Today AirSurfer who won 90 times during the new Global Tournament using this 2.9 Xbow cycle deck. Xbow cycle has been around for a long time but due to the change in the recent meta (mainly bait returning) the xbow is back stronger than ever. One of the best things about Xbow is you can play defensively and wait out for the draw if you think you can’t break through their defensive troops. Against a mirror matchup air surfer recommends playing passively and waiting for double elixir before playing the xbow. One of the biggest mistakes people make when using this archetype for the first time is that they play to aggressive during single elixir especially with their spells. Your cycle cards in this deck, log, ice spirit, ice golem and skeletons, can offer you a lot of value especially if you use them to support your xbow and stop enemy units locking on and taking out the xbow. They can also be very versatile defensively too, the ice golem can kite large units like pekka away from your towers and the ice spirit can be used to reset units like inferno dragon or sparky.
Log is a good spell to use to help support your xbow while also getting some tower chip damage. It can also knock units like giant, prince or battle ram back allowing your units more time to shut them down.
Xbow is you win condition and you should play passively until you know what your opponent is playing, you will most likely need to out cycle the opponents main counter. Defensive xbows can be a good call especially against royal giant users. They are also good later game if you’ve taken a tower and are waiting for the match to end. They’re also very useful against three musketeers and during double elixir against golem decks.
If you lose a tower during single elixir then unfortunately it’s going to be a tough matchup and you’re going to have to play defensively and wait for the opponent to over commit so you can try and break through their defence. Cycling units like ice spirit at the bridge or skeletons in the back can be a good way to start out the match.
During double elixir you should try and cycle as quickly as possible, try not to use your Tesla because you have a quicker cycle using the log, ice spirit and skeletons. You can start to use your spell predictively to help support your xbow, try to out cycle as quickly as possible to get back to the xbow. Remember to practise with the deck and work on your ice spirit placements in order to get maximum value.
