AI Overview: This Goison deck averages 3.4 elixir and pairs a Giant and a Prince with Mega Minion, Musketeer and Poison. Giant had no 2026 change and wins 71.6% in his best list, but only one of seven Prince lists wins above 50%. The old plan to push aggressively still fits a cheap deck, though Guards are weak in 2026 lists.
Last Updated: October 2026
Key Points:
- The deck costs 27 elixir, which is 3.4 on average, and it is cheap enough to push often.
- Giant had no 2026 change, and his best list wins 71.6% over 587 battles.
- Prince had no 2026 change, but only one of seven printed lists wins above 50% (best 52.5% over 1,300).
- Guards have a best list of 50.1%, and the other seven lists win 42.2% to 48.7%.
- Musketeer had no 2026 change, and Poison lost Crown Tower damage on June 1 (184 to 168).
The Goison List, Priced Card by Card
Here’s the thing: this is a Giant Prince deck for the new meta, with a 3.4 average. Do not play it like a slow beatdown deck, he wrote, or you will not get enough damage. The pros were good defense and offense, and the cons were that it is hard to play and easy to get caught with no elixir.
| Card | Elixir | Job in the deck | 2026 status |
| Giant | 5 | Main win condition, used aggressively | No 2026 change; best list 71.6% over 587 |
| Prince | 5 | Tank killer and second win condition | No 2026 change; best list 52.5% over 1,300, only one of seven above 50% |
| Mega Minion | 3 | Support, kills glass cannons | No printed list above 50% (Hero 47.7%, base 44.7%) |
| Guards | 3 | Solid defense, replaced Goblins | No 2026 change; best list 50.1%, the other seven 42.2% to 48.7% |
| Musketeer | 4 | Long-range support and defense | No 2026 change; Evo and Hero lists mostly 53% or more, best Hero 62.1% |
| Ice Spirit | 1 | Freeze and cheap cycle | Hitpoints 230 to 215 on August 4; every printed list 56.7% or more |
| Zap | 2 | Cheap reset spell | Crown Tower damage 58 to 48 on June 1; Evo Zap 77.0% over about 1,000 |
| Poison | 4 | Small damage spell for glass cannons | Crown Tower damage 184 to 168 on June 1; best list 68.6% over about 3,800 |
The table prices the cards and shows how each looks in October 2026.
Guards and Prince are the weak numbers in this list. The negative effect: Guards replaced Goblins in virtually every deck, but their 2026 lists mostly win under 49%, and a player who still trusts them may find the defense thinner than expected.
What Changed in 2026
The Giant is in good shape and the Prince is steady but weak. The Prince is everywhere on ladder after a buff, and in 2026 he has no patch and only one list above 50%. The Mega Minion has no printed list above 50% either, so it is the first card to swap.
Claims, rechecked. Prince is a good tank killer and great against support troops like the Mini P.E.K.K.A. The Prince’s best list in 2026 wins 52.5%, so he is not strong in numbers. The old claim that increasing his hit speed would massively affect usage cannot be rechecked, since he had no change this year.
The Musketeer is the steady support. She had no 2026 change, and her Evolution and Hero lists mostly win 53% or more. The Ice Spirit has every list at 56.7% or more. Zap lost tower damage (58 to 48), and Poison lost it (184 to 168).
Card pages: Giant, Prince and Musketeer.
A cheap Giant deck leaves little room for error. The negative effect: it is easy to get caught with no elixir, and a player who overcommits to a push can lose a tower on the counter, since the deck has no cheap win condition to hit back.
How to Play It Today
Here’s the thing: use the Giant frequently and aggressively, even in single elixir, building pushes with the Prince, Mega Minion and Musketeer. The Musketeer can defend something in the other lane because she fires across the arena, and then you place a Giant in front for the counter-push.
Tips. The Mega Minion is a staple tank support. The Prince is much more of a threat with higher damage per second. Guards have a slight range from their swords, like the Prince.
Translation: the Prince protects the Musketeer and Mega Minion from Mini P.E.K.K.As, and works as a second win condition. Use the Guards like Goblins on defense, and do not cycle them. They do quite well against a Hog. A Giant plus Prince plus a small spell is a threat to be reckoned with.
