Hearthpwn

I've been looking this season for a deck to give me that last push to legend, as I usually finish around rank 3-5 most seasons. I decided to really make a go of it this time and managed to get there in rather decisive fashion with this variation on double combo Druid. The list is mostly stock but there are a few additions that I found helpful, and I thought I'd take the chance to explain my take on the cards and the matchups a bit.

This is a combo deck first and foremost, but while you will very often kill with the Force of Nature + Savage Roar combo, often one or the other will be good enough. Your minions are sticky and fat and with cards like Innervate and Wild Growth we get to play an unfair game that no other deck in the format can. With Undertaker gone and Gadgetzan nerfed, there aren't many things left in the format that can compete when it comes to playing ahead of the curve. 

I'll cover the deck a bit here as well, though I imagine at this point most of the card choices are self-explanatory. Still, a new perspective can't hurt.

The Deck:

2 x Innervate: This is the card that lets us do the most unfair things, and is an auto-include in all Druid decks. The ability to play cards like Piloted Shredder on turn one or two, or turn five Ancient of Lore, is just so powerful that this card can't be ignored. Even if it seems like it will be a dead draw late game you'd be surprised by how often being able to combo and hero power or play a five- and six-drop in the same turn comes up. There are also the corner cases where you can super combo people with double savage roar, so this card will almost always do something busted.

2 x Wild Growth: Another auto-include, Wild Growth is less explosive than Innervate, but it allows the deck to play very consistently and an early Wild Growth will make your opponent play from behind the whole game. On the play you can really abuse the mana advantage, and when going second you get to abuse your extra card and coin. When going second, the decision of whether or not to use your coin depends largely on the contents of your hand. If Coin into Wild Growth is going to lead to a hero power on turn two it's best to wait, while if you can play a shade on turn two with the help of turn one Wild Growth it's often more valuable to go for it. The dream is of course turn one Wild Growth into Shade, Shredder, Druid of the Claw, but that doesn't come up often. 

2 x Wrath: Wrath is one of the most versatile cards in the game, and a terrific removal spell. While it sacrifices the ability to go to the face, the ability to deal three to a minion on turn two or to cycle for a card at any point in the game is more than worth it. You'll want to use it to draw whenever it is reasonable to do so, but don't be afraid to use it to kill high value target. In a lot of matchups I won't keep it in my opening hand, but I'm never that sad to see it come back. It will kill something in every matchup and pave the way for your late game spells to put the hurt on the opponent. It also combines well with Keeper of the Grove and Piloted Shredder in a world where there are a lot of five health creatures, and being able to kill the front half of a Piloted Shredder for two mana isn't bad in a deck where all your creatures will be able to finish off the back half. 

2 x Savage Roar: While Savage Roar is obviously half of our super fair combo, it's important to remember that it has myriad other uses as well. The mistake I made when starting out with this deck was think of savage roar as an inseparable part of Force of Nature. I treated the cards as a miniature Exodia, assuming that if I could just get the pieces together I could win. This is not always true though, and knowing when to use Savage Roar is key. When it comes down to it, it's just a three drop, and often you can treat it as a removal spell. I've begun using it more liberally, using it on turn three to kill a Knife Juggler if I have no other plays or to let my Keeper of the Groves and minions that popped out of my Piloted Shredders trade up. Keep the combo in mind when you have a Savage Roar, but don't let that stop you from using it to survive or gain a board advantage.

2 x Keeper of the Grove: One of my favorite cards, Keeper of the Grove spares us the fate of having to play an Owl to have a silence in our deck. Most often the first Keeper of the Grove will be saved for a high value target like a Sylvanas, Tirion, or Savannah Highmane, but using them on Sludge Blechers or Haunted Creepers isn't bad either, depending on the situation. Killing Knife Juggler is another good use. Keeper of the Grove is one of the more versatile cards in the Druids arsenal, and I'm never sad to see them.

2 x Swipe: Swipe will make it into any Druid deck simply because we lack the board clear options of some of the other classes. This is often fine, as Swipe can clear or weaken an early board to the point that we can mop up the stragglers, and later game our minions are often superior enough that we can use them to control the board rather than needing a sweeper spell. It won't always do the job, but the fact that it can deal four to the face often makes up for that fact.

