When Tickatus was first released I had a Control Lock in Wild that included him to finish out games and burn away combo pieces. It was really good as there was a lot more Shadowreaper Anduin decks at the time. Got me to Legend that month in Wild actually.
But as mentioned, right now he's too slow for the meta in both formats.
I posted an update in the guide last night. I haven't been grinding hard as I'm pretty busy this month. But I went to Platinum 5 with a 9-10 record and now hit Diamond 10 with a record of 15-13. So it went 6-3 from P5 to D10.
Tenwu isn't the most important card honestly. Occasionally I use him to bounce something like the Octo-bot back to get a second discount in a turn, but I also often use him to bounce Hooktusk back. When I do that I usually play her the next turn, so having the 1 mana effect isn't as important. Tenwu could be replaced with Youthful Brewmaster to be honest. The effect is mostly useful if I am doing a complex turn with Scabbs and Field Contact to be able to draw a lot of cards. But yeah... outside of that 1 mana discount on replaying Octo-bot or not using the effect bouncing Hooktusk means Brewmaster is just as effective.
I will tell you this too, that I don't feel I'm running into a ton of Pirate Warriors or Questline Hunters right now. I'm not sure why, other than maybe they've climbed high enough fast enough that they are outside my MMR currently, but that doesn't really make sense because my past seasons' performances should carry into this season's MMR... I don't know. But faster decks are obviously the biggest weakness, and you could adjust to fit whatever you are being matched up with the most. Potion of Illusion is honestly the weakest link in the deck but has occasional uses. Could replace with an Eater of Secrets, Cloak of Shadows, or an Evasion depending on your needs. Scabbs, while useful, could probably be replaced as well if you have needs for life gain, defense, or a board clear. Even a Mutanus the Devourer to eat QL rewards. You might be able to get down earlier than 7 with the discounts.
The Brooms work really well against faster decks with a big board presence like Pirate Warrior. Get your draw turn going with Field Contact and other battlecry minions, Broom to trade off and even to proc the Octo-bot trading into something with 3 or less attack. Against slower decks this one can really shine! I've even beaten a couple Druids with big armor gains because of how many Smites I shuffled and getting Hooktusk bounced back to hand for two or more big burst turns.
If you play Garrote Rogue (which uses pretty much the same draw and discount package) and you understand how to pilot that deck well, you should likely be able to figure this one out no problem. But just be advised that the faster decks can be a problem.
As mentioned in the updated (and in depth) guide, I haven’t done much climbing yet this season. However, I’m doing alright with the Hooktusk Smite combo deck. Up to Platinum 5, and honestly I only really shoot for Diamond so I’m happy with how it’s doing!
I can't remember... maybe 12/12... around that range. But he had a 1/1 and a 1/2 with him, and of course no Conceal so trade, trade, missiles. EZ game.
Right now though, I'm working on Hooktusking an army of Smites in Wild.
Someone tried something like this in Standard when I was playing Hero Power Mage. Just building as big of an Edwin as they could. But they only had him and two tiny minions on board. A couple trades and a Devolving Missiles with Eddie as the only target drew out the Concede.
Why no Maestra of the Masquerade in the Rogue deck? I thought they said these decks were optimized!!!
Serious note though... I just came across a "Druid" in Wild that played Mad Scientist and it took me a good 30 seconds of just like "Wha the fuuuuh?!?!" to be like "Oh it's a Rogue in Disguise!"
Nice idea, check the decklist though, it says you are playing 3 Eater of Secrets.
And?!?! I don't see the problem here! Got to be careful with those Secrets, you know?
Thanks for pointing that out. I wouldn't have noticed it until tomorrow night when I try loading it into the game. -2 Eaters, +2 Evis.
As I mentioned in the guide, I made it on my phone while also helping my son with his coloring, making sure he didn't get marker on his clothes. Which he ended up doing anyway so... I failed in both aspects!
AKA: Start an Arena run now and either leave it or go to 2 losses and stop. You will get rewards for however many wins you get on the unfinished run AND a free ticket you can use during Dual Class Arena.
