Hearthpwn

Preface

This deck is aimed at newer players, intended to be as cheap as possible, while sacrificing as little strength as possible. This Hunter deck utilizes 8 basic cards, and 22 common cards. Making a budget hunter deck isn't particularly difficult, but I did want to see just how far I could stretch it, without hurting it's viability. This deck focuses on securing board presence early, and then using one of several snowball mechanics to win the game. The main weakness is that its only comeback mechanic is Unleash the Hounds, and that usually only works if you're not actually that far behind.

Mulligan

Against almost every class, you want to look for Fiery Bat or Alleycat. These are your premium one drops, and turn one is important for Hunter. Consider keeping Jeweled Macaw as well. If you have a one drop, the next thing to look for is Crackling Razormaw and Scavenging Hyena. Both of these are powerful turn two plays that can put your opponent in a really bad spot. 

The only real reason to worry about your opponent's class during the mulligan is if they are Priest or Druid. In both cases, if you already have a good opener, you can look for Bearshark. This card, when buffed by Houndmaster, can single-handedly win you the game against most Priest variants, and any Jade Druids you find.

Gameplan

For the first few turns, your goal is to secure the board. You want dominance, because that lets you make favorable trades and steadily increase your number of minions. Usually by turn 3 or 4, one of two things will have happened. The first scenario is that the opponent responds quickly to your threats, depriving you of the board advantage you seek. They had all the right answers, and you just can't keep up. Certain combos in your deck might allow you to recover. Scavenging Hyena paired with Unleash the Hounds could let you clear your opponents board, while giving them a huge minion to deal with. If this doesn't work, then you might be done for. Your best bet is to try to squeeze in every bit of damage you can on the enemy hero. Double Kill Command has cleared out many a game that was once thought lost.

If you manage to secure the board, then it's time to do what this deck does best, and overwhelm your enemy with damage. Buff your minions, use that hero power, and keep damaging that enemy hero. Try to keep the enemy's board clear until you are reasonable sure you can kill them in the next turn or two. At which point, it's time to ignore almost any enemy minion that doesn't have taunt. 

Improvement

So you want to know how to make this deck better? Well, the single card that would make this deck competitively viable is Deathstalker Rexxar. This card isn't necessary for half your games, and sometimes, playing it and getting rid of your hero power is a bad thing. But what this card gives you is a comeback mechanic. Against other aggressive decks, this gives you life gain, board clear, and card generation all at once, and that's crazy good. Against control decks, you can sometimes create enough beasts that let you squeeze out a victory you never would've had a chance at before. 

Legendaries aside, good add-ins for this deck include Eaglehorn Bow (It's a weapon, which is great for both controlling the board, and getting some more face damage), Golakka Crawler (this card can swing so many games against decks that run Patches the Pirate, and it's a beast, so it's not that bad otherwise), Savannah Highmane (a really strong card that can close out games if unanswered), and Kindly Grandmother (another strong 2 drop, which gives your deck a little more consistency).

Need space for your new cards? You might want to take out a copy of Spellbreaker if you don't find yourself needing it that often, or both Dire Wolf Alphas if you have something better. Animal Companion and Unleash the Hounds both take up part of the over-saturated 3-drop slot, so maybe try swapping out a copy or two.