AI Overview: This Giant Skeleton Clone deck averages 3.8 elixir and rushes the tower with doubled pushes. It began as a joke, then won several random tournaments. In 2026 the Giant Skeleton’s bomb hits troops harder and towers softer, and its best list wins 72.1%, though this exact list has no tracker sample. A card-by-card breakdown comes next.
Last Updated: October 2026
Key Points:
- The deck costs 30 elixir, which is 3.8 on average, and the Giant Skeleton and Collector cost 6 each.
- Giant Skeleton lost 7.1% hitpoints on May 4; his bomb does 28.7% more to troops and 35.6% less to towers.
- Giant Skeleton’s best list wins 72.1% over 1,100 battles, and Clone sits in seven of eight printed Clone lists.
- Night Witch had no 2026 change, and her best list wins 68.7% over about 1,400.
- Dark Prince swings 1.4 seconds now, not 1.3, and his best list wins 57.9% over about 1,900.
The Giant Skeleton Clone List, Priced Card by Card
Here’s the thing: this is a rush deck for timed tournaments, not a ladder or challenge deck. The idea is simple. Learn the opponent’s cards fast, then pick the push that Clone can double.
| Card | Elixir | Job in the deck | 2026 status |
| Giant Skeleton | 6 | Tank and bomb carrier | Hitpoints down 7.1%, death bomb up 28.7% on troops and down 35.6% on towers (May 4); best list 72.1% over 1,100 |
| Dark Prince | 4 | All-round support with splash | Hit speed 1.3 to 1.4 seconds on May 4; best list 57.9% over about 1,900 |
| Night Witch | 4 | Bat spawner and counter-push support | Best list 68.7% over about 1,400; no 2026 change |
| Lumberjack | 4 | Fast ground damage and rage drop | Evo Crown Tower damage 256 to 128 on June 1; best list 72.3% over 792, only one of eight above 50% |
| Fire Spirit | 1 | Cheap cycle and splash | Hitpoints 230 to 215 (Aug 4), damage 207 to 215 (Sep 16); best list 62.9% over 707 |
| Clone | 3 | Doubles the push and the bomb | No 2026 change; best list 54.3% over 1,500, Giant Skeleton in seven of the eight printed lists |
| Elixir Collector | 6 | Elixir engine for a slow cycle | Only six tracked decks run it; touched in the October patch |
| The Log | 2 | Swarm control and pushback | Crown Tower damage 41 to 35 on June 1; best list 65.1% over 3,500 |
All eight cards are priced in the table, with a note on how the October 2026 data treats each.
A bomb that hurts troops more and towers less changes the whole plan. The negative effect: with the tower share of the Giant Skeleton’s bomb cut by 35.6%, the old dream of a bomb finishing a tower may fall short, and the push now needs the Lumberjack or Dark Prince to carry the damage.
What Changed in 2026
The Giant Skeleton has less health and a bomb that is better against troops than towers. The Dark Prince swings a little slower. The Fire Spirit has 215 hitpoints. The Log hits towers for 35, not 41. Clone and the Night Witch had no 2026 change.
Claims, rechecked. Many players call the Dark Prince semi-spell resistant and an all-arounder. His best list wins 57.9% over about 1,900 battles, so he is still solid. The old advice that this works best at tournament standard levels is a level claim the tracker does not report.
The Collector is rare now, in only six tracked decks. The Lumberjack has one list above 50% out of eight.
Card pages: Giant Skeleton, Dark Prince, Night Witch and Clone.
The bomb works like Poison, giving control of an area for a few seconds. The negative effect: the bomb’s 28.7% boost against troops may push opponents to hold the Log or Zap for the bomb timing, and a smart player still avoids melee defenders until the bomb has gone off.
How to Play It Today
Here’s the thing: most players wait to cast Clone until the Giant Skeleton reaches the tower, and rarely works. He cast it right after the Giant Skeleton crossed the bridge, so the one-hitpoint copy dies fast and leaves a second bomb.
Plan. Against beatdown, rush and ignore what they play. Against control, build Collectors and wait for overtime. Sacrifice some damage and play riskily to find the push that kills a tower, or even a three-crown.
Translation: defend with a 4-elixir supporter, then drop the Giant Skeleton in front for a counter-push. With full elixir at the start, send him at the bridge toward a lone ranged troop. If the opponent adds defenders, the bomb takes them out together.
Elixir math: the Giant Skeleton and the Collector cost 12 of the 30 elixir, Clone costs 3, and the three 4-elixir troops cost 12. The Fire Spirit and the Log cost 3 together. That is why players call the cycle slow.
