Baba Yaga
- Last updated Jun 9, 2018 (Spiteful Nerf)
- Edit
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Wild
- 19 Minions
- 10 Spells
- Deck Type: Ranked Deck
- Deck Archetype: Control Warlock
- Crafting Cost: 10660
- Dust Needed: Loading Collection
- Created: 4/15/2018 (Witchwood)
- Kovachut
- Card Design Champion
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- 15
- 35
- 110
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Battle Tag:
N/A
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Region:
EU
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Total Deck Rating
201
Welcome to the Baba Yaga (Fatiguelock) Guide
(It won't hurt if you read it before you ask questions, Leute :P)
Intro
Baba Yaga - every person who was born in a Slavic country has heard scary stories about her in their childhood. From wikipedia - she is a supernatural being who appears as a deformed and ferocious-looking woman. Baba Yaga flies around in a mortar, wields a pestle, and dwells deep in the forest in a hut usually described as standing on chicken legs. As you can see, it's no wonder how Glinda Crowskin was inspired by that figure. But she doesn't come alone, she's accompanied with her royal sidekick Dyado Torbalan, aka the Sackman in other countries.
One of the things I like about this deck is how it preserves all that Witchwood fantasy. You have living trees, demons, vampires, all sorts of witchcraft and the aforementioned mischievous figures. Oh and believe me, they can be quite frightening for some players like the aggro ones. ;)
Anywho I'm looking forward to refine the deck more. So I would like to hear your opinion about it, I want to get some tips on what to change and I would be very grateful, if some of you tried this deck on their own and shared the experience. Don't be scared to express your thoughts. Even if you are skeptical about the deck, every feedback will be welcomed.
Strategy
- Versus Faster decks - killing their stuff, gaining board control, stabilization;
- Versus Control - building walls of taunts, going infinite (Glinda Crowskin + Baleful Banker) and exhausting their resources.
- Versus Combo (and Taunt Dudu) - May RNGeesus have mercy upon your soul. That or find Rin, the First Disciple ASAP.
General Mulligan
- Versus Faster decks - Defile, Possessed Lackey/Hellfire, Kobold Librarian/Stonehill Defender; going second - maybe Lesser Amethyst Spellstone, but only if you have an AoE already;
- Versus Control - Bloodreaver Gul'dan, Kobold Librarian, Possessed Lackey/Rin, the First Disciple, when going second - a 5 drop, Lesser Amethyst Spellstone or a Stonehill Defender.
- Versus Combo - Rin, the First Disciple, Kobold Librarian, Possessed Lackey. When going second - a 5 drop.
Class specific strategies
Warrior
Baku Quest Warrior - I would search for the Possessed Lackeys and the DK. Save your healing cards only when you really need them. And I mean - if you can afford to take some damage, but restore the missing health with the upgraded HP, then do that instead. Since they are playing an odd only deck, then cards like Execute and Scourgelord Garrosh shouldn't scare you. But play around Brawl, Reckless Flurry and Shield Slam if possible.
Tactic - when the opponent becomes Ragnaros, try to make a wide, but at the same time a worthless board. Try to distract the DIE, INSECT! pings and win by fatigue. Imho the Voidlords are the most important minions in this MU. Getting the maximum value out of them - and I mean not throwing them into an obvious Brawl - will bring you a victory on the spot. Getting more of them out of Stonehill Defender drives the warrior players even more crazy.
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Normal Taunt - same thing as above. They have more removal (Warpath, Execute, Primordial Drake), so keep this in mind.
Hunter
Spell Hunter - it's a fairly easy MU. Normally I try not to activate any of their secrets and thus deny the value out of Eaglehorn Bow. Not to mention, that Freezing Trap is quite popular, so I don't want to lose expensive taunts (Voidlord) to a dumb misplay. There is an exception to this, when I'm almost full on health and I target worthless minions (Kobold Librarian) to their face.
