69.7% WR [update] KafkeKretz's Keysmith Mage [l...
- Last updated May 6, 2018 (Witchwood)
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Wild
- 12 Minions
- 17 Spells
- 1 Weapon
- Deck Type: Ranked Deck
- Deck Archetype: Aggro Mage
- Crafting Cost: 6340
- Dust Needed: Loading Collection
- Created: 4/22/2018 (Witchwood)
- KafkeKretz
- Registered User
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- 7
- 24
- 69
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Battle Tag:
N/A
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Region:
EU
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Total Deck Rating
584
Hi there!
- With almost 4k wins with mage, I decided to post another deck I used to reach legend this season.
- My previous deck: 66.7% WR [legend] KafkeKretz's Secret Geyser Mage got over 250 likes and over 150k views with many people reporting to reach legend for the first time with it (see Succes Stories and comments).
- The deck is not super-new but it uses the different combination of cards then decks we can see on the ladder right now
- I am posting after reaching legend instead of high legend as this season I don't really have tome to play more :(
- It took me 65minutes to reach legend from rank 4 with this deck
- I strongly believe mage has great matchups against every other deck including Paladins and control decks
Same as with the previous deck:
- With 75 likes I will post mulligan and general strategies
- With 150 likes I will post general tips useful for almost all Aluneth decks
Note: sorry to be little late with additional tips, I am unfortunately traveling and to be honest didn't expect deck to be that popular - I will add tips as soon as possible!
Changelog:
- 22.04.2018 - deck created
- 24.04.2018 - featured video from kiwiinbacon
- 24.02.2018 - added mulligan and general strategies after reaching 75 likes (Thank you all!)
- 25.04.2018 - DECK UPDATE: I replaced Archmage Arugal with Mirror Image I still believe the deck is very good against almost all other decks but since there are fewer Rogues and Warlocks (best matchups) I am not recommending it if you are not mage specialist
- 28.04.2018 - Deck confirmed as Tier2 deck (vicious syndicate report) however, I believe the Keysmith variant should perform as tier 1
- 28.04.2018 - deck reached over 100 views and 200 likes. Thank you all sooooo much!
- 28.04.2018 - highlighted a very important comment that should help you understand the deck more than any of my tips PLEASE READ THIS COMMENT from Tharvolde (thank you dude!)
- 06.05.2018 - Updated the deck to its final form.
I am now working on Dollmaster Dorian Hadronox Druid. Let me know in the comments if you are intersted in the deck like this;-)
Success Stories (from comments!)
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http://prntscr.com/j9kfaw
"from rank 17 to rank 10 in less then a day. i posted once alrdy but tnx a lot. didnt play for a long time so ididnt think i'd reach this far this soon ;)
I hit legend with this deck in idk 2, 3 days? I have hit legend twice before, back when I first played three years ago. Gotta say this deck reminds me of mech mage from G&G.(...)
I reach legend for the first time with this deck.
(i’am a casual player in HS since 2014)
Very good deck , i reach legend with 64% WR (23-13) today, worst match up was baku hunter i lost every single game against them, but i only face 3 of them so it wasn't a big deal .
Also the mulligan guide is great, helped me a lot to understand the matches.
Thanks a lot.
- Malt
I'm really enjoying this deck. Rank 15 to 10 with 63% win rate
- NaskaraKaBigML
Played 12 games so far and won all, Im now at rank 6
- Malt
KafkeKretz, I had to give you an update on how much I'm loving this deck. Went from rank 15 to rank 5 with a 70% win rate (44-19). I actually had more wins than losses against every single class.
Mulligan strategy
- there are less early game synergies than in the previous-meta-secret-mage so mulligan is much simpler
- always mulligan hard for 1 and 2 drops
- Aluneth is a keep vs Warlock and Priest but only if you have at least 1 drop or 2 drop and coin, never vs Paladin
- I always keep Explosive Runes if I have a drop (but never leave Aluneth and Runes
- the priority is: Cheap Minions > Explosive Runes > Aluneth
- don't leave cheap spell in hand to combine it with Mana Wyrm - you really want minions!
