AI Overview: This Pong Hog Rocket deck averages 3.6 elixir and has no buildings. In 2026 the Hog Rider’s best list wins 61.2% and the Archers’ best wins 70.6%, but this exact list has no tracker sample. Next comes a card-by-card walk-through with current costs and the 2026 changes for each one. All figures come from the October 2026 card data.
Last Updated: October 2026
Key Points:
- The deck costs 29 elixir, which is 3.6 on average, and it has no building at all.
- The Hog Rider had no 2026 change, and its best list wins 61.2% over about 3,800 battles.
- Archers’ best list wins 70.6% over 695 battles, though the Evo Power Shot dropped from 168 to 140.
- No printed Mega Minion list is above 50%: the best Hero list wins 47.7% and the best base list 44.7%.
- Rocket hits towers for 342, not 371 (June 1), and Zap for 48, not 58.
The Pong Hog Rocket List, Priced Card by Card
The idea is simple. No buildings, a Rocket for value, and an all-out Hog push whenever the opponent puts a tank at the back.
| Card | Elixir | Job in the deck | 2026 status |
| Hog Rider | 4 | Win condition, sent when the opponent plays a tank at the back | No 2026 change; best list 61.2% over about 3,800 |
| Musketeer | 4 | High-damage defender beside the tower | No 2026 change; Evo and Hero lists mostly 53% or more, best Hero 62.1% |
| Mini P.E.K.K.A | 4 | Heavy hitter for defense | No 2026 change; best list 60.6% over 1,100, only one of six above 50% |
| Archers | 3 | High-damage defender beside the tower | Best list 70.6% over 695; Evo Power Shot 168 to 140 |
| Skeleton Army | 3 | Defense against single tanks | No 2026 change; Evolution best 65.1% over 3,500, base best 55.6% |
| Mega Minion | 3 | Cheap flexible defense and support | No printed list above 50% (Hero 47.7%, base 44.7%) |
| Zap | 2 | Free-to-play stand-in for The Log | Crown Tower damage 58 to 48 on June 1; Evo Zap 77.0% over about 1,000 |
| Rocket | 6 | Tower damage and punish for 4-elixir troops | Crown Tower damage 371 to 342 on June 1 |
Each row gives one card’s cost, its job in the deck and its October 2026 status.
A deck with no buildings needs sharp elixir counting. The negative effect: with every printed Mega Minion list under 50% and the Rocket hitting towers for less, the deck has fewer safe fallback cards when a push goes wrong, and a mistake costs a tower faster.
What Changed in 2026
The Hog Rider is unchanged, so the main win condition behaves as before. The Rocket hits towers for 342 instead of 371, and Zap for 48 instead of 58. The Archers’ Evolution got weaker, but this deck uses the base card.
Claims, rechecked. Zap replaces The Log in this free-to-play version and that most Frozen Peak opponents used Skeleton Army. Skeleton Army had no 2026 change, and its Evolution lists do best, at 65.1% over 3,500 battles, so Zap on a Hog push is still a useful habit.
The weak spots. The Mega Minion has no printed list above 50%, with the Hero at 47.7% and the base card at 44.7%. The Mini P.E.K.K.A has one list above 50% out of six, with a best of 60.6%. The Musketeer has no 2026 change, but its Evo and Hero lists mostly win 53% or more, and this deck uses the base card.
Card pages: Hog Rider, Rocket, Archers and Mini P.E.K.K.A.
The Mega Minion is the cheap, flexible card that holds the deck together. The negative effect: a future trim would leave the deck leaning even more on the Archers and Musketeer to hold the air.
How to Play It Today
That stops the opponent from using all their elixir to support the tank, so the Mini P.E.K.K.A and Skeleton Army can handle it.
Arena advice. The deck works from Arena 6 to Arena 9, and that players who own an Ice Golem should swap it in for the Musketeer or Archers in Arena 8 and 9. Pong’s own variations used Mini P.E.K.K.A, Skeleton Army or even Lumberjack.
Translation: Rocket a troop that costs 4 or more elixir behind the tower, if the tower takes damage too. Zap the Skeleton Army the moment it appears on a Hog push. Place the Archers and Musketeer on either side of your tower to kill the tank, and keep the Mini P.E.K.K.A and Skeleton Army for defense, not offense.
Elixir math: the Hog Rider and Rocket take 10 of the 29 elixir. The other six cost 19, about 3.2 each. A Hog plus Mini P.E.K.K.A push is 8 elixir.
Try it yourself: load Pong Hog Rocket Deck into the Clash Royale Deck Builder and test it with your own card levels. It averages 3.6 elixir. No tracker has sampled this exact build, so there is no 2026 win rate to quote.
