Hearthpwn

Match Ups

Great Match ups: Zoolock (Oh wow there is a counter to zoolock out there who would have thought, yes tempo rogue along with mid-range shaman counter zoolock), Mid-range Shaman, Secrets Mage

Good Match ups: MIracle Rogue, Mid-range druid, Mid-range Warrior, Fast Druid, Mid-range Hunter, Murloc Warlock

Neutral Match ups: Ramp and token Druid, Priest, Control Warrior, Handlock, Malygos Rogue, Zoo, Mid-range, and outlast Paladin, Frost Mage, Face Hunter, Control Shaman

Bad Match ups: Trap Hunter, and Divine Shield Paladin.  Basicaly decks you don't see that often.

Terrible Match ups: None : D

 

Play Style

What you do is use your cheap removals and efficiently trading minions early game to set up tempo for a strong mid-game where you deal major damage and have your opponent about dead or already dead by the time you enter late game.

Tempo rogue basically takes advantage of its low cost removals and good trading minions to stay ahead of their opponent though out the game, thus keeping tempo over your opponent.  There are many ways to do this and understanding what to do, when to do it, and who to do it against can take lots of time and experience.  Without a solid understanding of other classes it is very difficult to keep tempo if you can't even imagine what is coming.

Anti-Aggro Deck Strategy

When playing against hyper-aggro decks use your removal and AOE on them before they get out of control, then mid-game pump out much more damage then your hyper-aggro counter part.

Anti-Control Deck Strategy

Playing the exact opposite against control go hyper aggro at the beginning to keep pressure on them.  Then middle and when approaching middle-end game it can use its removal and AOE to remove taunts.

Mulligan Strategy

Mulligan strategy may change from match up to match up but this is the one that will be used in most cases so instead of repeating over and over I am just going to give it a name so you can do less reading and I can do less typing.

Tempo Mulligan: For most match-ups you will be looking for a tempo starting hand.  Basically you want to get a hand that will let you get board control with cheap minions and removal.  The ideal starting for going first would be Backstab, Argent Squire, eviscerate, loot hoarder, deadly poison.  For going second, SI:7 Agent is great choice because you can coin him out second turn and do have have to wait until turn 4 or later to use him with the combo.

I tend to throw away SI:7 Agent from my starting hand if I am going first and don't already have a backstab, and against classes like Priest, Druid, and Warrior I tend to throw him away anyways if I go first even with backstab.  Its just going to be so hard to get the value out of him early game without coin that your better off trying to get your hands on a stronger early game minion or a cheap removal.

 

 

Cards

Spells

Backstab- Staple Rogue card that should be used in every rogue deck

Eviscerate - 2 mana for 4 damage, of course you will be running this card as a rogue

Deadly Poison - With your dagger you pay a total of 3 mana for 6 damage, cheaper then a fire ball

Sap - great low cost removal, can be used to clear taunts remove buffed minion for the board, and even to just buy you some time to prepare to deal with something that you need another turn to deal with.

Blade Flurry - potentially one of the most devastating AOE's in the game, no better way to finish off your weapon then blowing it up in your opponents face right? though clunky at times it is fairly easy to make it a more powerful AOE.

Sprint - the rogue's combo ability is a double edge sword, you can get great value out of low cost minions like no other class but in return it promotes you to burn down your hand.  In longer games this can be lethal for you, especially if you find yourself top decking into combo cards.  Having a card that allows you to fill up your hand can be just what you need.  Be very careful about using this one though, it will most likely take up your entire turn which can cost you a lot of tempo.  Making sure to use it when you have board control or when you have enough on the board to keep you from getting to far behind.  Sometimes I even use this when I am far enough ahead but a little low on cards just so that I can use it when I know it is safe rather than needed to use it later if I start to get behind.

Assassinate - Unlike Big Game hunter you can take out any minion with this no matter how much attack they have for only 2 extra mana.  Also unlike big game hunter Assassinate will never be a dead or useless card, because if your opponent doesn't run 7+ attack minions a 4/2 for 3 mana is a terrible drop.  You can even use this on a minion like Water Elemental or Druid of the Claw, hell even a yeti.  If something is going to take up way to many of your resources to deal with and cause you to lose a lot of tempo this card is a great way out.

