Hearthstone deck guide: Murloc Hunter - July 2015

If you've had enough of Face Hunter, and you were around during the early days of Hearthstone's life when Murloc decks were ruling the roost, you probably won't be too excited to see this particular deck spotlight today.

An enterprising player by the name of HiMurky has found a way of combining the raw aggression of the Face Hunter with the enduring synergistic power of the Murloc class of cards. The end result is a deck that not only brings an element of surprise to the metagame, but also offers a surprisingly effect method for climbing the ladder.

Here's what you need to know about this devastating new deck, whether you plan on playing it yourself,or you just want to be prepared for the worst as we approach the end of one Season and the start of another.

Murloc Hunter strategy guide

If you've played a lot of Face Hunter, then you shouldn't have too much trouble transitioning to this deck. You do need to offer your star Murlocs a little more protection though, and so you might find yourself trading other minions or using damage spells/weapons a bit more often than you would with a pure face deck.

It also goes without saying that while this is a very aggressive deck, you don't want to field your Murlocs onto the board for the sake of it, only to have them die cheaply on the opponent's next turn.

You should also try to fire off your Hero Power every turn from around four Mana onwards. This should ensure that you pile unbearable pressure onto your opponent, even if you don't draw into your hand all the pieces of your puzzle perfectly.

Murloc Hunter Mulligan guide

How exactly you Mulligan with this deck depends on which pieces of the Murloc puzzle you happen to get, but as a general rule you should look to keep Leper Gnome, Knife Juggler, Mad Scientist, Tidecaller and Tidehunter.

If you've got The Coin and have taken care of the first two turns, you can also look to hold onto Warleader if you've got Tidecaller, or a three-Mana play like Animal Companion or Eaglehorn Bow.

There are situational Mulligan choices to make as well. Ironbeak Owl is great against other Hunters and Mages, for example, while the Eaglehorn Bow can be used to deal with Heroes who typically field annoying three-Health minions early on.

Murloc Hunter card combos and deck synergies

Here are some of the most critical card combos to keep in mind when playing the Murloc Hunter deck.

- Use your Mad Scientist to bring Secrets into play, rather than proactively spending Mana on them.

- Pay close attention to the synergies of all your Murlocs, and make sure you understand which bonuses are a Battlecry effect, and which are in play for as long as a certain character is alive.

- You can get an extra point of Durability on your weapon by having your opponent trigger a Secret while you're armed with the Eaglehorn Bow.

- All Beasts increase the damage output of Kill Command.

- Knife Juggler and Unleash the Hounds can cause chaos for your opponent on a busy board, but remember that those knives target enemies at random.