2 x Druid of the Claw: Druid of the Claw is one of the cards that feels amazing to Innervate out, and will pretty much always get you value. When charged it's either going to kill the opponent or eat a card and force another to finish it off, and as a 4/6 taunt there are few cards that interact favorably with it. Sludge Belcher is a bit of an annoyance, but fortunately our hero power can finish the job. Getting one of these out early against aggro will make you feel safe, and often time charge and Savage Roar is as much of a combo as Force of Nature.

2 x Force of Nature: The other combo piece, I had originally been on one copy, but decided to up it to two for a couple of reasons. The first is that the combo is simply very good, and with two copies in the deck you will kill your opponent on turn nine a lot of the time. The other reason is that running two actually makes it less of a dead draw before you intend to combo. When running one, the instinct is to save it for the combo, holding it in situations where it would really be better to play, and being forced to play it early can often put you in a position where it will be hard to close out the game. Having two allows you to use the first copy proactively, either as a defensive measure or just to maintain control of the board and keep your other minions healthy or give them a chance to push for damage. I will often be a two for one when played on turn six or seven, so don't be afraid to use it.

2 x Ancient of Lore: Ancient of Lore is simply one of my favorite cards in the game, and very few things feel better than dropping a 5/5 and drawing two cards. Whenever you get the chance to do that it feels very hard to lose, as you're likely to be up on cards in hand and force your opponent to spend a card or two dealing with the body. Knowing when to use the heal is pretty important here, but it's often enough to stop an aggro deck in its tracks between the health and the body. Of course, you want to draw whenever possible, but don't discount the life gain or the ability to heal your other minions. If you draw both in one game you feel practically invincible, and that's a good quality in a card.

1 x Zombie Chow: Zombie Chow is a bit of a weird card in the deck. I don't particularly like playing it, but it does feel like a necessary evil. It can help against face Hunter and is good at keeping Paladin and Shaman hero powers in check early, which is important for Druid if you want to win. Letting them get early board control can make the game very difficult, and Zombie Chow prevents that. The fact that it kills almost nothing in Mech Mage is a large part of the reason we only play one.

1 x Big Game Hunter: Big Game Hunter is another card that is more a concession than something you really want to play. With Handlock out of the meta for the most part and Doctor Boom becoming the only reliable target, decks like Warrior that have access to efficient removal could probably start cutting BGH. Unfortunately, Druids don't have that luxury, and it's important for us to have a way to clear a big minion and BGH is the cleanest option. Dropping him as an additional body pre-combo is also a good use for him, as adding six more damage or something else for them to need to clear is often relevant.

1 x Mind Control Tech: Another tech card, and the first that I'm not really sure is needed. As a naked play you could do worse, but the fact of the matter is there are a lot of games where that's all this will do. It's a nod to the fact that we lack a reliable board clear, and if the board is big enough that Swipe won't cut it it's nice to have something that can swing it in our favor a bit. That said even when you are getting value you're very often getting something like a Boom Bot or a Spectral Spider, and that's really not that fantastic. If I found a card I wanted more or if the meta called for it, I wouldn't be sad to cut this.

2 x Shade of Naxxramas: One of the clunkier cards in the deck, Shade of Naxxramas still gives us an early value play, and often Innervate into Shade on turn one will give the opponent headaches. There aren't very many ways to effectively clear an early Shade of Naxxramas, though late game be careful of casting it when you expect a Consecrate or Holy Nova. Against aggressive decks it will often grow to 3/3 or 4/4 and then trade for two cards, which is all you can really ask for, and against other decks it is often a hard to remove way to add combo damage. That said, it is only a three drop, and you should try and gain value where you can. Knowing when to reveal it is key in matchups like Priest or Paladin.

2 x Piloted Shredder: Druids are all about the value game and few cards do it better than Piloted Shredder. Trading for two cards is what you want your minions to do, and that's often how it goes with Piloted Shredder. Playing it on turn two with the help of an Innervate will often force your opponent to make awkward plays, though due to the three health I don't feel this play is a strong as turn two yeti was. Leaving behind another body for the combo is another reason Druids love this card, and though you see it everywhere I think Druid might utilize it better than any other deck.

