Hearthpwn

5/3/16 UPDATE:  The deck has gone through major revisions. 

-Mire Keeper x2, -The Black Knight, -Emperor Thaurissan

+Disciple of C'Thun, +Mind Control Tech, +Fandral Staghelm, +Slyvanas Windrunner

 

RECENT CHANGES:

 

First off, I wanted to determine the best removal setup between BGH, TBK, and Mulch.  I tried running two of the three simultaneously and each one on their own.  A single removal in Mulch filled the role as the most flexible choice.  While BGH and TBK are very good when utilized, they were often dead cards.  Mulch provides a way to deal with any threat including one that comes earlier which makes the card useful against Control and Aggro. 

Next, I ended up taking out Mire Keepers completely.  I explained more below, but I believe the deck to be significantly better since this change.  With two four drops gone, I now had room to tailor the deck to better combat the decks we have a hard time with; namely Warlock Zoo and Aggro Shaman. 

Mind Control Tech was added and almost always gets value, I love this tech card.  Even against Control decks you will find value at times late game.  Next, a Disciple of C'Thun was added (in addition to the 2x Twilight Elders).  This change provides an additional C'Thun booster, a reliable early game drop against Aggro, and a decent pick up any time to combo with your damaging spells. 

Now that the deck is improved against Aggro, I wanted to get the most value out of the higher costing cards.  Emperor Thaurissan was cut and Sylvanas Windrunner took its spot.  Emperor is great, but his value isn't as great as Sylvanas, especially against Control.  She gets amazing value against Control decks and even more so now that silences are rare.  With this change, we have a big number of late game threats to deal with. 

Lastly, Fandral is back! With two four drops out, I needed one more four drop.  A general rule of thumb for Druid is to always have at least three 4-mana creatures to effectively utilize a turn 2 Wild Growth.  This slot could be a Senjin Shieldmasta, or even a Klaxxi Amber-Weaver if you must, but I like Fandral here.  He acts as a pseudo-taunt, players will scramble or spend removal on him.  If he does get value, its great.  Wild Growth, Living Roots, Nourish, Druid of the Claw, Ancient of War.  Plenty of value here, though it's not essential to the deck at all.  He adds another element of strategy to a well rounded deck. 

I hope you enjoy the changes, let me know how the deck serves you!  I am constantly trying to come up with the best possible Ramp Druid.  I really like this list, if you have any questions, please ask, and as always I appreciate the comments and ideas. 

 

MULLIGAN:

 

The Mulligan for Druid is one of the most important by class.  You want to hard mulligan for Wild Growth and Innervate.  Never keep Wrath unless you already have a great hand (Innervate + Twilight Elder, for example).  If you keep a Wrath, you will often be playing from behind even if you remove an early threat.  I will almost always keep a Twilight Elder.  If you do get a Wild Growth, you can keep a 4-drop, or a 5-drop with Coin.  Living Roots is another good card to keep in most situations.  A turn 1 Living Roots is strong, keeping Living Roots when you have the coin may or may not be a good choice depending on your opponent and the rest of your hand.  

This deck mulligans pretty well because you have 8 cards to look for in Wild Growth, Innervate, Twilight Elder and Living Roots.  Try to ramp efficiently; if you have two innervates, rarely should you use both in one turn, spread them out for two efficient turns.  Never coin out a Wild Growth on turn 1 unless you have a 3-drop to play the following turn.  If you don't, save your coin and simply play Wild Growth on turn 2.    

 

EXCLUDED CARDS:

 

Mire Keeper:  The most recent cut to this list.  At first glance this card seemed awesome, but I have found it has underperformed.  The ability to ramp from 4 mana into 6 is cool, but hardly needed.  It's the initial ramp from Wild Growth that is most beneficial.  His other option to play a 3/3 and 2/2 for 4 mana is pretty good, but also didn't have much impact.  It is a bad card against Aggro, and not a great card against Control either.  In addition, it was basically a dead card to draw late.  Cutting the Mire Keepers have led to a deck transformation and improvement.   

Emperor Thaurissan:  One of the best cards in the game ended up getting the axe.  With the removal of Mire Keepers, the 6-mana slot is no longer as needed.  Thaurissan was useful, but generally didn't have as much impact compared to Sylvanas or Dark Arrakoa.  The subtraction of Thaurissan led to the addition of Sylvanas which greatly improves our matchups against Control. 

The Black Knight: TBK was useful sometimes, but still too situational.  Big Game Hunter suffered the same fate.  After testing, Mulch was ultimately the best card to deal with threats because it can be used against any creature.  You can cheaply remove anything with Mulch, plus it can be used earlier as a tempo play against a pesky minion you couldn't otherwise deal with.  

Big Game Hunter:  After testing, BGH is not worth the slot anymore.  The meta doesn't have many targets now that Dr. Boom and Molten Giant are gone.  While he is effective against an opposing C'Thun, Mulch looks to be the better and more flexible removal. 

Beckoner of Evil:  This is a C'Thun deck, you don't run Beckoner of Evil!?  Right.  I believe this is a common mistake that players will make.  You shouldn't ever run a two drop minion in Druid because Wild Growth is always the superior turn 2 play.  In addition, Dark Arrakoa provides +3/+3 to make up for the +2/+2 a Beckoner of Evil would provide. 

Darnassus Aspirant: This card seemed great on paper but it turned out to be overrated.  The reason behind this is that Druid should never run a 2-drop.  Wild Growth is always the best turn 2 play.  If you do play a Aspirant on turn two and it is killed, you are left with an awkward turn 3 play.

Keeper of the Grove: This card was so good.  I understand why it got a nerf, though couldn't be a 2/3 instead?  It's stats are poor now, as a silence its strictly worse then a Spellbreaker or Owl.  You can choose to deal 2 damage against a Knife Juggler or Sorcerer's Apprentice for example, but then you are left with a measly body for 4 mana.  At first, I cut one.  After Fandral was announced, I cut the second.  If silence becomes a must, he will find his way back into the deck as a one-of, but I don't think this deck will require it.  

Klaxxi Amber-Weaver:  At first glance, this card seems cool.  A potential 4/10 for 4 mana!  However, it does not give any boosting stats to C'Thun.  Since we don't run Beckoner of Evil, we can't afford to play a minion that relies on C'Thun having 10+ stats so early.  You wouldn't love to play this creature on curve for that reason.  In addition, the 4/10 stats don't do much on the board since they do not have taunt, spell damage, or boosting ability.  A 4/10 won't have immediate impact against an aggro deck or control.

Forbidden Ancient:  This card is pretty cool, it could help fill a turn that you don't have a better play.  However, I would rather include cards that always have a high impact and don't depend on a poor turn's situation.  That being said, it is worth testing some more. 

FINAL THOUGHTS:

Out value your opponent by cheating your mana turns and playing efficient cards.  Apply pressure whenever possible by attacking their face and let them trade into your taunts.  Don't rely on C'Thun as an ultimate finisher, but rather an additional big threat to go long with Ragnaros the Firelord and your other 6 and 7 drops.