Team WildSide Wild Meta Report (October 2021)
Four decks stand at the top of the meta, and two of which are still Warlock's. There is more room for fun and creativity, as long as you can dodge these four decks or counter at least one of them. The meta seems to be in a healthier spot, but a breath of fresh air from the mini-set is still welcomed.
We would like to thank these top legend players who have given us their expert opinions and helped with writing the report: RenoJackson, matSund, Goku, LovelyDuke, Memnarch, ForChrist, Cubyyy, qwerty, jjjjj, Yerna, Ail, Battletagger, SmellyHuffer, Lasagne, and LordXav. Their Twitters are to be listed at the end of the report.
We would like to give a huge shoutout to our patrons for making this possible. If you really like the report and want us to keep going, please consider becoming a Patron here: https://www.patreon.com/thewildside
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Welcome to the second Edition of Team WildSide’s Wild Meta Snapshot for 2021!
In this meta report, we will be going through a tier list of 71 decks we’ve seen frequently on ladder, explain the method of computing the tier list, break down the meta and analyze the decks as detailed as they need to be. In this report, we have included a Meta Ranking and will be further discussing the state of each class in terms of power and diversity. Also, we’re including some WildSide special decklists that were made by none other than our experts!
While making this report, we have access to 50,000+ games worth of data, courtesy of Firestone and Gerben. We use this data to aid our decision-making and help keep our report as accurate as it can be.
METHOD
We collected our experts’ opinions through a spreadsheet, where our Top Wild legend players will rate the given decks with a corresponding score from 1 to 4 in increments of 0.5 (with 1 being top Tier 1 and 4 being bottom Tier 4). During the rating period, our experts had access to Wild data given by Firestone and were allowed to discuss among each other. We then collect the result, standardize and categorize them in 4 different Tiers. This is what they mean:
Tier 0 (Absolute oppression)
The one deck to beat. You either play it or play decks that can beat it.
Tier 1 (Meta-defining)
Highly-optimised decks with extreme raw power that are very well positioned in the meta.
Tier 2 (High-legend viable)
Competitive decks that are not as well-rounded, but can snatch games off of Tier 1 decks or prey on their direct counters.
Tier 3 (Legend-viable)
Fringe decks that can succeed in the right meta, but are either suboptimal or outdated.
Tier 4 (Average)
Decks at a weaker power level that require an extensive understanding to be able to pilot well, but are not recommended for ladder experience.
Tier 5 (Meme)
Decks that aren’t typically played for the purpose of climbing ladder, but still have a decent enough presence to be included in the report.
Within each tier, decks are categorized to either High tier, Mid tier or Low tier to further differentiate their power level.
For Meta Ranking analysis, we allocate points to each deck from Tier 0 to Tier 3 then sum them up. The point system for rating a single deck is as below:
Tier 0: 22
Tier 1: 18 (High), 15 (Mid), 12 (Low)
Tier 2: 9 (High), 7 (Mid), 5 (Low)
Tier 3: 3 (High), 2 (Mid), 1 (Low)
Each deck is also assigned a popularity ranking and a respective coefficient multiplier based on its popularity. The highest multiplier is 12 and the lowest is 7. For example, if Odd Paladin is High Tier 1 and has a multiplier of 12, it will bring the class an additional 216 points.
Therefore, a class can be placed highly on the Ranking system based on one (or both) of these elements: having a few strong decks (deck power) or having many decks (class diversity). If classes share the same score, the class with more top decks will be ranked higher.
REMARKS
The general consensus seem to be that the Demon Seeds ban has changed the Wild landscape for the better. Instead of revolving around a single overpowered deck, there are at least a few options at the top of the food chain for players to choose from. Although the strongest decks still wield a considerable influence over the meta, the power level scale is less skewed towards the top. There’s more room for slower decks that can consistently fend off Aggro to thrive (namely Reno Warlock); however, most slow Midrange decks are constrained by Even Warlock’s efficiency.
Nevertheless, the ban looks more like a bandaid than a permanent solution. Even though the Demon Seeds has long gone, the meta-shaping impact of questlines is still felt all over the meta. Of the four top decks, two are Questline decks that generate crazy value AND tempo in one single card. Pirate Warrior never seems to run out of threat, and Odd Hunter never seems to fall short of damage. We’ve seen how the shift towards buildaround value-packed single card (like Death Knights) can be detrimental to deckbuilding, and the restrictive and repetitive nature of Questlines might make it some of the dullest top dogs to play against.