1 x Bomb Lobber: This is the first card that some people might question, but I have been suitably impressed with it so far. I wanted another card that felt good to innervate into, and the ability to play this card early means you're almost never getting less than two cards out of it. It's good against decks like Mech Mage and other Druids, as well as the new Midrange Hunter deck that people have been playing. In both the Hunter and Mech Mage Matchup we get pretty well beat up by their secrets, so it's nice to have another minion that handles them well. Giving Mage a 3/3 when you already used it to kill something is pretty good value, and getting your Bomb Lobber hit by a Freezing Trap does not feel that bad. It also kills most everything Priests and Rogues can play by turn five, and four free damage to a Sludge Belcher is usually enough to finish it.

1 x Loatheb: A nice fat creature to play on curve, as well as giving us something to hold against Oil Rogue, an Antonidas, or another Combo Druid. Loatheb is simply a good card, and there are very few uses of it that don't feel good. It helps set up the combo as most ways decks try to stave it off involve spells or taunts, and Loatheb shuts down spells and gives us another body to get through the taunt and punch them in the face. An all around solid card, Loatheb gets better the better you know your matchups and which are the pivotal turns.

1 x Piloted Sky Golem: Another interesting include, Piloted Sky Golem is a flex slot, much like Mind Control Tech, and could be changed to something Like Harrison Jones or Kezan Mystic if you feel the meta calls for it. In a more open meta, I like this guy for a few reasons. First, 6/4 trades favorably with most cards in the game. Key here is Sludge Belcher. Being able to kill the front half of a Belcher and live is important for a high drop, and Piloted Sky Golem does the job well. Second, it's a six-drop we actually want to play on curve. Sylvanas is the only other card that fits this criteria, and it's nice to have another option. Finally, it's a fat creature that leaves behind another body for combo when it dies, and there are very few clean ways to deal with it. It can be swapped out for tech cards, but if you don't have a good handle on your meta or it's very diverse, I think he's a good option.

1 x Sylvanas Windrunner: Druids have a little harder time than most decks getting great value out of Sylvanas, as we lack a way to reliably kill it ourselves, but for Druids she plays a slightly different roll than for other classes. Early to Mid-game is where we can fall behind, and while dropping a Sylvanas won't often net us a creature, it will most often force them to trade their board into her. One creature is much more manageable than a full board, and that's something Sylvanas does very well.

1 x Doctor Boom: Everyone's favorite, it's hard to build a deck without him right now. Druid can use him better than most classes just because we can play him faster, and if you ever manage to get him out on turn three or four you will feel rather disgusting. The Boom Bots are also bodies for the combo, so we can often hold this until the turn before and then deliver a savage beating. He's good whenever you cast him, and I can't think of many reasons not to play him.

A Note on Some Omissions:

Ragnaros: I don't like him right now. Our hands have a tendency to be clunky, and Ragnaros only make this problem worse. Even when he's played he isn't often very good, being the perfect BGH target. I prefer having Doctor Boom as the only target, since he gets good value regardless and Ragnaros is on the unpredictable side.

Harrison Jones/ The Black Knight/ Kezan Mystic: Any of these could easily be in the deck, but right now the meta doesn't seem to call for any one more than the others, and I chose to play Piloted Sky Golem for that reason. Kezan Mystic is probably the best of the three right now so if you want a tech card I'd go with her.

Azure Drake: This is a fine choice and could easily be better than Bomb Lobber. I wouldn't fault anyone for playing it, especially since it digs for the combo. Personally, I like the versatility Bomb Lobber grants in the mirror and against more aggressive decks.

The Matchups:

Each matchup has nuances and you'll get a sense for them as you play. I won't go too in depth here as the deck is fairly straightforward and not terribly innovative, but I will offer my perspective.

Priest: This matchup is good. There are very few things the Priest can do to really punish you, as they don't play much early on and getting something like a Shade in play is often too much for them to handle. You don't have good Mind Control targets and their removal is poor against your army of 4-attack creatures. Your silences will do a lot of damage here, especially if they're on the Velen's Chosen deck.

Warrior: Another good matchup, but a much easier one to lose than Priest. With Priest we don't care too much about their draws since most of their cards are just bad against us, but with Warrior their late game is even stronger than ours, and stacking armor can make it hard to get them in combo range. Limiting the value they get off of Acolyte and taking control in the mid-game are the keys to victory here. Make them take a lot of damage when using their weapons and trade as efficiently as you can while applying pressure, and watch out for Brawl if you're keeping your Shades hidden.

