Hearthpwn

This is the first deck I've decided to submit to Hearthpwn after deciding to sit down and defeat Heroic Karazhan today.

I noticed that a lot of the decks on here are decks either from way back when the expansion was new, or Wild decks that some people, like myself, may have disenchanted many cards from to craft things fitting the Standard Format. From Ancestral Spirit + Kel'Thuzad to Freeze Mages utilizing Animated Armor, to any number of Reno Jackson decks, some of these gimmicks just weren't possible for people who were dust-hungry. So, I settled down and decided to see what I could do with what I had available to me in the current format.

The deck isn't difficult to play, but it can be tricky to survive to the Malchezaar phase due to Nazra being an aggressive mongrel. The basic premise is using the Nazra phase to build up Jades to 7/7+ while hiding behind taunts, clearing, and gaining armor. At that point, a combination of Defender of Argus and Jade Idols should give you bodies that can stand against his duo 6/6s from his hero power, and hit him hard enough to kill him in 2-3 turns from sheer power alone.

Card Breakdown:

Innervate: A classic Druid staple that sees use here in pulling out big plays in a single turn (such as a double Jade Behemoth), or more importantly, helping cycle through the deck with Gadgetzan Auctioneer

Earthen Scales: This card is what lets you survive through Nazra. It has a twofold purpose; you can either buff a Jade Behemoth or Druid of the Claw to let it survive three of her 3/3 chargers, or simply throw it on a large Jade Golem to gain a massive health boost.

Jade Idol: Well, it's a Jade Druid, right? The questionable decision here is only running one of these beauties. And, well, that's because I felt like I needed every other card in the deck before drawing a weak Jade Idol that I planned on shuffling with Auctioneer anyway.

Bloodmage Thalnos: A well-rounded card seen in many decks both constructed and not, Thalnos here serves a very minor purpose; he can add chip damage to a minion that a low-level Jade can't kill alone, and he powers up Swipe and Wrath to be able to draw from or clear her Frostwolf Grunts with the AoE from Swipe. He's likely replaceable, but his versatility and fact that he just cycles anyway makes him a fine choice.

Wild Growth: Gotta ramp fast! A Druid staple, you really want these either very early on to start playing Jade cards, or very late to draw from them, preferably with Gadgetzan Auctioneer. If you don't get them before 5 mana crystals, don't bother playing it until you can draw from it. No card in this deck costs more than 6, and draw is very important, since your board won't last forever against Nazra's 3/3 assault.

Wrath: A card that has been seen in almost every druid deck ever, the main purpose of this card is to clear off pesky 3/3s or Kor'kron Elite from Nazra early on. If drawn later, it can be cycled with the 1 damage if it isn't needed, which is especially good with Gadgetzan Auctioneer.

Feral Rage: There's nothing fancy about this card. It gives you 8 armor for 3 mana, and you'll likely need it to survive against Nazra. It could be used to clear something in desperation, but better to let your other spells and minions do that. It's also another cheap spell for Gadgetzan Auctioneer.

Jade Blossom: We all know what Jade Blossom does by now. Makes Jades, ramps you up, all that good Druid stuff. Unlike Wild Growth, playing this at 10 mana does not make you draw a card, and it's often better to just up your Jade Golems than to wait to use this alongside Gadgetzan Auctioneer. It's very straightforward.

Tar Creeper: All hail the king of anti-aggro! Tar Creeper has been a staple in decks on and off ladder since Un'Goro hit and woke up all the dinosaurs. For just 3 mana it can trade with 2 of Nazra's 3/3 charge minions. The 1 attack on your turn is actually useful for chipping away at Nazra slowly, as I'll explain later in the guide.

Defender of Argus: This guy is what makes this deck work at all. When the phase changes from Nazra to Malchezaar, he gives you a warm welcome with an auto-cast Twisting Nether and a pair of 6/6 demons on the board (Bet you wish Jaraxuss did that). Throw this guy next to some of your big Jades and keep his worms from beating at your weary, Nazra-ridden face. Two is important, since you might need to use one to survive during Nazra. Save them if possible though, because they are a core piece of this deck.

Jade Spirit: Woo-hoo! There's not a whole lot to say about this adorable little fella. He ramps your Jades, helps chip at enemies, and makes the cutest noise ever.

Swipe: If I were to tech a card out of this deck, this would probably be the place to start. Still, that doesn't mean Swipe isn't useful. It can clear any of Nazra's minions, can damage the others to make killing them easier early on, and can hit Nazra's face to make the phase change if needed, or deal with Malchezaar's weaker, probably not worthwhile demons, if you're so inclined.

Druid of the Claw: Perhaps one of the cards most associated with Druid and infamous for not having "Transform" written on his card description until recently, this guy is here to take hits. Two from Nazra's chargers, or any other damage+Arcanite Reaper. He's in here purely as a solid taunt; if you find yourself needing a better defensive option, then good luck, but his fair mana cost and good stats make him fit well on-curve.

