by JR Cook - 10 years ago     show comments

Every Friday a legendary member from team DKMR breaks down Don’t Kick My Robot’s “Deck of the Week” . These decks are seeing a lot of play either in constructed ladder or tournaments. Team DKMR explains the deck lists and how to play them. Make sure you check out Don’t Kick My Robot if you want to become a better player or check out their premium services if you would like them to do a 1 on 1 coaching session with you to help you better your game. View past Deck Lists of the Week.

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Hey guys, [DKMR]Faramir here, bringing you the Deck of the Week once again. This week we will take a look at the class that made Kitkatz famous and the list that brought him to Rank #1 of the NA Ladder once again. This deck is a variation of the standard Control Warrior that was always around.  It has a strong card draw mechanic and many late game threats combined with cheap removal makes this deck always a force to be reckoned with.

The Deck :

2 x Execute :

One of the best removals in the game, Execute is the Warrior’s prime weapon against minions with high toughness. It synergizes with a lot of the Whirlwind-like effects in the deck as well as with the Cruel Taskmaster but sometimes you have to take the hit and swing at your target with your weapons to make it ready for Execution.

2 x Shield Slam :

This card is one of the unique cards in the game that synergizes with the Heropower of your Hero. The only other really playable card of this kind is probably Auchenai Soulpriest. Shield Slam turns the defensive Heropower of the Warrior into an offensive asset. It synergizes very well with Shield Block. Its drawback obviously is that – if under a lot of pressure – this card can only deal 2 damage for 3 mana. Still, the potential of this card is unmatched.

2 x Fiery War Axe :

As a Priest player, we hate this card. It shuts down aggression like no other. It is able to deal with every relevant Turn 1 minion as well as the Turn 2 minions, making it the best tool for the Warrior to deal with any form of aggression. Essentially 6 damage for 2 mana make this card a great way to seize board control in the early game.

2 x Armorsmith :

The Armorsmith alone is a pretty shitty card but in combination with the Whirlwind-like effects from Death’s Bite and Unstable Ghoul or together with Cruel Taskmaster it can be turned into a strong early and late game minion. Never underestimate the ability to gain tons of armor with this little girl. Don’t believe me? Check out Hosty vs Kaldi in the DKMR Invitational.

2 x Cruel Taskmaster :

He’s not a nice guy to work with but he will push you to your limit. This card is awesome against aggressive decks with 1 hp minions. It can also squeeze multiple cards out of your Acolyte of Pain and stack armor with the Armorsmith. Together with Grommash Hellscream it is the prime tool to finish someone off. Whenever you hear Grommash hitting the board, you know the Cruel Taskmaster is right behind him.

2 x Unstable Ghoul :

The Unstable Ghoul has been a welcome addition to the Warrior since the Naxxramas expansion. It pretty much replaced the Whirlwind since it does everything the Whirlwind does, just better. It trades with 2 health minions like the Knife Juggler and Flame Imp and stops Leper Gnomes and Webspinners dead in their tracks.

2 x Shield Block :

Not much to say about this card. It heals for 5, replaces itself and synergizes with Shield Slam. You don’t really want to use it without Shield Slam.

2 x Acolyte of Pain :

This card is the main carddraw engine of the Warrior. If your enemy can get rid of it without you drawing multiple cards off it, you might run out of cards. Most of time, that’s how Warrior loses control matchups. Try to combine it with Cruel Taskmaster, Unstable Ghoul and Death’s Bite.

2 x Death’s Bite :

This card is the Fiery War Axe for 4 mana. It’s straight up overpowered. The 5 damage on the second hit as well as its Deathrattle effect synergize like nothing else with the Warrior setup with Armorsmith and Acolyte of Pain. It also allows an enraged Grommash Hellscream to come down at Turn 8 already if setup correctly. It pretty much replaced the Gorehowl in this deck.

1 x Spellbreaker :

The one card that can break this deck is Sylvanas Windrunner. Since this deck runs so many high-impact minions, the chances of the enemy’s Sylvanas to steal something vital are very high. The Spellbreaker in this deck is mainly here to shut down a card like Sylvanas. Other prime targets for a silence are Tirion Fordring or Ancient of War.

1 x Brawl :

The threat of Brawl is sometimes better than the Brawl itself. If you play against a control matchup they will always play around it ’cause this card can easily can win you the game if it takes out multiple high-priority targets for just 5 mana. It’s also a key card in beating decks like the Zoo Warlock. Great in combination with Sylvanas Windrunner since it always “wins” the Brawl because of its Deathrattle Ability.

