This week’s Tavern Brawl is “Half & Half”!
Discuss this Tavern Brawl on our Discord!
Official Description for Half & Half
Create a deck of 15 cards. At the start of the game, we’ll complete your deck with a copy of your opponent’s!
Half & Half Chalkboard
General Information
- You get one card pack from the latest expansion for winning your first game this week.
- It’s the fifth time we see this Brawl. Last time we’ve seen it on January 18, 2023.
- It’s a PvP Brawl.
- The Brawl’s format is Wild.
- It’s a build-your-own deck Brawl. Pick a class and build a 15 cards deck.
- The Brawl is really simple, just like the description suggests. You build 15 cards deck, then at the start of the game you also get your opponent’s 15 cards and they get yours. So you’re both playing the same deck, half of which was built by you and the second half by your opponent.
- If e.g. both you and your opponent add two copies of a certain card, you will end up with 4 copies in your final list.
- Fun fact: You can use Nozdormu the Eternal to guarantee a Blitz matchup (since your opponent will also always have it if you add it to your deck).
One deck strategy I wanted to share is weapon rogue. Most opponents do not play weapons, so all the weapon buffs are useless for them. Rogue can activate their hero power on turn 2, proceed with Swarthy Swordshiner, Sharp Shipment etc. The options are manyfold, just play what suis you.
This deck could also use Mindbreaker (hero powers are disabled) or Sideshow Spelleater (copy your opponent’s hero power), because it does not need its own hero power and could really shut down totem shaman and silver hand paladin with Mindbreaker after clearing the board with Blade Flurry, or it could use all that buffs after acquiring the totem/silver hand hero power through Sideshow Spelleater.
weapon rogue:
2x (1) Deadly Poison
2x (1) Leeching Poison
2x (1) Shadestone Skulker
1x (2) Blade Flurry
2x (2) Fogsail Freebooter
2x (3) Swarthy Swordshiner
2x (4) Sharp Shipment
2x (5) Cutting Class
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Obviously we get to see a lot of Zerg and Protoss decks, but it makes no sense: Both players have exactly the same deck, only the hero power sets you apart from your opponent.
So we are at totem shaman and silver hand paladin again. just make sure you only add the payoff cards, not the token generators themselves. You might add cards that support your hero power directly (like Sing-Along Buddy), because you will need to activate that hero power a lot if you want to benefit from your one-sided cards. Adding any cards to your opponent’s deck that create totems or silver hands would completely undermine your strategy.
The rogue foreign class deck does not work, because your opponent also has a lot of cards that are from a foreign class. Moreover, the payoff cards are not really spectacular to begin with: Bazaar Burglary, Underbelly Fence and Vendetta have all been obsoleted by power creep, Contraband Stash and Tess Greymane never made it past meme level and Velarok is a strong card, but it cannot carry that strategy all by itself – especially not if your opponent gets a functional Velarok in his deck too.
really weird brawl. no matter what you do, your opponent will also have your win condition, Totem Shaman uses the Hero Power more than any other deck I can think of so… here you go, won 1st try
you can swap out for other Totem cards/buffs, really easy to think of a Totem deck with 15 cards.
### Brawl Deck
# Class: Shaman
# Format: Wild
#
# 2x (0) Totemic Surge
# 2x (1) Primal Fusion
# 2x (2) Anchored Totem
# 1x (2) Carving Chisel
# 2x (2) Needlerock Totem
# 2x (4) Splitting Axe
# 1x (4) The Stonewright
# 1x (6) Thing from Below
# 2x (10) Gigantotem
#
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# To use this deck, copy it to your clipboard and create a new deck in Hearthstone
You’re on the right track, and I’m jealous of Stonewright.
The key is to play cards that pump totems without giving your opponent any totems to pump.
I’d toss Anchored Totem, Carving Chisel, and Needlerock Totem.
Everything else in there is either a dead card to your opponent or close enough to being one.
Discover Hunter seems to be a popular choice among players with only Standard cards to work with.
I see basically 3 routes to go:
1. Totem Shaman with lots of useless Totem buff spells for your opponent
2. Silver Hand Paladin with lots of useless Silver Hand buff spells for your opponent
3. Rogue with cards that depend on cards from foreign classes (not sure if that works)
You missed a big one here… Unholy Deathknight running Corpse cards that only you can take advantage of.
correct.
apparently i am still living in the past
(e.g. still playing classic and a lot of wild)
Sadly, now that opponents get a corpse count when DK cards are in hand, this game plan is off the table.
Without looking at my collection for other plans that might have entered in the past couple years…
I think 1 & 2 are evergreen for this.
