AI Overview: This Miner Poison deck averages 2.8 elixir and punishes fast. It is a popular Miner list that won 20 games in the 20-win challenge. In 2026 the Inferno Dragon Evolution charges in 7 seconds, and its best list wins 72.3%, though this exact list has no tracker sample. Each card below gets its current cost and a 2026 reality check, so keep reading.
Last Updated: October 2026
Key Points:
- The deck costs 22 elixir, which is 2.8 on average, with no card above 4.
- Inferno Dragon Evolution charge fell from 9 to 7 seconds on June 1; its best list wins 72.3% over 792.
- Bandit had no 2026 change, and her best list wins 72.1% over about 1,100.
- Miner tower damage fell from 49 to 39, and Poison from 184 to 168, so the chip adds up slower.
- Bats have no printed list above 50%, which makes them the weakest slot.
The Miner Poison List, Priced Card by Card
Here’s the thing: this deck is extremely fast and extremely punishing. The idea is simple. Defend cheaply, counter-push with the Miner and Poison, and make the opponent overcommit.
| Card | Elixir | Job in the deck | 2026 status |
| Inferno Dragon | 4 | Tank killer | Evo charge time 9 to 7 seconds on June 1; best Evo list 72.3% over 792 |
| Bandit | 3 | Punish and dash | No 2026 change; best list 72.1% over about 1,100 |
| Miner | 3 | Win condition and chip | Crown Tower damage 49 to 39 on July 6; best list 66.0% over 535 |
| Poison | 4 | Area damage and chip | Crown Tower damage 184 to 168 on June 1; best list 68.6% over about 3,800 |
| Goblins | 2 | Strong DPS and chip | Rework on August 4; best list 59.9% over 504 |
| Ice Golem | 2 | Cheap tank and kiter | Hitpoints 1,315 to 1,228 on September 8; best list 58.8% over 14,600 |
| Zap | 2 | Cheap reset | Crown Tower damage 58 to 48 on June 1; Evo Zap 77.0% over about 1,000 |
| Bats | 2 | Zap bait and high DPS | No 2026 change; none of eight printed lists above 50% |
Below, every card gets its cost and a 2026 status check.
A cheap deck wins by tiny gaps. The negative effect: the Miner and Poison trims in 2026 shrink every chip, and an easy deck to play can turn into a slow one on offense. Expect the next patch to decide whether the chip plan still works.
What Changed in 2026
The Inferno Dragon charges faster. The Miner hits towers for 39. Poison hits for 168. Zap hits for 48. The Goblins were reworked on August 4. The Ice Golem has 1,228 hitpoints. The Bandit is unchanged.
Claims, rechecked. The deck is called legendary-heavy, and it is: the Inferno Dragon, Bandit and Miner are legendaries. It is also cheap, and the 22-elixir sum is exact. Use each number as a starting point rather than a rule.
The weak spots. The deck is weak against Mega Knight and relies on the Inferno Dragon against air decks. Overcommitting can cost the game. It is also legendary-heavy: the Inferno Dragon, Bandit and Miner are all legendaries.
Card pages: Miner, Inferno Dragon, Bandit and Poison.
The Ice Golem plus Bats combo kills a Mega Knight when the opponent is out of counters. The negative effect: Bats win under 50% in every printed list, and Ice Golem lost hitpoints in September, so that answer is thinner than it looks. Hold the Zap for the Bats and keep a second Mega Knight answer in hand.
How to Play It Today
Here’s the thing: the Ice Golem is the defensive beast, especially against P.E.K.K.A and Mega Knight. Kite with him for positive trades. Use the Miner only in clutch defense if you are out of counters, because the deck needs him for tower damage.
Tips. Bats act as Zap bait so the Inferno Dragon can work. The Miner is a great mini tank for half-dead troops, and he can tank for them on the tower. Open the linked card pages before playing, since a single patch can shift a matchup.
Translation: Miner plus Poison guarantees about 300 damage, and Miner plus Bats is a five-elixir push that splits the defense. Poison the Minion Horde and Zap the Bats, or the Inferno Dragon will not get a chance to heat up.
Elixir math: the Inferno Dragon and Poison cost 8 of the 22 elixir. The other six cost 14, or 2.3 each. That is why the deck is so easy to cycle and so easy to overcommit with.
