Best Rise of Shadows Decks – The Top Meta Lists So Far!

We're taking a look at the Best Rise of Shadows Decks in Hearthstone so far! These are going to be the best performing decks for the ladder in the early stages of the release for Rise of Shadows. This post is updated frequently, and has the top decks for each class in Hearthstone!

Rise of Shadows marks the beginning of the Year of the Dragon and brings along the Standard rotation. This is one of the most exciting times to start playing Hearthstone because things are very fresh and the available card pool is at its lowest point. There's also some free stuff to be gained by hopping in once an expansion launches, not only is there a free Legendary ( Archmage Vargoth ) but you'll be getting some packs just for completing some minor quests.

Keep in mind that early in every expansion that it's best to be cautious in how you decide to craft your cards. It's always going to be better to wait it out and let the meta settle before investing too much dust into one deck. There's usually at least one or two decks that look promising early on in a release that end up being at the bottom of the barrel even a few days later. Try to build around the cards you open in packs, and keep some of that Hall of Fame Dust you got for crafting some cards later.

The expansion is live, and we've been adding a bunch of new stuff to each class! We're removing some of the lists that haven't been performing as well as we'd hoped.

Deck Updates

• Update (4/28/19): All lists have been updated for the current meta!
• Updated our Midrange Hunter Guide!
• New Control Warrior Guide added!
• Updated our Secret Paladin Guide!
• Updated our Dragon Mage Guide!
• Updated our Token Druid Guide!

Best Rise of Shadows Decks

We're featuring some of the best pro decks, and along with those we have some deck guides for you to better learn how to pilot some of these new lists.

Best Druid Decks

Druid has been getting hit hard by nerfs, and it is even losing Naturalize to the Hall of Fame. Mecha'thun and Mill Druid have been their main decks, with some Malygos and Token decks thrown in there. It's not a great time for the class, especially with so many powerful class cards being rotated out of Standard. Rise of Shadows only looks slightly encouraging as it seeks to push a potential Heal Druid and adds some support for Token decks.

Druid in Rise of Shadows

Token Druid is the most popular deck on the ladder due to it being pretty easy on the wallet, and it giving you a chance to win at just about every stage in the game.

Druid Deck Guides

• Heal Druid Deck Guide
• Token Druid Deck Guide
• Treant Druid Deck Guide

Token Druid

Best Hunter Decks

Hunter required some nerfs to get back down to a tolerable level due to it having so many powerful deck options. From Spell to Deathrattle, and then back to the tried and true Midrange Hunter, the class has had its way with the meta for a few expansions now. The class is now losing a lot of the cards that supported those archetypes, so it's going to need some help from Rise of Shadows to stay relevant. Deathrattle might still be around, but it's going to be a totally different deck. Mech synergy is looking potentially promising, but the class might need some more help to get a fully cohesive deck.

Hunter in Rise of Shadows

Hunter has quite a few good options for the ladder, and is probably the best overall class right now.

Hunter Deck Guides

• Secret Hunter Deck Guide
• Midrange Hunter Deck Guide
• Malygos Spell Hunter Deck Guide
• Deathrattle Mech Hunter Deck Guide

Mech Hunter

Secret Hunter

Midrange Hunter

Best Mage Decks

Mage had some hard times over the last expansion, but it eventually fell into having an Odd Mage version that really worked for the class. However, it lost its trusty Mana Wyrm to a nerf, and is losing all of the odd cards that kept the class afloat. The cards it's getting in Rise of Shadows look to be incentivizing the class to head in a spell based direction, and maybe even tempo with the addition of Magic Dart Frog. The class also had some success with Dragon Mage, which could end up seeing some more play in the future. We'll see where the class heads as we get deeper into the launch of the expansion.

Mage in Rise of Shadows

Khadgar Dragon Mage is the top deck for the class right now, all other options are pretty weak at the moment.

Mage Deck Guides

• Dragon Mage Deck Guide
• Tempo Mage Deck Guide

Khadgar Dragon Mage

Best Paladin Decks

Paladin has had a pretty good year and swapped back and forth between Odd and Even builds that each held the top of the meta at different times. The class even saw a revival to Secret Paladin that ended up being a quality option for the ladder in the later part of the Rastakhan meta. If you weren't a fan of more aggressive decks, then you could even try your hand at Holy Wrath, OTK DK, and Shirvallah Paladin. You had a lot of options if you were a fan of the Paladin class, but with the rotation about to happen, we'll see how it fares without Genn & Baku. Rise of Shadows appears to be flirting with keeping Secret Paladin around after the rotation, but also brings back Dragon synergy to the class after a long layoff.

