Crusher Shaman [Legendary]
- Last updated May 15, 2016 (Old Gods)
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Wild
- 16 Minions
- 14 Spells
- Deck Type: Ranked Deck
- Deck Archetype: Control Shaman
- Crafting Cost: 7340
- Dust Needed: Loading Collection
- Created: 6/30/2014 (Live Patch 5506)
- HSCrusher
- Deck Architect
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- 12
- 23
- 46
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Battle Tag:
N/A
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Region:
US
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Total Deck Rating
1574
Peak Legend Rank (Season 3): 777
WotoG Update! I'll hopefully do a more complete write up later this season. In the meantime, enjoy an updated, if not finalized decklist. Also, here's a video of me piloting the deck on Twitch: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UssHC_rep98
Mission Statement: Rely on spells and taunts, including the Ancestral Healing + Injured Blademaster combo, to make it to the late game, then lock the board down with a nearly endless supply of Earth Elementals (using Ancestral Spirit and Faceless Manipulator). The deck can win other ways, but if the game goes long enough this usually works.
(Thank you FromDust for the pic; my record is 4 Earth Elementals at the same time.)
The Story: I was playing my Divine Control Paladin when I faced a player named Loboguerrero. I was surprised when he played Earth Elemental, a risky card in an environment rife with Big Game Hunters and The Black Knights, but with Ancestral Spirit and Faceless Manipulator, the Earth Elementals gained value and seemed nearly endless. I gritted my way through the first four Earth Elementals, but the fifth one did me in. I instantly fell in love with the concept and made my own Ancestral Shaman. I fine tuned it throughout the course of the season, taking it from Rank 13 to Legendary.
The Meta: I think this is a good meta call right now. The copious taunts hold up well against Aggro, Zoo, and give you a shot against Miracle Rogue, while the strong removal options and threatening minions let you outlast most control decks. Opponents will generally expect that you are playing the standard Shaman build. That build has few threats, so opponents will often waste removal on some of your only mildly threatening cards like Fire Elemental, Azure Drake, and even Mana Tide Totem. They will also become detrimentally defensive when they drop into the standard Shaman's burst range of about 18 health. This deck runs almost no burst favoring the Earth Elemental lockdown, but it still benefits from this expectation.
The Stars:
Earth Elemental: This card is usually risky because of its vulnerability to Big Game Hunter and The Black Knight. It costs you 8 mana total and can easily wreck two turns. You should only play this on turn 5 out of utter desperation. The objective is to combo it with Ancestral Spirit and/or Faceless Manipulator to cement its value, burn out the opponent's removal, and hopefully lock down the game.
Ancestral Spirit: Ideally comboed with Earth Elemental for an extremely resilient wall, but can be reasonably comboed with Kel'Thuzad, Fire Elemental, or Injured Blademaster (you get a 4/7 back). Sometimes you just need taunt, so playing it on Sen'jin Shieldmasta is even an option. Finally it can proc (and give future procs) to Wild Pyromancer.
Ancestral Healing: Ideally comboed with Injured Blademaster for an early sturdy taunt. Often draws some hard removal making your Earth Elementals stronger later. Ancestral Healing can also be comboed with The Black Knight for the equivalent of a Chillwind Yeti and an Assassinate at a 3 mana discount. Also useful for emergency taunts or healing up an Earth Elemental (especially just before it is copied with Faceless Manipulator).
Injured Blademaster: Besides the combo with Ancestral Healing, it works well with Ancestral Spirit and to some degree Healing Totem.
Some Other Cards:
Feral Spirit: I only run one of these because in my mind it is a situational card. In the early and mid game when the opponent has only 5 or less attack minions, it essentially functions as a 2/6 taunt that is vulnerable to AoE (and less vulnerable to single target removal). This is not worth 5 mana even if it is spread out over two turns and even against aggro. Later though it is very effective at slowing big threats and blocking finishing combos. You should almost always mulligan this card away and hope to find it later if and when you need it.
