People are beginning to say that this is a rock-paper-scissors Core format. While there are currently three decks that should be at the forefront of everyone's testing gauntlet, I don't agree the format is truly rock-paper-scissors just yet. These decks are quite good, but there is certainly room for tons of other decks to enter the scene and make their presence felt. 

Of these three decks, the two getting the most hype are definitely the Harmonize deck and the Mage midrange deck. The Harmonize deck is generally in the form of Monster Druid, using many of the keeper allies to accelerate out giant threats. In our example we'll call the Harmonize deck “paper,” because today's example is clearly a rock among us. The Mage deck on the other hand uses tons of removal to slow down opposing ally based decks like Grand Crusader and the aforementioned Harmonize Druid deck. This gives the Mage enough time to stall out and beat the opposing ally based decks fairly easily. However, when a deck doesn't have many allies that it cares if they die, Mage is at a huge disadvantage. It's the "scissors" of the format. That leads to today's deck, the “rock” of the format according to some, Solo-Warrior.

Hero: [Stromdak of Ironforge]

Allies: 19

4 [Bronze Warden]

3 [Obsidian Drudge]

4 [Obsidian Drakonid]

4 [Magni, the Mountain King]

2 [Mekkatorque, King of the Gnomes]

2 [Vindicator Saaris]

Abilities: 4

4 [Bladestorm]

Equipment: 29

4 [Shalug'doom, the Axe of Unmaking]

4 [Gravitational Pull]

4 [Etched Dragonbone Girdle]

3 [Perdition's Blade]

4 [Rock Furrow Boots]

3 [Polished Breastplate of Valor]

3 [The Horseman's Horrific Helm]

4 [Smite's Reaver]

Locations: 4

4 [Twilight Citadel]

Quests: 4

4 [Seeds of Their Demise]

Solo-Warrior is not normally my cup of tea, as I am usually the one playing the aggro decks or Mage decks, but it is certainly a top tier deck that everyone needs to be aware of. The deck is very similar to that of the [Death Wish] decks of years past, and the general formula for creating one of these decks is very similar also. Most solo decks want tons of early armor, some card drawing, some board sweepers, and some win conditions. In the [Death Wish] era this formula led to the deck playing cheap armor like [Gladiator's Plate Bracers], [Bonefist Gauntlets], and [Greaves of Ancient Evil]. In our current format however, the armor might even be better, and while this may be hard to believe, the armor in this version of a solo deck are the real threats.

The armor in this version of Solo-Warrior don't actually do damage like the Protection Paladin deck does, but it is the armor that eventually allows the Warrior deck to kill the opponent. The key proponent is [Rock Furrow Boots], which parallels [Greaves of Ancient Evil] from Scourgewar. Three armor for three resources is already solid, but the added bonus of putting +1 ATK counters on your weapons turns each one of them into a threat. A simple [Perdition's Blade] can quickly get out of hand, as it approaches [Krol Blade] and larger in size.

My favorite weapons to pump in the deck with the [Rock Furrow Boots] are actually the [Shalug'doom, the Axe of Unmaking]s. Against decks like Harmonize and [Devout Aurastone Hammer] pumping up a [Shalug'doom, the Axe of Unmaking] slowly over time can help keep the board clear, while against the aggressive decks like [Grand Crusader], the deck can easily start Shalug'doom, sacrificing zero cards, and it will soon be plucking away at the opponent's army. Without the [Rock Furrow Boots] this deck would just not exist because it does not have a [Death Wish] to whittle away the opponent's party, but with it, the deck has not only a way to survive, but a plan of victory.

The second part of the formula for a solo deck used to be in the form of quests like [Darkness Calling] and [Bloody Ritual], but personally I disliked both of these options. Frequently, I wouldn't draw multiples of my armor, and like resourcing, would have to ditch a card to [Darkness Calling] that I may need later in the game. The problem I had with [Bloody Ritual] was that it was counter-productive to the armor in my deck trying to keep me alive. Instead of keeping my burly Warrior hero alive, I'm putting damage on myself. [Etched Dragonbone Girdle] corrects those issues with the help of some Dragonkin friends. There's no real need for us to discuss how good [Twilight Citadel] and [Etched Dragonbone Girdle] are together, but we can instead discuss why that leads the deck to play cards like [Bronze Warden], [Obsidian Drakonid], and [Obsidian Drudge].