General tips:
- you want minions and you want to go face in almost every matchup
- Arugal can be played tempo but only very early - this way you force the opponent to react and this slows him down and very likely he will valuable waste resource. Don't play him if the opponent has a good trade and if you can't combine him with Arcane Intellect or Aluneth (unless you have nothing else to play or not even a good ping)
- ping is important so after playing a minion don't play Frostbolt, just ping face instead (the rare situation is if you have good curve and Aluneth in hand (you wanna dump cards))
- Arcane Keysmith is awesome for extra dmg (Explosive Runes) or for 4x Counterspells
- Arugal can be switched for Frost Nova (if you play a lot vs even paladin and priests) or Spellbreaker vs Warlocks (I still think Frost Nova might be a better choice)
- Cinderstorm is great 5dmg to the face if the board is empty but always keep it for trades vs Paladins.
- against heavy minions classes (basically non-paladin) if you don't have Mana Wyrm in starting hand but you have Arcane Missles you can play them on turn 1 (it's always 3dmg to face!)
vs Warlock
- the matchup is pretty straightforward as Warlock doesn't play many early minions
- it is fine to use Counterspell to counter coin but obviously, it is better if you can hit Hellfire and protect your board
- the best choice from Arcane Keysmith is Counterspell or Mirror Entity as Warlock has minions with high HP, but(!) mind board state and always keep in mind Lord Godfrey on turn 7
- play Spellbreaker on Possessed Lackey instead of trading and silencing Voidlord as the latter one will trade with your board
- if Voidlord is on the board don't trade in with 3/3 Mana Wyrm, let him trade and waste turn (unless your Mana Wyrm is like 7/3)
- vs Warlock you usually win in turns 4-5 not with late Pyro as in the previous meta
vs Priest
- do not over-invest turn 3-4 if you expect Duskbreaker. It will clear your board so ideally you want to have Explosive Runes and minions refill
- pick freezing effects from Primordial Glyph
vs Paladin
- you really want minions but depending on what you get you might consider leaving Arcane Missles in hand
- pick freezing effects from Primordial Glyph vs even version (blizzard is perfect)
- remember to protect your Sorcerer's Apprentice with ping + trade vs even paladin (you don't want to die to token on the board + Dire Wolf Alpha
- it is ok to Counterspell coin to slow down Call to Arms (especially with Keysmith in hand!)
- turn 4 they might play weapon so it is ok to freeze face with frostbolt instead of just pinging (if you have something to protect)
- Cinderstorm is a keep if you have 1 and 2 drop
vs Mage
- Don't give too much credit to counterspell
- Trade with spells not minions
- If you feel or you tested and know he played Counterspell sacrifice yours instead of sacrificing Explosive Runes. Damage will be important than spell if you want to win.
- This matchup is not race - it is fight for the board
vs Hunter
- don't play minion before testing his secrets
- this is easy matchup you are just faster
- Counterspell [/card]might be a keep instead of [card]Explosive Runes
vs Rogue
- easiest and most straightforward matchup, the mage is extremely favorable against ANY rogue
- the only way to lose is to never draw secret or keysmith but it is hard to imagine
vs Druid
- I was surprised how easy this matchup is (in previous meta it was very bad)
- same as vs Hunter Counterspell is a keep over Explosive Runes
- it is ok to put Fireball into Crypt Lord if you have minions on the board
vs Shaman
- Secrets destroy shamans it is hard to imagin to lose versus Shaman (are there any anyways?)
vs Warrior
- pick Explosive Runes, Mirror Entity or Frozen Clone from Arcane Keysmith / Primordial Glyph
- trade with spells as loosing board early might lose you the game, Warrior has bad draw that you should counter anyway so try to win early/mid-game
- Tank Warrior is the hardest matchup so ideally you want to play a lot of minions early and counter Brawl, in general you need to be lucky to win this one as the deck does not play Archmage Antonidas
Video showcasing the deck from great guy kiwiinbacon
Note on screenshots below:
- 23/10 is with this variant only. I was testing other cards (like Vex Crow, Lifedrinker, Elementals or Frost Nova but eventually decided that Arcane Keysmith is the best choice.
- I never play Casual especially while testing new variants. This is very well known bug from Track-o-bot (read more here)
There is no better option for this deck and I am not calling it tempo. Putting fireball in the face is something you do however obviously you need to play smart and remember that minions are played before spells. If turn 4 you don t have a minion you go face with the spell so you are correct. Also you dont make trades and you force the opponent to trade. Trades happen by accident bc of nature of spells in this deck (cinderstorm, explosive runes)
You have to provide pressure to their face so they trade your minions. If you have no board presence, cinderstorm/arcane missiles or a lucky pick-up from primordial glyph is really the only way.
Very good deck , i reach legend with 64% WR (23-13) today, worst match up was baku hunter i lost every single game against them, but i only face 3 of them so it wasn't a big deal .
