High Legend Odd Paladin

Hi OutOf.Cards Community! My name is ETA, and I'm a new Wild Hearthstone Content Creator. I figured I'd let you know my experience playing in Legend with Odd Paladin. Before I go on with the writeup, I would appreciate if you would head over to my Twitch or YouTube, and follow those if you would like to see more content like this!

Legend Proof/Winrate:

https://imgur.com/gallery/psKiG5R

Twitch: https://www.twitch.tv/etahs

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCKtfbiczk--EV49nGlZNAlQ

Odd Paladin has been criminally underrated since the release of Scholomance Academy. And with the new cards that were released in that expansion, there are so many more tools to their disposal. The new card Tour Guide allows for an explosive start that is only rivaled by an Aggro Druid high roll. 

Deck Core: 

2x Blessing of Might 

2x Lost in the Jungle

2x Never Surrender

2x Righteous Cause

2x Tour Guide

2x Muster for Battle

2x Steward of Darkshire

2x Warhorse Trainer

2x Quartermaster 

2x Corridor Creeper

1x Baku the Mooneater

Notable Inclusions:

1x Beaming Sidekick - Better against anti-aggro and to build board

1x Competitive Spirit- Better Against anti-aggro and defile, can help get lethal

2x Divine Favor- Insane reload against Reno Priest or any other slow deck. It can also draw 1 or 2 against another aggro deck, allowing you to outvalue them

2x Blessing of Authority- Super Charged Fungalmancer and just insane. Honestly has won me 5-6 games on it's own

1x Loatheb- Insane against any spell based deck looking to destroy your board. Look to use it to set up lethal the next turn and deny a board clear.

Notable Exclusions:

Crystology- The draw isn't necessary Turn 1, and divine favor is just so much better.

Animated Broomstick: It's good against aggro druid and to win back board, but against other decks, like Cube/Renolock or Reno Priest, beaming sidekick is so much better. 

Fungalmancer: It's just a worse blessing of authority, no clue why some people play it.

Leeroy Jenkins: You often don't need this much burst, and Loatheb is just so much better.

Mulligan: The mulligan is extremely simple. 

You always keep Tour Guide, no matter what the match up.

Other auto keeps include Righteous Cause, Muster for Battle, and Lost in the Jungle. Finding a consistent early-game allows you to close out games quickly, or deny an aggressive opponent.

There are also cards you should never keep like Baku the Mooneater, Loatheb, and Steward of Darkshire. 

Gameplan:

Your gameplan is always match up dependent. If you're playing a warlock or priest, mulligan aggressively and look to close out the game as quickly as possible, and build an uncontrollable board. If you're playing druid or warrior, look to find cards that build your board larger to trade minions into and keep board presence. Below are some specific match -up mulligans and game plans.

Aggro Druid: The gameplan for this is to keep their board with as few minions as possible, while looking to stabilize a big board of your own into a big Quartermaster turn. Look to find Tour Guide, Corridor Creeper, Lost in the Jungle, and Righteous Protector. Everything else is a dump. Do not look to keep just okay cards.

Discard Warlock: The plan for discard warlock is to pressure them to trade as much as possible. Take advantage of their self damaging and look to go wide and go face. Don't let them have a Kanrethad Ebonlocke on the board for long, that's how they get you. Mulligan for Tour Guide, Lost in the Jungle, Blessing of Authority, and Warhorse Trainer. 

Quest Mage: Quest Mage has never been much of a problem for me (knock on wood). To win, you simply have to have a big stabilized board by turn 4-5 to beat out a Sorcerer's Apprentice into Flamewaker turn. Look for Tour Guide, Righteous Cause, Blessing of Authority, and Warhorse Trainer. 

Odd Paladin- Do to the slowly rising popularity, you will begin to see this matchup more and more. Look to control the board early and buff up your minions, while trading into theirs. Do not let them have a board on turn 4-5, or you're asking for a huge Quartermaster swing turn. Mulligan for Righteous Cause, Tour Guide, and Lost in the Jungle in this matchup. 

Reno Priest: Reno Priest makes up an estimated 15-20% of the ladder, making this an important match up. You must flood the board early into a never surrender, and keep your board alive. This match-up is devastating if you don't get the cards you need. Look to hard mulligan for Warhorse Trainer, Corridor Creeper, Righteous Cause, Blessing of Authority to beat them down. 

Cube/Reno Warlock- This matchup can be incredibly tough, and really just comes down to having the right cards. Look for Never Surrender! and Righteous Cause to beat out Defile and Dark Skies. Don't have a minion above 4 attack after turn 4-5, as you want to stall a Void Caller into Void Caller for as long as possible

Is Odd Paladin Legend Viable? -

Of course. I would personally place it in a low Tier one to high/mid Tier two spot. It excels at destroying some of the other top tier decks, and can destroy other aggro and even win some control matchups. If you enjoy short, consistent games, and winning a lot, this deck is for you. If you liked this write-up, please feel free to upvote, or head to my Twitch and YouTube and throw me a follow there!