Hearthpwn

Hey folks!

I want to present you my Control Priest variation which makes use of Alexstrasza and some burst spells in order to close out games much better than the usual deck does. This deck can play very controlly, but also really accelerate the game in some situations. For more explanation, read the deck description. I hope you like it!

Replaced one Azure Drake with Harrison Jones, because of the great number of Paladin/Shaman/Warrior/Rogue decks I encounter.

I removed one SW: Pain in order to include a second Circle Of Healing and replaced Hogger with Prophet Velen as I have been facing less Control and more Aggro/Midrange decks. 

Honestly, I don't see this working consistently, although it is an interesting concept. As with all Combo decks, I see Thaurissan working nicely, especially with Velen. 

Drop an Entomb for Emperor.  This type of deck needs the discount to otk lots of control classes.

How do you fair against control warrior?

1. This deck is not good against Classic Control Warrior. With Hogger instead of Velen the matchup is pretty winnable, but still not the best. C'Thun CW is even worse - if you face many C'Thun decks, run Hogger. He can win it on his own.

2. Thaurissan is still not needed, but would be good I guess - without Alexstrasza I would have to run him, but as until turn 9 I don't go face unless the opponent's board is cleared, I don't need Thaurissan. This is not an OTK deck. Velen is primarily there for the burst healing or to finish the opponent.

I just included Velen, because I face mainly Aggro decks and there he is better than Hogger, Doom of Elwynn - the card I usually run. I was so impressed of Hogger that I even am more tempted to include him for an Entomb than let's say a Thaurissan or another Excavated Evil.

I tested for some time something similar to your deck (but w/ Thaurrisan), but failed... Control and C'htun Warriors tends to armor up in oblivion and remove minions w/o problems, than fatique/C'htun... Pirate and dragon warriors creates problems (hard to stop w/o taunts and w/ only 1 weapon removal). Hunters and rogues stumped on me... Shamans and warlocks - i won only w/ hard early control and good AoE turns 5-6, but when i skipped first ~3 turns and they played >mediocore = almost everytime loss (if they didn't overextend). Tempo-mages/renolocks/freeze-mages/C'htun-druids - little experience, but hard too. Even other Priests (C'htun or N'zoth like) and Divine-shields palys can create considerable problems.

And high burst w/o Thaurrisan (so in 2 turns) seems unlikely to happen, so even N'zoth and C'htun (Murloc too) Palys are happy to see you...    

Whatever, for now i try some dragons (early taunts)+OTK (up to 30 dmg with Velen+1/2x MB+ EtS+2/1xFlash heals after 4 cards discount), that one feels somewhat inconsistent too, due to limited draw and w/o Auchenai Soulpriests. After 2-3 turns with top-decking into mind blast+mind blast+flash heals i prefer to stop playing)

Look, Thaurissan just SCREAMS combo right into your opponent's face, as does Velen. The thing is, I want to have a bit of  a surprise factor on my side. Ideally, my opponent battles me like he would against Standard Control Priest, what means he also expects the usual cards a Control Priest player would play. And then, on Turn 9, Alex drops and tells my opponent that he is in some bigger trouble applying lots of pressure. But then, it already is too late.

Quote from Traambone >>

... And then, on Turn 9, Alex drops and tells my opponent that he is in some bigger trouble applying lots of pressure. But then, it already is too late.

Quote from Traambone >>

Look, Thaurissan just SCREAMS combo right into your opponent's face, as does Velen. The thing is, I want to have a bit of  a surprise factor on my side. Ideally, my opponent battles me like he would against Standard Control Priest, what means he also expects the usual cards a Control Priest player would play. And then, on Turn 9, Alex drops and tells my opponent that he is in some bigger trouble applying lots of pressure. But then, it already is too late.

I know what you want to say and I agree with (almost) all of it. But I value having a more stable, consistent type of play more than a more fragile, OTK deck. And yes, Prophet Velen's potential isn't fully utilized in this deck, but for me the decision to play a more stable deck turns out to lead to better results. 

And again, Velen is almost always used for burst healing, situations in which you get to actually do your OTK are quite rare. I have now played over 70 games with the deck (68%, but I am honest, not every game was ranked) and in the last time I checked every time I drew Entomb if Thaurissan would be better and mostly he wouldn't. 

With Thaurissan, certain control matchups become slightly easier, but it is just not enough to warrant him a place. Velen really helps you against Aggro. But if you face lots of N'Zoth Paladin or just want more OTK synergy, then include him and a bit more card draw, so that the deck becomes more consistent. Another potential change would be Hogger/Ragnaros or another late-game card for Prophet Velen if you face more Control than Aggro.

You can try an Acidic Swamp Ooze out instead - or just go with another Azure Drake. If you feel like you're missing an AoE, you can run another Excavated Evil.