Mercina Coaching guides
Skill coach · Clash Royale

Defence coach

Good defence isn't stopping everything. It's stopping it cheaply, in the right place, at the right moment.

Updated

Most pushes can be stopped by several cards. What separates good defence is placement, timing and cost: pulling a troop to the centre so both towers can hit it, dropping a building before the attacker reaches the bridge, and keeping something back for the follow-up.

Defensive mistakes are easy to miss on replay because the tower often survives. The cost shows up later, in elixir you no longer have.

What usually goes wrong

  • Reacting lateDropping a defender after the attacker has crossed the bridge lets it lock on to your tower.
  • Placing too close to the towerA defender right next to the tower gets hit by splash meant for the attacker, and pulls nothing towards the centre.
  • Answering the tank, ignoring the supportThe tank absorbs damage; the support behind it does the work. Leaving the support alive loses the defence.
Screenshot · Game breakdown Mercina game breakdown with the match read, actions per minute, elixir leaked and three timestamped key moments

What Mercina looks for in your match

  • Late defensive reactions, pinned to the second the attacker locked on.
  • Buildings placed too late or too far back to pull.
  • Defences that spent heavily but still took tower damage.
Screenshot · Action plan Mercina action plan screen, Do this next, with three numbered steps for the next match

A plan for your next match

  1. 01Place buildings before the attacker crosses the bridge, not after.
  2. 02Pull to the centre so both towers help.
  3. 03Deal with the support troops first when a tank leads the push.

Mercina writes a plan like this from your own match, every time.

Questions

What does Mercina flag as a defensive mistake?

Things like a late reaction or a building dropped too late to pull. Each one appears as a timestamped moment in your match breakdown, with an explanation of what happened.

Keep improving

Skill Elixir trades coach Every interaction is a trade. Win enough small ones and the big push takes care of itself. Skill Counter-pushing coach The cheapest attack in the game is the one built from troops that just finished defending. Deck Hog Cycle coach Hog Cycle wins on speed: cheap cards, constant pressure and a Hog Rider back before the opponent's answer is. Deck Mega Knight coach Mega Knight is a defender that turns into a push. Played well it's a counter-push engine; played badly it's 7 elixir walking into a trap.

Get coached on your own matches.

Record a match. Mercina breaks it down moment by moment and hands you a plan for the next one.