Info
A combo deck is a deck A deck is a collection of exactly 30 cards. All cards drawn by the player during a game come from their deck. Each deck is tied to a specific class. Decks can be created and 
that revolves around executing one or more specific combinations of cards, to great effect. Combo decks may aim for one turn kills, slightly slower two or three turn kills, or simply powerful plays that allow the player to seize control of the board. Be that as it may, most combos aim to win the match, either through direct damage Direct damage is a term used to refer to effects which deal damage directly to enemy characters. Direct damage mainly comes from spells (Pyroblast), Hero Powers (Steady Shot) and some triggered effects, Battlecries and Deathrattles or through establishing an overwhelming advantage, usually in one or two turns.
The exact definition of a combo deck is debatable, although any deck which relies on a specific combination of cards as its win condition A win condition is a specific means or strategy by which a deck can achieve victory. Decks may have one or more win conditions, and a win condition may be a specific aim of the can be reasonably called a combo deck. In terms of pacing, combo decks are often control decks A control deck, also known as a late game deck, is a deck that attempts to attain victory in the late game, through a combination of early game removal and Taunts, and powerful cards in , with the non-combo cards serving to delay the game until the key cards can be drawn, while others are mid-range decks that can hold their own without their combos, but with the right cards can quickly turn a balanced match into a rout. Aggro decks An aggro deck or aggressive deck, also known as a rush deck, is a deck that takes an aggressive approach of dealing damage to the opponent as quickly as possible, generally through the summoning of are rarely considered combo decks due to the independent value of their cards and speed of their playstyle, leaving little time for drawing the right cards, although they may still contain certain key card combinations.
Discussion
Some combo decks featureSpecial attraction a single specific combo, while others have a variety of synergistic options. Combos that are very limited or specific to only a few cards generally cannot be played in full until all the key cards are in hand, while combos that have wider synergy with other cards in the deck are more flexible and can be played at various points in the match. Players using control combo decks will often slowly collect the pieces of the combo over the course of the match, hoping to draw them all before they lose the match, while more versatile combo decks will often find various pieces of a potential combo fairly easily, but wait until the optimal situation arises in which to make their play.
Now defunct, the Combo Druid used from the game`s releaseAnnounce until Whispers of the Old Gods "Now I ve got a tale to tell you... of the ones from long ago. There s an evil that s been dreaming, but now it s softly screaming! From the darkness their power will grow. Their voices are 
was an example of a fairly straightforward two-card combo deck. The deck used Force of Nature Force of Nature Set: Classic Type: Spell Class: Druid Rarity: Epic Cost: 5 Abilities: Summon Summon three 2/2 Treants."I think I ll just nap under these trees. Wait... AAAAAHHH!" - Blinkfizz, the Unfortunate GnomeSee this card 
`s original effect - summoning three 2/2 Treants with Charge For the card of the same name, see Charge (card) Charge is an ability allowing a minion to attack the same turn it is summoned. Charge is available to all classes, but is most strongly 
- in combination with Savage Roar Savage Roar Set: Basic Type: Spell Class: Druid Cost: 3 Tags: Area of effect Give your characters +2 Attack this turn.What do they roar? Nobody can quite tell, but it sounds like "Elephant Macho Breeze". 
