Login

Sir Bruce · November 17th, 2013, 22:47

(November 17th, 2013, 22:02)v8mark Wrote: Cool, thanks. I think I agree broadly with your proposed changes. Not altogether sure about the Bluegill. Seems a waste of a card to me... if you're using it on turn 2, it's basically the same as your hero power. Its only real use is as a removal for your opponent's 3/2, and I'd probably rather have an Arcane Shot for that...

There are one or two cards I'd add - Ironbeak Owl is really strong (and would have shut down your Berserker before it had a chance to get rolling!). If you want a bit more higher end stuff, Chillwind Yeti is an excellent card. At 4 mana it's not too expensive, and the 4/5 stats mean it's just out of range of a bunch of spells that come in to play at about that level. It also dodges some of the higher end AoE stuff like Flamestrike.

The only removal I'd say you're missing is Explosive Shot, which does 5 to the targeted minion and 2 to adjacent minions. At 5 mana it's a little expensive, but it extends the deck a little more into the mid-game.

I'd thought about Chillwind. I think I'd rather have a Stranglethorn Tiger for serious Turn 6 removal though. The Ironbeak Owl is a good call. I saw Day9 ran one in his version.

Derp. You are right about bluegill. I forgot it's 2-drop. That's a lot iffier. Coining him out on Turn 1 is not so bad because it gives you some board removal next turn but I'd almost certainly be better with Explosive Shot or sometihng.

(November 17th, 2013, 22:27)Merovech Wrote: Is Stonetusk Boar really worth playing? That's the 1/1 charger, right?

In my deck they are an absolute necessity. My deck relies on getting 1-2 starving buzzards out on turn 7 or 8 and then playing 6-7 1-mana beasts to draw the rest of my deck. Then I play Unleash The Hounds. Between the +1 Unleash the Hounds buff, the Timber Wolves' +1 to beasts and Dire Wolves' buff I typically have at least 20 damage right then. Stonetusk boars are 1-mana beasts that will hit for at least 3 and pull a card. Absolute must-have.

I can't think of another type of deck where they'd be worth running though.

Merovech · November 21st, 2013, 00:33

Okay, cool, thanks for the response.

Sir Bruce · November 21st, 2013, 21:08

I finally started playing Arena mode and it's great! Drafting a deck is a lot of fun because you can use cards that you don't usually own or see. I think it's the best way to "level" and grind out new packs. Once you have the basics of general gameplay down it's not so hard to go 3-3 or so in the Arena which gives you a pack, 10 or so gold, and 20-30 crafting dust. This is less than you'd get if you just spent gold on packs but it's way more fun.

v8mark · November 29th, 2013, 17:52

How have your Arena runs been going?

(And have you run into anyone famous yet?)

Sir Bruce · November 30th, 2013, 13:33

(November 29th, 2013, 17:52)v8mark Wrote: How have your Arena runs been going?

(And have you run into anyone famous yet?)

I feel like I'm plateauing a little. I can regularly go 3 wins but it's pretty rare I get more than 4 or maybe 5. I've gotten to 7 wins twice but haven't been able to push over the top. I may post a draft here so that I can analyze that aspect a little more carefully.

I ran into Hafu once and she absolutely crushed me. She was a Paladin and iirc she started Turn 1 Coin->Knife Juggler->Turn 2 Argent Protector->Turn 3 Shatter Sun on the Juggler. That is a completely ludicrous opening and I never got board control back so GG.

Jowy

Can you post your next arena deck here? smile

Maybe even include what choices you had to make, though that is more work than just screenshotting the final deck.

EDIT: I can't read, you just said you'd do it lol

Sir Bruce · November 30th, 2013, 15:42

Here's my latest draft. Before I get to that I'll mention some general principles I follow in Arena. Given the randomness of the decks, going for combos is a terrible idea. Instead you want to prioritize cards that enable really efficient trades. That means cards that buff other minions are very strong. Dark Iron Dwarf (+2/+0 to minion), Shattered Sun Cleric (+1/+1), etc are very effective as they are individually decent minions that will typically let a lesser minion kill a more powerful one. I also aim to have a ton of early game minions, as fighting for early board game control can dictate all future trades in your favor. Aside from that I just try to draft the best available card, which I am okay at. However, I am bad at figuring out how to draft in later rounds to fit the characteristics of my deck.

As an aside, I think there are two general cards that are almost always worth drafting, 100% of the time: Acidic Swamp Ooze and Spellbreaker. Both have good stats for their mana cost AND amazing abilities.

