Hearthpwn

One of the most classic archetypes in Hearthstone comes back with the new expansion. The new cards from Descent of Dragons finally brings consistency to the quest Supreme Archaeology and to the Plot Twist synergy. This deck is performing well in the first days (76 % win rate out of 33 games, 11-2 against Shaman) of the new expansion and could be further improved as the meta evolves.

*there might be some changes as soon as nerfs come out*

 

MULLIGAN:

• Supreme Archaeology is in most cases a keep. Against Warrior, which mostly plays an aggressive deck with Pirates and Ancharrr, you can change the quest to look for a stronger early game. Against other classes you must play the quest on the first turn to complete it in time;
• Doomsayer is always good to control the early game against Aggro and Midrange, so it is suggested to keep in your opening. Dark Skies is also a strong card to clear a board (worst case scenario, on turn 3 you will deal 6 damage);
• Crazed Netherwing is also a strong board removal but you need a dragon to trigger its effect. Therefore, against Aggro in most cases you will just keep it and hope to draw a dragon by turn 5, but be aware that it is less reliable respect to other removals,
• Valdris Felgorge is a greedy keep that you can do when you go second and you are against slower matchups such as Priest (which is mostly playing a control version). Playing on turn 7 is a great swing;

PLAY STRATEGY:

• Against control and value-based matches the win condition is to keep the 2x Plot Twist and the 2x Augmented Elekk in order to go infinite. It is suggested to also keep high values cards such as Abyssal Summoner and Fel Lord Betrug to keep control the board. Shuffling multiple copies of Twisting Nether is also a good way to control the board as you will likely draw them with the new hero power and clear the board for 0 mana;
• Against Aggro and Midrange decks you need to survive long enough to exhaust opponent’s resources. Healing comes from Nether Breath, Ziliax, Aranasi Broodmother and Khartut Defender. However, do not play both your Aranasi Broodmother and Khartut Defender as, when you will shuffle cards with Plot Twist, you will not have any more healings. For these reason, try to always keep 1x Aranasi Broodmother and 1x Khartut Defender. Nether Breath, however, is less reliable as it requires Dragons in your hand which may already be played, so feel free to use both of them in good spots where you can heal for 4. You do not need to go infinite against these decks, but you may still need to shuffle one time with Augmented Elekk, so it is good to keep at least one of them.

DECK TIPS:

• Valdris Felgorge can be used as an emergency healing: if you still have your Aranasi Broodmother in your deck, drawing 4 cards will likely find one of them;
• Be careful when playing Abyssal Summoner before Zephrys the Great: if you are facing an highlander deck, Zephrys on turns 7 and 8 is a great punishment against your Abyssal Summoner, as it will likely provide either Big Game Hunter or The Black Knight as perfect answer to your taunt minion;
• Do not be scared to play Fel Lord Betrug and Plot Twist: even if you have not shuffled cards with Augmented Elekk, the combo provided by these two cards is a great comeback and completes the quest if not done already. Later, you can play 2x Augmented Elekk and the last Plot Twist to still refill your deck and not lose to fatigue;
• Do not play immediately your Brightwing: even if there are 4 cards synergizing with Dragons there are only 5 dragons in the deck (which proved to be enough). Among those 5, Brightwing is the one with the least impact on board. Therefore, in order to always keep a trigger for Nether Breath and Crazed Netherwing it is good to keep Brightwing in the hand;
• Supreme Archaeology completition will allow several plays: the two most important are Twisting Nether played for 0 mana and then refill the empty board with big minions, or playing Fel Lord Betrug, Augmented Elekk and Plot Twist in the same turn (having one of the first two cards costing 0) to trade the board, heal yourself and increase your deck;
• When shuffling cards in the deck through Plot Twist be aware that they will lose their mana cost reduction. If you have 0 mana cards in your hand that you want to play in that turn, do it before you play Plot Twist;
• When playing against Rogue, be aware of Flik Skyshiv which will destroy all the copies you shuffled in deck of a specific minion

