Hearthpwn

BlueSpartan here once again, sharing Thijs' deck from his victory at ELC Superstars. Very effective deck and good for the ladder. I chose to focus on this list because this variant does not use any Jade cards, but there are other effective variants as I mention below.

Continuing to play test the deck and will add further insights to the guide from time to time. According to Data Reaper, Aggro Shaman is the best deck archetype in the meta game right now with a 53% win rate. And according to MetaStats, this deck list posted a 57% win rate during the week of 12/19-12/25! Link: http://metastats.net/deck/e90e0c4f-13ed-4c08-88d4-3b7a3faff4e8/week/

Basic Strategy

Like most aggro decks, we direct maximum damage to the opponent's face as quickly as possible. Like pirate warrior, we unleash havoc in the early turns with a mixture of pirate minions and weapons. We also have overload minions to support our push, Maelstrom Portal to clear out opposing minions, and burn spells such as Lightning Bolt and Lava Burst to finish the opponent after we start losing the board. And of course the Doomhammer + Rockbiter Weapon combo brings a 10 damage turn that may seal the deal.

As with all Shaman decks, we must fight for board control in the early game since so much of our damage comes from minions. While we wish to keep buff and burn spells for face damage, we may have to spend some of it to maintain board pressure. Once your opponent is down to approximately 15 health you can save up for the lethal burst. With experience you will learn when the time is right to abandon the board and push for face damage alone. Taunts and heals will make the balance tricky at times.

 

Variants - The following cards are used in lists by Demigod/Spo/Xixo and may be substituted for missing cards, Thing from Below, or Bloodmage Thalnos + 1 Maelstrom Portal:

Ancestral Knowledge
Lava Shock
Eternal Sentinel
Argent Horserider
Lightning Storm
Unbound Elemental
Azure Drake
Leeroy Jenkins

If you lack Patches the Pirate you can add another Southsea Deckhand or any of the above, but turn 1 won't be nearly as good.

Jade Variants - If you prefer to run Jade cards:

Replace either Spirit Claws or Doomhammer with Jade Claws
Replace Flamewreathed Faceless with Jade Lightning
Replace Thing from Below with Aya Blackpaw

 

Basic mulligan strategy (varies for some matchups):

Always keep - Spirit Claws, Tunnel Trogg, Totem Golem, Small-Time Buccaneer
Keep with Spirit Claws - Southsea Deckhand, Bloodmage Thalnos
Keep with Tunnel Trogg and coin - Lightning Bolt, Feral Spirit
Keep Sir Finley Mrrgglton if it fits your curve (warlock/hunter/mage/druid)
Note: If you can play it in turns 1-3, just keep it. The more cards you throw away, the more likely you are to get Patches the Pirate which you never want in hand.

 

Favored against: Pirate Warrior, Miracle Rogue, Jade Druid, Tempo Mage, Midrange Hunter
Even against: Reno Warlock, Jade Shaman, Midrange Shaman, Dragon Priest
Unfavored against: Dragon Warrior, Reno Priest, Reno Mage, Control Warrior

 

Tips for Common Matchups:

Warlock (Reno)

Mulligan for Spirit Claws, Tunnel Trogg, Totem Golem, Small-Time Buccaneer or Southsea Deckhand.
Keep Bloodmage Thalnos only with Spirit Claws.
Keep Lightning Bolt only with Tunnel Trogg and coin.
Keep Sir Finley Mrrgglton if it fits your curve.

Avoid playing over 3 minions due to cards such as Hellfire and Mind Control Tech. Any two minions can be used to push for face damage with Flametongue Totem. Removal all opponent minions to delay the use of Shadowflame. Accumulate burn cards to finish your opponent if he doesn't not draw/play Reno Jackson in time.

Shaman (Mirror)

Mulligan for Spirit Claws, Tunnel Trogg, Totem Golem, Small-Time Buccaneer, Maelstrom Portal.
Keep Bloodmage Thalnos with Spirit Claws or Maelstrom Portal.
Keep Southsea Deckhand with Spirit Claws.
Keep Feral Spirit with Tunnel Trogg and coin.
Keep Sir Finley Mrrgglton if it fits your curve.