I used the Rothide Graverobber in a custom card competition back in March 2020. It was one of my first entries and in retrospect I'm not sure why I thought the cost and stat line I gave it were the right idea. Should have been a cheaper card with more favorable stats for the cost. That way it could be more reliably used in the early game when fewer enemy minions had died, giving you better odds to get something you want. Or with the lower cost it gives you the chance to generate something more impactful, higher cost, and play them on the same turn potentially.
The only explanation I can think of was that Big Priest was big in Wild at the time and I didn't want to give them another potentially useful tool to generate good minions. But making this a smaller, lower cost guy would have done the same. And how often is a Big Priest going to want their opponent's small stated minions anyway?! Never!
PS: If Blizzard ever added a real Graveyard into the game, a mechanic like this could actually be pretty useful against decks with a bunch of rez effects. Steal the minion from their graveyard before it can be brought back!
Real question - How do you expect to get all the legendary mercs? I hope to be mostly f2p, but I can't figure that out
Slowly over time, and not through money. Not sure I care about the actual FULL collection but over a long enough period I could get them all I'm sure. Likely following what dapperdog said in his reply if I need to grind a specific Merc, but seeing as how I'm planning on playing the mode casually for a break from constructed if I don't actually get a 100% full and completed roster that's okay.
It’s unfortunate that a mode with such initial intrigue and promise has been such a debacle out of the gate. I’m not quitting the mode by any means, and will continue to grind slowly towards a full collection. But the $5 welcome pack I bought is the only real money I’ll be putting into the mode. And whatever gold I sunk into upgrade buildings and buy a few packs is also the only gold I’m putting into it as well.
I purposefully avoided temptation on Mercs pre-orders to see if it would be worthwhile before spending, afraid of a situation like this happening. I also figured that regardless of it was good or bad that Standard and Wild would still be my main drivers for playing the game so no need putting resources elsewhere.
In Standard this card might be a thing. In Wild... I'm not sure. Wild Big Priest decks do have a lot of big deathrattle taunts that they play, and some have big heals, big armor gains, or heal and remove an enemy on death. If this card can trade up to 7 deathrattle minions you easily trade this to find the other cards you want earlier in the game, and save this 3 mana card for the late game when you need to get that last refill for 7 Mo'arg Forgefiends, or Obsidian Statues, or in a more fun Rez Priest world, a board full of Stalaggs and Feugens.
The question as always for things like this is will the meta be slow enough to get enough value? How much value you need out of the card might be determined by the match ups too.
If you play it right after Shudderwock it would be a second Shudderwock. If it's in the Shudderwock pool... there are likely a few scenarios.
First, the "latest battlecry" is likely the last battlecry to play out to completion. So if it's in the Shudderwock battlecry pool and you are playing your first Shudderwock (or at least didn't just play a Shudderwock prior to the one you are playing) it'd likely play the most recent battlecry prior to Shudderwock. This would be because the Shudderwock battlecry hasn't finished and would likely not be the "latest battelcry" until it does finish.
(That was a jumbled mess... so for a visual representation let's say your last four battlecries are, in order, Macaw>Lifedrinker>Grumble>Shudderwock ... if your last four battlecry cards looked like this, the Macaw trigger in Shudderwock would likely trigger Grumble's effect since Shudderwock's battlecry is not yet finished, and therefore not the "latest battlecry")
If you play a Shudderwock that bounces back, and then play it again, I imagine Macaw would basically make it so Shudderwock triggers twice, but it's a Shudder in a Shudder. A type of Shudder-ception if you will!
When Tickatus was first released I had a Control Lock in Wild that included him to finish out games and burn away combo pieces. It was really good as there was a lot more Shadowreaper Anduin decks at the time. Got me to Legend that month in Wild actually.
But as mentioned, right now he's too slow for the meta in both formats.
I posted an update in the guide last night. I haven't been grinding hard as I'm pretty busy this month. But I went to Platinum 5 with a 9-10 record and now hit Diamond 10 with a record of 15-13. So it went 6-3 from P5 to D10.