Although there are four decks that are clearly leagues above the rest, the meta is more lenient towards weaker and more experimental decks. Decks like Celestial Druid and Ignite Mage thrives on targeting specific top dogs, while Reno Warlock and Even Hunter have a generally better matchup spread. More diversity is always welcomed, though.
TIERLIST
This is a single screenshot taken from our spreadsheet if you find the tierlist infographics too long (you can open the photo in another tab to see the full-sized picture).
TIER 1
HIGH
Odd Questline Hunter
Ranked: 1 (+4)
Odd Questline Hunter is a Control-Combo deck that synergizes with cheap 1 and 3 cost damage spells to progress the questline. Those spells, in conjunction with the 3 damage hero power, make it Hunter’s version of Raza Priest, dealing out massive amounts of damage and capable of ending the game much earlier than its predecessor.
For the first time ever, Rexxar has a deck that sits at the top of the meta, and it is Odd Questline Hunter. Using spells like Wound Prey, On The Hunt, and Rapid Fire, this deck is capable of massive amounts of board control and preys on the many aggro decks in the format. The rest of the deck is filled with card draw (with a tradeable package often included), more expensive burn spells, and synergistic cards that work well with the upgraded hero power (namely Aimed Shot and Toxic Reinforcements). Beardo is also a common inclusion in Odd Questline Hunter lists, being able to reward the player by allowing them to combo off a turn or 2 early. Another common tech card is Rustrot Viper, providing answers to Pirate Warrior’s Ancharrr, while being a redraw in the late game.
The current iteration of the deck does have a few weaknesses, namely in decks that can outarmor the Hunter or prevent it from going face (namely Druids or Pillager Rogue) or decks that play a disproportional amount of Hunter hate cards like Handbuff Paladin. Being the strongest deck in the meta, many decks try to counter Hunter using Kobold Monk and Robe (Handbuff Paladin) or the Finley combo (Reno Warlock), some more successful than others. Nevertheless, decks that manage to bring down the top dog of Wild are few and are often niche Tier 3 decks. This means Odd Questline Hunter is in prime position to claim the glory spot for Rexxar.
Even Highlander Warlock
Ranked: 2 (+18)
Even Highlander Warlock is an Even deck that utilizes Genn Greymane and Highlander cards. By playing only 1-ofs, the deck gains from the ability of Reno Jackson, Zephrys, and Kazakus, while still has access to powerful traditional Even plays like Mountain Giant, Molten Giant, and Anetheron.
Even Highlander Warlock is arguably the better Even deck, or at least according to our experts. It’s just the more well-rounded deck out of the two, capable of beating most meta decks right now (yes, even Even Warlock). It’s weaker into Odd Hunter than Evenlock since it can’t exert early pressure as reliably, but otherwise you should be playing this over the non-Highlander version.
There are plenty of ways to build an Even Highlander Warlock. The greedier decks play either N’Zoth the Corruptor or Bloodreaver Gul’dan (or both) on top of a heavy demon curve. Some players also opt for Demonic Project and Dirty Rat against Combo and Nerubian Unraveler for Druids, Mages, and Hunters. In any case, Warlock is still the best class, and playing the best deck from the best class doesn’t sound half bad.
Pirate Warrior
Ranked: 3 (+1)
Pirate Warrior is one of Wild most iconic and established Aggro decks. The deck relies on minion pressure from Pirates and combine them with high damage weapons to finish off the opponent. Ancharrr is often the main draw engine, but the deck usually doesn’t need draws to finish its job.
After the nerfs to Darkglare Warlock and the ban of Questline Warlock, Pirate Warrior once again cements itself as one of the best decks in the format after gaining a definite win condition in Stormwind. Raid the Docks has shifted the curve extremely low, encouraging players to take advantage of one-cost Pirates to get Cap’n Rokara in play as rapidly as possible. The Juggernaut proves to be an incredibly effective value engine, pumping out pressure every turn until your opponent inevitably runs out of answers. As such, it can beat control decks that lack proactiveness. The quickness of its early game and cannon shots, both from Ship’s Cannon and the 2nd stage of the quest, also enables it to easily take over the board against other aggro decks, a stark contrast to quest decks of old. This deck is well-positioned in the meta due to its sheer power level.
