So, this is a take on the standard no-minion mage, with some tasty additions to get the quest done. Also, my first theorycraft/deck guide. Thoughts/ideas welcome!
Edit 1: 2021/August-3
Key Cards (Breakdowns Below)
- Sorcerer's Gambit - Obviously the main goal of the deck, but provides an engine in and of itself with a little bit of built in draw/discover. I'll break down the plan for each school below:
- Spell breakdown is 10 Arcane (Not including Evocation), 6 Fire, and 6 Frost. Of these, Arcane is obviously the easiest to cast, and Fire has some self-generation because of First Flame (giving us "two more") and Ignite, which effectively cycles itself. Assuming that we get one cycled Ignite and a single cast of First Flame that gives us effectively 8 fire spells, of which we can expect to draw probably 4-5. This means that Frost will always be the toughest school to cast, where our 6 spells have to come pretty quickly. Discover frost if you can off of stage 2 of the quest, providing you don't have one of that school in hand already.
- Arcane: This is the easiest school to complete. Hold on to cards like Font of Power to easily fill out the school and give yourself some minion options to develop. Incanter's Flow is there to speed up everything that you draw. Runed Orb reacts and gives you some options for discovering situational reactions. Save Cram Session for once the quest is complete for major draw, ideally after an Incanter's Flow or two.
- Fire: Ignite is your friend. It may not keep any discounts permanently, but it does let you go infinite, particularly well after quest completion. Hot Streak helps a lot, too. Use it as the last of one leg of the quest and drop either Ignite or First Flame to get the next phase going.
- Frost: This school is about keeping us alive as long as possible. Ice Barrier guards against face attacks, and should be dropped ASAP. Another important aspect of Ice Barrier is that it's one of the only frost spells that can be cast on an empty board, which, because of all the fire spells, you'll probably have fairly often. Flurry (Rank 1) and Brain Freeze can be used in the same way that Hot Streak and Ignite or First Flame can be used to finish off one phase of the quest and kickstart the next.
- Refreshing Spring Water - Classic and vital card draw for No Minion builds. Best if you can wait until after an Incanter's Flow but still worth it even if you don't. Because it doesn't contribute to the Arcane spell school, feel free to cast this any time you have the mana and hand space for it.
- Ice Barrier - as mentioned above in the quest lineup, it's important because it's one of the only sources of health, and because it's one of only 4 frost spells that can be played on an empty board. (The other 3 are Oasis Ally (too situational, and we won't have many minions out), Shattering Blast (too situational), and Deep Freeze (too expensive).)
- Ignite is one of the engines of the deck. In early game it's a cheap way to get a little chip damage or clear small minions, while progressing the quest. In the late game, after the quest is done, it's a 2 mana Fireball with +1 Spell Damage that replenishes your deck with the same.
Other Cards of Note
Ring Toss ideally should get corrupted, and can net you more things to slow down your opponent, thankfully there are two options. Apexis Blast is a good source of corruption and contests the board. Refreshing Spring Water is our other choice, and efficiently draws into the rest of the deck.
Evocation is for a late-game refill or a Hail Mary if you're short on one of the schools to finish out the quest. Best used if it can generate 5-6 cards and if you have at least as much mana leftover for casting.
Gameplan
Mulligan: Hold onto Sorcerer's Gambit obviously. Look for Incanter's Flow, Runed Orb, First Flame, Ice Barrier, and Flurry (Rank 1).
- Early Game (Quest Phase 1, Turns 1-4): Get the quest going and slam down an Ice Barrier on Turn 3 if you can. Use First Flame and/or Flurry (Rank 1) to control the early board, and drop literally any of the arcane spells to finish it out.
- Early-Mid Game (Quest Phase 2, Turns 4-5): Hopefully you've got a Refreshing Spring Water to draw into more spells. Hold back minions with Brain Freeze and Ignite. Let another arcane spell finish the phase off ASAP and try to discover a Frost spell for the next phase. Don't be afraid of dumping a Hot Streak to finish it out if you're stuck on fire. There's a good chance you'll have one in your hand, and by this point the mana discount doesn't really matter if you waste it. You can also use it to get a "free" combo for Brain Freeze which is arguably just as useful.
- Mid Game (Quest Phase 3, Turns 5-6): Same as phase 2, but hold on to Ignite for once you're done the quest.
- Late Game (Quest Complete, Turns 6-7+): Drop Arcanist Dawngrasp and start going face as much as possible. If you've got a Cram Session in hand, you're in really good shape to draw into more damage.
Tech/Swapout Options
Swap in Devolving Missiles for Hot Streak if you're running into some sticky opponents, particularly anyone with Kresh, Lord of Turtling.
Similarly, swap in Primordial Studies over Hot Streak for a little help with Cram Session.
If you're running into aggro with wide boards, consider subbing in Fire Sale instead of Apexis Blast
Even though it's in the mulligan, this deck has a really low curve, and you might be able to do without Incanter's Flow. In that case, you may want some more damage, perhaps with a Mask of C'Thun
Budget Options
Apexis Blast -> Fireball : Damage for damage. You lose a bit of board contention, but you might go over the top a bit more for face damage.
Evocation -> Conjure Mana Biscuit : Odd swap, but with this you're still firing off an arcane spell (maybe even for the quest) and putting something in your hand to help in a future turn.
Leave a Comment