Welcome to the first edition of the vS Deck Analysis. Today I will be focusing on a variation of the Miracle Rogue deck, which is barely seeing the light of day on ladder. I decided to make a Miracle Rogue deck that focuses on this card: Tinker’s Sharpsword Oil.
There are two important problems that needs to be tackled when building a deck around this card. The first is in deciding what the most optimal shell of the deck would be. For example, there is Firebat and Hosty’s list which uses a mix of mech minions for tempo + board stickiness in conjunction with the Oil. I however decided to use a midrange tempo shell that includes many familiar cards used in the old Miracle Rogue. The second problem is in deciding what minions to play to make the Oil most effective as it needs a good target for combo. These minions would need to be sticky, or have charge as we would need a body to get value later on.
Let us analyze each individual card selection a little closer.
Minions
2x Shade of Naxxramas
- Stickiest 3 drop that grows and is the best Oil target in the deck. Can be rather slow against aggro, so don’t be greedy and use it to trade effectively. Great vs. control.
2x SI:7 Agent
- Cookie-cutter removal minion, a great tempo card with a body.
2x Gnomish Inventor
- 4 drop that cycles itself with a decent body. Much needed card draw due to the absence of shivs.
2x Azure Drake
- Spell damage + card draw on a 4/4 body is perfect for this rogue deck.
2x Sludge Belcher
- Solid 5 drop overall. He is much needed to handle aggro and provides an extra 1 / 2 body as an Oil target later on.
1x Antique Healbot
- Amazing vs. aggro obviously, but this is necessary because of the amount of face damage you will be taking.
1x Dr. Boom
- Single-handedly the best bomb in the game. ‘Nuff said.
1x Bloodmage Thalnos
- Spell damage and card draw + combo activator.
2x Gadgetzan Auctioneer
- What’s a Miracle Rogue without these?
Spells
2x Backstab
- Standard rogue removal. Be mindful if you need to save this for combo in the next few turns or with Azure Drakes/Auctioneer.
2x Preparation
- Key targets are Oil and Gadgetzan. Can be used with Fan of Knives or Sap/Eviscerate for tempo gain.
2x Deadly Poison
- Can be slow at times, but much needed as combo activator and Blade Flurry target.
2x Blade Flurry
- One of the key cards of this deck. Provides a huge board clear and insane burst late game with Oil.
2x Eviscerate
- Standard removal. Use wisely as removal. It is preferable to use it as a finisher.
2x Sap
- Great value pseudo removal. Could be used sparingly to remove a late game taunt for the kill or used early for tempo gain.
1x Fan of Knives
- Third AoE that cycles itself. Not amazing, but necessary.
2x Tinker’s Sharpsword Oil
- This is your real threat. Plan your turns in advance to get a 4 / 2 weapon for maximum value. Often your combo targets would not matter when going in for the kill.
Gameplay Tips
The idea of the deck is pretty straightforward. Develop the board with minions while efficiently clearing the board to stay on tempo. The difficult part about playing this deck is in making the tough, small decisions that matter. For example, when to hit face and re-weapon up when you have a passive hand full of spells. This is because every bit of damage counts. As this is a tempo deck, deciding when to use cards for tempo and when to use it for value with combo is crucial. This will come with practice and experience with the deck. Also, you need to plan a couple of turns in advance in terms of combo and managing your mana effectively. Knowing when to use your hero power and when to save it is vital. Managing your health is important, too, as you will be taking a considerable amount of face damage. Whenever you have a decent board position, always REMEMBER to look for lethal. This deck is capable of insane burst and can kill them even in their low 20s. Always know how many spells you have to make Auctioneer a live draw, literally sealing the game for you.
Mulligan Strategy
Aggro
- Look for Backstabs, SI:7 only with coin, Blade Flurry/ Fan of Knives, Deadly Poison, Eviscerate.
- Against hunter/mech mage that has face burst damage, it is important to mitigate as much damage. Don’t be greedy and stay even on tempo. Be mindful of every point of damage and take into account their burst.
Midrange
- Look for Blade Flurry, Deadly Poison, Backstabs, Eviscerates, SI:7 only with coin, Shade, Eviscerate, Gadgetzan Auctioneer
- You are the aggressor, develop the board toe-to-toe and use sap/prep aggressively if needed to gain tempo lead.
Control
- Look for Deadly Poison, Shade, SI7: only with coin, Gadgetzan Auctioneer
- Always be mindful of board clears. This deck is still a board-oriented deck, and you need minions to do steady damage and for oil combo target to finish.
- Control Warrior is one of the worst matchups as you have limited damage, thus it is important to be ahead on tempo and be aggressive.
Conclusion
I have been messing around with this variation of Miracle Rogue on ladder with surprising success. I had over a 75% winrate with it this season, and climbed from Rank 5 to Legend playing strictly this deck. I hope you guys enjoy the deck! Feel free to leave comments and discuss about alternative card choices that would fit the deck better.
Also, be sure to follow me @AmplexFatum on Twitter & www.twitch.tv/amplexusfatumx !