Dragon Warrior Deck List Guide (March 2017, Standard) – Season 36

The Dragon Warrior deck might be one of the answers to the Mean Streets of Gadgetzan meta, learn more about it with our Dragon Warrior Deck Guide!

Dragon Warrior is a strong and sometimes top tier deck for Hearthstone standard. Tempo Warrior became popular early in the Whispers of the Old Gods meta, but not too long after Dragon Warrior took over its spot. The deck is not control based, but is more Midrange-Tempo which requires you to be proactive and play more aggressively.

Update – Dragon Warrior in March 2017, Season 36

Dragon Warrior got a bump due to the nerfs to Small-Time Buccaneer and Spirit Claws. The deck isn’t as fast as it was before, but it can deal with aggressive deck, and it can pressure control decks.

Deck list is based off of Reddit user novemberpapa’s version of the deck.

Check out our List of the Best Standard Decks for Hearthstone Ladder

Dragon Warrior Mulligan Guide and Strategy

Always throw back Patches the Pirate, you want to get him for free.

N'Zoth's First Mate, Southsea Deckhand, Sir Finley Mrrgglton, Alexstrasza's Champion, and Fiery War Axe are your general mulligans. If you have a lower cost Dragon with Alexstrasza’s Champion then you can consider keeping it to enable it. However, your main focus is Fiery War Axe in just about every matchup, it is one of the best turn 2 plays in the game and will keep the initiative on your side of the board. Ravaging Ghoul or Fierce Monkey are potential keeps against Pirate Warrior if you have a 1 or 2-drop or you are on The Coin.

Always look for a good curve, you can keep a 3-drop if you have a 1 and 2-drop.

What Hero Power do I Choose with Sir Finley Mrrgglton?

In most decks that run Sir Finley the answer at the top is Warlock. It’s the best Hero Power in the game, and generates card draw where decks like this one lack it. Against aggressive decks, however, you might actually prefer something a bit more defensive like Druid or Mage. Hunter is solid for pressing damage, and this deck wants to be aggressive. Druid can buff your weapons, and Mage can sometimes work as a way to finish off minions without using your own.

Dragon Warrior Matchup Win Percentages

Here’s a look at how Dragon Warrior stacks up against other decks in the meta. Thanks to Metastats for allowing us to provide these statistics!

Winrate stats are currently unavailable for this deck at the moment!

Dragon Warrior Play Strategy

There are a lot of 1-drops in this deck, so you are hoping to start playing minions early. N’Zoth’s First Mate with Small-Time Buccaneer is very solid in the early game. Frothing Berserker does not need to be kept for combo turns, so playing it on a turn 3 is perfectly reasonable. This is especially the case when you have a Fiery War Axe to clear or can follow it up with Twilight Guardian that will protect it the turn afterwards.

Being a Tempo deck you are wanting to play minions while removing your opponents, this is why Alexstrasza's Champion (w/Dragon) and Kor'kron Elite can do a lot of work with the charge ability. One of the key things with this deck is being able to manage how you output your Dragons. Whether or not you will be able to activate something like Blackwing Corruptor in the following turns will determine whether or not you should play a Dragon. The best way to do this is to consider what deck your opponent is playing and determine their next potential plays and how you can deal with them.

This is not a face deck, so your Weapons should be used to clear minions and take lethal if given the opportunity. You will want to be careful of weapon removal like Acidic Swamp Ooze due to all the Aggro Pirate Warrior and Aggro Shaman on the ladder. Most Control decks are running Ooze or Harrison Jones.

The deck curves nicely into strong minions that can allow you to continue to maintain the board and deal damage. It runs The Curator which allows you to replenish your hand in the later game. The deck doesn’t really have a traditional finisher, it uses minions and weapons to control and bash down your opponent into submission. Drakonid Crusher is effectively your finisher, because your opponent has likely been using removal to try to keep your board clear, but will be hard pressed to remove a 9/9 at that point.

Dragon Warrior Card Replacements and Substitutions

• The Curator – A very solid card that allows you to draw in the late game and is one of the best draws when you are top decking. You can try Malkorok or Grommash Hellscream if you don’t have The Curator, a Grimy Gadgeteer or Arathi Weaponsmith are also good.
• Sir Finley Mrrgglton – This is a pretty powerful card because Warrior’s Hero Power doesn’t synergize that well with this deck.  Faerie Dragon is a decent option in its place.
• Fierce Monkey – If you don’t have LOE then you can try a Arathi Weaponsmith or Grimy Gadgeteer. You are really looking for a 3-drop because the deck has a lot of 4s and 5s, so Blackwing Technician might also be a good option.
• Deathwing – I wouldn’t craft it if you don’t have it, but it can be a nice way to steal games when you’ve run out of resources. Any of the above options are worth pursuing, Malkorok or Grommash Hellscream can be a nice addition.

Dragon Warrior Combos and Synergies

Be very aware of when you need to hold onto a Dragon to enable stuff like Blackwing Corruptor because he’s very important removal in this deck.