With the summer season comes the second expansion of this Hearthstone year. The Year of the Scarab is continuing with the release of Hearthstone: Escape from Violet Hold. The newest expansion adds 145 cards across all 11 of the game’s classes, as well as some unique mechanics that change the game the way that everybody knows it.
Hearthstone: Escape from Violet Hold is set to arrive today, which means it’s time to analyze some decks from Hearthstone’s most recognizable pros and streamers. Shacknews once again had an invitation to the Hearthstone Theorycrafting session. I wasn’t able to get much time with it this time around, due to time constraints, but I got enough intel to assemble some decks that you’ll want to try out on this first day. Plus, I had just enough time to put together something of my own.
Without further delay, here are some decks worth trying out on day one of Escape from Violet Hold.
Funki Monkey’s Enrage Warrior
Source: Blizzard Entertainment
2x (1) Ball and Chain
2x (1) Sanguine Depths
2x (1) Torch
2x (1) Twilight Egg
2x (2) Disguised Watchman
2x (2) Release the Beasts
2x (2) Searing Fissure
2x (2) Stonecarver
1x (2) Warden Maiev
2x (3) Acolyte of Pain
2x (3) Axe of the Forefathers
2x (3) Rioter
2x (3) Warmaul Challenger
1x (4) Nightmare Lord Xavius
1x (4) Warptooth
2x (5) Destructive Blaze
1x (8) Grommash Hellscream
Aggro Warriors are going to get a big boost from some of this set’s new cards. Many of them are going to come out of the box buffed up, thanks to Warden Maiev. Others are going to get major stat buffs after getting damaged. Ball of Chain can get the buffing started and you’ll probably be surprised by how many stat buffs you’ll get out of Rioter.
The card to watch will definitely be Warptooth, which comes out for free after damaging three friendly minions in a turn. This is much easier to do than it sounds and a free 3/3 that can hit face immediately is nothing to sneeze at. This deck moves quickly, even able to outpace some of the best Face Hunter decks, so give this a look if you want to move up the ladder quickly.
NohandsGamer’s Tempo Priest
Source: Blizzard Entertainment
2x (1) Mend
2x (1) Power Word: Shield
1x (1) Reach Equilibrium
2x (1) Undeath Sentence
2x (2) Holy Embrace
2x (2) Lunarwing Messenger
2x (2) Wild Pyromancer
2x (3) Disciple of the Dove
2x (4) Gravedawn Sunbloom
1x (4) Nightmare Lord Xavius
2x (4) Schism
2x (5) Hold Them Off!
2x (5) Medivh’s Triumph
1x (6) Calia Menethil
1x (6) Vanessa the Ringleader
2x (7) Soothsayer
NohandsGamer went into this deck a bit wary, given its lack of control tools. However, it turns out that the Priest player may not need them with some of these new cards. Soothsayer, in particular, can lay down some monstrous stats, especially if it’s made cheaper through the new Prepare keyword. Combine this with Schism, which will create a second copy and give both Elusive, and it leaves some overwhelming board presence.
The new Hold Them Off spell can also offer some much-needed health recovery in a pinch, since it’ll give any of your minions +5/+5 and Lifesteal. There’s enough here to hold off most aggro decks, so give it a whirl.
Thijs’ Turbo Ramp Druid
Source: Blizzard Entertainment
1x (0) Secret Ingredient
2x (1) Azshara’s Triumph
2x (1) Spiderling
2x (1) Waveshaping
2x (2) Ebb and Flow
2x (2) Horn of Plenty
2x (2) Mossbinding
2x (2) Noxious Bribe
1x (2) Press the Advantage
2x (2) Spider Rider
2x (2) Widow’s Bite
1x (3) Chef Neth’rek
2x (3) Defias Smuggler
2x (3) Heartroot Stones
2x (3) Lethal Recipe
2x (3) Spiteful Chef
Former World Champion Thijs wasted no time getting to work on the latest busted Druid deck. The idea of this deck is to survive through Turn 6, at which point the Druid gets set to 10 mana instantly and can take advantage of several cards that offer obscene buffs upon hitting that milestone. However, Chef Neth’rek will only give you this boost if your deck has cards that cost (3) or less.
On paper, it’s a big ask, but the Druid has more than enough tools to make this deck work, especially spells like Horn of Plenty and Ebb and Flow. Once the Druid sits at 10 mana, the fun begins with wildly powerful cards like Spiteful Chef, Lethal Recipe, and Mossbinding. Plus, Azshara’s Triumph will give you some big boys to help get you through the late game.
RegisKillbin’s Tempo Mage
Source: Blizzard Entertainment
2x (1) Cold Snap
2x (1) First Flame
2x (1) Spark of Life
1x (1) The Skeleton Key
2x (1) Violet Spellwing
2x (1) Winterspring Whelp
2x (2) Contraband Wands
2x (2) Runed Orb
2x (2) Smoldering Grove
2x (2) Stellar Balance
2x (3) Eternal Firebolt
2x (4) Alter Time
2x (5) Breakout Architect
1x (5) Jailhouse Manastorm
2x (7) Code Violet
2x (7) Relic of Kings
Every now and then, the Mage will get some tools that will allow it to fill the board with a massive amount of minions. For this expansion, it’ll be Jailhouse Manastorm getting the party started. As soon as Manastorm gets played, Mages can summon minions of equal Cost for every single spell cast for the remainder of the game. That can lead to some monster stats on the board when played alongside spells like Relic of Kings and the new Code Violet.
