Archer Queen is a 5-elixir champion that shoots ground and air from range. Her ability makes her invisible and speeds up her attacks for a few seconds, so she wins most fights against troops. You beat her with spells and with troops that reach her quickly, and by not feeding her targets while she is cloaked.

Quick answer: the most efficient counters to Archer Queen are Fireball, Lightning, Mini P.E.K.K.A, Valkyrie.

Best counters to Archer Queen

These cards deal with it safely and for little elixir. Tap a card’s name to open its own guide.

• 
  Fireball 4 elixir +1 elixir trade
  Fireball deals heavy damage to her, and the tower finishes the job.
• 
  Lightning 6 elixir
  Lightning hits her hard and also hits the troops around her.
• 
  Mini P.E.K.K.A 4 elixir +1 elixir trade
  Mini P.E.K.K.A reaches her quickly and kills her in a few hits.
• 
  Valkyrie 4 elixir +1 elixir trade
  Valkyrie is tanky enough to reach her and wins the fight in melee.

How to defend

• Wait for her ability to end before sending troops; while cloaked she shoots much faster.
• Spells still hit her while she is invisible, so a Fireball is never wasted.
• Place your melee troop close to her, so she can’t shoot it for long before it arrives.

Common mistakes

• Sending small troops at her while she is cloaked: she kills them very quickly.
• Using a lone ranged troop that she out-ranges or out-damages.
• Ignoring her behind a tank; she melts your defenders while the tank walks.

After defending: the counterattack

Archer Queen and her ability cost a lot. When she is gone, push in her lane with what survived your defense.

Which spells kill it on their own?

At equal levels, whether a single spell takes this troop out without help from towers or other cards:

• Archer Queen (HP 1000): Lightning, Rocket

* Poison and Earthquake only kill it if the troop stays in the area for the whole duration. Values assume equal levels; level differences change the outcome.

Best decks against Archer Queen

Decks ElixirDeck’s deck builder makes against Archer Queen: each one is scored on both deck balance and its matchup against this card (all cards at the same level, evolutions and heroes unlocked). Every deck uses a different win condition; if your cards differ, you can adapt any deck to your collection.

Classic decks with a good matchup against Archer Queen

Each guide explains step by step how the deck is played.

• LavaLoon · Great matchup
• Mortar Miner · Great matchup
• Mega Knight Miner · Great matchup
• Hog 2.6 Cycle · Good matchup

Build a counter deck from your own cards

Enter your player tag and ElixirDeck finds the best decks against Archer Queen with your cards and levels.

Matchups are estimated from card roles and well-known counters; player skill and card levels change the result a lot.

Frequently asked questions

What is the best counter to Archer Queen?

The most efficient counters to Archer Queen are Fireball, Lightning, Mini P.E.K.K.A, Valkyrie. Fireball deals heavy damage to her, and the tower finishes the job.

What deck is good against Archer Queen?

Among the classic decks, LavaLoon, Mortar Miner, Mega Knight Miner match up well against it. The best counter deck ElixirDeck builds is a Goblin Barrel deck: Goblin Barrel, Valkyrie, Minion Horde, The Log, Princess, Goblin Gang, Fireball, Inferno Tower.

How do you get a positive elixir trade against Archer Queen?

Stop Archer Queen (5 elixir) cleanly with Fireball (4 elixir) and you are 1 elixir ahead, enough to attack the other lane.

Archer Queen card guide: stats, decks and balance history →

How to counter other cards