Unbound Elemental: A good turn 3 play if you haven't found your Injured Blademaster + Ancestral Healing combo yet. The 4 health helps it stick to the table and with 7 overload cards it can actually get somewhat threatening (maybe draws a silence). It may be worth replacing these with Earthen Ring Farseers to help against Miracle Rogue and Alexstrasza (especially in Freeze Mage).
Sen'jin Shieldmasta: Could have easily been Chillwind Yetis instead, but the extra taunt goes a long way against aggro toward surviving to play an Earth Elemental combo. The extra taunt also helps to block finishing combos.
The Black Knight: A good card in this meta all by itself, since everything but Aggro and Miracle Rogue are forced to play taunts to survive them. Also, the most popular aggro, Zoo, runs taunts of its own. The Ancestral Healing combo (cast Ancestral Healing on an enemy minion to give it taunt, then use The Black Knight's battlecry to destroy it) ensures its inclusion.
Ragnaros the Firelord (replaced): I felt that this deck needed one more big threat past the elementals. I experimented with Alexstrasza for the heal after stabilizing, but Ragnaros feels a bit more versatile. Often a good target for Ancestral Healing to make sure your opponent can't just ignore Ragnaros for the win. Its vulnerability to Big Game Hunter sometimes just ends up helping your Earth Elementals.
Matchups:
A list of the most common matchups I faced on my way to legend. Some mulligan information is included and I rate them according to how well this deck performs against them.
Handlock (Strong): You must be patient. Shamans usually hold Handlock healths hovering in the high teens range and then finish them with a windfury Rockbiter Weapon burst of some sort, but this deck does not have that ability. Instead you have to outlast the Handlock, which sometimes even means literally waiting for the opposing Handlock to run out of cards before making your move. The key is that Handlock actually has fewer threats than you might think: 2 Twilight Drakes, 2 Molten Giants, 2 Mountain Giants, and 1 or 2 Faceless Manipulators. They may also have Alexstrasza (this makes the matchup more difficult). Earth Shock can kill one Twilight Drake while The Black Knight and Hexes can kill three giants. The rest you can kill the hard way. I usually won't attack the opponent's hero until I can handle all of the remaining threats hitting the board on the same turn. This means trading on the board as much as possible and just not attacking a lot of the time. Beware of the Leeroy Jenkins + Power Overwhelming + Faceless Manipulator, 20 damage finisher. Avoid taking damage as much as possible, and have the appropriate number of taunts down to block it. The main danger is falling too far behind in card advantage, so don't overextend on the board for fear of Shadowflame or Hellfire. Finally, try to draw out his Faceless Manipulator(s) before dropping an Earth Elemental + Ancestral Spirit combo.
Zoo (Strong): Mulligan for early drops (4 or less mana), Lightning Bolt, Ancestral Healing, Wild Pyromancer (now removed), Lightning Storm. If you get a Wild Pyromancer or a Lightning Storm by turn 5 you're probably fine. Taunts help you stall until you get it together. Save Lightning Bolt for Knife Juggler or Dire Wolf Alpha if you can. Likewise, save Hex for Doomguard. No need to wait much on Earth Elementals in this matchup since there's no hard removal. If you get one down with Ancestral Spirit, that pretty much ends it.
Control Warrior (Strong): Another patient matchup. Try to save Hexes for truely scary minions, like Sylvanas Windrunner, Cairne Bloodhoof, or Alexstrasza. As a general rule, trade on the board rather than using removal if you can, since Warrior will probably be able to efficiently remove them next turn, and you're not going to rush him down.
Miracle Rogue (Fair): Mulligan for Lightning Storm, Bloodmage Thalnos, Wild Pyromancer, early drops, and Lightning Bolt when facing Rogue. You might even keep a Mana Tide Totem for a turn 3 play, since miracle rogue has to spend removal on it just the same (and you get a card back). Your first goal is to find Lightning Storm + spell power and/or Wild Pyromancer by turn 5 so that you have a chance at killing a Concealed Auctioneer. While you wait play your early drops, but favor playing non-taunts over taunts, so that you can save the taunts to block the Leeroy Jenkins combo. Make sure to keep the opponent's board clear, because it is very difficult to make your own minions stick. Do this with Lightning Bolts and trading. It is key to burn the opponent's Saps, so play your cheap taunts like Sen'jin Shieldmasta and Ancestral Healing before droping your Earth Elementals. Try not to play Feral Spirit until after your opponent plays Blade Flurry; it can really shine in this matchup. Ultimately the shear number of taunts can prevent the Leeroy Jenkins combo and let you coast to victory.
