Hearthpwn

Fungalmancer is in 26-27% of all decks. It's one of the most common neutrals in the game right now, so definitely be aware of it come turn 5.  

Quote from Notorious_BLT >>

I don’t see a lot of Warrior around at the moment but I’ve had a lot of good results with it personally (3x 7+ runs and 4-1 on my current one). With weapons, armour and cards like Warpath it’s good at countering the aggro decks in the meta and can still draft quite a heavy curve to face up to the control decks. Weapons still seem common enough in the drafts that you’re not hamstrung by a lack of them and I’ve managed to draft some OK mech synergy with the class. Rocket Boots is also a pretty sweet card – its flexibility with the option just to cycle it is strong and I’ve often played it on a minion that’s already active to get it buffed from Woodcutter's Axe.

 

A lot of my drafts have been Druid or Rogue and I’ve been aiming for a low curve in both. Just out of interest I drafted a Druid deck with only 3 cards above 4-mana (Starfall and 2x Druid of the Claw) and loads of 1-drops and went 9 wins with it, which I feel wouldn’t even have been vaguely possible in the previous meta. It feels like low-curve decks have a limit, from my experience anyway, as I haven’t had higher than 10 wins so far as I often hit decks with loads of clears and taunts over 7 wins. But on the flip side, I’ve only had 2 runs from 16 that have gone lower than 7 so far (although they both went 1-3!). Haven’t even tried Mage, Priest or Warlock yet.

 Druid certainly is seeing an uptick in win rates because there's been an increase in Ultimate Infestation appearance. I'm not sure how to explain this uptick outside of "microadjustments" on Blizzards end. The card is the highest win rate card for Druid and shows up in ~29% of Druid decks.  

Did very well on witchwood,but my first runs are not that good on boomsday.

Quote from Paradov >>

Did very well on witchwood,but my first runs are not that good on boomsday.

I moved your post here instead of locking your topic. This is the place to ask, also read the 1st post of this thread (and rest), some good info already ;-)

PS: f**** Fungalmancer everywhere, so stupid.

cant really understand what is your problem with paladins. had 6 runs with it so far in this expansion with a 7.33 average wins. I'm at 4-1 with my current deck, that can get to 7+ wins with some luck too. I really hated the silver sword (and the steed) meta, it was soooo boring and finally this is different, you have to *play* with paladins again, not just dropping the cards on the table. :)

dont get me wrong, those stats can be really useful, but in the first 2 weeks it can be really useless. it seems like ppl have no idea how to draft and what to expect from the opponent.

Hsreplay stats are generally just good for a rough overview of whats happening for the average player. Obviously, players will have favorite classes and can skew performance numbers.  

Right now, i'm a bit surprised at Paladin's overall ranking (2nd last), but since Warlock and Rogue are top dogs right now, it makes sense. Both classes check Paladin and the class didn't receive too much help from the new set with reductions to it's powerful cards, it seems like a plausible result.  

Personally, I'm having the best month ever, mainly focusing on 3 classes, Warlock, Rogue and Druid.  

Druid definitely isn't trash at the moment. They have good flexible Aoe and removal, as well as a lot of burst capabilities. Drafting for board synergies works too. As always, UI is a huge threat and wins games most of the time when played. 

With that said, it's not on the same level as Warlock or Rogue right now, but still a workable class. 

Maybe an unlucky run or two for you. The class is pretty good with just a plain draft since its hero power is flexible. Also, most of the class cards are generally quite draft able. 

One star fire is fine, multiples are little clunky. Strong generic minions should produce fine results with Druid even if class offerings are underwhelming. 

After 3 weeks of the new BDP meta, i've compiled some stats from my best classes and some notes on hopefully providing some insight into my approach that has worked for me:  

Druid - 9.14 wins over 7 runs  - Usually I draft a spread strategy with cards like Power of the Wild and good cheap, sticky minions. The first Savage Roar is a near always pick since it's in a pretty bad bucket. Additionally some card draw for late game value or reach cards like Starfire are great for this type of build.  