However, it performs better in lower ranks than in high legend, where the meta is highly refined with Odd Hunter and Evenlock (both Reno and non-Reno) being more popular. The former has plenty of removal spells and the hero power to easily remove all of the warrior’s threats. The latter has some of the best AOE against Pirate Warrior in Defile and Soul Rend, and pirate warrior cannot effectively deal with an early Giant unless it draws its only soft counter in the form of Shiver me Timbers. As such, Pirate Warrior is placed below these two decks. Nevertheless, Garrosh’s sweetheart is consistently dominant against Ignite Mage and other tier 2-3 decks, so it ranks comfortably tier 1.
LOW
Even Warlock
Ranked: 4 (+9)
Even Warlock is a deck that capitalizes on the one-mana hero power granted by Genn Greymane as a trade-off for playing only even-costed cards. It damages itself so it can play powerful minions like Mountain Giants and Anetheron early on, smashing its opponent for 8+ damage a turn.
Warlock is still the top class, but at least its best decks are doing arguably fairer things now. Even Warlock has been forgotten for so long, but players can no longer ignore its ability after powerful cards like Anetheron and Goldshire Gnome were printed. Spicy Bread Baker also shores up its weaknesses in a lack of healing, and makes it so you don’t need to sacrifice your second Giants just to heal back to 30.
Having the ability to play 2-ofs also means that Even Warlocks can play two copies of tech cards against popular decks like Cult Neophyte or Golakka Crawler. However, Even Warlock is not too good against Even Reno Warlock and decks that can remove individual threats after threats like Reno Warlock. With decks that don’t have any defense against Giants, however, the game might just end by Turn 5 for them, or Turn 6 at the latest (which is when the Battlemaster comes down).
TIER 2
HIGH
Ignite Mage
Ranked: 5 (+2)
Ignite Mage is a combo deck centered around its newly-introduced namesake spell, which is shuffled back into its owner’s deck with +1 spell damage each time it is played. With Sanctum Chandler and two Sorcerer’s Apprentices in play, Mages can cast this spell infinitely and deal as much damage as the game’s turn timer allows.
The next best deck is unsurprisingly a decent deck into 3 out of 4 top meta players. In the past year and a half, Blizzard has nerfed Open the Waygate, Evocation, Refreshing Spring Water, and Incanter’s Flow. However, as long as Sorcerer’s Apprentice can reduce spells to 0, Combo Mage will find a way into the wild meta. Beyond Ignite itself, the introduction of Hot Streak represents a major boon to Ignite Mage, allowing them to cheaply copy key minions with Molten Reflection and activating Sanctum Chandler’s draw effect. In the current meta, Ice Block gives Ignite Mage reliable wins against Warlocks (if they can’t draw their tech cards), Odd Hunter, and Alignment Druids, and the mana cheats provided by Conjure Mana Biscuit and Elemental Evocation give it the chance to scam even the most aggressive of opponents.
While Ignite Mage boasts a reliable win condition and incredible highroll potential, its glaring weakness to Aggro decks have led us to rate it as mid-tier 2 in the current meta. Luckily for Ignite Mage, Shadow Priest have fallen out of favor and the new wave of control decks like Big Priest and Reno Warlock gives the Mage more free wins on ladder. Although we feature lists from both spell-based and minion-based versions here, minion-based lists have become favored at high legend due to their increased consistency on combo turns.
MID
Highlander Warlock
Ranked: 6 (+23)
Highlander Warlock is a Control deck that relies on the one-of mechanics to activate its hefty payoff cards like Zephrys and Reno Jackson. It usually plays a big demon package as well as Brann/Zola for extra value, while utilizing some of the most powerful board clears in the game.
Highlander’s strength lies in its flexibility. It can tech against combo with Dirty Rat and Mutanus, against Hunter with Finley/Wizard and Loatheb, against Pirate Warrior with Golakka Crawler, and against Evenlock with Dark Skies, Big Game Hunter, and Hysteria. However, it doesn’t always execute the gameplan it wants to. Simply removing the Warrior’s threats isn’t enough without swingy demon turns, and not hitting tech cards against Combo spells certain defeat. As such, Highlander Warlock is often inferior to the faster and equally flexible Even Highlander Warlock.
That said, there are merits to playing Highlander Warlock in this meta. While it can lose against anything, it can win against anything given the right hand. It’s also a deck that benefits from opponents misplaying (for example, finishing the Hunter quest on Turn 5 without playing Tavish) and mulliganing for Even Warlock. The element of surprise works in Highlander Warlock’s favor, and more often than not it can take advantage of that.