Weapons

Perdition's Blade - With the meta being so aggressive having a low cost weapon that also pings is great even when it is not combo'd. 3 mana for 5-6 damage is great, specially since you can use the ping to save yourself or your minions some damage or sniping out of minion hiding behind a taunt.

Minions

The Black Knight - Great card, when you reach middle-end game and your opponent puts up and huge taunt you destroy it and put a 4/5 minion of your own in its place.  Even though some decks do not run taunted most run Defender of Argus or Sun fury.

Bloodmage Thalnos - One of the best cards in your deck, do not let his low cost, health and attack fool you, this guy is just as important as Leeroy whether you notice it or not. This card does 3 things in one Very nice card, it boost the spell damage on all your spells, and its low cost also gives you the ability to easily combo your other cards with it (great with eviscerate, blades flurry and even backstab or fan of knives), the card draw is the icing on the cake. Combo, Card draw and spell damage boost perfect card for a rogue deck.

Argent Commander - Great tempo card, if you opponent doesn't have spell damage or hard removal it is 8+ damage for 6 mana.  In most cases this card will take 2 of your opponents cards to deal with, which is great for your tempo.

Azure Drake - One of my favorite cards, a 4/4 with card draw and spell damage boost, basically a stronger Thalnos.  Always run 2 in a mid-range rogue deck.

Sen'jin Shieldmasta - With how aggressive the meta is right now and how many decks are running on turn kills sometimes you just need a taunt to throw down and get in there way right away.  Be careful when using him though, he can be a great emergency card against Miracle rogue and Token Druid to avoid a OTK, so use him wisely.

Defender of Argus - One of the best 4 drops in the game, give two of your minions taunt and +1/+1, great value and versatility here.  Great against Zoo as well.

SI:7 Agent - One of the best 3 drops in the game, some would argue the best but I wouldn't go that far definitely the top 3 though. Basically you have a 5/3 for 3 mana, you get to deal 2 damage to anything then put up a 3/3.  Any class in the game would love having this card, to bad the Agent is in love with Valeera.

Argent Squire - As a creature that can survive any AOE as long as her shield is up, as well as trade with 2/1 and survive, which is useful for both early and mid-game.  With the shield she can also hit very strong minions who have 1 health left and survive, so you do not have to use two cards to kill 1 minion or face it with your dagger and take massive damage, this can be very useful late and mid-game.  She is just a great card for aggro, her shield gives her so much utility, not to mention her low cost makes her a great card to set up combos with when using a rogue.  Her usefulness and utility throughout a match, especially with rogue, makes her a great card to draw at many points during a game.

Harvest Golem -  Harvest Golem offers unique utility and board presence that is necessary to help control the board.  Against board flooding decks and Aggro decks he can be used to clear 2 minions.  Harvest Golem will almost always result in a 2 for 1 card trade in your favor.  Making more trades like this is what wins games.

Loot Hoarder - Great 2 drop, he is card draw and 2 damage early game.  When looking at 2 drops this greedy guy stands out.

Card Replacements

Ragnaros the Firelord is definitely a card to consider.  With tempo it fairly easy to set up a great rag play on an empty board, or knock down the minions to the one big one your having trouble killing and letting rag decide whether to kill your opponent or the minion who looked at him wrong.  Though, he is a common target for faceless manipulator as well as the hard removal your opponent has been saving all game.  So if you do run him, make sure your getting a ton of value off him when you play him because he will not last long in most cases.  I will sometimes run this card myself, even with the risks, it usually works out.  When the meta is slower and control heavy Ragnaros the Firelord is a go to card for your tempo rogue deck.

Earthen Ring Farseer is not a bad option. Being able to restore your health that you sacrificed with your dagger or to get you some extra life can be priceless.

Blade Flurry and Fan of Knives can always be shuffled around with each other.

Assassinate, Ironbeak Owl, and Sap can be shuffled around with each other as well.  Big Game Hunter is also a replacement though I do not like him as much due to the potential of him being a dead drop.

Shadowstep and Cold Blood can be used if you so desire.

Leeroy Jenkins can be used in this deck, though without Cold Blood or Shadowstep I find it hard to justify using him.

