Budget Deck: Tsafy’s Legend Shaman
This week, we will share with you a budget deck which was designed by Tsafy. This Shaman deck was able to bring him up to top 16 Legend in EU server at a time during Season 2 as well as hit Legend again during Season 3.
Since this is a budget deck, there would be no legendaries in the deck and the only epic card being Doomhammer. This deck focus on solid cards to be able to trade efficiently. The strong removals ike Earth Shock, Lightning Bolt, and Lightning Storm plus efficient minions is to dominate the board for your late game offensive power – Doomhammer, Argent Commander, Fire Elemental as well as Lava Burst.
Tsafy’s Legend Shaman Deck
Shaman Cards
- Earth Shock x 2
- Lightning Bolt x 2
- Rockbiter Weapon x 2
- Flametongue Totem x 2
- Feral Spirit x 2
- Hex x 2
- Lava Burst
- Lightning Storm x 2
- Mana Tide Totem
- Unbound Elemental
- Doomhammer
- Fire Elemental x 2
Neutral Cards
- Argent Squire x 2
- Harvest Golem
- Defender of Argus x 2
- Violet Teacher x 2
- Azure Drake x 2
- Argent Commander
What to Mulligan
- Druid – Mulligan mainly for early board presence (Unbound Elemental would be fine here), a bit of removal is alright. A Hex will be helpful as well in case he Innervate something tough to deal with. During early game, focus on trading efficiently without getting too low on health so you don’t get into the Force of Nature + Savage Roar combo range. Against Token Druids keep a Lightning Storm handy in case they somehow get a massive board. Try to not get caught by a strong Swipe. It is generally good to burst druids down as fast as possible, if the game prolongs too long, he will most likely beat you on card advantage because of his Ancient of Lore, so look for the Doomhammer + Rockbiter Weapon combo.
- Hunter – There are not many Hunters around since the nerf, but Aggro Hunter can still be really rough. Mulligan for Feral Spirit and removal. Preserve your life total at all cost and don’t overextend with too many minions to prevent an effective Unleash the Hounds, sometimes it is better to not play a totem even if you have the extra mana. If he plays a trap, think about what it most likely is according to the situation and try your best to play around it. Sometimes it is best to wait before popping it if he has a weapon up until you are able to taunt up.
- Mage – Freeze Mage might be seeing more play lately. Mulligan for board presence – Violet Teacher, Unbound Elemental, Harvest Golem, and try to burst him down as fast as possible. If you get an Earthshock, keep it against his Doomsayer. Doomhammer is also really helpful, consider keeping it if you get it in your opening hand. Some Freeze Mages run giants, so preserve your Hex for them. Don’t overextend with your minions around turn 6-7 incase he’s running a Flamestrike. Against Aggro, trade efficiently and preserve your life total as much as possible. Try to get as much value from your Lightning Storm as you can afford to.
- Paladin – Aggro Paladins or better known as Shockadin are also pretty popular recently. As per usual against aggro, try to mulligan for removal and Feral Spirit. Lightning Storm would be very useful as well. You can afford to be pretty reckless with your resources because of Divine Favor, so don’t hold back the Lightning Storm for too long. Once you are able to establish board control you’re pretty much good to go, just be careful of Equality + Consecration combos. If you’re absolutely getting destroyed by Aggro Paladins, add in a Wild Pyromancer. Against midrange/control, try to bait the Equality combos early and then don’t hesitate to flood the board hard. Preserve your Hex and Earth Shock for late game as much as possible, it’s important to have one of them for Tirion Fordring when he comes out.
- Priest – Mulligan for board presence – Unbound Elemental, Harvest Golem, Violet Teacher, and Feral Spirit. A bit of removal would be nice as well, so you can get rid of Northshire Cleric. Opt for early pressure. Also Mana Tide Totem is amazing here, as most often than not, they won’t be able to remove it on time. If it sticks around for too long it single handedly wins you the game. 4 attack minions are great when you are playing against a Priest, so whenever you have the opportunity to play them or buff any of your existing ones to 4 attack, just do it. Be careful with using your Doomhammer too early since a lot of Priests are running Acidic Swamp Ooze.
- Rogue – Usually, just assume it is Miracle, and mulligan for early board presence (only keep Unbound Elemental if you have The Coin), a tiny bit of removal is fine as well. Try to get a strong body on board, such as a Violet Teacher, before he puts out his Gadgetzan Auctioneer, and pressure him as much as possible during early game. Doomhammer is pretty helpful for racing him, I’ve lately been keeping it in my opening hand (especially when I have The Coin) and it works quite well. Be careful of strong Blade Flurry. In case he is a Face Rogue, do not hesitate to use your removal, your life is the most important resource here. As soon as you have a favorable situation for a decent Lightning Storm, use it to reset and regain board control. Try to get a large taunt up with Defender of Argus and start racing him from then onwards.
- Shaman – Mirror match can be pretty hectic. Try to mulligan for removal, especially Lightning Bolt and Lightning Storm. Under no circumstances should you play an Unbound Elemental on turn 2-3 if the opponent has spellpower or 1/1 totem on the board, otherwise he will more often than not remove it really efficiently, which usually snowballs the game in his favor (in fact, it is naturally always much safer if you can play the Unbound coupled with some sort of overload on the same turn). Try to get as much value out of your Lightning Storm as possible as it can be the deciding factor of the matchup. Be sure to clear his totems as much as possible and don’t overextend against his own Lightning Storm.
- Warlock – This matchup is tricky, since at the start you can’t be sure whether he’s Handlock or Zoo. Overall, mulligan for removal, Earthshock and Hex are great against Handlock; Lightning Bolt, Rockbiter Weapon, Feral Spirit and Lightning Storm are great against Zoo. A combination of some of these cards is usually fine, unless you know exactly what you’re facing. Zoo is probably the hardest matchup for this deck, good thing it’s not too common lately. Always aim to clear his board as efficiently as possible, squeeze as much value as you can out of your Lightning Storm without letting him get too big of a health advantage. If you start meeting too much Zoo, try substituting the Violet Teacher for Sen’jin Shieldmasta. Handlock should be one of your easiest matchups, preserve Earth Shock for Twilight Drake and Hex for Giants. Pressure him early so that you’re the one dictating the pace of the game. Be careful when leaving him low on health if you don’t have a way of dealing with his Molten Giant efficiently. Doomhammer with Rockbiter Weapon helps immensely as a finisher here. Add in a Big Game Hunter or The Black Knight if you’re still having trouble with them.
- Warrior – Mulligan mainly for board presence, and a bit of removal is fine. Try to keep him at minimum to no armor at all times. After turn 5 be wary of overextending against Brawl, and keep your Hex for late game against their big threats. A lot of Warriors run Harrison Jones, so be aware when using your Doomhammer.
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