Control Warlock Deck - Forged in the Barrens

Last updated on Apr 01, 2021 at 16:00 by Kat 38 comments

This guide contains detailed strategy, mulligan, and deck-building information to help you improve your Control Warlock play for The Forged in the Barrens expansion meta

Control Warlock is a control archetype that uses the Life Tap Hero Power to maintain a continuous flow of cards. The additional card draw provides a broad range of options at all times to ensure there is no shortage of removal to eventually run opponents out of resources.

Card List

Warlock Cards
1 Spirit Jailer SA 2
2 Drain Soul Core 2
2 Soul Shear SA 2
3 Free Admission MDF 1
3 Luckysoul Hoarder MDF 2
3 School Spirits SA 2
3 Tamsin Roame FitB 1
4 Cascading Disaster MDF 2
4 Hysteria MDF 2
5 Envoy Rustwix MDF 1
6 Tickatus MDF 1
7 Soulciologist Malicia SA 1
8 Twisting Nether Core 2
9 Lord Jaraxxus Core 1
Neutral Cards
1 Armor Vendor MDF 2
5 Ogremancer SA 2
5 Taelan Fordring Core 1
7 Strongman MDF 2
10 Y'Shaarj, the Defiler MDF 1

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Control Warlock Deck Mulligan Guide

Control Warlock regularly spends its early turns using Life Tap to fill its hand for optimal turns late in the game. You should mulligan with this in mind and not expect to play many cards before turn 3.

  • General MulliganArmor Vendor, Spirit Jailer, Luckysoul Hoarder.
  • Mulligan Against AggroSoul Shear, Drain Soul, School Spirits.
  • Mulligan Against ControlTickatus.

Control Warlock Deck Strategy

As a Control Warlock, your aim is to shut down your opponent with removal and run them out of cards. You should try to continually draw as many cards as possible with Life Tap while staying in control of the board. Your Health total will often be a limiting factor, so you should use removal swiftly to prevent taking any unnecessary damage. Populating the board with small minions like Armor Vendor, Spirit Jailer, Luckysoul Hoarder also greatly help to slow down the board, providing you the room to focus on drawing cards.

Throughout the game you should be constantly aware of your Corruptable cards to ensure they are readily corrupted for when they are needed. With this in mind, consider prioritising higher-Cost cards over lower-Cost ones if they achieve a similar goal on the board if you are able to Corrupt additional cards in the process.

When it comes to winning the game, you will largely rely on controlling the board until you are able to gain a large burst of tempo from Y'Shaarj, the Defiler to refil your hand with your Corrupted cards.

Against Aggro, your whole gameplan should be to survive. This means that it is especially important to take as little damage as possible. In the mid game, you can stop using Life Tap to minimise the amount of self-damage you take. You will largely win the game through the use of removal and small amounts of damage from whatever minions you can get onto the board. It can therefore sometimes to be beneficial to play cards like Luckysoul Hoarder and Strongman without their effect activated in order to prevent damage as soon as possible.

Against Control, there are two main routes to victory. Firstly, you can play a corrupted Tickatus subsequently followed by Y'Shaarj, the Defiler to invalidate large portions of their deck. With this in mind, you should try to Corrupt and play Tickatus as soon as possible. Alternatively, you can play Lord Jaraxxus as you enter the late game. The new Hero Power, INFERNO!, that you will be provided with allows you to play a consistently play 2 Mana 6/6 minions each turn, which will grind down the resources of any control deck over time.

Control Warlock Deck Card Swaps

  • Against Aggro — Add 2x Death's Head Cultist for 2x Ogremancer.
  • Against Control — Add 1x Expired Merchant for 1x Free Admission.

Changelog

  • 01 Apr. 2021: Deck updated for the year of the Gryphon.
  • 19 Nov. 2020: Guide has been completely overhauled for the Madness at the Darkmoonfaire expansion.
  • 02 Sep. 2019: Guide reviewed for September play season.
  • 06 Aug. 2019: Deck has been updated for the Saviors of Uldum expansion. Removed 2x Acidic Swamp Ooze, 1x Augmented Elekk, 1x Lord Jaraxxus for 2x Expired Merchant, 2x Khartut Defender.
  • 01 Jul. 2019: Deck has been reviewed for the July card rotation.
  • 05 Jun. 2019: Deck has been reviewed for the June balance patch.
  • 01 May 2019: Deck has been moved for the fun category for the May play season.
  • 12 Apr. 2019: Deck has been completely overhauled for the Rise of Shadows expansion.
  • 03 Mar. 2019: Deck has been reviewed and deemed appropriate for the March play season.
  • 08 Feb. 2019: Deck has been reviewed for the February balance patch
  • 01 Jan. 2019: Deck has been reviewed and deemed appropriate for the January play season.
  • 04 Dec. 2018: Deck updated for the Rastakhan's Rumble expansion. Removed 1x Demonic Project for 1x Void Contract.
  • 26 Oct. 2018: Swapped the Giggling Inventor for Zilliax.
  • 02 Sep. 2018: Swapped a Dark Pact for a Sacrificial Pact and a Possessed Lackey for a Skulking Geist.
  • 09 Aug. 2018: Deck added.
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