former is tankier, and will allow the latter to devastate the Tower. This is a great combo.
This combo is very effective, and puts pressure on your opponent. Save up to 10 elixir, then place a Mega Knight at the bridge, and a Ram Rider in the opposite lane. This will exert pressure, and the opponent will be forced to choose between defending one, then wait for the elixir to provide a sufficient amount to counter the other. I think the minimum amount of elixir to counter both with minimal damage to the towers would be 5- 2 elixir for Zap, on the Ram Rider, and 3 elixir for something like a Bandit, Knight, Royal Ghost, etc.
The Skeleton Army is a great card to bait any spell, with the exception of Lightning and Rocket, so when you play the Army, you can safely send in a Ram Rider or Baby Dragon in. However, don't send in the Skeleton Army just for the sake of baiting a spell; use it against a single-target troop, that will take a bit of damage before the Army gets spelled away.

Substitutes[]

These are the closest cards that have a similar role in this deck, however you should only use these if you really want to, or if you don't have the cards;

Skeleton Army: This is a key card in the deck, as it is the biggest swarm and therefore the most effective against cards like P.E.K.K.A.s or Elite Barbarians. The best substitute would be Guards, because they have shields and are therefore spell-resistant, and it takes nine shots from a Princess Tower of equal level to kill them all, as the shields are typically two-shot.
Baby Dragon: If you want to trade defensive power for offensive power, a fairly decent substitute would be the Skeleton Dragons. For slightly less health, they offer more damage, and the fact that there are two of them typically means they will get a bit more damage onto the Tower. However, the Skeleton Dragons are more vulnerable to splashers, as the Baby Dragon is just one troop.
Poison: This substitute depends on whether you want effectiveness against troops, or effectiveness against buildings. The Earthquake is the better choice if you want to deal more damage to your opponent's Tower, but for 1 more Elixir, Poison deals damage to air troops, does more damage, AND is more effective against the Night Witch, as the Poison will kill the spawned Bats as well as crippling the Night Witch herself.
The Log: The Log is a very versatile spell, is cheap, stops a Ram Rider, Prince, or his Dark counterpart from charging, and will knock back, and therefore stall, any troop. The closest substitute is obviously the Zap spell. For an equal elixir cost, it is as practical as The Log, can target air, and not only can it stop one of the aforementioned troops from charging, it can also stop an Inferno card from ramping up its attack, AND reset a Sparky's charge-up. A great sub.
Inferno Dragon: This is a really hard card to substitute. The closest substitute is obviously the Inferno Tower, but the ability to not only move around and fly, but to be able to attack the Towers too, is very valuable. However, if you go with the Inferno Tower, it's pretty good as it plays the same role- tank-killing- and can also pull building targeters.
Electro Wizard: In my opinion, Electro Dragon is the best substitute for the E-Wiz. They both have different advantages, though- The Electro Wizard has a spawn-zap, and attacks two enemies at once, but the E-Dragon has chain damage and can fly. This substitute is an ok one, because both have slightly different uses, apart from stunning.
Ram Rider: This is not one of the cards you want to substitute. This is just the card you substitute only if you don't have it. Hog Rider is the closest substitute, but that doesn't always mean the best. Balloon is a great card to use, as the ability to fly, deal insane damage to Crown Towers, and the fact that it has quite a bit of health is a pretty decent substitute for speed and slowing enemies to a crawl.
Mega Knight: If you prefer brute attacking power over spawn damage and splash damage, P.E.K.K.A is the best substitute, as not only is it the card with the sixth highest HP in the game (fifth is Lava Hound, fourth is Giant, third is Electro Giant, second is Mega Knight, first is Golem) but it does a scary, insanely high amount of damage. It is also easier to get, requiring only P.E.K.K.A.'s Playhouse- most people choose it anyways- so it is definitely a good sub. Keep in mind, ALWAYS have a spell, or a splasher behind the P.E.K.K.A., in case of swarms.

Matchups[]

Beatdown Decks:[]

Golem Night Witch:[]

This is a relatively good matchup, as the Inferno Dragon can take care of the Golem and Baby Dragon, your Baby Dragon can take down Night Witch, you have Poison for their Elixir Collector, and the rest are relatively easy. However, if they make a big push, which is the point of that deck, you could wind up being at an elixir disadvantage. It also relies on the skill of the player. Overall, I think this is a 7/10.