to deal at least 14 damage in a single turn, plus another 2 damage for each other friendly minion. Combined with Shapeshift Shapeshift Type: Hero Power Class: Druid Cost: 2 Abilities: Gain Armor Hero Power +1 Attack this turn. +1 Armor.See this card on Hearthpwn data page] Shapeshift is the druid s basic Hero Power. Contents 1 Notes 
, sticky Sticky is a term used to refer to minions which are hard to remove from the battlefield, in general due to Deathrattles which summon other minions. Strategy edit | edit source] Sticky minions can be 
minions or (in combination with Innervate Innervate Set: Basic Type: Spell Class: Druid Cost: 0 Tags: Mana-related Gain 2 Mana Crystals this turn only.Some druids still have flashbacks from strangers yelling "Innervate me!!" at them.See this card on Hearthpwn data page] 
or Emperor Thaurissan Emperor Thaurissan Set: Blackrock Mountain Type: Minion Rarity: Legendary Cost: 6 Attack: 5 Health: 5 Abilities: Modify cost Tags: Triggered effect At the end of your turn, reduce the Cost of cards in your hand 
) a second Savage Roar, this combo could easily defeat players at apparently quite safe levels of Health, even from an empty board. Be that as it may, the dependence on just four cards - two copies of each key card - meant the druid often failed to draw the combo in time, and would be forced to play out part of the combo prematurely in order to stay alive. Smart opponents could also play around the combo by keeping the druid`s board clear, their Health high and/or a Taunt or two in place.
Patron Warrior You think he s angry now, just wait until he realizes he s spilled his pint. Patron Warrior is a warrior combo deck revolving around the use of Grim Patron. It uses cheap activators such as Whirlwind, 
is an example of a mid-range combo deck with a variety of synergies and only a loose win condition. The key combo card, Grim Patron Grim Patron Set: Blackrock Mountain Type: Minion Rarity: Rare Cost: 5 Attack: 3 Health: 3 Abilities: Summon Tags: Damage-related, Death-related, Triggered effect Whenever this minion survives damage, summon another Grim Patron.If you love getting your 
, can be combined with various activators, effects which enable the combo to occur, or that generate value from the combo cards, such as Inner Rage Inner Rage Set: Classic Type: Spell Class: Warrior Rarity: Common Cost: 0 Abilities: Deal damage Deal 1 damage to a minion and give it +2 Attack.They re only smiling on the outside.See this card on Hearthpwn 
, Whirlwind Whirlwind Set: Basic Type: Spell Class: Warrior Cost: 1 Abilities: Deal damage Tags: Area of effect Deal 1 damage to ALL minions.The way to tell seasoned warriors from novice ones: the novices yell "wheeeee" while 
or Cruel Taskmaster Cruel Taskmaster Set: Classic Type: Minion Class: Warrior Rarity: Common Cost: 2 Attack: 2 Health: 2 Abilities: Battlecry, Deal damage Battlecry: Deal 1 damage to a minion and give it +2 Attack."I m going to need 
. Be that as it may, to get the best value out of the Grim Patron the warrior needs to activate the minion repeatedly, generating potentially unlimited value from repeated trading and Grim Patron summoning, allowing them to gain strong board control and set up for a later devastating attack on the enemy hero itself. Patron Warrior often also featuresSpecial attraction Frothing Berserker Frothing Berserker Set: Classic Type: Minion Class: Warrior Rarity: Rare Cost: 3 Attack: 2 Health: 4 Tags: Damage-related, Triggered effect Whenever a minion takes damage, gain +1 Attack.He used to work as an accountant before 
, which if left unattended to can provide a one turn kill after activation through AoE damage such as Whirlwind, Death`s Bite Death s Bite Set: Naxxramas Type: Weapon Class: Warrior Rarity: Common Cost: 4 Attack: 4 Durability: 2 Abilities: Deal damage, Deathrattle Tags: Area of effect Deathrattle: Deal 1 damage to all minions."Take a bite outta Death." 
or Revenge Revenge Set: Blackrock Mountain Type: Spell Class: Warrior Rarity: Rare Cost: 2 Abilities: Deal damage Tags: Area of effect, Health-related Deal 1 damage to all minions. If you have 12 or less Health, deal 3 
. Other synergistic cards include Armorsmith Armorsmith Set: Classic Type: Minion Class: Warrior Rarity: Rare Cost: 2 Attack: 1 Health: 4 Abilities: Gain Armor Tags: Damage-related, Triggered effect Whenever a friendly minion takes damage, gain 1 Armor.She accepts guild funds for 
and Acolyte of Pain Acolyte of Pain Set: Classic Type: Minion Rarity: Common Cost: 3 Attack: 1 Health: 3 Abilities: Draw cards Tags: Damage-related, Triggered effect Whenever this minion takes damage, draw a card.He trained when he was younger 
, which similarly all benefit from the same activators. This range of synergies makes for a number of possible combos, resulting in a strategically complex deck.
