Hearthpwn

It works with many tries. When the Lich King doesn't get removal or minion boost for first few rounds it snow ball like hell.

Notice that when you get only Bot without Gastropod, you are still able to try if the Lich King doesn't cast 2/3 on turn 1 and 3/4 on turn 2. Lich King hit the Bot whenever he can so put as many taunt creatures as you can. This trick would also fail if Lich King manage to kill your first taunt creature and the Bot at turn 4, or summoning Bot or Gas by Bot X(, but nvm, you will get your chance to win... by many tries...

Yes I can't agree more. Any specific counter should not be as effective as this one.

Comparing with other counters like Big Game Hunter, Eater of Secrets or The Black Knight, they cannot counter before opponent play the corresponding card, and they are not cost effective if they are played without using the card effect. Player has to hold those cards on hand and wait the right time to use. But Skulking Geist, player doesn't have to wait, and it is cost effective by all means.

And more important thing is, it can remove cards in opponent hand and deck. How many cards in Hearthstone would do so? I can't tell any other than Death Grip from The Lich King, even if Deathlord (out of standard) and Dirty Rat would let the card go battle field and they only counter card with battlecry, and they only affect one single card. Skulking Geist just swipe out ALL 1-COST SPELLS, AT ONCE! ON HAND AND IN DECK! It may reduce the opponent hand effectively, or if it remove like 2 cards in opponent deck, it would go as a 30 cards VS 28 cards for the whole game, and more cards win for a long game VS control deck. I'm not totally against such idea but Skulking Geist is going too far.

Also, it doesn't require anything in the deck. It doesn't require you to put some stupid murloc or pirate or weapon or else in order to use it - just play it out and no more 1-cost card in the world. I doubt if all the control deck would use it, and if it does, all the 1-cost spells are not "place-able" against control deck anymore - you lose even if you "place" it in your deck without "playing" it. This effect is too board and it denys too many valuable decks, and the idea to use some abnormal cards like Earth Shock or Naturalize.

I have no idea where this mechanics come from. So when would there be a card to swipe all n-cost cards, or all pirate cards, or all mage spells if mage were too strong? It just sounds like idiot to me, and again, "Too bad the community praises Blizzard for this "solution" instead of changing the effect. We are just encouraging Blizzard to make new problematic cards and a Counter next expansion."!!!

In my opinion it is effective enough if it swipe all 1-cost card in opponent's hand, with a lower cost and effective stat, which would reduce opponent's hand and total card count, and it would hurry the opponent to play out 1-cost card on hand. Even if it does no effect, it ensure the opponent doesn't get 1-cost card on hand, so it would clear some hard decision at some point