Hearthpwn

Changelog:

-2x Defender of Argus, +2x Sludge Belcher

 

I wanted to share this deck as a counter to the lower ranks' deck meta (mostly super aggressive) and also as an interesting alternative to the "standard" decks inhabiting the meta. Although there are many versions of decks similar to this or maybe even exactly the same (none that I have found, however), this deck was developed independently through repeated play testing on the ladder. The original idea behind the deck was to use as many cards as possible that encourage you to 2 for 1 your opponent.

When mulliganing your opening hand, try to get the best 4 drop you can. I always keep Truesilver Champion and Sen'jin Shieldmasta, but you will most likely spend the first 3 turns using your hero power, and that is perfectly acceptable with this deck.

While there are some legendary cards that could be situationally better than some of the cards I am currently running, I feel that for this deck, most of the legendaries are sidegrades at best and very minor upgrades at their worst.

If you are really dying to use that Tirion Fordring or Ragnaros the Firelord of yours though, here are some suggested replacements for inserting higher budget cards:

*Disclaimer: I run the version of the deck with no legendaries, while my wife runs the version with Tirion Fordring and Ragnaros the Firelord and we have noticed no difference in the deck performance. I have not tested the other suggested changes.

- 1 Stormwind Champion, +1 Tirion Fordring

- 1 Stormwind Champion, +1 Ragnaros the Firelord

- 1 Argent Commander, + 1 Avenging Wrath

- 1 Acolyte of Pain, +1 Big Game Hunter

- 1 Acidic Swamp Ooze, +1 Harrison Jones

My reasoning for not using these legendaries is as follows:

First, not running Tirion Fordring decreases the value of their control or copy cards, such as Faceless Manipulator, Sylvanas Windrunner, Mind Control, etc. The Stormwind Champion is not so powerful that you could not kill it yourself, but it is powerful enough that your opponent will have to kill it or lose very quickly.

Second, cards like Ragnaros the Firelord subject you to unnecessary RNG. I have seen plenty of games that have been decided by "lucky" and "unlucky" Ragnaros the Firelord hits, and that seems unreliable to me. It's not to say the card is bad, it most certainly is not, but in a deck with plenty of minions and a hero power like the paladin's, I feel the Stormwind Champion can be just as, if not more powerful than Ragnaros the Firelord.

Avenging Wrath vs Argent Commander can be a difficult decision. They essentially both do the same thing, for the same mana cost, but in different ways.  The only reason I would even suggest Avenging Wrath is that it is another card that combos with Equality and Wild Pyromancer and those sorts of combos can wreck your opponent's day.

Acolyte of Pain vs Big Game Hunter: Acolyte of Pain is better against the rush type decks you face at the lower ranks (25-15) and Big Game Hunter is better against the more powerful minions seen in the higher ranked control decks (10-legendary). There are still a few rush decks at the higher ranks but ultimately having Big Game Hunter available for cards like Ragnaros the Firelord makes fighting at the higher ranks much easier.

Lastly, there's Harrison Jones. This is actually the only card I would consider a direct upgrade from the stock Acidic Swamp Ooze. He provides the same benefit, but with a much beefier body, and a more rewarding secondary effect of drawing cards. When used on a secret fueled Eaglehorn Bow that hunters are so fond of, it almost feels like karmic justice for their Unleash the Hounds + Starving Buzzard card draw combo. A downside is he can draw too many cards, against cards like Doomhammer and Lord Jaraxxus you can fill your hand or deck yourself very quickly. Also, I believe your opponent is obligated to cry when you destroy high value targets with this rarely played legendary. Even playing against classes that do not use weapons, he is typically a more useful body. This deck excels largely due to its solid minions, and he fits right in. Like a glove.

My recommendation is to try the deck as-is in casual mode (or, if in 25-15 range, ranked) and when you draw Stormwind Champion, Acidic Swamp Ooze or Argent Commander, see if you wish you had one of the other cards. Or if you just find yourself sick of beholding the might of Stormwind and craving the warm embrace of Ragnaros the Firelord, then by all means, swap him in!

Deck Summary:

This deck is a control deck designed to have answers. Lots of answers.  It attempts to take full advantage of the paladin hero ability while ramping up quickly in strength in the mid game.  There is enough healing and taunt to survive and usually fully recover from super aggressive decks, and also enough staying power to compete with super control decks.  So far the deck does not have many glaring weaknesses (at least none that I have discovered in play testing so far, but I am not at the legendary rank) and it has proven not only reliable on the ladder, but also quite fun to play with. With so much healing in the deck, you can restore 26 health with all of the healing cards when they are used to their full potential, and that can prove very difficult for your opponent to deal with. All of the healing cards used are also extremely efficient at what they do, by providing significant health and either a solid minion or significant card advantage.