IIRC 3 proved to be a nonbo when I tried it.
I would run Level Up instead of Crystal Lion here if I had the dust for them.
But, proof of concept for the Silver Hand pump plan, Shamman works similarly.
Except for the mirror (obviously), the game plan is to play your opponent’s contribution to the deck in the early game.
When they start playing your cards, that’s the signal that they’ve got a dead hand.
If they’re too stubborn to concede, start making Silver Hands.
### Brawl Deck
# Class: Paladin
# Format: Wild
#
# 2x (1) Promotion
# 2x (2) Pursuit of Justice
# 2x (3) Lightfused Stegodon
# 2x (3) Warhorse Trainer
# 2x (4) Balloon Merchant
# 1x (5) Lothraxion the Redeemed
# 2x (5) Quartermaster
# 2x (6) Crystal Lion
#
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# To use this deck, copy it to your clipboard and create a new deck in Hearthstone
Totem Shaman can get just as pricy, but here’s a budget build.
### Brawl Deck
# Class: Shaman
# Format: Wild
#
# 2x (0) Totemic Might
# 2x (0) Totemic Surge
# 2x (1) Primal Fusion
# 2x (1) Totemic Evidence
# 2x (4) Draenei Totemcarver
# 1x (4) Splitting Axe
# 2x (5) Thunder Bluff Valiant
# 2x (6) Thing from Below
#
AAEBAeD5AwGdowMHvga1FLcU9qoC2qUDtu0EwZ4GAAA=
#
# To use this deck, copy it to your clipboard and create a new deck in Hearthstone
I like it that Totemic Evidence gives your opponent a totem, but he will never be able to infuse it. Still the danger is real, I just lost a game against weapon rogue where he played 2 Totemic Reflection during the first 2 turns of the game (both for Healing Totem), then proceeded to buff them.
Interestingly, if you stick to your hero power as your only source of totems, you will not generate very many totems. This is okay, because your opponent gets no totems at all, but you cannot expect a totem rush like it was common some years ago on the ladder in wild.
If you are desperate to create more totems, you can add Sing-Along Buddy, but be aware that this card is probably useful for your opponent too. It just does not turn on his totem-related cards.
The only other totem payoff cards besides the ones that you already have in your deck are Windshear Stormcaller (summons Al’akir if you have all 4? basic totems) and Totemic Reflection (which is not useless for your opponent, just less effective) . It could be argued that Gigantotem is so expensive that a player with no access to totems will probably not be able to cast it before the game is over while the shaman player could maybe play it around turn 7 if he focuses on using the hero power often, but that would be a losing strategy.
We both missed one…
Demon Hunter “hero attacks” triggers.
Very accessible to new players…
### Brawl Deck
# Class: Demon Hunter
# Format: Wild
#
# 2x (0) Blur
# 2x (1) Battlefiend
# 2x (1) Sock Puppet Slitherspear
# 2x (2) Battleworn Vanguard
# 1x (2) Lesser Opal Spellstone
# 2x (3) Blade Dance
# 2x (3) Satyr Overseer
# 2x (5) Glaivebound Adept
#
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# To use this deck, copy it to your clipboard and create a new deck in Hearthstone
Pirate Warrior is also good for this same plan since cheap creatures with free weapons is a thing.
BEWARE of Protoss Druid.
In a similar vein, increasing hero power damage works great for Mage.
well, there are some classes that can attack with their hero even without weapon cads in the deck: next to demon hunter, namely druid and rogue.
I even think that Rogue would benefit from the hero attack payoff cards more than Demon Hunter itself, because Rogue can set up 0 mana attacks by equipping her dagger before. Much of Demon Hunter’s initial power back in Ashes of Outland came from 0 mana twin slice, so e.g. Glaivebond Adept+trigger could be played at 5 mana, while now it has essentially become a 6 mana card unless you equip a weapon before.
I still wanted to give the deck a try, and I liked the concept, but some cards had to be changed:
Sock Puppet, Blur and Blade Dance, while almost complete blanks for most opponents, also do almost nothing for you if your hero power is the only way to increase your attack value, so the advantage they give you is too small.
Always keep in mind that you can do many attacks with your hero, but not big attacks.
I added former arena monster Glaiveshark, and also tried Silithid Swarmer and Felsaber. Sure the latter 2 on this list are truly atrocious cards, but all that matters is how much the difference is between the value they have for you and your hero power (medium to low) versus the value they have for your opponent and their hero power (probably zero).