Malygos Druid
Ranked: 7 (-1)
Malygos Druid is a combo deck that takes advantage of Druid’s impressive defensive package to hold out against aggressive opponents until it can play Celestial Alignment. Once Alignment has been played, the opponent has at most one turn before an onslaught of card draw, spell damage, and big minions decimates their board and face.
Still powerful after Questline Warlock leaves the scene and Odd Hunter takes over, Malygos Druid is unable to climb higher in the tierlist due to the appearance of the unfavored Even Warlock matchups. Injured Marauder is devastating to any aggressive opponents once it comes into play, and Escaped Manasaber provides the mana cheat to combo on the turn Celestial Alignment is played, leaving opponents with no opportunity to abuse the mana cheat it provides. If Swipes and Ultimate Infestations are not enough to kill its opponents, the oppressive boards left behind after combo turns provide enough pressure for Druid to succeed.
Celestial Druid highrolls can rarely be beat; however, the main challenge this deck faces is getting there. The plethora of 7-10 cost cards can quickly become bricked against aggro opponents, the deck runs no tools to deal with giants, and failing to draw Celestial Alignment in time represents a death sentence for Druid in a wide range of matchups. Due to these consistency issues, we place Malygos Druid at Tier 2 in this meta report.
LOW
Even Hunter
Ranked: 8 (+9)
Even Hunter is a fast Midrange deck powered by Genn Greymane’s hero power discount. Even Hunter capitalizes on various cards that take advantage of the low cost hero power like Garrison Commander, Phase Stalker, and Dragonbane to bring opponents to their quick demise.
While Odd Questline Hunter is soaking up the spotlight, its often overlooked counterpart has quietly carved out a niche for itself. Even Hunter is quite reminiscent of old-school Face Hunter, foregoing odd cost cards to discount its hero power. Using a combination of early board presence and efficient end-game burn, Even Hunter looks to close out the game early by sticking Felfire Deadeye to make your hero power free, Garrison Commander to let you hero power twice a turn, and Dragonbane to get you over the finish line. To help ensure board presence you run a small secret package with Mad Scientist and Phase Stalker to get them into play for free. The last few slots are dedicated to burn from Quick Shot, Knife Vendor, and Piercing Shot. Some versions play Cornelius Roame for the extra draw, but games often have finished by the time he’s played.
Even Hunter takes the best advantage of a predictable meta such as high legend but also has some considerable application elsewhere on the ladder. Even Hunter preys on Ignite Mage, Pillager Rogue, and the different iterations of Celestial Druid while maintaining a very solid matchup into Odd Questline Hunter and Even Warlock. Where the deck struggles, however, is to decks with healing and continual board presence such as Even Highlander Warlock, Questline Pirate Warrior, and Odd Paladin. While you can outrace these decks, it is very difficult to ever find your footing if they take over control of the board. Despite Even Hunter’s very strong strengths, its weaknesses are very exploitable, landing it at Tier 2.
Mech Handbuff Paladin
Ranked: 9 (RETURNING)
Mech Handbuff Paladin is a fast Midrange deck that wins by stacking Handbuffs on Magnetic Mechs for favorable trades or pseudo-charge damage. Mechs with Magnetic and Divine Shield keywords like Annoy-o-Module are excellent target for handbuff cards such as Grimestreet Outfitter and can end games surprisingly early.
This might come as a surprise (or proof to the current worrying state of Paladin), but Mech Handbuff is back and it’s coming back in style. Paladin needs a fast and direct deck, and Handbuff does the job well. Its minions can stick on board against Odd Hunter if they get big enough. Against Warlocks, Divine Shield makes it so a big mech can trade into a Giant and survive. Not to say these matchups are favored, but the Paladin can deal with them better than most other Paladin decks.
Surprisingly, Mech Handbuff Paladin sports a consistent 60% winrate against Pirate Warrior in most data brackets. This can be attributed to the plethora of Taunt minions they play. A single Mech sticking on board can become a huge Taunt that a Pirate Warrior just won’t ever pass. Other than that, Mech Paladin is just the superior deck into other Paladins, and can pressure Mages so hard that their Blocks pop while they’re still scrambling for combo pieces.
