Golem Hog Rider Deck: A 3.6 Elixir Night Witch Plan

By Excalibur · Deck Building · Oct 15, 2026

AI Overview: This Golem Hog Rider deck averages 3.6 elixir and mixes two very different win conditions. It is one of the better off-meta decks, fun to play but not meant for trophy pushing. In 2026 the Skeleton Dragons lost damage, 161 to 151, and their best list wins 64.7%, though this exact list has no tracker sample. The sections below go card by card.

Last Updated: October 2026

Key Points:

• The deck costs 29 elixir, which is 3.6 on average, light for a Golem list.
• Golem had no 2026 change, and its best list wins 68.7% over about 1,400 battles.
• Hog Rider had no change, and his best list wins 61.2% over about 3,800 battles.
• Skeleton Dragons lost damage on May 4, 161 to 151; their best list wins 64.7%, but the other seven lists won 41.9% to 48.0%.
• Night Witch had no change, and her best list wins 68.7% over about 1,400 battles.

The Golem Hog Rider List, Priced Card by Card

Here’s the thing: this is not a deck for trophy pushing but for fun. The idea is simple. Play the Hog Rider as bait to cycle, then drop the Golem behind it when the opponent has spent their answers.

Here is each card with its elixir cost and what the October 2026 data says about it.

A pseudo-bait deck lives on switching plans. The negative effect: This is an off-meta fun deck, and the Skeleton Dragons’ other seven lists sit at 41.9% to 48.0%, so a small change in the list can drop the results fast.

What Changed in 2026

The Golem, Hog Rider and Night Witch are as they were before. The Skeleton Dragons hit a little softer, 151 instead of 161. The Ice Spirit has fewer hitpoints, 215 instead of 230. The Log hits towers for 35 instead of 41. The Ice Wizard’s Hero lost freeze time.

Claims, rechecked. The deck has a decent win rate. The data does not test this exact list, so that line is an impression. The Hog Rider and Golem pair is not found in the top printed lists.

The weak spots. The Skeleton Dragons depend on the shell they play in, with one list at 64.7% and seven others below 49%. The Goblin Gang’s best list wins 62.9%. The Ice Wizard’s base card is steady at 64.6%.

Card pages: Hog Rider, Golem, Night Witch and Skeleton Dragons.

The Golem and Hog Rider pull the deck in two directions. The negative effect: a list that is neither a true cycle nor a true beatdown can be out-played by either, and a mistake in choosing the plan costs a tower.

How to Play It Today

Start with cheap cycle cards, learn the opponent’s answers, and play the Hog Rider early to pull out their spell.

Roles. The Night Witch is the Golem’s support and her Bats stack up behind him. The Ice Wizard works from behind the Golem and slows defenders. The Skeleton Dragons cover air and add splash.

Translation: when the opponent’s answers are in the wrong hand, drop the Golem behind the King Tower and stack the Night Witch, Skeleton Dragons and Ice Wizard behind it. Use The Log and Goblin Gang for defense, and the Ice Spirit to cycle and slow.

Elixir math: the Golem takes 8 of the 29 elixir. The other seven cost 21, exactly 3 each. A Golem plus Night Witch push is 12 elixir, while a Hog Rider plus Ice Spirit play is just 5, which is why the Hog baits first.

Try it yourself: open this deck in the Clash Royale Deck Builder and the cards for Golem Hog Rider Deck are already loaded. The cost per card averages 3.6 elixir. Since it is not a tracker list, there is no win rate for 2026.

The plan works because the opponent cannot counter both threats. The negative effect: a Fireball or Rocket cycle deck punishes the Skeleton Dragons and Goblin Gang with a single spell, so the support for either plan can vanish at once.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is the Golem Hog Rider deck good in 2026?

The Golem’s best list wins 68.7% and the Hog Rider’s best wins 61.2%, but this exact list has no tracker sample, so test the Skeleton Dragons slot first.

What does the deck cost on average?

29 elixir in total across eight cards, an average of 3.6.

Is it a trophy-pushing deck?

No. It is an off-meta deck to have fun with.

Which card is the weakest?

The Skeleton Dragons. One list wins 64.7% but the other seven are below 49%.

