The Origins TCG Van Helsing control deck is an attrition archetype designed to outlast aggressive strategies, stabilize barrier health, and wipe boards before closing out games with recurring late-game threats. Instead of rushing damage across the three lanes, this build grinds opposing resources to zero through repetitive healing loops, recursive blockers, and flexible zero-cost removal spells.
Core Strategy and Win Conditions
This list operates as pure control rather than a burst combo deck. Matches routinely run long, requiring careful calculation of board trades across several turns. The game plan focuses on denying early barrier damage, accumulating card advantage, and preparing a clean board reset.
The primary win paths include:
- Phuong Hoang (Fung Hang) Scaling: Phuong Hoang enters as a 4-cost unit with Rebirth and Move. Each time an allied unit or barrier receives healing, it gains +1/+1. Following updates to Rebirth mechanics in Patch 0.7, rebirthed units retain their stacked attack value when returning to play with 1 health, turning a sustained healing engine into an overwhelming offensive lane push.
- Resource Exhaustion and Fatigue: By neutralizing threats with reusable utility spells and perpetual heals, the opponent eventually exhausts their deck or overextends their hand into massive board resets.
- Puck and Jekyll Inversion Lines: When running the Puck package, opposing barriers or units receiving healing take equivalent direct damage instead. Pairing Puck with high-potency heals, such as Dr. Jekyll or Tin Woodman, creates unexpected burst finishers against stalled lanes.
Card Breakdown and Key Synergies
A standard 25-card competitive Van Helsing control deck incorporates targeted draw engines, self-replacing defensive bodies, and sustained healing spells.
| Card Name | Card Type | Mana Cost | Stats | Primary Function |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Van Helsing | Legendary Unit | 4 | 3/4 | Generates Van Helsing's Tools before combat if not already held in hand. |
| Phuong Hoang (Fung Hang) | Unit | 4 | 2/3 | Grows +1/+1 on each heal trigger; features Move and Rebirth. Main win condition. |
| Baby Bear | Unit | 2 | 1/1 | Early blocker; deals 1 retaliatory damage on barrier hit; death trigger adds Papa Bear to hand. |
| Papa Bear | Unit | 4 | 4/4 | Mid-game body; deals 3 retaliatory damage on barrier hit; death trigger adds Mama Bear to hand. |
| Mama Bear | Unit | 6 | 6/6 | High-stat lane anchor; destroys any enemy unit that damages your barrier in her lane. |
| Shahrazad | Unit | 2 | Variable | Heals the lane's barrier by 1 whenever any card enters your hand. |
| Ali Baba | Unit | 3 | 2/3 | Draws 1 card whenever it damages an opponent's barrier, leaving a trading body on board. |
| Jill | Unit | 3 | 2/4 | Heals the local barrier for 2 damage each time she suffers damage. |
| Dr. Jekyll / Mr. Hyde | Unit | 3 | 3/5 or 5/3 | On Reveal heals 3 to a local target; transforms in hand after combat into Mr. Hyde with Trample. |
| Tin Woodman | Unit | 6 | 3/4 | On Reveal heals 8 damage to any character or barrier in the lane. |
| Spellbook | Spell | 4 | N/A | Generates random spells each round, providing continuous value over extended turns. |
| Searing Light | Spell | Variable | N/A | Deals 4 damage to an enemy unit and restores 4 health to your barrier in that lane. |
| Forbidden Knowledge | Spell | 8 | N/A | Destroys all characters across the board. Resets games against wide boards. |
How Van Helsing's Tools Function
Before combat begins, Van Helsing adds a toolbox spell to your hand at 0 mana if you do not already hold one. You can hold only one tool at a time, meaning you must play the tool during the round to receive a fresh copy on the subsequent combat turn.
The toolkit offers four selectable choices:
- Wooden Stake: Destroys a damaged character. As of Patch 0.7, it can be targeted on undamaged units to set up queue interactions with preceding damage spells like Bullseye, though it fizzles if the unit remains undamaged upon resolution.
- Garlic: Stuns any character, preventing attacks.
- Silver Bullet: Deals 1 damage to any character or barrier.
- Holy Water: Silences and removes all abilities from any character, disabling Death triggers and Trample.
Defensive Engines and Loops
Shahrazad acts as the primary passive recovery engine. Because her barrier healing triggers whenever a card enters your hand, she activates off natural draw, Scarecrow cycles, Spellbook generations, Baby Bear death additions, and Van Helsing's Tools replenishment. Combining Shahrazad with Phuong Hoang allows the legendary bird to scale multiple times in a single turn without playing expensive healing spells.