Elixir math: the Giant and Prince take 10 of the 27 elixir. The other six cost 17, about 2.8 each, which is why the deck can push over and over.
Try it yourself: test Goison Deck yourself in the Clash Royale Deck Builder; it opens with every card in place. Average elixir: 3.4. The tracker holds no sample of this exact build, so its 2026 win rate is unknown.
Many players call the deck hard to play. The negative effect: knowing when to play which card is the whole game, and with a thin Prince record, a player who misjudges one push may lose the whole match.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Goison good in 2026?
Giant’s best list wins 71.6% and Musketeer’s Evolution and Hero lists mostly win 53% or more, but only one of seven Prince lists is above 50%, so this list is a base to tune, starting with the Guards slot.
What does the deck cost on average?
27 elixir in total across eight cards, an average of 3.4.
Why is it called Goison?
It is the community name for a Giant and Poison deck.
Should the deck play slowly?
No. Push often and aggressively, even in single elixir.
What can replace Guards?
Original Guide, Kept in Full
The text below is the original page, kept in full. It was written between 2016 and 2024, so some details are out of date. The tips and numbers above use 2026 sources.
Hey guys, it’s NebulaNoodle here again with another guide after a long time! Today I’m presenting to you an extremely good Giant Prince deck for the new meta.
| Deck | Cards | Avg elixir | Needs |
| Deck in this guide | 3.4 | Arena 9 (Poison) |
Pros:
- Well suited for the next meta
- Amazing defense and offense
- Very offensive and pressuring
- Counters many popular decks
Cons:
- Hard to play- you need to know when to play which card when.
- Easy to get caught with no elixir, you have to manage your pushes and know not to overcommit on the push
The Goison Deck
Giant
Your main win condition.
You will want to be using him frequently and aggressively, even in single elixir, building up pushes with Prince and Mega Minion and Musketeer, mostly.
This deck is very cheap (only 3.4 elixir!) So don’t play like a slow beatdown deck, testing out the opponent’s deck, or else you won’t be getting enough damage!
Mega Minion
One of the best support troops of all time.
Can take out glass cannons with ease, does really good damage, and is especially good and a staple in tank decks.
The all-rounder!
Musketeer
Musketeers have been firing guns since Training Camp!
Another staple tank support, can take out troops from long range.
Take advantage of her long range. Place her in the other lane to defend something (as she can fire across the arena) and place a Giant in front for the counterpush!
Add troops as desired.
Prince
Prince is everywhere in ladder after the buff.
He is pretty good at killing tanks and great against support troops, like the Mini Pekka. Increasing his hitspeed and hitpoints will massively affect the usage rates.
He will be much more of a threat to deal with, with higher DPS.
Combined with Giant and a small spell, he is a threat to be reckoned with.
He also protects the Musketeer/Mega Minion from Mini Pekkas or the like, and can be used as a win condition as well.
Guards:
Finally these bone brothers with shields have gained some love with the recent buff.
They have replaced Goblins in virtually every deck, being an extremely solid defensive unit (their shields are incredibly useful!)
Don’t use them on offense, use them like you would with Goblins, but just don’t cycle them.
They do quite well versus a Hog, and they even have a slight range (like the Prince) because of their swords.
Their DPS has increased massively. Get them in your deck NOW!
Ice Spirit
Right, this deck needs a cycle card. Here you have one!
Ice Spirit is a very balanced card, always a great choice in every meta. Resets Princes, Sparkies, Inferno units!
Zap
Even though all the spells got a tower damage nerf, it doesn’t really matter as much as cards like Log, as you will rarely be using Zap to chip away at towers.
In rare cases, you will need to cycle your Zap at the beginning if you have a bad starting hand.
Great to reset troops (not to take out Inferno Towers!!!!!)
Poison
Yep, good ol’ poison.
Always works in a Giant deck to get nice juicy chip damage.
Don’t use it on offense until double elixir when you can start forming massive pushes.
Remember, it still does normal damage to troops/buildings, just not arena towers, so it’s completely fine to use.
Replacements
Gameplay
Good starting plays would be: Mega Minion/Musketeer/Prince at the back, Guards split at the back, Ice Spirit at the back!
