Inferno Dragon

Main article File:InfernoDragonCard.png

The Inferno Dragon is a Legendary card from Clash Royale that is unlocked from the Electro Valley (Arena 11) or from a Legendary Chest. It is a single-target, short-ranged flying troop with moderately high hitpoints and various damage stages. The Inferno Dragon's damage increases over time as it remains focused on a single target. It resembles a Baby Dragon with a helmet, a yellow hose and a fuel tank on its back. An Inferno Dragon card costs 4 Elixir to deploy.

## Strategy

* Against a moving target, the Inferno Dragon should be placed, at most, 3.5 tiles away from the target's destination. This is because If the target moves out of range, the Inferno Dragon's damage stage will reset, severely hurting its damage per second. Use this fact and be sure to deploy your Inferno Dragon close to your Towers or in front of troops to ensure that it will damage the target for as long as possible.
* The damage of the Inferno Dragon functions generally the same as the Inferno Tower. For its first four hits, it deals about 8.5% of its full damage (stage 1). For its next five hits, it burns at about 28.5% of its full damage (stage 2). After that, it will incinerate the enemy with its full 100% damage (stage 3). The optimal time to stun/freeze the Inferno Dragon is at 4 seconds, right before it reaches its third stage of damage.
* The Inferno Dragon can be considered a better alternative for the Inferno Tower due to its lower cost and the ability to counterattack. However, unlike the Inferno Tower, the Inferno Dragon is vulnerable to knockback and other effects that move it around the Arena, such as Giant Snowball, Fireball, or Tornado. It also has significantly less health than an Inferno Tower.
* The Mega Knight is great to use with the Inferno Dragon since he can protect the Inferno Dragon as well as destroy swarms, while the Inferno Dragon can melt troops that can counter the Mega Knight like the P.E.K.K.A.
* Due to the fact that it cannot pull ground or building-targeting troops, the Inferno Tower is the superior distraction. However, this can be an advantage as it means the Inferno Dragon can take down ground units easily without being damaged.
* An Inferno Dragon is best used against high hitpoint troops due to its extremely high damage per second at its final damage stage. Against troops with lower hitpoints, its damage per second will only ever be somewhat average since they will be defeated before the Dragon can reach its maximum damage stage, the Inferno Dragon also cannot kill low hitpoint troops like Spear Goblins and Skeletons instantly so a splash card such as the Baby Dragon is a better counter to those troops.
* The Inferno Dragon is delicate in the heat of the battle, so it is best to pair the Inferno Dragon with higher hitpoint troops, such as the Lava Hound.
* Units with a continuous stunning effect, like Zappies, Electro Wizard, or Electro Dragon make great counters. They will prevent the Inferno Dragon from ever reaching maximum damage, while taking minimal damage themselves. The Electro Giant can potentially counter the Inferno Dragon to some degree provided that the Inferno Dragon is in range of the Electro Giant's Zap Pack.
	+ Despite the Tesla having an electric theme and attack, it can't reset the Inferno Dragon's attack. However, due to the Inferno Dragon's relatively low health and the fact that the Tesla will likely be placed between the Towers, the Tesla can effectively distract and eliminate the Inferno Dragon for a neutral Elixir trade.
* If the opponent has a unit with a continuous stunning effect, the player should consider trying to bait it out before playing the Inferno Dragon. For example, if the opponent is attempting to build a push with the stunning unit as a support card, the player can deploy units in the other lane that are weak to stunning effects, like the Dark Prince or Sparky. This will likely prompt the opponent to use their stunning unit in the other lane, allowing the Inferno Dragon to attack uninterrupted. However, an adept opponent will likely try to defend the punishment without using the stunning unit, so the player should try to make the punish more threatening or have another method of controlling the stunning unit.
* Since the Inferno Dragon is quite volatile (as its DPS drops sharply when stunned or knocked back), the player should consider carrying another high-damage unit in their deck. The Hunter can be quite effective as he can also take out swarms, the other weakness of the Inferno Dragon.
* Pairing the Inferno Dragon with the Baby Dragon may be a good strategy since they cover each other's weaknesses. This is known as the Double Dragon combo, which is the air troop analogue of the Double Prince combo (single target high damage + area damage). The Baby Dragon takes out the low-hitpoint troops while the Inferno Dragon takes out higher hitpoint units. When Baby Dragon takes on a swarm, it will save the Inferno Dragon from having to get rid of it. However, this combo is vulnerable to a Rocket since both dragons will instantly die to it. But since these two dragons' speed is different, timing is really hard.