Mecha’thun Druid
Ranked: 10 (-2)
Mecha’thun Druid relies on the same early removal and mana cheat engines as its spell damage-based cousin. However, it seeks to end the game with Mecha’thun’s deathrattle effect, providing inevitability to an already-powerful combo deck. Celestial Alighment allows the Druid player to draw the entire deck and drop the combo in a single turn.
Aggro Shadow Priest
Ranked: 11 (-8)
Enabled by Darkbishop Benedictus, Shadow Priest introduces a brand new way of playing Priest following United in Stormwind. Packing a plethora of high-damage cards like Voidtouched Attendant, Mind Blast, and Shadowbomber, the deck can finish the game as early as Turn 2. Popular builds include Pirates to gain early control of the board.
After an archetype-defining card was printed for the deck and the dark influence of Warlocks seeping into the meta, Benedictus has risen from the shadows as a beacon of hope. As a hyper-Aggro deck with an efficient burn package, Aggro Priest seeks to close out games before Warlocks and slow Combo decks can gain a foothold. A solid game against Warlocks and Mages has kept the deck in Tier 2, but the departure of Questline Warlock means there isn’t that cutting edge against the meta anymore. The nerf to Illucia means that the pseudo handlock is also gone, and the Priest has no choice but to unleash all the damage it can and hope for the best.
As mentioned, Voidtouched Attendant has proved to be the damage output this deck needed to push it to viability. Whether you highroll Pirates, Frenzied Felwing with a large board, Aggro Shadow Priest’s damage output is nothing to scoff at. There are a couple of glaring weaknesses worth noting. Malygos Druid is close to unwinnable without Illucia. Odd Questline Hunter is ruthless at removing the Priest’s pressure. Pirate Warrior has much more reload. Many hard matchups for Aggro Priest are currently sitting at the top, and it makes it so the Priest can have a hard time on ladder despite being a strong deck.
TIER 3
HIGH
Handbuff Paladin
Ranked: 12 (+9)
Handbuff Paladin is a fast Midrange deck that sacrifices a couple first turns for huge tempo gains in the form of overstatted minions. It plays a variety of Handbuff cards along with minions that benefit from scaling stats like Argent Horserider or Blademaster Samuro, before bursting down opponents with charge minions.
Handbuff Paladin has seen quite a transformation to fit the current meta. With buff cards like Hand of A’dal and Conviction being nerfed, some players a shifting away from them and find a new package to fit the meta. With Odd Hunter being rampant and Ignite Mage a constant menace, they seem to have a great solution: the anti-spell package. Robes of Protection, Kobold Monk, and Cult Neophyte are all annoying minions and are even more so when they’re buffed. If that’s not enough, you can chuck in a couple of Rebukes and call it a day. This makes Handbuff Paladin an extremely tough deck to deal with as Spell-based decks, while still have a chance against Pirate Warrior with a well-time Samuro turn.
The problem with Handbuff Paladin now is, of course, burst. Tech cards don’t hit very hard even after they’ve gained stats, so Handbuff often struggles to close out games against Even Renolock, Renolock, and Druids. And it’s not like they can just gain burst back now that the single best burst card (Conviction) has been nerfed. All in all, Handbuff Paladin has a place in the meta in its current iteration, but you have to know your pocket meta when you decide to queue it.
Cute Warlock
Ranked: 13 (+1)
Cute Warlock is a fast token deck that got its name from playing ‘cute’ 0-mana cards. The goal of the deck is to offload its hand as quickly as possible and make early boards that are impossible to clear using Hobgoblin, Grim Rally, and Wicked Whispers. The deck typically plays a mini Discard package which allows it to refuel and finishes off the game.
Most token decks have really struggled in a meta where everything is faster than them, but one still retains its neck-breaking speed that can steal any game. Cute Warlock can often produce impossible boards before their opponents can assemble theirs, and some boards are too tough for even Odd Questline Hunter to remove. Of course, consistency is still a big issue with this deck, which means that it might never be good enough to truly be considered a counter to anything at the moment.
Cutelock didn’t gain anything in United in Stormwind, but is still a strong and engaging deck to play. If you want to play Warlock and not be called names, this might be the deck for you.
Pirate Rogue
Ranked: 14 (+2)
Pirate Rogue (Scimitar Rogue/Aggro Rogue) is a fast, aggressive deck that relies on Hooked Scimitar and Pirates to do early chip damage and aims to finish the game with a variety of burn spells.