If you don't have The Black Knight then use Assassinate for sure.  Bloodmage Thalnos is hard to replace because there is nothing like him, Shiv, Novice Engineer, or even Fan of Knives could be used in return for him, but there is really nothing like him, he is kind of irreplaceable.

Match Ups

When using this deck it comes down to skill, knowledge of your opponents deck style and planing accordingly.  I will go through a list of every class and how to play the various deck styles.

Warlock

This rogue deck can handle Warlock fairly well.  Use the Temp Mulligan for this match up since you will not know exactly what your up against at first.  AOE is also a nice thing to have, Zoo decks and hyper aggro tend to board flood, so being able to bait out their entire hand just to wipe their field with Blade Flurry+Deadly Poison is fun.

How to know the difference between the 2? this is fairly easy.  If they play a murloc, a low cost minion like Flame Imp, Leper Gnome, Argent Squire ect.. they are running Murloc/Zoo.  If by turn two they have not played a minion, and drew cards they are Giants/Handlock. The only exception to this is if they played Ancient Watcher, because it is only run in Giants/Handlock.

Strategy

Murloc/Zoo: Removes are for Buffing minions such as Dire Wolf Alpha, Murloc Warleader, ect...  Back stab can also be used on Flame Imp, they basically just took 3 damage for nothing, great play.  Basically you want to keep there minions to a minimum and prevent board floods unless you have a reliable AOE set up ready.  Once you hit mid-late game you can pump out way more damage than they can.  Your struggle in this match is surviving to turn 5-6 with a decent amount of health.  Watch out for Doomguard and Soulfire in this match up.  being between 5-9 life with no taunts up could mean instant death mid game from chargers+Soulfire.  At 4 life all they need is a Soulfire.   The fact is with all your early game removals its fairly easy match up, rogue is set up to handle these two decks very well.

Handlock/Giants:  This can be hard match up, and the match will usually be decided by turn 5-7.  That does not mean you need to kill them by that turn you just have to get them low enough.  You really want to kill this one before they can get out Alexstrasza or Lord Jaraxxus, these two cards can spell death for you.  Once you know they are playing this style it is time to go all face, yes they will get out there molten Giants quicker, but if your going to kill them there health will be low enough to summon them anyways.  You want to prevent them from being able to get out two cheap molten giants and still having tons of Mana to spare.  If you can get them to between 10-14 health by turn 5-7 you can start combing your cards for damage.  Make sure to save removal for the taunts here, the last thing you want is to have lethal in your hand but wasted all your spell damage and removal earlier in the game and now your looking at 2 9/9 Giants with taunt.

 

 

Druid

Druid has recieved a lot of flavor in the past months, though some things remain the same.  If you get Sap in your starting hand do not throw it away in this match up, always keep it to help deal with innervate BS.  Another thing to keep in mind is that cards like SI:7 agent are most likely not going to be killing minions off with his combo ability alone, so when you use him make sure your getting good value when you use it.

Strategy

Ramp Druid:  This deck can be a real struggle, you have to play carefully.  The fact is Rogue is not well suited for dealing with huge taunts, but if you can get tempo even the massive taunts of the ramp druid can be worked around.  THE MOST IMPORTANT thing in this match is being as efficient as possible when trading with there minions.   The fact is this deck can be hard to trade efficiently with when you having to plow through 5+ health minions all the time.  Do yoru best to trade as effectively as possible, that will be the biggest factor in deciding whether or not you win or lose.  The great thing about ramp druid is that it almost never runs Force of Nature, which is great news since you don't have to worry about instant death at 14 health.  This allows you to be much more liberal with your Dagger and running your face into those huge taunts in order to finish them.  do not use spell damage just to chip away health, only and only if that spell damage will give you the win that turn.  Ragnaros the Firelord is one of my favorite cards for this match up, Druids Rarely run removal (since the Tink Nerf even less so) So unless they can damage out rag or have their Big Game Hunter he can out put 16 damage.  Even if they can damage out rag, he still can wipe out one of their huge minions, or hit them for 8 damage in the face which can be huge.