Shaman: If you can keep their totems in check, Midrange and Control Shamans are fairly simple. Their mid-game creatures are worse than yours with the exception of Fire Elemental and you can usually overload their removal. They lack good heals so combo is particularly effective. Mech Shaman can be a little trickier depending on their start, but Druid of the Claw and Ancient of Lore are still very good. In both cases, Flametongue Totem is probably their best card against you as it allows them to trade up into your high value minions. Keeping the board as clear as possible is important here.

Druid: The mirror is tricky, but this is where I particularly like Piloted Sky Golem and Bomb Lobber. Druids don't typically play a lot of minions out at a time, regardless of if they are Ramp or Combo, so both of those cards will often get more than a card from them. Ancient of War out of Ramp Druid can be a problem, but I have encountered it so rarely that I don't think teching into something like Black Knight is appropriate right now. Drawing Ancient of Lore and playing it as soon as possible often has a snowball effect in this matchup, and I would recommend mulliganing for Wild Growth very aggressively. Piloted Shredder is another good card in the matchup, so look for those as well.

Paladin: This matchup can be a bit rough, but I still think Druid is favored. The decks operate on similar principles, but while Paladin has the ability to clear, they lack any significant burst capacity. You can often force an Equality + Consecrate turn after playing an Ancient of Lore, which is likely to put you very far ahead. The problem with the matchup is two-fold: Paladins play sticky value minions but they do it earlier than we can, with cards like Shielded Mini-bot, and Muster for Battle + Quartermaster can really ruin our day. Use Swipe to clear Muster tokens when given the chance and apply as much pressure as possible. Silencing a Tirion feels good but don't forget it's still a 6/6.

Warlock: There are a few variants of Warlock running around, and some of them make for better matchups than others. Zoo is a tricky matchup since our Swipes can't clear much and while getting rid of Imp-losion tokens feels good it's not often as good as it looks. Their minions are beefy by aggro standards and their pumps let them trade up while they maintain a steady source of draw. Demon and Combo Warlock are mostly value games where you want to try to combo them as quickly as possible before they bury you in card advantage through the use of their hero power and cards like Voidcaller. Handlock is probably the easiest match, as we can burst them down before they can get their Moltens too cheap. An early Mountain Giant with no answer can be an issue, but Keepers answer Twilight Drakes very effectively.

Mage: Mech Mage is the one I encounter the most, so that's what I'll cover here. This is a coin flip, most of the time. Or at least, it feels that way to me. Innervate and Wild Growth are important cards here, as is Wrath. Getting something big out while they try to establish their board is very good, and wrath can kill most of their pre-Blastmage plays. If you can stabilize around turn seven you will probably win, but this is the match I find myself using Ancient of Lore to gain life in the most. Again, trading as efficiently as possible is important, and try to keep Antonidas in mind as much as possible.

Hunter: Hunter decks are about 50/50, and probably gave me my most losses during my climb. The issue with face hunter is that sometimes our hand is a little too slow, while Midrange Hunter attacks us from a different angle. They can be aggressive early and then start playing hard to deal with threats like Savannah Highmane, and Freezing Trap is especially effective against our one-dude-at-a-time strategy. Use combo pieces liberally against both of these matchups, to maintain the board or save some life, and always keep in mind Freezing and Explosive Trap when setting up lethal.

Rogue: Probably our worst matchup, the problem with Rogue lies primarily in two cards: Sap and Sprint. Sap is very efficient at setting us behind, and Sprint makes it very hard for us to keep up, giving the Rogue enough resources to both control the board and establish their combo. Keep their board as clear as possible at all times to minimize the damage done by Oil. Bomb Lobber and Swipe are your all-stars here, as they can trade with most anything. Swipe in particular is great at dealing with Violet Teacher, and Bomb Lobber is one of the few cards in the game that allows to you maintain card parity with Azure Drake. Apply pressure and force them to use their spells defensively, and try and stack armor when you can. Every point of life matters in this matchup, and beware of Blade Flurry when keeping your Shades hidden. It's often better to let them use a removal spell on them than to give them the chance to kill them for free with a Blade Flurry.

Closing Thoughts

This deck has served me well and I plan to see how it fares in Legend as well. There aren't any matchups where I feel like a complete dog, and the combo can get you out of many seemingly hopeless situations. People will be forced to play around it all game, which will often give you the time you need to assemble a kill. All in all, I think this is a great choice for the current meta and a strong deck overall.