Pirate Rogue’s previous iteration was a polarised anti Questline Warlock hate deck. It’s unsurprising, that the metagame which formed after the ban on The Demon Seed has been extremely unfavorable to Pirate Rogue. The removal of an overwhelmingly popular favorable matchup, the rise of unfavorable matchups of Questline Warrior and Even Highlander Warlock, and a (slightly) more diverse field are all bad news for the viability of the archetype.
Nonetheless, the deck can still excel as a solid counter to Odd Questline Hunter and Ignite Mage. The recent inclusion of Cloak of Shadows further solidifies an already favoured matchups, while occasionally buying a turn vs Even Warlocks and Questline Warrior. Unfortunately, as is the case for most decks with similar play patterns, it is extremely difficult to be well rounded. Tech cards against other meta giants are few and far between, on top of not being particularly effective anyway. Overall, it is possible to have a positive win record with the deck, but pilots will find most success in pocket metas full of favourable matchups.
Odd Rogue
Ranked: 15 (+6)
Odd Rogue is a fast, aggressive archetype that utilises the Upgraded Hero Power via Baku the Mooneater to enable weapon synergies and maintain consistent pressure on the opponent’s health total throughout the game while amassing game-ending burn damage.
Odd Rogue has certainly seen better days. Questline Warlock was a good matchup and the main archetype keeping Odd Rogue afloat. The ban resulted the rise of unfavourable matchups of Questline Warrior and Even Highlander Warlock. Before the release of United in Stormwind, Odd Rogue was about even into Pirate Warrior, due to it’s excellent ability at early board control with the 2/2 Dagger, eventually running the Warrior out of resources. However, the Questline has shored up both former Pirate Warrior’s weaknesses. On the other end, Even Highlander Warlock plays a lot of taunts which prevent a very significant portion of Rogue’s damage. Odd Rogue is torn between two extremes and thus finds itself on the losing side.
However, Odd Rogue can stand a chance where some other aggressive decks, including other Rogue decks, fall. Loatheb is a powerhouse which can swing the typically unfavoured Celestial Druid, as well as doing damage to Odd Questline Hunter and Ignite Mage. Odd Rogue’s win condition being as simple as pressing the hero power often makes it a very consistent deck to this day, singlehandedly keeping it alive. Most recent additions of Peasant and SI:7 Extortion weren’t groundbreaking, but much needed quality of life improvements to the deck. Overall, the archetype is on the weaker side into the field, but could be useful into specific pocket metas.
Big Priest
Ranked: 16 (+28)
Big Priest is a Control deck that relies on clearing threats until they can cheat out minions and bring them back over and over. Against Aggro, rolling an early taunt can win the game instantaneously, while against Control, the combination of value and tempo is often enough to cheese opponents out of the game.
Big Shaman
Ranked: 17 (+39)
Big Shaman is a Control deck that plays out similarly to Big Priest. Big Shaman can often cheat out big threats early on and make them stick on board to deny the opponents from either going face or removing their threats.
This might come as a surprise, but Big Shaman is one of the deck with the highest recorded winrate across Diamond and Legend ranks. It does have a better anti-aggro game than Big Priest and can definitely shut down Pirate Warriors with an early Ancestor’s Call or Muckmorpher. It doesn’t do too badly against Hunters with the early pressure, as well as against Mages with Call’s symmetrical summoning. Shaman is admittedly not good against Evenlocks, but if you can get an Ancestral Spirit to stick on a Colossal or Eureka into Y’Shaarj, you still have a way out. Or you can just be really creative and add in a Runaway Blackwing to immediately one-shot any big threat you pull out from your opponent’s hand. The new 8-mana demon is also a really solid addition to both Big Shaman as well as Big Priest and can often get both decks out of range of potential burst.
Of course, the limited data we have from Big Shaman is highly likely to be an outlier and it is not in any way justifiable to put it in Tier 3. Nevertheless, take Big Shaman out for a spin and you might be pleasantly rewarded.
Overload Shaman
Ranked: 18 (-8)
Overload Shaman is an aggro deck that aims to take the board early and finish off the opponent with huge amounts of burst damage. While Shaman normally has limited card draw, Spirit of the Frog negates this weakness by allowing the player to draw a series of burn spells and play them in a single turn. Alternatively, Tunnel Trogg can also be a secondary win condition. Its presence necessitates immediate removal by the opponent, or Overload cards like Lightning Bloom can rapidly increase its attack to dangerous levels.