Tenwu isn't the most important card honestly. Occasionally I use him to bounce something like the Octo-bot back to get a second discount in a turn, but I also often use him to bounce Hooktusk back. When I do that I usually play her the next turn, so having the 1 mana effect isn't as important. Tenwu could be replaced with Youthful Brewmaster to be honest. The effect is mostly useful if I am doing a complex turn with Scabbs and Field Contact to be able to draw a lot of cards. But yeah... outside of that 1 mana discount on replaying Octo-bot or not using the effect bouncing Hooktusk means Brewmaster is just as effective.
I will tell you this too, that I don't feel I'm running into a ton of Pirate Warriors or Questline Hunters right now. I'm not sure why, other than maybe they've climbed high enough fast enough that they are outside my MMR currently, but that doesn't really make sense because my past seasons' performances should carry into this season's MMR... I don't know. But faster decks are obviously the biggest weakness, and you could adjust to fit whatever you are being matched up with the most. Potion of Illusion is honestly the weakest link in the deck but has occasional uses. Could replace with an Eater of Secrets, Cloak of Shadows, or an Evasion depending on your needs. Scabbs, while useful, could probably be replaced as well if you have needs for life gain, defense, or a board clear. Even a Mutanus the Devourer to eat QL rewards. You might be able to get down earlier than 7 with the discounts.
The Brooms work really well against faster decks with a big board presence like Pirate Warrior. Get your draw turn going with Field Contact and other battlecry minions, Broom to trade off and even to proc the Octo-bot trading into something with 3 or less attack. Against slower decks this one can really shine! I've even beaten a couple Druids with big armor gains because of how many Smites I shuffled and getting Hooktusk bounced back to hand for two or more big burst turns.
If you play Garrote Rogue (which uses pretty much the same draw and discount package) and you understand how to pilot that deck well, you should likely be able to figure this one out no problem. But just be advised that the faster decks can be a problem.
As mentioned in the updated (and in depth) guide, I haven’t done much climbing yet this season. However, I’m doing alright with the Hooktusk Smite combo deck. Up to Platinum 5, and honestly I only really shoot for Diamond so I’m happy with how it’s doing!
Thanks as always for the highlight!
This seems fun! Not the way I am Smiting people, but an interesting concept I hadn’t thought of! Might give it a try, put Patches back in Charrrge!
Here’s mine!
I can't remember... maybe 12/12... around that range. But he had a 1/1 and a 1/2 with him, and of course no Conceal so trade, trade, missiles. EZ game.
Right now though, I'm working on Hooktusking an army of Smites in Wild.
Someone tried something like this in Standard when I was playing Hero Power Mage. Just building as big of an Edwin as they could. But they only had him and two tiny minions on board. A couple trades and a Devolving Missiles with Eddie as the only target drew out the Concede.
I like how the internal tag for Classic mode cards is "Vanilla".
Mr. Smite in 5 of 7 standard theorycraft decks?! Imagine that.
Why no Maestra of the Masquerade in the Rogue deck? I thought they said these decks were optimized!!!
Serious note though... I just came across a "Druid" in Wild that played Mad Scientist and it took me a good 30 seconds of just like "Wha the fuuuuh?!?!" to be like "Oh it's a Rogue in Disguise!"
Really? I must now go to the Google to see what this is all about
EDIT: After watching Zeddy's video on the blacklisting BS... WOW!!! Really?!?!
And?!?! I don't see the problem here! Got to be careful with those Secrets, you know?
Thanks for pointing that out. I wouldn't have noticed it until tomorrow night when I try loading it into the game. -2 Eaters, +2 Evis.
As I mentioned in the guide, I made it on my phone while also helping my son with his coloring, making sure he didn't get marker on his clothes. Which he ended up doing anyway so... I failed in both aspects!
This guy may be the reason I craft Hooktusk! LtEddy is going to have to get back to some Even Pirate Rogue for a future “Mishaps” episode!
