Clash Royale Lava Hound Deck Arena 5 to 9

A brilliant tank that will split into 6 LavaPups which act just like minions. It offers a lot for 7 elixir and can only be targeted by ranged and flying units, which most decks don't have much of. This is the star tanker of this deck. Use it defensively to distract the ranged units of a push and on offense, it lets your smaller units deal massive damage while the opponent attempts to chip down its 3K health.

My favorite card of the game, which deals insane damage with each hit. Useful for both offense and defense, for its damage lets it kill tanks quickly and demolish a tower while protected by the Lava Hound from above. Make sure to always back up the Mini Pekka since without support, it will get distracted easily and die.

A cheap and effective card that is useful fir defending against a push or used to back up your LavaHound. Minions, unlike their counterpart Minion Horde, won't usually get arrowed instantly and are seriously underrated next to the Minion Horde.

A powerful spell card useful for all situations. It can be used to kill off musketeers and wizards that are attempting to kill your LavaHound or burn Barbarians to crisp. If necessary, it can be used to kill off Minion Horde, but I usually use the zap for it. If the opponent plays 3 Musketeers, it may be necessary to Fireball and Zap it to kill it since they will rip apart any push u have going.

Obe of the best spells in game for its short moment of stun. Used to stun and damage defending towers and units to allow your LavaPups and other units to get some extra damage in. Another use is to reset inferno towers, which can be a real threat to your LavaHound. Also, if he opponent is playing a Sparky, be more conservative with the zap so it can be used to reset the Sparky's charge.

A cheap unit that offers a lot of DPS. Mainly used for distraction but an be used to kill tanks and finish off other units while they're distracted. It's speed allows it to rush in on offense and kill Archers, Musketeers, Wizards, and Spear Goblins. Can be used to support a Mini Pekka for a small push.

A cheap defense card used to defend mainly against hogs for a positive elixir trade. If used for other tankier cards such as Royal Giants or the the regular Giant, it would to recommen to add a Mini Pekka in there to kill it faster. After recent updates, the tesla can be a good substitution for this card since for one more elixir, it can target air units, has a higher DPS, more health, and the ability to hide when not defending.

A versatile card that can be used for both defense and offense. On defense use it to defend against Minion Hordes and swarms if your zap is not in your hand. On offense, put it behind your LavaHound to kill off Minions and Spear Goblins, after the LavaHound dies, the Baby Dragon can tank for the Pups allowing it to deal massive damage.

Usually I stpart straight off the bat with the LavaHound to put some fear and surprise my opponent. He will most likely try to push on his own, but it will be a weak push that a Mini Pekka or other cards can easily demolish. The push will be weak since he is wary of the Hound and will be saving cards and elixir to defend against it. In that case use the Mini Pekka that you used to defend and add in Minions or a Baby Dragon to support the LavaHound. Hold onto a spell card for their Minion Horde or Musketeers. Usually this is enough to take down a tower. However, it doesnt always work out that way. For example they may have an Inferno ready, or someone managed to repel your push. If that happens, just play good defense and make positive elixir trades with your smaller units. When 2X elixir time starts, start your Lava Hound push again. If they have an inferno, let it lock onto the LavaHound and send in goblins, minions, or a Mini Pekka and zap the inferno. This will reset the Inferno and let your small troops take it out. If they play really smart and manage to destroy your small troops, just play for a draw unless they make a stupid mistake. If they make a stupid mistake, like sending an inferno to defend against something other than the Hound, take advantage of that and start a Lava Hound push, this time put the Hound at the bridge so he doesn't have time to cycle back to the inferno.

Royal Giant- Mini Pekka and Cannon. Just Mini Pekka if your don't want to waste elixir and your tower can survive a couple hits. If they support the Royal Giant, Fireball or Zap the support depending on what it is.

Hog Rider- Cannon to defend, zap to kill the small support troops they might put down. If cannon isn't in your hand, use Mini Pekka.

Sparky and Giant- A tricky combo to deal with, normally I put down a cannon to defend against the Giant, and once the Sparty crosses the bridge onto my side, I zap it and place down a Mini Pekka, Goblins, or Minions to kill the Sparky and then the Giant.

Giant and Ballon- Cannon to distract and place Minions to kill Balloon. If they have a musketerr or wizard behind it, use a Mini Pekka to kill the them and then the Mini Pekka and Minions should be able to tear the push apart.

Spawners- I don't see these very often in the higher arenas, but if they use a spawner deck, just push on the opposite lane and use a cannon to defend. The thing with spawners is that you have to take an early lead since spawners become deadly in 2X elixir time.