Ramp Druid (Fair): Keep a Hex when mulliganing against Druid just in case they Innervate out a Chillwind Yeti. Druid has limited removal options, which should work to your advantage, but does almost guarantee they run The Black Knight and Big Game Hunter. Beware the Savage Roar + Force of Nature combo (minimum 14 damage). Make sure you have enough taunt if your health gets low.
Freeze Mage (Poor): Go, Go, Go! Kill them as fast as possible...but it probably won't work. Mulligan for anything that will do damage fast; forget cards that help with board control. Earth Shock is really helpful for unfreezing your minion or neutralizing a Doomsayer. If you really want to increase your odds in this matchup, try adding Earthen Ring Farseers in place of Unbound Elementals. Save them for after the opponent plays Alexstrasza. They're helpful in some other matchups too, especially Miracle Rogue.
If you have any more questions about matchups, card choices, etc. or suggestions, let me know in the comments!
Season 4 Update: I have replaced one Unbound Elemental with an extra Earth Shock to help combat the influx of Zoo and the prominence of some new cards, especially Nerubian Egg.
Naxx Update: I have replaced Ragnaros the Firelord with Kel'Thuzad. Kel is great behind the many taunts in this deck or with Ancestral Spirit. He's almost like another win condition for the deck. Also Wild Pyromancer has been replaced with Loatheb. Loatheb belongs in almost every deck.
Deck in Action:
Zilea - Control Warrior (caution: language, 5 Fire Elementals)
Faction - Midrange Shaman
News: It sounds like on Wednesday, July 2nd, Day9 will be playing this deck on his daily: http://day9.tv/d/Day9/day9-hearthstone-decktacular-23-crusher-shaman/ . Tune in; it should be fun!
The Hearthstone streamer, Realz, has been playing this deck on ladder with great success. He explains his reasoning very well, and it would be a great way to learn about the deck.
http://www.twitch.tv/realz_/b/543631041 (Starts playing the deck at 6 hour mark)
http://www.twitch.tv/realz_/b/543924429 (Continues playing and later modifies deck at starting at 1:05)
http://www.twitch.tv/realz_/ (His stream)
Some fans of the deck have provided video spotlights that explain card choices, matchups, and/or give example gameplay. Check them out for advice on how to play the deck. Enjoy!
TheChiv: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h2vekv7C3Xg&feature=youtu.be
Matt Sparks: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a3Xf2dkLxUM
Tim Clark features Crusher Shaman in an article from PC Gamer's Hearthstone Help series called "Three Fun Decks to Try": http://www.pcgamer.com/2014/07/09/hearthstone-help-three-fun-decks-to-test/
After I saw this list it became one of my favorite decks. A bit hard to climb ladder with it, but now that I hit legend with standard shaman this is all I've been playing. (Been hovering around rank 600) Decided to add two zombie chow to counter the hunter meta, which has been working great. I've been back and forth on the blademaster healing combo as opening either without the other can lead to some pretty bad hands. Overall I like it a lot more than standard builds because of the late game vs control decks and the lack of too much overloading.
Would you consider taking out the blademaster combo for feral spirits? Also, do you think Kel'Thuzad is still worth playing? I recently unlocked him, but he seems like a win-more card and is usually dead most of the game due to his high mana cost.
I really don't like feral spirits that much. 5 mana for two 2/3 taunts is steep when they often function together as a 2/6 taunt. When you have ways to buff your tokens like in standard shaman, they get much better, but without those, they don't do much for you. As for KT, if you're way ahead he doesn't do much. There's nothing to trade with. If you're way behind then you don't have any minions to trade. It's the close games where KT helps, by letting you trade your board with your opponent's, and then get all of yours back. He's especially good in this deck because he works well with Ancestral Spirit (even if he's been silenced). Glad you like the deck!
