Control Warrior Deck List Guide – April 2016 (Season 25, Wild)

The Control Warrior deck has been an ever evolving deck for nearly the full life of Hearthstone. The deck at its core is very similar to the original decks, but Control Warrior also adds all of the great Legendaries and strong late game cards to its repertoire as they are released. More recently due to Blackrock Mountain there has been a lean towards a more Dragon based Control Warrior which takes advantage of Blackwing Corruptor.

One of the main constants has been Grommash Hellscream. The card is a great finisher, and when combined with Death's Bite and Alexstrasza can be a potent way to end the game.

Control Warrior Deck List Update – April 2016 (Season 25)

The updated list is based off of Vlps’ recent list that got him a top 20 finish on the NA Legendary Ladder. A lot of cards have been cut from the deck, such as Armorsmith, Baron Geddon, and Alexstrasza. The deck now employs more defensive tools like Deathlord, Revenge, and a second Brawl. Elise Starseeker has also been added to the deck to help in fatigue situations, and add some more end game threats.

Control Warrior Mulligan Guide and Strategy

Fiery War Axe and Death's Bite are your best friends against most decks. Deathlord is good against early aggro, and Acolyte of Pain is good for draw and dealing with the potential of early minions. Slam and Bash are also good against early minions like Flame Imp, Knife Juggler, and Darnassus Aspirant. If you know you’re playing against Control, you can look to keep Execute or Sludge Belcher.

Control Warrior Tech Cards

Harrison Jones is in and out of the deck depending on if you’re playing a lot of Weapon classes. Ysera will swap in and out with a card like Ragnaros the Firelord depending on how many Big Game Hunters have entered the meta. This is especially the case when Druid is strong (like right now). Gorehowl is a consideration, and is extremely good against other Control decks.

Control Warrior Card Substitutions (Replacements)

Keep in mind that replacements for cards are rarely ever going to be perfect. It’s usually easiest to try and come close to what the card accomplishes, or double up an already existing card in the deck.

You might find cards here that aren’t in the deck, this means they were in the deck previously and have been left in case they come back in the deck. They also works as substitutions for cards that are currently in the deck!

• Harrison Jones: I find that Harrison is the card that’s most often asked for replacement. Loatheb is a reasonable replacement, and Acidic Swamp Ooze can also take a spot if you are just getting destroyed by Weapon classes.
• Baron Geddon: I’ve often recommended a second Brawl, but some players don’t like this recommendation. Whirlwind or Revenge is a possibility, or you could simply add a second Shieldmaiden.
• Grommash Hellscream: Tough card to replace as it leads so often to situations where you can finish your opponent. Ragnaros the Firelord can be a decent replacement.
• Alexstrasza: Another difficult card to replace because of the pressure it can place on the opponent. I again think Ragnaros, but you could try just adding a second Shieldmaiden. The deck has enough strong minions that you could deal without Alex.

Control Warrior Combos and Synergies

Death's Bite and Grommash Hellscream are a match made in heaven. You can smash your opponent’s face for 4, and follow up the next turn with Grommash and the whirlwind effect from Death’s Bite for an additional 14 damage. This combo can also be setup with Alexstrasza to get your opponent down to a manageable health.

Speaking of Grommash, you can use Slam, Bash, or Shield Slam (just don’t do it for 9) to activate his enrage. You can also use these cards to trigger your Sylvanas Windrunner, just don’t try to use Execute as Artosis learned a while back.

Shield Block and Shieldmaiden pair very nicely with Shield Slam, and can help you take down a pesky 5-health minion.

Acolyte of Pain is generally a card you want to get at least two draws from.  So pairing it with Death's Bite, Baron Geddon, or even using Slam can guarantee multiple cards.