Of course, there will be those games where Manastorm sits at the bottom of your deck, so you’ll want to stay afloat with spells like Runed Orb and Alter Time. The Skeleton Key is a fascinating piece of work, because you can technically find the spell you want, but refreshing your options might cost you some health, so it’ll be up to you whether it’s worth the risk.
MarkMcKz’s Jade Rogue
Source: Blizzard Entertainment
2x (0) Preparation
1x (*) Shadow of Demise
2x (1) Agent of the Old Ones
2x (2) Bitterbloom Knight
2x (2) Cultist Map
2x (2) Lotus Bookie
2x (3) Blackpaw’s Whip
2x (3) Deadly Bribe
2x (3) Portal Vanguard
2x (4) Defias Wannabe
1x (4) Garona Halforcen
1x (3) King Llane
1x (2) The Kingslayers
1x (4) Inspector Murloc Holmes
1x (4) Nightmare Lord Xavius
1x (5) Slice and Dice
1x (5) Taelan Fordring
1x (5) Time Adm’ral Hooktail
1x (6) Aya, Lotus Kingpin
1x (6) Sinestra
1x (6) Vanessa the Ringleader
Jades are back again, baby! This time, Jade Golems will come through Coins, thanks to the new Aya, Lotus Kingpin legendary. Fortunately, the Rogue can score Coins in spades. Every Coin played will give you a bigger body while also letting the Rogue cheat out some more expensive cards, like Sinestra.
The opponent can get overwhelmed quickly, as Jades tend to do, so prepare to strike quickly. If you can take a slice out of King Llane with your Garona Halforcen to knock the opponent’s health down by half, even better!
Brigitteous’ Blight Death Knight
Source: Blizzard Entertainment
2x (1) Disguised Doctor
2x (1) Morbid Swarm
2x (2) Bone Flurry
2x (2) Corpse Cannon
2x (2) Drink Blood
2x (2) Hematurge
2x (2) Infested Breath
1x (3) Acolyte of Death
2x (3) Chillfallen Baron
1x (4) Husk, Eternal Reaper
2x (4) Memoriam Manifest
2x (4) Tower of Ghouls
1x (5) Blood Doctor Thal’ena
2x (5) Reanimated Pterrordax
2x (6) Gnome Muncher
2x (6) Sawbones
1x (7) The Living Plague
Criminy! Are plagues back, too? Yes, thanks to the new legendary The Living Plague and the 1-Cost Disguised Doctor, the latter of which can be played on the opponent’s side of the board for some delicious sabotage, it’s possible to plant devastating plagues into the opponent’s deck. The Living Plague can plant, at minimum, seven whopping plagues into the opponent’s deck at once. And considering it’ll probably get dropped in the late game, those plauges are quite likely to hit.
If that’s not enough, the new Blood Doctor Thal’ena legendary will give the Death Knight player a second Hero Power that buffs a minion’s attack at the low cost of three Corpses. This damage can pile up surprisingly quickly, especially if the Drink Blood spell refreshes the Death Knight’s Hero Power whenever it gets played. The Death Knight might need to do some work to survive through the late turns, but the longer the game goes, the more this deck should be favored.
Warshack’s Rafaam Warlock
Source: Blizzard Entertainment
2x (0) Cursed Catacombs
2x (2) Cursed Chains
2x (2) Drain Soul
2x (2) Shadow Rounds
2x (3) Caged Cranium
2x (3) Hellfire
2x (3) Imp Gang Stooge
1x (4) Godfrey the Betrayer
1x (4) RAFAAM LADDER!!
2x (5) Spire of Solitude
2x (6) Eldritch Tentacles
2x (6) Asphyxiodon
1x (8) Mo’arg Forgefiend
2x (9) Annihilation
2x (9) Voidlord
1x (10) Moragg
2x (10) The Unseen Atlas
1x (10) Timethief Rafaam
Hey, you know what else is back? Rafaam decks are back! Thanks to Godfrey the Betrayer, you no longer have to worry about overdrawing your Rafaam cards. In fact, you want to do exactly that, because they’ll just come back into your hand at a lower cost. With numerous control tools available, your opponent will be on the clock and they now have fewer ways to truly stop the inevitable. I mean, maybe if they had a Dirty Rat they can stop it, but what are the odds of that?
The new Moragg legendary can help thin your deck out further by calling out high-cost Demons and placing them on the board. In fact, those Demons like Mo’arg Forgefiend and Asphyxiodon might be enough to simply win the game for you outright.