Also the mulligan guide is great, helped me a lot to understand the matches.
Thanks a lot.
thank you! pleasure is mine :) I added your post to success stories! gl
I reach legend for the first time with this deck.
(i’am a casual player in HS since 2014)
maaaan, those things make me so happy! added your post to success stories!
Alright I did my usual 10 games I do with any new deck. This deck simply didn't perform for me. I believe I played it as well as possible yet it just simply lacked the ability to survive long enough to actually burn down my opponents.
Here are my results:
https://imgur.com/a/9USgGUk
A couple things on this deck's guide above:
UPDATE:
A lot of times before bed I like to get in a few games of HS on my phone. Last night was no exception so I decided to give this deck another go. Unfortunately I don't have the stats to back up what I'm about to say as it was on my phone but I had a LOT of success and ended up playing 10 more games (when I play before bed I usually do something like "play until my next loss").
I don't remember all the games in detail but I know that I went 9-1 with the 9 wins coming consecutively. This took me from rank 9 to just about rank 6. I know there were a couple Cubelocks and I beat both of them. There were (I think) 3 Even Paladins and I won 2, lost 1, there were 2 Warrior Taunt/Quest variants and then there were Rogues.
One thing that I'd like to stress about the deck, which Kafke DOES stress in the OP, is that you should be prioritizing MINIONS. MINIONS, MINIONS, MINIONS. If you don't have any minions in your opening draw, you mulligan for minions. This deck will simply NOT work if you just go straight for burn and play it like a pure face Hunter. Opening with a Mana Wyrm, Arugal or Arcanologist simply won me multiple games in my last 10 because my opponent had to take a few turns to handle my board. Strategic play of your secrets is also SUPER important. Don't just throw up Explosive Runes because you want to burn face as much as possible. If you have a board, protect it with a CS (or a Spellbinder from Keysmith for example) instead. Know when your opponents are going to play certain minions and secret accordingly. If your Cube Lock opponent is going into their turn 5 and you have the option to play Explosive Runes, you may want to hold up because they're likely going to expect it, throw down their 5 mana 2/2 and end up with a big demon on board.
I do still hold that hand/taunt Druid is completely unwinnable for this deck. They will simply have way too much armor for you to burn through even if you open the game with a really strong board. I also still hold that Odd Paladin can be a tough matchup but it wasn't as bad in my second 10 games as it was in my first because, as Kafke pointed out and I ignored in my first 10 games, you need to prioritize MINIONS in your opening hand.
With this deck I'd say Cubelock, Zoolock, Even Pally, any Rogue deck (Quest, Odd, Miracle), Shuddermeme Sham and any Hunter deck are all favorable matchups. I'd say Odd Pally, Rock/Hagatha/Ele Sham, and any Spiteful deck (Druid or Priest) are even matchups and will depend a lot on draw order. I'd say any Warrior variant, quest or not, is unfavorable (but winnable if you get a little luck on your side). Taunt/Hand Druid is unwinnable.
GL!
Thank you for feedback but unfortunately, 10 games is waaaay not enough. For example with my previous deck, I had 5 loses in a row against Warlock - class that deck beat 8 out 10 games overall. Even for this deck I played over 100 games and test different mage variants to eventually decide on the best one (the stats on the screenshot I posted are only for THIS variant.
No worries, Kafke. I think it's an interesting deck and I've actually updated my OP with my next 10 games as I played 10 more on my phone last night before bed. I had a LOT more success with those 10 games and went 9-1.
oh man that is awesome! I will add parts of your post to success stories!
but as you experienced, this decks seems to be easy to play but it is definitely not it is way more harder than any warlock/spiteful or paladin deck, there is a lot outsmarting moments where you can even fake (with timing) plays
the matchup vs druid is hard but it is better than you think! GL!
Yup, I second this. Prioritize minions first. This deck got me from 20 to 7 for the first time and the first month from coming back. I've had losing streaks for like 5-8. But I realized that board is also important for this archetype too. I've been tallying my results: 179 games - 100 wins / 79 losses
What is the best card to remove for a Flamestrike ?
lifedrinkers but I would expect deck to perform worse
I added a Polly - I just cant seem to win without it
I also am running 2 Crows instead of keysmiths
Hello this deck is good... Help me to rank up from 8** to 5** 1hour, my winrate 80% ... thanks :D
Will leave a comment to try out the deck
isnt vex crow just better in that slot tho
faceroll deluxe deck for all those with an IQ of a apple.