Hog Rider Graveyard – Tired of Meta Decks?

Hey guys i am SageTheBatman and I am back with yet another deck which had helped me cross 3500 with a little alteration due to meta change.

I am sure this will help all of you guys to reach the legendary arena with a bit of practice and understanding.

Hog Rider Graveyard

Overview

With the onset of new meta, the Sparky is a pretty good defensive card.

I highlighted the defensive part because many people want it to take hits on tower but believe me, in the hands of an expert, a Sparky will hit tower barely one out of every 5 games.

This deck consists of Splashnado tactic for defense and the newly buffed or nerfed (strange but true ;p) Graveyard which has a smaller radius for increased precision. Now lets get into the description of cards then.

Cards and Roles

The cards of this deck have very specific jobs which they HAVE to do and are effectively good at their job of doing so. The cards/roles are as follows:-

Graveyard

The newly altered Skeleton party has just got a smaller venue and longer party time aka smaller radius and longer duration (though first skeleton spawns .5 second late but it adds up to 20 Skeletons instead of 19) which is, in my honest opinion a buff to it as it increases its precision and reduces the possibility to activate king Tower by mistake.

This deck has a pretty good synergy with Graveyard as there are many tanks in it which are both makeshift and dedicated tanks. Graveyard has only handful of counters in the current meta so it should be pretty easy to get first Tower but second is not a guarantee with this card though

Tornado

The most versatile spell in my opinion which can increase the damage of splash troops exponentially by clumping them together.

But that’s not all guys, it can also activate King’s Tower in numerous ways (Hog Rider, Goblin Barrel, Miner, etc.)

If the situation gets so dire, then even P.E.K.K.A or MK can be used to activate king Tower though it could lead to immediate 3 crown.

In this deck, this card synergizes so perfectly with Executioner and Sparky that it almost gets frustrating for the opponent to watch.

Sparky

In these recent few days of the new balance changes, I must say the 4 second attack charge is a huge difference for someone who has been using Sparky.

It’s almost the best ground tank destroyer after P.E.K.K.A. in my opinion though i do not expect people to have the same opinion as me and i quite agree.

It had way too many counters and flaws in it before but man is it fast now.

Combine it with Tornado and see the enemy push disappear in a SPARK ;p

Executioner

Another splash nado card which I consider the best defense when paired with Tornado.

The main counter to this was Lightning which fortunately received a radius and damage nerf which now makes Exenado a perfect counter for many decks in the current meta.

If you want to see how to use Tornado+Executioner intricately then go to the Exenado part in this guide!

Hidden Tesla

The newly buffed defensive card has a lot of potentials!

This is the only building which can be planted in the exact center thereby pulling troops from both bridges.

Also it can now 1 shot Minions and stab Goblins at tournament standard, which is an excellent ability considering that it can prove very effective against the meta Log bait deck as it can take out the cheaper units alone without any support which relieves us of many duties.

This buff is proving detrimental to the cheap cycle and spell bait decks plus the Tesla is only 4 Elixir, so it doesn’t overburden the user with Elixir disadvantage.

Hog Rider

The secondary damage dealer and win condition of the deck, the primary being Graveyard.

No matter what meta, any new card release or anything, this cool dude on a Hog never goes out of fashion.

Look at the Hog Rider in such a way that a level 10 enemy Tower has 2753 HP. Hog Rider does 250 something damage at level 7. This means if you get even 5 to 6 hits off the Tower then Graveyard and spells can easily send the crown to your bag.

Just remember your opponent’s cycle if defense against your Hog and plan it accordingly.

If the opponent uses something like Goblin Gang, Minion Horde etc, you should be able to predict Arrows after 2-3 tries.

Ice Golem

This card is the only card which i have found to be the most tactical card.

The reason behind this is not that i am mad, but it is that this card can make P.E.K.K.A. take a full round of map, can take on Minion Horde and kill them with Tower support on your side or some air attacking troops(even Spear gobs) to kill on the attacking side.

This card synergises extremely well with defense building by stalling the support behind the tank for long enough to kill the tank and the deal with support easily.

Overall this card is just too precious to ignore just like that.

Oh yes, when you have positive Elixir trades totaling to give you 5-6 Elixir advantage, then an Ice Grave push can easily buy the Tower.

Arrows

Though everyone knows how to use this extremely ultra common card, but there are quiet some synergizing strategies with Hog or Graveyard.

For example, when you study your opponent’s deck and his counters for your card after 2-3 pushes, then you can predict Arrows to catch your enemy totally helpless(this might even make them Rage quit). Such strategies are only possible if you are a keen observer and play carefully.