The Bear chain (Baby Bear into Papa Bear into Mama Bear) provides three distinct defensive threats from a single initial draw. This line absorbs multiple opposing attack cycles and punishes opponents attempting to chip barriers down directly.
Turn-by-Turn Playbook and Board Management
Control requires strict adherence to combat priority, especially regarding reveal order and attack sequencing.
Early Game: Turns 1 to 3
Focus on establishing board presence without overcommitting high-cost resources. Deploy Baby Bear or Scarecrow early to absorb opening strikes. When facing slower openings, establish Ali Baba to contest open lanes and draw cards, or play Shahrazad behind a secure blocker. Avoid deploying Van Helsing on Turn 4 without board protection; if the opponent removes him immediately, you lose rounds of tool generation.
Mid Game: Turns 4 to 7
Stabilize damaged lanes using Jill and Dr. Jekyll. If facing aggro swarms, play Van Helsing to begin picking off wounded attackers with Wooden Stake or stalling large threats with Garlic. Deploy Phuong Hoang once your healing engines (Shahrazad or Jill) are active on the board. Shift Phuong Hoang across lanes using its Move mechanic to avoid unfavorable trades while steadily building its stats.
Late Game: Turns 8 and Beyond
Prepare for board wipes with Forbidden Knowledge at 8 mana. The ideal timing for Forbidden Knowledge occurs when the opponent reveals first, forcing them to commit their mana and hand onto the board before the wipe resolves.
Because Phuong Hoang possesses Rebirth, it survives Forbidden Knowledge, returning as an active threat while the opponent's side clears out completely. Follow up with Mama Bear, Tin Woodman, or an inverted Puck heal to finish off remaining opposing barriers.
Key Matchups
Versus Three Little Pigs Aggro
Aggressive Three Little Pigs lists aim to overwhelm lanes rapidly using early swarms, Boogeyman, and Trample buffs like Heroic Charge.
- Tactics: Mulligan aggressively for Baby Bear, Jill, and early removal like Searing Light. Place Jill in front of 1-power tokens to absorb multiple hits and continuously replenish barrier health.
- Tool Usage: Use Holy Water to strip Trample or Death triggers off high-threat attackers like Boogeyman.
- Lane Focus: Conceding a single lane is acceptable. Focus defensive resources on stabilizing the other two lanes until you can clear the board with Forbidden Knowledge on Turn 8.
Versus Merlin Spell Burn and Obliterate Combo
Merlin decks look to chip one barrier with Queen of the Night or Lightning Strike while setting up a double-cast Obliterate to burst down a second barrier in one turn.
- Tactics: Keep barrier health elevated above burst thresholds using Tin Woodman and Searing Light. Take advantage of reveal priority; if you reveal first on key combo turns, deploy healing or stun effects before double-cast spells finish their sequence.
- Counterplay: Maintain pressure with Mr. Hyde's Trample or a buffed Phuong Hoang to force the Merlin player to use burn spells defensively on your units rather than your barriers.
Versus Van Helsing Mirror
Mirror matches are slow, grinding affairs that frequently approach deck exhaustion and fatigue damage.
- Tactics: Avoid excessive card draw if your opponent is not threatening your barriers, as overdrawing accelerates fatigue.
- Key Cards: Save Holy Water to neutralize opposing Phuong Hoang buffs or Papa Bear death loops.
- Finishing Lines: If running Puck, hold Dr. Jekyll and Tin Woodman until you can drop Puck and convert those high-value heals into unblockable barrier damage.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can you hold multiple Van Helsing tools in hand at the same time?
No. You can only hold one Van Helsing tool in your hand at a time. To receive another tool before the next combat phase, you must play the current tool from your hand.
How does Puck interact with healing cards like Dr. Jekyll and Tin Woodman?
When Puck is in play, any healing directed at the opponent's characters or barriers is inverted into direct damage of the exact same amount. Playing Dr. Jekyll to "heal" an opposing target deals 3 direct damage, while Tin Woodman converts into an 8-damage burst.
What happens to Phuong Hoang (Fung Hang) after Forbidden Knowledge?
Phuong Hoang has the Rebirth keyword. When Forbidden Knowledge destroys all characters on the board, Phuong Hoang returns to the field with 1 health. Under Patch 0.7 rules, it retains any attack bonuses accumulated from prior healing triggers.
