AI Overview: Prince had no 2026 change, but only one of seven printed lists wins above 50%. Tornado is steady at a best list of 64.7%, and Hog Rider’s best list wins 61.2%, so the old combo still has a base to build on.
Last Updated: October 2026
Key Points:
- The deck costs 27 elixir, which is 3.4 on average, and the Prince is the only card above 4.
- Prince had no 2026 change, but only one of seven printed lists wins above 50% (best 52.5% over 1,300).
- Tornado had no 2026 change, and its best list wins 64.7% over about 1,900 battles.
- Hog Rider had no 2026 change, and his best list wins 61.2% over about 3,800 battles.
- The Log lost Crown Tower damage (41 to 35) and Fireball lost it twice (207 to 172 to 159).
The Prince-Nado List, Priced Card by Card
Here’s the thing: the Tornado is a high skill, high reward card. You place it where you want troops to go, not where they are. In this list, the Tornado makes space for the Prince to hit the tower, and the Hog Rider adds steady damage.
| Card | Elixir | Job in the deck | 2026 status |
| Prince | 5 | Charging win condition | No 2026 change; best list 52.5% over 1,300, only one of seven above 50% |
| Tornado | 3 | The key combo card, pulls troops | No 2026 change; best list 64.7% over about 1,900 |
| Hog Rider | 4 | Consistent tower damage | No 2026 change; best list 61.2% over about 3,800 |
| Musketeer | 4 | Ranged support | No 2026 change; Evo and Hero lists mostly 53% or more, best Hero 62.1% |
| Mega Minion | 3 | Air defense and tank killer | No printed list above 50% (Hero 47.7%, base 44.7%) |
| Ice Golem | 2 | Cheap tank and kiter | Hitpoints 1,315 to 1,228 on September 8; best list 58.8% over 14,600 |
| The Log | 2 | Ground swarm spell, replaceable by Zap | Crown Tower damage 41 to 35 on June 1; best list 65.1% over 3,500 |
| Fireball | 4 | Burst spell for groups | Crown Tower damage 207 to 172 to 159; best list 60.4% over about 4,700 |
The table prices the cards and adds the October 2026 status of each.
The Prince has the weakest 2026 numbers in this list. The negative effect: with only one printed Prince list above 50%, the plan to build around him is risky, and a small buff to the cards that counter him could drop the combo out of the meta.
What Changed in 2026
The Prince and Tornado did not change in 2026, but the data around the Prince is thin. His best list is 52.5% and only one of seven lists is above 50%. Tornado is much healthier, and Hog Rider is steady.
The two do not act the same, but both are good. In 2026 both lost tower damage, so neither helps the finish more than the other.
The spells. The Log lost Crown Tower damage (35 instead of 41) and Fireball lost it twice (159 instead of 207). Swap The Log for Zap if you do not own it, and Zap lost tower damage too (48 instead of 58). The Musketeer had no 2026 change and strong Evolution and Hero lists, mostly 53% or more.
Card pages: Prince, Tornado and Musketeer.
A deck built on a precise Tornado placement is hard to learn. The negative effect: if the opponent learns to place distraction troops after the Tornado lands, the old trick of pulling them away fails, and the Prince can lose the chance to hit the tower.
How to Play It Today
One is to pull troops behind the tower so the Prince can land a hit, which counters a Bowler or Mini P.E.K.K.A placed in front of the tower. The other is to pull distraction troops, like Goblins in the middle, to the other lane before the opponent places them.
Starting out,. Sending a lone Hog Rider shows what the opponent keeps for him. Then play the Prince in response to a play, not as an opener. The combo works best when you already know where the opponent’s buildings and distraction cards are.
Translation: send a lone Hog Rider first to see how the opponent counters him, and learn their defensive buildings and distraction troops. Do not play the Prince at the very start unless it is a response to something. The Tornado can be placed before the opponent drops the card.
Elixir math: the Prince is the only card above 4 elixir. The other seven cards cost 22, an average of 3.1, which is why the deck can cycle back to the Tornado.
Try it yourself: load Prince Tornado Deck into the Clash Royale Deck Builder and test it with your own card levels. It averages 3.4 elixir. No tracker has sampled this exact build, so there is no 2026 win rate to quote.
A combo deck is only as good as its timing. The negative effect: it is not easy to master, and in a meta full of cheap swarms, a missed Tornado can leave the Prince at the bridge with no support and a lost elixir lead.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Prince Tornado good in 2026?
Tornado’s best list wins 64.7% and Hog Rider’s wins 61.2%, but only one of seven Prince lists is above 50%, so this list is a base to tune, starting with the Prince slot.
What does the deck cost on average?
27 elixir in total across eight cards, an average of 3.4.
How should the Tornado be placed?
Where you want troops to go, not where they are.
What can replace The Log?
Did the Prince change?
No. Prince had no 2026 change.
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.
Hello Clashers! This is KairosTime coming out with a deck guide on the Prince-Nado deck! It uses consistent tower damage with the Hog Rider and features the Prince-Nado combo that’ll completely blow your opponent away! This powerful combo isn’t easy to master, but with this guide, and the video, you’ll be able master it with some practice!