MISSING CARDS:

• Hellfire: a strong card which is just overpowered by both Crazed Netherwing and Dark Skies. These two cards are enough to control the board in the early-mid game. Also, Warlock can not sustain too much damage from its own cards;
• Sunfury Protector: the only good targets for its effect would be the Mountain Giants. Therefore, it is not worth to have slots I the deck for this card;
• Omega Agent: this card is particularly strong together with Barista Lynchen. However, this combo could be too slow in the current meta where you are trying to survive for the first 10 turns. If you are able to pull off the combo than probably you would have win the game in other ways;
• Soulwarden: some early versions of Handlock use this card and the discard mechanic to generate value. However, the Augmented Elekk and Plot Twist combo not only provides infinite value, but will also sustain the healing engine of this deck;
• Frizz Kindleroost: there are not enough Dragons to put this card. Also, when cards are shuffled back in the deck they will lose their mana cost reduction;
• Arch-Villain Rafaam: see the comment section for in depth explanation;
• Zzeraku the Warped: this card could be in this deck. However, its spot in the mana curve is taken by Fel Lord Betrug, which synergizes with the other cards. Moreover, playing this card after the quest is completed will really lower its power and in most cases you will just spend 8 mana for a 4/12, without getting the 6/6 because of the hero power damage;
• Lord Jaraxxus: as long as Zephrys exists, it is very risky to play Jaraxxus as you can get instantly killed. Moreover, the 15 hp cap is a downside.

SUBSTITUTIONS (as the expansion just launched I do not suggest to craft cards):

• Supreme Archaeology: it is really difficult to play this deck without the quest as in the late game the new hero power will allow great plays (see above). If you do not have the quest I suggest to try another version of Handlock as the winrate could be severally affected;
• Brightwing: the card can be substituted with most of the dragons. I suggest to not put a “if you have a dragon in your hand” condition dragon or a high cost. Therefore, the best substitute could be either Evasive Feywing or Big Ol’ Whelp;
• Lord Godfrey: even if there are already two Twisting Nether, Godfrey is a good card for deathrattles. Therefore it is highly recommended. If you do not have and do not want to craft it as it will leave standard in April you could put Hellfire, but it will not have the same results;
• Valdris Felgorge: this card is the reason Handlock has seen play again. It is a must craft for this archetype;
• Fel Lord Betrug: best legendary to synergize with Plot Twist, therefore cutting this card will affect your win rate. However, you can try to substitute it with high value cards such as Zzeraku the Warped, Lord Jaraxxus or Arch-Villain Rafaam. If you want more control on the board you can put Siamat

POSSIBILE META ADDITIONS:

• Waxadred is a infinite value card, expecially if the opponent is able to put several candles in the deck. Paladin is also able to buff consistently its cards and Priest is in some versions relying on deathrattles. For these reasons, a silence could be added;
• Galakrond decks, Lightforged Paladin, Hunter and Pirate Warrior all use big weapons. A weapon removal could therefore be used. Acidic Swamp Ooze is suggested, as you will not need the draw offered by Harrison Jones and you will not need to steal your opponent weapon;
• Some players are playing Shirvallah Paladin, great counter to Shamans but wrecked by Rogues because of Flik Skyshiv. For this reason, I do not expect to face too many Shirvallah Paladins, especially after the nerfs where Rogue will likely become one of the strongest decks. However, if you are facing lot of them, you could add a Demonic Project to try to counter them.

