[DoD] Descent of Handbuffs (Dragon Handbuff Paladin)

Last updated 5 years, 6 months ago by JoeyJojo48

Handbuff Paladin
Wild

Ranked

~The real MVPs ~

Hello Out of Cards!

Handbuff is back, only now with DRAGONS! I've been playing various versions of Handbuff Paladin ever since Mean Streets, even taking it to legend twice. With the release of Descent of Dragons, I've updated my decklist and it feels pretty strong. The list is very midrange-y right now and has a pretty decent chance against almost anything. It is a bit off-meta, but if you want to give it a try I'm sure you'll have fun. Cheers!

*December 30th Update: Bye mechs, hello dragons! I've been tinkering with the deck quite a bit and have finally settled on a list that I think feels pretty great. I'll likely make some more changes (and I have some big plans for the deck after the set rotation), but I'm excited to share it with you now. Best of luck on ladder!

~ General Strategy ~

The core plan of the deck is as follows:

Fill your hand with minions using Bronze Explorer, Big Ol' Whelp, and Countess Ashmore
Buff them all with Glowstone Technician
Get even more Glowstone Technician using Baleful Banker and Barista Lynchen
Murder your opponent with huge minions (specifically Leeroy Jenkins and Stormwind Knight)

The rest of the deck is minions that capitalize on the buffs (such as Zilliax, Faceless Corruptor, and Siamat), and cards to disrupt/neutralize your opponent's threats (such as Aldor Peacekeeper, Scaleworm, and Amber Watcher).

~ FAQs ~

1) What should I mulligan for?

Cathedral Gargoyle, Firetree Witchdoctor, and Nightmare Amalgam. You can consider keeping Dragonrider Talritha, Scaleworm, or Bronze Explorer, especially with the coin.

2) When should I play Glowstone Technician?

If you're in a match that you'll need to OTK, save it until your 3 chargers are in hand. You also should play one on turn 7+ with Baleful Banker and/or Barista Lynchen. Against zoo/aggro, feel free to play it whenever you have a decent-sized hand, or it fits the mana curve.

3) Why aren't you running Dragon Speaker?

Honestly, just deck space. I need to fit more dragons in to justify it, and there isn't room if I want to keep the chargers. I expect to slot it in after the set rotation when we lose Glowstone Technician, which is a better buffer in this deck.

4) Why is this deck so dang expensive?

Cause I like to tinker and optimize my decks and I don't really care about crafting cost/wasting dust. But that's just a personal thing for me.

5) What other cards can I consider for the deck?

If you want more dragons, you can put in Evasive Wyrm, Bronze Herald, or Nozdormu the Timeless. Scalerider and Dragon Speaker are worth it if you add more dragons.
Argent Commander is a good alternative/additional charger.
If you want, you can swap out the dragons for mechs (e.g. Crystology, Glow-Tron, Micro Mummy, Bronze Gatekeeper, Gyrocopter, or Annoy-o-Module).
Spellbreaker or Acidic Swamp Ooze are decent tech options.

I cannot guarantee your deck will work well if you make any of these changes, but they are options.

~ Key Card Explanations ~

The Buffs	Dragonrider Talritha Barista Lynchen Glowstone Technician Baleful Banker	The core of the deck is using Glowstone Technician to turn your normal minions into game-ending threats. Barista Lynchen and Baleful Banker are here mostly to double up on the buffs. Dragonrider Talritha is here to support the deck's dragon package.
The Cavalry	Leeroy Jenkins Siamat Zilliax Faceless Corruptor Scaleworm Stormwind Knight	This deck is stuffed full of Rush and Charge minions so that you can reclaim the board after you lose in in the early turns. They also act as your burst to close the game.
The Neutralizers	Tirion Fordring Siamat Zilliax Faceless Corruptor Aldor Peacekeeper Scaleworm Amber Watcher	These cards are all meant to mess with your opponent's gameplan so that your cards can shine. You can also use Barista Lynchen and Baleful Banker to get extra copies as needed.
The Dragon Package	Dragonrider Talritha Nightmare Amalgam Cathedral Gargoyle Firetree Witchdoctor Scaleworm Bronze Explorer Amber Watcher Big Ol' Whelp	The Dragons are your core early/mid game defense that allows you to survive till your late game burst. The deck currently has 8 dragons, which should be enough to reliably hold a dragon when you need to.
The Card Draw	Countess Ashmore Firetree Witchdoctor Bronze Explorer Big Ol' Whelp	Your core draw package is the "Countess Package" of Countess Ashmore, Dragonrider Talritha, Tirion Fordring, Faceless Corruptor, Zilliax, and Bronze Explorer. Bronze Explorer, Big Ol' Whelp and Firetree Witchdoctor also help keep your hand full.