Anyway - Hellfire, Stonehill Defender, Possessed Lackey and you are set.
In this MU it's really vital, that you find your DK faster than them. The problem is, that not every hunter deck is spellhunter and in some cases you will be punished for keeping a slow card, so I'm not suggesting keeping him in the mulligan stage. Tap a lot, if you can afford it.
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Mid-range. Nothing more to add, just watch out for the hungry hyena or for highmane.
If the opponent switches to Deathstalker Rexxar, well, now they start to play the value game. I would advise you to build a board of your own and try to keep it. Since the only burst they have is Kill Command, they can't really kill you out of nowhere and if you have enough health, don't be afraid to tap. The Zombeasts are unpredictable, but very often expensive, so they can't play that many stuff on the same turn. Bloodreaver Gul'dan will shine against their DK.
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Baku Hunter - Try to find cheap taunts, heals (at best when combined with a Possessed Lackey). As annoying as this deck can be, it has a major weakness - consistency. The only consistent thing is the HP, but if you control the board and if your health is high enough, then you can overwhelm the opponent with your board. Avoid tapping.
Paladin
Baku or Murloc???? Either way that's an aggro class and you have to follow the typical mulligan strategy. Tbh since the nerfs occurred, this is the class I'm seeing the least.
Baku - Beware of Level Up! and Vinecleaver.
Rogue
Tempo - Treat it as an aggro deck. When I faced Tempo Rogues in previous metas, normally I kept a Siphon Soul just for that annoying Edwin VanCleef. If you have a Spellbreaker or a Voodoo Doll, then keep either of them.
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Baku - aggro deck. You know the game plan. Beware of the Cold Blood, Ironbeak Owl and Vilespine Slayer.
Shaman
Shudder - This is the most common case for me. If you stumble upon a shudder shaman, then find cheap minions and take the role of the aggressor. You have to pressure them as much as you can. Hope that you find Rin, the First Disciple on time and that one of your Gnomeferatus hits a vital combo piece. If you are too slow, then ...
My JaWs ThAt BiTe
My ClAwS tHaT cAtCh
In this case don't be afraid to play Glinda Crowskin prematurely. In this MU you won't win by fatigue. If she sticks, then combine her with a Gnomeferatu.
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Even Shaman - maybe it's best to keep a Defile just in case you face this deck. It's kinda easy to handle it - just try to avoid getting bursted down, because they have a lot of annoying tools as a reach. If you build a nice wall of taunts early on, you are good to go.
Druid
Taunt Dudu. This is a really bad MU and sadly also a very popular one. Draw your cards, but avoid having more than 7, because they will mill you with their Naturalize. Hope that your Gnomeferatus hits a vital piece. You also have a silence, so use it wisely (on a Carnivorous Cube). Build a big wall of Voidlords and have an upgraded HP to withstand those bodies. If you somehow deal with all of their annoying waves, then you will win the fatigue war.
In this case don't be afraid to play Glinda Crowskin prematurely. In this MU you won't win by fatigue. If she sticks, then combine her with a Gnomeferatu.
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Spiteful (I rarely see this). Treat it as an aggro deck. Though that one has a really disgusting mid-game strategy (Spiteful Summoner). Because of this I normally keep a Voodoo Doll in my starting hand. Try not to kill Greedy Sprite, as sometimes you allow them to play the 7 drop earlier.
Beware of Leeroy Jenkins as well.
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Token Dudu - easy MU. If you find your AoEs on time and if you play appropriately, then you won't have any hard time in dealing with them.
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Togwaggle Dudu (yes, I have seen some shit) - also an easy MU, as long as you have the infinite package and the DK on time. Draw a lot of cards, but be careful not to get milled by Naturalize. If you see them playing Spreading Madness/Malfurion the Pestilent and Twig of the World Tree, then you can know for sure, that you are facing this deck.