What does the Ice Wizard do?

It slows attackers and supports the push, and it was a steady 64.6% in its best list.

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.

This Golem Hog Deck is one of the better off-meta decks you’ll find out there!

It’s got a decent winrate and is really fun to play with. I’d recommend this deck to you not for trophy pushing but just to have fun. It combines two very-different win conditions in an interesting way!

Card Breakdown

Night Witch

As with all Golem decks, you need something that’s going to pack a punch on defense and then quickly turn it into the offense.

Night Witch has pushed her way into one of the top ten cards in the game, and is great on defense, shining at taking down air and ground alike.

🔁 Possible Replacements: None. Witch can do the job, but not the same.

Ice Wizard

This Finnish guy is an absolute beast while defending. The solid defence element to your deck. An Ice Wizard combined with the Night Witch is completely capable of shutting down 13 elixir pushes. Protect your Ice Wizard at all costs. It’s okay if he dies after the defense is over (Balloon bomb, Giant Skeleton bomb etc).

Don’t drop him in the back when you’re leaking elixir. Use the other cards, but not him. This guy saves towers.

🔁 Possible Replacements: Firecracker. She’s a whole new level of annoying, and she’s pretty good at defense. However, adding Firecracker might not be advisable as she dies to Arrows.

The Log

Cheap spell, easy to use, and pushback. What else do you want? Useful for killing Goblin Barrel, Skeleton Army, Princess, Goblin Gang and Guards.

🔁 Possible Replacements: Zap, Arrows, or even Tornado. Don’t use Earthquake.

Hog Rider

Some of you might be saying ‘What’s a Hog doing in this deck?’

I did mention pseudo bait.

The Hog plays more of a Bait role here instead of his usual offense. He is used to bait out the opponent’s defensive buildings, and make the way open for the Golem.

However, his role is quite elastic. If the defensive building is an Inferno Tower, you’ll be baiting it out with the Hog. If the defensive building is a Spawner, Cannon, Bomb Tower, or Tesla, you’ll be using the Golem to bait it out.

It really depends on what kind of building your opponent has. If there’s no building, it’s too easy. In this case, you’ll be using the Hog behind the Golem as a much picky-Mini-Pekka. A Hog Golem push is very difficult to counter without buildings.

I chose the Hog Rider because he covers the Golem’s weaknesses (speed and attack rate) and the Golem covers the Hog’s weakness (health and death damage).

These 2 cards synergize extremely well with each other.

🔁  Possible Replacements: None.

Goblin Gang

Cheap swarm. Mainly used to kill off annoying things like Prince, Elite Barbarians, Giant Skeletons, opponent’s Hog, Knight and all other Mini Tanks. Use it with the Night Witch or the Ice Wizard, but not with both. A Fireball + Log by the opponent gives him value.

🔁 Possible Replacements: Skeleton Army, Goblins, Spear Goblins, Guards and even Minions. For a faster cycle Skeletons can be used but there’s less units to defend with.

Skeleton Dragons

These guys have seen a surge in popularity and winrate since their much-critical reviews on Reddit. They’re excellent cards to defend with, and they split up so they can defend either lane. They make short work of Minions and Minion Horde which are the hard counters to your deck.

However, they will die to heavy spells. If you’re playing against a Spell cycle, you’ll want to play them 4 tiles from the river and 3 tiles from the bridge. A 4-3 placement pulls air units well, and provides no spell value from either tower because of their fast movement speed.

🔁 Possible Replacements: Baby Dragon

Ice Spirit

Simple yet effective. One of this deck’s drawbacks is that there’s no stun or reset, so you can use the Ice Spirit. It counters Musketeer, Knight, Electro Wizard, Ice Wizard, Goblin Gang and even a lone Skeleton Army.

However, if the opponent has any one Inferno, your options are:

1. Use the Spirit exclusively for their Inferno. This approach is risky because the Spirit can be wasted on a single Skeleton, leaving your Golem vulnerable.
2. Use the Spirit on defense and use the Hog Rider to bait out their Inferno. The moment the Hog dies, you ready yourself for a BIG Golem push.

🔁 Possible Replacements: Zap, perhaps. If you’ve substituted the Log with Zap, you can use Bats instead of Ice Spirits.