As a personal note, the mechanics and options provided by the deck have given me some of the most interesting and engaging duels I have had in Hearthstone since its release, as you never feel at a major disadvantage against any particular cards or deck compositions. It is also relatively cheap to construct.

Please, try it for yourself, and feel free to provide feedback!

Card Choices, Strategy and Tips:

Equality + Wild Pyromancer + Consecration + Avenging Wrath: These have become staples in paladin decks of almost every variety. They work well in tandem with the paladin hero power, and also in conjunction with each other. Try not to use Equality early in the game against control decks. While it may be tempting to wipe out their first three or four weak minions with an Equality + Wild Pyromancer combo, this deck excels at being patient. You can afford to take around 10 damage by turn 4 and not suffer in the mid or late game as a result. On the same issue, do not hesitate to use Consecration to kill 3 or 4 weak minions. Equality is the true powerhouse of the combo, as it will work with the other parts perfectly, and as a result it is the one you need to use the most cautiously. I try to save Avenging Wrath as a finisher, but in a pinch it can be used as a decent board clear, especially with Equality.

Acidic Swamp Ooze: This card can be amazing when used at the right time. It may or may not win you a game, but I promise it will bring a smile to your face when it is used to destroy a Legendary Control Warrior's Gorehowl. There is only one in the deck, as most control decks only run one of the more "powerful" weapons (Gorehowl, Gladiator's Longbow, Sword of Justice, Doomhammer). Also, opponents will typically "throw away" a weapon charge on a weak minion when they have a second one in their hand (typically you will see this kind of play from Eaglehorn Bow, Truesilver Champion, Stormforged Axe and Fiery War Axe), and the ooze can destroy their second weapon, ruining their plans for continued carnage. If playing against control decks with weapons, try really hard to save the ooze for their epic weapons, as it very well may win you a game in that scenario. The ooze is also quite powerful against hunters running Eaglehorn Bow, as they will not gain charges from their secrets to use the weapon in subsequent turns. Against non weapon classes, I typically just use it as a Bloodfen Raptor. It is worth noting that this card is worth saving against control warlocks for their Lord Jaraxxus(even though this card is pretty rare in the current meta) and also against priests, as they have several ways to end up with a weapon (Thoughtsteal, Mind Control on Tirion Fordring, Mind Vision, etc).

Earthen Ring Farseer: This card is worth its weight in gold when used at an opportune moment. At any other time, it's a pretty decent 3 drop at 3/3. It will kill some of the more frequently used cards, Harvest Golem, Mana Wyrm, Amani Berserker, Voidwalker, Northshire Cleric, etc., as well as almost every murloc. It also restores 3 health, giving it additional value in the late game, either used to heal a damaged critical minion or your precious face. Against control decks I will typically play this card as a 3/3 for 3, despite what my health total is (against super control decks you are better off healing after Alexstrasza has been played anyway), and against aggressive decks your opponent has always done at least 3 damage to you by turn 3, and if they somehow haven't, well you will probably win anyway. The 3 health can really make a surprising difference some games.

Argent Commander: Used as an easy minion killer or finisher. You can run him into an opponent's minion and still leave a threat on the board for him to deal with.

Aldor Peacekeeper: The paladin's version of removal. Unless you are playing against a rush deck, it is usually not worth dropping this card on turn 3. You want to try and hit a minion with more than 5 attack if possible, and in extremely dire situations he can swing the game back from a losing situation. Mostly he is used as a form of crowd control while giving you board presence.

Guardian of Kings: Powerful heal and a powerful minion. You should save him in your hand on turn 7 if you have full life, as the heal is nearly as valuable as the minion itself. Against control decks, try to save him for after they use Alexstrasza or his heal will be wasted.

Sludge Belcher: I decided to replace Defender of Argus with Sludge Belcher.  Sludge Belcher has proven to provide about the same level of survivability as Defender of Argus, but is much less situational.  Often times with this deck it is difficult to get two or more minions out (and have them survive) against a deck with heavy removal.  Sludge Belcher just stands up better on his own as a card than Defender of Argus did, and he usually buys you a turn or two of survivability.

Azure Drake: A staple card in many control decks. I would actually still run him even without the spell power buff he gives, as a 4/4 and drawing a card is good enough for 5 mana. Even though the extra spell damage might just push your consecrate into lethal for several creatures later, I rarely hesitate to trade the Azure Drake for anything better than a Chillwind Yeti. Most of the time your opponent will use a card to kill it, and since you drew one for playing him, you tend to gain card advantage in that situation. The only card to really watch out for is Truesilver Champion, as Azure Drake is one of its best targets and it provides their weapon with incredible value.