Clark HELLSCREAM’s Combo Hunter
Source: Blizzard Entertainment
2x (1) Concealing Confection
2x (1) Critter Caretaker
1x (1) Earthen Roar
2x (1) Raptor-Nest Nurse
2x (1) Sands of Time
2x (1) Smuggled Shovel
2x (1) Tracking
2x (1) Wound Prey
2x (2) Exotic Houndmaster
2x (2) Underbelly Network
2x (3) Arcane Tripwire
1x (3) The Egg of Khelos
2x (3) Tol’vir Carver
2x (4) Confront the Tol’vir
1x (4) Inspector Murloc Holmes
1x (5) Tending Dragonkin
1x (6) King of the Underbelly
1x (3) Gruesome Nightmare
1x (8) The Great Dracorex
1x (10) Agamaggan
1x (7) Chrono-Lord Deios
The big draw for Hunter in this expansion is a new legendary named King of the Underbelly, which allows players to pack in Beasts from other classes and add them to your hand through the Discover mechanic. Clark HELLSCREAM appears to have cracked the code on this mechanic, having assembled a one-turn kill combo that takes advantage of these contraband Beasts.
The 3-Cost Gruesome Nightmare can give its Attack value to any friendly minion. Through the combination of King of the Underbelly reducing its cost to (0), the Hunter’s Imbue Hero Power adding attack value to it, Chrono-Lord Deios doubling various actions, Tending Dragonkin creating copies of the buffed-up Gruesome Nightmare, and multiple Gruesome Nightmares giving their Attack power to a friendly minion, it’s possible to whack an opponent for well over their 30-base Health. A lot of things need to go right, such as the opponent not having Taunt minions active, but if this hits, it’s a powerful final move for the Hunter.
Christian’s Spell Shaman
Source: Blizzard Entertainment
1x (0) Static Shock
2x (1) Blazing Invocation
2x (1) Low Security Wing
2x (1) Mountain Map
2x (1) Sands of Time
2x (1) Voltaic Burst
2x (2) Ritual of Power
2x (2) Thunderquake
2x (3) Hex
2x (3) Molten Gold
2x (4) Ceremonial Clash
1x (4) Tiny Pal
2x (5) Frostshatter
1x (6) Mug’Zee
2x (7) Stormfury
1x (8) Shaladrassil
2x (9) Muradin’s Last Stand
The Shaman has a fun new gimmick for this expansion. New legendary Mug’Zee will give you a different Hero Power depending on whether your deck is full of minions or spells. Both are equally viable, but Christian’s Spell Shaman deck proved particularly interesting. There’s little drawback in the Shaman player going without minions, because so many Shaman spells can generate minions. Thanks so Mug’s Hero Power, those minions can be played at a lower cost.
The new legendary weapon Tiny Pal is also a fun one to play around with, since it can use different effects each turn. Whether it stands up to some of these other decks remains to be seen, but if nothing else, this will be fun to play.
Ozzie’s Meme Paladin
Source: Blizzard Entertainment
2x (1) Paltry Flutterwing
2x (1) Platysaur
2x (2) Equality
2x (2) Holy Bola!
2x (2) Prize Vendor
1x (2) The Fins Beyond Time
2x (2) Wild Pyromancer
2x (3) Charity
1x (3) Demolition Renovator
2x (3) Hopeful Dryad
2x (3) Reinforcement Aura
1x (3) Rustrot Viper
2x (4) Dreamwarden
1x (4) Inspector Murloc Holmes
1x (5) Commander Beatrix
2x (5) Getaway Hogdriver
2x (5) Scarlet Recruiter
1x (9) V’ama, Looming Death
I didn’t have a lot of time to play in this expansion’s Theorycrafting session, since I had to hit the road for EVO. With that said, I did have one deck that I wanted to try out. I wanted to bring out my inner Disguised Toast (a blast from Hearthstone’s distant past) and bring some chaos to the proceedings. So I packed a deck full of Captured Archmages, which all spit out Fireballs after four of them die in a game. The easiest way to activate a bunch of them at once is to bring along a Wild Pyromancer and Equality.
As I learned in my brief time with this expansion, this isn’t a particularly effective strategy. But when it hits, it’s just dumb fun. Best of luck to you if you try this deck out, but don’t use it if you’re actually looking to win.
Those are just some of the decks that you’re encouraged to use on day one of Hearthstone: Escape from Violet Hold. The expansion is going live today. What decks are you planning to use for this first week? Join the conversation and give us your best ideas in the comments.
Shacknews staff does not use generative artificial intelligence (AI) in their content. Shacknews strictly prohibits the use of its content for AI training or to generate text, including text in the style or format used for this publication. Shacknews reserves all rights to this work.
Ozzie has been playing video games since picking up his first NES controller at age 5. He has been into games ever since, only briefly stepping away during his college years. But he was pulled back in after spending years in QA circles for both THQ and Activision, mostly spending time helping to push forward the Guitar Hero series at its peak. Ozzie has become a big fan of platformers, puzzle games, shooters, and RPGs, just to name a few genres, but he’s also a huge sucker for anything with a good, compelling narrative behind it. Because what are video games if you can’t enjoy a good story with a fresh Cherry Coke?