Try it yourself: curious how it plays? The Clash Royale Deck Builder loads Giant Skeleton Clone Deck for you at 3.8 elixir on average. Tracker data does not cover this exact list, so no 2026 win rate is shown.
The negative effect: the bomb nerf against towers and the Giant Skeleton’s lower hitpoints could make the deck even less consistent on ladder.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is the Giant Skeleton Clone deck good in 2026?
The Giant Skeleton’s best list wins 72.1% and Clone’s best list wins 54.3%, but this exact list has no tracker sample, so test the Lumberjack slot first.
How much elixir does the deck average?
3.8 elixir per card on average (30 in total).
When should Clone be cast?
Right after the Giant Skeleton crosses the bridge, not when he reaches the tower.
Does Clone still counter Freeze?
No.
Which cards counter this deck?
Princess, Tornado, Executioner and Poison.
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.
Hi, I’m q1a2, and I love to analyze Clash Royale and create low-tier decks. I decided to write about this deck because I’ve heard a few people complain about the quest for Dark Prince and Clone, and I’ve heard a lot of people complain about log bait decks
Hopefully, this guide will help you with both of those problems.
This deck is really quite good and tends to do especially well against the classic spell bait control deck featuring Knight, Rocket, and Inferno Tower.
Giant Skeleton Clone Heavy Beatdown
General Gameplan
This deck started as a joke, but it worked so well I had to share it.
Just a word of warning: This is not a ladder or challenge deck
It rushes for wins and has short matches, making it extremely effective for winning timed tournaments, but a few terrible matchups make it too inconsistent for Challenges, and it has too many problems with overleveled interactions to work well on ladder.
This guide will all be assuming cards are at tournament standards.
The deck has won me multiple random tournaments (some of which I joined about a half-an-hour after they started), and it brought me to my trophy record for the season on ladder.
This is a very hard deck to play and describe the strategy for since it requires so much adaptation. With a slow cycle and a lot of options for pushes, you will rarely be defending the same way twice in a row.
In the early game, you need to learn your opponent’s deck quickly. Specifically watch for anything that counters Clone, such as Princess, Tornado, Executioner, and Poison.
Keep those cards in mind and try to come up with what push will work best (usually Giant Skeleton with one or two supporters and Clone at the ready).
The game can go one of two ways.
Sometimes, you need to rush the crap out of them and do insane pushes while ignoring whatever they play (good against some beatdowns). Other times, you need to play patiently and build up Elixir Collectors while waiting for overtime when you can do a viable push (good against some control decks).
In general, sacrifice some damage and play riskily to try and get that push that destroys a tower (or even gets the 3 crown).
Cards Breakdown
Giant Skeleton:
This is the main tank of the deck. He is low-health for his cost, but he packs a good punch if he makes it close enough to the tower.
Use some 4-cost supporters to defend a push, and drop Giant Skeleton in front for a very threatening couter-push.
One of the biggest mistakes I see with people new to Giant Skeleton + Clone decks is when they decide to use Clone.
Most people want to wait until the Giant Skeleton reaches the tower so that he does double the damage. The problem is, this rarely happens.
Clone‘s purpose is to help him reach the tower.
Usually, I play it right after he crosses the bridge so that his 1-health counterpart is quickly destroyed and leaves a bomb behind. This bomb will act like Poison in that it gives you total control over an area for a few seconds.
No smart opponent will play melee defenses until after it blows up.
This is also the only effective way of clearing air troops like Mega Minion and Baby Dragon (with some help from the Night Witch).
Like the P.E.K.K.A., Giant Skeleton can be played as a tank and then later supported.
This works great against things like Valkyrie, Bandit, and even Hog Rider if you’ll accept some tower damage (place him right in the Hog Rider‘s path so he physically slows it). Also note that he can one-shot Goblins, so he can help against Goblin Barrel if you’re desperate.
Also, if your opponent places a ranged troop (Musketeer, Executioner, Wizard, etc.) in the back and you have full elixir (probably the start of a match), you can immediately play Giant Skeleton at the bridge it is headed towards for a good trade. The ranged troop will start firing at him from a position right next to the tower. If they don’t drop any more defenses, then the bomb will hit the tower. If they do drop defenses, they will likely lose those defenses along with the ranged troop to the bomb. It’s surprising how well this works.
Dark Prince:
This is an all-arounder for this deck. He can kill support, provide decent DPS, deal moderate splash, and is semi-spell resistant. In a deck with a slow cycle like this, you’ll find he can do many jobs well enough.
