CoC October 2026 Balance Changes: Every Nerf and Buff

Supercell posted the list on 17 October 2026. I read the full post, and every number on this page comes from it.

It's a short list. It still hits the two strongest picks at TH18.

All figures here are as of October 2026.

I counted ten names in Supercell's post. Two get nerfed and eight get buffed. Here's the whole list in one table.

The nerfs are narrow. The buffs go to things almost nobody brings to war right now.

Every rate in the post comes from one slice of the game. Supercell used TH18 attacks against TH18 bases in Clan Wars and CWL, over the four weeks before the post.

That matters if you're lower. A Fire Heart that dominates at TH18 may not dominate your TH15 war. The usage figures don't describe your level at all.

Some changes only reach the top levels anyway. The Miner and Super Miner HP boost lands at max levels. The Frozen Arrow damage boost covers levels 21 to 27. Fire Heart's healing cut shows up at higher levels, while its HP cut hits every level.

So read the rates as a TH18 war story.

Fire Heart was everywhere. Supercell says it shows up in almost 40% of all attacks. It's in more than half of all Dragon Duke attacks.

The three star rates explain the nerf. Duke attacks with Fire Heart three star about 66% of the time. Duke attacks without it land about 56%. The average for every attack is 53%.

I compared those three numbers. Fire Heart adds about ten points over Duke's other setups, and 13 points over the average attack.

Supercell's stated goal is narrow. It wants Duke's other equipment to be just as competitive. It didn't say it wants Duke gone.

Three things change on Fire Heart.

1. 1Its bonus HP is around 8% lower at every level.
2. 2It no longer adds damage at all.
3. 3Its healing drops at higher levels. At max level it goes from 150 to 140 per second.

The second line is the big one. Fire Heart used to give Duke more HP, more healing and more damage in one slot. Now it's a survival piece only.

The healing cut is small. Ten points per second won't decide many fights by itself. The lost damage and the lower HP together will matter more, because Duke has to stay alive long enough to clear a core.

Don't rush it. Your Fire Heart levels aren't lost, and it still gives HP and healing.

The question is what it pairs with now. If you ran Fire Heart mainly for the extra damage, that reason is gone. Another piece may do more for your army.

Our Dragon Duke equipment guide covers what each of his pieces does and how to use it. Read it before you spend ore on a new main piece.

A safe plan is to keep Fire Heart for a few wars. Watch how long Duke lives. If he dies earlier than before, test his other equipment in friendly challenges first.

The Ruin Witch had the best results in the game. Supercell says her attacks three star about 76% of the time. That's the highest rate of any troop with meaningful use.

There was a second problem too. Her Ruin Knights were too heavy for Spring Traps to launch. A trap could only stun and damage them, not throw them out.

So the Knights change in two ways. Their housing space drops from 20 to 18, which lets Spring Traps launch them. They also move a little slower and have slightly less HP and damage.

If you read our Ruin Knights buff post from September, this change goes the other way.

This is the change base builders should care about. Until now, a Spring Trap did nothing to a Ruin Knight except get used up.

At 18 housing space, a trap can throw them out. That gives a trap on a Knight's path a real job again.

Here's what follows from that. A trap only helps where Knights actually walk. Watch a few replays of Ruin Witch attacks on your base and note their paths. Then move a trap onto one of them.

You'll likely see top bases shift for this over the next weeks. If you want a layout built for the new meta, browse fresh TH18 bases and check where the Spring Traps sit.

Hog Riders, Miners and P.E.K.K.A share one problem. Supercell says each shows up in fewer than 3% of attacks. Their three star rates sit between 20% and 35%.

Super Hog Rider and Super Miner barely get picked either.

The fix for the hogs and miners is HP:

1. 1Hog Rider and Super Hog Rider get more HP.
2. 2Miner and Super Miner get more HP at max levels.

Supercell didn't publish the new HP values in the post. So nobody can say yet whether a hog army now beats a Ruin Witch army. The fan wiki already lists values, such as a level 15 Hog Rider at 1,950 HP, up from 1,750.

It's still a clear signal. Supercell wants these troops back in wars.

The P.E.K.K.A gets more damage, not more HP. It already hits hard and walks slowly, so extra damage helps it finish buildings faster once it arrives.

The Meteor Golem gets more HP. That boost also raises the HP of its Meteormites. Supercell says the Golem sees a little more use than the hogs and miners, but it's still below average.

This isn't the Golem's first boost this year. Our July guide covered an earlier Meteor Golem buff, and the troop still didn't catch on in TH18 wars.

Neither change comes with public numbers in the post. Treat both as a reason to test, not a reason to rebuild your army tonight.

Frozen Arrow is Archer Queen equipment that slows what she hits. Supercell says it's in around 7% of attacks and three stars about 31% of the time.

It gets two upgrades:

1. 1The slow increases by 5 percentage points at every level.
2. 2Damage goes up at levels 21 to 27. Max level damage moves from 168 to 175.

The slow change is the one to watch. It reaches every level, so a low level Frozen Arrow gains as much slow as a maxed one.

If yours has sat unused, it may deserve a fresh look. Our Archer Queen equipment guide shows where it fits next to her other pieces.

Portal Pendant now gives the Minion Prince bonus HP. At max level that bonus reaches 1,200.

Supercell called the missing HP an oversight. The Prince's other equipment already gives bonus HP, so the Pendant was the odd one out.

That makes the Pendant less of a trade off. Before, picking it meant giving up the HP his other pieces bring. Now it brings some HP of its own.

The Pendant arrived with the Portal Panic event in October. Our Portal Pendant guide explains what it does and how to use it well.

Here's a short plan while the changes settle.

1. 1Keep your Fire Heart. Watch Duke for a few wars before you swap.
2. 2If you defend against Ruin Witch, check your Spring Trap spots.
3. 3Try one hog or miner army in a friendly challenge. It costs nothing.
4. 4Give Frozen Arrow a test hit if it's sitting unused.
5. 5Put Portal Pendant back on your Prince test list.

Supercell says it'll watch how attacks shake out and tweak again if needed. That means none of these numbers are locked in.

If you play below TH18, the rates above weren't measured on your level. Your own friendly tests will tell you more than any TH18 war table.