Nov 2: Dual Class Arena returns
AKA: Start an Arena run now and either leave it or go to 2 losses and stop. You will get rewards for however many wins you get on the unfinished run AND a free ticket you can use during Dual Class Arena.
I used the Rothide Graverobber in a custom card competition back in March 2020. It was one of my first entries and in retrospect I'm not sure why I thought the cost and stat line I gave it were the right idea. Should have been a cheaper card with more favorable stats for the cost. That way it could be more reliably used in the early game when fewer enemy minions had died, giving you better odds to get something you want. Or with the lower cost it gives you the chance to generate something more impactful, higher cost, and play them on the same turn potentially.
The only explanation I can think of was that Big Priest was big in Wild at the time and I didn't want to give them another potentially useful tool to generate good minions. But making this a smaller, lower cost guy would have done the same. And how often is a Big Priest going to want their opponent's small stated minions anyway?! Never!
PS: If Blizzard ever added a real Graveyard into the game, a mechanic like this could actually be pretty useful against decks with a bunch of rez effects. Steal the minion from their graveyard before it can be brought back!
Why not just reveal the legendary cards today along with this one epic? Waiting on those last four cards is about as pointless as this card!
PS: I will likely play this card at some point! Maybe I'll throw one in my Wild Big Warrior for the memes.
I'm sure there are uses for this, but... I'm struggling right now to see it.
Slowly over time, and not through money. Not sure I care about the actual FULL collection but over a long enough period I could get them all I'm sure. Likely following what dapperdog said in his reply if I need to grind a specific Merc, but seeing as how I'm planning on playing the mode casually for a break from constructed if I don't actually get a 100% full and completed roster that's okay.
It’s unfortunate that a mode with such initial intrigue and promise has been such a debacle out of the gate. I’m not quitting the mode by any means, and will continue to grind slowly towards a full collection. But the $5 welcome pack I bought is the only real money I’ll be putting into the mode. And whatever gold I sunk into upgrade buildings and buy a few packs is also the only gold I’m putting into it as well.
I purposefully avoided temptation on Mercs pre-orders to see if it would be worthwhile before spending, afraid of a situation like this happening. I also figured that regardless of it was good or bad that Standard and Wild would still be my main drivers for playing the game so no need putting resources elsewhere.
Hurray! Everyone's favorite archetype... Rez Priest... ... ... (*internal screams* Oh fuck!)
In Standard this card might be a thing. In Wild... I'm not sure. Wild Big Priest decks do have a lot of big deathrattle taunts that they play, and some have big heals, big armor gains, or heal and remove an enemy on death. If this card can trade up to 7 deathrattle minions you easily trade this to find the other cards you want earlier in the game, and save this 3 mana card for the late game when you need to get that last refill for 7 Mo'arg Forgefiends, or Obsidian Statues, or in a more fun Rez Priest world, a board full of Stalaggs and Feugens.
The question as always for things like this is will the meta be slow enough to get enough value? How much value you need out of the card might be determined by the match ups too.
If you play it right after Shudderwock it would be a second Shudderwock. If it's in the Shudderwock pool... there are likely a few scenarios.
First, the "latest battlecry" is likely the last battlecry to play out to completion. So if it's in the Shudderwock battlecry pool and you are playing your first Shudderwock (or at least didn't just play a Shudderwock prior to the one you are playing) it'd likely play the most recent battlecry prior to Shudderwock. This would be because the Shudderwock battlecry hasn't finished and would likely not be the "latest battelcry" until it does finish.
(That was a jumbled mess... so for a visual representation let's say your last four battlecries are, in order, Macaw>Lifedrinker>Grumble>Shudderwock ... if your last four battlecry cards looked like this, the Macaw trigger in Shudderwock would likely trigger Grumble's effect since Shudderwock's battlecry is not yet finished, and therefore not the "latest battlecry")
If you play a Shudderwock that bounces back, and then play it again, I imagine Macaw would basically make it so Shudderwock triggers twice, but it's a Shudder in a Shudder. A type of Shudder-ception if you will!