Written by: Nydra
One of the most consistent classes at the moment, the Mage commands the most dangerous direct damage spells in the game (Fireball, Pyroblast), has a potent set of sweepers (Flamestrike, Blizzard) and various ways to control the tempo (Frost Nova, Cone of Cold). The few minions he has are tightly connected with his spells, either making them cheaper (Sorcerer’s Apprentice), using them to grow (Mana Wyrm) or channeling them into an endless succession of damage (Archmage Antonidas).
Mage’s hero power is Fireblast which will deal 1 damage wherever for 2 mana. This is also one of the most flexible hero powers in the game and is used for a multitude of purposes, from chipping down opponents’ health, to dealing that one last piece of damage that finishes a minion, to pinging your own enrage minions or Acolytes of Pain.
Playing Mage can lead you to either of the deck archetype extremes. The aggro Mage relies on 1-3 drops supported with constant barrage of direct damage and tempo control spells to outrace his opponents and finish them by T8 with a Pyroblast (or even earlier). The heavy control Mages, on the other hand, use the Ice Block and Ice Barrier secrets alongside frost spells to stop the enemy minions, delay the game until later turns and finish the opponent with their end-of-the-curve finishers (Pyroblast, Mountain/Molten Giant, Alexstrasza, Ragnaros).
Both of these builds have their exploitable weaknesses. The aggro Mage is usually slower than its Warlock and Rogue brothers while the control counterpart relies a bit too much on having the right cards at the right time. Weigh the pros and cons for yourself and decide which path you want to go.
Building a full-blooded Mage control is expensive, you’ll need essential epics and rares which make the deck possible. That is why, when the budget it tight and you only have commons and basic cards, going for an aggro Mage is the best solution.
The deck below is a good place to start. It has no rares or above, it uses minions that you’ll want to play in every class (Faerie Dragon, Dark Iron Dwarf, Harvest Golem) and is very close to the ultimate aggro Mage. Start with this, try it out and start climbing the ladder. Once you’ve gathered some dust, get Blizzard first and then Pyroblast – those cards will help you regardless of what archetype you will go for next.
If you want to keep playing aggro Mage, craft yourself some Defenders of Argus and Argent Commanders. If you plan on developing a control Mage, craft Ice Blocks, Ice Barriers and Azure Drakes. Your final step should be the legendaries described in the next section.
I. The essentials (the class-specific must-crafts)
?Mana Wyrm is the most used Mage-specific minion and there’s good reason for that. He’s a 1/3 for 1 and that already makes it tough to deal with in the early turns. If it survives, it becomes a nuisance that gets harder to deal with after every spell you cast, coin included. If you hold a few removal spells to clear the way for it (Frost Bolt, Arcane Missiles and Cone of Cold are good friends of the Mana Wyrm), the wyrm will win you the early game singlehandedly, beating down the opponent to a point where he can die to a few burns. Craft it, you’ll end up using it in both aggro and control decks anyway.
Cone of Cold is another common card that fits equally well in the aggro and control archetypes. Not only is it a removal and a tempo card (it will remove the next attack of three of your opponent’s minions, which at T3 is usually his entire board), but it will also damage otherwise untargettable minions if aimed correctly. Cone of Cold will get rid of the nasty Blood Imps and will ping down and freeze Faerie Dragons and will often pay off for itself easily.
Blizzard is the second AoE damage spell you’ll need to craft as, like Cone of Cold, it will come in handy whatever style you play. It’s a mid-game sweeper like Holy Nova, Consecration and Starfall and it will clear the board from the majority of the early and mid-game threats. Whatever survives will be frozen (meaning it won’t attack you next turn) and often down to Fireblast range.
?A big and explosive finisher, Pyroblast is also in every Mage deck, there 
to deal the final 10 points of damage. Playing Pyroblast essentially means that you have 7 turns to take 20 damage from your opponent (while not dying, of course), and that’s usually not a tall order for the Mages.
While Mage decks are known to work without Pyroblast (builds from the early days of the beta used Antonidas to chain Fireballs instead), it is strongly advised that it’s crafted as soon as possible if you want to climb the ladder. Aggro Mages tend to run out of fuel in the late game and without a one-hit finisher they risk their opponents stabilizing and turning the game around. In control decks, it’s an essential part of the Alexstrasza/Pyroblast combo and is even more must-have than in aggro builds.
Ice Block is the secret card around which the Pyrofrost controls are built. Said control builds are known to have tough match-ups against aggressive decks and Ice Block helps them stay alive for a turn longer to draw the necessary sweeper/tempo card/card draw/finisher. Unlike Ice Barrier, it will activate regardless of if you’re attacked or dealt lethal damage through spells so it’s an answer to any situation. If you plan to play a Mage control, this should be a priority craft.
