Congratulations to tripp for achieving the rank of #1 Legend for the month of March! This achievement gives him a great head start toward qualifying for the Americas Spring Preliminary.

When not spending time memeing on Twitch, tripp is a force to be reckoned with in Ranked Play. It’s our pleasure to help you get to know tripp, and showcase the deck and strategies that he used to climb to the top of the Ranked Play standings in March.

Please tell us a little bit about yourself.

I’m 16 years old, currently a high school student, and am from Massachusetts. I am Israeli, so you can call me the Pride of Israel. I explore dank memes for a living and spend my days spamming naviFeels on Twitch.tv.

How long have you been playing Hearthstone, and how did you get started?

I started playing in early 2014, during the beginning of the open beta. I got started when I watched Trump play an arena for the first time. It was a life-changing experience. The cards, the thought process, the complexity, the value . . . I knew this was something I could challenge myself with.

Does your BattleTag have any special meaning or significance? Why did you choose it?

My name is a combination of “Trump” and “Kripp.” The first streams I watched were those of Trump and Kripp, and while I no longer watch those streams, they were what inspired me to start playing Hearthstone.

How do you approach each season, and what strategies do you use to climb your way to the top of the rankings?

I look at the meta snapshot to determine what people are playing and what’s popular, and try to play decks that are good against that. Warlock Zoo is a very strong deck, particularly against Druid, Control Warrior, and even Aggro Shaman. I faced a lot of these decks on the ladder, and I hit a good win streak and managed to keep it at the end of the month.

What style of decks do you prefer playing?

I like playing aggro decks because I like the feeling of racing my opponents and killing them as quickly as possible. However, I will play whatever deck is good, and my preference for aggro decks has not stopped me from playing control decks like Renolock.

What decks did you use for the March Ranked Play season? Do you tweak them often during the season to adjust to the meta or do you stick with the same decks throughout?

I used bearnugget’s Hobgoblin Zoo during my climb to rank 1 Legend. He wrote a great guide on reddit. I usually made whatever tweaks bearnugget told me to. The only difference is that I’m much better than bearnugget at rolling 4 on Imp-losion. :)

Do you plan on playing in any upcoming tournaments? Will you focus on playing in more tournaments this year?

Right now, my main focus is on becoming a top memer on Twitch.tv, but I also plan on maybe playing some opens if I have time, and hopefully I can attend Spring Prelims.

How does your approach preparing for Ranked Play differ from playing in tournaments?

I haven’t really played in tournaments, so I wouldn’t know. In the one tournament I did play, I picked decks I was most comfortable playing, so it wasn’t too different from ladder.

What are your goals for Hearthstone this year?

I’d like to win Spring Prelims and eventually BlizzCon. That’s not really realistic, but it’s something I’d like to shoot for. I’d also like to try to start streaming.

Where can viewers find you?

I don’t stream, but my Twitch username is tidesoftime7. I love watching naviOOT because he’s not afraid to be himself and he doesn’t let people’s opinions change the way he feels. I watch vanqswisher for his cool and collected attitude, and thoughtful, patient playstyle, and I also watch bearnugget when I want an educational stream with only top-level competitive decks.

Do you have any advice or thoughts you’d like to share with your fans or other aspiring competitive players?

I would like to tell all my fans and any other aspiring players to play what decks they enjoy most, because any deck can do well if you play it well. I also think players should learn a variety of decks so they are not predictable, or locked into a certain style playstyle.

Thanks to tripp for taking the time to speak with us! We wish him the best in the current season and the rest of the Hearthstone Championship Tour.