Cleaver: The "Wet Noodle" Who Refuses to Die

Overview

Cleaver, the Hunting Chieftain of the Plains Hunter family, arrived in Empires & Puzzles back in August 2022. In an era where hitting for 100% damage feels like a polite tap on the shoulder rather than an attack, Cleaver occupies a strange niche. He is a Fast speed disruptor who relies entirely on attrition—fiends, bleeding, and attack debuffs—rather than brute force. He doesn't want to one-shot you; he wants to make your life miserable for 15 turns until you eventually lose. Think of him as that one mosquito in your bedroom at 3 AM: he won't kill you, but you won't get any rest.

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Hero Art & Visuals

Visually, Cleaver is fantastic. He sports a rugged, primal aesthetic with a massive bone weapon that looks like it weighs more than the hero himself. The red and earth-tone palette screams "survivalist," and the massive jawbone on his shoulder suggests he's not someone you want to meet during a famine. It’s a shame he hits like he’s swinging a foam replica of that giant axe.

General Info

Hero Stats

When Cleaver was released, his stats were competitive. In 2026, they are essentially 4-star stats.

Stat Analysis & Power Creep: Let's be brutally honest: Cleaver's stats are severely outdated.

• Attack (852): Modern attackers regularly exceed 1300 base attack. Cleaver's low attack stat is a double whammy because his Fiends' damage is based on a percentage of his attack.
• Defense (863) & Health (1600): While 1600 HP was once "tanky," modern heroes sit comfortably at 2200-2400 HP. He is fragile by today's standards unless fully Limit Broken (twice).

Special Skill: Bone Ritual

Skill Analysis: "Bone Ritual" is a skill with an identity crisis.

1. The Damage (100% to all): This is negligible. Against modern defenses with 1300+ defense, this will often do double-digit damage. Do not bring him for the impact hit.
2. The Fiends: This is his main selling point. Summoning a Fiend for all enemies at Fast speed is excellent utility. The fiends absorb healing (35% of max health), which is significant against healers, and they deal increasing damage. However, because Cleaver's base attack is low, the fiend damage tickles more than it bites unless you go all-in on attack emblems.
3. The Attack Debuff: -32% attack to all enemies is a strong survival tool, especially since it scales further down (-5% per hit). This helps mitigate the massive damage output of modern heroes, assuming they don't cleanse it immediately.

By the Numbers

• Mana Speed: Fast (7 tiles). With a lvl 29 mana troop or a bard/bonus, he charges very quickly. This allows him to potentially fire twice before the enemy fires once, stacking his "Hunter's Mark" passive.
• Damage Estimate: 100% of 852 Attack is... low. Expect roughly 150-200 damage per hero against high-defense targets. The real damage comes from the Fiends (starting at ~45% attack per turn) and his Passive DoT.
• Healing Denial: The Fiends absorb 35% of the target's max HP. Against a modern tank with 3000 HP (with troops), that's a 1050 HP healing shield that must be healed off. This is where Cleaver still holds some value.

Family Bonus, Passives, Aether Power & Unique Abilities

Family Bonus

The Plains Hunter family bonus gives an attack boost (up to +20% for 5 heroes). While nice, you are unlikely to run a full team of these older heroes in competitive play today.

Passives

• Special Damage Reduction: A 10% chance to reduce incoming special damage to 1. It’s the "Black Knight" passive but with a much lower trigger rate. When it happens, it feels great; when it doesn't (90% of the time), he dies.
• Hunter's Mark: This is a surprisingly effective passive. Dealing 150 damage (stacking up to 1500) adds up over a long fight. Since he is Fast, he can refresh and stack this dot reasonably well on a few targets.

Aether Power

Rage is a decent Aether power for him, as it boosts his special skill damage and attack stat. However, boosting 100% damage is still not going to result in a nuke. It mostly helps his Fiend damage and tile damage.

Legacy & Modern Relevance

• Historical Context: Upon release, Cleaver was considered "meh" by many due to his low direct damage, but appreciated by high-level players for the fast-speed Fiend spam which crippled healers. He was a staple in Rush Attack and Bloody Battle tournaments.
• Power Creep Analysis: The game has moved on. We now have heroes who hit for 450% to all while healing or debuffing. Cleaver's mechanical utility (Fast Fiends) is still rare, but his chassis (stats) is rusty.
• Modern Viability Verdict: Niche / Bench. He is no longer a viable main-team hero for top 100 play. However, he remains useful in War Depth (especially against healer-heavy teams) and Bloody Battle tournaments where his Fiends deal damage that cannot be healed away easily.

