The Control Warrior deck has been around in Hearthstone forever, and each new adventure or expansion seems to give it a few new weapons to make it even stronger. That's never been more true than with The Grand Tournament and the new legendary Varian Wrynn, which has enabled Control Warrior to transform into Wrynn Warrior. There's a reason the name rhymes with "win" after all.
If you were lucky enough to unwrap a shiny new Varian Wrynn when opening your TGT card packs, then you need to take this deck for a spin. It's got all the classic power of Control Warrior, along with a few crazy new cards that make it better at crushing opponents in the late-game. General Strategy Wrynn Warrior is designed to keep your opponent's board in check through the early- and mid-game, until you can unleash a constant flow of gigantic legendary threats in the late-game. The goal is to stay alive long enough to get to that point, while gathering resources. That will require cards, armor, and a clear board. You should mulligan for Fiery War Axe, Bash, and Armorsmith to make sure you aren't totally run over in the first few turns by aggressive decks. Those cards will allow you to hang on just long enough to recover in the next few turns. Don't stress if you have to hero power early due to a lack of plays, you can still survive and win. As you enter the mid game, you'll be stabilizing with cards like Brawl, Sludge Belcher, and Death's Bite. They'll help you mitigate mid-game threats and start to swing the board back into your favor. You should keep a mind for drawing cards with Acolyte of Pain and Shield Block to make sure you don't run out of gas after turn 6 or so. If you're able to generate extra value on future turns with Nexus-Champion Saraad or Emperor Thaurissan, that's a huge bonus. |
What Stands Out
Varian Wrynn is the card this deck is named after, and most definitely its most standout card. Varian packs more value into a single turn than any other card in the game. At the very worst it's a 7/7 body that draws you three cards, and at the very best it's a 10-mana drop that summons a 7/7 alongside Ragnaros, Ysera, and Chromaggus. If that happens and your opponent doesn't have a board wipe, you will absolutely win the game. Any card that wins you the game 50% of the time its played is a big deal and deserves some love.
How Do You Win?
It might sound funny, but this deck usually wins with an opponent conceding. After you've worn them down and loaded up the board with legendary minions, they'll usually just give up. Often you'll have a few big minions on the board and be able to simply push them over with a weapon. You can also win with big burst damage from Grommash Hellscream and a Death's Bite or Cruel Taskmaster.
Tips and Tricks
Remember that you won't always have armor for Shield Slam, so use it while you think you'll be able to productively. Revenge will usually be a 1-damage area of effect spell, but it can destroy people by surprise if you let yourself get below 12 health. Don't forget that Bash can be used on the face too! You almost never want to throw Acolyte of Pain onto an empty board, because you will need to guarantee some card draw value with a whirlwind effect or Cruel Taskmaster. Nexus-Champion Saraad is almost never a turn-5 play unless you're absolutely desperate for a body. It's much better at turn-7 or later where you can assure it'll get extra value.
Matchups
- Control: This deck is incredibly good against other control-style decks, because it has so many ways to answer threats, and so many monster minions of its own. Be sure to focus on card draw and use your removal options wisely. Just be careful if you anticipate fatigue, because Varian Wrynn can really hurt you by pulling three cards, if they don't quickly win you the game. Big Brawl turns and extra value from Chromaggus or Nexus-Champion Saraad will help you expand your deck size and win the long game.
- Midrange: With midrange decks, you just have to be careful that you aren't overwhelmed with mid-sized minions. If you can't clean up, your passive larger minions will often just sit there while they finish you off. Don't save your removal for anticipated giant threats, as it's more important to keep things in check and answer the board every turn.
- Aggro: You have to mulligan aggressively for Fiery War Axe, Armorsmith, Cruel Taskmaster, and Bash if you want to survive their initial rush. From there you should be able to set up behind Sludge Belchers, Shield Block, and Revenge to swing the board back and recover health. Don't by shy with your removal spells, because using Shield Slam on a Knife Juggler is a viable play that could be the difference between winning and losing.
- Combo: If you're facing off against a combo deck, there are a few different routes to success. Having a high health total is usually your safest bet, so keeping their board in check and aggressively hero powering will certainly help. You should also save your Armorsmiths to make sure they generate tons of armor. Against Druids, you can save a Sludge Belcher for any expected lethals. Revenge and Brawl can work wonders against Patron Warriors.
As with most control-style Warrior decks, you have a lot of options when it comes to legendary minions. The minions chosen for this deck are those which don't lose value when pulled from Varian Wrynn. Cards with battlecry effects can be wasted if they're summoned, so passively valuable cards like Ragnaros, Sylvanas, and Ysera were chosen. Kel'Thuzad is another that fits that mold very nicely. You could also try Deathwing thanks to his huge body and sometimes-terrible battlecry. He's also an interesting fatigue answer that can give you one last chance to win. If you find yourself needing more health and armor to recover in the mid-game, adding a Shieldmaiden back into the deck will definitely help. It was sacrificed to fit Varian Wrynn synergy into the deck, but it's still going to do work as a 5/5 body if the battlecry is lost on a summon, and could save you from time to time with that extra 5 armor.
Why You Should Care
The Hearthstone meta game already seems to be slowing down a little with the recent release of The Grand Tournament. And when it comes to slow decks, there's nothing better than control-style Warriors. Wrynn Warrior is the ultimate version of that deck, and gives you a great vehicle to show off your shiny new legendary card.
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