Stonescar Big Wheel

Edit: I was noticing that I would occasionally experience power issues and wanted a bit more power manipulation. Spiritweaver does an excellent job of filling this role and I have been quite happy with its performance in initial testing. I know that Spiteful Strike functioned as both life gain, as well as pseudo-removal, but Spiritweaver helps block against early aggressive decks, fixes power issues, is a body for Shadow Etchings, and can still help you stay alive when you've got The Big Wheel in play.

It’s been awhile since I’ve posted a deck and that can probably be attributed to just how well a deck needs to perform for me to actually get excited about it. Well, I have been on an absolute tear with this list, going as far as tying my previous 37-run win streak gauntlet record with Green Is Good (Updated) on one occasion, and then breaking it on a second. At the time of writing this I am currently on a 45-run win streak and the deck has felt absolutely amazing.

Update: I've extended my previous streak to 56 runs, Stonescar Cylix was a pretty easy update. Did some separate testing of Murgo and Ziat but wasn't impressed for this list. Dangerous Gambit and Feed the Hecaton are both reasonable considerations, but probably not a huge improvement on the other removal.

Further Update: Win streak died in the 77th run to the combination of a misplay and terrible draws.

The Deck

Stonescar midrange isn’t really anything new. The archetype has always had some appealing features when it came to gauntlet grinding. It gets to play a streamlined curve of efficient units, as well as some of the best removal in the game. Overall, it can win relatively quickly, relatively often, with relatively little need to make complicated decisions.

Sounds pretty great, right?

Well, I would say, “relatively?”.

Stonescar Midrange is not without its downsides. Historically, the archetype hasn’t had access to many good Flying units. This meant that it could have difficulties interacting with opposing flyers, as well as problems breaking through ground stalls. Stonescar midrange has also been a somewhat draw dependent deck. When you play a deck that is essentially a pile of units and removal you will eventually encounter games where you find yourself drawing too much of one and too little of the other. While these games can be considered outliers, they will pop up over a large enough sample size. These are exactly the sort of games that I hate losing. It’s frustrating to feel helpless and completely at the mercy of the top of your deck while the game slips further and further out of your control. I think that this frustration can be further exacerbated by the knowledge that an otherwise average draw would probably have been good enough to win the game instead. Personally, this made the archetype a lot less appealing for me as a gauntlet grinder.

So… what changed?

Well, that’s actually pretty easy to answer. NEW CARDS! As more and more cards have been released, Stonescar has gotten tools which have gone a long way toward addressing its two biggest weaknesses.

1. Lack of Flying units/lack of interaction with Flying units: This actually improved for multiple reasons. Shrivel is a cheap removal spell with no restrictions. As a result, you can safely include it in your deck without fear of it being too conditional. Victimless Crime is another cheap removal spell, whose condition usually isn’t too restrictive, and in conjunction with Shrivel and Annihilate creates pretty thorough coverage for problematic enemy units, including flyers.

Syl’s Stronghold helps this deck on both fronts. It functions as a value engine and removal, but its ability to grant Overwhelm to an attacking unit (especially one with deadly), can go a long way toward beating ground stalls and speeding up games. Raniya, Miviox Maniac performs a similar role. She can dominate the air both offensively and defensively (especially if you grab her with Vine Grafter), while also being able to generate value trades or lethals using her contract.

2. Draw dependency: This issue largely stems from the fact that Stonescar midrange doesn’t typically want to play a lot of “value-oriented” cards. These cards tend to slow games down, and aren’t even universally useful. On the other hand, the lack of these cards means that it can be difficult to get back into games when you start falling behind. Fortunately, cards like Statuary Maiden, Syl’s Stronghold, and Raniya, Miviox Maniac are generally useful while also being good in value-oriented games.

Additionally, there is one more card which needs mentioning. A card which I most heavily credit for this deck’s success.

The Big Wheel

This deck has a very low curve and access to a lot of Lifesteal and life gain to offset Wheel’s downside. I really can’t overstate how much work this card does for this deck. As a relic, most opponents lack a good method of removing it. This makes The Big Wheel a much better value engine compared to the unit-based alternatives. This is especially true against removal-heavy decks, which is where you tend to need value the most. The previous issues with draw dependency basically evaporate once you start drawing two cards a turn. This extra card draw can essentially out grind any opponent. If your health is high, and you are not under foreseeable pressure, this is generally the first card you should grab from your market.

Granted, The Big Wheel is not going to shine in every matchup. If your health is being heavily pressured or you are playing against an aggressive opponent, then The Big Wheel probably isn’t the answer. Fortunately, with its efficient units and cheap removal, this deck is already well-positioned against the more aggressive opponents, and its other market options tend to be very good in exactly those kinds of situations.

Some General Advice

1. Mulligan for access to three or four power. This can include cards like Shadow Etchings and Syl, Cabal Strongarm. Much of this deck’s strength is in its market, which requires four power to use, and which requires at least three power to access. While this deck *can* survive on two power, it’s very easy to fall behind if you become stuck on two. Three power will allow you to unlock more of your deck which will let you survive longer until you can find your fourth. Fortunately, nothing in this deck requires more than a single Fire influence to play, and all of its power produces Shadow influence, so influence usually isn’t a problem.

2. Mulligan for market access. Between Shadow Etchings, Vine Grafter, and Kerendon Merchant this deck has twelve ways of accessing its market. For the same reason as my first bit of advice, you need to be setting yourself up to be able to use your market.