Truesilver Champion: Speaking of incredible value, there's this card. This weapon is absolutely amazing when used correctly. It is fantastic against many commonly played cards, and combos well with your hero power. It's two weaknesses at its cost of 4 are Chillwind Yeti and Sen'jin Shieldmasta, as they both have 5 health and are usually seen on turn 4. You can always run a recruit into a minion to soften it up for the weapon, so be sure to take advantage of your hero power.

Sen'jin Shieldmasta: For almost the exact reasons above, this card is really incredible. At 3 attack it will kill any 1, 2, or 3 drop minion (outside of a few class specific minions), but most importantly it has taunt. Often times against aggressive decks, Sen'jin Shieldmasta will 2 for 1 your opponent. He also seems to be at the bottom of the "targets acceptable to Polymorph" list, and will draw some pretty hard removal in some games that will often surprise you. Even at the higher ranks where the players are a bit more stingy with their removal cards, he will probably put a scowl on their face and they will begrudgingly run their two minions into him. He also combos decently with Earthen Ring Farseer as you can typically take an opponent's minion out, then heal him back up. It is also worth mentioning that he survives Flamestrike, Heroic Strike, Soulfire and most other early class removal spells. The only card to really watch out for is Shadow Word: Pain as this card is one of the best answers for Sen'jin Shieldmasta.

Lay on Hands: This card is both a powerful healing spell and significant card advantage combined into one card. It is best used when you already have board control. It is also a fantastic top deck in games that have come to a point of "top deck wars". Only one is used, as any more would both clog your hand and cause you to draw too many cards too quickly, resulting in early fatigue.

Acolyte of Pain: Much like Lay on Hands, this card is used for card advantage. He is also excellent against rush decks with low health minions as well as the paladin and shaman hero powers. Often times, he will draw a silence or removal from your opponent to avoid giving you free cards, but even then he has already paid for himself. I was running two at one point due to its power but found it to be too many cards in many match ups. He is best used when your opponent has no minions with an attack greater than 2.

Spellbreaker: I was using this card before the Tinkmaster Overspark nerf, as I do not like cards with a lot of RNG. Using Tinkmaster Overspark to transform a minion into a 5/5 usually just resulted in having to spend a second card to deal with the 5/5. Spellbreaker accomplishes the same thing in many cases. He is actually so powerful in so many different match ups that for a while I considered also running Ironbeak Owl. You may even prefer the Ironbeak Owl in the deck, and that is perfectly acceptable as its reduced cost can make it better in some situations than Spellbreaker. Silence is an often underrated and overlooked mechanic that can cripple many decks or allow you to push through extra damage. Try not to use it on Harvest Golem or Acolyte of Pain against control decks as tempting as it may be, as there are almost always better targets later. You can also combo this card with Aldor Peacekeeper against Ragnaros the Firelord as a relatively effective way of disabling him and saving your Equality. Be sure to play them in the correct order (Spellbreaker, then Aldor Peacekeeper, he is left with a 1/8 with no abilities). It is also an okay answer to Water Elemental, as that is one of the most difficult cards for paladin to deal with.

Stormwind Champion: This card is used as a finisher. He combines well with the paladin hero power, and as mentioned above he is not as susceptible to copy or control mechanics as other finishers (a well placed Faceless Manipulator or Mind Control on Tirion Fordring may very well swing the game back into the opponent's favor). At 6/6 he slides under Big Game Hunter (although it is run in only a handful of decks, it is 1 less card your opponent may have that is useful against you). Often times his buff will push your minions into lethal damage very quickly, so your opponent will still have to use the same removal that would be used on Ragnaros the Firelord or Tirion Fordring, so the result is typically the same with this card (you typically get only 1 turn to use this card before it is killed, but that is usually long enough to take advantage and deal as much damage or kill as many minions as you can). As a general rule, if you are considering replacing only one of the Stormwind Champions, it is worth noting that in my experience with this deck typically Tirion Fordring is better against aggressive decks and Ragnaros the Firelord is better against control decks. Your results may vary.

Conclusion:

Well, that is just about everything to know about this deck! I hope you found this information useful, and feel free to leave feedback or comments and I will try to answer them as they are received. I understand there is a lot of text here, but I tried to provide as much information as possible for both newer players and experienced Hearthstone players looking to try something different. I hope this deck brings you many victories and that you enjoy playing it as much as I have. Thank you very much for your time, and good luck!

- Jafu

Other Decks:

Confusion Control Shaman: http://www.hearthpwn.com/decks/74920-confusion-control-shaman