Priest - 9.5 wins over 3 runs - All control - take the AOE spells of course Holy Nova and Spirit Lash are incredibly common. At the same time, make sure you have proactive minions that are good without any conditions. Lets say a 5/5 for 5 mana. The goal is to reach your superior late game by efficiently answering your opponents threats while developing a couple minions. Priest lack burst or reach usually, so it's a slow boil. Games will be long, just play into this strength. I like at least one Mind Control per deck.   

Rogue - 8.82 wins over 11 runs - While you can go more aggressive with Rogue, you should still draft a more consistent deck to battle late game warriors and Priests. Take a couple heals, card draws, and more value based cards instead of all out tempo and aggression. This has helped me with several tough match ups, especially the longer games where Rogue might run out of gas. I'm valuing Cheap Shot and Fan of Knives in this meta since the board state can get out of control with all the spread. Assassinate hasn't been a good card this meta, and it's hard to convince me to ever take it here.   

Warlock - 9.15 wins over 13 runs - My best and most consistent class right now - the class seems to have all the answers. Generally I draft smaller (more 3s and 4s) with a couple late game studs. I don't play for value, and just make sure i don't get out tempo'd early. So play your 3/2 into their 2/1 if that means they will trade. Sometimes you aren't offered removal or AOE, and this is where using taunts come in handy. Take a couple heals, and taunts so you can reach your late game where your hero power will out value your opponent. Hellfire, and Defile are excellent pick ups. Omega Agent is also the most under bucketed/over performing card from BDP, good thing it's fairly uncommon.  

Warlock seems really insane right now in Arena, I'm hesitant to draft anything else when I'm given this class in the pick. So far, out of my 9 runs (and with not necessarily the best drafts either), I've gone 7, 12, 10, 6, 12, 11, 4, 12, & 8 wins, which is an average of 9.11! That is absolutely insane consistency considering my skill level, where I usually average just shy of 7.

I don't know if I'm just shit with Warrior though, or if it's still pants, but I cannot break the 4 win mark with it. Terrible class imo.

Quote from Skyryser >>

Warlock seems really insane right now in Arena, I'm hesitant to draft anything else when I'm given this class in the pick. So far, out of my 9 runs (and with not necessarily the best drafts either), I've gone 7, 12, 10, 6, 12, 11, 4, 12, & 8 wins, which is an average of 9.11! That is absolutely insane consistency considering my skill level, where I usually average just shy of 7.

I don't know if I'm just shit with Warrior though, or if it's still pants, but I cannot break the 4 win mark with it. Terrible class imo.

WL has several good AOEs offered consistently and when you dont lose early game, Hero Power can carry you late, so yeah, not surprised WL is doing well in meta like this :)

Warrior is good on paper, but you still need to have a bit lucky draft and basically know how to play him and what ur goin for. You can get warpath and weapons rather consistently as well, so you have your aoes and removals, but it is very easy to take too many of them or forget to take some decent early game and/or taunts thinking your weapons will carry you alone and what might seem like a good deck can end very quickly. Warriror rly can be amazing, but it is rly hard to draft it properly.

Quote from Sinti >>

Quote from Skyryser >>

Warlock seems really insane right now in Arena, I'm hesitant to draft anything else when I'm given this class in the pick. So far, out of my 9 runs (and with not necessarily the best drafts either), I've gone 7, 12, 10, 6, 12, 11, 4, 12, & 8 wins, which is an average of 9.11! That is absolutely insane consistency considering my skill level, where I usually average just shy of 7.

I don't know if I'm just shit with Warrior though, or if it's still pants, but I cannot break the 4 win mark with it. Terrible class imo.

WL has several good AOEs offered consistently and when you dont lose early game, Hero Power can carry you late, so yeah, not surprised WL is doing well in meta like this :)

Warrior is good on paper, but you still need to have a bit lucky draft and basically know how to play him and what ur goin for. You can get warpath and weapons rather consistently as well, so you have your aoes and removals, but it is very easy to take too many of them or forget to take some decent early game and/or taunts thinking your weapons will carry you alone and what might seem like a good deck can end very quickly. Warriror rly can be amazing, but it is rly hard to draft it properly.