* When defending, it is advised to never let the Inferno Dragon lock onto a Crown Tower, as it can quickly threaten to take out the tower if it's not defended. If it does manage to lock onto a Tower, one of the best methods to stall its attack is by using Freeze, the Ice Spirit, or Zap. They can prevent it from dealing massive damage per second for a few seconds, which could easily save most of the health of a Crown Tower. There is also a possibility that the Inferno Dragon will re-target onto another unit. Spells like Fireball and Giant Snowball can also be used to reset the Inferno Dragon's attack charge since they can knock it back. Tornado can also be used to drag the Inferno Dragon out of range of its target, however, be careful with how you place the Tornado, because it will not retarget to another target if it is not out of range of its previous target.
* Like the Inferno Tower, the Inferno Dragon is very vulnerable to swarms as it retargets very slowly. Even Skeletons can help counter an Inferno Dragon, as the Inferno Dragon will take very long to destroy each Skeleton.
	+ Minions or Bats are the cheapest counters to a lone Inferno Dragon crossing the river. If the opponent uses a spell to take the swarm out before it can defeat the Inferno Dragon, the opponent will be at an even larger Elixir deficit.
	+ Minion Horde is also a good counter, despite the negative Elixir trade. The higher damage per second means that if the Minion Horde is taken out with spells, the Inferno Dragon likely would not have enough health to deal significant damage to a Crown Tower, or even reach one, which would put the opposing player at an Elixir disadvantage (due to the cost of the spell). If the Horde is not defeated with a spell, the opponent must still deal with the counterattacking Minions, lest they take significant Crown Tower damage.
	+ The Mega Minion is less effective at dealing with Inferno Dragon due to it being a single troop, as well as dealing a bit less damage per second compared to three Minions. However, it can still win against the Inferno Dragon if paired with a Zap, a Crown Tower, an Ice Spirit, or a Giant Snowball.
	+ The Witch can deal with the Inferno Dragon because it continuously spawns Skeletons that the Inferno Dragon gets distracted by. The Witch will also be at full health, making a counter-push easy. Due to the time it takes to destroy the Inferno Dragon, a lot of Elixir will be generated while this is happening.
* An Inferno Dragon can be countered with an Inferno Tower due to its much higher hitpoints, but this is a negative Elixir trade. However, the Inferno Tower will attack first, due to the longer range, and it may survive to defend against other troops.
* Small groups of weak troops like Goblins, or even Skeletons are useful for distracting an Inferno Dragon due to its low base damage and slow re-targeting.
* A Tombstone or any spawner may be very useful to stall an Inferno Dragon.
* The Inferno Dragon is quite slow moving and its range is also quite low. Due to this, high-damage ranged units like Musketeer and Flying Machine can deal significant damage to it before it is able to deal any damage to them. The ranged unit will not take a lot of damage in the end, allowing for a better counterattack.
* An Inferno Dragon can take out tanks, such as Giants and Golems, and can be an advantage because it can be used to create a push. However, the player should be sure to take out any counters to the Inferno Dragon if it prevents killing the tanks or if they want to create a push with it.
* Although the Inferno Dragon can be countered by most ranged units, it can often neutralize them if it is placed directly beside them or if another unit like a Princess Tower is assisting. However, this should only be a last-resort option as the player's high-damage unit will be out of rotation, and there are more efficient methods of eliminating ranged troops, such as with spells.
* Even though Arrows do little damage to the Inferno Dragon, it deals enough damage to enable a tower to eliminate the Inferno Dragon before it can deal its maximum damage. It can prove to be a handy alternative if the player does not have the Zap, Fireball, Tornado, or Giant Snowball in their hand, possibly saving the tower from massive damage.
* When facing an Electro Giant, always place the Inferno Dragon on the side of the troop at its maximum range and not directly on the Electro Giant's path. This is because the Inferno Dragon has higher range than the Electro Giant's Zap Pack radius, allowing it to defeat it safely. Otherwise, the Inferno Dragon will constantly stun itself when it attacks the Electro Giant, resulting is a high waste of damage potential. The Electro Giant user might carry Tornado to counteract this tactic, so prepare with additional counters or displace him with your own Tornado.
* Because of its vulnerability to spells with stuns or knockbacks, it is wise to carry other cards that can bait them out, like Bats, Skeleton Barrel, Flying Machine or Witch. This will reduce the chances of the opponent using their spell to reset the Inferno Dragon's charge.

## History

2016

* The Inferno Dragon card was released on 30/9/2016.
* On 1/11/2016, the November 2016 Update, moved the Arena to unlock the Inferno Dragon from P.E.K.K.A's Playhouse to Frozen Peak. However, Supercell confirmed on Reddit that this change was unintentional. This change was reverted the next day, on 2/11/2016, in a maintenance break.
* On 15/12/2016, the December 2016 Update increased the Inferno Dragon's hitpoints by 5% and decreased its re-targeting time by 0.4 seconds.

