Rang's Beast-Zooka

Minor Update 6/21/19 - Swapped 1 Deadly Shot for 1 Hunter's Mark for a little more flexibility (e.g. avoiding 50/50 scenarios against say Mech Paladin when they build a big magnetized guy early but also weave in the Hero Power).

Hello Hunters!

For the past week I've been playing around with Flark's Boom-Zooka builds and wanted to share the most successful version so far.

I was hoping that new combos would open up after the Boom-Zooka buff, but the only 3-mana synergies that stood out to me were Nine Lives and Witch's Cauldron.  While Cauldron seemed bad given the risk of getting pulled by the zooka, I tried a mech build with Nine Lives and cards like Oblivitron, Mechanical Whelp, and Necromechanic which was pretty fun. 

But nothing has come close to the sheer joy and power of running a Big Beast package and dropping Boom-Zooka and Revenge of the Wild on Turn 9, followed by Zul'jin replaying the madness on T10 or later (if you're lucky with spell order).  The deck leans in hard on the beast synergies so we can include our best card draw card, Master's Call, as well as fight for the early board with a Small Beast package that involves synergies between 1-drop beasts and two 2-drops: Headhunter's Hatchet and Scavenging Hyena.

Mulligan:

Against Aggro (roughly in order of priority):

Springpaw - great for clearing and activating both the hatchet and the hyena
Unleash the Hounds - obviously most important against wide boards (e.g. token druid, murloc shaman, token warlock)
Shimmerfly - same rationale as springpaw but without the rush
Headhunter's Hatchet - great for early trades
Scavenging Hyena - demands attention and can value trade
Animal Companion - Huffer can remove an immediate threat, Misha can value trade, and Leokk at least has 4-health ;P

Against Control:

Master's Call - for all the value
Deadly Shot - for big removal early (e.g. Giant vs. Mage or van Cleef vs. Rogue)

I often still keep Shimmerfly, Springpaw, and Headhunter's Hatchet because they can remove certain early threats played in Control (e.g. the 1/3 minion that Warriors, Priests, and Paladins run) and because I want to thin out the low-cost beasts from the boom-zooka pool (also why Master's Call is kept in these match-ups).  

Gameplay Comments:

Basic strategy is to control the board until you can pull off a big swing turn with Flark's Boom-Zooka and Revenge of the Wild.  If your opponent is able to stabilize after the first zooka, you keep playing big beasts until, ideally, you play Dire Frenzy on one of them.  Then you drop Zul'jin, re-take the board, shuffle 3 more beasties into your deck and refill your hand.

As mentioned in the Mulligan section, you'll be looking for your 1-drops early both to synergize with your 2-drops and to thin out the weak beasts from your decks to ensure a massive zooka turn.  However, if you draw your 1-drops late keep in mind how they interact with your opponent's removal tools (e.g. don't play them into Brawl scenarios against Warriors, but do play them to counter Mass Hysteria turns against Priest).

A 1-of that's for situational use, for example:  1) A desperate Turn 1 play if you have Headhunter's Hatchet in hand and know you're going to have to fight hard for the board from the get go; 2) An early buff to Springpaw to kill off, e.g., Underbelly Angler; 3) A mid-game buff to Unleash the Hounds for that perfect full clear (though that sometimes requires burning your Revenge of the Wild with them too); and 4) That little bit of finishing damage after a Flark's Boom-Zooka + Revenge on Turn 10 or a King Krush on T10. 

Obviously, the big drawback for including it is that it's not so great when strapped to the ol' Boom-Zooka.  However, I think running 2x Master's Call offsets this a bit as having another beast decreases the odds of pulling all of your big ones before the first Zooka (can always Dire Frenzy before the 2nd).

A 1-of that's for emergency use only - when you need to find Boom-Zooka to clear, King Krush for lethal, remove bombs from your deck, etc.

Obviously here for the Boom-Zooka synergy, but don't forget to factor it into other decision making if your opponent is setting up lethal.  For example, there are clearing opportunities with Unleash the Hounds starting on Turn 5, and you can always kill off a weakened Witchwood Grizzly to bring it back as a 3/12 shield.

The Hyena isn't here to be an early win condition, but rather to act as an annoying minion which will hopefully trade off with multiple opponents or force the use of removal tools.  It has obvious synergies with the five 1-drop beasts as well as Unleash the Hounds and the 2/2s that spawn from Savannah Highmane.

Just a solid card that has beast synergies without diluting the minion pool.  It also ensures that Zul'jin will generate some tempo as well as a target for Dire Frenzy.

Helps with early big minions (e.g. Elemental Giants) and provides additional clearing power for Zul'jin.

Helps you draw the 1-drop and 2-drop beasts to fight for the early board while also thinning out the weak beasts from the Boom-Zooka pool.  Drawing your bigger beasts is fine too as it will help you curve into Witchwood Grizzly on T5, Savannah Highmane on T6, and Amani War Bear on T7.  In addition, you want a couple big beasts in your hand in case Boom-Zooka summons Oondasta or you end up with it in your hand at some point.

Helps offset the risk of fatigue caused Master's Call, Boom-Zooka, Zul'jin, and Tracking.  It also helps ensure that there are beasts to draw when Zul'jin replays Boom-Zooka as well giving Zul'jin a way to replenish your hand (1-2 copies are typically drawn immediately when Zul'jin replays Master's Call).

The Grizzly can win you games against aggro match-ups and provides a nice shield for cards like Savannah Highmane, King Krush, and Oondasta when it's summon by Boom-Zooka and resurrected afterwards.

A sticky T6 play that also synergizes well with Dire Frenzy and the Boom-Zooka.

Provides a T6 clear option, a good late-game Dire Frenzy target, and gives Zul'jin the ability to generate more tempo as well as value (depending on the order in which Dire Frenzy is replayed).  

Just a big beast with taunt that can also make an immediate impact when played.  Having Rush is particularly useful when War Bear is resurrected via the zooka or pulled via Oondasta.

[Hearthstone Card (King Krush
Works lovely with Oondasta & the Boom-Zook + Revenge of the Wild combo, but it can also just be a great Turn 9 or 10 (with Timber Wolf) finishing play as people aren't expecting it these days (e.g. Freeze Mages).

Probably the most important card outside of the zooka combo.  Obviously it generates a ton of value when pulled by Boom-Zooka and ressurected, but even playing it from hand and summoning Witchwood Grizzly, Amani War Bear, or King Krush provides a great swing turn.

Potential Alterations:

I'd like to get more 4-drops into the deck and have played around with builds that include Houndmaster Shaw or Archmage Vargoth.  Shaw synergizes well with a few cards in the deck (thinking of Hyena and Highmane) and Vargoth can provide even more value to spells like Animal Companion, Deadly Shot, and Unleash the Beast.  However, both cards have an anti-synergy with Master's Call and I haven't found a great replacement target yet (maybe 1x Amani War Bear?).  

An on-theme inclusion I've considered is Vilebrood Skitterer as a 1-of because of the clearing potential with Revenge of the Wild.  However, I haven't tried it yet.

I've also considered including Marked Shot but settled on Deadly Shot for now (I like the synergy with Zul'jin better and that it can eliminated minions with more than 4 health/even those with stealth).

If there's any interest, I'm happy to suggest specific card replacements or more specific match-up strategies in the Comments section or via private message.

Happy Hunting!

- Rang