Updated for Town Hall 18 (October 2026).
The Dragon Rider is a flying Elixir troop that goes straight for defenses. It unlocks at Town Hall 13 with the level 15 Barracks, takes 25 housing space, and explodes when it dies, damaging everything around the crash. Level 6 is the max at Town Hall 18, and after two trims in 2026 it has 5,900 hitpoints and 490 damage per second.
How the Dragon Rider works
A skeleton pilot flies a mechanical dragon that fires cannonballs from 4 tiles away at one defense at a time. Compared with a regular Dragon or an Electro Dragon, it is faster, tougher and hits harder per shot, but it deals no splash and ignores anything that isn’t a defense. That makes it a defense hunter: it cuts a path through the base for the troops that follow.
When a Dragon Rider is destroyed it falls and explodes in a 2-tile radius, the same idea as a Balloon‘s death bomb. At level 6 the blast does 1,200 damage, so even a Rider that dies next to a defense often finishes it.
Dragon Rider stats
Housing 25, movement speed 20, one shot every 1.2 seconds, range 4 tiles, death damage radius 2 tiles. Research is done in the Laboratory with Elixir.
| Level | DPS | Damage per shot | Death damage | Hitpoints | Research cost (Elixir) | Research time | Lab level | Town Hall |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 340 | 408 | 700 | 4,100 | None | None | None | 13 |
| 2 | 370 | 444 | 800 | 4,400 | 7,500,000 | 6d | 11 | 13 |
| 3 | 400 | 480 | 900 | 4,700 | 12,000,000 | 8d | 12 | 14 |
| 4 | 430 | 516 | 1,000 | 5,100 | 14,500,000 | 9d | 14 | 16 |
| 5 | 470 | 564 | 1,100 | 5,600 | 19,000,000 | 10d 6h | 15 | 17 |
| 6 | 490 | 588 | 1,200 | 5,900 | 29,500,000 | 15d 12h | 16 | 18 |
Costs and times are standard values before any Gold Pass discount. Town Hall 15 adds no new level, so a Town Hall 15 Rider stays at level 3.
How to attack with Dragon Riders
Dragon armies at Town Hall 18
Dragon Riders are part of the most-used Town Hall 18 war army right now. In its July 2026 balance post, Supercell said Dragon armies led by the Dragon Duke and Dragon Riders showed up in roughly 20% of Town Hall 18 versus Town Hall 18 war attacks, which is why both were trimmed. A typical version sends Riders to strip defenses on one side while the Duke and the rest of the air army follow them in.
Clearing the way
Because Riders only shoot defenses, drop them where the defenses you need gone are close together, and they will move from one to the next without stopping for storages or huts. Their speed and hitpoints let a small group take out spread-out defenses that would kill slower troops on the walk. Rage Spells on the group when it reaches a cluster pay off well.
Handling Seeking Air Mines
Air traps are the main threat. A Seeking Air Mine can take out a big chunk of a Rider’s health, or kill a damaged one, and losing one Rider costs 25 housing space. Send a few Balloons ahead to trigger the mines, or let a Lava Hound soak them on the Air Defense side.
Pairing with Lava Hounds
Hounds pull fire from Air Defenses while Riders destroy them. The pairing only works near the Air Defense the Hound is heading for, so line up both on the same side.
How to defend against Dragon Riders
- Place Seeking Air Mines next to the defenses Riders are likely to reach first. Each Rider that dies early is a big loss for the attacker.
- A Skeleton Trap set to air is useful against them. Riders ignore the Skeletons, which then keep shooting while the Rider looks for a defense.
- Single-target Inferno Towers and Air Defenses placed so their ranges overlap make each Rider pay for every defense it targets.
- Keep defenses apart so a death blast doesn’t catch two at once.
As a Clan Castle defender the Dragon Rider is middling. It hits only one target at a time, so swarms overwhelm it, but its hitpoints can stall an unprepared ground army for a while.
Dragon Rider changes
- June 15, 2021: added at Town Hall 13 with 3 levels.
- December 12, 2023: level 4.
- November 25, 2024: level 5.
- March 2025, Clash Anytime: training time removed.
- June 30, 2025: hitpoints raised at levels 4 and 5.
- November 17, 2025: level 6 added for Town Hall 18; level 5 damage raised and its upgrade made cheaper and faster.
- May 26, 2026: level 6 cut from 6,200 to 6,000 hitpoints and from 520 to 510 damage per shot.
- July 2026: level 6 cut again, to 5,900 hitpoints and 490 damage per shot, as part of Supercell’s air-meta balance pass.
Dragon Rider FAQ
What Town Hall unlocks the Dragon Rider?
Town Hall 13, with a level 15 Barracks.
Does the Dragon Rider target defenses?
Yes. It only attacks defensive buildings, one at a time, and moves on once each is destroyed.
Dragon Rider or Electro Dragon?
The Rider is faster, has more hitpoints and more damage per shot, and costs less housing. The Electro Dragon’s chain lightning hits several buildings at once, so it is better at clearing large areas, while the Rider is better at removing specific defenses.
What is the Dragon Rider’s max level?
Level 6 at Town Hall 18. Every troop’s cap is on the max levels page.
Sources: Supercell (July 2026 balance update, Town Hall 18 update, State of Gameplay part 2, May 2026), in-game data.