Token Druid:  One thing you need to watch out for is Savage Roar+Force of Nature.  Always remember that on turn 7 Innervate+Savage Roar+Force of Nature is 14 damage and turn 9 Savage Roar+Force of Nature is 14 damage.  So if you are ever at 14 life with no taunts in front of you turn 7+ could mean instant death. so always be wary of this.  Try to stay above 14 life as much as possible in this match up.  The druid is going to try to use its minions to out tempo you, but do not let them trade efficiently !  Save Blade Flurry for token board floods with violent teacher.  I have even let them flood the board with violent teacher just so I can get them to cut down there hand and force them to over extend themselves.  Next thing you know they have an empty board and no hand, and your on the road to victory : D

Fast Druid: Same thing as above with Force of Nature.  The one big difference with this deck is that it is mid-range, which tempo rogue is excellent at dealing with.  The fact is no class is better at setting up for mid-game than rogue, period.  Just make sure to stay on top of that tempo and you will handle this deck.  Unlike the other variants of druid this one does not carry a plethora of large minions, so your biggest concern with druid goes out the window.

Paladin

Go with the tempo Mulligan here, could be control/outlast pally or Aggro Pally.  This can actually be a hard one to tell, look for cards like Leper Gnome, Abusive Sergeant, Arcane Golem and then going all face, if you see this it is aggro.  Cards like Wild Pyromancer, Ancient Watcher and Sen'jin Shieldmasta usually mean they are running control.  One thing about this match up you always need to watch out for is equality, no matter what always make sure to keep at least 1 minion in your hand unless you are going to lose other wise.  If you have no minions in your hand in they equality pyromancer or consecrate your screwed and could risk losing all tempo.

Strategy

Aggro/zoo Pally:  Use the anti-aggro Strategy here.  Watch out for Board floods with Sword of Justice,  if you can bait out a board flood just to wipe everything with AOE that is great.   Though once sword of justice is played, I tend to go hard control because it can get out of hand so quick.  Also remeber on turn 4 they can give any of their minions +4/+4 with Blessing of Kings, so make sure to clear as much as you can and instantly kill larger minions to prevent them from being kings'd.  Also be aware of Blessing of Might, +3 attack out of no where can be devastating.  Always remeber, if they have +6 mana they can send out a charger then kings it for massive damage to your face.

Control/Outlast Pally:  Outlast Pally can be a hand full, but at the same time you can wipe the floor with it.  Use the Anti-control strategy here.  Also you want to hyper aggressive here, get the paladin as low as possible before they have to much mana and can heal themselves for 6+ every turn. Guardian of Kings, Truesilver Champion, Equality+Wild Pyromancer or +Consecration will be the biggest and best weapons they have so always be ready for them.  Also without Tinkmaster Paladin no longer has a true hard removal so Ragnaros the Firelord is awesome for this match up.

Divine Shield Pally:  God I hate this match up.   Its so hard because it is almost imposable to trade effectively with all those divine shields running around.  This match up is so difficult for tempo rogue, just try your best to trade effectively and watch out for Blood Knights, they can steal your divine shields to.  Its funny, because this deck is actually horrible against aggro decks due to its lack or defense and slower kill time.  Its almost like it was built just to counter tempo rogue, because it literally sucks against everything else.  Luckily because of its terrible match ups against everything else, this deck is very rare to see so you don't have to worry about it running into it.  If your unlucky enough to find the one guy running this deck, just try your best.

Hunter

Mulligan is hard, because of the three variants of hunter out there but you surely need a low drop no matter what. Regardless of deck style they are running you cannot keep up with damage done by there hero power without a minion to help you out.  Also always keep some spell damage to deal with animal companion, all of them can really hurt you, having a quick fix for it game be the difference between a win and a loss.  Here is some rules that can help you in your hunter match up.

1.  Try to restrict yourself to a maximum of 3 minions on your side of the board.  Also you need to make sure to think carefully and ahead about what minions you want on the board.  Say its turn 3 you have a Loot Hoarder on the board and Chillwind yeti, Harvest Golem and Sen'jin in your hand.  Though harvest Golem is great tempo he may be very difficult to remove from the board which will restrict the minions you can play for longer and he also only has 2 attack.  Rather then playing him it it better to just dagger up and wait until next to turn drop your Yeti or Sen'jin.  Now this is not always the case if you are going to trade up your Loot hoarder that turn it is more important to have an active minion on the board so I would play the Harvest Golem.  The goal is to also make sure you can get the best possable value from the 3 minions you have on the board at all times.