I would suggest a guide to handle double doomhammer style shaman. while it may be more hammer/akir, the lava bursts are to be a noted issue
С разрешение автора данной колоды (HSCrusher) я перевел этот гайд на русский язык здесь.
With the HSCrusher's permission I translated this guide into Russian here.
HSCrusher's, can I ask you to include this translated link in the guide? I think it will help you to improve it (noone do guides in several languages), and more Russian-speaking people will read it. Thank you very much.
Hi, HSCrusher!
Actually, Shaman is me favourite class and i love this deck! I wonder how many people after losing me try to add me in battle.net friends list and just tell "OMG WHAT WAS THAT..." :)
Can I translate this guide for Russian people and place the result on my site Necerconcede.ru whith link to this page as i did before twice with some other giudes. Thank you!
Yep go ahead. Glad you enjoyed it.
Why the switch from Loatheb to Ragnaros? I find Loatheb way too useful (and i dont have rag either ;-;).
Loatheb is very good but I felt the deck needed one more finisher. I didn't see any other minions as dispensable. That said, this deck doesn't have a big board to protect, and burst has mostly left the meta, so Loatheb isn't quite as useful as he is in other decks / used to be.
Wild Pyromancer, Earth Shock, and Lightning Storm are amazing against Hunter. The taunts are very helpful too. If you suspect freezing trap, don't attack with them. They're too valuable on the board. Spend cards liberally because the game is all about survival. It's a fairly even matchup in my experience.
Actually Crusher just wrecked me while I was playing hunter and I'm 4x legend
So im a bit confused. Are the pyromancers in or out on the most recent deck version?
In. The strategy section is horribly out of date. Go with the card list. At some point this season I will update the strategy guide, and hopefully make it a bit more readable.
HEY, i love your deck so far! i actually never used Kel'Thuzad but after using it in this deck! its so good man. I love shaman, i actually had a deck containing 1 Ancestral Spirit and 1 Earth Elemental,cause i really enjoy the combo since the beggining
What have you thought about putting Baron Rivendare in the deck?
There's very little deathrattle in this deck so Faceless Manipulator is almost always superior to Baron Rivendare. I would rather add a second copy of Faceless.
Baron Rivendare is absolutely terrible in this deck. I tried, and every time, it was just a soft taunt. It's like adding a Mogu'shan warden to the deck, but worse.
I never liked shaman, until this cursed deck lured me in an obsessive romance. Hahaha. But on a serious note. I really love the idea of this deck. I kept trying and mixing cards that I have, for other options to make this deck, if possible even better than it already is. My version though, I've incorporated and switched out some cards that in my opinion held it back from its true potential, though not having enough time to pass it through legendary rank but honestly fairly successful, a special mention is Far Sight, when you far sight into, a 2mana earth elemental 3mana fire elemental, a 5mana kel thuzad, with 2 mana belcher. Far sight I know does delay you for its cost, but it also jumps you up the next round or the future rounds where you can "crush" them, and also a chance for 0 costing spell/minions. You have to know your deck, how to play it, to mitigate its weaknesses and just overpower with its strengths. Bottom line, thank you for this deck.
Just wanted to comment that I have been having so much fun with this deck on the ladder lately.
Also, this deck really relies on patience, lots and lots of patience. I've had to relearn that playing this deck, but nothing is more satisfying than to fill your board with Kel's or Earth Elementals and the opponent concedes... with 30 health still!
I love this deck, but i cant handle aggro, such as warlock and hunter, as well as "secretist" hunter.
Since i dont have bloodmage i replaced it with a wild pyro, it has improved my wins, but still... its hard!
Can someone give me any kind of tips?
I'm running into big problems against most aggro decks as well. If you don't get the Injured/Ancestral combo by turn 3 it's super hard to recover.