Miner Poison Hut Deck… Off-Meta Madness Deck #1!

Hey everyone! It’s your main man Supermarine here again! However, it’s not just me this time! NebulaNoodle has also joined the party to help me in my second ever deck series, Off-Meta Madness! This guide marks the first addition to the series in the form of a seemingly simple Miner Poison Hut deck, that’s really good in challenges. However, the hut is not the type of hut you might think! Think you know? TOO BAD! You’re wrong! I’m just gonna get into it, and not spoil anything, so jump on board. And brace yourself.

Pros:

Great counter pushing potential

Hard counters graveyard, Mortar, Xbow

Decent vs. Giant, PEKKA decks

Cons:

No actual tank killer troop- will have to rely on Barb Hut for distractions mostly

Inconsistent defense vs. Hog Cycle

Sometimes weak on the counter push (situational)

Miner: Your win condition. This guy is so much of a maniac that he wears a candle on his hat! He also smacks his shovel repeatedly on the opponent’s Arena Towers or on any hard to reach splash troops sniping your Barb Hut (especially Princess or Wizard or Witches!)  He also pairs well with Poison, which I’m sure everyone knows by now and also matches well with our *drumroll please* BARB HUT!!! The Miner can serve as a tank, or he can let the Barbs serve as the tanks. Either way, that’s intense one-lane pressure! Here’s a pro Miner tip- if you’re going for a Miner+Minions mini-push, and they place a ground attacking melee ground troop like Valkyrie, Knight, PEKKA to distract the Minions, just send the Miner in to the back of the tower to pull their force away to the Miner, leaving your Minions to wreak havoc on the towers!

Poison: A fantastic medium damage spell to have in any deck, and a great addition here. Serving as crowd control and as Miner’s best buddy, no Gang or Horde or Skarmy is safe from the wrath of the Poison Spell! It can also take out a wide variety of glass cannons as well. Counting among its glass cannon victims: Wizard, Musketeer, Three Musketeers, Electro Wizard, Barbarians, Magic Archer, and Zappies too. However, be careful! Even though it’s not that expensive, if you use it poorly, you could be setting yourself up for significant danger later on in the match, and that could also cost you if you go into OT too!

Barbarian Hut: What else could be better in a Miner Poison deck than a constant stream of tanks that can be used in literally any situation? Spawning 2 Barbarians every 14 seconds for its entire lifetime, the Barbarian Hut can fill so many roles that other Miner Poison decks don’t have. Let me give you some context: Miner Poison is a cheap cycle deck, meaning that you want to drain every last drop of Elixir out of your enemy before the 1:00 mark. However, most don’t have a deadly enough threat card to do so, meaning that you aren’t in as good a position as you want. P.E.K.K.A won’t work, neither will MK, as you could be allowing your opponent to make a deadly counter push if they successfully defend. Hog? Maybe, but then your opponent could have Inferno Tower or easily any other hard counter (Cannon, Tesla, etc, etc, etc.) But Barbarian Hut? Perfect! It can provide intense one-lane pressure with a constant stream of Barbs, and also serve you well on defense as the second most durable building in the game! Since there are multiple Barbs spawned over its lifetime, your opponent will have to counter every set of them! However, don’t place this at the beginning of the game like you would a Gob Hut, as this card weighs in at a heavy 7 elixir! But anyways- overall, this card is great, no, AMAZING to have in Miner Poison!

Electro Wizard: He comes down with a POW and continues to show off by Zapping two at a time! On the rise after the April balance changes, he is a great counter to many variants of threat cards. He also synergizes quite well with our Barb Hut (surprise there!) because he can eliminate many dangers to it, like Princess or Bowler. He also can dispatch deadly threat cards like Inferno Dragon, Balloon, Sparky, and even the ETards if paired with our Knight! Overall, he is a very good fit in this deck!

Minions: Your trusty, reliable, Zap-proof air swarmy card. Unlocked early, and very easy to level up, the Minions pack high DPS for their elixir cost, defensive reliability, and situational versatility into three tiny organisms throwing…unidentified dark blue balls of….glop. Having the capability to surround and kill glass cannons like Musketeer, Hunter, Inferno Dragon, and Witch and Wizard (warning: very difficult!) if placed correctly, they won’t let you down! You can also split them in the back to cheap cycle! You can even kill threat cards like Balloon and Sparky (remember Ice Spirit though) with them! Overall, these three are more than welcome in Miner Poison!