Ice Block’s cousin, Ice Barrier is excellent against aggro decks as it absorbs 8 damage for you and often gives you an extra round of life (which is all that control Mages need). Although not as ubiquitous as Ice Block, Ice Barrier will be in control builds more often than not, often replacing an extra card-draw mechanic (i.e. some decks will prefer swapping out Coldlight Oracle or Azure Drake for those extra 8 points of health).
?If you play frost control mage, you'll want at least one copy of Ice Lance. A card with great utility, Ice Lance will either freeze a character (helpful against weapon-wielding classes) or deal 4 damage
for 1 mana on already frozen character. Pair it with Frostbolt in the face and you deal 7 damage for 3 mana. Follow this combo with another Ice Lance and you deal 11 damage for 4! That's not even counting the Thalnoses/Kobold Geomancers/Azure Drakes you might have in hand/in play.
Sorcerer’s Apprentice is an essential card for the aggro Mage builds. Not only is it a 3/2 for 2, it will also reduce the cost of all spells by 1. This translates as free Mirror Images and Arcane Missiles, one-mana Frost Bolts and sweepers that come a turn earlier, something that is often of crucial importance for the Mage. The mana cost reduction will also allow you to play minions alongside your spells, thus maintaining momentum on both fronts (board presence and board control) and will make it easier for you to fatten up your Mana Wyrm.
II. To the neutral pool!
Mages are not so different from other classes when deciding which neutral cards to craft. Aside from few notable exceptions that are almost Mage-exclusive, you’ll want to craft the set of neutral minions that will fit any other class and that are all the rage right now.
Let’s go over those Mage-specific cards we mentioned first. Stop one for you should be Acolyte of Pain, one of the best neutral card-draws in the game. Although some Mages still prefer to run Novice Engineer or Loot Hoarder because they’re cheaper, Acolyte of Pain is still somewhat better. It’s a 1/3 for 3 and most of the cases he will give you at least one card back. It is Mage’s hero power, however, that makes this card so great. If he’s not silenced immediately, removed through Assassinate/Shadow Word: Pain effect or Frostbolted upon arrival, he will give you the option to pay 2 mana and draw a card, essentially turning your hero power into Life Tap without the drawback. You can also run him into opponent’s creatures for 1 damage and a card.
Alexstrasza is another neutral card that is almost exclusive to Mage controls. The dragoness will immediately put any player’s life to 15 so it’s a great counter to classes who are known for healing themselves and thus countering your burns (Priests, Druids and slower Paladin builds). 
It’s a 9 mana card so it’s gone a little bit out of favor (you can’t cast Alexstrasza and Frost Nova in the same turn unless you keep your coin for that long) but with good draws control Mages have no issue living till the very late game and keeping the dragon alive. If she survives T9, it’s an almost guaranteed win as the smart Mage will always have the option to burn down 7 life with 10 mana.
You can also use Alexstrasza to target yourself, turning her into one giant heal if you’re in the single-digits (and with control decks you often will be). If opponent’s board is small, she will give you an extra turn of life and with her on the board that’s all you’ll ever need.
If you play aggro Mage, you’ll need the buffing minions that every aggro deck uses. Dark Iron Dwarf, Defender of Argus, Harvest Golem and Argent Commander are a must. You’ll also need a pair of Amani Berserkers who hit for 5 on T3 with your hero power (or on T2 if coined out).
Bloodmage Thalnos is the legendary that fits almost any deck and the Mage is no exception. A spellpowered 1/1 for 1 that draws you a card on deathrattle is great value. He’ll be useful in the early game to empower your direct damage spells as well as in the late game in combination with your sweepers (a T7 Blizzard for 3 or T9 Flamestrike for 5 is something few boards can withstand).
While you’re at legendaries that fit in every deck, go spend some dust on Sylvanas and/or Ragnaros, too. The first 5/5 for 5 that steals something upon dying is good regardless of your deck archetype of choice. The other is among the most powerful end-game minions out there and has incredible synergy with the board control mechanics of the mage.
?III. Dust better spent elsewhere (or the cards you'll likely not need)
There’s chaff to be found with every class and the Mage is no exception. It starts with the cycle of secrets.
Outside Ice Block and Ice Barrier, every other Mage secret will be of no use for you in the current meta although they were part of the strongest of Mage decks in the early days of beta. Vaporize and Mirror Entity will often be wasted on a 1/1 while Counterspell and Spellbender are too slow to pay off and are not worth the 3 mana. You’re likely to die before you get any value from them. Disregard every minion who synergizes with secrets too (i.e. no Kirin Tor Mages or Ethereal Arcanists).
Same goes for Archmage Antonidas. Once a great end-of-the-curve minion, Antonidas is currently worthless as he takes a few turns before he can give you full value. His 7 mana, while good for a legendary creature of his power, will make you choose between casting him or Flamestrike and with the aggro decks being everywhere, the latter will always be the sounder option.
