Hearthpwn

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Sorry, no stats or W/L or anything since I primarily played on mobile. I'll explain some card choices here and explain match-ups as best I can off my memory. Mostly doing this out of boredom and because I have too much free time :^)

 

Card Choices

The Core: These are the cards that I feel right now are performing the best and are pretty much irreplaceable.

2x Argent Squire - Pretty solid minion overall. Divine Shield allows it to stick on the board and is a good target for buffs.

2x Blessing of Might - Very flexible, proactive card. Allows you to set up favorable trades or go for a more aggressive gameplan.

2x Lost in the Jungle - Dude synergy, powerful swing potential with other cards in the deck.

2x Righteous Protector - Annoying as hell, protects your board nicely. Pretty much a staple in any Paladin deck.

2x Muster for Battle - Most powerful turn 3 play, also good to save it as a great board refill if you anticipate a board clear.

2x Steward of Darkshire - Great for making dudes stick on board, makes it easier to set up huge swing turns.

2x Warhorse Trainer - Much better body than Raid Leader and serves a similar role. Can be used to make better trades or smack face for more damage.

2x Fungalmancer - Super powerful when it works, and it works often. With how much your hero power floods the board, you'll almost always have targets for this.

2x Level Up! - Of course.

2x Quartermaster - Another card that makes the deck so strong, great tempo swing.

1x Vinecleaver - Most decks only run one copy, and after consideration, I've decided to keep only one copy as "core" (more on this later). Great late-game engine and can often close out games for you.

1x Baku the Mooneater - It's an odd deck, you'll need this.

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Flex Cards: Cards I've been running for now, but have moments where they can be underwhelming. Generally they've been alright, but if you aren't a fan of them, it's very much alright for you to replace these.

1x Competitive Spirit - Pretty standard to run this as a 1-of, but at this point, many opponents expect it and will play around it, especially at higher ranks. It's great when it works, but feels like a waste of a card slot when it doesn't.

2x Fire Fly - Super flexible card, fills out your curve nicely. It's particularly great in the mirror as a mini dude-slayer, but it's incredibly weak to Odd Rogue's hero power, and can feel underwhelming at times.

2x Rallying Blade - Super strong with all the Divine Shield minions in the deck, and playable for the fact it's a 3/2 weapon alone. Only reason I include this as a flex card is because Unidentified Maul is worthy of consideration in this slot as well.

2x Corridor Creeper - Great card in Standard, but many Wild lists choose to cut this. It can be inconsistent at times, as drawing it too late can often be a disaster. It's important to be as proactive as you can, and sometimes this card can set you back if you can't get a discount on it early enough. Still, a 0 mana 2/5 is preeetty good, and has helped me win games vs other aggressive and midrange decks.

1x Vinecleaver - My version runs two, it's a very powerful card and I chose to opt for two copies to draw it more consistently. Most lists only run 1, most likely to lower the curve and keep the hand less clunky, but in my experience, it's powerful enough to run as a 2-of. If you aren't a fan of this, feel free to adjust as you see fit.

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Cards to Consider: Cards that didn't make the cut, but are worthy of consideration to better suit your play style.

Divine Favor - I know most of you are probably wondering why I'm not running this, even as a 1-of. To put it simply, I haven't been getting much value from it at all. I usually get around 3 cards out of it on average, but I lose out on a lot of tempo. A deck that looks to maximize its hero power doesn't deplete its resources as fast as most aggressive decks, so it's often sat as a dead card in my hand, especially vs other aggressive decks. However, I am aware of the crazy potential this card has, and I can easily see it being slotted in place of one of the aforementioned flex cards.

Ironbeak Owl - Honestly, I've considered running this card myself. There are a lot of good silence targets right now in the meta, so it might even be possible to run this as a 2-of. Great for bypassing beefy taunts and neutralizing cards like Hench-Clan Thug.

Leeroy Jenkins - A staple in Standard, but not so much in Wild. If you want some extra reach and some burst potential, he might be the guy for you. Decent tech card if you're running into a lot of slow, controlling decks.

Unidentified Maul - Could be ran instead of Rallying Blade. Personally, I find the latter to be more consistently strong, but it's a matter of taste.

Stonehill Defender - Discovering a Sunkeeper Tarim is preeeeetty good. Not reliable enough for me to include in my list, but not a bad choice overall. The body sucks for its cost though, and you lose out on a lot of tempo.

Southsea Deckhand - There are enough weapons in the deck to maybe warrant running this. Much more proactive than Fire Fly and could help with making better trades or pushing face damage.

Void Ripper - Great vs Spreading Plague and high health taunts. Good synergy with Corridor Creeper, potentially opting for getting 5 damage in which is especially good vs slower decks.

Dire Mole - Probably the best card in the mirror matchup. Pretty good vs Odd Rogue since it doesn't die to the hero power. 1 mana 1/3 is a premium statline worthy of consideration.

Avenge - I actually used to run this as a 2-of, and very few people saw it coming. It's great when it gets value, but I eventually chose to cut it to more consistently get a minion on the board turn 1.

