Hearthpwn

19.09.2019: Added Card Choices

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MULLIGAN:

Always keep: Secretkeeper, Crystology

Going first: Autodefense Matrix (keep if you have Secretkeeper or Sunreaver Spy)

Going second: Brazen Zealot (if you have a secret or Beaming Sidekick). If you think you are against Control Warrior or Mage you can keep Dread Corsair if you have a weapon (or vice-versa).

 

GUIDE:

This deck is extremely aggresive and basic strategy revolves around playing sticky minions in early game and playing secrets to make them even stickier. Keep your early board advantage with value trades until turn 4-5. Then you buff your minions through their own effects or with other cards, and beat your opponent with them (and with weapons). Generally, you should use your coin as early as turn 1 or 2 to get additional tempo. Don't hold back on any card, with this deck you are looking to finish the game as soon as possible. Learn to play with your secrets, as in, expect your opponents future trades/spells to get value from your secrets.

Warrior

Control (very hard): Going tall is key, pour your buffs heavily on one minion, preferably Brazen Zealot. Ideally you would close out the game with weapons / Leeroy Jenkins. If your opponent is low, but your board is empty, don't tempo Blessing of Kings, save it for Leeroy.

Aggro (medium): You should be looking to get a lead on board as soon as possible, only take value trades that help protect your key minions like Secretkeeper and Brazen Zealot, other than that, go face, you are more aggresive than they are.

Priest 

Combo (medium to hard): Get and maintain early board advantage at any cost. Start going all face by turn 4-5. Honestly this matchup is more reliant on the luck of their draw than anything else, but still a better matchup than control warrior.

Quest (very hard): Just like control warrior, but this is even harder since they can build big taunts and can play around your secrets by just not attacking anything. Pretty unwinnable.

Paladin

Murloc (easy): Get early board advantage but don't even bother trading, they don't really play much minions in early turns, and they basically skip their turn on turn 4 to get a big board on turn 5, but you can definitely kill them by turn 5 or 6.

Quest (easy to medium): Get and maintain early board advantage, once you get it they really can't take it back, you should only value trade with micro mummy otherwise because. The only problem is Bone Wraith, but there is really nothing you can do about it.

Highlander (hard): Again, get and maintain early board advantage and hope they don't highroll you. This is a very controllish deck so you face the same problems with control warrior.

Holy Wrath (easy): You farm these guys, just point face. Secrets are mvp in this matchup.

Mage

Highlander (medium): Their removal is spell based and they tend to be very slow, so this is a pretty decent matchup. Play around Flame Ward. If they manage to play their freeze cards early you most likely lose. You can't really play around Reno, so don't.

Big Spell (medium to hard): These guys tend to be better built towards aggro decks so you face usual control problems, but definitely not an unwinnable matchup by any means.

Hunter

Highlander (easy to medium): Secretkeeper is mvp, but play around freezing trap if you can. They have no taunts other than ziliax so just go face, especially don't trade if you get a good read on Snake Trap. Play around secrets.

Mech (easy): Secrets are mvp, keep the board clear as much as possible in the very early turns, but you should not trade too much going into turns like 4-5. Try to make sure game doesn't stall to turns beyond 7 since Venomizer + Missile Launcher is game over for you.

Rogue

Tempo (easy to medium): You should get a good balance between playing minions and secrets in the early game, since their weapon and Backstab might end the game for you before it even starts. But overall it's a good matchup

Quest (easy): Pretty much the same stuff as tempo, but even easier since their early board presence is very bad.

Warlock

Zoo (easy): Definitely the easiest matchup. Get and maintain early board advantage, kill them by turn 5-6, you know the drill by now. Playing around Sea Giant helps though.

Quest (easy): SMOrc

Druid

Quest (medium): This is actually pretty similar to Murloc Paladin in a way that they both sacrifice their early game to get massive board swings by turn 5, so try to beat them by turn 5, however this matchup is harder since they have more reactive cards like Oasis Surger and Hidden Oasis

Token (easy): Does anyone play this anymore? Seriously I actually haven't faced this matchup once this expansion, but I expect it would be slightly worse than Zoolock, so still pretty easy. Usually if you kill their board completely on turn 4, you win.

Shaman

Murloc (hard): Their minions and synergies are just better. You can't keep up with them. If you face a lot of them, use Hungry Crabs instead of sidekicks.

Quest (easy to medium): If you play around their cards with correct trades and correct secrets you win this matchup every time. Key cards that you need to play around are Mind Control Tech, Mogu Fleshshaper, Sandstorm Elemental, and Weaponized Wasp. I know it sounds a lot but it actually isn't since you can more or less expect when to see them.

 

CARD CHOICES:

 

Why is X not in this deck? / Possible Replacements: