Another month and Hearthstone season has almost gone by. We've had enough time to get used to the addition of all Wailing Caverns cards - to the point that it's become fashionable again to complain about whatever might be stale, overpowered, or otherwise Priest-flavored in the current Standard meta (even if the inside data seems to praise Hunter as the top dog).
While we await the news of the next expansion, there is still time to push for your desired final Standard rank and end of season goodies that come with it - including this month's Shamrock n' Roll card back.
Whether you decide to brave the summer weather outside with your mobile device of choice close by or try to hide from the overwhelming evil heat indoors, here is our look at the current hot decks that might help secure some games.
The following data is based on HSReplay.net stats through Diamond and Legend, though it's safe to say you will find a very similar spread of classes also at Gold/Platinum and lower ranks - largely with the exception of Priest. You can have a look at precise deck winrates by following the links to their deck pages.
Shaman
It's quite a common occurrence on the Standard ladder to queue into several Shaman decks in a row - such is the continuing resurgence of the class and its standing as the 'new Paladin' of the meta. Elementals still lead the way, with different legendaries competing for their own spot. Be it Instructor Fireheart and Bru'kan, or Al'Akir the Windlord vs Alexstrasza the Life-Binder. Most recently, Inara Stormcrash has found her way even into this variant.
Not nearly as popular but still hanging in there (while trying to hunt down those pesky Priests and other slower decks) are a few variations on the so called 'Aggro Shaman'. Doomhammer is the MVP here, either surrounded by a fuller Elemental package or a different assortment of burn related cards.
Hunter
Good ol' (or bad, depending where your sympathies lie) way to hit them where it hurts. It has its weaker matchups, but as long as there are enough decks it can prey on - that Shaman popularity sure helps - Hunter can thrive well enough. Nothing terribly inventive here: some prefer the addition of Wriggling Horror, others lean towards their extra aggressive Knife Vendor. Or even find room for Moonfang.
Demon Hunter
Remains popular with its sticky playstyle and packing that final punch through Illidari Inquisitor. There are several versions where the differences are only a matter of a few cards, so you could find your own based on what you like better or happen to have in your collection: Felsteel Executioner is often seen against Priests, Ace Hunter Kreen and Kurtrus Ashfallen as an all-rounder tech, or Al'ar and Vectus for even more greed.
Druid
The power of trees (or gibberers, or otherwise tokens) is as sturdy as ever. It's the kind of deck that can win against just about anything with a great early hand, and can withstand a lot if the opposing player fails to keep their board in check. But it's also the kind of deck that can defeat itself when draws don't align. Guidance has been more popular again as of late, and it often becomes a question of whether to cut a copy or two of Soul of the Forest or Pride's Fury.
We used to call this one a Clown Druid, and that greedier version is still out there (with the full package of Carnival Clown, Survival of the Fittest, and even Y'Shaarj, the Defiler). But we've also been seeing this slightly leaner version finding some success as of late. It's not as prone to early aggression and terribly clunky hands, even if that can still happen without convenient timely ramp.
Warrior
Holding steady on its own Mountain Rushmore, this one has been with us for a while now. There is a choice here to go further for Frenzy synergies by adding Stonemaul Anchorman and Overlord Saurfang, or by throwing away Kresh, Lord of Turtling and Warmaul Challenger to tech in Mutanus the Devourer and another Tent Trasher.
Priest
Finally, the one most everyone loves to hate. Or just hate hate. The playstyle that can understandably suppress your willpower and the ability to play Hearthstone, it's actually not that popular outside of Legend ranks. Regardless, the deck has that potential to withstand anything you throw at it. If weapons bother you, tech in Acidic Swamp Ooze. If in fear of wide boards, another Condemn (Rank 1) might be the answer (if you don't discover it anyway). Silly things happen when people add C'Thun, the Shattered just to take over the mirror matchup.
Others
For what it's worth, Miracle Rogue holds its spot as a deck that isn't particularly great or particularly terrible against the field. So while nothing new, a skilled player who likes it could navigate above that 50% winrate. As for Spell Mage, it's not nearly as solid as it was - unless your goal is just to try to punish some Priests.
Warlock as often goes by without a greater mention, and Paladin... actually some people are trying to play a modified Libram version. But we will have to see whether anything there actually takes hold.
Have anything else to share that you think is a reasonably good choice for ladder climbing right now, or any secret tech to strengthen the current decks? Tell us in the comments or drop a link to the lists!
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Comments
Heh, that's almost the exact same Warrior deck I've been using for the past few days. Only difference is mine has E.T.C., God of Metal, and only one Crabrider.
Edit: The Warrior deck in the article appears to be non-existent in Bronze-Gold, so I can't compare it to what I'm using, since I don't have HSReplay Premium. I really wish they made stats for all ranks free. They can keep more advanced stats behind the paywall.
I couldn't agree more, as I highly dislike that approach to locking stats behind a paywall. It's as you say - they could easily offer various other extra options to premium users, no need to go this far and hide relevant % for Platinum and above from the majority. That's one of the reasons I actually don't have it either for my personal data. I'm much more likely to support Vicious Syndicate as a result of them providing more generous access and content.
For what it's worth, the decks were all above 57%-58%. But it's often fluid, can go up and down within hours. I actually prefer one Crabrider, I think. E.T.C., God of Metal lost a bit of popularity once people started adding other non-Rush techs to the deck. But I'm not surprised some still like him.
Of course, these stats already exist for Premium members. Like matchup and region specific stats and such. Unfortunately, vS doesn't give you a big list of decks, just 1 or 2 for a given archetype. So I basically use it to find the best performing archetypes. I'm thinking I'm going to email HSReplay because last I checked there was a bug on the site where Initiate and Galakrond's Awakening were considered Standard. It's been around since rotation, and they don't seem to be fixing it. I think I'll try asking if they'll consider making stats for all the ranks free at the same time. I wonder if they have any idea how many people are only paying for the Platinum and above stats.
I assume that 57%-58% was for Diamond through Legend. Of course, to compare, I'd have to know where my deck stands at those ranks. https://hsreplay.net/decks/qsYBtDORz4omc8rMfLrBTh/#tab=overview if anybody wants to look it up.
Edit: Sadly, I was only able to finish at like Platinum 3 with my deck. Largely because I haven't been getting a ton of games in lately.
I went 10-5 from D5 to Legend two days ago with a slightly modified Miracle Rogue deck. I agree it's definitely worth a shot if you enjoy that playstyle.
That's very impressive, it's a tricky deck to pilot when you can never know what you might be facing next. The existence of Rush Warrior and Priests being Priests did discourage me from trying it more lately.
Iv played the spell heavier version of Aggro (face?) Shaman to do my quests and i usually win over the first, elemental, variant, but having more board presence with elementals can give it more power vs some other decks, i think.
I think I tried all Doomhammer variants, but uff... I don't usually have such a good time facing elementals. It definitely feels possible if you don't take too much early chip damage and can control the flow of the game, yet the clunky hands this deck occasionally gets while they tempo their minions, it can get frustrating.
Yeah, it definitely can, but you have a lot of burst in your deck, and some discovers as well, so im usually not very stingy to burn some damage to control the board, so they can never get a proper foothold, then i just burst them from like 20 hp, because they dont run taunts, so it is pretty easy to just kill em, once you get enough mana to play more things at once.