Loving this deck so far. Been climbing steadily. Also has surprising legs in the mid-late game thanks to creepers, TFB and Jade golems. Lava bursts and Jade lighting have been useful finishers a few times already.
I think the deckhands are the worst cards in the deck. Often they don’t get charge, and they die to pretty much everything. They are also terrible top-decks. Why not use Southsea Captains and get a broken 5/5 with 2 charge for 3 mana instead? I just think this makes the deck better.
The mana tide totems are also extremely poor tempo, and every time I used them, they just died with 1 card drawn. Games are too high tempo to get any more value out of them and I’d rather have a better card. A 3 mana cycle with some indirect life gain isn’t what the deck needs. The deck does have a fair amount of spell damage though – so the deck could potentially use Bloodmage Thalnos, which also helps with draw and is cheaper. This does free up 1 extra slot too for a higher tempo card.
We can also look at Lightning Storm too… and this card has obvious synergy with Corridor Creeper without wanting our own minions to die to combo with it.
And since removing the deckhands provides a lot less incentive to use weapons, I’m also considering why Hammer of Twilight is there now. I think with enough cuts, we can start looking at Bonemare – it gives us 4 damage charge with a 5/5 body, which is a lot better and faster than the Hammer of Twlight.
You have to use mana tide when you already have board control, so not on turn 3 in the vast majority of games. Still can get removed, but should at least be a card advantage at that point. Shaman always struggle with card draw so anything helps there. I get 2-3 draws most times. 1/8 perhaps my mana tide stays there and indirectly wins me the game by drawing good combos.
Many times though there’s literally nothing else to play on turn 3 and turn 4 also looks bad. These clug up your hand and make your first couple of turns – the most important turns of the game – much worse than putting better cards in your deck. It is so easy to fall behind with this deck – it’s weaker than every other class’s version of the same thing.
Deckhands have been an amazing turn 1 play, and still useful later on. As long as you haven’t drawn patches it’s 2 bodies and 2 mana value for half the cost. The charge on Deckhands works well with flametongue. 2 bodies also go towards synergy with the creepers.
Bloodlust or Doomhammer would fit – either 2x Bloodlust or one of each, I wouldn’t go with 2x Doomhammer because the overload would prevent you playing Aya on turn 6.
Actually no. Spellstone is late and requires control of the board. Aggro will not consistently have control at this point, and the upgrade effect needs overload 3. Go ahead and substitute one if you want to try it out, but I’m not expecting that to be viable.
Aya and the Flamewreathed Faceless would be the best cards in this deck to use the spellstone on … but neither of them can be played on the same turn as the stone so you’re relying on them surviving a turn since the deck doesn’t have Ancestral Spirit.
Otherwise your targets are reduced cost Thing from Below or Corridor Creeper – both of which are cards you’ll want to drop as early as you can.
I’ve been experimenting with a Control/Spellstone Shaman recently and you need to get the spellstone in your hand early enough for it to get powered up otherwise it’s pretty useless. When you can drop a 0-cost Snowfury Giant, plop Ancestral Spirit on it (if you suspect Twisting Nether), then Spellstone to get 4 of them, that’s amazing…
… however, often you draw the spellstone too late (even with 2 in the deck) to be useful, you’ve already had to use loads of your overload cards to stay alive (e.g. Volcano, Earth Elemental) so the stone won’t be fully charged when you need to use it. Or you’ve not drawn a Snowfury Giant when holding a charged spellstone (though Earth Ellie and White Eyes are certainly viable targets). And this is in a deck with 2 Mana Tide Totems and 2 Farsights – so has reasonable card draw.
So, with this deck, spellstone would probably be a dead card, most games.
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Loving this deck so far. Been climbing steadily. Also has surprising legs in the mid-late game thanks to creepers, TFB and Jade golems. Lava bursts and Jade lighting have been useful finishers a few times already.
I think the deckhands are the worst cards in the deck. Often they don’t get charge, and they die to pretty much everything. They are also terrible top-decks. Why not use Southsea Captains and get a broken 5/5 with 2 charge for 3 mana instead? I just think this makes the deck better.
The mana tide totems are also extremely poor tempo, and every time I used them, they just died with 1 card drawn. Games are too high tempo to get any more value out of them and I’d rather have a better card. A 3 mana cycle with some indirect life gain isn’t what the deck needs. The deck does have a fair amount of spell damage though – so the deck could potentially use Bloodmage Thalnos, which also helps with draw and is cheaper. This does free up 1 extra slot too for a higher tempo card.
We can also look at Lightning Storm too… and this card has obvious synergy with Corridor Creeper without wanting our own minions to die to combo with it.
And since removing the deckhands provides a lot less incentive to use weapons, I’m also considering why Hammer of Twilight is there now. I think with enough cuts, we can start looking at Bonemare – it gives us 4 damage charge with a 5/5 body, which is a lot better and faster than the Hammer of Twlight.
You have to use mana tide when you already have board control, so not on turn 3 in the vast majority of games. Still can get removed, but should at least be a card advantage at that point. Shaman always struggle with card draw so anything helps there. I get 2-3 draws most times. 1/8 perhaps my mana tide stays there and indirectly wins me the game by drawing good combos.
Many times though there’s literally nothing else to play on turn 3 and turn 4 also looks bad. These clug up your hand and make your first couple of turns – the most important turns of the game – much worse than putting better cards in your deck. It is so easy to fall behind with this deck – it’s weaker than every other class’s version of the same thing.
Deckhands have been an amazing turn 1 play, and still useful later on. As long as you haven’t drawn patches it’s 2 bodies and 2 mana value for half the cost. The charge on Deckhands works well with flametongue. 2 bodies also go towards synergy with the creepers.
Replacement for hammer of twilight?..going to try this deck.. but expecting to fall short vs other aggro decks
Bloodlust or Doomhammer would fit – either 2x Bloodlust or one of each, I wouldn’t go with 2x Doomhammer because the overload would prevent you playing Aya on turn 6.
Make Aggro Shaman great again!
Change Hammer to Spellstone would be so much better with the overload synergies?
Actually no. Spellstone is late and requires control of the board. Aggro will not consistently have control at this point, and the upgrade effect needs overload 3. Go ahead and substitute one if you want to try it out, but I’m not expecting that to be viable.
Aya and the Flamewreathed Faceless would be the best cards in this deck to use the spellstone on … but neither of them can be played on the same turn as the stone so you’re relying on them surviving a turn since the deck doesn’t have Ancestral Spirit.
Otherwise your targets are reduced cost Thing from Below or Corridor Creeper – both of which are cards you’ll want to drop as early as you can.
I’ve been experimenting with a Control/Spellstone Shaman recently and you need to get the spellstone in your hand early enough for it to get powered up otherwise it’s pretty useless. When you can drop a 0-cost Snowfury Giant, plop Ancestral Spirit on it (if you suspect Twisting Nether), then Spellstone to get 4 of them, that’s amazing…
… however, often you draw the spellstone too late (even with 2 in the deck) to be useful, you’ve already had to use loads of your overload cards to stay alive (e.g. Volcano, Earth Elemental) so the stone won’t be fully charged when you need to use it. Or you’ve not drawn a Snowfury Giant when holding a charged spellstone (though Earth Ellie and White Eyes are certainly viable targets). And this is in a deck with 2 Mana Tide Totems and 2 Farsights – so has reasonable card draw.
So, with this deck, spellstone would probably be a dead card, most games.