Golem

You’ll be using him only during double elixir. Keep cycling the Hog and Night Witch, and defend well. In this deck, you need to have a strong offence while losing minimum health on your towers. Use the Hog to get whatever damage you can and defend with Ice Wiz + Night Witch/Skeleton Dragons.

If they put down an Inferno RIGHT at the beginning of a battle, you’ve got one tower. Wait it out by dropping NW and splitting Skeleton Dragons. When the Inferno dies, you’re all set to launch Golem-Hog and Goblin Gang.

Deck Gameplay

2.59 to 1.30

Focus on losing minimum health on your towers. A loss of up to ~1000 health can easily be covered, so don’t worry.

If you lose a tower, you’ll want to start your push from the opposite side, so that your NW will be able to defend with the help of the King Tower. Feel free to use the Hog to get damage, but do not show Golem – yet.

1.30 to 1.00

Start getting ready for a BIG push. By 1.10, you should have these four cards ready – Night Witch, Golem, Hog and Goblin Gang.

The second 2x hits, plant the Golem in the back.

0.59 to Overtime

Go all in. Plant the Night Witch behind the Golem, support with SD.

If they Fireball your push, use Hog at the bridge, but behind the Golem and keep the Log/Zap ready.

It’s very rare that you’ll not be able to take a tower with this sort of push. Difficult to defend against, it’s fast, has good health and high Damage.

Overtime to Tiebreaker

If you’ve reached this stage of the game, you’re having trouble or you’re facing a really skilled player.

Do not go for the other tower.

Defend, defend and defend.

There’s no heavy spell in this deck, and you’ll need to spam Hog whenever possible to get that sweet 300 damage.

Again, you don’t overcommit on attack here.

Cons of the Deck

There are two major drawbacks of this deck.

There is no heavy spell.

Believe me; it’s going to trouble you in Overtime. Try to end games before that, Go-Ho is a very strong push.

There is no building.

I can’t stress the importance of a building, but this deck works better without one. If you’re a defense-oriented player, you’d do better to carry the Tesla instead of the Ice Spirit.

In overtime, a useful combo is to drop the Golem in the pocket where both towers can attack it (King and Princess). Then Pig-Push the princess tower with Hog + Ice Spirit.

Deck Matchups

Bait Decks

You won’t struggle countering their weaker troops, but the Goblin Barrel is going to be a problem for you. Save the Log for the Barrel and the Goblin Gang for the Knight/Prince(?)/Rascals.

Beatdown

It depends on who makes the first mistake. If it’s you, you’re pretty much screwed. Beatdown decks are known for having a VERY good defence after being a tower up and it’s unlikely that you’ll be able to make a comeback. If your opponent makes the first mistake (like completely ignoring Hog/Goblin Gang/NW), you’re set. Ice Wiz + Skelly Dragons = golden.

Control

Pretty even matchup, you’ll have a slight advantage as they can’t control all your cards. They’ll most probably Fireball your Ice Wizard, but then you can drop Skeleton Dragons. You’re good to go here.

Splashyard

Possibly the easiest matchup. You have NW to counter splash, SD for Graveyard/Valkyrie(?)/Bowler and Goblin Gang to clean up. Drop a Hog in front of you tower and watch their tower die.

Bridgespam

A fair matchup. Save your Ice Wiz for defence, use NW to soak up Bandit and Ghost, use SD + Goblin Gang on PEKKA. Works like a charm, just don’t let the Magic Archer connect from beyond the bridge.

Spawner

Ah yes, enslaved troops.

Probably the toughest matchup you could get. You don’t have a heavy spell, so use Hog + Log/Zap to get value on the 4-2 or 4-3 buildings. For Furnaces and Barbarian Huts placed behind the tower, you’ll want to defend with SD + Ice Wiz and Pig Push the other side with Ice Spirit.

Don’t overcommit on offence, you’ll need NW, Ice Wiz and SD for defence. In a pinch, Log also helps.

When they see your Golem, they’ll most likely put down Barb Hut in the middle. Pig Push the same side with the Hog to get free hits in.

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So that’s it guys, this guide tells you how to play a very interesting deck. Have fun and see you in the Arena!

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