One thing it does have, is Ancharrr, a Legendary weapon introduced in Descent of Dragons. This weighty anchor draws a Pirate from your deck whenever you attack, which means you’ll keep your card draw ticking over nicely while you play out your cards as fast as possible. Once you’ve drawn it, you’ll want to play it straight away to draw out your Pirates and stay on tempo. This should put some serious pressure on your opponent, which could lead to a lovely misplay, or some big hits to the face. This deck’s has also been gifted Skybarge, a beefier Ship’s Cannon. Slap this on the board before playing a bunch of cheap Pirates and it can rattle off a suprising amount of damage. It’s perfect for clearing an opponent’s board before it grows in strength, or simply increasing the face damage you dish out. Below we’ve put together a guide which provides the best Pirate Warrior deck list right now, as well as some strategy advice to help you get to grips with it. In the latest version of our Pirate Warrior guide, we’ve got the deck we’re going for at the start of Scholomance Academy. Select and copy the long ID string below, then create a deck in Hearthstone to export this deck into your game. Deck Import ID: AAECAQcGkQPIA/8D3q0DqtID99QDDBywAqgF1AWkBu4G5wfvB92tA/muA7y5A4vQAwA= General strategy Pirate Warrior doesn’t quite play like it used to. It’s not as fast, not as brutal, and not as oppressive. Patches the Pirate is gone and you’ll have to actually spend your mana to get things done. Even so, this aggressive deck can really come together if you draw well and play the right cards. Early game: Your early Pirates should help you contest the board nicely. Sky Raider gives you another card in hand, and Sharkfin Fan boosts your board if you can keep it alive. Keep Parachute Brigand in your hand too, and you’ll be able to get a free 2/2 worth of stats on the board before you should be able to. Playing Ancharrr is your main goal here though. It synergises with your general gameplan of beefing up your board and keeping the enemy out, as well as drawing out your minions from your deck. It even makes minions like Bloodsail Raider bigger, and Dread Corsair cheaper, especially when played alongside Upgrade!. If you can get a Skybarge out there quickly then you’ll be in good stead to keep the enemy board clear, and its 5 health makes it pretty tough to deal with on turn 3. Mid game: If you’re out of Ancharrr charges, which you should be boosting with Upgrade! and Captain Greenskin, you can re-equip the weapon with Hoard Pillager. A 4 mana 4/2 that gives you back your weapon is hugely strong and keeps the momentum going in your favour, and the more Pirates you can flood the board with the better. If you’ve drawn Livewire Lance, this is another good opportunity to make powerful plays. The Lackeys generated by the weapon can be made much bigger by transforming them with Faceless Corruptor, turning into 5/4 minions with Rush. You should also be getting face damage in as often as possible. Kor’kron Elite gives you 4 to face, and all the Pirates you’ve been playing along with Skybarge should keep your enemy’s Health ticking down. Late game: If your Skybarge is surviving, keep it hitting enemies by summoning Pirates and swinging Ancharrr. Faceless Corruptor can transform your small minions into 5/4s with Rush, allowing you to get enemy Taunts out of the way and keep hitting face. Late on in the game, you should be closing things out. If not, your deck will start to look awfully thin and more control-style gameplans will get to the point where they can turn the corner and stifle your aggression. Leeroy Jenkins is a decent final gambit if you need that extra damage to finish things off, but after that you’re in a sticky situation.
Pirate Warrior Mulligan guide
These are the cards you’ll want to make the best possible start with Pirate Warrior:
- Ancharrr, despite costing 3 mana, is a great play to get your deck ticking over. It buffs your Bloodsail Raider, discounts your Dread Corsair and draws a Pirate with every attack. 2. Sky Raider can contest the board for you on turn 1, as well as give you another Pirate to play early. 3. Parachute Brigand is a 0 mana 2/2 if you can get a Pirate played alongside it. It’s extremely good for tempo if you happen to have a Southsea Deckhand or Sky Raider on turn 1.
Pirate Warrior tips, combos and synergies
Here’s an overview of the synergies to look out for in this Pirate Warrior deck. We’ll keep you updated as the meta develops!
- Livewire Lance has the chance to generate a new kind of minion - the Draconic Lackey. The card’s Battlecry lets you Discover a Dragon, so try to find the most aggressively-statted one possible.
- Faceless Corruptor synergises excellently with your Lackeys, allowing them to transform from 1/1s into 5/4s with Rush. We’d recommend using them to increase your board presence, but mainly for dealing with any big minions the enemy might have.
- Hoard Pillager can re-equip your Ancharrr or Livewire Lance, allowing you to reap their benefits multiple times over.
- If you use Upgrade! or Captain Greenskin, your weapon gains +1/+1. For Ancharrr, this gives it another card to draw, making it extremely valuable.
- Restless Mummy and Faceless Corruptor can be drawn out with Town Crier early on if you’re lucky enough to draw it.
- Try to get Skybarge out as early as possible - it’s hard for an opponent to deal 5 damage to it on turn 3.
- Remember to equip a weapon before playing Bloodsail Raider and Dread Corsair - it’ll power up and discount them respectively.
- Parachute Brigand is essentially a free 2/2 on the board. It’s pulled from your hand for 0 mana as long as you play a Pirate, so look for Sky Raider and Southsea Deckhand in the early game.
