DKMR’s Deck of the Week #1, Warrior Control

by Team [IHU] - 7 years ago

[DKMR]Alchemixt here from team Don’t Kick My Robot to bring you this week’s Deck of the Week. It is our goal to have these articles add a more competitive aspect to BlizzPro. [DKMR]Alchemixt has achieved top 100 legend ranking in all 3 seasons (rank 12 at the end of season 1). And recently took 1st place at NESL Pre-Season Cup#2.

The deck that we are going to talk about this week is a version of control warrior that [DKMR]Alchemixt used to great success in the tournament mentioned above. Not only is this deck powerful and very good, it is also fun! There is a ridiculous amount of synergy in this deck as well as some powerful combos. Next, we will provide a deck list along with detailed explanations on why each card is there and its function in the deck.

Deck List

DKMR Warrior Control

Class: Warrior

Cards sorted by Low Cost

Warrior (19)

Inner Rage x2 – The main purpose of this card is to be used as a free spell to combine with your Wild Pyromancer and Gadgetzan Auctioneer. It can also be used to enrage Grommash Hellscream on turn 8 for the killing blow. Often, you will want to use it on your own Acolyte Of Pain to gain card advantage. Lastly, there may be some cases where you use it to finish off an opponents minion or to set up an Execute play.

Execute x2 – This is our choice of removal for large threats because, it is very cheap and easy to use in this deck. It can also be your saving grace against nasty turn 1 innervate plays from Druid decks.

Shield Slam x2 – Possibly the most efficient removal in the game. Many times you will build up massive armor making this card a 1 mana kill anything spell.

Whirlwind x2 – This card provides great area of effect damage and also combos well with Wild Pyromancer, Armorsmith, Acolyte Of Pain, and Frothing Beserker.

Armorsmith x2 – Very good anti-aggressive card. Games with 20+ armor happen frequently and are possible because of this card.

Fiery War Axe x2 – Very good early game removal, not much else to say here.

Slam – Flex slot, could be anything you want. Although it is never great, it is always a fine card.

Frothing Berserker x2 – This card is meant to be used as a decent mid-game threat. The main purpose of this card is to make your opponent use their removal, therefore, clearing the way for your late game legendary threats. If he is left unchecked, he can gain massive power when combined with cards like Whirlwind and Wild Pyromancer.

Shield Block x2 – Helps cycle through your deck while increasing your survivability. The most notable aspect about this card is its synergy with Shield slam. Try to save Shield Block for the same turn that you use Shield Slam. By doing this, your opponent will not have the opportunity to shred your armor before you use your Shield Slam.

Gorehowl – This card is very good at killing off multiple large creatures while also having some surprise burst damage capabilities.

Grommash Hellscream – Win Condition.

Neutral (11)

Nat Pagle – Overpowered.

Wild Pyromancer x2 – This card functions as a board clear as well as having synergy with all of the cards that we mentioned along with Whirlwind.

Acolyte of Pain x2 – One of the primary card draw engines of the deck. Getting the full 3 draws off this card is not hard to accomplish and happens frequently if played correctly. Try and play this card on the same turn that you can also trigger it with something like Whirlwind or Inner Rage.

Sen’jin Shieldmasta x2 – A reliable taunt with good stats. Weaker than Chillwind Yeti but the taunt is quite relevant in our opinion.

Gadgetzan Auctioneer – Super card draw engine. If left unchecked, you should win the game as a result of drawing your entire deck.

Ragnaros the Firelord – Win Condition.

Alexstrasza – Win Condition. Sometimes, it can be used as a late game healing effect on yourself.

Ysera – Win Condition.

Here is a list of some cards that did not make their way into the deck but, could potentially be used in this type of deck

Cleave – Situational removal but, very good when the board state allows for it.

Cruel Taskmaster – A 2/2 with an Inner Rage effect is great but, the body will usually die due to your own Wild Pyromancers and Whirlwinds.

Faceless Manipulator – Always a strong card in this deck with the ability to copy your own late game creatures or your opponents.

Abomination – Great at stopping Force Of Nature + Savage Roar combo as well as Unleash The Hounds. In general, a great anti-aggressive card.

Cairne Bloodhoof – Another great mid-late game threat that is quite resilient.

Sylvanas Windrunner – We used to like her a lot more at 5 mana cost. However, she is still playable at 6 mana cost if you prefer her. Just do not try and execute your own Sylvanas 🙂

Brawl – Fantastic card but, we feel that it is not needed in this deck because, you already have good board clear with Wild Pyromancer.

Twilight Drake – Great mid-game threat.

Chillwind Yeti – Great mid-game threat.

Defender Of Argus – Great card in some decks and decent in this one. However, we found it difficult to reliably give your own creatures taunt on turn 4 which is why we opted to run Senjin Shieldmasta instead.

Kor’Kron Elite – Decent 4 mana cost removal spell with the potential to bash your opponents face.