2.  Save AOE for board floods with hounds or for Savannah Highmane's.  With how restricted your board is, you are very vulnerable to board flooding with little or no way to trade up with it.  In the hunter match up this situation happens more then you would like, using your AOE to turn this around in your favor can be game breaking.

3.  Save Eviscerate and Backstab for Animal Companion if you can.  The charger companion and taunt companion can be devastating to a rogue, taunt for obvious reasons, and that charger will out put a ton of damage to your face quickly.  Backstab and Eviscerate can really help deal with these minions quick and easy.

 

Trap Hunter:  the tips above are for all hunters regardless of the type, the only difference is with trap hunter is that you need to watch out for the traps.  Now trap hunter is rarest of the hunter variants, but sees a lot more play than Divine shield Pally.  You are almost guaranteed to run into this deck at least once or twice during a ladder season, maybe even more.  The reason why this deck sucks is because the traps make it very difficult for you to do damage, this deck actually punishes you for having tempo.  Blowing up your board with Explosive Trap, Causing your minions to hurt you or kill each other with Misdirection, which is made even worse by the fact you have a dagger so when they hit you, your minions take damage as well.  Last but not least Freezing Trap,  Taking away your tempo and making a card cost a huge amount making it harder to combo with.

This match up may seem impossible at first but it is winnable.  You just have to make sure to count the traps that are being used so you know what it won't be if they have used 2 of a trap.  Also make sure to always be very careful about which minion is attacking.  if you have a 5/5 a 2/1 and a 1/1 with divine shield.  Attack with the 2/1 just incase its Misdirection or Freezing Trap, you want to make sure if the minion hits your minions it doesn't kill them or hit you for massive damage, you also don't want one of your bigger minions getting Freezing Trapped back into your own hand.  This will be the key to winning the match, just be careful.

 

Mage

Use the tempo mulligan Strategy here. Mages usually run control but aggro mage has been rising in popularity lately.  If they are sacrificing spells on your face rather then your minions they are aggro.  Once you realize what they are use the appropriate strategy.

Strategy

Freeze Mage: just make sure to kill them before they can chain spell you to death, and use your removals on their tauntsor larger minions, and save AOE for the taunt twins, Mirror Image.  Save Backstab for Sorcerer's Apprentice, the last thing you want is for them to be able to play there mass amount of spells for cheap.  Always remeber to count Fireballs, it is 6 damage, double fire ball turn 8 is 12 damage.  Make sure to keep track of Fireballs.  Also remember turn 6 is Blizzard AOE for freeze and 2 damage to all and turn 7 is Flamestrike 4 damage AOE.  So if your going to board flood do it early otherwise be careful about putting to many minions on the board.  Also remember if you make it to turn 10 they can Pyroblast you at any time for 10 damage.

Secrets Mage:  A terrible mage deck that trys to take advantage of the secret spells and minions that the mage has.  Very rare deck to see, because I don't think it has any good match ups at all.  Just make sure your checking for secrets, like not playing a huge minon into Mirror Entity or something.  Also make sure that counter spell doesn't stop something vital, so just check the secrets and you will steam roll this deck.

Warrior

Warrior can be a real handful, against warrior you will be going all face, make it a face race.  Choose low cost minions so you can pump out damage early for your hand.  Keep the armor low and do let them get to many minions on the board at once.  With bad draw this deck can kill you by turn 6 no problem, so be very careful with the use of your Dagger, your life count is very important here.  Look for common aggro cards like Leper Gnome, Argent Squire if you see them they are aggro.  Also a good way to tell if they are Control is how conservative they are with their weapon, if they use it right away on your face they are probably aggro if they save it they are most likely control.  Also control decks tend to armor up a lot, so look for that to.

Strategy

Aggro Warrior: Always be ready for them to out put massive damage into your face every turn, 14 life is not safe turn 5.  Defender of Argus, and Sen'jin Shieldmasta can be your best friends in this match up.  This match up can be a struggle if you don't get the right cards and they do, just make sure your always putting damage out and keeping control of their board.  Puts taunts up when every you can to slow them down.

