Level 4 at a glance
A long-range Elixir troop for the second row. Put a tank in front, keep the lane clean, and avoid handing splash defences a full stack of 16-space troops.
Elixir troopThrower stats: level 1 to 4
The Thrower Clash of Clans troop is an Elixir unit with no preferred target. He fires at the nearest building, but will turn to nearby defending Clan Castle troops, Heroes or Skeleton Trap skeletons when he can engage them. That long reach is the point: he can work behind a tank while still touching buildings that most short-range troops cannot.
A pricey slot, so every Thrower needs a job.
Single-target spear damage from a safe second row.
He walks faster than before, but still fires slowly.
| Level | Damage / sec | Damage / hit | Hitpoints | Upgrade cost | Research time | Lab |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 190 | 475 | 2,200 | — | — | — |
| 2 | 210 | 525 | 2,350 | 16,000,000 Elixir | 9d 12h | 14 |
| 3 | 230 | 575 | 2,600 | 18,000,000 Elixir | 10d 12h | 15 |
| 4 | 240 | 600 | 2,800 | 27,000,000 Elixir | 15d | 16 |
Level 4 does 600 damage every 2.5 seconds. Do not read that as a licence to stack every Thrower on one tile: the attack interval is slow enough that a clumped line can disappear before it gets a second round of spears away.
Thrower max level and upgrade cost
The Thrower max level is Level 4, unlocked through Laboratory Level 16. Reaching it costs 61,000,000 Elixir after the starting level and 35 days of laboratory time before any Gold Pass reductions. The final level is the big step for a TH18 account: it adds 10 DPS over Level 3 but costs 27,000,000 Elixir and 15 days, so do it when you can actually field the troop in your war army.
For the Thrower upgrade cost, the clean order is Level 2 at Lab 14, Level 3 at Lab 15, then Level 4 at Lab 16. There is no training-time stat to factor in now; the troop’s former training time was removed in 2025.
Thrower attack strategy: make the backline earn its space
A good Thrower attack strategy starts with the entrance, not the army bar. Throwers do their best work when a tougher unit is already being targeted and the route is narrow enough that the spears stay aimed into the base. A loose funnel or an early line-drop turns them into expensive pathing mistakes.
Cut the edges first
Use a Hero, Siege Barracks or another reliable funnel tool to remove the buildings that would pull the group sideways. You are not trying to make a pretty funnel; you are trying to stop the Throwers from walking around the core.
Put real tanks in front
Yetis, Golems and a supported Barbarian King can take the attention while the Throwers work from behind. Drop the tank first, wait for defenses to lock on, then feed the Throwers into the same channel.
Spread the line, then watch the first spell
Give adjacent Throwers a little room. Scattershots, Firespitters and the Eagle punish a tight mass. A Rage is valuable when it covers the tanks and the backline together; use it to hold the push through damage, not to rescue a dead entry.
Plan for defensive troops
Throwers can switch from a building to nearby defending units. Keep a plan for Clan Castle troops and Skeleton Traps, especially when the backline is already under splash pressure. Do not let a surprise pull stall the entire army in the open.
Where Throwers fit at TH18
They are a flexible ground backline rather than an automatic replacement for every ranged troop. In a planned TH18 hit, their range can help you reach a defence behind a tank line, and their hitpoints let them survive individual bomb effects better than many lighter troops. That does not make a Blimp drop foolproof: Tornado Trap routing, stacked bombs and Giga Bomb damage can still erase the payload.
If you are choosing a complete army around them, check the current TH18 attack strategies guide for the broader entry plan, spells and base-reading context.
The mistakes that waste Throwers
Thrower Clash of Clans FAQ
What is the Thrower max level?
The current maximum is Level 4. It has 240 DPS, 600 damage per attack and 2,800 hitpoints, with Laboratory Level 16 required for the upgrade.
Does the Thrower attack air troops?
Yes. The Thrower uses single-target attacks against both ground and air targets. He does not prefer defences; he normally targets the closest building.
How much housing space does a Thrower use?
Each Thrower uses 16 housing space. That makes a clean funnel and a protected lane more important than simply filling the whole army with them.
What counters Throwers?
High-damage defences can pick them off when exposed, while splash defences punish stacked lines. Skeletons can also pull their slow attacks away from a building long enough for defences to do the rest.
Source notes and a practical next step
This guide’s release and balance notes point to Supercell’s Town Hall 17 update notes, which introduced the Thrower, and Supercell’s February update notes, which confirmed the Level 4 values of 2,800 HP and 240 DPS. Supercell’s 2026 balance notes also record the movement-speed increase from 16 to 18. Test the army after a patch rather than assuming a familiar route still works the same way.
For the defensive side of that test, use a fresh TH18 base layout and replay the entry until you know whether the funnel, tank timing and spell placement are doing their jobs.
Ready to field your Throwers?
Start with one controlled entry. Fix the funnel before changing the army, then see how much value the six-tile range actually creates.
See TH18 attack plans →