What you should know before playing Clash Royale

We look at Supercell's Clash Royale and the components that build this feature rich deck building, card placing strategy game.

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Portal Staff

Clash Royale App Icon

Clash Royale is a popular mobile strategy game from Supercell, the same company behind Clash of Clans and Brawl Stars. Clash Royale was globally released on March 2, 2016, and Supercell continues to support and update the game today. 

So what is Clash Royale like? Clash Royale combines elements of card games, tower defense, and real-time strategy games to deliver a unique gameplay experience. This experience consists of players building and upgrading their decks consisting of troop, spell, and building cards in order to strategically attack and defend against opponents with the goal of destroying their towers to win battles. 

Clash Royale is an easy game to pick up; however, it is very difficult to master and climb to the highest levels. Players must carefully manage their resources, make quick decisions under pressure, and adapt to different card combinations and opponent strategies. Ultimately, a player will only reach the highest levels of competitive play through time, practice, and strategic thinking.

Clash Royale offers an abundance of content from trying to keep up with the best meta decks, participating in one of the various challenges, or joining a clan. We’ll be looking deeper into what the features are that make the game so engaging to millions of active players. 

What are decks in Clash Royale? 

In Clash Royale, a deck refers to a set of cards that players use during battles. Each player constructs their own deck by selecting 8 cards from any of the 109 currently available cards. These cards are then used to deploy on the battlefield to attack the opponent’s towers and defend their own. 

There is a wide variety of decks in Clash Royale, each with its own unique strategy and playstyle. Some popular deck archetypes include beatdown decks, control decks, cycle decks, and siege decks. Beatdown decks focus on overpowering opponents with high-damage troops, while control decks prioritize defense and counterattacks. Cycle decks aim to cycle through cards quickly, and siege decks rely on long-range attacks often outside of the range of towers.

Ultimately, when building a deck it’s crucial to have a well-balanced and synergistic deck to increase your chance of success in battles. You’ll need to learn and practice with cards to help understand what goes into building a deck. 

Think you have the perfect deck? Prove it by posting your deck’s 3-0 clips in the Z League App today.

What are cards in Clash Royale?

Clash Royale offers 109 cards to collect and use in decks, which are ultimately used in battles. Cards may be obtained for free by opening chests, completing special challenges and events, through clans, progressing in the arenas on Trophy Road, or leveling up your King Level. You may also purchase cards through the in-game shop.

These cards may be categorized by type and rarity. The three types of cards are troops, spells, and buildings, while rarity consists of common, rare, epic, legendary, and champion cards. As the rarity increases, the card becomes more difficult to obtain but often possesses stronger attributes and abilities.

All Clash Royale cards have a level and an elixir cost. The rarity of a card determines the starting level of the card, but the max level of all cards is level 14. Common cards begin at level 1, Rare cards start at level 3, Epic cards start at level 6, Legendary cards start at level 9, and Champion cards start at level 11.

It is important to note that some card levels may be boosted or altered depending on the type of battle chosen or the seasonal boosts currently available.

Additionally, each card features unique attributes such as range, hit points, damage per second, attack speed, and special abilities. Understanding each of these elements is critical for playing the cards effectively and building overall strategies and synergies within a deck.

Clash Royale Legendary Cards
via Supercell

What is the gameplay in Clash Royale?

The gameplay in Clash Royale revolves around engaging in strategic battles with other players in real time. The objective is to destroy the opponent’s towers while defending your own.

Players enter a battle with their 8-card decks. As the battle begins elixir, the in-game resource, fills up over time. Players deploy cards onto the battlefield to attack the opponent’s towers and defend their own.

As cards have their own elixir cost, players must make strategic decisions by managing their elixer throughout the battle. The battle continues with players continuously deploying their troop, spell, and building cards to outwit their opponent’s strategies.

The winner of a battle is based on the first player to destroy the opponent’s King Tower or have more tower damage at the end of the battle.

After battling, players receive rewards such as chests and gold based on their performance. Chests contain various rewards, such as cards and gold, and have different unlock times. Collected cards and gold then can be used to upgrade card levels making the player a little bit stronger in their next battle.

Clash Royale is a combination of quick and intense battles along with long-term progression, allowing players to continuously refine their strategies and build powerful decks.

What are the Currencies in Clash Royale?

Clash Royale features several currencies that players can use to progress and acquire various in-game items. These currencies range from gold, star points, season tokens, crowns, banner tokens, and gems. 

Gold

Gold is a vital currency used for upgrading cards and purchasing items from the in-game shop. Players earn gold by opening chests, winning battles, and donating cards to clanmates. Managing gold effectively is crucial for card progression and improving the overall strength of a player’s deck.

Gems

Gems are the premium currency in Clash Royale. They can be obtained through gameplay rewards or purchased with real money. Gems are versatile and can be used to unlock chests instantly, purchase gold, or provide benefits in special challenges and events such as earning more season tokens each day.

