The 'Coup de grâce'

A coup de grâce (/ˌkuː də ˈɡrɑːs/; French for "blow of mercy") is a death blow to end the suffering of a severely wounded person or animal.

Hello. My name is RambunctiousRogue, and this is my writeup on the GvG OTK Shaman deck that I have coined, "The "Coup de grâce". Let me first start my saying that I am NOT the creator of this deck. I first saw the idea from this post here by HearthstoneShredder. Although the two decks are nearly identical, I have made a few changes that I personally have felt make the deck stronger.

As I've seen with many other deck writeups, authors will detail each card in the deck, proper mulligans and matchup effectiveness, but not actually tell you how to win, so, I'll start with that.

How to pull off the "Coup de grace".

Remember to Do Da Maff.

For this deck to be effective you need to be fully aware every turn past 6 exactly how much damage you have in your hand if Malygos were able to to be played the next turn. The minimum amount of mana you need to deal up to 22 damage is 7. That's right, 7 mana let's you play Ancestor's Call into Malygos leaving you with 3 mana left to play x2Lightning Bolt and a Frost Shock for 22 damage.

I have gone through and written a little quick guide for the possible amounts of damage you might have in your hand and how much mana you need to maximize it. *Not every single combination is listed*

With Malygos on board: 1* Frost Shock = 6

1* Lightning Bolt = 8

2* Crackle = 8-11

3* Lava Burst = 10 Combos.(all combos include Ancestor's Call[4])

Don't forget to include the +2 from your last

weapon charge if available. 7 Mana = x2LB + FS = [22DMG]

7 Mana = x2FS + LB = [20DMG]

7 Mana = C + LB = [16-18DMG]

7 Mana = C + FS = [14-16DMG]

7 Mana = Lava = [10DMG] 8 Mana = x2FS + x2LB = [28DMG]

8 Mana = C + x2LB = [24-26DMG]

8 Mana = C + LB + FS = [22-24DMG]

8 Mana = C + x2FS = [20-22DMG]

8 Mana = x2C = [16-20DMG]

8 Mana = Lava + LB = [18DMG]

8 Mana = Lava + FS = [16DMG] 9 Mana = x2LB + C + FS = [30-32DMG]

9 Mana = LB + x2FS + C = [28-30DMG]

9 Mana = x2C + LB = [24-30DMG]

9 Mana = Lava + x2LB = [26DMG]

9 Mana = Lava + LB + FS = [24DMG]

9 Mana = Lava + x2FS = [22DMG]

9 Mana = C + Lava = [18-22DMG] 10 Mana Max Damage Combo = x2C + x2LB = [32-36DMG]

Card explanations and "Turtling"

Mulligans

Mulligans are probably the easiest part of playing this deck as there is only one card you mulligan for EVERY GAME. Malygos. You might say that keeping certain cards in certain matchups might be better, but I've played enough games to know that no matter what, if you don't get Maly by turn 10(many times much sooner) you won't win. There is enough cycle in this game that it isn't usually difficult to draw into removal as you need it. It's the most frustrating thing sitting there with lethal in your hand for 3+ turns waiting for Malygos to show his elusive face.

A few final tips

If you happen to Far Sight into a 6-cost Malygos, DON'T PLAY HIM. It may look tempting to drop that 6 cost Maly but unless you have lethal with it at that point, you will just lose. Always combo Bloodmage Thalnos with a removal spell e.i. Earth Shock or Lightning Storm. Don't forget to take into account that Wrath of Air Totem that you have sitting on your board, you might just have lethal with its spell damage boost a turn or two earlier than you think!

Thank for taking the time to read my guide! I hope you have success with this deck!

I stream 4-5 days a week on http://www.twitch.tv/rambunctiousrogue so if you want to watch the deck in action come stop by! Also here is a video of The Coupe de Grace finishing off an over zealous mage. Enjoy. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PfTyuaQvS40