Not so sure about this version. i think the regular Big Shaman works better, cos this one for example if your muckmorpher hits a wargear, its just a generic 4/4 mech for 5 mana. if it hits a missile launcher, its the same minion (you only saved 1 mana) and safeguard its a weaker version of the same minion for 1 less mana. i do think mechanincal whelp and Replicating Menace sound interesting in this deck tho.

Id say that Nefarian is not that favored. Having played many games i’d say its actually pretty balanced. The thing is that i think people dont play Ragnaros right cos its kind of counter intuitive. To win with Ragnaros, you have to focus on clearing the board constantly even if it means to attack a 7/7 with your 2dmg weapon. You have to consider your own Health as a resource. A typical turn 2 play is to play a 6/6 taunt and attack his 7/7 dragon with your weapon to force him to kill it to clear your taunt. This because on one part it helps you gain the board, which is imperative in this brawl, and also cos it helps you to drop your lava giants early (and your 20/20 later) Most games i won with Ragnaros i did it with about 10-15 Health left mostly because of all the damage i took attacking with the weapon at minions on the first few turns. And many times when playing Nefarian, i knew i won the moment my opponent decided to attack my face instead of a minion on the board with the weapon on those starting turns.

Thanks for the update on this guide!
The only error i spoted is in the description of the year of the Dragon sets: “The Year of the Raven consists of Rise of Shadows and two yet to known expansions” It says “raven” where it should say “dragon”

Oh yeah,.. you had mentioned the Shudderwock problem before… I dont know, i dont dislike the card that much, and i think that the effect going off once in a game is not a problem, and the problem is more about the second time it goes off cos adds way too many turns to the game.. anyway… i havent played that many games yet with it, i have played maybe 10 games conbined using Control Warrior where i had played against other control deck, and util now, not one of the games has ended in draw, only a few times the i’ve had to use Elysiana and after that i have either won or lost a few turns after it.. is it that common to get to the limit of turns? I mean the random factor of the discovery mechanic kind of helps prevent it i think…

mmm, how about changing her text to: “Discover 5 cards, replaces your deck with 2 copies of each. then transform into a 7/7 exhausted Elysiana” and make the exhausted elysiana be a blank 7/7 minion with no text.

i just played a couple of games using the regular list that the game makies for this deck (i only changed a couple of cards in it) , and wow! it plays very well.
I’d say Underbelly Angler is the MPV on this deck along with , its cheap enough that you can easily play it along with two other murlocs on the same turn proventing you from being left with an empty hand.

Scargil surprised me too, it doesnt seem like much of a discount considering that most murlocs are cheap, but for example it works amazingly with Ghost light Angler and Murlock tastyfin.

The only problem i see with the deck is that is vulnerable to control deck with a lot of AOE, i mean i survived and won a game where my table was cleared twice in a row cos this deck is amazing at refilling your hand (Murloc Tastyfin is particulary good at it, surprised its not in this list), but im not sure if this kind of deck could survive a control deck with more clearing table tools (like how Odd Warrior or big spell Jaina used to be).

i’ve played some murlocs decks in the past (like Murloc paladin, murloc mage or quest shaman), but i think this one is my favorite so far.

Actually this is a good point.. did a quick search and there are exactly 6 cards with stats that are 3/4 do nothing (or worst… 2 3/3 with Battlecry and 1 2/2 that is pretty useless unles you have demons in your deck) this of a total of 68 6 mana minions. There are very few “Great” results.. the best would be the 5/12 taunt or the 4/10 taunt.. but like you said, most cases its a 5/5 or 4/6 with no effect. This something thats a little weaker or a little stronger.

mmmm, maybe i’m wrong but i get the feeling that this is one of those cards that ppl are really underrating. It might look weak now that we are acostumed to the year of the raven power level, but things should be very different once the mammoth cards rotate out. I think this will see constructed play, i mean, it doesnt seem that hard to play and buff this minion on the same turn. I’m thinking priest or maybe in Shaman or Paladin.