Warlock
Even Warlock - this is a mid-range deck. If you overcome the pressure, you will win in most of the cases. Keep a Voodoo Doll in the mulligan stage. Draw a lot. They are very annoying with their turn 3 Mountain Giants and silences, but our deck also has the ability to deal with them. So take the defensive role. You also have a Spellbreaker for their Rin, the First Disciple.
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Cube. Try to find 1) Kobold Librarian + Lesser Amethyst Spellstone (always expect a turn 4 Mountain Giant), 2) Possessed Lackey (with a Dark Pact), 3) Voodoo Doll. We don't have N'Zoth, the Corruptor anymore, so try to stop their aggression ASAP. Since you are playing the long game, you have to ensure to draw the right cards on the right time. Once you gained control over the board and the opponent can't rush you down, the fatigue war is easy.
This deck isn't that popular, do I decided to cut the Ooze.
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Zoo. Not that common, but still. It's easy if you find your AoEs and taunts on time. Beware of their minion buffing cards.
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Against handlock or other forms of controllock. Well... if they don't run giants, then the match is super easy. Once the opponent goes for Rin, the First Disciple, save your infinite combo for after they play Azari, the Devourer. You also have 2x Twisting Nethers, so you will be fine most of the time.
Mage
Tempo Mage - Super annoying. If you face this deck very often and if you have a problem surviving, then replace the Gnomeferatus with Plated Beetles. The only scary thing in the late game is Archmage Antonidas. Play around the secrets.
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Control - I would say - mulligan for the aggro MU first. If you stumble upon this deck, then it's gg especially if you find your DK on time.
Priest
Quest Priest - well, they don't pressure you that much. If you find your DK and play Rin, the First Disciple ASAP, then gg.
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Control w/ Burn - yeah, it's an annoying deck. If you manage to keep your health high, then you are doing a good job. If you are having trouble with against this deck, then run plated beetles instead of Gnomeferatus.
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Spiteful - treat it as an aggro deck. Voodoo Doll for their turn 6. If you try to cheat out the Voidlords, then be sure to kill them instantly with Dark Pact else you are risking to lose them to Mind Control.
Resume for the different MUs:
- Favoured (more or less) - Almost every aggro and control deck.
- Unfavoured/Bad - Taunt Dudu, Shudderwock Shaman, Control Priest (w/ Mind Blast), Burn Mage (in a way).
Stats and a personal deck evaluation
Well, I hope you wouldn't mind, if I hide the stats part because once the nerfs occurred and once aggro become less relevant, this deck also lost its power. I started seeing many bad MUs and I can't even escape rank 3. So this deck isn't what some of you can consider a legend material. It's still strong, but other decks just have a better win-condition than this one.
The note I'm giving to my own deck right now would be ~5/10.
Explanation for some cards and advice for replacements:
> >
- Rin, the First Disciple - Enables tons of value over time and a complete annihilation of the opponent's deck just within a single card resource. Also a taunt against proactive decks. The seals may be slow, but she's actually the real win-condition versus some bad MUs (taunt dudu, shudderwock shaman).
- Glinda Crowskin and Co - she is slower just because you want to use her in the late game before you draw your important cards. I DO believe, that she will become a really powerful inclusion some day, if we get a strong cheap battlecry like a 2 mana Kazakus, but the infinite combo isn't that impressive yet. She's also stronger is some instances than Rin just because you will always have the same value out of her against control. Imagine if you play Rin when the opponent has less than 10 cards. You might not even get to play Azari before Fatigue. With Glinda you will always win the fatigue wars.
{Right now you are better off including Mountain Giants instead}
- Lord Godfrey - Staple.
- Bloodreaver Gul'dan - Staple. Period.
- Gnomeferatu - if you are facing lots of burn decks, then use Plated Beetles instead.
- Voodoo Doll - yeah, it's replaceable, but I included it just because it deals very well with the Even Warlocks. Other than that - Siphon Soul is better.
Proof for Legend (reached it 2 times, but before the nerfs):
I don't own the picture of Baba Yaga. Source here.
