DRAGODIN - Dragon-Ramp Control Paladin
- Last updated Apr 24, 2015 (Blackrock Launch)
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Wild
- 22 Minions
- 6 Spells
- 2 Weapons
- Deck Type: Ranked Deck
- Deck Archetype: Unknown
- Crafting Cost: 4260
- Dust Needed: Loading Collection
- Created: 3/27/2015 (Undertaker Nerf)
- Serology
- Registered User
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- 9
- 17
- 34
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Battle Tag:
N/A
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Region:
EU
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Total Deck Rating
2046
Intro
Thanks to FailCraft for this great preview of the deck, check out his great work on YouTube
Paladin is a class that has always excelled in late game domination and value trades. Until BRM, expansions in Hearthstone have basically served to make the late game harder and harder to reach and undermine trading. BRM looks to change that through rewarding the Paladin for keeping high cost control cards in it's hand by giving low and mid-cost minions buffs and battlecries.
Dragodin is a control Paladin that takes advantage of the particularly strong Dragon synergies available to the class. It is also a ramp deck that brings some powerful high cost control cards out earlier in the game. The aim is to control the board and survive into the mid-game before overwhelming your opponent with undercosted mid and late game minions like Volcanic Drake, Chromaggus and Ysera.
Strategy
This is a control deck that centres around two major synergies; minion/token deaths and dragon tribal synergies.
Muster for Battle is one of the central cards of the deck and rather than looking to buff your recruits with Quartermaster you are using them to liberally clear your opponents board with or without the use of Equality in order to reduce the cost of Volcanic Drake and Solemn Vigil.
In terms of Dragon synergy, Paladin is perhaps the class with the most of it. The second card this deck centres around is Dragon Consort, a classic specific Mechwarper for some of the most powerful cards in the game, further reducing the cost of Volcanic Drake, giving you a 2 mana Hungry Dragon and 7 mana Dragon aspects like Ysera. Note Chromaggus is also a Dragon. In addition to this, these higher cost Dragon cards likely to be sitting in your hand for some time will enable your Blackwing Technician and (Blackwing Corruptor) should you choose to run one.
Key Plays
1) The "dream start"
>>/
2) Board clear into cheap/free minions/card draw
+/>/
3) Dragon ramp into the late game
+>//
4) Chromaggus card draw plays
>
Sideboard
• If you're facing a lot of control then Big Game Hunter may be switched out for Rend Blackhand who is like to be significantly underrated in Dragon decks and may be invaluable in dealing with Ysera, Emperor Thaurissan etc.
• Ysera is typically the most valuable 9 drop Dragon and in a deck that benefits from Dragons in the hand and can play them for 2 or 3 mana less, there is likely room for two of them. There is more choice in the second 9 drop with Nefarian, Alexstrasza and Onyxia being reasonable choices depending on your choice of other sideboards.
• Tirion Fordring is notable by his absence and can likely be swapped back in from any other high cost minion without hurting the deck too much, but running 2 of Dragon Consort makes him less than necessary in comparison to the strong 8 drop inChromaggus
• A single Blackwing Corruptor may fit in this deck in place of a mid-range minion like Volcanic Drake or even a Consecration if you're facing mainly control decks
• One of the Solemn Vigils can be subbed for Harrison Jones if you're facing many weapon classes
I took a few liberties due to cards I'm lacking. I have never pulled Equality or Muster for Battle, so I went ahead and crafted one copy of Muster. Playing around rank 17-16 in both Casual and Ranked, I won 5/8 games. I do not have Big Game Hunter, Ysera, or Alexstrasza, so I put in Rend Blackhand and won two games because of him alone; The first was a Shaman who dropped Kel'Thuzad, so you can imagine my relief!
I sided 1 Humility for the lack of Equality, which actually worked in my favor in the first game - but I imagine this is not a common occurrence. I filled the remaining hole with Coghammer, which set me up for a lot of good plays. It's one of my favorite Paladin cards. I am also considering putting my Tirion Fordring in, if it won't bloat my mana cost. At least he combos with Emperor Thaurissan!
The biggest annoyance I experienced was bad luck with Hungry Dragon. All-in-all, it's not a bad value, but I conceded when the opposing Priest already had me on the ropes and I gifted him a Northshire Cleric. Conversely, it's not bad when you give them a Zombie Chow for a surprise heal.
