TH9 Overview
TH9 is one of the most important Town Hall levels in the game. It introduces the Archer Queen — the single most impactful troop in Clash of Clans — along with four X-Bows, Skeleton Traps, and the Lava Hound dark troop. TH9 is also where the gap between active and casual players starts to widen dramatically, because players who keep their heroes upgrading consistently arrive at TH10 far stronger.
The key principle at TH9: Archer Queen above everything else.
First 24 Hours at TH9
Build immediately when you arrive:
- Archer Queen altar — Costs 40,000 Dark Elixir. This is your first priority even before placing any other building. Start farming DE from your first raid at TH9.
- X-Bows × 4 — TH9’s signature defense. Build all four immediately. They have long upgrade timers.
- All new building slots — TH9 adds new Cannons, Archer Towers, and other structures. Fill every slot before upgrading existing buildings.
- Dark Elixir Storage upgrade — You’ll be farming enormous amounts of DE at TH9. A higher-capacity storage reduces how often your Drills overflow.
Priority 1: Archer Queen
The single most important upgrade at TH9 is the Archer Queen, and she needs DE to level. Every DE point that goes anywhere other than the Queen at TH9 is a mistake.
Target levels:
- Level 10: Available early TH9, makes her a reliable Queen Walk initiator
- Level 20: Mid TH9 — can now walk through half a TH9 base without dying
- Level 30: End of TH9 — a level 30 Queen with Invisibility Vial equipment is one of the strongest offensive tools at this level
Why the Queen matters so much at TH9:
- Queen Walk is the dominant TH9 war strategy and requires her to survive long enough to clear the Inferno + Air Defense side of the base
- Higher Queen level means she can walk deeper, enabling cleaner main army follow-ups
- She’s also a defensive asset — a high-level Queen kills attacking Hog Riders, Giants, and Witches before they reach the Town Hall
Never sacrifice the Queen’s upgrade for DE troops. Hog Riders and Golems use DE for upgrades — delay those in favor of Queen levels every time.
Priority 2: Barbarian King Levels
The Barbarian King should never be idle either. He uses DE, so there’s a genuine priority question between King and Queen levels.
Rule: Queen first, King second. The Queen provides offensive value (Queen Walk) that the King cannot replicate. However, the King should never wait — if you have surplus DE beyond the Queen’s current level cost, dump it into the King.
TH9 King target: Level 20–25 by the end of TH9. Level 25 gives him his second ability upgrade, significantly increasing his tanking ability during war attacks.
Priority 3: X-Bows
Four X-Bows at TH9 are the most impactful new defense. Ground-mode X-Bows stop Hog Rider and GoWiPe pushes. Air-mode X-Bows counter LaLoon and Dragon attacks.
X-Bow mode recommendation:
- 2 X-Bows on ground mode (stops common TH9 ground attacks)
- 2 X-Bows on both (ground + air) — TH9 Both-mode X-Bows have reduced range but cover both types
Upgrade all four X-Bows to level 2 before working on other defenses. The jump from level 1 to level 2 is the highest DPS gain per upgrade at TH9.
Priority 4: Key Defenses
Tier 1
- Inferno Tower — TH9 unlocks the first Inferno Tower. Single-target mode stops Queen Walks; multi-target mode is better against large swarms. Keep it always upgrading.
- Air Defenses × 4 — TH9 has four Air Defenses. LaLoon and Dragon attacks exploit under-leveled Air Defenses first.
Tier 2
- Eagle Artillery — Does NOT exist at TH9. It arrives at TH10. Don’t worry about it yet.
- Wizard Towers — Good upgrade when nothing higher-priority is building.
- Cannons and Archer Towers — Steady filler upgrades. Lower individual impact than X-Bows and Air Defenses.
Tier 3
- Mortars — Less critical at TH9 than at lower levels. Upgrade when builders are idle.
Priority 5: Troops
Dark Elixir troops (upgrade after heroes):
- Hog Rider — TH9’s dominant war attack troop. Level 4+ Hog Riders are meaningfully stronger than level 1–2.
- Golem — Used in GoWiWi and GoWiPe. Golem level doesn’t change the strategy dramatically until level 4+.
- Witch — Secondary, but used in GoWiWi. Level 2 Witch is a meaningful jump.
Elixir troops:
- Lava Hound — Unlocks at TH9. Used in LaLoon strategies. Level 1 is functional.
- Balloon — Level 6 Balloons at TH9 are significantly stronger. Worth upgrading for LaLoon.
- Wall Breaker — Level 6 at TH9. Cheap and impactful for GoWiPe funneling.
TH9 Upgrade Timeline
Month 1:
- Archer Queen bought and at level 10+
- All X-Bows built and at level 2
- Inferno Tower built
- All new building slots filled
Month 2–3:
- Queen at level 20+
- All X-Bows at max (level 4)
- Inferno Tower maxed (level 3)
- All Air Defenses upgraded
Month 3–5:
- Queen at level 25–30
- King at level 20+
- Defenses mostly maxed
- Hog Rider upgrade in progress
Month 5–6:
- Queen at level 30
- King at level 25+
- Walls level 9–10
- All defenses maxed
Walls at TH9
TH9 introduces a new wall tier. Walls are a background project — upgrade them with leftover Gold and Elixir when nothing else is building.
Target: Level 9 walls by end of TH9. Level 10 is achievable if you farm efficiently.
Priority within walls: Upgrade the inner compartment walls (surrounding Eagle Artillery at TH10 — plan ahead) before outer ring walls.
Common TH9 Mistakes
Buying Archer Queen with DE saved from TH8 upgrades. This is the right call — rush the Queen purchase the moment you hit TH9, even if it means arriving at TH9 with an undeveloped base.
Spending DE on Hog Rider or Golem upgrades before Queen hits level 20. A level 20 Queen is worth 5 Hog Rider levels. Troops can be upgraded later; the Queen’s time advantage compounds over the entire TH9 residency.
Setting X-Bows all to ground mode. TH9 sees significant air attack traffic (LaLoon and Dragons). At least two X-Bows should be in air or both mode.
Rushing to TH10 with a low-level Queen. A Queen under level 20 at TH10 puts you at severe war disadvantage against TH10 opponents with Queens above level 30. Stay at TH9 until the Queen is at least level 25.
