It’s been almost 2 weeks since the balance update and while we weren’t still 100% sure where it’s heading last week, I think that this time we’re quite certain. We have some unexpected builds rising with the downfall of Rogue (both Thief and Poison), as well as a lot of decks we already know and like (or not). In fact, out of the two Rogue builds, Poison which was nerfed more seems to be the more playable one. A seemingly small nerf to Wildpaw Gnoll has almost killed the Thief build. Poison is still not very popular, but it’s actually quite okay at the high Legend. But high Legend is always when combo-oriented builds look better than they really are.
For one, Warrior seems to be back, but not in a form of Pirates. Questline Warrior is basically dead after the nerfs, it’s still present at the lowest ranks, but even there it’s no longer Tier 1. At higher ranks it’s unplayable. However, a new contender appeared – Charge Control Warrior. It’s a Control shell with a late game OTK finisher. Unlike other OTK decks, it doesn’t try to draw the entire deck by Turn 7-8 and then finish the opponent off, but rather take things slowly, amass combo pieces over a long period of time and then unleash it well past Turn 10. The entire combo is 2x To the Front! + Captain Galvangar + 2x Faceless Manipulator + Battleground Battlemaster (just remember to play Battlemaster BEFORE the second Manipulator to get Windfury on each copy to maximize damage output). Yes, that’s 6 combo pieces and a combo costing 10 mana in total. However, it’s a bit more flexible – you often don’t need the entire combo and let’s say a single Faceless is good enough (36 damage), or maybe if you have dealt enough damage with weapons and/or Rattlegore, even something like To The Front + Galvangar + Faceless (18 damage) is going to finish the job.
The deck is not very high win rate for now, but it shows some promise. It’s a bit similar to Ramp Druid in a way that it’s overplayed compared to its statistical win rate, but it looks like pro players have found it cool enough to keep playing it. And when pros (especially streamers) play it, its popularity trickles down the ladder. Talking about Ramp Druid – it’s the same story. The deck is quite popular, but it’s still around 48-49% win rate (Tier 3 or so). It means that it’s playable in the hands of an experienced player who can probably achieve over 50% WR, but it’s not a mainstream deck. For Druid, Aggro/Beast builds work better.
Most of the other classes also look fine – particularly Shaman (Burn, Questline, Bolner OTK), Warlock (Questline, but also OwlTK seems playable), Hunter (Face and – surprisingly – Questline), Paladin (Libram, Buff), Demon Hunter (Fel, Deathrattle), even Priest has found success in a form of Shadow build. Mage is a bit on the weaker side, but it has some low Tier 2/high Tier 3 builds like Hero Power (Ping) and – yeah – Mozaki (it’s like a cockroach, almost impossible to kill).
Since I don’t expect any other balance updates for now, the next meta change is going to happen when mini-set releases. When it’s going to be? I honestly don’t know – a few weeks back I would say that it will launch next week (either February 8 or 10, because previous mini-sets have launched either on Tuesday or Thursday), but with Patch 22.2 being so late, I don’t think that’s correct. Maybe the week after – February 15/17, or even February 22/24. I don’t think they will go later than the last one, because early March should be a new expansion announcement and I don’t think they want to rush things like they did last set (because of Mercenaries launch). Of course, like always, when I learn anything, I’ll keep you posted!
Below, you will find a full list of the Legend decks from last week, sorted by the highest placement.
If you want to see all of the current top meta decks, go to our Hearthstone Meta Tier List post!
If you’re looking for the best Wild Format decks, check out our Wild Meta Tier List!
Hearthstone Standard Legend Decks of the Week
2,360
- 0Provoke2
- 1Shield Slam1
- 1Slam1
- 2Bladestorm2
- 2Corsair Cache1
- 2Frozen Buckler1
- 2Minefield1
- 2To the Front!2
- 3Bulwark of Azzinoth1
- 3Heavy Plate2
- 4Outrider’s Axe2
- 4Rancor1
- 5Brawl1
- 6Captain Galvangar1
- 7Rokara, the Valorous1
- 9Rattlegore1
- 10Shield Shatter2
Hearthstone Wild Legend Decks of the Week
- 1Animated Broomstick1
- 2Dirty Rat1
- 2Zephrys the Great1
- 3Brann Bronzebeard1
- 3Living Dragonbreath1
- 3Lord Barov1
- 3Zola the Gorgon1
- 4Blademaster Samuro1
- 5Loatheb1
- 5Zilliax1
- 6Reno Jackson1
- 7Mutanus the Devourer1
- 8Varian, King of Stormwind1
- 9Dragonqueen Alexstrasza1
- 9N’Zoth, God of the Deep1
- 10Lokholar the Ice Lord1
- 20Molten Giant1
- 1Arcane Shot2
- 1Defend the Dwarven District1
- 1Flare2
- 1Hunter’s Mark2
- 1On the Hunt2
- 1Overwhelm2
- 1Tracking2
- 1Wound Prey2
- 2Bola Shot2
- 2Doggie Biscuit2
- 2Quick Shot2
- 2Rapid Fire2
- 3Aimed Shot2
- 4Wing Blast2
- 6Beaststalker Tavish1
- 7Rhok’delar1
