Swim’s Dawnspiders deck list guide – Open Beta – Legends of Runeterra (February 2020)
Lots of spiders, and quite a few Dawnspeakers make for a very good deck.
Our Dawnspiders deck list guide features the best Legends of Runeterra deck list for the open beta (February 2020). Our Dawnspiders guide also contains Mulligan advice, card combos and strategy tips.
If you’re after a hyper aggressive deck which’ll get the job done in next to no time, then this is the one for you. It’s Swim’s Dawnspiders, aptly named because it’s filled with spiders and a card called Dawnspeakers.
The aim of the game is to flood the board with Fearsome units early, slap plenty of spiders down, hit the opponent with Elise and hopefully finish the game. If things drag on, you’ll have plenty of other options too. You’ve got plenty of kill spells to remove tough single targets, and other champions like Hecarim and Thresh who will boost your damage potential.
Below we’ll breakdown the deck, as well as provide some strategy advice to help you get the most out of this card combo.
Here’s the latest Dawnspiders deck list for Legends of Runeterra’s open beta phase.
| Shadow Isles | Demacia |
|---|---|
| 2 x Mark of the Isles | 2 x Fleetfeather Tracker |
| 1 x Black Spear | 1 x Purify |
| 3 x Mistwraith | 1 x Laurent Protege |
| 3 x Arachnoid Horror | 2 x Vanguard Redeemer |
| 3 x Elise | 2 x Dawnspeakers |
| 3 x Glimpse Beyond | 2 x Back to Back |
| 3 x Vile Feast | |
| 3 x Frenzied Skitterer | |
| 3 x Wraithcaller | |
| 1 x Thresh | |
| 1 x The Rekindler | |
| 1 x Hecarim | |
| 1 x Rhasa the Sunderer |
Select and copy the long ID string below, then click ‘Import Deck’ in Legends of Runeterra’s Collection to export this deck into your game.
Deck Import ID: CEAQOAIFBYICOKBRGU4AEAYBAULCGKQEAEAB2HZJGYBAEAIABMZAGAIFCQRDI
General strategy
Get yourself a Dawnspeakers early on and you’ll be flying, however, don’t worry if luck doesn’t go your way. You’ll still have plenty of tools at your disposal to ramp up the pressure and overwhelm your opponent.
Early game: Fleetfeather Tracker and Dawnspeakers are brilliant to get on the board early as one allows you to get some early damage in, while the other will be perfect for next few rounds. Wraithcaller will likely generate a Mistwraith, which you can then chuck into the enemy and get a lovely Dawnspeakers buff. Laurent Protege isn’t a bad shout either, as he’s great for reeling in vulnerable targets, and will help you secure more face damage with your Spiders.
And let’s not forget the spiders! Arachnoid Horror, Vile Feast and Frenzied Skitterer are all great for swamping the board and forcing your opponent to deal with more pesky minions – who’ll deal a surprising amount of damage if left unattended.
Mid game: At this point in the game you’re looking to apply pressure with Elise, Thresh and your Spiders. Wraithcaller can strengthen your side of the board nicely and it’s highly likely you’ll draw an additional Mistwraith to increase your offensive or defensive options.
Use your Vile Feasts, Glimpse Beyonds, and Black Spear to keep yourself in the game and your hand healthy. Don’t be afraid to attack with Hecarim (or any other champion depending on the situation) as you’ve got The Rekindler to bring them back to life.
Late game: You’ll be looking to play out Rhasa the Sunderer to surprise your opponent with a big clear, and Back to Back can grant you what’s needed for lethal. If you’re struggling to deal with Elusives, or a Fiora deck, Purify is a great counter which can totally throw the enemy off their game plan. Use Mark of the Isles on a Spectral Rider to sneak in extra damage, or if you’re feeling particularly confident, slap it on an already beefy unit to pressure your opponent and finish the game.
- 1. Deck Tier List – Legends of Runeterra: Deck Tier List
- 2. Best Decks – Legends of Runeterra: Best Decks
- 3. Best Budget Decks – Legends of Runeterra: Best Budget Decks (January 2020)
- 4. Fearsome Midrange guide – Legends of Runeterra: Teemo Mushroom deck list guide
- 5. Rivershaper Fiora deck guide – Legends of Runeterra: Rivershaper Fiora deck list guide
Dawnspiders Mulligan guide
These are the cards you’ll want to make the best possible start with Zed Elites:
- 1. Even though he’s halfway up your mana curve, Zed is a good keep – especially if you’re going first. It means on turn 3 you’ll be able to utilise his Quick Attack, often leading to opponents having to scramble to deal with him before it’s too late.
- 2. Cithria of Cloudfield can make some great early trades with 1/1 and 1/2 units, as well as pushing Nexus damage and discounting your Vanguard Squire.
- 3. Getting a Battlesmith on board early is vital. Don’t attack with it, just keep buffing your Elites as they hit the board – you’ll start beating out your opponents on tempo.
- 4. If you’ve got a good hand of the above early drops, it might be worth holding onto a Vanguard Defender – the Tough keyword makes it a huge pain for your opponent to remove when you buff it up.
Dawnspiders tips, combos and synergies
Here’s a quick overview of a few things you might want to watch out for when you’re playing this deck.
If you want to see this deck in action, watch the video by Swim above!
– Purify can be used to negate Frostbite and Stun on your own units, not just on enemy units. Bear this in mind if you’re pushing for lethal, or need a beefy unit to block no matter what – it can save you, or win you the game.
– If you can get Dawnspeakers on the board early, it works really nicely with the likes of Elise who’ll generate spiders whenever she attacks (of course, you can play your own too). As they’ll likely perish quickly, your board will be buffed almost every round, so much so, it’ll force your enemy to deal with it or regret it.
– This is quite a niche tip, but if you’re against a Rhasa the Sunderer, Vile Feast can keep your beefiest unit alive. Rhasa’s ability takes out the two weakest enemy units if an ally died during the same round, so summoning a 1/1 Spiderling will switch his focus off your most powerful unit – very nice indeed.
– Save your Back to Backs to keep your units alive with a last second burst of health and damage. However, if you’re certain lethals on the cards, you can use it to get you over the finish line.
– While we don’t rate Thresh that highly, his Challenger ability can still come in pretty handy. Use it to reel in an opponent when attacking and you could sneak in damage you otherwise wouldn’t have been able to. Also, if you can slap him on the board alongside your Elise during the early game, you might be able to level him for added pressure.
– Challenger is a solid way to kill off enemy threats, but it can also be used offensively. If your Fleetfeather Tracker pulls a big enemy unit and forces it to block, your chunkier threats are opened up to hit the Nexus.
– Glimpse Beyond works nicely on a dying, blocking ally as you’ll draw an extra two cards for your attacking phase. While this doesn’t seem like much, one of those cards could be enough to significantly push your advantage or get you back in the game.
– Back to Back can’t be Denied or reacted to, so use it to keep your units alive or to find lethal damage after your opponent has tried to block you.