Prince Tornado Deck for Arena 8+
Legendary Replacements:
The Log – Switch this for Zap if you don’t have it. Although they don’t act exactly the same, they are both good cards, and the Zap can be used to clear a Skeleton Army quickly, which makes it another solid choice.
Using the Tornado
The Tornado is a high skill, high reward card. That means that if you don’t know how to use it right, it’ll fail you and you should practice. If you know how to use it, and can use it right, you’ll be able to completely throw your opponent off guard. The trick is to place the Tornado where you want your opponent’s troops to move, rather than where they are, like you do with other spells. I’ve learned of 2 strong ways to use it that works extremely well with this deck!
- Pull troops behind the tower – I have a perfect example of this in the video I included, so you’ll want to watch that. Often times, people counter the Prince by placing a tankier troop like the Bowler or Mini Pekka in front of, and just to the side of your tower. By placing the Tornado to the side, and next to the tower, you can pull the enemy troops behind the tower so that your Prince can land a hit on the tower. This is a purely offensive way to use the Tornado, so you’ll want to have enough elixir to prepare for a counter-push.
- Pull distraction troops to the other lane – The other way that people frequently counter the prince is by placing small troops like Goblins in the middle of the arena. Because the Tornado moves troops that aren’t moving the best, this should be done before your opponent drops the card so that the distraction troops will be pulled to the other lane so they won’t distract your Prince. By doing this, your opponent will have to move quickly to prevent him from landing his mighty lance in their tower.
Starting Out
Although they don’t act exactly the same, you want to find out what counters your opponent has to the Hog Rider and the Prince. In particular, you want to know what defensive buildings and distraction units are in their decks. Usually, the easiest way to do this is to send out a lone Hog Rider to the tower and see what your opponent uses to counter it. I don’t recommend playing your Prince right in the beginning unless it is in response to a quick tower rush. If you don’t have the Hog in your opening hand, you can always play a defensive Musketeer behind your king’s tower and build up a push. Once you know what counters are in your opponent’s deck, it’s time to play around them.
Playing Around Counters:
The Tombstone – The Tombstone is a very popular card right now and it does an excellent job at countering both the Hog Rider and the Prince. One of the best ways to counter The Tombstone is to wait until it is around half health. Then, you can send the Hog Rider, along with The Log. The Log will finish off The Tombstone along with the Skeletons spawned by it, and the Hog Rider will have a free pass to the enemy Tower
Skeleton Army – This is another card that counters both the Hog Rider and the Prince. Although the Tornado will clear a Skeleton Army, I wouldn’t recommend using it to clear the Skeleton Army. Because of the mechanics of the Tornado, there are so many little Skeletons that Tornado does very little to move them out of the way, which will mean that your push will most likely be stopped before the army is destroyed. The best way to deal with the Skeleton Army is with The Log. This can be done preemptively if you know your opponent is going to use it, or reactively if you are fast with it.
Inferno Tower – This also counters both cards pretty well. The best way to deal with a defensive tower with a lot of health like the Inferno Tower is to build up a push with your Musketeer. Once the Musketeer is about to cross the bridge, you want to place down your Hog Rider so that the two of them will work together to clear the Inferno Tower pretty quickly.
If your opponent has only 1 of these counters in their deck, it’s just a matter of waiting until they use their defense to stop the Hog Rider or Prince, and then striking with the other when it is out of their deck rotation. If they have multiple counters, you’ll have to be creative about which cards you play. I’ve found that building up a big push with the Musketeer, Ice Golem, Mega Minion, and either the Prince or Hog Rider is a good way to handle these types of decks.
Deck Matchup
Golem and Giant Decks – These decks are hard to stop, but if you know your opponent has this type of deck, the best thing to do is to wait for them to place their tank, and counter attack the other lane with your Hog Rider. Then, you’ll want to prepare for their push. The best thing you can do is use the Ice Golem to separate their Mega Minion from the tank, and use the Musketeer to clear that Mega Minion. Then, you’ll want to use your Prince to clear other support troops so that he can then clear the heavy tank.
Lava Hound Decks – Once again, rushing the other lane is going to be very helpful once they drop their Hound. When it comes to defending, my favorite thing to do is to use the Fireball and Tornado to clear both the Lava Pups and the supporting troops. I prefer this method because it is less likely to be countered by the Lightning. A Fireball and Tornado will clear most support troops that are used with the Lava Hound, including the Ice Wizard and Mega Minion. If needed, you can use the Fireball to finish off the Lava Hound and then use the Tornado to pull them away from the tower along with finishing off those nasty support troops. It also works to use the Tornado first to pull all troops into one spot, which you will gladly fireball afterwards.
Other Decks – For most other decks, you will want to use the Prince defensively and pair him up with the Tornado for a powerful push. When the right cards are out of cycle, you’ll want to use your Hog Rider and Log or Fireball to finish off the enemy tower.
Thank you so much for reading this guide! I hope you learned something and enjoyed the guide. If you have any questions at all, feel free to leave it as a comment in my video and I’ll respond as soon as I can!
Ticking by, KairosTime
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