### Brawl Deck
# Class: Paladin
# Format: Standard
# Year of the Raven
#
# 2x (1) Lost in the Jungle
# 2x (1) Righteous Protector
# 1x (2) Drygulch Jailor
# 2x (2) Hydrologist
# 2x (2) Plated Beetle
# 2x (2) Potion of Heroism
# 1x (2) Stubborn Gastropod
# 1x (2) Volatile Elemental
# 1x (3) Stonehill Defender
# 2x (3) Unidentified Maul
# 1x (4) Lightfused Stegodon
# 2x (5) Call to Arms
# 1x (5) Fungalmancer
# 2x (6) Crystal Lion
# 2x (6) Level Up!
# 1x (6) Spikeridged Steed
# 1x (6) Sunkeeper Tarim
# 2x (7) Vinecleaver
# 1x (8) The Lich King
# 1x (9) Uther of the Ebon Blade
#
AAECAaToAgq5wQKbwgLmwgK0xAKIxwLZxwLCzgKO0wLR4QK35wIKs8ECg8cCuMcC48sC7dIC+NIC1uUCieYCteYC6uYCAA==
#
# To use this deck, copy it to your clipboard and create a new deck in Hearthstone

I’m playing with this mammoth dude paladin and it works quite well 😛 Will probably change Uther and the LK for something else tho..

i did this and it workeded for three matches, but now that i think about it i’m lucky the enemy does not think too much about it, cos keleseth should not work in my deck XD

i made a warlock deck with:

-Kobold Librarian
-Soul Infusion
-Prince Keleseth
-Doubling Imp

Most likely the enemy bans Keleseth, and in that case you just dedicate yourself to drop as big as possible Double imps, while drawing more cards with the kobolds.

A few tips…
1. minions sumoned by other minions are also 1/1 *Ej. the hyenas from the lion are 1/1s not 2/2s
2. Buffs from any source do apply correctly on minions. *Ej. Dire Frenzy gives your minion +3/+3 and its copies also get the buff.
3. Temporary buffs work correctly as well *ej. Stormwind campion turns your 1/1s into 2/2s.

I just did this with Shaman and “Krag’wa’s Grace” (your spells cost 2 less) and is was super easy, all you need to do is get an unstable evolution and a couple of spells that give you a big board. With this, you can end up with an impossible to deal with board as soon as Turn 2-3.

Hagatha wins you games that are otherwise unwinnable. best card to draw against control (not in your starting hand tho)

Great Article, i’ve been testing a Control Heal Paladin the past month, and while it is a fun deck, it feels like its missing something to become a competitive deck. That’s why when i saw High Priest Thekal it felt like the perfect card to complete the deck.

I was wondering how you feel about adding the Lesser Pearl Spellstones (especially in the control version).
While i know it’s not the most exciting of the spellstones, even without the Rastakhan cards, its not that hard to play upgraded versions of them, and 2 mana 6/6 with Taunt is a nice defensive play, especially after you have played Uther of the Ebon Blade cos it makes it harder for your enemy to deal with the hero power minions that can’t be ignored for long..

I don’t know for sure, but the most likely scenario is that you play this on turn 6 with 6/6 mana crystals and are left with 0/5 mana crystals…

Its a great tech card, i’ll say its on the power lvl of Skulking Geist, maybe even better. 5/5

I think this card is pretty bad, for 1 more mana you have a more flexible version in ironbeak Owl.
Ofc, i could have some uses, cos almost every deck has at least a couple of minions with taunt, however, there are many other ways to deal with them, You usually want to spend your silences on minions with powerful effects. I mean, there are some good targets for this, like LK, Zilliax (or a mech buffed by zilliax), Hadronnox, etc.. but in any of those cases, a regular silence do the job as well, while also being useful to silence other minions. Maaaaaaybe in some even deck, but i doubt it will see constructed play.

Looks like a cheaper better, although not neutral, Violet Teacher. However, i doubt it will see much play. Priest decks usually are not very token oriented, and while there is some use in having a lot of taunts in a more control strategy, the fact that they are 1/1 means that they can be dealt with ease by almost every class, so even if you make a special deck that somehow manages to flood the board with tokens from this on one turn, you won’t gain much from it, i think…

i think a card that ignores armor and goes straight to health would probably be bad for the game, however, i think they could make minions, spells or weapons, that make extra dmg to armor (like a weapon with a text “deal double dmg to armor” or something like that)