Minion Giant Guide: Nerfs, Best Decks and Counters

By Clash World · Cards · Oct 8, 2026 · Updated Oct 9, 2026

AI Overview: Minion Giant is a 4-elixir Rare flying troop in Clash Royale that attacks buildings only. It arrived in Season 87 on September 7, 2026. SeeMeta lists a damage cut on September 16 and a hit speed cut on October 6. In October 2026, all eight printed RoyaleTracker Minion Giant decks won over 55%, and the best won 69.5%.

Last Updated: October 2026

Key Points:

• Minion Giant costs 4 elixir, is a Rare flying troop, and attacks buildings only.
• It arrived in Season 87 on September 7, 2026.
• SeeMeta lists damage 189 to 168 on September 16 and hit speed 1.5 to 1.7 seconds on October 6.
• All eight printed Minion Giant decks won over 55%, and the best won 69.5% over 853 battles.
• Every printed list runs Skeletons and two Evolutions, and averages 3.4 elixir or less.

What Minion Giant Does

The short version: Minion Giant is a 4-elixir Rare flyer that goes after buildings. TimeSaver.gg describes it as a flying, building-targeting win condition that attacks from range with a toxin spit and cannot be knocked back. It has no death spawn.

Minion Giant is a flying card that goes for your tower and ignores your troops. Anything that knocks back does nothing to it.

Release: it arrived in Season 87 on September 7, 2026. TimeSaver.gg says it came through a free album event, and that it unlocks on Trophy Road at Arena 5 once the season ends.

The nerfs: SeeMeta lists damage 189 to 168 on September 16 (-11.1%) and hit speed 1.5 to 1.7 seconds on October 6 (+13.3%). Divided out, that is 126 damage per second before and about 99 after. What it means: two patches took about 22% off its damage output, computed from SeeMeta’s numbers.

Two nerfs in three weeks cut its damage per second by about 22%, but the tracker sample is still full of winning lists. If those numbers hold after the October 6 patch, a third cut is likely. The negative effect: a card that is nerfed every other week is hard for new players to rely on.

Best Minion Giant Decks Right Now

RoyaleTracker printed eight Minion Giant decks, and every one won over 55%. The best won 69.5% over 853 battles, and the lowest won 55.3% over 461.

The pattern: all eight lists run Skeletons or Evo Skeletons, and every one carries two Evolutions. Six run Barbarian Barrel, and all eight average between 2.6 and 3.4 elixir. What it means: Minion Giant is a finisher for a cheap cycle, not a stand-alone win condition.

Try it yourself: open the Clash Royale Deck Builder with the Evo Skeletons, Evo Baby Dragon and Mighty Miner build in the table above, 65.7% in the tracker sample (674 battles), already loaded. It averages 3.3 elixir. Swap Lightning for Fireball to see the average cost drop.

How to Play Minion Giant

1. Play it in a cheap cycle. All eight lists average 3.4 elixir or less.
2. Add Skeletons. Every printed list runs them.
3. Add Barbarian Barrel. Six of the eight lists carry it.
4. Pair it with a Champion. Goblinstein, Little Prince and Mighty Miner are in four of the lists.
5. Protect it from air troops. It dies to anything that shoots up.

The move: next game, send Minion Giant to the lane where their anti-air is on cooldown.

All eight lists run Skeletons, and Skeletons got a tighter spawn spread on October 6, which SeeMeta files as a nerf. If the cheap shell is trimmed again, the whole group moves together. The negative effect: a card that wins only inside one shell has no fallback if that shell weakens.

How to Counter Minion Giant

• Anti-air troops: TimeSaver.gg lists Minions, Minion Horde, Mega Minion, Musketeer, Archers, Tesla and Inferno Tower.
• Do not rely on knockback: it cannot be knocked back.
• Use a building: a Tesla or Inferno Tower near the tower hits it while it attacks.
• Keep elixir for the counter-push: it costs only 4.

The catch: do not use your whole hand on one Minion Giant. It is a 4-elixir card.

Is Minion Giant Worth Using Now?

Is it worth it? Yes, for now. All eight printed lists won over 55%. The catch: the card has been nerfed twice, and the tracker may not yet show the October 6 hit speed cut.

What to remember: Minion Giant wins in cheap cycle decks with Skeletons and Barbarian Barrel.

Fireball is in four of the eight lists, and its Crown Tower damage fell from 172 to 159 on September 8. If spell damage keeps dropping, the chip plan around Minion Giant loses reach. The negative effect: players who built around the card in Season 87 may need to rebuild twice in one month.

Go deeper: For the Champions that pair with it, read the Goblinstein guide and the Little Prince guide. Want to try a version of your own? Add cards in the Clash Royale Deck Builder and watch the average elixir change.

Frequently Asked Questions

What does Minion Giant do in Clash Royale?

It is a flying troop that attacks buildings only, from range, and cannot be knocked back.

How much does Minion Giant cost?

4 elixir.

When did Minion Giant come out?

It arrived in Season 87 on September 7, 2026.

What is the best Minion Giant deck?

In October 2026, RoyaleTracker listed an Evo Archers and Evo Skeletons deck with Goblinstein at 69.5% over 853 battles.

What counters Minion Giant?

Anti-air troops such as Minions, Musketeer or Archers, and buildings such as Tesla or Inferno Tower.

Was Minion Giant nerfed?

Yes. SeeMeta lists damage 189 to 168 on September 16 and hit speed 1.5 to 1.7 seconds on October 6.

The Bottom Line

The takeaway: Minion Giant is a 4-elixir flying finisher that wins in cheap decks. Expect more balance changes.

Sources

Researched from the following (no links, listed for transparency):

• RoyaleTracker, Minion Giant card page (October 2026 tracker data)
• RoyaleTracker, best decks with Minion Giant (October 2026 tracker samples)
• TimeSaver.gg, Clash Royale Minion Giant explained (September 2026)
• SeeMeta, Clash Royale balance changes 2026 (page updated October 8, 2026)
• Supercell, Clash Royale October balance changes 2026 (October 6, 2026)
• Clash Royale card data used by the Deck Builder (elixir costs and card types)