Overload Shaman (formerly known as Aggro Shaman) has become much better this expansion. With the introduction of Overdraft, the deck can negate any tempo loss by Overload incurred on the next turn. This card really shines in conjunction with Perpetual Flame, another new addition that can clear a board and deal massive burn damage with the very low cost of 2 mana. It is this synergy that allows Overload Shaman able to have a fighting chance against aggro. The copious amounts of burn damage also allow it to dominate the Questline Warlock matchup, whose health is usually low enough to enter into burn range. It is this advantage against the most popular deck that allows Overload Shaman to be viable in this meta.
However, Overload Shaman also has distinct weaknesses, one of which is the lack of openers. Without any 1-drops besides Tunnel Trogg, the opponent can comfortably execute their gameplan in the first few turns when the Frog isn’t drawn. The over-reliance on burn damage instead of minion damage also means that it cannot beat decks that gain armor or heal, such as Questline Druid. Finally, Spirit of the Frog and Lightning Bloom are essential for the deck to chain burn spells and tutor its important 1-mana spells. The Frog is so crucial to Shaman’s gameplan that it even plays Meat Wagon in the hope of getting a free Frog on Turn 5. The lack of draw other than Spirit of the Frog means the deck lives or dies by the card. Due to this inconsistency, we can only put Overload Shaman on top of tier 3.
Questline Hunter
Ranked: 19 (-1)
Odd Questline Hunter but worse.
Odd Questline Hunter but worse. There are some merits to playing a Starving Buzzard package and having extra reach with Quick Shot. But let’s be honest. Has card draw and reach ever been Questline Hunter’s problem? Not to mention you deal 1 less damage with every refresh.
Pillager Rogue
Pillager Rogue is a combo deck that uses Spirit of the Shark, Spectral Pillager, and various mana cheat cards to kill opponents in one turn. Shroud of Concealment and Elven Minstrel give the deck consistency by tutoring key minions. The deck can go off as early as Turn 4, or Turn 3 with the Coin.
Ranked: 20 (-11)
Everybody’s favorite counter deck. Pillager Rogue is a particularly good deck on High Legend where you can use it as a rotation deck to counter very specific pocket meta, but outside of that, it gets overrun by most aggressive decks barring Odd Questline Hunter (thank you, Evasion and Cloak of Shadows). It’s pretty easy for a newbie to misplay with the deck, which drastically brings down its winrate, but with the right sequencing it can be pretty lethal. By lethal, we mean the deck can draws its entire combo with a couple Mistrels, and can kill the opponent as early as Turn 4.
Of course, Pillager Rogue doesn’t take Pirate Warrior and Shadow Priest too kindly. Ignite Mage also presents a challenge as the Rogue can easily lose to an Ice Block that’s ever-present, whereas Valeera’s defensive options only buy her a turn.
Tax Paladin
Ranked: 21 (-10)
Tax Paladin is a Midrange deck that plays some of the most annoying 2 drops in the form of Far Wach Post and Nerub’ar Weblord to lock the opponent out of the game. Call to Arms can effectively cheat these minions out, while early secrets can prevent a timely board clear. The main goal of the deck is to deny board interaction while it chips away the opponent’s health with its pesky 2 drops.
It’s a sad time to be a Paladin player, as some of their strongest Midrange options find themselves in an increasingly hostile meta. However, unlike Odd and Even Paladin, Tax Paladin capitalizes on the unique current landscape to ply its trade, doing what it does best: denying opponents their gameplan. Plenty of key cards in this meta are 1-costed and battlecries, like Kobold Librarian, N’zoth’s First Mate, and Questline rewards. Slowing them down a couple turns is usually enough for the Paladin to build a board that cannot be taken back.
A lack of Control decks allow the Tax Paladin to go all-in on the boardlock gameplan. Noble Mount has seen some play as a way to protect Nerub’ar Weblord against removals like Spirit Bomb. Mindbreaker and Robes of Protector can be a real nuisance for Odd Hunter. However, if the deck can’t establish an early advantage, its plan is effectively ruined. A decent matchup against Warlocks, Warriors, and Hunters put it at the top of Tier 3, it you really need the right tech cards and opening hand for the right adversary.
TIER 4
CLASS META RANKING
Deck Codes (other Decks)
CONTACT
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