Replacements

This deck has a special synergy with each other, but since it quiet legendary heavy, there are some replacements i could advise:

These are all the replacements i suggest though switching Executioner makes air defense really unsafe

Potential Pushes

Any card in this deck synergizes extremely well with each other.

A devastating push can be made very easily with just a pair of cards.

To name a few:

Ice Golem+Hog Rider -> This push can be generated for a mere 6 Elixir. What more features does this Ice Golem add you ask eh? This Ice Golem primarily does:-

1. It tanks for Hog Rider(duh sherlock)
2. It eliminates the potential counters like:
   • Skeleton Army dies from Ice Golem’s death damage
   • Minion Horde dies when Ice Golem death damage+Zap is used
   • Goblin Gang dies in the same way as Minion Horde
   • Inferno Tower has 2 possible outcomes which are:- Ice Golem goes towards Inferno and Hog Rider reaches crown Tower dealing huge damage, and the other possibility is that while Inferno Tower deals with Ice Golem and is slowed by its death, the Hog Rider destroys the Inferno Tower and goes to arena Tower almost unharmed

Ice Golem+Graveyard -> This push can easily destroys a Tower if your opponent has no “EFFECTIVE” counter. By effective, i mean a pure dedicated Graveyard hard counter like Valkyrie, archer, Poison, etc. If opponent uses mere swarm troops you have Arrows, and its a free crown. Not much explanation needed, you can understand on your own.

High Elixir Sparky+Executioner -> This is a fairly high Elixir cost push but it can be super hard to deal with though. Sparky can clear most ground units with 1 hit except for P.E.K.K.A. MK,Golem etc, while Executioner deals with swarms before they can discharge Sparky. Arrows for extra clearance support.

General Gameplans

Most Hog chip cycle decks are played in a stereotypical way, but this deck is a new archetype. I like to call it “pseudo-control beatdown deck”

Without further ado let’s get into the game plan.

Early Game (3:00-2:00)

The most important thing in this part is that you have to find which buildings, spells and swarm units your opponent has.

Once you know that you can easily predict his move.

How to do that? Simple yet complicated. When you make a few pushes, like Ice Golem Hog push, you understand what your opponent uses to counter them.

Take this instance:

My first Hog Ice Golem push is stopped using Goblin Gang/Minion Horde/Skeleton Army. Then I know he has swarm units which i can predict Arrows. But there is a possibility that he has a bad hand and he has a better counter in his deck. If i predict Arrows in my 2nd push while he uses Canon, I would have a 4 Elixir loss which can lead to a glorious defeat which we of course don’t want right? So what we do is to experiment for at least 3 pushes then start predicting if you get same results.

On defense part, the options are very diverse.

A simple push can be stopped by Tesla.

For instance, an Ice Golem Hog push can be stopped using only Tesla with 2 hits on Tower. On the other hand a 6 Elixir Sparky is able to stop it with 0 hits.

For bigger pushes like a Giant support push use sparknado or exenado, it’s GG. Since Sparky charges faster now, it eats away tanks under 12 seconds. Moreover Tesla now 1 hit kills Minions which is a big relief now.

Keep the Graveyard a secret for now!! Do not use it in the first minute!

With that said, this part is over.

Mid Game (2:00-1:00)

In this part, you switch to an upper gear of aggressiveness where you defend with Exe/Sparknado and create a devastating counter push on the same lane or use Ice Golem Hog Rider/Graveyard in the other lane.

Obviously your opponent can’t defend both and WILL take damage.

But to do this you must make positive Elixir trades otherwise it would not be possible.

If you can manage this much in the 2nd minute of game, then you have a victory in your hand that is my guarantee.

Some points to keep in mind while doing this is that buildings can really ruin your game.

Identify which building your opponent has and PREDICT it, don’t see then spell it. It would be too late till then.

This is all you could do in this much time but remember that it is very important you don’t take much damage on either if your towers, otherwise you will have to start playing passively which is bad and should not happen.

Late Game (1:00-0:00)

The real fun begins here.

If you can manage to defend successfully till now and and have dealt a little over 500 damage to either of the opponent towers, then you are in a really good shape in the fight.

Here what you do is use Tesla as primary defense in center and use:

• Sparky for ground tanks like P.E.K.K.A, Golem, Giant(can be easily killed with Tesla+Tornado alone).
• Executioner for air troops(not only tanks but EVERY SINGLE air troop). The best response would be to place 4 Elixir Tesla in mid and an exenado combo. This will deal with pretty much every air push, even Lavaloon if played correctly

This was for the defensive part, but you shouldn’t allow your enemy to create big pushes.

On the contrary when the opponent creates a big push, then you get an opportunity to do a cheap Iceyard push while being able to defend as i mentioned above with sufficient Elixir.