Control Warrior: Run them down before they have an opportunity to OTK you, and make sure to keep there armor from building up to much.  You can kill him quick, just remember with his weapons and removal your minions will not last long, so make sure you can get full use out of them before you play them.  One huge advantage you have in this match up is that they need that one huge minion to finish you most times, so even in a drawn out match you can have a lot of time to find ways to finish them.  

Priest

This is an easy match up, you can handle a priest pretty well.  Use the Anti-control Mulligan and Strategy.  Eviscerate and Deadly Poison are great for this match up.  Deadly Poison helps an easy kill on their Northshire Cleric, and Eviscerate can cut a huge chunk off of the Lightwell and health buffed minions.

Strategy

Now if your not careful priest can get out of control.  Make sure to clear Northshire Clerics and Lightwells quickly before they can be abused.  One of the biggest annoyances in this fight can be healing, if you let the priest healing get out of control you will lose.  There is actually a very nice strategy when fighting the priest, and that is to let their Auchenai Soulpriest live.  Yes there damage output will go up, but your damage out put is still higher, also they can no longer use their AOE and Holy Fire without hurting themselves and their minions, plus they lose all healing ability.  This also leaves Lightwell as a dead card in their hand.  Basically you can cut off all there healing and out put way more damage then they can before they are forced to kill their own Auchenai Soulpriest but by that time they are to far behind and you are way ahead.

 

 Shaman

Say hello to your mid-range buddy, your mulligan for this match will be a little different.  Argent Squire, an AOE,(Very important to help deal with the Wolves aka Feral Spirit) Eviscerate/Deadly Poison/Backstab/SI:7 Agent.  Now why? Argent Squire can help you ping out those totems, she is very useful in a matter of fact she may end up getting Earth Shocked because of this.  AOE for wolfs, its to bad they have that 3 health sweet-spot against the rogue.  3 health sucks because your low-cost spells are 1 damage dagger, 2 damage Backstab and SI:7 Agent, and then Eviscerate for 4 which you usually want to save for bigger things, so AOE can really help with this.

Strategy

So this is actually a really fun match, Mid-range vs Mid-range.  The way to win this match up is to use your early game removal and control to set up for a stronger mid-game than your opponent.  Note that the biggest difference between these two mid-range decks is that rogue is slightly better early game while Shaman is Slightly better late game, so you need to make sure to be making strong plays early game so that you can have tempo mid-game.  Having the upper hand mid-game is very important in this match up since both decks are mid-game deck styles who ever does the best mid-game is usually going to win.  The rogue's biggest advantage is that its early game is stronger, so it can set up for mid-game better than the Shaman.  The first 4-5 turns you will be fighting for board control and tempo against the shaman.

Things to watch out for early game in this match up are Unbound Elementals, Feral Spirits(The Wolves) Flametongue Totems and Mana Tide Totems, Earth Shock, Lightning Bolt, Lightning Storm, and his axe.  As you can see the Shaman has plenty of early game options, though most of them are removal and some short of buff.  You need to kill Mana Tide Totems and Unbound Elementals fast, those unbounds can get out of hand and force you to use sap or assassinate on them which you will most likely need later in the game.  Mana Tide Totems will give them to much card advantage over you so kill it asap, do not let them have to much card advantage.  Once you get mid-game start setting up plays like Argent Commander, your Azure Drakes+Spell Damage, your Assassin's Blade, SI:7 Agents, Defender of Argus, The Black Knight Ect... Remember end game the Shaman is better than you are, Buffed minions with Wind fury and Bloodlust a board full of totems and low cost minions spells a quick and pain full death.  Late game make sure all Flametongue Totems are removed from play as quickly as possible, Al'Akir the Windlord and Wind Fury Leeroy Jenkins are devastating enough without them.

 

Rogue

The mirror match, your going to want to go with the tempo mulligan here.  Mid-range or Miracle rogue are the two types. Mid range will use lots of minions while miracle will use very few.

Strategy

Miracle Rogue:  It is a face race, run all over them before they can get out a crazy combo.

Nice mirror match here, good example of how to play against a miracle rogue.

Mid-range: Just like the shaman match up, early board control to beat em up mid-game.