Copycat's Copyrogue

[JackBox 0]

Hi! I'm JackBox, aka Copycat#2212. 

Followingthe nerf to Patches, I found myself remaking my old Jade Rogue, with a stronger emphasis on deathrattle mechanics. I've found this deck to be an absolute joy to play. 

Opening hand: Aggressively mulligan for Journey Below, Backstab, Mistress of Mixtures, Jade Swarmer and Undercity Huckster, If you have The Coin or a card of 1 mana cost or a backstab in hand, Jade Shuriken is also good to start out with, as it presents you with some strong tempo, as well as getting your jade train moving. In addition, Lesser Onyx Spellstone is a good card to keep in your opening hand against slower decks. Doing so will ensure you can get it charge up by mid game for excellent board clear.

Mid game: Mid game is where you want to start really building your board with Jade Golems. Elven Minstrel will set you up nicely with the components you need to start knocking out combos. Shadowcaster, Carnivorous Cube and Shadowstep should be utilised as the situation sees fit to ensure a rapid flow of Jade Golems. Don't be afraid to copy or bounce 'Xaril, Poisoned Mind' multiple times if you have good board presence. The poisons you can acquire from him can offer you a lot of options, even into the late game. Make good use of Lesser Onyx Spellstone to ensure board control. With the amount of deathrattle cards you'll be cranking out, you should charge them up quickly. However, it can be used in a pinch to bring down a problematic minion, providing you can eliminate other targets before hand.

Late game: N'zoth is your main win condition. Ideally, you're looking to bring back cards such as Cairne, Aya and Xaril. However, by this point, you've likely played a fair few Jade Swarmers using copy mechanics. In the late game, the Jade Swarmers will likely yield very strong Jade Golems.

Possible alterations:
  -Mistress of Mixtures may be switched out for Plated Beetle. I personally prefer the 1 mana Mistress of Mixtures, due to its ease of activating combos and charging Lesser Onyx Spellstone, but Plated Beetle does have the advantage of only providing you with its deathrattle benefit.
  -Cairne Bloodhoof is a powerful card, especially in combination with N'zoth, Carnivorous Cube or Shadowcaster. However, it is not an essential cog in this deck's strategy, and may be replaced with either a second Sap or Carnivorous Cube, Sprint, Vanish, Acidic Swamp Ooze, Barnes or Spellbreaker.

Overall summary: A highly flexible mid-late range combo deck. Focus on high tempo plays and always be looking to 'invest' in future board presence whenever you can afford to, with cards like Carnivorous Cube, Shadowstep and Shadowcaster. Trade wisely yet often, as N'zoth will bring double value to all your lost minions, which in turn may yield more value from their deathrattles.

Edit: Currently having good results with Gluttonous Ooze in place of Cairne. Very handy against cube locks, mages and paladins.

Edited February 18, 2018 by JackBox