Paladin in Rise of Shadows

Mech Paladin has taken the best parts of Secret Paladin and paired it with heavy Mech synergy to give Paladin a viable deck for the ladder.

Paladin Deck Guides

• Dragon Paladin Deck Guide
• Secret Paladin Deck Guide

Mech Paladin

Best Priest Decks

Priest has had an interesting Year of the Raven, it never really got to enjoy the Odd and Even decks that most other classes got to use. However, it found some unique lists like the more standard Control Priest, the exciting Clone Priest, and enjoyed some late popularity with Wall Priest becoming somewhat of a phenomenon. Rise of Shadows seeks to still support some of that resurrect style of play, as well as trying to bring Priest back to the days of Purify and Silence Priest.

Priest in Rise of Shadows

Resurrect Priest and Nomi Priest are the best options for the class, but both decks are not top tier.

Priest Deck Guides

• Resurrect Priest Deck Guide
• Silence Priest Deck Guide

Resurrect Priest

Nomi Priest

Best Rogue Decks

Rogue's been kind of hit or miss for a while, but it still has had many pretty good options. Miracle, Pirate, Tempo, and even Quest Rogue returning periodically throughout the last year or so. Rise of Shadows is looking to push Rogue down the path of being a thief once again, and gave it some pretty strong cards that will add a card from another class in your hand. We'll see if it ends up being strong enough to work, because it would be a pretty fun deck to have the option to play!

Rogue in Rise of Shadows

Tempo Rogue remains one of the best options for taking to the ladder right now! Thief Rogue has fallen back now that the meta has started to settle.

Rogue Deck Guides

• Tempo Rogue Deck Guide
• Thief Rogue Deck Guide

Tempo Rogue

Thief Rogue

Best Shaman Decks

Shaman has had an interesting year, with it mostly relying on Even Shaman to take it through the meta. It did also have some other options. Shudderwock has been a pretty powerful ally for the class, and powers an Elemental version and just a straight up all-in battlecry version. Rise of Shadows has brought back the Murlocs to Shaman, and it looks like early on this could be a winning strategy for the class. Shudderwock will still be a player, especially with the new Hagatha card that looks strong as we head into the release of the expansion.

Shaman in Rise of Shadows

Murloc Shaman was pretty strong early on, but has quieted a bit and lost its top spot to Big Shaman.

Shaman Deck Guides

• Murloc Shaman Deck Guide

Big Muckmorpher Shaman

Murloc Shaman

Best Warlock Decks

Warlock has been bouncing around with multiple decks at its disposal from Even Warlock to Zoo, and even Cube came back again as a viable option. It also had a generally viable control version, plus you could throw a Mecha'thun Warlock at the ladder for good measure. All that basically means is that the class has had a versatile lineup as we head into the rotation. The class will be losing a lot of the cards that powered those decks, and Zoo in particular is completely decimated which includes the Hall of Fame bound Doomguard . If you liked Mecha'thun, however, then you might be in luck because there's some possibilities still there for that deck.

Warlock in Rise of Shadows

After a weak first day, it looks like Warlock might have found a pretty good Zoo build. Unfortunately, it looks like Warlock is largely locked into this style of play which has been so prevalent over the years for the class.

Warlock Deck Guides

• Zoolock Deck Guide

Zoolock

Best Warrior Decks

Warrior hasn't been doing too terribly in the meta, but it's been largely limited to Odd decks. However, a lot of people feel that Warrior's core is looking pretty strong going into the rotation. The class is also receiving one of the better looking legendaries with Blastmaster Boom. You'll only need to get a couple of bombs into your deck to be able to fill up your board with Boom Bots and the new Dr. 7. Warrior is also one of the few classes with a hero card sticking around after the rotation which makes it in an even better spot.

Warrior in Rise of Shadows

While Bomb Warrior started off hot, it turns out that Control Warrior is the most dominant deck for the class. It is also one of the best options for the ladder right now!

Warrior Deck Guides

• Control Warrior Deck Guide
• Bomb Warrior Deck Guide
• Big Warrior Deck Guide

Control Warrior

Bomb Warrior