Rise of Shadows Post-Buff Decks – Hearthstone Pro & Streamer Deck Lists For All Classes

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In this post, we will round up successful, post-buff deck lists – both those that include buffed/new cards and those that don’t (although we will focus on the former, obviously).

It’s the first set of card buffs (not counting bug fixes) ever since the game went out of Beta over five years ago (time sure flies by). Last time we’ve seen a card buffed was Unleash the Hounds back in January 2014. It was buffed from 4 to 2 mana (to be then nerfed to the current 3 mana cost a few months later). Players have been asking the devs to buff cards for ages, and it seems that they have finally done it! While a part of those buffs will likely be irrelevant (some of the cards most likely won’t be viable even after getting their mana cost or stats adjusted), others look very promising. It’s hard to say whether they will “shake up” the meta as much as the nerfs, but it will definitely be interesting to tinker with the new cards for the first few days. And who knows? Maybe some new decks will pop up and become viable.

Besides buffs, every player will also get a free, golden copy of SN1P-SN4P, which might also affect the meta. While we won’t get the Priest’s infamous-even-before-its-out Turn 5 OTK (because, as you might remember, Reckless Experimenter is also getting changed), SN1P-SN4P still looks like a good Legendary. We might see it in certain Mech decks, such as Mech (or Bomb) Hunter or Mech Paladin. There’s also a chance that his effect will be good enough to run him in a non-Mech decks, ignoring the Magnetize part!

Here’s a full list of card changes as a reminder:

Druid

• Gloop Sprayer – Now costs 7 mana (down from 8).
• Mulchmuncher – Now costs 9 mana (down from 10).

Hunter

• Necromechanic – Now costs 4 mana (down from 5).
• Flark's Boom-Zooka – Now costs 7 mana (down from 8)

Mage

• Unexpected Results – Now costs 3 mana (down from 4).
• Luna's Pocket Galaxy – Now costs 5 mana (down from 7).

Paladin

• Crystology – Now costs 1 mana (down from 2).
• Glowstone Technician – Now costs 5 mana (down from 6).

Priest

• Extra Arms – Now costs 2 mana (down from 3).
• Cloning Device – Now costs 1 mana (down from 2).
• Reckless Experimenter – “Cost can’t be reduced below 1” added to the card’s effect.

Rogue

• Pogo-Hopper – Now costs 1 mana (down from 2).
• Violet Haze – Now costs 2 mana (down from 3).

Shaman

• Thunderhead – Now has 6 Health (up from 5).
• The Storm Bringer – Now costs 6 mana (down from 7).

Warlock

• Spirit Bomb – Now costs 1 mana (down from 2).
• Dr. Morrigan – Now costs 6 mana (down from 8).

Warrior

• Security Rover – Now has 6 Health (up from 5).
• Beryllium Nullifier – Now has 4 Attack (up from 3).

Card Buffs Q&A

Here are a few common questions about buffs and answers to them:

Q: Will there be a full Arcane Dust refund for buffed cards?

A: No, Dust refund works only for nerfed cards. While you COULD argue that any change can be a nerf depending on how you look at it (e.g. buffing a card from 5 to 4 mana means that it can no longer be played in Odd deck in Wild), Blizzard has clearly stated that when there’s a change that they perceive as positive (so every single one here), they won’t refund Dust. The ONLY card you will get a full Dust refund for is Reckless Experimenter, which is getting nerfed alongside buffs.

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Q: Are those buffs permanent, or will they only last throughout the Rise of the Mechs event?

A: Those buffs are permanent! Unless one of them breaks the game somehow – then it will probably be reverted.

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Q: Will we get more card buffs in the future?

A: We don’t know yet. This set of buffs is sort of a test run – devs have stated that if everything goes well, they are open to doing more card buffs in the future.

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Q: Will “More Arms” part of Extra Arms also cost 2 mana?

A: Yes, it will!

Rise of Shadows Post-Buff Deck Lists

We’ll be featuring a bunch of Post-Buff decks from pros & streamers. Keep in mind that the early meta can be volatile – not as much as when the expansion releases, but still. A certain deck working quite well right after the buffs (during the experimental period) doesn’t necessarily mean that it will stay as a part of the meta. So I would not recommend doing any extensive card crafting for the first few days.

Druid

Hunter

Mage

Paladin

Priest

Rogue

Shaman

Warlock

Warrior