New Hearthstone decks to try: Sire nerfs spawn fresh archetypes

Hearthstone's meta has long been Infused by Sire Denathrius, moreso with the addition of the Corpse-hungry Death Knight and its token minions. Diverge from established lists in Hearthstone Patch 25.0.3, while Sire’s nerf from Infuse (1) to Infuse (2) is tempering DK and our old Druid overlords. With a fresh meta come fresh archetypes, so this is the perfect time to try new Hearthstone decks with exciting emerging ideas. 

Try at your own (dust’s) risk, as we cannot guarantee any lists except the last one will stick. But what is the post-nerf breathing space for, if not for experiments? Live a little, despite the Lich King’s penchant for undeath! Let’s have a look at what some talented deck builders have been brewing. What are they cooking?

Players like Languagehacker quickly switched gears after the Sire nerf, pivoting to a handbuff list. The new freebie Lor’themar Theron finally makes an appearance! Him, Blood Tap, Darkfallen Neophyte and the forgotten Snapdragon compete in a stat increase marathon. Their targets are powerful old staples like Blademaster Samuro and Mr. Smite, also complemented by the new Gnome Muncher and Nerubian Swarmguards. As you can see, the list is heavy in miniset inclusion, featuring Sylvanas, the Accused as well.

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A new take on an old list, Virtuozz777's Ping Mage adds Grand Magister Rommath, the Tavern Pass Diamond card. Prismatic Elemental, Spellcoiler, Runed Orb, Nerubian Vizier, Vast Wisdom, Commander Sivarra allow for 15 potential triggers from this finisher. All this in addition to the reliable hero power package that scales off Magister Dawngrasp. Enhanced with Mage’s traditional stall package. Time to dust off the old staples if you’re a Jaina mainer, or refrain due to dust cost if not.

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A forgotten archetype has resurfaced, championed by the likes of Casie and Sjow. This deck features old staples from previous metas: DH Quest, Kurtrus Hero Card, Jace Darkweaver. The relic package stays low-cost, capping with the Epics. The catalyst for this list’s return is Unleash Fel and its good synergy with the reduced spell damage cards. The Jace finisher can be pleasantly hurtful, hurt-fel even?

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Why steal the opponents’ cards when they’re all Plaguespreader? With its deathrattle as the centerpiece, you can transform your opponents’ minion cards in hand. With Amulet of Undying, Bonecaller and Xyrella the Devout, you can trigger this over and over. What if the opponent Plaguespreads you back? No problem, this Control Priest shell is mostly based on spells and techs. Only 5 meaningful cards out of 40 can be affected: Elementals, Mi’da, Behemoth and Sister Svalna.

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Shaman’s token and Murloc packages are finally put to use by the new Deathrattle synergies in vainmglory's list. New aggro staple Hawkstrider Rancher, Deathweaver Aura, Unliving Champion and Scourge Troll can spawn annoying boards one after another. Rotgill complements Bloodlust as a finisher, while Shadow Suffusion penalizes board clears.

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Deathrattle also returns to a familiar class, as this Rogue's game plan focuses on Sketchy Information and Scourge Illusionist. The two draw strong deathrattle cards that synergize and feed back into each other, as Briarthorn’s top 50 Legend climb shows. A Smokescreen version with even more deathrattles also exhibits promising win rates. This Invincible Rogue’s motto might read “veni, vidi, vi(n)ci”, but can it keep it up?

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Silence Priest is one of the most longevive Hearthstone memes. It started during Ben Brode’s reign and it still snaps out of oblivion from time to time. Rearing its head once again in 2022, will it survive until 2023?

This is a rare tempo deck in the new Hearthstone landscape. It’s likely been enabled by Incorporeal Corporal, on top of other beefy minions and the Silence package from Voyage to Sunken City. Emem's creation aims to stick an early-game powerhouse, silence it for no downsides, then buff it with the Bless, Pelagos, Boon package. More copies with Azsharan Ritual.

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Risk-takers rejoice, but what about pragmatic players who lie in silence? Hat’s got you sorted with Darkbishop’s last hoorah, in the form of a Shadow Priest. A certified list from before nerfs.

Last but not least, if you just want to watch the world burn, here’s a new Hearthstone deck for you. Ramp Druid turns to Astalor Bloodsworn since the Sire is nerfed. Queue in the Spiderman and Scooby Doo memes, we still have an end-game finisher, as Hearthstone must always have a Daddy.

Reach your win conditions faster in a 30 card deck, with a riff on the older combos, Brann being Core due to doubling battlecries. Brann + Anub’Rekhan yields 16 armor for 11 mana. With the Chitinous Plating after-effect active from the previous turn, that’s 20 armor that can be used as 20 mana. 8-cost Astalor Bloodsworn’s final form deals 32 damage with Brann on board and then there's more armor / mana to fill up the board.

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In conclusion, the post-nerf breathing space minted fresh lists that make use of previously untapped cards. Excitement levels are reaching highs, but will the win rate stay high as well? Time will tell, but budget decks are available if you’re wary.

Feeling cheeky with the new ideas or settling for the tried and tested decks? Hearthstone news and updates await you, regardless of preference, so stay tuned to esports.gg.