LavaLoon:[]

Ok, Imma be perfectly honest here- I hate LavaLoon users. This matchup, like almost every matchup here, relies on their skill. Inferno Dragon and Ram Rider should be put under the Balloon, as it is the bigger threat. The Ram Rider will snare both troops, and the Balloon will get very few, if any, hits on the Tower. The Lava Hound is to be dealt with in a similar manner. The Tombstone is no big threat, apart from distracting your Ram Rider. Minions and Mega Minion can be taken down by E-Wiz, and the Guards by almost any card here. I'm giving this a 6/10.

P.E.K.K.A. Bridge Spam:[]

Another OK matchup. You should bait the spells, then place Skeleton Army, as it counters most of the cards in this deck, and it would be a shame to see them get Zapped away. Skeleton Army can take down P.E.K.K.A., Battle Ram, E-Wiz, Bandit, and even Royal Ghost if used correctly. Minions? Use Baby Dragon. Don't have Skeleton Army for the P.E.K.K.A.? Inferno Dragon. E-Wiz counters E-Wiz. This is a pretty good matchup. 7/10

Siege Decks:[]

2.9 Mortar Cycle:[]

I put this under "Siege" because it has Mortar, even though it's a cycle deck. Anyways, this is a fairly easy matchup. Being a cycle deck, it has fairly frail troops, and since the Ram Rider can jump over the river, getting a connection to the Mortar should be fairly easy. Archers can be taken by The Log, Ice Spirit also, and Skeletons are no threat whatsoever. Knight can be taken by E-Wiz. The only real problem is if they start Rocket cycling, or spell cheesing. Should be easy enough, but if they start Tornado-Rocketing, then just split push. Keep in mind- when split pushing, keep adequate distance between the cards, or the Tornado will just manage to snag the troops. The Rocket takes a long time to reach it's target, so with a pinch of luck, you might just get the troops out of reach. 6/10

IceBow Control:[]

Yeah, yeah, this is technically a control deck, hence the name, but ALSO a SIEGE DECK. Anyways, if playing bad to average players, this should be a good matchup. Higher-skill opponents? Eh, not so much. The fact that the deck has not one, but TWO buildings is a serious problem for the Ram Rider- Tesla will dps her to low health, then (almost) any other troop will take her down. X-Bow can snipe the towers and troops, but Inferno Dragon can quickly take it down, Mega Knight and Ram Rider can jump over the river to attack it, so the X-Bow will not do so much damage. Anyways, this is also a bit of a cycle deck, so naturally most of the troops are frail. The one problem would be negative trades. All those trades will eventually stack up. 5/10

2.9 X-Bow[]

I GET IT IT'S A CYCLE DECK BUT X-BOW = SIEGE!!! Sorry I have issues. Anyways, I probably sound like a parrot at this point, and my butt hurts from sitting on this chair too long, but most cycle decks have relatively poor defense. Not so much on this one. Both Tesla and X-Bow will prove as problems for your pushes, particularly for Ram Rider. Ice Spirit and Archers can be taken by The Log, Skeletons are no threat. Ice Golem can be taken if you Log it when it's halfway to your tower, knocking it back, dealing damage, and delaying it. Pretty easy matchup, if I say so myself. 7/10

Bait Decks[]

Log Bait[]

You gotta find out if they use Log Bait asap. The Log is like one of the only positive trades you have in this deck. Save it exclusively for Goblin Barrel- Princess can be taken by Skeleton Army if it's locked on already, E-Wiz will counter Inferno Tower, Goblin Gang by E-Wiz's spawn Zap, Knight by almost anything. You might wanna bait their Log with Ram Rider, and Rocket is pretty much the only BIG threat. That you can't counter, that is. But you have to figure out if they are using a Log bait, or you might just go down a bunch of elixir and lose a lot of tower health. 5/10

Zap Bait[]

Not sure how this is going to play out, considering this deck does not have Zap. As I recall, Zap Bait usually has Spear Goblins, Bats and Skeleton Barrel as their primary baiters. Inferno Dragon too. Miner, Zap and Mega Knight take up the other slots. This deck is considerably easy, and certainly easier than Log Bait in my opinion. In fact, you can also bait their Zap- Skeleton Army, Inferno Dragon and Ram Rider all bait Zap. This deck is certainly a Chippy-Chippy-Bait deck, with a cycle element. The opponent will chip health off your Tower(s) and that's all they can really do. Try as best as you can to make it a two-tower game (having to take a second Tower to win, as it would be overtime) or even better, 3-tower game- this deck has relatively poor defense. Much better matchup than Log Bait. 7/10.