Last update
I just want to mention some things very quickly:
- Thank you all for the love and the great feedback. I had a blast playing this deck, updating its description and chatting with you guys.
! - This deck (the Glinda package) worked very well for me in the pre-nerf era, because there were a lot of tapping warlocks, a lot of aggro paladins and less of Burn and Combo decks to face. Right now I'm constantly facing Taunt Druid, Shudderwock, Even Warlock, Burn mage and the glinda package feels less and less helpful. So I'm going to give it a quits. I also got bored playing the same deck all over again, so I will finally try out other classes, which were ignored last season.
Imho control warlock is still very strong. I could recommend you the list you see above, but replace the infinite combo with 2x mountain giants. Jainaishot also used Oakhearth for more consistency - yeah, he's really good if you build your deck appropriately.
So anyway, thanks all for the great time. See ya later.
Really appreciate the effort that you put into this deck. Patch 11.2 ( Spiteful nerf ) was slightly expected, but had some unexpected impacts. This deck is really fun, and hilariously entertaining at times. Best of luck with your future Hearthstone endeavors!
29/05/18
For now I'm recommending this built. Tomorrow I will update the deck description.
[edit] If some of you feel that the second siphon is useless, then add a tar creeper (better curve in the early game) or a saronite chain gang (more bodies to deal with).
I tried the gnomes once again and I'm sure they will come handy some day, but the beetles are way more helpful than them in this meta. Maybe I could cut a doomsayer, but believe it or not - today I played around 10 games and only one of them was combo (2, if you count the druid). So I faced: 2x tempo mages, 2x mind blast priests, 1x spell hunter, 1x even warlock, 1x even shaman, 1 Quest Rogue, 1x Spiteful Druid, 1x Dino Druid and normally my matches consist of the first 4 cases. So I doubt, that the gnomes will feel useful. I tried them today and luckily for me I removed them quickly.
The dreadlords don't always feel great. They are slightly underperforming tbh, since people normally play sticky minions. I really want to use the voidlords, but the lackey package isn't worth it and drawing expensive (=dead) cards feels super bad, when you are struggling to survive the early game. I feel how the Skull will be super great some day, but we have to get more good demons. Maybe it will be good to run only 1 voidlord right now, as it's a solid value for Gul'dan, but so many people are running silences and hexes and what not and I'm just torn.
Dunno, like I said, the demon package would be the hardest thing to figure out.
Thx. Your feedback will be appreciated a lot.
I really like this deck, like a lot. Although, I'm personally having an issue not drawing what I need. While I have only played ~ 30 games (~ 48% winrate) with this deck, and I know that it's just a matter of getting used to it. I feel like something is missing.
Glinda is a phenomenal card, but in this deck seems locked into the the 10 mana combo ( Glinda > Baleful > copy Glinda > copy Baleful). Having two twisting nether, and Lord Godfrey is absolutely satisfying. I like that you don't double on some cards like SCG, and void lord. Although, as I mentioned I feel like I'm not drawing what I need. Either be a board clear, board presences.
I've tired to slow down the pace of the game. I supposed I'm missing the fatigue strategy play style. Maybe that's why I feel like something is missing. I have never played control and fatigue decks well.
I'm going to continue playing this trying to figure out my own problems. While simultaneously playing a different version of the deck to see what works best for me.
Looking forward to your revisions / updated guide
Wow, thank you very much for the insightful feedback. Inb4 don't feel bad for wanting to share the bad news. It's not your fault that the deck didn't run smoothly. I didn't succeed in making the list optimal and I will take the critique. I'm still experimenting with different packages, I'm still trying to figure out the meta and hopefully I will post an optimal list soon.