### Brawl Deck
# Class: Demon Hunter
# Format: Wild
#
# 2x (1) Battlefiend
# 2x (2) Battleworn Vanguard
# 1x (2) Lesser Opal Spellstone
# 2x (3) Satyr Overseer
# 2x (3) Silithid Swarmer
# 2x (4) Felsaber
# 2x (4) Glaiveshark
# 2x (5) Glaivebound Adept
#
AAEBAea5AwHGsAYHoKsC+cgD/sgD9OMDyZ8E0p8E77EEAAA=
#
# To use this deck, copy it to your clipboard and create a new deck in Hearthstone
### Brawl Deck
# Class: Paladin
# Format: Wild
#
# 1x (3) Mankrik
# 1x (3) Zola the Gorgon
# 1x (4) Ambassador Faelin
# 1x (4) Blademaster Okani
# 1x (5) Feugen
# 1x (5) Overlord Runthak
# 1x (5) Prince Malchezaar
# 1x (5) Stalagg
# 1x (6) Sylvanas Windrunner
# 1x (7) The Leviathan
# 1x (8) Da Undatakah
# 1x (8) Tirion Fordring
# 1x (9) Uther of the Ebon Blade
# 1x (10) C’Thun, the Shattered
# 1x (10) N’Zoth, the Corruptor
#
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#
# To use this deck, copy it to your clipboard and create a new deck in Hearthstone
I had fun with this one, especially when opponent was an pirate warrior
kind of a good deck but … how is this a pally deck?
i replaced a few wit stewart the steward, stand against darkness and quartermaster. if you are not a pally those give nothing or very lilttle.
### Brawl Deck
# Class: Mage
# Format: Wild
#
# 4x (1) Snap Freeze
# 4x (2) Conjure Mana Biscuit
# 4x (2) Shatter
# 2x (3) Shattering Blast
# 1x (7) Nozdormu the Eternal
#
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#
# To use this deck, copy it to your clipboard and create a new deck in Hearthstone
Only if you want to have fun, just concede to the tryhards.
This must be one of the best mode tavern brawl. This is one of them where I enjoyed playing more than once unlike the other just for the sake of the 1 pack reward.
Imagine if they would do better and make this mode a permanent mode to be played alongside other mode like classic etc. This is why I keep complaining as to why they didn’t want to do something like this for a bit of extra effort. Just pick top-3 popular Tavern Brawl modes and made them permanent mode. Easy just like that.
Just wanted to give a big thank you for this deck, amazing! I hate tavern brawls where you make a deck so I really appreciate this (Thankfully I didn’t dust Ey’sor)
Noz fun, finally! <3 Today i will try it.
Put Nozdormu in your deck if you want såeedy games!
Speedy*
I dont know if it’s a bug, but I could add more than 2x cards to the deck. I ended with a deck with:
7x Totemic Might
4x Totemic Surge
4x Primal Fusion
I noticed this too. The 2 card restriction is missing.
Also Noz activates and Prince Mal activate for both players but odd/even cards activate only for the player and even if ther combined deck doesn’t meet the condition. Which is inconsistent.
The ultimate cheese with shaman:
2x Totemic Might
2x Totemic Surge
2x Primal Fusion
1x Grand Totem Eys’or
2x Totemic Reflection
2x Draenei Totemcarver
2x Splitting Axe
2x Thing from Below
Worked really well even though I didn’t have all the cards (I replaced all the missing ones with 0 mana 1/1s), thank you!
That’s some good cheddar.
And my daily is play 3 shamans etc.
I went for the same route, but I did not use Totem Carver because it is still a Chillwind Yeti for them.
To bad I did not have Ey’sor, so I used Windshear Stormcaller as replacement.
Useless 10 mana cards like Ultrasaur can still give your opponent blanks until turn 10 (the game should be over long before)
PERFECT! Helped me complete my weekly task!
Made a rouge weapon deck. Worked great!
What works well is stuff that interacts with your heropower specificly. Like Shaman with totembuffs or Paladin with cards that interact with Silver Hand Recruits.
This is one of the trolliest brawls ever. I threw Tess Greymane (my go to brawl build around) in a deck with neutral 0 cost 1/1 garbage. Wait until you play all the class cards your opponent made the mistake of adding to your deck for you, then drop Tess. Meanwhile, their Tess is just an 8 cost 6/6, since you didn’t give them any class cards.
You forgot Bazar Burglary… they never complete the quest and you get an OP weapon on turn 3-4. My opponent resigned when the only thing Tess cast was an impossible to complete quest.
Oh dang, you’re right. That might have helped me win a couple of games I lost.