Master Series: DoA’s Slammin’ Shaman

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Hey guys! The idea behind this article series is to outline some of the decks I’m currently playing at the highest level of the Hearthstone beta ladder!

Originally when I played World of Warcraft vanilla nothing was more fun to me than getting an enormous Windfury critical hit with my Enhancement Shaman. Cloth-wearers died by the hundreds and I was the scourge of Warsong Gulch. This deck attempts to re-create that feeling by delivering fast, explosive combo damage at the time your opponent least expects it and is definitely my favorite deck to play at the moment. This deck would be classified as “Aggro/combo”. If I had to describe this deck in one word I’d say Explosive. Let’s take a closer look!

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[tabs] [tab title=”1″]Earth Shock x1
Lightning Bolt x2
[/tab] [tab title=”2″]Stormforged Axe x1
Windfury x1
Faerie Dragon x2
Flametongue Totem x2
Knife Juggler x2
[/tab] [tab title=”3″]Feral Spirit x2
Hex x2
Lava Burst x1
Lightning Storm x2
Wolfrider x2
[/tab] [tab title=”4″]Spellbreaker x2
[/tab] [tab title=”5″]Doomhammer x2
Bloodlust x2
[/tab] [tab title=”6″] Fire Elemental x2
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When I was choosing minions for this deck I had two criteria. They had to either 1) Do damage immediately, or 2) have a good chance of surviving until the next turn. The one exception to this rule is Knife Juggler. He’s got the potential to do quick damage, but is more useful as an early play to draw removal cards out of your opponent’s hand. Knife Juggler is so targeted that he might as well be a spell that says “You opponent chooses and discards a removal spell from their hand.” The potential value he has with both you totems and cards like Feral Spirit makes him impossible to not include in the deck at the moment.

Cards that do damage right away like Wolfrider and Fire Elemental add to the main theme of the deck in that they add to its explosiveness. Having the choice between adding to the player damage you do or getting that little extra board control is nice too. Wolfrider especially can be terrifyingly dangerous if your opponent lacks a blocker. Having a Flametongue Totem on the board already and then playing a Wolfrider next to it along with Windfury means 10 damage for 5 mana! Add in Rockbiter Weapon on the Wolfrider as well and suddenly you’re swinging for 16 out of the blue. It’s combos like this that make the deck truly dangerous.

The other type of minions in this deck are ones that generally have potential to live until your next turn. Spellbreaker has a great Silence Battlecry, but he’s also fairly durable at 3 health. Faerie Dragon and Fire Elemental also have a good chance to living as well. The reason you’re looking for this type of minion is because of the buffing that spells in this deck can give you, which we’ll discuss in the next section!

The general theme of the spells in the Slammin’ Shaman are to help control the board and prepare the way for your big damage combos to come through. You’ve got plenty of direct damage for that. Keep in mind that spells like Lightning Bolt and Lava Burst are just as valuable for finishing your opponent off as well as killing their minions! Hex is good “big creature insurance” and can help prepare the way for a game-winning Bloodlust.

The real fun stuff in my opinion though is cards like Rockbiter Weapon and Windfury. You never have to fear that turn-1 Northshire Cleric again with a Rockbiter Weapon in your hand! Windfury is an often over-looked card due to its situational nature and I certainly wouldn’t recommend it most of the time, but having 1 really shines in this deck! Combining it with Bloodlust or Rockbiter Weapon is seriously scary and helps turn a bad early start into at least an even game if not a win. Being able to do 12 damage with just Windfury on a Fire Elemental or 18 with a Rockbiter Weapon/Winfury combo is massively game-changing. That same combo on even a simple totem is a minimum of 6 damage, which is still significant. The spells in this game make your opponent have to put a priority on killing every single minion on your side of the board every turn. Most players (especially on ladder) won’t take a totem or two seriously, which leaves you opportunities to do lots of surprise damage!

There are two weapons in this deck. Stormforged Axe has nice utility in that it helps deal with 2-health minions and has the 3 durability that lets you keep board control over a pretty long time in the early game. Doomhammer really steals the spotlight in this deck as a terrifying damage dealing option and control card. With just Rockbiter Weapon this is 10 damage for 6 mana and generally what you’ll be saving Rockbiter Weapon for in most games. The high amount of durability that Doomhammer has makes it great as board control as well.

The Shaman’s hero ability is easily one of the best in the game. Coining into a totem on your first turn and then following it up with Flametongue Totem next turn is a great start in most games. Bloodlust and your other buffing spells make your totems dangerous at all points in the game make them more of a removal priority for your opponent in this deck than in some other slower Shaman decks. You’ll find plenty of situations where it’s better to just get another totem on the board than to play a card in your hand.

Like many of the decks I make, this one needs to be played AGGRESSIVE! It’s explosive, but fragile and a slightest misplay often times means lost tempo and usually a lost game. This is a difficult deck to play correctly and it’ll take you some time to master it so don’t get discouraged with some early losses! You’ve got so many ways to deal damage it’s difficult to pick the best one sometimes. Knowing the decks good and bad matchups are important too. You’ll destroy most control decks if you play properly. Even Priest! Mid-range aggro decks are more of a challenge though so make sure you pick wisely in a tournament situation!

At the end of the day being able to hit someone for huge amounts of damage in lots of different interesting ways is fun and it’s what this deck is all about! Not since the early days of World of Warcraft will so many noobs be moaning “Damn Windfury!” again. FOR DOOMHAMMER!