Viking

Viking

> ***"The Viking has low speed but high damage."***
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The Viking is a 7 Mana card. He is a slow, single-target, melee-ranged ground troop with very high hitpoints and extremely high damage.

## Strategy

* The Viking can defeat Footman in just 1 hit. This is useful to keep in mind if Footman are the opponent's only counter to him.
* If he crosses the bridge alone, a grounded swarm card like the Skeleton Horde is effective at distracting and defeating him, usually for a positive Mana trade, although this is easily countered with a quick spell like Rolling Steel or Blitz. However, as sending him alone is in generally unadvisable without playing support cards, expect the enemy to place a counter.
* The Viking's massive damage and very high hitpoints make him nearly impossible to defeat on the other side. Because of this, he can get enormous value against massive pushes. However, he gets countered relatively easily when alone.
* Spells are extremely important on Viking decks, as they can temporarily replace area damage troops if they were currently out of rotation. Poison is very effective as its long duration can prevent large swarms from attacking him, while also giving you an advantage against hard counters like the Mother Skeleton. This can easily assure at least a single connection at most of the times, due to the fact of this strategy being relatively cheap and unpredictable.
* The Viking is very weak against enemy air troops like a Devil Horde. They can attack him completely unharmed and set up for a good counterattack.
* Although situational, the Viking can be used as a distraction for enemy air troops, as his hitpoints are high enough to tank many shots from units such as T-Rexagon or Helicopter.
* Ranged troops that deal area damage like the Bomber Man are effective at backing up the Viking, as they cover each others' weaknesses fairly well. However, combos like this are often vulnerable to spells or mini tanks that can take care of the back end support troops first.
* The Viking functions differently from other high cost tanks in the sense that he attacks all units. While this generally makes him less effective on offense, as he can be distracted, it allows him to be effective on defense as he will destroy most enemy ground units in a few hits. As such, he is a hard counter to dangerous cards such as the Dark Knight or Runners, having a large amount of health remaining afterward, enough to start a counterattack. When doing so, he can serve as a meat shield that makes it more difficult for the opponent to place frail troops or tanks, limiting their defensive options. His high damage can cause the opponent to overcommit their defenses on him solely, allowing other troops (especially quick ones like the Drunker) to pass by unharmed.
* Spell cards and distraction units are the most effective methods of countering a Viking push. An Explorer is especially effective as he will kite the Viking away from his support troops for a cheap Mana cost, rendering him helpless against enemy troops. Once the Viking has dealt with the Explorer, he will not have much, if any support behind him, also being easily taken care of.
* Buildings can be good follow up defenders if the opponent lacks an instant damage spell to take care of them, as the Viking will not be able to reach them quickly.
* Even though his hitpoints are higher, it is recommended to have a distraction unit like Skeletons in front of him when defending a heavy hitter like a Faun King. This will allow him to save more of his health for a counterattack after defending against the heavy hitter.
* A good strategy to use with the Viking is to support with a T-Rexagon. This is a good combo because the T-Rexagon can take out swarms and survive most spells.

## History

2023

* The Viking card was released with Boom Arena's game launch on 4/5/2023.
* His movement speed was increased from 0.8 to 1.0 on 8/26/2023.

## Trivia

* He's the Boom Arena equivalent to the P.E.K.K.A. His damage and damage per second are between level 11 and level 12 of the equivalent, but his hitpoints are between level 10 and level 11.
* He might also be this game's version of the King since he appears on both the game's icon and on the middle Crown Tower, not unlike the King.