Elemental Mage

Introduction

Elemental mage is an archetype that never got off the ground in un’goro. This is partly because of the inherent strength of the mage class cards in supporting more stall or burn heavy strategies, coupled with the fact the elementals as a whole tend toward a more value heavy play. For the past couple weeks, I’ve been working on a minion heavy elemental mage deck because there is a lot of potential for a board-oriented mage archetype capable of pushing damage consistently in a more proactive manner. 

This deck is still being developed, so I’m going to include a lengthier section on things that have been tired and the choices behind some of the inclusions. Also, I’m open to suggestions.

Strategy

This has become one of the more aggressive mage decks I’ve played which may be helping on ladder because the more prominent mage decks are centred around burn and stall rather than a heavy and early board push. The exception here is secret (or tempo) mage which still isn’t quite as aggressive a build. You’re looking to control the board and utilise your board to wear the opponent down, so your early plays need to focus on aggression and proactivity. If you can get the board you should be able to keep it utilising the mage’s hero power, innate burn potential and the early game minions. Utilise your mana, and save the Volcanic Potion for those moments after the opposing player has made a decent play to get a foothold, which will happen. The deck contains one Frost Nova (at one point there were 2 and I may go back to it) which does dual work as a stall option to stave off a possible lethal turn and a win condition by giving your board the chance to go for their life total for 2 turns in a row unless it’s answered.

Development

In the early days this was a very value oriented build because the elemental package just does that well. Servant of Kalimos was included along with shimmering tempest, kabal courier and Firelands Portal. It was also wildly inconsistent and dependent on getting key cards on the right turn. Other mage builds have similar problems but get around it through the secret package and/or stall potential. However, teching in either of these options resulted in gutting the elemental package and rapidly made me question why I wasn’t playing a different mage archetype. I ended up transitioning, over time, to a more aggressive build. Kabal Courier, the secret package, the Firelands Portal and Flamestrike all went in favour of cards I could depend upon more when I drew them early. Servant of Kalimos was a recent casualty because it always felt like too much of an investment on turn 5 when the board was often still in flux. It often sat in my hand while I sought a decent time to play it, assuming the board wasn’t mostly lost by turn 5. Its removal has actually improved consistency in many matchups, although it has hampered games that end up going for value.

As for the mana curve: there are now 6 one drops to improve the chances of finding them. The 2 drops, however, aren’t where I want them. Pyros has been a star of the deck if I still had board presence around turn 4 or 5, but I rarely want to drop him turn 2 unless I don’t have dual 1 drops or a Sorcerer’s Apprentice. The 4 slot is feeling really full since I added a Spellbreaker, so some attention may be needed there, possibly to make room for a 1 of Servant of Kalimos to help those occasions that go for value, although a cabalist tome may do that job better, or possibly just a more aggressive card choice.

Shimmering Tempest is, despite being an elemental, a bad choice. For one less mana you get babbling book which only has 1 less attack and gives you the spell immediately. In an emergency, you have to ping the tempest to get a spell that may save you, wasting 4 mana for a single spell (if the tempest was played that turn as well). I just found it a generally poor card I never felt good about playing on to the board. Adding in Firefly has meant I don’t miss it.

I’ve previously tried Doomsayer and a second Frost Nova with much success, but I found the Doomsayer had a habit of sticking in my hand when I was doing well on the board. Frost Nova, however, has been excellent, and I may be going back to a second one soon. In this deck it does double work, helping in both defensive and offensive plays. Doomsayer, on the other hand, is only useful when your behind. As a choice of preference adding it back in may not be a bad call to help you come back on those occasions when things go wrong.

The Gluttonous oozes have been such a fantastic tech option in the current meta, even helping against mages who drop medivh on curve, preventing Atiesh from stop your push with pure tempo potential. I tried dropping one but brought it back up to 2 for consistency.

The Spellbreaker is a recent addition because I like the idea of having a body attached more than a 1 of polymorph, although I’m still not sold on its inclusion yet.

I go back and forth on card draw such as a 1 of Arcane Intellect. It can help, but it can also hinder the early game, I really need to try adding one or two back in. For awhile there was an Arcanologist, Kirin Tor Mage and a couple secrets that rotated around a bit, but the tempo gain from secrets never felt substantial enough for the deck.

Comments

            Thanks for reading if you’ve made it this far! As I said, it’s still in development, but it’s feels a lot better to play. I’m hopeful for the next expansion, although I may try and lean a bit back towards the value game with Frost Lych Jenna. I’m a little concerned the death knight hero may prove inconsistent due to your dependence on drawing it to be relevant in
longer games, but it could go either way at this point. Anyway, let me know what you think in the comments, along with anything you’ve tried or suggest trying.