Currently I'm running the following one:
- 2x Libriarian
- 1x Voidwalker
- 2x defile
- 2x beetle
- 2x doomsayer
- 1x banker
- 2x stonehill
- 2x shroombrewer
- 2x hellfire
- 2x spellstone
- 2x dreadlord
- 2x apfelbaum
- 1x Rin
- 1x Glinda
- 2x siphon
- 1x Godfrey
- 2x twisting
- 1x DK
This list does a well job against minion-based aggro decks just because it doesn't run that many expensive stuff and against control (big spell mage, control priest and taunt dudu (if I'm high on health)) we have the ultimate win-conditions. For now the only tough/bad MUs are Even Warlock (because of the early pressure and their cheap draw), Shudderwock, Taunt Dudu and occasionally burn mage.
As for Glinda - I made a post yesterday, where I stated that the infinite combo isn't necessary. And that's true - pure control warlock will have a much better time, if they remove the glinda package, because it';s not really beneficial in this meta. Imho there are only 2 possible scenarios, where the Fatigue package is good - against Big Spell Mage and Control Priest. Against every other control deck Rin is more than enough. That's why if you feel that she's superfluous, then free some space.
The few changes to the early game cards I feel made a significant difference. Having plated beetle I think is almost staple for control warlock's early game presences. The extra soul siphon defiantly makes up for the lack of silence.
Some people advised me to go with the Gnomeferatus again.
One question - do you have a feeling, that I have overdone it? Does the deck have too many anti-aggro tools? How are you doing against mid-range decks (even warlock; spiteful druid)?
Tomorrow I think I will add 1-2 Reavers and I want to see what will happen, if I replace the beetles with the girls.
Hi sorry for the delayed response.
I have been having the biggest issue with even lock, and meme decks, but I also have not been playing as much as I used to.
The recent nerfs to warlock suitability / sustained presences seems to be more significant than I expected..
I feel like aggro - tempo -midrange are just better right now versus warlock's style of control.
struggling to really understand what I'm versing before it is too late.
I'm floating around rank 10 ( not really trying to advance rank, but find what works for me )
Sorry to hear that, but thanks for your feedback. It's true, that this deck has more bad MUs than before, but that's why I wanted to test different demon packages and different card inclusions and see which one will work well. The finals are coming and I started playing competitively a lot more rarely this season (currently r3). I'm still trying to find an optimal list and once I do that and once I rank up more, I will immediately update the deck description.
I also kinda agree, that there are other far better strategies for warlock (cube's value or even's draw), but this page was dedicated to a specific control warlock deck - the fatigue one, so I will continue to post here. I personally think, that control warlock overall is still a viable option this season, just don't use the list I showed above. Glinda and the Banker don't work for me that well since the nerfs. The worst MU stays Druid (except spiteful), because they have the ability to draw their cards very fast and to ramp up aggressively and I never actually had the chance to play Azari on timr. But other than that, Rin is still the better win-condition and you don't want to have superfluous cards diluting your deck. I will keep showing the infinite combo, because the idea was to run it in the first place, but if you want to have more success on the ladder, then check other lists.
You can replace the glinda package for extra punch - namely for 2x mountian giants. My second advice - put the gnomeferatus instead of the beetles.
Note: As for Even warlock - I purposely added the dolls, just because they were the only tools to deal with their early giants.
I'll make an update to the deck description this weekend and another small change to the deck as well.
If someone is somehow interested about some inclusions and wants to share their feedback, please leave a comment and I will gladly answer.
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As we all know, the staples/solid cards in the control warlock deck are:
So 22/30 I can safely consider to be staples.
As for the rest:
- Glinda Crowskin and Baleful Banker are staples in the Fatiguelock deck, but are totally unnecessary in the pure control variant.
- Gluttonous Ooze - a well-known tech. It's kinda underperforming lately, but I'm too scared to throw it away. Still, I will wait 1-2 weeks to see how the meta changes and then I will cut it, if the circumstances say so.
- Saronite Chain Gang - If someone is interested in why I use it, I like how I get 2 extra bodies on the board. While some may take it as an overkill, for now it has been performing well in slowing down aggro (duh) and mid-range decks. However, I want to tweak the deck more and I will see what I should do in order to make it more smooth.