This is not as easy as it sounds. You have to constantly make positive Elixir trades or this won’t be possible at all.

At bare minimum, you want a healthy 2 Elixir lead at all times even if cost a few hundred damage on the Tower. Otherwise you would really fall behind in game and you don’t want that as this deck cannot get 2nd crown under 1 minute overtime.

In tournaments and challenges though you could try to get 2nd crown (or lose) if you lose a Tower.

By now, you must be knowing what cards your opponent is using and should be able to wreck him with prediction Arrows,etc.

A simple Hog+Graveyard push can do a very good job on the Tower if your opponent makes even a simple mistake of misplacing his/her spell, Valkyrie, etc and this would get you the game.

Above is in caseyou are in a good condition before 2x Elixir tho.

If you are not, then you should first analyze if you can win or not.

If you can then do what I explained above- catch your opponent empty handed and wreck him/her.

If you are NOT sure you can win and are on the verge of losing (Tower below 1000) then worry not, you have nice defense in your hand.

Tesla is the new OP defense in this meta, totally wrecking the extremely famous SPELL BAIT deck, since it can 1 shot even Minions and stab Goblins. Moreover it’s ability to stay “hidden” can lure troops to take a longer path and only be dealt with when they are out of the ground which is very situational.

Use Sparknado/Exenado to deal with troops as i mentioned above. That’s all!!

Over Time (Not Good)

If you have reached overtime then this could only mean 2 things:-

• You are on the verge of winning and just need 1 more push to end the game.
• OR you are stalling the game to prevent yourself from getting wrecked and just play the passive game to end the 1 minute overtime

The forementioned part is fine considering you turn in the heat in 2x Elixir but to be honest, you should NOT reach overtime.

It is dangerous. A single mistake can cost you 30 trophies or even more.

If you are winning, then be patient, don’t rush suddenly.

Just stall if you are about to lose and make smart push if you are about to win. Thats all i have to say.

Matchups

You can, in current meta, mostly face spell bait or P.E.K.K.A. beatdown decks. Even so i will include all possible matchups(yes even Sparky!!)

Spell Bait Decks

This can be dealt with easily if you play smart.

Most spell bait decks contain Rocket, so make sure you don’t get your Sparky and Executioner killed for bad.

In this matchup, do not use Sparky!! I am serious, Sparky will be swarmed to death here. Instead, use Tesla and Executioner to deal with cheaps and use Tornado to activate king Tower with Goblin Barrel in the first go and then keep arrowing.

Moreover, don’t waste your precious spells on Gang. Save Arrows for Goblin Barrel/Princess at all times, no alternative here.

P.E.K.K.A. Beatdown

This is quite a hard matchup as it needs to be dealt in the exact same way as i explain down below:-

1. DO “NOT” PRESSURE OTHER LANE!! I mean it, that will be the end of you. Only pressure the opposite lane if you are sure his push won’t make it in time(in last 30 seconds) and you can catch the opponent off guard with Ice Golem/Hog Rider and Graveyard combo.
2. If this event happens during the main duration of game(3:00 to 0:30) then, store Elixir, place Tesla, prepare Sparky and ready Tornado and Arrows depending on the situation. Minion Horde or other air low health troops ask for arrow and high health ground support require Tornado. That’s it, the push is dealt with.

Sparky

Sparky can ruin your push in numerous ways. It can obliterate Hog Rider/ Ice Golem in 4 seconds which is not even half the duration of Graveyard. It is very important to deal with it. Firstly, if you consecutively face Sparky in ladder, switch Arrows with Zap as it can stall Sparky long enough to deal huge damage to Tower. Secondly drop Graveyard before Hog or Ice Golem. This way Sparky will remain distracted nicely and safely, also it might even die ;p

LavaLoon

Easily the most dreaded combo in the current meta, the Lavaloon snatces away 30 trophies from you before you know it. How this can be dealt with is by kiting Lava Hound & Balloon with Tesla and once they reach closer to Tesla drop Executioner and Tornado them back, not even a pup will touch the Tower that is my guarantee. Simple as that. But beware, not to waste Executioner or you are totally defenseless against it.

Hog Cycle

Easy 2 line explanation, use Tornado to activate king Tower in the first push and the use Tornado to pull the Hog Rider in centre in the later pushes. Its gg for him.

Giant

Just use Tesla and sparknado and the push disappears. If situation comes too bad, even exenado can handle the push.

Conclusion

This game is all about overthinking and outsmarting your opponent with a combination of cards that leaves him with no choice but to lose and this deck is the one guys. Give it a try you will love it once you get a hang of it.

Good luck people,

Sage out!