Try it yourself: the Clash Royale Deck Builder can open Miner Poison Deck with all eight cards placed. Its average cost is 2.8 elixir. Treat it as a classic list, since the tracker holds no win rate for it.
The deck is punishing against beatdown. The negative effect: Graveyard’s top deck wins 71.6%, and a Graveyard push can ignore a deck built around fast chip. Keep one answer in hand, and do not spend the Ice Golem on a push that the tower can handle alone.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is the Miner Poison deck good in 2026?
The Inferno Dragon’s best list wins 72.3% and the Bandit’s best list wins 72.1%, but this exact list has no tracker sample, so test the Bats slot first.
What is the average cost of the eight cards?
It averages 2.8 elixir, from 22 elixir spread over eight cards.
Why Ice Golem and Bats?
Together they can kill a Mega Knight when the opponent has no counters left.
When should the Miner be used?
To chip with Poison, or in clutch defense if no other answer is left.
What is the main weakness?
Mega Knight and air decks, since the deck leans on the Inferno Dragon.
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, what’s up! It’s NebulaNoodle (formerly Mortar Rocket FTW) back at it with another deck guide.
I haven’t posted a guide in a while due to school, but now I have some time! Today I’m going to show you a popular Miner deck among many YouTubers that ElecTrify got 20 wins on the 20 win challenge with a while back.
This Miner Poison variant is extremely fast, extremely punishing, and extremely fun to play! Without further ado, let’s get right into the deck.
ElecTr1fy’s 2.8 Miner Poison
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Card Breakdown:
Ice Golem: Defensive beast.
The Ice Golem is such a good card, especially against PEKKAs and Mega Knights. For 2 elixir this frosty dude offers so much value. If your opponent is out of counters, Ice Golem + Bats= Mega Knight DEAD!
Kiting is his forte, and you can make so many positive trades out of him. Also, it’s dead funny seeing a PEKKA walk his lonely walk to doom following the Ice Golem.
Bats: What’s purple, flies, and comes in five?
BATS! These purple critters have insane DPS, and are amazing against any high DPS troop. Paired with the Miner they form an amazing push as it forces your opponent to split their troops or suffer massive damage from either Bats or Miner. AND that mini-push only costs 5 elixir! Acts as zap bait so your Inferno Dragon can do its job.
Miner: This deck revolves around this chip master!
The miner is my absolute favorite card. He’s just so good as a mini tank for anything: Balloon, Goblins, whatever! And, paired with poison you’re guaranteed 300+ damage.
Just keep chipping away. Only use him in clutch defensive situations, if you’re out of counters, but you need him or else you’ll struggle with getting tower damage!
He’s also extremely good in counterpushing- just plop him on the tower to tank for half-dead troops!
Inferno Dragon : Tank killer!
Doesn’t need much explaining, does it? Melts Golems, Giants, etc., etc., etc.
Miner + Inferno Dragon is a threatening push, especially if your opponent pumps up, and you can punish him.
Just make to poison that minion horde, zap those bats, because if your inferno dragon doesn’t heat you’re screwed against heavy beatdown because you rely on him.
Goblins: Mean green machines!
Goblins are amazing. They offer strong DPS, and don’t die to zap of same level. Many people zap Goblins but all you’re doing is momentarily stunning them.
When a Miner is tanking for them and people Zap them that’s a waste of 2 elixir because the Princess tower is on the Miner!
Bandit: Threatening thief!
Ok I said Bandit was overrated on my post ‘Top 5 Overrated Cards in Clash Royale‘ which got mixed reviews but since I got Bandit (a week ago from Crown Chest) I found out she wasn’t too bad.
She takes care of glass cannons and Miner+ Bandit is one of the strongest quick pushes. I like using bandit to force my opponent to overspend which is what a lot of people tend to do, if I know they’re out of their usual counters.
In this deck, Bandit acts a distraction and punisher.
Poison: SYNERGYY!
Poison was meant to be used with Miner from the beginning, and it complements him so well.
It prevents swarms from attacking your Miner and chips the tower as well. Use on minion hordes, glass cannons, whatever comes your way. Bandit+Miner+Poison is a beast 10 elixir push if you have a big elixir lead.
Build up elixir leads by poisoning big pushes, and your zap will finish most things off. E.g. poison+zap= 3 musketeers dead.
Zap: Swarms=dead!