[Bronze Warden] is generally a controlling card, in that we've seen it being played in a variety of slower decks like [Devout Aurastone Hammer] and [Etched Dragonbone Girdle] decks. This deck is no exception; solo, since the beginning of time, has been faced with the problem of their armor not actually killing any of the opponent's allies, and those allies over time force through bits and pieces of damage. Therefore, [Bronze Warden] has been an excellent source of healing, a protector, and an awesome Dragonkin to draw cards off of. For many of the same reasons as [Bronze Warden], [Obsidian Drakonid] and [Obsidian Drudge] are in the deck. Drakonid is the only source of reliable ability removal that is accessible to Warriors, and with it comes the way to shut down [Grand Crusader], while making the Mage matchup nearly impossible to lose, killing their [Ice Barrier]s.

Drudge is significantly less important to the deck, as Warrior doesn't really fear many equipment currently out. This could change with the addition of the reprinting of [Blackout Truncheon], as a deck using [Mekkatorque, King of the Gnomes] and [Blackout Truncheon] could keep a Warrior nearly infinitely locked out of attacking. However, [Obsidian Drudge] is particularly useful in the mirror and for destroying any possible [Miniature Voodoo Mask]s and [Devout Aurastone Hammer]s shenanigans going on for your opponent.

Knowing that this deck is likely going to get big, I already wanted my version of the deck to have game for the mirror. I like to have tech cards for the mirror whether or not they are good enough depends on how the metagame will change over time, but I like the key ones I'm playing in this version of the deck. [Mekkatorque, King of the Gnomes] is awesome not only because he's a giant body (generally a 10/10 or bigger), but because he resurrects destroyed equipment. You generally cannot actually kill the other Warrior player without destroying their armor, therefore I like to resurrect my key pieces like [The Horseman's Horrific Helm] or [Polished Breastplate of Valor]. Each of these are basic pieces of armor intended to keep the deck afloat, but each mitigate an attack on their own, and for that I love it as it plays in awesomely to the board sweeping late game plan. The other tech card I'm working with right now is [Vindicator Saaris], who I wasn't a fan of until I saw her in action. Playing her usually leads to an opposing Warrior deck conceding on the spot, or being so far behind that they lose in a matter of turns, not to mention you get a 6/4 out of the deal against a deck with zero [Vanquish] effects!

The board sweeping ability of the past was generally a combination of [Cloak of the Shattered Sun] and [Deafening Shout]. Those two did a phenomenal job of preventing an opponent from sticking an ally ever again, and this may be one of the only places the deck really loses out. [Bladestorm] is the sweeper of this block, and still a mighty fine one at that, while still requiring you to have a weapon in play. I've been working on non-solo decks with [Bladestorm] in them, but each time I do my decks ended up always being a weaker version of this deck. [Bladestorm] is exactly what the deck needs to play in order to crush all the opposing allies running around on the board on turn 6, and it puts the final nail in the coffin on opposing aggressive decks. [Bladestorm] also happens to be about the only way this deck can really compete with a Harmonize deck, as once they start combo'ing off, you're dead. If you can survive until turn 6 and land one of these, you're definitely back in the game, and that's why even at six resources I want four, because I want it in nearly every matchup, and I'm not unhappy to see a second one in the event a [Parexia, Herald of the Shadows] shows up uninvited.

The last part of my formula for a solo deck is win conditions. Back in the Heroes of Azeroth block, I remember people attacking with [Thunderfury, Blessed Blade of the Windseeker]. Those were the days; today decks actually have equipment removal, can kill armor, and therefore, can kill your hero. Thus, [Smite's Reaver] is the weapon of choice, and is pretty disgusting without any assistance. The Reaver is a combination of [Dawnfall Hammer] which can move any trouble some protectors out of the way and a [Rak Skyfury] to allow your hero to swing a second time each turn. Not only does that make the Axe a win condition, but it's also a means of stabilizing because it can move smaller protectors you care little about like [Bronze Drakonid] out of the way and you can attack troublesome allies before they get out of hand. The other win conditions are actually allies, giant bodies, in the form of [Mekkatorque, King of the Gnomes] and [Magni, the Mountain King]. Unlike Mekkatorque, Magni doesn't actually gain any ATK, but he does make your hero and himself gain a ton of health because of all the armor you should have in play. I find that Magni is great against the aggressive decks as a win condition because he's big enough to protect and destroy one of their allies, but against controlling decks he's pretty mediocre.

Again, I'm not saying this format is clearly rock-paper-scissors, but there are those trying to argue that theory. The big three decks going forward are clearly Harmonize, Mage, and Solo Warrior, but I would not be surprised to hear of a completely new or different archetype taking down the tournament. Remember, just because the Harmonize matchup is bad doesn't mean it is unwinnable, as I am sure there are ways the deck can be worked on to make that matchup better without hurting the amazing matchup against the controlling Mage decks in the field.

-Corey