I see people complaining about bad luck with aggro, and I can understand that as a risk. I played against 2 Hunters, losing to one and winning against the next by surrender. The first one rushed me down a little bit at a time, but if I only drew a single Consecration, he would have been ruined; Nothing he played had more than 2 health. As for the next one, I just had all the right cards at the right time and he couldn't get started. I also had Consecration and was able to wipe 6 creatures off both sides of the board (mostly his) by sending in my Recruits from Muster for Battle, allowing me to end my turn with a free Solemn Vigil and Volcanic Drake - which he killed immediately, but hey, it ate one Kill Command!
EDIT: One more thing! This deck is lacking in defensive options, so I will experiment with more Taunt. I used 1 Defender of Argus and it was greatly helpful, but then it usually is.
You'd be surprised. Notwithstanding a long streak of poor luck with card draws (i.e assuming you have a dragon in your hand to activate the other cards, which should be more than 60-70% of the time), many of the cards give crazy value.
UPDATE:
This deck is garbage. Sucks complete ass in this aggro meta.
This deck sucks against face hunter and mages.
It has no heals or defensive shit besides belcher.
Apparently Alexstrasza and Antique Healbot aren't healing...
PS: I took out ALL healing and the Sludge Belcher, and I'm 4-0 so far. You might be playing it wrong or have horrible luck.
I tried several times starting at rank 23.... lost 90% to standard cards. Even with the "Dream Start" its too slow (i never came to 9 mana when i lost), not enough heal, almost no control at all. There is no "Dragon Deck" that can do just mediocre, there are Dragon Combos which can work in other Decks but a whole Deck centered around Dragons is weak as f*** and you will have 0 chance against aggro or control Decks since you have none with this deck or any other Dragon "only" Deck. It is also very predictable and easy to counter.
Everyone and their mom will destroy your Recruits and that means Muster for Battle, which is your "Key" is a waste. The idea is good but works just 1 out of 10 times.
I still can't believe people are actually using Rend Blackhand. I mean sure, EVERY deck uses at least one Legendary, but his stats for cost are AWFUL!
people do not put him for his stats they put him because destroy legendary still he sucks since big game hunter is in the game but it can work only if player don't have big game hunter
You don't use rend for his stats he is used for his ability to auto wipe a legendary you need gone asap, he has saved me many times, Dr Boom gone, Tirion Gone , Ragnaros Gone he bury the cockroaches
This deck is very bad against aggro deck and not that good against slow deck.
Is it a good choice to have only one Big Game Hunter-target?
And maybe a Zombie Chow could be swapped with a Noble Sacrifice (I'm trying this change in my control Pally decks, it is similarly useful against aggro with no late game downside)...
Agree. Drop Alex - no need in control. Likewise, you don't need nefarian, he's too slow and eats BGH. Chrom and Ysera is enough at the high end. And please take Tirion - ffs, this is still paladin!!!
Are there any videos on this deck?
any replacement for ysera?
Nefarian is a good replacement
I don't win every game but i ranked up to rank 16 so far, I don't have Alex or Ysera, so I used Onyxia and Nefarian.
Sub for alextraza?
Hey mate, i really liked your deck, but i have a few questions, dont judge me :v
well, u keep the 2 mustards even without the quartermaster, maybe a knife juggler to keep a early preasure..
and how about a loh, what do u think about in this deck? and a coghammer?
Its cuz im struggling against some aggro decks and..
well, thx bro keep it up
3 concede in a row :3 nice deck...
I've been running a similar deck for a while, but I have two knife juggs in and have no volcanic drake or solemn (both are wastes IMO). Volcanic has a WEAK 4 body that is so easy to remove its a dead card even if it is for 2 or less... I also think solemn is a win more card and I have beaten every dragon pally I've been matched up with my counter build. Put one chow and one lil excorcist (in case of huntard/zoo). If I had coghammer I'd put it in, but I don't.
Ysera+Nef+chromag+2 azure+ 2 consort. Those are the main (not the only dragons) I have. Only have one hungry dragon, because you are FEEDING zoo/huntard with this card..
Alex is a no, and I say this because it is a dead card. WIN-LOSE-more card. Nef is much better for the two spell draw IMO.