Victory with a combo deck is heavily dependent on drawing the right cards. For this reason combo decks frequently feature abundant card draw For the game conclusion where neither player wins, see Draw Card draw is a term used to refer the process or mechanic of drawing additional cards from the top of the deck, and adding them 
. This is especially critical for combo decks relying on just a few cards to win.
Combo decks are often significantly non-interactive, with the opponent unable to prevent the player from collecting the pieces needed for their devastating play. This is strongest in decks which use one turn kill combos, due to the suddenness of the defeat, and the sense of powerlessness in preventing it. Because of this, excessively powerful combo decks are often the subject of nerfs A nerf is a card change that causes a card to become less effective or less powerful. The opposite of a nerf is a buff (not to be confused with the identical term for an , in order to make the decks more interactive and less frustrating to play against.
The best defence against combo decks is usually to try to deny them their win conditions. For combo decks that rely on the state of the board or the survival of a certain key minion this is achievable, but in combo decks that require only drawing the right cards, there is little that can be done to specifically prevent them executing their combo. The main strategies against such decks are to maintain a high Health/Armor total, preventing them from achieving a one turn kill, the presence of Taunts The shield-like Taunt visual effect Taunt is a minion ability which forces the opposing player to direct any melee attacks toward enemy targets with this ability. Minions with Taunt (commonly referred to as Taunts) serve 
or Immune The immune effect from Bestial Wrath Immune is an ability that prevents a character from receiving damage from any source, and prevents the opponent from targeting it. Be that as it may, Immune does not prevent destroy, healing or 
effects (namely Ice Block Ice Block Set: Classic Type: Spell Class: Mage Rarity: Epic Cost: 3 Abilities: Immune, Secret Tags: Damage-related, Triggered effect Secret: When your hero takes fatal damage, prevent it and become Immune this turn.Ice is nice, 
) and/or simply to defeat them before they are able to collect the right cards. Knowing the exact amount of damage such decks are capable of outputting in a single turn is often critical to outplaying a combo deck, especially in the later rounds. Be that as it may, combos do not need to kill the player outright to achieve a win, and the player should try to keep a plan for their own victory in mind beyond mere survival.
Videos
Design
Combo decks are one of the most problematic deck types for designers attempting to provide a balanced meta "The metagame is the mix of different decks that players bring onto the ladder, that you can expect to see. If you know what decks players are bringing, your deck can be especially good against . Be that as it may, in the right proportions they can also serve to add a lot of variety to the laddering experience. Max McCall Max McCall Set: CREDITS Type: Minion Rarity: Legendary Cost: 4 Attack: 9 Health: 2 Your emotes have no cooldown and can t be squelched.See this card on Hearthpwn data page] Max McCall is a Blizzard employee, 
states:
- "Hearthstone is fun because each game is a little different from the last. Combo decks make for very different types of games, where players can⃢₀ₙt rely on their normal decision-making heuristics and have to reconsider their strategic approach to the game. So, in general, combo decks are good for Hearthstone because they add some texture to the ladder experience."
Be that as it may, McCall states that combo decks can become problematic when they become too popular in the meta, especially since they tend to be relatively non-interactive. This can lead to frustration for the opponent, especially when the deck features one turn kill Burst damage or burst potential refers to a player s ability to deal a large amount of damage in one or two turns, allowing a player to finish off a previously damaged opponent, or deal an combos. Less powerful (or especially complex) combo decks tend to be less popular, and thus don`t tend to become a problem for the health of the game, with unusual combo decks in particular serving to add a lot of variety to the meta.
