"The X-Bow shoots mystical bolts with terrifying power. Load it with Elixir and the X-Bow works automagically. You can set it to target ground units at long ranges, or all targets at reduced range."
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| Level 1 | Level 2 | Level 3 | Level 4 | Level 5 | Level 6 |
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| Level 1 | Level 2 | Level 3 | Level 4 | Level 5 | Level 6 |
- Summary
- The X-Bow is a single target, rapid-firing turret that unlocks at Town Hall 9.
- The X-Bow has to be loaded with Elixir to work.
- It can be configured to two modes - Ground Mode, where it can only target ground troops at a 14 tile range, or Ground and Air, where it can target both ground and air units at a 11 tile range.
- Defensive Strategy
- A well-placed and loaded X-Bow will dominate attacks, but to be most effective it should not be used as a front-line defense. With the second longest range of any damage-dealing defense, it is best placed behind all other defenses, typically in the center of a base.
- Remember to refill your X-Bow with Elixir. An unloaded X-Bow is not only a waste of space, it is a good indicator that your base may be neglected, encouraging others to raid you.
- Although the X-Bow shoots rapidly, each shot causes only a relatively small amount of damage. Support it with powerful defenses (such as Mortars) so it can quickly take out your enemies.
- The dominance of Balloon and Minion oriented attacks at this level both in Clan Wars and regular raids make a strong case for keeping X-Bows set to Air and Ground in both farming and war bases.
- X-Bows under construction act as if they are fully built during Clan Wars. This allows players to buy one before the war, but they cannot cancel its construction.
- Offensive Strategy
- The X-Bow has essentially no weaknesses unless it is set to ground-only mode, determinable by the way it is angled. If it is horizontal to the ground, it can target ground troops only. If it is tilted up, then it can attack air units as well.
- The X-Bow can lock on to a unit for a very long time because of its long range. This means that placing the X-Bow near the center can allow it to snipe at troops on the outer areas of your base. It also counteracts the effect of the Healer when set to Ground and Air mode. The X-Bow also counters the Queen Walk, a popular strategy consisting of the Archer Queen and Healers, with the help of other buildings.
- In order to attack an X-Bow, treat it like a longer-ranged Cannon or Archer Tower, but don't forget that many units can be mowed down very quickly by this defense. Distract it with high-health troops like Giants or P.E.K.K.As, and destroy it with a large group of attackers such as Archers or Barbarians.
- Attacking players can see if the defender's X-Bow is loaded or not. Currently there is no way to tell exactly how much Elixir it has left, but a player can visually tell when it is empty. When it is loaded, you will see a small box containing what appears to be small Elixir bolts. An unloaded X-Bow will be lacking the box, and the bowstring will be missing (see image gallery below).
- Attacking players can also see if the X-Bow is set to ground-only or both ground and air. Take advantage of ground-only X-Bows and send in air units to destroy it first.
- An X-Bow that is empty is completely useless and will not fire. It still must be destroyed to achieve 100% destruction, and troops that preferentially attack defenses (e.g. Giants and Balloons) will still target an unloaded X-Bow if it is closer to them than an active defense.
- Upgrade Differences
- X-Bows undergo significant visual changes at levels 2, 3 and 4.
- When initially constructed, the X-Bow consists of a huge crossbow-like structure mounted on a base made of light-colored wood. It has small black stones on the corners of the base.
- At level 2, the X-Bow base gains gilded legs and rotational mount. It appears to have gold spikes on the corners.
- At level 3, the X-Bow base becomes solid black with large black spikes on each corner.
- At level 4, the X-Bow base becomes golden and the large spikes on each corner turn red, like they are glowing with heat.
- At level 5, the X-Bow's golden circular rim becomes bigger and now extends all the way to the floor. The stone foundation is now covered with a red casing, complete with a metal band around it. The red spikes at the edges of the foundation turns darker and more pronounced, while the tips of the spikes becomes black. The rectangular ammunition cartridge at the top of the X-Bow turns from wooden to golden in colour. The barrel now comes with a small golden tip, with a small golden spike flanking both sides.
- At level 6, the spikes are removed in favor of having a new metallic platform with octagonal corners. The central base piece of the X-Bow is now mostly purple. The X-Bow itself is now made of stone with golden details and stirrup added as well.
- X-Bows undergo significant visual changes at levels 2, 3 and 4.
- Trivia
- The X-Bow is one of three defenses (the others being the Inferno Tower and the Eagle Artillery) that need to be reloaded at the cost of resources.
- In ground-only mode, the X-Bow has a range of 14 tiles, the second longest damaging defensive building (Eagle Artillery being the first) in the game (the Air Sweeper has a range of 15 tiles but it does no damage).
- If measured by the area that its firepower can cover, a centered X-Bow covers approximately 616 tiles in ground-only mode and approximately 380 tiles in ground and air mode.
- At 7.8125 shots per second, the X-Bow is one of the two fastest shooting defenses in the game, tied with the Inferno Tower.
