Hearthpwn

While the archetype for this deck isn't original -- Control Priest is far and away the most common deck you'll find for defeating Rafaam Unleashed -- none of them worked for me.

I played more than 100 games with 6 different decks, all of them highly rated with plenty of encouraging comments, and I just could not beat this guy. In fact, despite all those games, I can count the number of times where I was close on the fingers of just one hand.

Talk about discouraging. And aggravating. For me, this was far and away the most difficult boss of any adventure.

So I took a week off, then went back and looked at all the decks I had tried. And I picked among the pieces that I thought held the most consistent promise of being useful if drawn. That is, I wanted every draw to be a card that I would have a use for at virtually any stage of the game. In my judgment, no other deck -- even the most highly rated ones -- had every card be useful. Many of them seemed to depend upon a specific fortunate draw sequence or combo in order to beat down Rafaam during his moments of vulnerability ... while still being able to handle his free 10/10 minions and other shenanigans.

Anyway, this is the deck I put together.

And it worked out of the box, first time.

And it still works for me far more reliably than any other deck I was able to find.

Rafaam Unleashed was such a bastard, other players must be having as much trouble as I did. If you are one of those players, I would like to think that this deck will be your savior. In my experience, it's easier to play and more consistent than anything else out there.

To Hero Power or Not To Hero Power?

With this deck, use the hero power only when you have leftover mana. This deck is designed to be played as-is without relying on a lucky use of the hero power. By all means, pull that trigger, but only when you've got mana to burn. Otherwise, play your cards. This deck has more than enough control and offense to see you through.

Mulligans and Game Guide

You absolutely must have a Shadow Word: Death in hand by the time Rafaam has activated the staff on his 3rd turn. Fortunately, you can mulligan for one, draw into one, or get one from a Jeweled Scarab. (You can often get away with an Emperor Cobra or Giant Wasp, too.) Simply restart any game where this condition isn't met, but this shouldn't be too much of a hindrance.

After you've passed the first 10/10 hurdle, the game gets a bit easier. You're virtually guaranteed to have an appropriate removal piece for his 2nd 10/10 play. And if you've had any luck at all, you'll be able to get your first face smashing in at the same time.

Get past this 2nd 10/10 hurdle, and the only threat that can really mess you up is Rafaam's Twisting Nether. However, he's only got one of those, and it's not too difficult to build a minion or two up to lethal over the course of a few turns. Trust me, it can be done!

If you don't have the 0-cost "deal 3 damage to all enemy minions" card from a lucky hero power use, you'll want to be sure you reserve an Excavated Evil in hand for when he fills the board with 3/3 Zombies.

Good luck!