MATCHUPS (if you have other suggestions write in the comment section and I will add it):

• Galakrond quest Shaman: this is actually one of the best econuter for this deck. In the early game try to control the board with your Doomsayer and Dark Skies. Draw as much as you can to keep your hand full and to look for your healings. When playing minions, expecially the Doomsayer in the early game, be always aware of the counterplay with Mogu Fleshshaper which really punishes you and could cost you the game. Remember that this deck does not need to play minions before turn 5 in not to clear the board with Doomsayer or Crazed Netherwing. Mountain Giant and Abyssal Summoner are big threats for Shamans, and usually their answer will be Faceless Corruptor. Therefore, if you want to play these big minions with no real answer from the opponent try to clean the board so that he will not have any target for its Faceless. Keep your removals, expecially Twisting Nether and Fel Lord Betrug with Plot Twist to counter Galakrond, the Tempest and Shudderwock board and you will be fine with Shamans;
• Control Shaman: very similar to the previous one but even easier as it will not put pressure. Keep your 2x Plot Twist and the 2x Augmented Elekk to beat them in fatigue (even if they will play Archivist Elysiana and Shudderwock) and outvalue them thanks to Tome of Origination continous pressure;
• Highlander Hunter: this is also a positive matchup, as the healings will keep you alive until the opponent will end their resources. Do not overuse your basic heropower, as you do not want to take too much damage too fast. Do not be afraid to use a Plot Twist by its own just to try to draw Aranasi Broodmother in order to go out of range of a possible letal. Abyssal Summoner is a very strong card as it is directly countered only by Zephrys the Great, otherwise it will cost your opponent many resources to deal with the taunt. Always keep a look for Dinotamer Brann as you will never want 8 damage taken face, so do not be afraid to play one Aranasi Broodmother to have a taunt minion. Dragonbane is also a card to remove as soon as possible as it can deal lot of damage (Dark Skies is a good counter). Keep your Twisting Nether for Dragonqueen Alexstrasza and Zul'jin and you will be fine;
• Pirate Warrior: this deck is particularly aggrssive, expecially if Ancharrr is played on turn 3. For this reason, you can change your quest in your mulligan, in order to have more resources to answer the opponent. Crazed Netherwing is always a keep in the mulligan but you may also need to search for Doomsayer, Nether Breath and Dark Skies. In particular, the last one is the best card to have in the early game as it is the only direct answer to Skybarge. Pirate Warrior will always put pressure on board, so do not try to have 8, 9 or 10 cards in your hand as it will not be possible. Play cards to take control of the board. Taunt minions are incredibly strong as most of these decks do not play silence, therefore use them to avoid face damage from weapons or charge minions;
• Galakrond Rogue: there are many versions of this deck and sometimes you could have difficult times, expecially if the opponent is able to play a big Edwin VanCleef in  the first turns. Still, the winrate was 60 %. Do not take too much damage in the early game as in most cases you will be able to complete your quest and win with value. This is especially true against Deathrattle and Malygos versions, which are too slow to be a real challenge and, once your quest is completed, you will put pressure on board thanks to 0 cost cards. Be aware of Sap, which is a huge punishment for your Mountain Giant and Abyssal Summoner, and could also mill you cards. Therefore, try not to spend an entire turn playing only these cards as you might be punished just for 2 mana and the opponent will keep swinging damage;
• Highlander Mage: this matchup is not as much consistent as the others, as I had a win rate of 50 % out of 6 games against it. The real problem is Luna's Pocket Galaxy, which will allow your opponent to basically OTK with a combination of Alexstrasza, Kalecgos to play 0 mana spells and burst such as Pyroblast or Fireballs provided by Archmage Antonidas. Therefore, you should try to put pressure on board, especially Abyssal Summoner is a good play if you can make a 9/9 taunt as your board will not be entirely traded by Reno the Relicologist. Sometimes you will face Kalecgos before 10 mana, either discounted by Frizz Kindleroost or Luna's Pocket Galaxy, and many times the opponent will be greedy also playing Power of Creation in the same turn. Twisting Nether is the only real counter to this, so always try to keep one for Kalecgos. Try to close the game before the opponent is able to play its Luna's Pocket Galaxy, and use Crazed Netherwing and Nether Breath to deal face damage to your opponent.