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Galakrond Zoo Warlock deck list guide - Ashes of Outland - Hearthstone (April 2020)

It's Galakr-on-d like Donkey Kong.

The new keyword for Descent of Dragons, Invoke, plays heavily in this deck. Invoking Galakrond gets him closer to upgrading his Battlecry, from Galakrond, the Wretched to Galakrond, the Apocalypse, and finally Galakrond, Azeroth’s End. Invoking Galakrond also activates his Hero Power, which in this case is Summon two 1/1 Imps. You don’t have to have Galakrond in your hand to Invoke him, but he’ll need to be somewhere, be it in play, in your deck, or in your hand. You can’t invoke what isn’t there.

Galakrond’s Warlock incarnation summons random Demons upon play, upgrading from 1, to 2, and finally to 4. Galakrond, Azeroth’s End also equips you a 5/2 Claw as a weapon, effectively acting as a free Arcanite Reaper as well as those chunky Demons it summons. It’ll be an interesting card to try out, that’s for sure.

Galakrond Warlock deck list and strategy

Here’s the Galakrond Warlock deck we’re using for the beginning of Descent of Dragons. We’ll keep you updated with any changes!

WarlockNeutral
2 x Shadow Council2 x Blazing Battlemage
2 x Flame Imp1 x Teron Gorefiend
2 x EVIL Genius2 x Terrorguard Escapee
1 x Kanrethad Ebonlocke1 x Rustsworn Cultist
2 x EVIL Recruiter2 x Devoted Maniac
2 x Dragonblight Cultist
2 x Nightshade Matron
2 x Fiendish Rites
1 x Veiled Worshipper
2 x Diseased Vulture
1 x Hand of Gul'dan
1 x Galakrond, the Wretched

Select and copy the long ID string below, then create a deck in Hearthstone to export this deck into your game.

Deck Import ID: AAECAf0GBuqsA7W5A9a5A9S6A/i7A/G/AwvCCIidA/ykA4GlA+isA/muA6qvA9OvA7a5A8i5A/e7AwA=

More great Warlock guides:

General strategy

We’ve built this Galakrond deck in a zoo-style, given the solid Invoke effect of summoning two 1/1 Imps. This means whenever you play an Invoke card, two extra minions will spawn first, allowing you more of an opportunity to maximise the value of your plays.

Early Game: Your deck has a whole load of cheap minions. You’ll be looking to hold onto Flame Imp and Voidwalker to start putting on early pressure. Kill off Mecharoo or Scarab Egg with your EVIL Genius and Grim Rally to establish even more of a presence, and ensure you keep board control. Make trades only if they’re valuable to your board presence. The goal is to get damage to face, but early tempo is vital to accomplish this.

Scarab Egg and Fiendish Rites are solid early plays too, as you're trying to flood the board with buffable minions. Keep getting your minions onto the board and don’t worry about weaving in a Hero Power when you can - it’s important to always have resources available to you.

Mid Game: Keep playing out your token-generating minions. You can kill off your Scarab Egg and Serpent Egg with the likes of Grim Rally and EVIL Genius, and the Lackeys generated from this are super helpful for retaining your grip on the game.

Your Invoke cards, like Devoted Maniac and Dragonblight Cultist, always summon 2 1/1 Imps. This makes them more valuable than they may seem, offering immediate stats in play. Veiled Worshipper is active if you’ve invoked twice as well, and a 4 mana 5/4 with a Battlecry that draws 3 cards is enormously powerful in the mid-game.

Shield of Galakrond is another solid Invoke card to get your Galakrond upgraded. It’s a 5 mana 4/5 with Taunt, but it summons an extra 2/2 in stats with its Battlecry, making it far better than it otherwise would be.

Late Game: If you’ve drawn and Invoked Galakrond, it’s well worth playing him. Ideally, you’ve Invoked 4 times and are able to play Galakrond, Azeroth’s End, summoning 4 random demons and equipping a 5/2 weapon. It’s an immediate board presence as well as direct face damage to finish the game. Even without a fully upgraded Galakrond though, you might still want to play him for the altered Hero Power and extra random demons. Kronx Dragonhoof draws your Galakrond if you haven’t already, but if he’s already in play you’ll unleash a savage Devastation, potentially ending the game through either buffing your own minions or dealing 5 to face.

Galakrond Warlock Mulligan Guide

Below is our guide on what to keep in your opening hand when playing Galakrond Warlock.

1. Flame Imp remains one of the best 1-cost minions in the game. Play it as soon as possible to pile on the pressure early.

2. EVIL Genius gives you extra tokens, in Lackeys, which themselves generate value for you depending on the state of the game. You might even be able to pop an egg with it.

3. Voidwalker is always a great turn 1 board presence, with its Taunt protecting you from aggro whilst also being threatening to foes.

Galakrond Warlock tips, combos and synergies

Below are some tips for how to best play Galakrond Warlock in the upcoming Descent of Dragons meta:

- Dragonblight Cultist and Fiendish Rites both Invoke Galakrond before triggering their effects, meaning the two 1/1 Imps summoned by the Invoke count towards the relevant buffs.

- The Soularium, despite being a 1-cost card, shouldn’t be kept in your mulligan stage. It’s a good topdeck later on in the game when you have mana to spare, but be careful not to accidentally discard Galakrond.

- Sea Giant gets cheaper the more minions are on the board, so remember to play it before trading with the enemy board.

- Galakrond, the Wretched and its improved forms summon random demon minions. These have a pretty high variance though. You might end up with a Voidwalker and a Doubling Imp, but there’s a solid chance to get bigger boys like Dread Infernal, Fel Lord Betrug, or Jumbo Imp. Either way, you’re pretty likely to get a frightening board, especially if you’ve upgraded to Galakrond, Azeroth’s End.

- Blazing Battlemage is a great turn 1 play - you'll be able to trade effectively whilst simultaneously threatening face damage the whole time.

- Galakrond's Malice, the Hero Power for Galakrond once you’ve transformed, costs 2 mana to cast, but remember that you still gain the effect from Invoke cards even if he’s already in play.

- Kronx Dragonhoof has four potential Devastations. Decimation deals 5 to the enemy Hero and heals yours by 5. Reanimation summons an 8/8 Dragon with Taunt. Domination gives all your other minions +2/+2. Annihilation deals 5 to all enemy minions. Depending on your game’s state, you’ll want to choose carefully - sometimes you just want to end it all, whereas on other occasions you need to clear the board of enemy threats.

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James Law avatar

James Law

Former Guides Writer

James was part of Rock Paper Shotgun's guides team from 2020-2021, bringing his expert knowledge about FPS games, Hearthstone, Path Of Exile and more from his time at Metabomb. He's also a dab hand at Hitman 3, and making his own jam - things which may or may not be related to one another.

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