Tar Creeper - Solid card to protect your board. Could be good vs Odd Rogue and Even Shaman.

 

Matchups

Druid: Favored vs all variants (Jade, Malygos, Togwaggle). Spreading Plague can be a thorn in your side, so try not to overextend unless you have a Level Up! or Quartermaster ready. If you can bait them out and outlast them, your hero power will be able to overwhelm them. It can be tricky to play; you need to be very proactive, but while also being under control. If you're having too much trouble, Void Ripper can single-handedly solve a lot of problems for you.

Hunter: Haven't seen too many at the high ranks, but you should be heavily favored vs most, if not all, variants. They don't have a good way to deal with your board other than with Deathstalker Rexxar and you should be able to blow them out pretty consistently. Your hero power single-handedly overwhelms the hell out of them, so use it often.

Mage: You're extremely favored vs Aluneth Mage. It's the same deal vs Hunters -- your hero power single-handedly blows them out, so use it early and often. Keep cheap spells to test for Counterspell, and the rest is straightforward. Reno Mage is much more even of a match-up, but I haven't faced too many of them to be honest. You should play extremely aggressively, go for the kill as fast as possible. If you let the game go on for too long, Frost Lich Jaina will single-handedly blow you out. They have limited board clears, but you have infinite board refills, so just keep applying pressure. Just make sure not to commit your Level Up!s and Quartermasters prematurely -- they are important sources of burst damage for you.

Paladin: Most likely going to be another Odd Paladin, but you'll come across the occasional Breakfast Paladin too. The mirror is basically a game of "who can get value out of their Level Up!/Quartermaster first". In the early stage, fight aggressively for the board, and past turn 4, start looking to set up for a big swing turn. Whoever manages to win the board early goes on to win the game the majority of the time. Against Breakfast Paladin, the same philosophy applies, but their minions are much stickier and awkward to trade into. Keep their board under control and only make trades if they are efficient, otherwise you'll throw away your power on board for nothing while they refill and leave you in the dust. Keep a lead on the board, and a big swing turn will blow them out of the water.

Priest: You'll generally only see Reno and Big Priest out there (mostly Big in higher ranks). Reno Priest can be a disaster, but I haven't come across many. Big Priest is a bit more even, though still slightly unfavored. They both have tons of removal, and if they're able to execute their lategame plans, it's curtains for you. Be as aggressive as you can and hope to blow them out early. Ironbeak Owl could be a great tech to deal with Big Priest's taunts and make the matchup easier for you. 

Rogue: Very favored. Kingsbane is almost an impossible matchup to lose unless they draw the nuts, just play aggressively while being mindful of Vanish and Blade Flurry, and you should be good to go. Odd Rogue is also favored, aggressively fight for the board early and eventually your hero power will completely blow them out. A high-value Dark Iron Skulker can swing things in their favor though, so be prepared for that. Some may even tech in a Fan of Knives, though I've yet to come across one in this matchup. Generally when you queue up against a Rogue, you should feel pretty good about your chances.

Shaman: Unfavored. You'll mostly see Even Shaman, and maybe a random Shudderwock deck from time to time. Devolve and Maelstrom Portal are your worst enemies and will make this matchup really tough. Fungalmancer will be your best friend in baiting out a Devolve, but don't be too greedy. Aggressively fight for the board, keep chipping away at his health. It's a difficult matchup, but not entirely unwinnable.

Warlock: Unfavored. You'll pretty much only see Renolock, though decks like Even Warlock and Zoo are both pretty bad matchups too. Renolock and Zoo both run Despicable Dreadlord which can singlehandedly ruin your day. Cards like Defile, Hellfire and Lord Godfrey all spoil your plans as well. I've only faced like one Zoolock, so I can't speak on that matchup very well. Your way to win vs the slower decks, however, is to play aggressively, try and bait board clears early, and recover from them as well as you can. A big burst of damage via Level Up! and/or Quartermaster might be able to steal some games for you. Ironbeak Owl is a great tech choice vs Warlocks; silencing Despicable Dreadlord or a Voidlord can even the matchup out considerably.

 

Mulligan

vs Druid/Priest/Warlock: Level Up!, Quartermaster, Blessing of Might, Corridor Creeper, any early drops

vs Hunter/Mage: Argent Squire, Fire Fly, Lost in the Jungle, Muster for Battle, Righteous Protector, Rallying Blade (esp. vs Aluneth Mage)

vs Paladin: Argent Squire, Fire Fly, Lost in the Jungle, Muster for Battle, Righteous Protector, Corridor Creeper, Level Up! and/or Quartermaster if you have a decent curve

vs Rogue/Shaman: Argent Squire, Lost in the Jungle, Muster for Battle, Righteous Protector, Blessing of Might, Corridor Creeper (not if you suspect Kingsbane), Warhorse Trainer

 

Thanks for the read! This should be an extremely strong deck to climb with in the week before the expansion drops, so take advantage of this deck while you can :p