5 Senna Decks to Try Out During The Beyond The Bandlewood Launch Week
Hey it’s Trevor “Shugo” Yung and today I’ve got some great news…control decks are back!
Senna’s introduced a whole new mechanic that breaks the rules of the game.
If you think you can keep bullying the slow control player, you may be sorely mistaken. Their spells? Yeah, they aren’t slow anymore.
Their healing? On a whole new level.
While the expansion is fresh there’s a ton of potential here.
So either embrace the Control life or prepare yourself against it!
1. Senna Ezreal Go Hard
Deck Code: CECQIAIEDMPSINADAQCAEBYMAEBQKEABAUCAYAIFAUEQEAQFAUBQ4AIEAU4AGAQBAUATCAIDAQFQCAIEGE
[See Senna Ezreal Go Hard deck details]
Whether you love it or hate it, Go Hard is bound to make a resurgence.
Beyond the Bandlewood brought a ton of new toys to play with and Senna took them to a whole new level.
This iteration goes back to control instead of the tempo days of Bilgewater.
It’s an Ezreal + Shadow Isles deck at its core, but now we have extra incentive to build this way.
Station Archivist is incredible. It’s as if she was designed for Go Hard. In order to take full advantage of her, we need to build heavier on spells. You can think of her as the opposite of Stalking Shadows.
She’s a unit herself that searches for spells in the top cards of your deck, then you select one. So to capitalize, we only run nine followers to maintain great odds.
Our spell package is a whole ton of removal. Go Hard and Mystic Shot hold off early aggression alongside our units.
If our nexus gets too low, we have great healing with Withering Mist and Piercing Darkness.
These two are still solid at slow speed, but Senna helps turn them reactive so we can play much safer.
The most notable interaction between Senna and Go Hard is the ability to transform it on the stack. When Go Hard is cast three times, the fourth copy turns into Pack Your Bags.
If you’re 2|3, have two copies in hand, and Senna on board…you can cast both at fast speed and the second will transform and resolve as Pack Your Bags.
This interaction normally isn’t possible (other than with Karma) due to Go Hard’s slow speed, but allows for a big surprise at only two mana!
We’ll have to see how the metagame shapes up but this is looking like a solid start to a powerful control deck.
2. Senna Veigar Darkness
Deck Code: CEBQOBIKDIYTSXK6MKTACAIBAUJAEBIFBAEQGAQBAUKDCAIEAU4ACBIFAMBACBIKAEAQKBIK
[See Senna Veigar Darkness deck details]
As a control player, have you ever wished you could just target your unit removal to the enemy nexus?
Well, now you can! The Darkness has come and while many were skeptical, it’s looking to be a spooky contender.
It’s important to find Veigar as soon as possible to start building up your Darkness stacks.
Twisted Catalyzer is a great early play to help start things off. Don’t be afraid to have him strike into an unfavorable trade.
It’s imperative that you get Darkness to at least three damage.
The difference between three and four is huge when it comes to removal, and from then on you’ll start to appreciate the value.
I decided against including all of the Darkness generators as I found myself holding it in hand almost every turn.
If we need it, we can almost always get it. So don’t think you need to get the full value from each unit.
However, Stilted Robemaker is invaluable as it allows you much more freedom throughout the game.
Even a -1 cost reduction is huge, so prioritize playing him ASAP.
Conchologist offers ridiculous value with the Bandle City + Shadow Isles combo.
Even “bad” spells can be great, as you can even pull a Splinter Soul to copy a Rekindler or any Darkness generator.
Scribe of Sorrows actually makes sense in a list like this as we’re happy with redrawing any of our units, and don’t have pesky Spider tokens to worry about.
Vile Feast is nice but Pokey Stick fits much nicer!
If you’re a sucker for value then this deck is a must-try.
You’ll be overflowing with answers as your opponent struggles to play anything that doesn’t die to Darkness.
3. Senna TF Go Hard Keg Control
Deck Code: CEDACAYFCACQEBQEBANCMLIBAMDAQAIEAYHACAIFEIAQKBIJAMAQCBJRAICQKAYOAECAKOABAIAQKAJB
[See Senna TF Go Hard Keg Control deck details]
We’re back to another Go Hard variant but this time focusing on Kegs. This time we’ve taken out the Keg King himself to bring in Senna.
There’s a little bit less over-the-top without the presence of The Dreadway, but we’ve got a ton of new flashy tricks to try.
Our removal package is outright obnoxious. Go Hard, Make it Rain, and Black Spear are annoying enough already before adding Kegs to the mix. Line ‘Em Up enables them reactively and Knock ‘Em Down even becomes fast speed alongside Senna.
Withering Mist was always disgusting with Kegs in theory, but not practical when slow. Once again Senna saves the day.
Fortune Croaker works double duty as both an efficient cantrip and Black Spear enabler. Sometimes your opponent tries to play around it, but this way you just pop your own Keg without casting a spell.
Glimpse Beyond is the counter-counter. You cast a spell, they respond by targeting your Keg, then you Glimpse it.
Kegs create interaction by nature so with proper planning you’ll get some easy value.
Commander Ledros and Catalogue of Regrets provide sustain for the late game, but your obnoxious removal is often enough to bully most decks out long beforehand.
4. Senna Feel The Rush
Deck Code: CECQGAIBAMGBIAIBAUUACBABBYAQKBIJAEBQCFQFAIAQCCZSAEAQKEYBAMAQMAIEAU4ACBIFAMBQKAIFAEHRSIJRAEBQCCABAEASO
[See Senna Feel The Rush deck details]
We’re back with a new take on another classic. Good ol’ Freljord + Shadow Isles control always makes a comeback from time to time.
Now that we’ve got the Slow Spell Savior, how can I not try and revive it?
Avalanche has always been a huge pain to play around with. Now imagine it at Fast speed. Gross.
Okay, I know… Senna won’t come online until much later, but it does still provide a huge threat in the mid-game.
It also enables Icequake and The Ruination which makes open attacking near impossible to get away with.
So much for deciding to open attack or develop. Senna doesn’t play fair, so you play by her rules.
There’s not a lot else to say here. It’s Feel The Rush but with more fast-speed reactivity and even greater amounts of healing.
If you hated playing against it before, it’s only going to get worse from now on. In theory at least, who’s to say.
We’re still just scratching the surface so go find out for yourself!
5. Senna & Lucian
Deck Code: CECQIAIABELB2JQCAECQOMIBAQAACAQDAAFA4AIFAUEQGAICAADQGBAAAMEQ6AIBAAKQA
[See Senna & Lucian deck details]
I had to do it. There’s not much to look at, but you already know if this deck is for you.
We also have both Sennas because the deck builder allows it, so I made it happen. Don’t try to stop me!
All trolling aside, this deck can probably still function to a degree. It’s a rebuild of the old Lucian Grand Plaza deck, but with more Senna.
Although, if there’s anything we’ve learned in Runeterra recently it’s Challenger + Quick Attack is stupid.
It outright wins combat uncontested. So that’s basically the game plan here, and it’s straightforward enough to possibly work!
Again, it’s all in good fun here. If you’re striving for something competitive then scroll up and focus on the other lists.
If you enjoy playing a silly deck just because you can, then go for it!
Shugo’s Productivity Thought of the Day
It only ever takes one single moment to make a change. Who you are today doesn’t have to be who you are tomorrow.
Don’t let your current situation define you. You are who you aspire to be, so don’t wait, just start living!
For more Beyond the Bandlewood decks, head to the Deck Library! To build your own, head to the Deck Builder.