3. Know which matchups The Big Wheel is good in. This deck has a lot of enticing market options, and oftentimes a card other than Wheel can look very appealing. That’s because these cards *might* be very good. However, sometimes the AI will have an answer for your unit or site and you’ll eventually run out of gas when you could have avoided it. If you’re not under pressure, and the enemy is unlikely to remove The Big Wheel, then the extra card draw will likely draw you into more market access anyway, and eventually win you the game.

4. Prioritize your removal based on matchups. This deck has three very good 2-cost removal spells, but they vary in strength based on your opponent. Annihilate can kill every unit in some decks, and almost no units in others. Some decks have problematic heroes which Victimless Crime can’t handle, and while you can target any unit with Shrivel, some decks have a lot of high health units that it won’t kill outright. You want to be using your less valuable spells first so you have better coverage for a wider range of possible threats later.

5. Time your market access and Decimates with Inspire in mind. This is pretty simple really, but can be easy to mess up. You have two cards with Inspire, Blackhall Warleader and Xenan Lifespeaker. If you are going to hit your opponent with Warleader or play Lifespeaker, make sure you do it BEFORE you pull a unit from your market or Decimate Emblem of Makkar.

Some More Specific Advice

This is just a bit of advice for the various high mmr gauntlet bosses.

Burn Scars: The 1-health units aren’t great here as the opponent has too many ways of dealing them 1 damage. Mulligan for Autotread, Vine Grafter, and market access. Statuary Maiden will basically solo this boss on its own. Not only does Maiden shut down their Entomb effects, but killing their units (which they will throw away in combat), will give you more stats… which you can use to kill more units. Just be careful to avoid exposing Maiden to Chemical Rounds on their turn. Be aware that units which die from decay damage won’t trigger Syl, Cabal Strongarm.

Company of Exiles: You want your removal and market access. The Big Wheel is good, but they do have Decay. Syl’s Stronghold and Raniya, Miviox Maniac both receive significant boosts from this boss condition.

Defender of the Spire: This is basically the only matchup you can play Syl, Cabal Strongarm on turn 2, and Champion of Chaos will always be a 5/5 Deadly, Overwhelm. Annihilate only hits two units in this deck, and Shrivel only kills two units outright, but Victimless Crime can target any of your opponents units. You want market access for either Syl’s Stronghold or Raniya, Miviox Maniac. Raniya’s contract can give you explosive lethal potential in this matchup, and her Taunt can force the opponent to trade with their Champion of Cunning.

Highly Skilled: You want Annihilate and Victimless Crime for potentially problematic flyers. Champion of Chaos and Vara, Vengeance-Seeker can be 7/7’s in this matchup. Xenan Lifespeaker and Spiteful Strike can give your units a lot of bonus stats. You want market access for Raniya, Miviox Maniac as she will be a 6/6 Flying, Taunt, which is capable of eating the flyers your opponent plays every turn. Don’t forget that if you steal a unit with Raniya, Miviox Maniac’s contract that it will temporarily get an additional +1/+1 while it has Taunt.

Labyrinth Treasury: You want market access. However, what you want it for may vary. This deck can have some slow draws, but can also curve out Sandstorm Titan, into Reality Warden, into Predatory Carnosaur. Focus on not dying first and make sure you’ve stabilized before trying to leverage The Big Wheel.

Limitless Possibilities: You mostly want your units. Market access should probably grab Raniya, Miviox Maniac or Syl’s Stronghold first.

Mindless Aggression: You really want your two-cost removal here as it allows you to deal with a turn 2 Lethrai Ranger on the draw. Vine Grafter and Champion of Chaos make for great walls on the ground. Market access should usually grab Raniya, Miviox Maniac. Play defensively until they run out of gas.

Power of Progress: Prioritize your removal. This opponent has a lot of potentially threatening units that your Deadly units can hold back, but you can often draw enough removal to kill all of their relevant threats outright. The Big Wheel can be risky as this boss can potentially generate a lot of stats very quickly. Raniya, Miviox Maniac might be the safer market option, and you have Combust for emergencies.

Sibling Rivalry: Annihilate, Shrivel, and market access for Combust are your answers for opposing scions. If you can efficiently stop their initial onslaught, then The Big Wheel can do its job, otherwise Raniya, Miviox Maniac can either steal their scion or Champion of Chaos potentially resulting in some very swingy turns.

Sudden Death: This matchup and Burn Scars are the primary reasons that Autotread is included in this deck. Vine Grafter is an excellent blocker here, with its Regen shutting down Bandit Queen or Infernus. Shrivel can also help with that. Spiteful Strike and Xenan Lifespeaker can do a lot to buffer your life total in this matchup, and Raniya, Miviox Maniac can help as well. Her contract can also deal A LOT of damage. Statuary Maiden shuts down painful Entombs from Ticking Grenadin and Umbren Reaper.

Some Deck Stats

This is not the fastest gauntlet grinder out there, the very nature of The Big Wheel inherently lends itself to longer games. It is also generally slower to have a deck composed of ground units, which have a greater likelihood of a board stall. The deck is very powerful, and doesn’t really have bad matchups, but it does come at the cost of speed. My average run time was about 26.5 minutes, which only resulted in a GPM of around 30. If you just want to win like, all of the games like, all of the time though, I don’t know of a deck that can do it better.

-ItsTenz

P.S.- I finally got around to updating my Green is Good list if you're interested in an update. You can find it here Green Is Good (Updated)