It's exactly how I feel it plays; loads of weapons and AoE pings, but lacks any consistency in the draft, so you often end up turn 3 having played nothing and a bunch of weapons or rubbish rush minions in hand. Really tilts me, maybe I haven't had good drafts. I almost always have to go two losses from the start to find myself against the right opponents to win against. Ironically, it's usually a Warrior that knocks me out on the 10th-11th game if I don't go all the way, and they're usually insane decks, so it could be that when you draft well, you draft REALLY well.

Also, another 10-win run on Warlock. That class is just insane right now. Think it brings my average over the last 10 runs to somewhere around 9.2. Craaaaaazy!

Quote from Draco_Cracona >>

You done much Mage, Boozor? I've had a lot of success with them, as opposed to druid where I don't get offered stuff (maybe it doesn't fit my slower playstyle, tbh). I'm finding a similar average WR for mage and druid, but a higher variance on mage (Both of my 12s were mages, for example).

Obviously, my WRs are nowhere near yours, because I'm not great, just scraping along in farm mode, but about 6-7 average for the better classes for me. Think I've seen the Agent once, but that card deserves to be as rare as it is, it's bonkers. I certainly agree with trading down - I usually do that ATM, due to the prevalence of buffs, be they fungal or magnetize, both are deadly. Seen a lot of priests, but usually at low wins with super-greedy decks that a less greedy, slow deck doesn't handle well, they die off after 2 wins or so.

 I've only done 2 runs with Mage - went 9 and 4. The drafts were really bad, very few spells offered. The class feels a bit "bleh" without the spells to be honest. The lack of burn finishers or AOE (especially the smaller ones) makes it feel really inconsistent.  

I mention the Agents - but honestly they are pretty uncommon - about 10% of Warlocks only, and rarely do i see them get played. Priests are very annoying to play against, still doing Priest things, but they are definitely not as good as they once were. They still feel unfair to play AGAINST when they get all the premium AOEs and spells, but feels inconsistent overall especially compared to Warlock.  

Quote from Draco_Cracona >>

How do you people handle the mixture of extreme, heavy topend control and the much more aggresive midrange decks? You either don't have the lategame and poisonous to handle 6-9 big threats, or you get steamrolled by curve that kills you ~T9. I'm struggling to find a sensible balance here, which is probably part of why I can't get a high WR with some classes, like druid and rogue. That and the fact that my drafts often seem to end up in that weird hole between aggro and midrange that you end up in by trying to force more than two 2-drops, so you get steamrolled by everything anyway.

You may not be going face early enough. There aren't that many board clears going around, so gain tempo, go face, and let them make the trades. I know exactly the feeling you're talking about. It usually goes away when I get pissed off and just smash face.

Quote from Draco_Cracona >>

Quote from Skyryser >>

Quote from Draco_Cracona >>

How do you people handle the mixture of extreme, heavy topend control and the much more aggresive midrange decks? You either don't have the lategame and poisonous to handle 6-9 big threats, or you get steamrolled by curve that kills you ~T9. I'm struggling to find a sensible balance here, which is probably part of why I can't get a high WR with some classes, like druid and rogue. That and the fact that my drafts often seem to end up in that weird hole between aggro and midrange that you end up in by trying to force more than two 2-drops, so you get steamrolled by everything anyway.

You may not be going face early enough. There aren't that many board clears going around, so gain tempo, go face, and let them make the trades. I know exactly the feeling you're talking about. It usually goes away when I get pissed off and just smash face.

 Surely, by going face early, you're just getting blown out by Fungalmancer, bonemare, or similar? Or one of the many AEs in non-rogue/druid classes? Opp fungals, you lose your board to non-favourable trades, you lose? Maybe I should just stop playing around stuff, but that feels... bad? There's a lot more boardwipes than reach (practically all non-rogue decks i play against or draft get at least one AE, usually there's multiples, whilst about the only reach I ever see is the chemist in rogue - which requires a board), so if you're aggressive and you lose the board, you just lose. Not to mention priests, which heal. Lots. Then drop Obsidians starting on T8.