- The name "X-Bow" is a play on the word "Crossbow", which the device resembles. The letter "X" resembles a cross (十), leading to this abbreviated name.
- In the Japanese and Korean localizations of the game, the X-Bow is called the "Large Crossbow."
- In both Chinese localizations of the game, the X-Bow is called the "X Crossbow."
- When the X-Bow is firing, you can see smoke coming out of it.
- The X-Bow will notify you when it is running low on ammunition with a bubble above it saying "Low Ammo".
- When first built, the X-Bow is already fully loaded with Elixir. Upgrading a X-Bow will also fully load it.
- There is an achievement named X-Bow Exterminator whose objective is to destroy a certain number of X-Bows in multiplayer battles.
- X-Bows under construction also count towards the X-Bow Exterminator achievement.
- As of the October 2016 update, X-Bows that are being upgraded resemble unloaded ones to indicate base weakness more clearly. The same change applied to the Inferno Tower, Eagle Artillery, Spring Trap, and even the Air Defense (which has unlimited ammo) as well.
- Prior to the update, all Traps (except the Spring Trap), the Archer Tower and the Wizard Tower were already visually inactive when being upgraded.
- Icon Descriptions
Tapping this icon displays information about the X-Bow, such as Level, Damage Per Second, Hitpoints, Range, Damage Type, Targets and Favorite Target. Tapping this icon begins upgrading the X-Bow to the next level, if you have enough resources and a free Builder. When the X-Bow is at maximum level, this icon is not shown. Tapping this icon instantly upgrades the X-Bow to the next level, at the cost of one Hammer of Building if you have one. When the X-Bow is at maximum level, this icon is not shown. Tapping this icon, which is displayed only while an upgrade is in progress, instantly finishes that upgrade at the cost of the displayed number of Gems. Tapping this icon, which is displayed only while an upgrade is in progress, instantly finishes that upgrade at the cost of one Book of Building. This icon is only shown if you have at least one Book of Building. Tapping this icon, which is displayed only while an upgrade is in progress, instantly finishes that upgrade at the cost of one Book of Everything. This icon is only shown if you have at least one Book of Everything but do not have a Book of Building. Tapping this icon, which is displayed only while an upgrade is in progress, boosts all your Builders for 1 hour by a factor of ten, at the cost of one Builder Potion. This icon is only shown if you have at least one Builder Potion. Tapping this icon, which is displayed only while an upgrade is in progress, cancels the current upgrade and refunds half of the upgrade cost. Tapping this icon reloads this X-Bow with Elixir. This icon only appears if this X-Bow is not fully loaded. Tapping this icon reloads all X-Bows with Elixir. This icon only appears if one or more X-Bows are not fully loaded. This icon informs you that all X-Bows are fully loaded. It is not tappable, and replaces the Load icons. Tapping this icon switches the X-Bow attack mode to attack both ground and air units. This icon is only displayed while the X-Bow is in Ground mode. Tapping this icon switches the X-Bow attack mode to attack ground units only. This icon is only displayed while the X-Bow is in Air and Ground mode.
Town Hall Level 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 Number Available 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 3 4 4 Size
3x3 Level
Damage per Second
Damage per Shot
Hitpoints
Cost to Load
Cost
Build Time
Experience Gained
Town Hall Level Required
1 50 6.4 1,500 16,000 3,000,000 4d 12h 623 9 2 60 7.68 1,900 19,000 4,000,000 5d 12h 689 9 3 70 8.96 2,300 22,000 5,000,000 6d 12h 749 9 4 80 10.24 2,700 24,000 7,000,000 8d 831 10 5 100 12.8 3,100 26,000 9,500,000 10d 929 11 6 120 15.36 3,500 28,000 12,000,000 14d 1,099 12 Range
Attack Speed
Damage Type
Number of Rounds
14 0.128s Single Target 1,500 Range
Attack Speed
Damage Type
Number of Rounds
11 0.128s Single Target 1,500 For additional statistics and information, see the Unit Calculators page.
Loaded Empty
Home Village Buildings Defensive Buildings Cannon • Archer Tower • Mortar • Air Defense • Wizard Tower • Air Sweeper • Hidden Tesla • Bomb Tower • X-Bow • Inferno Tower • Eagle Artillery • Giga Tesla • Walls Traps: Bomb • Spring Trap • Air Bomb • Giant Bomb • Seeking Air Mine • Skeleton Trap • Tornado Trap
Resource Buildings Town Hall • Gold Mine • Elixir Collector • Dark Elixir Drill • Gold Storage • Elixir Storage • Dark Elixir Storage • Builder's Hut • Clan Castle (Treasury • Magic Items) Army Buildings Army Camp • Barracks • Dark Barracks • Laboratory • Spell Factory • Dark Spell Factory • Workshop • Barbarian King Altar • Archer Queen Altar • Grand Warden Altar Other Buildings Boat • Decorations • Obstacles • Loot Cart • Strongman's Caravan