Cycle Decks[]

2.6 Hog Cycle[]

In most cases, this would be an easy matchup, but since this deck's counters are relatively expensive, so they will- obviously- out-cycle you. Your biggest hope? Pressure them HARD on offense- they might cycle to 3 cannons, but this prevents them from spamming Hog Riders, unless they're planning on beating you first. Mega Knight counters every card in that deck, and proves a serious danger on offense, defenses and counter-pushing. Bait Log with Ram Rider so that Skeleton Army will destroy the Hog Rider, and just make a big blockade- Mega Knight combined with pretty much any ground troop will cause a barrier for their Hog. Double Elixir is your best friend here- you can spam Mega Knights and Ram Riders faster. This highly depends on the skill of the player, but overall I think this is a 6/10.

Freeze-yard cycle[]

Ok, this deck is not seen that often but is still seen, and can be deadly if you don't know how to counter it. Since it is a cycle deck, naturally this deck's defense is less than average- Skeletons, Ice Spirit, Ice Golem and Archers are no great threat. Well, Ice Golem can kite, and Archers don't die to Log and do a LOT of dps. Skeletons distract, and Ice Spirit distract and reset. So, if the player has average or below-average skill, you are almost guaranteed a free win- skilled players, not so much. HOWEVER, there is always a hope- should you also take a Tower before overtime, then it's a death sentence for the other team, as Graveyard with an activated King Tower? Yeah, GG. Dark Prince is a threat, but can be stopped by a slowing Ram Rider- with the help of your Tower- or by a Skeleton Army surrounding him, again with the help of your Tower. If you make a big push, you are unstoppable- unless they punish you for elixir by a Graveyard. This deck typically has no big spell. 8/10

Card Matchups[]

This section is on how to defeat particular cards that may pose a threat to multiple cards, and I try to keep the counters either a positive or neutral trade, or a maximum of a negative trade of 1 elixir. Also, credit to TimHusky for inspiring this. Well, for inspiring my train of thought that led to this. Anyways, let's go in.

P.E.K.K.A.[]

Now, this deck has Skeleton Army, but they can be Logged, Zapped, Arrowed, Snowballed, Barbarian Barrel-d, and yeah, you get it. What I do is use Inferno Dragon, bait the Zap (if there is one), send in Skeleton Army, then counter-push. Simple yet effective.

Fisherman[]

He can pull your Ram Rider for a King activation, stop your MK from jumping, and is a threat anyways. E-Wiz- if on your side of the Arena- can counter him and deal a bit of damage to the opponent's Tower. Skeleton Army is also viable.

Inferno Tower[]

Much bigger threat than Inferno Dragon; you can't just drop an Electro Wizard on it, it will pull and melt your Ram Rider, and if placed one tile from the river, near the center, E-Wiz will have to run around the river, with the Inferno Tower melting through him. If there is no space between the Inferno Tower and river, however, E-Wiz will be able to stun it. I usually wait it out, pushing opposite lane. Inferno Dragon will be melted by it, as will MK. A very hard card, but E-Wiz is your best bet.

Graveyard[]

Skeleton Army and Poison are the cards you want to use, not the Mega Knight- save him for big pushes with frail support. Skeleton Army with the help of your Princess Tower will shred the Graveyard, and Poison will clear them out with time to spare. Worst-case scenario, use Baby Dragon. I generally try to use my Skeleton Army instead of Poison as it's more elixir efficient. Only use Poison or Baby D if you don't have Skeleton Army.

Witch[]

DartDartPopper asked for this one. You could drop a Mega Knight on her, but we're looking to save elixir here. Poison is your go-to card here- if they place her in the back, wait for her to be 1 tile from the Princess Tower. Then, deploy Poison so that just one tile of it covers the Princess Tower- it should maximize the distance the Witch has to travel before escaping the Poison, AND deal damage to the Tower. Positive trade, with some Tower Damage. If Poison is unavailable, Baby Dragon is another good counter- his splash should take care of the Skellies whilst chipping the Witch, then it'll lock onto the witch. Another positive trade.