Nourish: Remember how good it felt to finally bleed that druid out of his resources, and then suddenly he drops this and has options again? That's what this is here for; being one of the best card draw mechanics the game has to offer, to get through that deck lickity-split.

Aya Blackpaw: Panda Waifu Aya is the master of Jade synergy, and probably the second most recognized legendary to come out of Gadgetzan (I'm looking at you, Patches). She's extremely good in her own right, but she has an extra purpose in this deck; since her Deathrattle summons a Jade Golem, that means if she's alive during the transition of Nazra to Malchezaar, your board won't be totally empty, and provides you with an easy target for Defender of Argus in the second phase.

Gadgetzan Auctioneer: Well we've heard about him in every other card description so far, here's the man that most people wish had gone off to hang out with Azure Drake in the Hall of Fame. If Jades are the backbone of this deck, this guy is the muscle, tearing through your deck to get filthy non-Jades out of the way so you can rebuild your deck into nothing but Jade Idol and prove how superior the color green is. You could consider running two of this guy, but cycling through the last cards of your deck and pumping a few Jade Idols into your hand is this deck's version of a combo.

Jade Behemoth: More taunts that can handle Nazra's 3/3 chargers? That spawn Jades?! Jade Behemoth is what happens when Jade Spirit spends two mana crystals worth of time at Malfurion's gym. A 3/6 taunt that serves both the purpose of defending against Nazra's aggression and developing your Jades, he's a must-include in any Jade Druid.

Boss Guide

Phase 1 - Nazra: You want to mulligan for Tar Creeper, Wild Growth, Jade Blossom, and Wrath. The Nazra phase is actually the only difficult part of this fight. A 15-health orc lady who has the crazy hero power of Summon a 3/3 with Charge, the name of the game against her is to survive and prepare yourself. She's a warrior, packing cards like Fiery War Axe, Death's Bite, Upgrade!, Execute, and Arcanite Reaper. Your early turns should be spent ramping, and developing Jades. You should avoid attacking her early on, as she has Mortal Strikes that can obviously trigger very easily by just losing 3 health. However, if she goes below 12 anyway, than make it a point to keep her health total as low as possible. The AI will not kill itself on a minion, so if she has less health than your taunt has attack, she won't go smacking herself on something and suddenly summoning Malchezaar. You also want her low so that you can make the switch over to the next phase whenever you are ready, which should only be when you have played Gadgetzan Auctioneer, and have at least 1 Jade Idol in both your hand and deck. Tar Creeper and your Hero Power are good ways to deal chip damage to Nazra while your other minions are busy clearing up hers. Use Earthen Scales on things like Jade Behemoth to let them take Nazra's shots for longer, or on the highest attack minion you have to give yourself the maximum value from armor. If possible, you want to end this phase with Aya Blackpaw on the field, and you definitely want to have your Jade counter at at least 7/7.

Phase 2 - Prince Malchezaar: 
After killing Nazra, this nasty fellow will show up. He has 30 Health and 30 Armor, immediately casts Twisting Nether once the phase changes, and has a Hero Power that spawns two 6/6 demons for him. Big and scary. Luckily for us though, we have our good friends Jade Idol and Defender of Argus. And Medivh himself shows up to give you Atiesh, which will spawn a minion every time you cast a spell!

Break Atiesh as soon as possible.

At this phase, we want to do something very specific. And that is taunt up two big juicy Jade Golems that his 6/6 demons can't break. 1-mana minions from Jade Idol get in the way of hitting 2 Jade Golems with this taunt. There are two solutions to this:
1. Hit Malchezaar, then play two spells before playing your Jade Idol
or 2. Have Aya Blackpaw die when the phase changes, so whatever Jade Golem that gets summoned ends up next to the one she Deathrattled in. If you're forced to do method 1, make sure you waste a charge of the weapon. Otherwise, after casting 3 Jade Idol, you'll have three golems and three 1-cost minions, and none of the golems will be next to each other, forcing you to taunt something terrible. Other than that though, this phase should go extremely smoothly if everything with Nazra went well. Clear his big minions when needed, but you should have multiple 10/10+ Jade Golems on the board. Two or three turns and he should be dead. Things to note are that he does have Gorehowl, which he could use to kill a weaker Jade Golem, and Demonfire, which can power up his 6/6 minions to stand a chance against your Jades. It shouldn't matter much though. Mostly he'll just summon a bunch of weak minions that aren't worth a second thought.

 

And that's the guide! I hope any players who either missed some older formats or disenchanted their Wild cards can use this to beat the rudest dude crashing Medivh's epic party. Comment if you have suggestions on card swaps or your own takes on the deck!