In addition to gems and gold, Clash Royale also includes other forms of currency with specific purposes:

Star Points

Star Points (SP), are used to upgrade your card’s Star Levels. These levels are purely cosmetic and each card has at least one Star Level available, with others having two or three. Star Points are earned through any activity that would gain you experience while you are below level 50 King Level. You may also earn them by acquiring additional cards that already max level of 14. 

Crowns (Pass Royale)

Crowns are earned from battling to advance the Pass Royale, which is a premium monthly subscription similar to a battle pass in other popular games like Warzone or Fortnite. The Pass Royale has three tiers, Free, Gold, and Diamond, that each offer various benefits and exclusive rewards. These vary from cards and chests to free challenge rejoins and the ability to queue opening chests.

A player may earn crowns by destroying the opposing player’s towers and defending their own in battles, if a player destroys all 3 of an enemy’s towers while keeping all 3 of theirs then they would earn six crowns from the single battle. 

Season Tokens

Season Tokens are earned by participating in events and from the Pass Royale. These tokens can be exchanged in the Season Shop for gold, cards, emotes, banners, and other items. You may only earn a limited amount of Season Tokens each day, but you may expand this daily cap by using gems. 

What can you purchase in Clash Royale’s Shop?

Clash Royale’s main shop has chests, gold, card stacks, banners, emotes, and special offers on bundled items. Additionally, you may purchase gems directly within the shop.

Most items within the shop will require gems or a direct purchase to acquire. While the availability and duration of items can vary, the main thing to check is the daily deals.

The daily deal will always have at least 1 free card for you each day, other card deals may require either gold or gems to purchase. 

What are the events in Clash Royale?

Events in Clash Royale are unlocked at King Level 8, which you can earn within a few hours of playing the game by just leveling up cards.

There is a main event and rotating secondary events that feature 1v1 and 2v2 game modes. Plus the rotating Challenges. Participating in any of these will earn you Season Tokens up to the daily cap. 

What are the Challenges found in Clash Royale?

Clash Royale features various challenge modes. There are the Special Event Challenges, like the Mega Monk Challenge or Boost Fields Challenge. Players unlock the Classic Challenges at King Level 18 which include the Grand Challenge, Mega Draft Challenge, and the Classic Challenge.

Each mode offers a different rule set, gameplay variation, entry fee, and reward structure. 

Clash Royale Clan Wars
via Supercell

What are Clans in Clash Royale? 

Clans are an integral part of the Clash Royale community, allowing players to connect, cooperate, and compete together. A clan is a group of Clash Royale players who come together to chat, share strategies, donate cards, compete, and participate in friendly battles.

The number one reason to join a clan is for the ability to donate cards. You can specifically request cards every 7 hours that you need to level. Cutting down on the time it takes to acquire those cards randomly in chests or the shop. Additionally, by donating your excess cards you receive gold, experience, and star points.

How do Arenas work in Clash Royale?

Arenas in Clash Royale are competitive battlefields where players progress based on their number of Trophies from Trophy Road, the game’s main battle mode. 

Arenas represent different stages of the game’s ladder system. Each arena has a unique name, theme, and trophy range requirement.

Players start their Clash Royale journey in the Training Camp arena. As they win battles and earn trophies, they progress through different arenas, unlocking new cards, chests, and rewards along the way. Each arena represents a step toward the Legendary Arena, which is currently the 20th arena and requires players to earn the current Trophy cap of 7500 to enter.

Arenas provide a sense of progression and accomplishment in Clash Royale. They represent milestones in a player’s journey, granting access to new content and serving as a measure of their skill and success in the game.

How often does Clash Royale update?

Clash Royale receives regular updates from the game developers, introducing new content, features, balance changes, and improvements. 


The frequency of updates varies, but the game still has an active Roadmap of planned content for the game. This is exciting as it will include card expansion and an increase of the card max level to 15. 

How may I compete in tournaments for Clash Royale?

Clash Royale offers players the opportunity to showcase their skills and compete against other skilled players in organized tournaments. These tournaments could be official or player-hosted. 

Official Tournaments

Clash Royale hosts official tournaments that are organized and managed by the game developers. These tournaments are usually announced through in-game news or official communication channels. Participating in official tournaments typically requires meeting certain criteria or qualifications, such as reaching a specific trophy level or obtaining an invitation.

To join an official tournament, players need to navigate to the tournament section within the game and search for available tournaments. They can then choose to join a tournament and compete against other players for rewards and recognition. Official tournaments often have structured formats, specific rules, and varying prize pools, making them highly competitive and prestigious.

Player-Hosted Tournaments

Apart from official tournaments, players can also participate in player-hosted tournaments. These tournaments are organized by individual players or communities outside of the official Clash Royale platform. They may have different rules, formats, and requirements.

To join a player-hosted tournament, players usually need to obtain a tournament code or access key. These codes are shared by the tournament organizer through various platforms such as social media, Discord, or community forums. Once players have the tournament code, they can enter it in the tournament section of Clash Royale and join the specific tournament.

Player-hosted tournaments offer a wide range of options, from casual competitions to more competitive events. They are an excellent way to engage with the Clash Royale community, challenge yourself, and potentially win rewards.