The Dark Prince is probably one of the best cards to Clone in the game. The Clone has a 1 HP shield and lags behind the real Dark Prince, allowing him to survive even through The Log.
The main asset a Dark Prince has is splash damage.
He can one-shot Goblins making him effective against Goblin Gang, and when charging, he can take out Archers and Bombers. His charge also has a wide circular hitbox similar to Valkyrie‘s, which means that it can counter any defensive swarms that an opponent tries to drop directly on your push.
When you Clone Dark Prince, this means that troops with as much health as Barbarians will be obliterated the frame they are played on your push.
The Dark Prince also helps take advantage of one interesting aspect of Giant Skeleton: his mass.
When compared to the heavier tanks, Giant Skeleton is relatively light, which means that Dark Prince pushes him to the tower in just 3 seconds! Coupled with the protection of a Giant Skeleton bomb from Clone, this leaves your opponent rather helpless.
Dark Prince can also be used as a weak tank or tank-killer.
I often use him against Hog Rider when I know a Fireball or Lightning is coming. I only use him as a tank when playing the distraction game.
Sometimes, my opponent over-invests in defending my Giant Skeleton before I support it, so I rush the other lane with Dark Prince + support + Clone and let my opponent’s defenses all run into a big boom.
Similarly, I rush if they defend my push with Executioner.
One last trick for Dark Prince requires a lot of predictions.
Play him behind your tower right before an opponent throws a Goblin Barrel, and if you time it right, he will hit the three before they split. If you use Dark Prince in push after that, that’s a free 3-elixir advantage.
Night Witch
This card is the one that I most contemplate replacing, but it’s simply too good when the opponent doesn’t have the right counters in hand, and it’s also one of the only air defenses that synergizes with Clone.
Night Witch is one of the only cards in this deck that is good to place in the back. In the late-game, when you are trying to build a huge push, this can be a good way to start it.
She also is a decent tank-killer. Her DPS with the Bats is better than Dark Prince, and I would call her a “good enough” counter to Hog Rider. This DPS also makes her one of your best supports when trying to destroy a tower (watch out for Zap, though).
Speaking of Zap, she can be used to bait out spells before you Clone everything. If they waste Zap to kill a few Bats she spawned, respond with Clone, which is now much harder for your opponent to answer.
Night Witch, however, is rather weak to splash damage, so only use her if you aren’t expecting Ice Wizard, Witch, Executioner, etc. to be played to defend her.
Lumberjack
The best tank-killer in this deck, and a way to make your pushes fast.
If your opponent plays solo Hog Rider, play Lumberjack. If they play Giant + Musketeer, drop Giant Skeleton on the Musketeer to distract it and play Lumberjack to destroy everything. This guy does a ton, and when you use Clone, you get either double DPS, or your opponent uses Zap/The Log, and you get the Rage effect on this chopping machine.
Lumberjack also makes your pushes faster in two ways. First, when you use Clone, his clone often dies fairly quickly, dropping Rage over everything. Second, like the Dark Prince, Lumberjack can physically push Giant Skeleton to victory. One-shotting Goblins is also a plus.
Fire Spirits
These are both spell bait and anti-spell bait. On the one hand, they are common targets of the same spells that most people would use to try and stop your Clone push. On the other hand, they are the only good response to Minion Horde in this deck and overall provide good splash on defense.
I rarely use these on offense, either for chip damage or as a prediction for my opponent placing a swarm card to defend a push. I would recommend saving them for defense, where they are a lot more consistent.
Fire Spirits also are my favorite answer to Goblin Barrel, since when played as a quick reaction to your opponent tossing one, they don’t allow the Goblins to get a single hit.
Also, with Clone, they can kill most support troops and destroy most of a Balloon for 5 elixir. Only use this during desperate times or when Clone will affect more than just the Fire Spirits.
The Log
Pretty self-explanatory. This is the only spell in the deck. It is used in a variety of situations, but in this deck, it especially shines as a way to finish off towers and as a way to get rid of Princess to let Night Witch run unopposed. Don’t waste it on Goblin Barrel, since Fire Spirits are better for that.
Clone
(Note that Clone no longer counteracts Freeze. I’m a little annoyed that Supercell nerfed Clone in the last patch.)
Clone is the best response to Inferno Tower that I can think of, especially with Night Witch. If they Zap all the cloned troops, then some Bats will spawn, continuing to stall the Inferno Tower. Always push on the left side if you want this to work.
Elixir Collector
Another self-explanatory card.
If your opponent is blocking your pushes, play defensive and try to get some Elixir Collectors down.
Good Luck!!!
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