Knight: A tough melee fighter that works well versus glass cannons and helps to kite swarms too. Not only have does he the capability to deal the same damage as an RG (pre-buff) of equal level with his sword, he can also help to distract Minions, Minion Horde, Skarmy, and Lava Pups too! He can easily make positive elixir trades against Executioner and other glass cannons as well. However, his most useful aspect here is when he is fighting another mini tank. He can completely overwhelm them with his attack speed and power, and at the same time be resilient enough to withstand hits from troops like Valkyrie, other Miners, or the Barbs from the Battle Ram. He also has the capability to take on certain threat cards like the Dark Prince. On offense, he can serve as a tank for Miner or a threat on offense when Miner is tanking. Knight+Ice Spirit is one of the most powerful defensive combos in the game right now, take advantage of that!

Barbarian Barrel: One of the newer cards on the block, the Barbarian Barrel is often thought of as a pseudo-Log. This little Barb has been pretty much neglected and underused since the release. And this is even with the several slight buffs in the last balance change. You can easily convert defense into offense with the one Barbarian hidden inside with the help of Miner, and convert swarm clear into tank disposal with the help of the Barb Hut. This card can counter Goblin Barrel and Graveyard with ease thanks to its AOE damage and the one Barbarian. It can also be used to distract air troops in a pinch, although that’s not really recommended. Knight is still the better option, and obviously, Ice Spirit or Minions would do better. It’s also a great counter to light pushes too because the Barrel clears out the squishies and the Barb clears out the rest. For example, it can stop a Musketeer or a Witch behind a giant, then you could use Minions and Ice Spirit for the Giant, then counter push! Sure, we may not know how the Barbarian got inside the Barrel, but this spell’s versatility is a big help here in this deck!

Ice Spirit: Post-nerf, this guy is still an awesome card to use. Miner+Ice Spirit is a great pressure combo at the start of the game to find opponent’s counters/possible meta decks. Having the capability to stop Goblins and Minions in their tracks, along with clearing out the weaker swarms like Bats or Skarmy, he is very versatile for his 1 Elixir cost! He can also reset deadly threat cards behind a tank or Hog or something and is the bane of all Balloons, Sparkies, and Inferno Dragons when paired with the Electro Wizard. Overall, he is pretty self-explanatory.

Substitutions:

Barbarian Barrel: Zap, The Log, Arrows, Giant Snowball

Knight: Ice Golem (highly recommended, allows kiting abilities)

Electro Wizard: Musketeer, Dart Goblin, Magic Archer

Miner: Hog, Royal Hogs (But this would pretty much change every aspect of your deck, you might as well not use this deck)

Barb Hut: Goblin Hut

Minions: Mega Minion, Bats, Minion Horde

Poison: Fireball

Gameplan:

In 1x elixir, play passive, like a slow control deck. Hence, this deck works best in challenges. Send in Miners as a counter push with any remaining troops left over from the defense, like E-Wiz or Minions. With Miner+EWiz counter push, don’t worry too much about tanking w/ Miner, as EWiz stun will reset the Princess tower to the Miner. Use your Barb Hut to provide one-lane pressure if you know you have the Elixir advantage, or if your opponent just placed a tank in the back. Against things like Goblin Gang, Princess, or even light Hog pushes, use the Barbarian Barrel+Ice Spirit (if necessary), but you won’t usually need it as the Barb Barrel acts like the Log for you (have you noticed there’s no real small spell?) But anyways- Ice Spirit will help to slow, and the Barb will go to town!

In 2x Elixir, Barb Hut plays an even bigger role than it did in Single Elixir. You can place it down with much less risk (faster elixir regen) and much more reward in the form of indirect profit and possible damage on the enemy Tower, and also in the form of tanks or threats to aid Miner! At this point in the match, you should also be using Poison with every Miner push you make to clear our pesky swarms like Skarmy, Horde, Gob Gang, or Goblins, all in 1, 2, or 3 ticks! Not only does this increase the lifetime of the Miner itself, but it also increases the survivability of any troops behind it, as they will deal more damage AND have more health after Miner dies!

Matchups:

Giant: Simply by using Knight on the support and Minions on the Giant itself, you can easily cripple a Giant-based push. In 2x Elixir, Barb Hut helps too, as it’s so gosh darn durable! Use Ice Spirit to freeze if necessary.

