Sure, it's a bumpy ride, but it beats walking. Have you seen an Imp's legs?
Update history[]
Update 1.2.11[]
Set change: Basic → Premium
▼ Health change: 5 → 3
Update 1.14.13[]
Rarity change: Uncommon → Rare
Strategies[]
With[]
With low stats and a very poor ability, Kangaroo Rider is not recommended for use in any decks. With 4/3 stats for 4 brains, it can be easily killed by 4,3, or even 2 sun Plants, effectively wasting Brains that could have been spent with cards with better stats or abilities.
While its Bounce effect seems like a strong upside, remember that it removes its stats from the field and must be replayed later for another 4 Brains to give value. Its ability also will not activate if the Zombie dies, which will often happen due to its low health compared to other cards of the same cost.
While Kangaroo's self-bounce and pet synergy may seem strong in a pet deck, it is simply too slow for pets aggressive gameplan. While it can activate Zookeeper or Cat Lady multiple times by Bouncing itself, this combo only comes out t4 and higher and heavily relies on your opponent playing 1 or 2 strength plants to Bounce Kangaroo Rider with. Instead, try using cheaper Pet cards such as Fraidy Cat or Dog Walker to activate Zookeeper and Cat Lady multiple times in a turn while also expanding your board.
Kangaroo Rider also has the Imp tribe, allowing for synergy with Imp synergy cards such as Toxic Waste Imp and Imp Commander. Unfortunately, neither of these synergies are very good, as its decent strength lets it kill most Plants already without the need of Deadly, and its low health and Bounce ability lets it be quickly dispatched from the field before it can go face and activate Imp Commander's ability. Instead, try to play multiple cheaper Imps to fill the board faster and get more value from these cards abilities.
It is also extremely unwise to ever buff Kangaroo Rider, as it will be Bounced upon taking damage and lose the buff. An even worse idea is to give Kangaroo Rider Frenzy - even if it does kill a Plant, it will either be bounced or die before the Bonus Attack can take place. You can, however, play environments to boost it, as they stay until they are overriden, and therefore can repeatedly buff the zombie. Still, cards like Area 22 would have better dedicated option.
Against[]
Due to its ability, you need to do at least 3 damage in one attack to destroy it. Avoid using plants with 2 strength or less against this zombie, because if you do this, not only do the plants get weakened and destroyed, but the damage done to Kangaroo Rider also goes to waste. Instead, try to choose plants or tricks that have 3 strength or more to get rid of this zombie as fast as you can.
Bonk Choy is a great choice to counter it, as it is a cheap plant with enough strength to destroy it on its first turn. Berry Blast is a cheap way to destroy it as well. If you have access to Team-Up plants, you can stack 2 plants to do a total of 3 damage, making it a lot easier.
If you can't destroy it, you can choose to work its ability to your favor by Bouncing it back before it can do damage to your plants, resulting in your opponent wasting 4 brains. Sour Grapes and Banana Bomb are good plants to use in that situation. If you are a Smarty hero, you can severely penalize your opponent for playing it by having Jelly Bean on the field once it gets Bounced.