Be aggressive but anticipate Maelstrom Portal, Feral Spirit, Flamewreathed Faceless. Have a plan to deal with those threats. Don't relinquish the board unless you have enough burn spells and Doomhammer charges to finish your opponent. Expect taunt totems at the worst time.

Warrior (Pirate)

Mulligan for Spirit Claws, Tunnel Trogg, Totem Golem, Small-Time Buccaneer, Maelstrom Portal.
Keep Bloodmage Thalnos with Spirit Claws or Maelstrom Portal.
Keep Southsea Deckhand with Spirit Claws.
Keep Feral Spirit with Tunnel Trogg and coin.
Keep Sir Finley Mrrgglton if it fits your curve.

Fight for board control and play taunts at every opportunity. Go wide because warriors don't run AOE. A well timed Maelstrom Portal can set back the warrior's game plan. If you fall behind, be ready to counter strike and assume the role of the aggressor by turn 4 or 5. Once the board is under control, use your superior burn and reach to finish the job.

Rogue (Miracle)

Mulligan for Spirit Claws, Tunnel Trogg, Totem Golem, Small-Time Buccaneer or Southsea Deckhand.
Keep Bloodmage Thalnos only with Spirit Claws.
Keep Lightning Bolt only with Tunnel Trogg and coin.
Keep Sir Finley Mrrgglton if it fits your curve.

Contest the board but push for face damage whenever possible because rogues have limited heals and no taunts. Go wide but limit the number of 1 health minions because the rogue has Fan of Knives. Be prepared for SI:7 Agent, Tomb Pillager, Azure Drake, and Gadgetzan Auctioneer on turns 3 to 6. A turn 5 Doomhammer and a Lava Burst in hand should finish the job.

Druid (Jade)

Mulligan for Spirit Claws, Tunnel Trogg, Totem Golem, Small-Time Buccaneer or Southsea Deckhand.
Keep Bloodmage Thalnos with Spirit Claws or Maelstrom Portal.
Keep Lightning Bolt only with Tunnel Trogg and coin.
Keep Sir Finley Mrrgglton if it fits your curve.

Be aggressive and push for face damage. Starting with turn 4 (or turn 3 if opponent has coin) try to play around Swipe by trading in 1 health minions. You may eventually lose the board but should be in burn mode. If you are not quick enough you will have to deal with mid to late game taunts. Be prepared to use some of your burn spells to clear the way for your Doomhammer and minions.

Priest (Dragon)

Mulligan for Spirit Claws, Tunnel Trogg, Totem Golem, Small-Time Buccaneer or Southsea Deckhand.
Keep Flamewreathed Faceless with coin or any strong opener.
Keep Bloodmage Thalnos with Spirit Claws.
Keep Lightning Bolt with Tunnel Trogg and coin.
Keep Sir Finley Mrrgglton if it fits your curve.

A tough matchup for sure. You cannot allow the priest to keep a board and heal his minions. Expect activations on taunts such as Wyrmrest Agent and Twilight Guardian and board clears on turn 5 (or 4 with coin), so plan to trade in low health minions. Try to play Flamewreathed Faceless on turn 3 or 4 and hope the opponent does not have Shadow Word: Death. If you can pressure the priest enough before the board is lost, you can finish the game with burst damage. If not, better luck next time.

 

Give the deck a try, report your results/suggestions/corrections so I can improve the guide, and don't forget to up-vote if you like it. I've never posted a deck with 200 up-votes so you can help me with that achievement if you want!

I'll add additional tips as I continue piloting the deck on ladder. Thanks for your "astounding" interest!

 

For a midrange shaman list adjusted for the new meta, check out: http://www.hearthpwn.com/decks/525655-top-totems-legend-full-guide

For a dragon warrior list that rivals aggro shaman's win rate, check out: http://www.hearthpwn.com/decks/582228-dragon-pirate-warrior 

To see the deck in action, here's a link to a user-submitted game play video:
https://youtu.be/Wy_XSCnIZaA