The negative effect: Elite Barbarians were nerfed this year, which frees the Rocket for other jobs, but a deck without a building still has no cheap stop for a Giant or Golem, and every tank costs a lot of elixir to answer.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is the Pong Hog Rocket deck good in 2026?
The Hog Rider’s best list wins 61.2% and the Archers’ best wins 70.6%, but this exact list has no tracker sample, so test the Mega Minion slot first.
How much elixir does the deck average?
3.6 elixir per card on average (29 in total).
Why are there no buildings?
The original deck skips them, and the style needs good elixir management. Against a tank at the back, the deck pushes the Hog instead of defending.
What did the Archers and Musketeer replace?
The Ice Wizard and Princess from the original Pong deck.
When should the Rocket be used?
On a troop that costs 4 elixir or more behind the tower, as long as the tower takes damage too.
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, Corrosive Logic here again with another deck guide. For those of you who don’t know who YoutubePongTV is, he is an exceptional Hog player and one of the most original deck creators that I have seen.
He has a deck that is practically considered “The Pong Deck”, which consists of Hog Rider, Ice Wizard, Princess, Ice Golem, Guards, The Log, Mega Minion and Rocket.
He has used this deck throughout multiple different meta’s, currently he uses variations of this deck sometimes with Mini P.E.K.K.A, Skeleton Army, or even Lumberjack.
Pong’s Logic – Hog Rocket Deck for Arena 7+
I made a variation to Pong’s deck which I name “Pong’s Logic”, and it is a simple F2P modification of his original deck!
I originally just made this for a friend to help him reach frozen peak, and I have his gameplay in my video below.
Because he had not reached Frozen Peak beforehand, I never placed Ice Golem in this deck. But I’m sure this deck can work well in Arena 8 and 9, just make sure to sub in the Ice Golem for Musketeer or Archers.
Pong’s Playstyle
Before you even think about using this deck, you must first understand Pong’s playstyle which I have based this deck around.
The first thing you will notice in the deck is the Rocket, and he uses this extremely well to kill troops placed behind the tower while at the same time doing lots of crown tower damage.
The next thing you will notice is that Pong has no buildings in his deck. If his opponent plays a tank at the back he always goes all out aggressive with a Hog push. This means his opponent will not be able to use all their elixir to support their tank. So Pong is now able to counter the tank with Mini P.E.K.K.A/Skeleton Army/Guards.
Overall Gameplan and Strategy
Hog – This is a no brainer. The Hog is this deck’s main win condition, it is to be used aggressively, specially when your opponent plays a tank at the back. In addition, in some cases, you can couple Hog Rider with Mini P.E.K.K.A to bypass buildings!
Rocket – If you are equal on Elixir it is good to rocket any 4 elixir+ troop placed behind the crown tower as long as you can damage the tower too. 3 elixir cards can also be okay to rocket if you have no better play to do. Prediction Rocket on Barbarians/Horde are also very good on your Hog pushes. In our current meta Elite Barbarians are all over the place, if you can prediction Rocket Barbarians on your Hog push, you are doing extremely well!!
Zap – This is the F2P replacement for The Log. When I was playing in Frozen Peak I noticed that 90% of my opponents had Skeleton Army. So on your Hog pushes make sure you have Zap ready to drop on Skeleton Army instantly in order to prevent damage on your Hog.
Archers and Musketeer – These are the F2P replacements for ice wizard and princess. They provide very high DPS for defense. Ideally you want to place them on either side of your tower to kill the tank, then use skarmy/guards/megaminion/fireball in conjunction in order to kill the tank’s support troops. These defenses can be converted into very powerful pushes, but just be careful of fireball.
Skeleton Army/Mini P.E.K.K.A – These are both very high DPS cards, best conserved for defense. Although it may be tempting, don’t use Mini P.E.K.K.A for an offensive push with or without the Hog unless it’s a conversion from defense. If you have your other cards going ham on the tank then use Skeleton Army/Mini P.E.K.K.A against the tank’s support units.
Mega Minion – Another no brainer, versatile, cheap, high DPS blah blah you’ve heard it all before. Read more about it at here.
Conclusion
The deck’s main offensive win condition is the Hog, use it aggressively if they play a tank at the back.
Use your Rocket on troops that cost 4+ elixir offensively, defensively it can be used as a last resort defense on massive pushes and even to kill Elite Barbarians rushing the other lane
The rest of the troops are almost all used for defense, specially Mini P.E.K.K.A and Skeleton Army.
I just want to say one last thing, using a deck without buildings requires a decent amount of skill and good elixir management.
Overall it’s great for using at Arena 6 to Arena 9! I hope you like this deck, be sure to check out my video too!
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