Bloodmage Thalnos – Sometimes powering up your own spells can be good removal but, it can also create awkward situations when you have your own creatures on the board as well. Also, drawing a card is nice but, this deck already has good card draw engines.

Azure Drake – Same as above.

Earthen Ring Farseer – If you want even more anti-aggressive cards in your deck feel free to add this one.

Tinkmaster Overspark – This card seems to find its way in almost every deck but, we feel that with Execute in the deck, Tinkmaster Overspark isn’t needed.

Baron Geddon – Pretty good late game win condition and great at cleaning up the board. He is a little fragile though for our taste.

The Black Knight – We feel that this card also isn’t needed for the same reasons we gave for Tinkmaster Overspark. Execute fills the same role in this deck that The Black Knight Would.

I hope that I covered most of the other cards that could possibly see play in a warrior control deck. However, I am sure that I may have missed a few other options so feel free to ask us for our opinions on any other cards that you are considering adding to the deck. Next, we will give a brief guide on how to play against some of the most popular decks in the meta game right now.

Playing Against Druid

This matchup is a lot tougher than it used to be because, most Druids now play the Force Of Nature + Savage Roar combo. Therefore, you must be very careful when using your weapons to kill off bigger creatures. Gorehowl is great to keep board control against Druid but, just watch your life total and always consider the combo. The matchup plays out quite simple for the most part. Use your removal effectively and try and save your Shield Block to combo with your Shield Slam so that you can kill off their larger creatures. Sometimes, I like to keep execute in my opening hand because, it helps stop crazy innervate starts from the Druid. Eventually, you will start dropping legend bombs and win the game from there.

Cards to watch out for against the Druid

Force Of Nature + Savage Roar – 14 point burst damage combo.

Ancient Of Lore – This card is their main way to keep up with you in card advantage and provides them with a solid 5/5 body on the board.

Druid Of The Claw – This card is really good in charge mode because, it can shred your armor and keep you off a good shield slam.

Playing Against Hunter Aggro

Mulligan aggressively for Armorsmith. This is great matchup for the warrior control deck. You have access to massive armor, aoe damage, and taunt creatures. Just be careful not to fall into a bad trap and always consider Unleash The Hounds before adding more creatures to the board.

Cards to watch out for against the Hunter

Misdirection – Since you play many large threats, this card can be very painful to play against.

Ironbeak Owl – Armorsmith is your best card in this matchup. However, if they silence it then the game becomes much harder.

Playing Against Paladin Aggro

This matchup should be a complete beating. I do not think they even stand a chance unless they get a good Divine Favor off. Your removal + Wild Pyromancers are insane against against all of their 1 toughness creatures along with the easy ability to pop off divine shields. Armorsmith also shines in this matchup by killing off all their 1/1’s as well as keeping you alive.

Cards to watch out for against Paladin Aggro

Divine Favor – I guess you could try and play around this by emptying your hand quickly but, do not go crazy and make inefficient plays because of this.

Playing Against Paladin Control

This is a rough matchup for the Warrior. Luckily for me I do not see this deck often. They basically have more answers than you have threats. I would try to set up a big Alexstrasza + Grommash Hellscream play because, you can’t outlast them. You also have a lot of dead removal cards and creatures against them such as Armorsmith.

Cards to watch out for against Paladin Control

Equality + Wild Pyromancer or Consecration – A complete board wipe can be really good against all of your large creatures as well as your Frothing Berserkers, Armorsmiths, and Acolyte Of Pains.

Aldor Peacekeeper – This card can keep your Frothing Berserkers and large threats in check.

Playing Against Shaman

This is perhaps the hardest matchup for the Warrior. Although, in this version we play Wild Pyromancer which can really help clear out totems and other creatures like Feral Spirit Wolves. Try to play out your threats in a way so that you can possibly bait out Hex, Tinkmaster Overspark, and Earth Shock. Ideally, if they Hex your Frothing Berserker then you can play a larger threat uncontested. If you really want to make this matchup better, try adding a Brawl and a Baron Geddon to the deck.

Cards to watch out for against Shaman

Hex – This is just a super efficient way to deal with all of your big threats.

Feral Spirit – Very good at clogging up the board and preventing them from being hit by large Frothing Berserkers and Grommash Hellscream.

Windfury, Al’Akir The Windlord, and Leeroy – Not all shamans play these cards but, the point is that they do have burst damage capabilities.

Playing Against Warlock Giants

I think that this matchup favors the Warrior, especially if you play Grommash Hellscream + Inner Rage combo. They bring themselves down into one turn kill range without you even having to do much work.

Try and build up lots of armor with your ability early on so that it may be possible to Shield Slam giants when they come down.

Overall, you are both late game control decks but, Warrior has better threats and more burst damage. Just make sure you save a few ways to deal with large taunt creatures and then finish the game with Grommash Hellscream.

Cards to watch out for against Warlock Giants

Siphon Soul: One of their few cards that can easily deal with your late game legendary threats immediately.