CLASS: Rogue / Priest / Shaman

In my opinion, priest is the strongest Arena class, with Mage and Paladin a little behind. It is much better than Rogue who has a top tier hero ability but requires too many combos to reliably work in Arena. I haven't played too much Shaman. Seems alright but nothing amazing. Priest has incredible early game removal, late game presence, and general board control.

My draft is in spoilers below. I bolded my pick and gave a brief discussion of each.

Final deck screenshot:
[Image: toF6oHm.png]

Overall I think the draft went pretty well. Maybe a little lacking in 2-drops but a solid group of 3-4-5s. And then my late game is also solid. All in all this is a clearly above average deck and I will be a little sad if I don't get at least 4 wins with it.

Questionable picks: 3, 6, 11, 16, 22, 23, 26

It's good to keep these in mind when I'm playing. Then when I draw one of my questionable pick cards I ask myself whether I would like to have had the alternative option in my hand right now. Usually I'll only track one or two of these but since I wrote all this down I'll keep an eye on a few more than usual.

Wow that was more work than I thought it'd be but it was also a lot of fun. I probably drafted better because of it. Any criticisms you guys have would be much appreciated!

Jowy · November 30th, 2013, 16:19

Comments from a noob with no beta key:

5. I don't like thoughtsteal, it's too reliant on luck.
11. I would probably take Cleric here, though it worked out since you got one as the next card.
16. I think Holy Fire is by far the best card here.
21. I don't think Murloc Tidemaster exists lol

23. I'd take Raid Leader when low on 3 drops.
24. I like Silvermoon Guardian here. It's a decent card and you already have two mind controls.

I want to know if you found any use for Silence, Lightwell and Thoughtsteal. Not a big fan of those cards :P
I think you'll get 2-3 wins with this deck. I could see it being overwhelmed early.

Sir Bruce · November 30th, 2013, 17:37

I won't get a chance to play the deck until later today. Some discussion, with the underlying caveat that I am a terrible noob even though I'm in the beta.

5. Cards are OP. There's a reason that there's a card to draw 4 cards and it's 7 mana. You're right that Thoughtsteal is more random because you draw from your opponent's deck but it can be good early if your opponent doesn't lead with a strong board and very strong late when you pull two cards that you can immediately play.

I too am worried about 11,16,23. We'll see.

24. Mind Control is OP. So OP. smile

Agreed about the potential problems early. But I don't think switching a couple of my picks to Raid Leader or another Cleric would help that fact very much. That's life for priests.

v8mark

Ooh, interesting! Do report back, and thanks for posting all of that.

I think it's a solid deck. It's light on early power, as you've identified... and the 2 and 3 drops you have tend more towards utility than straight-up power. The card draw may not be that useful until later on, as you'll struggle to play everything with your high mana costs. Looking back at your draft, there's not an awful lot I'd have done differently (I've not looked at Jowy's in detail before this!):

2. Toss-up between Soulpriest and Knife Juggler. Looking at the rest of the deck I'd definitely rather have the Juggler. But you had no way of knowing what was to come!
3. I'd have taken the Booty Bay. It's an okay minion. Silence is kind of a waste of a card IMO... situationally useful, but it's still a card.
11. I'd have taken the Northshire probably. Darkscale Healer is much better for non-priests who have no other way to heal minions! Even then it's still not good IMO.
15. This is a toss-up between HN and SW:D. Either are fine I think. SW:D is very good, but with 3 mind controls you're unlikely to need it.
16. I'd have gone Wild Pyromancer. It's very good.. a 3/2 for 2, which is very solid, and you can use the passive in a variety of useful ways. There are some circumstances where it does more harm than good, but mostly you can turn this into something beneficial (especially in a deck with very few weak minions!)
21. I'd have gone Wargen Inflitrator, probably. Really good card as it can trade with 3/2s on your terms. I assume the Tidemaster is the Tidehunter? (2/1 and 1/1 Scout for 2 mana?) If so, that's also worth considering; it's a solid 2-drop even outside of a Murloc deck.

Looking at Jowy's notes, I disagree about Holy Fire... it's basically an expensive removal with a heal, which are generally overpriced in Hearthstone. Otherwise, I agree with Bruce's decisions. Raid Leader isn't worth it, esp with few small minions. And I'd have taken Mind Control over anything else (I might even take a 4th if it's offered!)

Edit: Tidehunter not Tidecaller, which is bad!

Navigation

Extra Menu

About us