1 x Faceless Manipulator :

Copy your good minions, or THEIR good minions. Never play it on an empty board.

1 x Loatheb :

As I touched on in past Deck of the Weeks, this card is just too good not to play it. It pretty much shuts down the enemy’s removal for 1 turn, forcing him or her to answer your board with minions. It is great as a push for board control in the mid game or just for setting up lethal in the end game.

2 x Sludge Belcher :

Another great card from the Naxxramas expansion. Sludge Belcher helps Warrior protect his life total in the mid game and give him time to setup his late game with all his legendaries. Also great to protect your early game minions like Armorsmith or Acolyte of Pain.

1 x Cairne Bloodhoof :

Cairne is the first big threat in the Warrior deck. It’s hard to remove him unless you run silence. If your opponent doesn’t have an answer right away, it tends to trade very efficiently and get a lot of value. It has gotten a lot weaker after the Deathrattle change since it can now get stolen by Sylvanas Windrunner.

1 x Sylvanas Windrunner :

This card is one of the best cards in the game. There’s the threat of it stealing a valuable minion; there’s the chance that you might lose the game due to bad RNG; there’s this threat that forces people to put silence minions into their decks. Played on the right board, Sylvanas can absolutely wreck your opponent and win you the game by itself since your opponent will go out of his or her way to play around its Deathrattle effect. Another one of those cards that aren’t great on an empty board.

Great synergy with Brawl.

1 x Grommash Hellscream :

This raging guy is the main finisher in the Warrior deck. Paired with a Cruel Taskmaster, he can deal 12 damage from the hand; combined with a Death’s Bite on Turn 8 (or later), it’s even 14 damage. You don’t really like trading him into enemy minions, although sometimes you have to do it regardless. Sometimes you have to be patient although he can wait no longer.

1 x Ragnaros the Firelord :

Amaz’ favorite card is another one of the big late game threats coming out of the Warrior. Most of the time Ragnaros only gets one shot off, so make it count! He is placed perfectly when every possible target is a good outcome. Playing him on an empty board is a waste of his potential most of the time. He is also responsible for the most rage-quits in the game.

1 x Alexstrasza :

Alexstrasza is a great card to prepare your opponent for your lethal finishing combos or to get yourself back up to a safer life total. If you already have a weapon equipped, you can push yourself to the edge of death before this mighty dragon heals you with its breath. You really want to use it on the enemy though to finish them off with something like Grommash Hellscream or just with Alexstrasza herself.

1 x Ysera :

Is there trouble? Yeah, there is if Ysera stays on the board. A great 4/12 body makes Ysera a threat even when silenced. Its effect is ridiculous on paper; can these cards be real? 5 AOE damage for 2 mana and Ysera takes none? Did they become crazy at Blizzard Headquarters? To balance Ysera, she is hard to place on the board since it’s tough to find a turn where you can spend 9 mana for basically just dropping a 4 attack minion. The value you can get out of the Ysera cards can easily win you the game though and sometimes you have to rely on that.

And sometimes you just get Laughing Sisters….

The Mulligan :

Most of the time, you just look for a start with Armorsmiths, Acolyte of Pains, Cruel Taskmasters and Fiery War Axes. You want to get through the early game while drawing cards to get to your late game where the Warrior excels at.

The Coin :

Since you don’t have a 1-drop, you always want to have the Coin as Warrior. Armorsmith into Cruel Taskmaster is a great little way to draw out removal from your opponent. It also smooths out your curve in the late game when you have all your big drops in your hand.

The Gameplan :

This deck wants to get to get through the early game without taking a lot of damage. It tries to draw as many cards out of the Acolytes as possible to sustain its playstyle with cheap removal and big minions in the late game. Try building up as much armor as possible to get value out of the Shield Slams. In the late game you try to out-value your opponent with your big legendaries, seize board control and card advantage while exhausting their removals until Grommash can wait no longer to finish your adversary off.

Final Thoughts:

We hope you have a lot of fun with this deck on ladder or in tournaments and enjoy playing Garrosh. 🙂

Lok’tar Ogar!

[DKMR]Faramir streams weekdays http://www.twitch.tv/faramirHS. You can find all of DKMR’s streamers on their website with the days that they stream!

Written by [DKMR]Faramir

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