The Elixir Golem is Clash Royale design at its most devious Eurogamer.net If you click on a link and make a purchase we may receive a small commission. Read our editorial policy. The Elixir Golem is Clash Royale design at its most devious Hit the decks. Feature by Christian Donlan Features Editor Published on 17 Oct 2019 6 comments The Elixir Golem isn't officially released for 18 days, but already I can't stop thinking about him. Some people in my clan already have him, which doesn't help. New cards have slowed down a bit in Clash Royale of late. But even without such relative scarcity this guy would be exciting. Clash Royale is a game where you build a deck of cards, which represent units or buildings or spells. And then you use these cards in 1v1 - or 2v2 - matches against other players. Each player has three towers that they're protecting and you're trying to storm. The stuff that allows you to play cards is called elixir. It's basically mana. Each card has its own elixir cost, and managing this is the heart of the game. Watch on YouTube The standard Golem has been in the game for ages. I went through a definite Golem thing a while back, but now I barely use him. The Golem is very powerful, a melee unit that does a lot of damage and has a lot of health. Before dying he splits into two mini Golems and they're a pain too. But listen: he costs eight elixir, which is almost all your pool. And he's slow. He can be whittled down quite easily by a skilled player before he's really done anything. Enter the Elixir Golem. Still big and powerful, and still splits in two when damaged. And when those guys are damaged they both split in two as well. Lots of room to seriously hurt your foe. But here's the thing: the Elixir Golem only costs three elixir, which is practically nothing. Cue the twist. When those final four blobs of Elixir Golem have been defeated, your enemy can cash them in as elixir for themselves. Pure evil! Elixir Golem comes at a discount, but when he's defeated he hands a massive elixir boost to your foe. He hacks the tempo for you, but you have to pay it back later. So he's a rush baddy, I guess.That's how I've been using him so far in the special matches in which I'm allowed to try him out. Sometimes it's gone well. Sometimes it's been an absolute disaster. And that's what a new card should be like, right? Those 18 days can't tick away fast enough. Become a Eurogamer subscriber and get your first month for £1 Get your first month for £1 (normally £3.99) when you buy a Standard Eurogamer subscription. Enjoy ad-free browsing, merch discounts, our monthly letter from the editor, and show your support with a supporter-exclusive comment flair! Support us View supporter archive More Features Digital Foundry Nvidia GeForce RTX 4090: a new level in graphics performance The Digital Foundry video review - and how the new GPU champion delivers for 4K 120fps gaming. 14 Feature Evercore Heroes wants to wind people up the right way "There's less rage at them, because they didn't end your fun." Feature What games get wrong about horses And what they could do about it. 34 Feature Shout out to all the Overwatch supports - where would we be without you? Merci. 55 Latest Articles Digital Foundry Sennheiser's legendary HD 599 open-back headphones are just £70 at Amazon in the Prime Early Access Sale Comfortable with neutral sound and a wide sound stage. Preview Football Manager's new Console edition is the best you'll get without a PC Getting Touch-right. 1 Splatoon 3 Amiibos will be out next month Ink-coming! 3 Fans think Phil Spencer's shelf is teasing the Xbox Game Pass streaming box UPDATE: Xbox confirms old Keystone prototype. 61 Supporters Only Premium only Off Topic: Take a minute to appreciate Cookin' with Coolio's incredible scallops recipe. What a great book. Premium only Off Topic: Reading City of Glass in comic form "Where exactly am I going?" Premium only Off Topic: Il Buco is a transporting film about a really big hole Underlands. Off-Topic Netflix handled Sandman brilliantly It was Dreamy. 9 Buy things with globes on them And other lovely Eurogamer merch in our official store! Explore our store