2017

* On 12/6/2017, the June 2017 Update, increased the Inferno Dragon's hitpoints by 7%, and decreased its re-targeting time by 0.2 seconds.
* On 9/10/2017, the Epic Quests Update, fixed a bug where the Inferno Dragon's damage did not reset after breaking a shield. This change was reverted on 11/10/2017, in a maintenance break.
* On 12/12/2017, the Electrifying Update, reverted the Inferno Dragon to its state on 9/10/2017. More specifically, the Inferno Dragon's damage would now reset after breaking a shield.

2018

* On 12/2/2018, a Balance Update, increased the Inferno Dragon’s re-targeting time by 0.2 seconds.
* On 20/6/2018, the Summer 2018 Update, moved the Arena to unlock the Inferno Dragon from P.E.K.K.A's Playhouse to Builder's Workshop.
* On 6/8/2018, a Balance Update, decreased the Inferno Dragon's range to 3.5 tiles (from 4 tiles) and allowed it to be knocked back.
* On 5/9/2018, the September 2018 Update, changed it so that Template:Rarity cards start at Level 9 and end at Level 13 (from 1 to 5).

2020

* On 28/5/2020, a maintenance break, added a card render to the Inferno Dragon's card info screen.

2021

* On 7/6/2021, the Summer 2021 Update, moved the Arena to unlock the Inferno Dragon from Builder's Workshop to Jungle Arena.
* On 27/10/2021, the Champions Update, increased the Level cap of all cards to 14 (from 13).

2022

* On 26/10/2022, the 2022 Quarter 3 Update, moved the Arena to unlock the Inferno Dragon from Jungle Arena to Electro Valley.

2023

* On 19/6/2023, the Card Evolution Update, increased the Level cap of all cards to 15 (from 14).

## Trivia

* The Inferno Dragon resemble dragons from European cultures. being reptilian legendary creatures, often depicted as winged, horned, and capable of breathing fire.
	+ The Inferno Dragon is of the same breed as the Baby Dragon, but the Inferno Dragon moves slower, and has slightly more hitpoints, possibly because it carries extra equipment and wears a helmet. However, they are otherwise identical in terms of animations and deployment sound effects.
* The word "*Inferno*" comes from the Latin "*inferus*", meaning underworld.
	+ In the French, Turkish, Chinese, Persian, and Malaysian language settings of the game, the Inferno Dragon's name translates to "Hell Dragon". In the Portuguese language settings of the game, the Inferno Dragon's name translates to "Infernal Dragon". In the Russian and Arabic language settings of the game, the Inferno Dragon's name translates to "Fiery Dragon".
* The Inferno Dragon is 1 of 15 troops that inspired a troop in Clash of Clans, the others being Bomber, Bats, Skeleton Barrel, Minion Horde, Battle Ram, Ice Golem, Zappies, Baby Dragon, Giant Skeleton, Ram Rider, Miner, Royal Ghost, Ice Wizard, and Night Witch.
	+ The Inferno Dragon's card render is shared with Clash of Clans. Despite coming after the one in Clash Royale, the artwork was originally made for Clash of Clans.
	+ The barrel on its back likely contains Dark Elixir, as it is the source of fuel for the Inferno Tower in Clash of Clans, and Dark Elixir is also needed to obtain an Inferno Dragon in that game.
* The Inferno Dragon is tied with the Mighty Miner for the highest attack speed of all troops, with an attack speed of 0.4 seconds.
* The Inferno Dragon has the highest hitpoints of all air-targeting troops.
* When the Inferno Dragon reaches its maximum damage stage, it has the second highest damage per second of any troop card, only losing out to the Skeleton Army. It still has the highest DPS per single troop since the Skeleton Army spawns 15 Skeletons.
* The Inferno Dragon is 1 of 4 troops that has been featured in the Dragon Hunt sub-mode of the Treasure Hunt game mode, the others being Skeleton Dragons, Baby Dragon, and Electro Dragon.
* The Inferno Dragon is 1 of 14 troops which bring an excited reaction from the audience upon spawning and brings a collective groan from the audience when defeated, as well as a concerning gasp when the opponent plays it, the others include Royal Giant, Giant, P.E.K.K.A., Giant Skeleton, Goblin Giant, Golem, Bowler, Electro Wizard, Sparky, Lava Hound, Night Witch, Super Lava Hound, and the Monk.
* The Inferno Dragon is the subject of an Emote.
* A cloned Inferno Dragon does not fall from the sky when deployed.