Costume & Costume Bonus

Cleaver does not currently have a costume.

Emblem Path Analysis

Cleaver needs to survive to fire his skill multiple times, but his Fiends rely on his Attack stat. It's a dilemma.

The Balanced Bruiser (Recommended)

• Path: Attack > Defense > Health
• Pros: Maximizes Fiend damage (his main source of hurt) and tile damage.
• Cons: He remains somewhat squishy.

The Survivalist

• Path: Defense > Health > Attack
• Pros: Keeps him alive longer to keep refreshing the Attack Down debuff.
• Cons: His Fiends become completely ignorable in terms of damage.

Final Recommendation

Go Attack/Defense. If you are using Cleaver, you are using him for the Fiends. You want those Fiends to actually hurt. If he's just there to survive and do 100 damage, you should bring a different support hero.

Strengths

• Fast Speed Fiend Summoner: One of the few heroes who can summon Fiends to all enemies at Fast speed.
• Healing Denial: Excellent at shutting down passive healers or HoT (Heal over Time) heroes.
• Attack Softening: The attack debuff helps your team survive snipers.

Weaknesses

• Abysmal Direct Damage: 100% damage is negligible in the current meta.
• Outdated Stats: He dies easily to modern snipers who can hit for 1200+.
• Cleansable Ailments: His Attack Down can be cleansed.
• Passive Dependent: He relies on his passives and fiends to do any meaningful work, which takes time—time he often doesn't have.

Best Game Modes

• Bloody Battle Tournaments: His best home. Fiends deal damage and cannot be healed off (since healing is disabled, they stay forever until the enemy dies).
• Rush Attack Wars/Tournaments: Firing constantly allows him to stack Hunter's Mark and keep the enemy team permanently debuffed.
• War Depth: Useful against teams relying on a single slow healer.

Advanced Strategy & Team Compositions

Sample Team Ideas

• The "Death by a Thousand Cuts" Team:
  • Cleaver - Narcisa - Ogima - Rayne - Bubbles
  • Concept: Use Cleaver to soften them up and block healing, while other fast heroes pick them apart.
• The Fiend Overlord Team:
  • Cleaver - Viscaro - Senan - Elizabeth - Ebba
  • Concept: Overwhelm the enemy with so many Fiends that they can never heal again.

Counters & Anti-Synergies

• Counters: Esme, Arco, Garnet, and Vanda (or anyone who blocks ailments/Fiends) completely shut him down. Grimble and Bera do not remove Fiends, but heavy minion summoners can act as a buffer (though Cleaver's fiends sit on the hero).
• Anti-Synergy: Don't pair him with too many other low-damage supports. You need someone to actually kill the enemy.

Advice for New Players

If you pulled Cleaver early, he is a great asset. His Fast speed will teach you the value of mana control and debuffs. Level him, but think twice before giving him Limit Break materials if you have modern 5-star heroes waiting.

Advice for Veterans

He is likely a "museum piece" for your roster. Unless you are desperate for a Red hero for your 6th War team or love the Monster Hunter aesthetic, he is not worth the Alpha Aethers. There are 4-star heroes released in 2025 (like Toon boldtusk or new Construct heroes) that offer more utility and survivability.

Community Corner: Hot Takes & History

• The "Wet Noodle" Debate: From day one, the community was divided. As one player noted, "One is a nuclear bomb Khufu, while the other hits like a wet noodle. Who makes these decisions?"
• The Support Argument: Defenders argued, "You know its not the purpose of each and every hero to deal huge amounts of damage? He is a role player to support attacking teams."
• The Nerf Confusion: Interestingly, despite being considered weak, there was a balance update that tweaked his Fiends, leading to confusion: "I'm sitting on 30 rings and still just couldn't bring myself to max this guy. Now he's getting a nerf? Hard pass now."
• Modern View: Most players now agree he is "very meh" and mostly relegated to specific niche uses or bench warming.

Final Thoughts

Cleaver is a cool-looking hero with a fun mechanic trapped in an outdated body. He brings a knife (or a bone axe) to a nuclear war. While his Fast Fiends can still annoy unprepared teams in Bloody Battle, he simply lacks the stats and impact to compete in the modern era of Empires & Puzzles. Use him if you love him, but don't expect him to carry you to the top.

Verdict: A fun toy for the collector, but a risky investment for the competitor.