Elite Barbarians[]

Damaging20202020201 asked for this. So, You can either drop a Mega Knight right on top of them for a negative trade of 1, but have some pretty good counter-push value, OR you could drop a Skeleton Army. The latter is not recommended- little to no counter-push value, and can- and most definitely will- easily be spelled away. If you don't have MK in hand, you are in danger. You could do a Skarmy + E-Wiz combo, but this is not highly reliable. What I like to do is Skeleton Army, get some decent damage in, then Log the E-Barbs. Only Log them if the Skarmy gets spelled away. Raged E-Barbs are the same- counter with MK. The outcome? A positive trade, but with slightly less counter-push value. If you don't have MK and your Skeleton Army gets spelled away, Poison + Log is your best bet. Not a good one, but your best one. And maybe a distraction/Inferno/Baby Dragon

Hunter[]

Un legendary guy with a duck2 has a valid point when saying that Hunter counters 5/8 cards in this deck- pretty scary considering that he will only lose to one troop- he can't counter spells-. That troop is the Mega Knight, but he will lose quite some health, and is a negative trade. We want the most elixir-efficient counters possible. Enter the Poison. The Poison will not completely kill the Hunter, but will give him the tiniest sliver of health remaining, that your Tower should have absolutely 0 trouble defeating. However, the higher the level of the Hunter, the less damage he'll take from an equal-level Poison; Level 9 Poison does a total of 600 damage; a level 9 Hunter has 696 health. Not much of a difference. However, levelling up Poison does not significantly increase it's damage; levelling up a Hunter significantly raises its health. However, the Hunter should get an ABSOLUTE MAXIMUM of 2 shots on the Tower if you use Poison to the fullest. I will post a link to Hunter and Poison for more info on levelling up. Hunter Poison . As well as this, Log is a counter, in a way. Say you put a ranged unit like the Baby Dragon down for a bridge rush. You can Log the Hunter they spawn right under the Baby-D, reducing it's damage. The same goes for Inferno Dragon and E-Wiz.

Flying Machine[]

Typicallumberjack wanted to know how to counter Flying machine. This card is actually a bit annoying- it physically cannot be kited, as its aggro range (sight range) is the same to it's attack range. As soon as the would-be kiter moves out of the 6.5 tile radius, the Flying Machine will go away and lose interest. However, since it is a Fireballie, and Poison does more damage than Fireball, Poison is your go-to card. If you do not have it, Baby Dragon is viable, as is E-Wiz. Inferno Dragon is not recommended- save it for the big tanks. Distracting the Machine with Skeleton Army is also viable.

Electro Wizard[]

Another one from Un legendary guy with a duck2. As mentioned in the P.E.K.K.A. Bridgespam matchup, Electro Wizard will lose to your Electro Wizard when on your side of the Arena, or if you spawn-zap him first. Baby Dragon is viable, as, of course, is Skeleton Army. Poison is a moderate counter- his speed will allow him to evade the Poison eventually. However, the aforementioned counters are the cards to use.

Cannon Cart[]

Another one from (who else) Un legendary guy with a duck2. Thanks for all the ideas, and the help in even making the deck. Now, back to business. Cannon Cart is a very annoying, strong and- thankfully- underrated as well as underused. It has very high speed, great dps and health, and a connection will hurt. A lot. Well, we know that Skeleton Army is most definitely a counter, as is E-Wiz- kind of. Poison? Yes, except the Cart will still get a lot of hits. Poison + Log is a good option; place Poison as you would with Witch (see above) if they put the Cart in the back, then Log the Cart- preferably getting some value- back into the Poison. Inferno Dragon? Eh, it's all right but there are better cards to use it on. Ram Rider is- if the fight is on your side of the arena- a moderate counter.

Dark Prince[]

Another one from DartDartPopper, the Dark Prince is hard to counter for a positive trade... but it's not impossible. Skeleton Army is, if placed so that it surrounds the Dark Prince, an entirely viable counter- if on your side of the Arena. Electro Wizard is your other counter- if, once again, on your side of the Arena. The Log to stall also works, but you will take a bit of damage.

PLEASE PUT HARD CARDS IN THE COMMENTS AS I AM LACKING IDEAS- I will put them in along with how to counter them.