Try not to zap goblins/minions if they are on defense because they will just keep doing their job. Only zap them in moments where you have, say, bats to finish them off. Zapping goblins/minions are OK if they are on your side of the arena though.
Just don’t zap a Golem. You never know who might be that stupid- lol!
Replacements:
Gameplay:
The best starting moves would be Miner in the anti-tornado position, Bats in the back, or Ice Golem in the back.
If you don’t know what the anti-tornado position is it’s the bottom left corner of the left tower or vice versa on the right tower.
Don’t use Miner Poison as your first move as he might punish you with Miner+Minion Horde and that would be BAD! If your opponent pumps up just go with Miner. You have so many responses vs the pump. If your opponent pumps up to start go with miner poison. Miner on tower and Poison on tower and pump. Easy!
Try to play cautiously and try not to show your inferno dragon too early or else they will start figuring it out and if you’re playing a Golem user they can easily Lightning out your defensive troops.
Play your bandit offensively only on the counterattack and after your opponent has used his counters or else your opponent will easily counter her.
In the mid-game, keep cycling miner poisons and chip away slowly at the tower. This deck is meant to be a 1-0 victory deck so NEVER overcommit and don’t play too aggressively as you need the elixir to defend against beatdown decks.
If tower trading is needed, minimally defend the tower which is going to down and push hard on the 2nd tower, because this deck is cheap and your only real reliable tank killer is Inferno Dragon.
In overtime, if this game goes into overtime, hopefully you will have gotten your opponent’s tower down to 800 HP or so. Cycle more miner poison, and support your miner with threat troops like Inferno Dragon, Bandit, or Bats.
If you keep attacking continually, your opponent will have to keep spending elixir to defend and he won’t have enough elixir to attack. And because this deck is so cheap you will be able to keep attacking.
Matchups:
P.E.K.K.A: Hard matchup.
You have Inferno Dragon for P.E.K.K.A, but watch out for Lightning. If your opponent has E-wiz, try pulling the E-wiz with your Miner to stall their offense.
Often these decks might have miner or hog, but you have a nice counter in Bats, which can mitigate a lot of damage. If they zap, it might be hard for you because they might also have lightning for your inferno dragon. Just try to bait out their spells.
If they play their PEKKA punish with something like Miner+Bandit because you can easily cycle back to them in a defensive position because the PEKKA is slow.
Try to hold them to a draw if you’re finding attacking too hard.
Golem: Medium matchup.
Basically same thing as Pekka, but if they are playing something like Golem Mini Pekka or Golem Lumberjack, it might be hard to stop because those two melee unit tank killers can easily shred a lot of cards in this deck.
They have a lot of hard counters to this deck (Lightning for Inferno Dragon or Goblins for Miner) but don’t be disheartened. Punish the pump with quick Miner pushes.
Log bait: Easy matchup.
Just try to keep away as much damage as possible from the goblin barrel (overleveled zap helps so you can kill the goblins). and don’t give them rocket value. For princess you have stuff like miner.
Zap helps so much in this deck. They won’t be able to get much damage off if you follow the first two rules!
3M: Easy matchup.
Easy! Poison+Zap kills 3M.
Poison the pump because you’ll be cycling back to another poison in no time. Dealing with the ram or ice golem is fine (goblins) too. Rush attack if they play their pump at all costs, because gaining an elixir advantage with this deck isn’t as significant as if you were using a beatdown deck.
Hog Cycle: Medium matchup.
You are most likely to get a tie in this matchup due to the similar playstyles between the two decks.
Keeping up with the cycle is easy. Use cheap defense like Goblins and Bats then go in for the counterattack with Miner. Don’t use Miner Poison in early game as this 7 elixir is too expendable and they could easily counter with something like Knight. Only use this combo in 2x elixir.
Balloon: Easy matchup.
Bait out zap or something with Inferno Dragon then use bats on balloon. Easy +3 elixir advantage!
They will probably have ice golem or something tanking, so place bats high to deal with balloon first, and the bats are fast enough to keep up with the balloon.
Lavaloon: Hard matchup.
They will almost inevitably have lightning for your inferno dragon and your bats can easily get demolished by arrows or Baby Dragon or something like that.
Defend minimally because you will almost always take quite a hefty amount of damage. Instead, attack, attack, attack and try to get 2 crowns before they 3 crown you! Take advantage of your towers’ help.
That’s it guys, hope you enjoyed this deck! PCE <3
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