You’ll often have to play him on later turns and that automatically decreases his potency even further. The turns after 8 are reserved for Pyroblasts, Alexstraszas or digging for the latter and wasting mana on Antonidas will hurt more than it will help you. Although he's extremely powerful once he starts dishing out hadoukens, he needs time and he won't be given one. If you have money to spend on a legendary, consider Thalnos, Sylvanas or Ragnaros.
I. Aggro mage
Continuing the budget deckbuilding section from above, our first stop in the advanced deckbuilding for Mage is the aggro set-up. Popularized by Gnimsh of team DogeHouse and improved with the help of his team-mates, the ultimate aggro mage is among the strongest minion-based decks out there. The deck on the right (used by Savjz in IHEARTHU’s King of the Kill series against Cixah) is one of the variations of this build. It opens with great 1-3 drops with Leper Gnome, Mana Wyrm, Harvest Golem and Shattered Sun Cleric while removing threats with Frostbolt and Cone of Cold.
Past T3, the aggro mage starts packing even more firepower. Fireball can remove even the biggest mid-game threat while Blizzard is a dangerous sweeper that will clear the board and swing tempo in your favor. A single Water Elemental is there for his excellent stats and the ability to control weapon-wielding classes while Sylvanas Windrunner is included as a solid 5/5 body that steals minions and messes up opponent’s plans. Two copies of Pyroblast and Argent Commanders work as late-game finishers.
The aggro build has many variations for players that like some particular minions or dislike another. More tuned down in terms of aggression builds feature Arcane Intellect for card draw and Mirror Image to keep their minions alive. Other builds incorporate Amani Berserker that turns into a 5/2 after a ping from Fireblast; Sorcerer’s Apprentice for cheaper spell barrage; or Arcane Missiles to snipe Blood Imps and Faerie Dragons early on. Play around and decide what you like best but Savjz’s Fast and Furious is a good place to start.
II. Pyrofrost control
The diametrical opposite of the above build is the heavy control Mage. Unlike the aggro set-up, the Pyrofrost control aims to delay the game for as much as possible, control the board with freezing spells and
removals and builds for a Pyroblasting finish.
As the deck relies strongly on having the right cards at the right time, it implements a plethora of card draw mechanics. Bloodmage Thalnos, Arcane Intellect, Acolyte of Pain and Azure Drake all help you dig for that Ice Block or board sweeper. Frost Nova, Cone of Cold and Blizzard act as the early and mid-game board control cards and are essential for your survival. The decklist on the right is a Managrind-winning deck by y4p and almost the exact same set-up that I currently use in 3-star master (my version has 1 Acolyte of Pain swapped out for 1 Flamestrike).
Like the aggro deck, this build too has its iterations. Some versions decide to omit Coldlight Oracle (its drawback can be potentially fatal) or Azure Drake (a minion that often becomes victim to a next turn Argent Commander) and experiment with spellpower minions like Kobold Geomancer or board-controlling legendaries like Sylvanas instead.
Richer versions include some end of curve legendaries in addition to their Pyroblasts. Alexstrasza is the natural choice for such a deck (T9 dragon followed by a T10 swing for 8 plus random burn is game-ending) and I’ve also seen decks running Baron Geddon to deal with swarming minion decks and as an additional win condition. 
III. Mage Giants control
Other types of control Mages go into completely different directions. While there is some overlap in the cards they use and the playstyle is similar, it has slightly different early game and win conditions.
The deck presented on the left is an invention of the DogeHouse team (famous for having good deckbuilders like Ek0p, Savjz, Nyhx and Gnimsh) and has the same goal as the Pyrofrost control – live long enough so you can play your late game finishers. Its mana curve, however, lacks cards like Mana Wyrm, Mirror Image and Ice Lance and starts from 2 mana cost. In the place of the 0/2 taunters, the “Mage Giants” deck uses Doomsayer + freezing spells to clear the board and earn extra turn. Acolyte of Pain and Coldlight Oracle are gone, replaced by cheaper card draws like Novice Engineer and Loot Hoarder. Ice Barrier is used in combination with Ice Block to delay the game even further.
Once in the late-game, the deck has a myriad of finishers. The Mountain Giants and Molten Giants come in as cheap (because of the low life/big hand size) 8/8 minions that are a pain to deal with. Alexstrasza is there to reduce the opponent to 15 and further aid the Mage in his quest for burning down everything.
The Mage Giants control will often win the game by T9. He will often allow the opponent to reduce him to little life, sneak in an Ice Block and play two giants on T8, followed by a board-freeze. A T9 dragoness will reduce the opponent to 15 health and an attack from the two 8/8 giants will finish him off.
Druid -
Hunter - Crafting + Unleash the Hounds combo + Beast beat-down
Mage - Crafting + Aggro Mage + Ice Block control
Paladin -
Priest -
Rogue -
Shaman - Crafting and building the mid-range control
Warlock - Crafting + Aggro Warlock + Murlocs + Board control Warlock
Warrior -