Golem: If Golem is indeed placed in the back, place the Barb Hut three tiles away from the King Tower and four tiles away from the Arena Tower so that way you can attack the support with Knight or Minions. The Barbs will help to kill the Golem, and Electro Wizard is also beneficial here for stuns. But, the key here is to not overcommit on defense, as you might not have enough Elixir for a counter push!

P.E.K.K.A: Minions and Electro Wizard work wonders versus this robotic rabble-rouser. Poison off support and swarm distractions. Like with other tanks, Barb Hut is a great help in Double Elixir, and acts as a distraction card and pressure. Use Knight or Barbarian Barrel on any pesky support, and also be sure to use Ice Spirit to freeze if necessary.

Lava Hound: This is where things get REALLY tough, as you only have Minions, Ice Spirit, and eWiz as air targeting troops! So, when it comes out, place your Barbarian Hut in the center (but make sure placement isn’t like what you would if defending Golem or Giant, as if your opponent places Hound at the far back corner, buildings will have a different pull range) then when it crosses the bridge, use Minions on whatever’s behind it (prioritise Balloon, but expect Arrows) then Electro Wizard should be able to take out the Hound. If necessary, use Knight or Ice Spirit to soak damage from Pups. Versus Lava Miner, use Knight on the Miner, and Electro Wizard on the Hound and Pups. Be prepared to take damage, as it will be impossible not to take a fair amount of damage.

Royal Giant: Again, Barbarian Hut works. Be sure to use Ice Spirit+Minions to inflict high DPS on the RG (surprisingly effective combo). Use Barbarian Barrel or Poison for swarm clear if necessary, and counter push whenever possible, with remaining Minions/Etc.

Hog: Be sure to use your eWiz and Ice Spirit to dispatch of light Hog pushes efficiently. Versus heavier Hog pushes, like those with P.E.K.K.A or Mega Knight, you will want to use your Barbarian Hut along with Ice Spirit or Minions if necessary.

Elite Retards: Try not to use Barb Hut- a waste of elixir and your Hut will basically be destroyed too. Ice Spirit+Knight works quite well, might need to add something else (EWiz?), then go with a Miner! Lots of Elite Barb decks in the low-ish 4k region have a very weak defense so take advantage of that. If you watch lots of TV royale replays in 4k you see players just continually tower trading. Be ready to take a little damage but overwhelm them eventually.

3M: Poison works great versus both the pump and Muskets, though knowing what to Poison which card when is very key. For example, you don’t want to Poison their Pump just as Double Elixir hits, because chances are they’re going to place Muskets right after. In the first two minutes, you’ll want to Poison the Pump. In 2x Elixir, Poison the Muskets. Use Minions, Knight, and Ice Spirit against any mini tanks that the opponent may have.

Graveyard: We all know that Knight, eWiz, and Minions are all effective counters to this nasty spell, but you also have the best counter of all: Poison! Poison is especially effective versus Graveyard Freeze, as the deck relies on Freezing the troops placed to kill the Graveyard Skeletons. However, that’s no help against Poison!

Siege: Barb Hut along with Knight+Minions work great versus both types of Siege structures. At the same time, though, be very careful of reset cards, supports, and alt win conditions, as they can seriously mess you up if not dealt with properly!

Spell Bait: You have two great counters that are also great for counter pushing: Electro Wizard and Barbarian Barrel. Both are capable of denying any hits from the Barrel and Gang. Don’t deploy them versus Princesses though. Instead, you should use Knight, Poison if near a Tower, or Minions. Minions can also be used versus Gang too. Also, one more thing: If they keep using Knight on your Miner and you have Barbarians from the Hut or Barrel coming down the lane, place the Miner behind the Tower so the Barbs will not be distracted by the Knight!

Mega Knight: Knight+Minions works well versus lone MKs, or MKs with no support, but versus large pushes, use Barb Hut+Minions so the Hut soaks and Minions kill the supports, then the tank, with their high DPS. If there is an alt win condition or multiple tanks, use Electro Wizard to stun or Barbarian Barrel to distract. Use Ice Spirit to freeze if necessary.

So that’s all for a great addition to the series! Leave a comment if you guys enjoy, or have other forms of feedback! Next guide should be coming in early to mid-August so you guys know when the next one will come (if Nebula shows up)! See you next time, courtesy of Supermarine and also Nebula!