- The Demon Package (1xVoidlord, 2x Despicable Dreadlord) will be the most challenging thing to figure out. For now I'm going with this one, just because I don't dilute my deck with clunky cards (Possessed Lackey, Dark Pact), but I'm not entirely sure how I should make it more beneficial. I have tried several packages:
- 2x Voidwalker, 2x Despicable Dreadlord {only good vs aggro};
- 1x Voidwalker, 2x Despicable Dreadlord, 1x Voidlord;
- 2x Despicable Dreadlord, 2x Voidlord, 1xSkull of the Man'ari
- 2x Voidlord, 2x Possessed Lackey, 2x Dark Pact
and only the middle two function alright, but I need to test them more and see which one functions the best. Maybe it's high time to use Vulgar Homunculus and Hooked Reaver, but the issue with them is how I already have Kobold Librarian as an activator for the spellstone and the Reaver is kinda slow in some situations, but we'll see.
- Dark Pact - only 1 copy because the card is weaker now, but I think I want an activator for Rin, the First Disciple and Voidlord. Imho this isn't really necessary.
It's my pleasure. You are welcome.
inb4 the deck description isn't updated yet. I will write another text this weekend after I play with the deck more and when I have more time. Thanks for the patience.
Good fun, solid deck , a lot of options.
Will report back after some more experimenting.
Well job.
BIG +1!
Just found this deck while browsing. The only card I don't have is Lord Godfrey, but I substituted with a second Siphon Soul, and so far it's been a blast!! Currently Rank 12, but will try to put in some effort and see how far up the ladder I can get with it! Thanks for posting :)
Glad to see you have some success with it, but I'm kinda sad to say, that the list is outdated. The lackey package made the games easy and I could afford to play fun cards like Glinda+Banker.
But when playing on the legend ladder after the nerfs, I mainly faced many burn mages, shudderwocks and a taunt dudu or two. In that case Rin is way, way better and you could go with a more solid build.
I'm currently trying to replace the lackey package. For now 2x Abyssals and a voidlord seem fine, but I plan to try out more packages.
Thx for the feedback. As for Godfrey - yeah, that's one way to replace him.
Changes 5/12/2018 [Currently rank 3]
1) Gnomeferatu - From the start I knew that they were a weak inclusion. Some of you even convinced me (somehow) to put them back just because they made a lot of sense in a fatigue deck. Look, this may be the case, but the point of my deck was to be as competitive as possible while still running the infinite combo and not Rin. So they were replaced by the Doomsayers, which help me gain more time. In some cases they feel like an overkill, so I'll be considering a replacement for them (or at least for the second copy) in the future.
2) Ironbeak Owl instead of a Spellbreaker - Well, the 1 health part synergises with defile. It's something I guess. I tried to run 2 copies of Spellbreaker in my deck but they felt like a big overkill. Having 2 is only good against Taunt Dudu and maybe Control warlock. Against everything else - :X.
3) Saronite Chain Gang - some of you may be wondering about this inclusion. Tbh I just thought that I had too many spells in my deck. I'm considering trying out Rin just for the extra bodies, but imho she's super slow. My deck doesn't profit from running her that much, because I already have the winning fatigue combo and I don't need another card, which does the same thing. I need bodies and for now the gang proved to be helpful. I will give Rin a try in casual and see how she works there.
4) Siphon Soul - one copy is more than enough. Mortal Coil - not really useful anymore.
Only missing Glinda Crowskin ;-(
Feelsbadman.
Inb4 if you take a look at the card replacement part, you will see my thoughts regarding Glinda and Rin. If you have the second legendary, in some cases you will have better results with her than with the other one.
Good to hear that you are having fun with the deck. But w/o Glinda you got to admit that you are playing a normal controllock strategy.
Thx and gratz ^^
But I will make one last change, because I don't feel that the deck is running smoothly.