I'm tempted to just go Lock/Mage/Sham/priest/auto-retire by this point. Not much point playing 5 games to go 2-3 and get a common and a pack.

 Before, yeah, you kind of had to play around stuff, and try to read how the game was playing out to see if they had a board clear in hand. Now it's so rare I tend to throw caution to the wind and deal with the consequences if I get it wrong, but still try to play 1 health above total clear, etc; it tends to be just enough to put the opponent off and still retain tempo. It ABSOLUTELY feels wrong. Strangely though, with the changes, it's right more often than not.

I know what you're saying @ Draco.  

The meta seems weird with decks skewed towards both ways between aggressive and control, so how best to balance your deck to fight both ?  

The thing is not many classes can make a good control deck - this means you're more likely to build minion based tempo style decks. Don't force your way into a control build when you don't have the pieces (numerous AOE, spot removal, large taunts, large removal, etc). The only class that I would probably heavily skew this way is Priest. Even Warrior which can  build a pretty damn good control deck, i'd first try to build it as a tempo deck first.  

Either way - don't worry too much about smorcin' people down and being too aggressive. There are so many taunts out right now that a single turn can basically stop you dead in your tracks and without proper removal or DRAW, you'll just fizzle out and lose.  

Building a consistent deck to fight all deck types just means you have all sorts of tools, even if it's just 1 tool for a specific situation (ex. Dragonslayer for Sleepy Dragon, Voidripper to flip large taunts, Savage Roar for reach, Swift Messenger for removal, etc). 

Quote from Draco_Cracona >>

Thanks for the advice, but I just must be in a different metagame. All three losses that run - 4-3 - were to decks with 2 or three AEs (and that's seen by T10ish). if you include Swipe, that druid at 4-2 had three - and that's a druid, traditionally AE starved (no way to play around 2-damage AEs when you're furiously trying to deal with the large taunts every turn). This is common for me when I attempt to build an aggressive deck. Doesn't matter if I clear board, if I go face, the taunt walls appear around T7 (at the latest) and don't stop - and spell reach is scarce, regardless of class.

Also, I want to punch HDT for - amongst other glaring flaws - stopping me grumbling about arena losses immediately by having a strange always on top behaviour for the popups. Feels bad that such a bad program is the best tracking tool.

 That's mad dude, I run like 2 to 3 runs per day when I play, and I haven't come across that much removal unless it's a mage with spell generating minions. Seems really unlucky.

Also, screw HDT dude, something simple like Heartharena and good head maths all the way.

Quote from Notorious_BLT >>

Can anyone offer me general tips, or direct me to a good video, on Warlock drafts? My average with them is way below my top classes with 5.3 over 8 runs since Boomsday. Considering their HSReplay stats I feel my performance with them is really below-par and dragging my win average down, it bugs me that they're a top-tier class that I don't like to see offered as a choice. I've got a better win-rate with Mage than them! (Although admittedly only over 4 runs). 

I think my main problem is with the draft. Specifically, I don't really know what curve I'm aiming for with them and what balance of removal/minions I should be trying to get. Any help appreciated! 

Are you willing to use Heartharena dude? I usually have around 5 changes in total to make when using the overlay vs. their recommendations, and the curve usually picks itself. These are the ones I almost never ever pass up no matter the recommendation score:

Defile
Mortal Coil
Despicable Dreadlord
Dread Infernal
Siphon Soul

In that order too,so if they come up against one another, that's the pecking order. Everything else, you can just pretty much pick blindly, as it incorporates curve into the weighting score. It may feel a bit "sucky" to rely on an add-on, but this hugely improved my results, and now I can draft perfectly without it about a week into a meta, because the drafting mechanics have sunk in.

Also, watch Amaz play Warlock, and, clearly Boozor, the almighty.

You forgot Shadowflame.  I think that card is the real reason for Warlock's high win rate.  It is the best board clear in Arena.