Anti-Aggro Control/Fatigue Priest

The goal of this deck is to let your opponent run himself out of resources. As a priest, most players will attempt to bombard you down as soon as possible in order to avoid the priest’s late game and prevent you from playing Alexstrasza. By focusing on keeping the board in a manageable state at all times, this deck is able to stabilize around turn 8 and either overpower your opponent with dragons, or fatigue them with Benedictus.

Prior to the recent chemo…I mean nerfs to Shudderwock, Kingsbane, and druid ramp, this would have had little to no success as it often loses to combo decks or decks that have extreme late-game value. Against an aggro meta, control priest is strong.

—Edit: The ladder now contains so many hunters that it may be useful to substitute Alexstrasza and 2xMind Blast into your deck.—

Many cards in this deck can be substituted depending on what you have or what you are commonly facing. Below are cards that are, for the most part, essential.

Duskbreaker and its dragon activators (which should include some combination of Primordial Drake , Twilight Drake , Crowd Roaster , and Dragonmaw Scorcher ) are required to survive against aggro. 

The bread and butter of control priests. Proper usage of these cards will deliver you to the late game with your hand looking full. It is often worth getting extra copies with Shadow Visions .

The key to finding success with control priest is to get the most value out of your cards without being too greedy. Instead of using mass hysteria, play a taunt minion and let your opponent more fully commit to the board first. Strategically take damage and heal it back with hero powers or spirit lashes so that you are not the one being exhausted. Stonehill Defender is ideal for this.

Clear small minions and heal yourself. It’s crucial to find this against odd paladin. When used with Prophet Velen , heals 4 hp for each minion on the board, which is the only reason Velen is in this deck.

Benedictus is the most difficult card to play effectively. It’s not about the number of cards you put into your deck, but the type of cards. If your opponent’s deck contains extreme value cards such as Frost Lich Jaina, it is often best to drop Benedictus as early as possible, but not always. Drawing aggro cards will sabotage your own late game. It takes some practice to determine whether it is worth using Benedictus early. Against hunter it is usually best to wait as long as you can to play Benedictus. Even though Deathstalker Rexxar is extremely oppressive in the late game, the other cards in hunter decks are not as useful, your opponent is more likely to already have it or draw it before you, and Benedictus is not a good tempo play.

Lastly, Shadowreaper Anduin will allow you to shrug off many late-game threats while exhausting few, if any, cards. While the new hero power is extremely useful, keep in mind that your only remaining way of healing yourself is through spirit lash  and holy fire. Try to reach a safe life total ahead of time, but don’t be afraid to use it early if your opponent has few ways of dealing direct damage to your hero and instead prefers to contest the board, or has heavy minions on the board that need to be cleared with its battlecry.

    Other additions:

Chameleos is an interesting card, one that is usually stronger in your hand than on the board. Knowing which cards your opponent has drawn allows you to make more educated decisions over the course of the game, so there is some benefit to waiting as long as possible before playing it. Stealing cards like Bloodreaver Gul’dan will usually win you the game. Substitutions: Scaleworm , Rotten Applebaum , Omega Medic .

A high priority minion that rarely sticks around until your next turn, but its synergy with Spirit Lash is so extreme that it deserves consideration. Substitutions: Obsidian Statue .

    Zilliax 

Only slightly stronger than Rotten Applebaum since it can clear priority targets.

This one shouldn’t need an explanation but, if you don’t already have it, you can replace it with an Obsidian Statue or maybe a Sleepy Dragon .