Single Elixir
Play quite aggresively, and keep making quick pushes with the Giant.
Like I said before, this deck is not a slow beatdown with pump. Gaining elixir advantages is not as important, but of course you should be managing your elixir.
I suggest putting your Prince at the back and when the Prince is almost halfway to the bridge, place your Giant to not risk your Prince going in front of your giant.
You want to be using your Prince to protect your support.
The Poison will be crucial to use later on.
Don’t use pre-poisons unless you know their counters, which is why you shouldn’t use your poisons too early, or else your opponent will be able to punish you quickly for wasting your poison.
This is the elixir-advantage-generating card and probably the most valuable card in the deck!
Don’t be afraid to spam support behind the Giant and ending up with no elixir.
If you have a massive push on one side, even if you have no elixir, your opponent won’t be able to punish effectively because they will need to spend elixir defending your push.
This doesn’t just apply to this deck; it applies to most beatdown decks.
Double Elixir/OT
This is where you can overwhelm your opponent!! Send in lots of Giant pushes.
Keep applying pressure, this is the key to success in this deck.
Force your opponent to spend lots of elixir defending so he won’t be able to attack.
Don’t use Princes on their own without a Giant, you need them on defense and for the counterpush.
You could possibly just poison cycle for the win, it’s totally fine.
It’s just best to overlevel your Poison to get maximum value and kill those glass cannons!
Matchups
Lavaloon:
With less quick cycle pressure decks, Lavaloon can finally shine!
The key is poisoning the Minions, who will be your biggest threat if you waste your Poison.
Place your Mega Minion to distract while your Musketeer can kill. This deck sort of lacks an anti-air tank killer so tower trade if needs call for it.
Golem/Giant
This might be tough if you don’t play the deck right, especially against seasoned Golem users.
Prince has high HP to kill support troops, and Poison everything on the map!
Again, you can tower trade.
Quick Giant+Mega Minion at the bridge works very well
Bait:
Supercell basically nerfed Spell Bait decks but in case you come across one when using this deck, I’m writing this!
Save Zap for the Barrel and Poison Princesses/Goblin Gangs.
I’ve been seeing Miner Barrel Bait decks recently, so you should apply this to that deck too. Guards are great against the Miner.
No one is using Rocket now really, as 5% out of a high damage spell really hits the Rocket hard.
Cycle/Control:
Against Hog Cycle, which people still use (presumably because the damage/HP wasn’t nerfed), defend minimally and crush with the counterpush.
Reset buildings’ targets with Zap. Hog Exenado is popular nowadays, so Guards are a cheap and effective counter vs the Exe.
Against Miner Control decks, like Miner 3M Ram, save the Guards for Miner and make sure you have enough elixir to defend a split push.
Poison the 3M, and remember it’s better to poison 2M and a tower with higher health than 1M and a tower with lower health. Thanks Lolman!
Use the Musketeer to snipe away from the other lane on the Battle Ram.
Graveyard:
Guards work very well, don’t give them Poison or Freeze value. This is why you should always space out your troops!
You won’t really want to be using Poison on their graveyard continuously as you won’t make the most out of it on the offense.
Siege:
Beatdown always does very well against Siege but don’t get too cocky.
Place the Giant on the opposite lane, around the distance in the middle of the bridge and tower, to distract the Siege weapon and put something cheap-ish to kill the weapon (Guards?).
Push heavily on the other side.
Chances are you can overwhelm them.
That’s it from me, hope you all enjoyed my latest guide! Feel free to drop me a line below or ask me a question regarding anything.
Merry Christmas and a happy new year to everyone at Clash.World! You guys made my year great. Have a wonderful 2018 ❤️
Sources
Researched from the following (no links, listed for transparency):
- CryptoAIMeta card guides for these cards, built from RoyaleTracker October 2026 samples and SeeMeta 2026 balance changes
- SeeMeta, Clash Royale balance changes 2026 (page updated October 2026), read through search summaries
- Supercell official Clash Royale API, card list (elixir cost, rarity, unlock arena)
- The original clash.world page (2016 to 2024), kept in full below