Mountain Giant + Molten Giant: Try and pay attention to their hand size and life total in order to determine when a Giant is likely to come down. Sometimes, it is correct to not attack the Warlock player if it would put them in range of free or very cheap Molten giants.

Ironbeak Owl – Silences your Frothing Beserkers, Acolyte Of Pains, and even their own Ancient Watchers to shred your armor early on.

Playing Against Warlock Aggro

Pretty Decent matchup, I find that the more late game cards they play, the harder the match is. For example, cards like Argent Commander and Doomguard can cause you some trouble.

Mulligan aggressively for cards like Armorsmith, Wild Pyromancer, and Fiery War Axe.

Keep the board clear as possible and then finish off with late game legends. Also, remember that you can use Alexstrasza as a late game heal if needed, which often comes up in these types of matchups.

Cards to watch out for against Warlock Aggro

Argent Commander + Doomguard – They put a lot of pressure on you and are quite resilient to lots of your removal.

Defender of Argus – Taunts can prevent you from getting a late game Grommash Hellscream kill. Also, the stat bonus makes them race you a lot faster.

Playing Against Priest

This matchup can sometimes be a bit rough. If the Priest is smart, they will try and save their Holy Fire until after you use Alexstrasza on them. Also, be sure to buff your Frothing Beserker the same turn that you play them in order to play around Cabal Shadow Priest. Be careful of Mind Control in the late game and see if you can maybe bait it out on a weaker target.

This match is definitely winnable but, you do have a good amount of dead cards in this matchup.

Cards to watch out for against Priest

Mind Control – Be careful not to play into Mind Control unless necessary.

Cabal Shadow Priest – This card can potentially take a lot of your early-mid game cards and provide them with a nice advantage.

Shadow Word Death – Great card for dealing with many of your late game threats as well as large Frothing Beserkers.

Playing Against Miracle Rogue

All I can say is Armor! Armor! Armor! Stack up your armor early on, play out your cards and hope for the best. If they have Gadgetzan Auctioneer on time with a Conceal then it is going to be a really rough game.

Cards to watch out for against Miracle Rogue

Gadgetzan Auctioneer: Unfortunately, when they conceal this card you do not have many ways to deal with it.

Sap: This card can set you back quite a bit, especially if used on a Senjin Shieldmasta that you are relying on.

Playing Against Standard Rogue

Similar to the Warlock Agrro match-up in a sense, but they have slightly scarier threats and lots of burst damage. Always keep your life total in check when deciding to armor up or not because, you never know when a Leeroy Jenkins + Cold Blood + Eviscerate is coming.

Cards to watch out for against Standard Rogue

Argent Commander – Strong and resilient threat that puts a lot of pressure on your life total and shreds your armor.

Sap – Huge set-back as mentioned under the Miracle Rogue Matchup.

Cold Blood, Eviscerate, and Leeroy Jenkins – Large burst damage that can kill you out of nowhere. Always be aware of how much damage the Rogue could possibly do.

Playing Against Mage

I haven’t seen many mages around lately but, the few that I have run into seem to be decent matchups for the Warrior. Polymorph can be a very annoying card in dealing with any threat you put on the board. They can also keep up with you on card draw with their Arcane Intellect and Acolyte Of Pain. Be sure to plan ahead for an answer to Water Elemental because, that card is not only a threat but it also keeps your weapons on lockdown. I like to mulligan for a Fiery War Axe in case the Mage starts out with an early Mana Wyrm. Although the Mage has some good answers to your threats, I believe that they will not be able to deal with “all” of your threats over the course of the entire game.

Cards to watch out for against Mage

Water Elemental – Hard to deal with and keeps your weapons on lockdown.

Polymorph – Easy way to answer your late game legendary creatures.

Playing Against Warrior Aggro

This is basically the same as the other aggro matchups except they have some weapons that they can bash your face in with. Just watch out for Mortal Strike when bringing their life total to around 12.

Cards to watch out for against Warrior Aggro

Argent Commander – This card has been mentioned a few times already and all of the same information also applies here.

Arcanite Reaper – This deck doesn’t have many taunts so Arcanite Reaper is like a 5 mana Pyroblast in a sense.

Mortal Strike – Provides the aggro deck with some surprise late game burst damage or a way to deal with Frothing Beserkers.

Playing Against Warrior Control

The mirror match frequently can go to fatigue. With that in mind, try and stack up lots of armor while shredding your opponents armors. I find that the game usually ends when one person has been applying pressure and then finishes off with an Alexstrasza + Grommash Hellscream combo.

So there you have it. I hope that you enjoyed and learned something from this article about Warrior Control. Even if you do not play Warrior, maybe you can take some of this knowledge into account when you play against it in ladder. Please feel free to leave any questions or constructive criticism. Thanks!

Guide written by [DKMR]Alchemixt

Discussions about this topic brought to you by Team [DKMR]