Oliver Fang needs a scale back on card damage I think. Opinions?

[bobrossw]

This is definitely a L2P sort of situation. I think in any mathchup, when a particular card or strategy gives you trouble, you should go through this line of thinking:

1 - Are there cards in my deck that could have countered that card? If so, how should I change my strategy in the future to manage that when I know that card is coming? This can include hard counters like mind control (completely makes the player regret playing fagin) or soft counters, like ground shift (turns off fagin's attack, buying you some time). It may also be more subtle things like taking out a rogue's draw so that they don't have enough cards to really make use of fagin.

2 - Are there cards in my card pool that might counter that card/deck? If it's not currently in the deck, perhaps you need to add something. This is often a decision influenced by the metagame - if a lot of people are playing a particular deck, you may want to put some hard counters in your deck. If only a few people are playing it, it may still be worth using soft counters. Soft counters typically have the advantage of being flexible tools, useful in multiple situations.

3 - Have I tried playing that deck yet? Sometimes a deck seems strong when you go against it...if you don't quite understand what counters that deck, you should try copying that deck and playing it for a while. See where it is weak, and think of ways you might be able to exploit those weaknesses with your decks. I did this with embers Jericho several times. I don't particularly like playing that deck, but I just wanted to understand it better, so I played it a lot. I did the same with discard zaladar and twilight aramia in SF, and more recently with different flavors of Baduruu. Before you start crying for nerfs, you should try this step. For me, if a card is OP, it will be obvious when I start playing that deck and win games that I don't deserve to win.

4 - It may also be the case that a certain pet deck of yours is just weak against a deck that is dominant in the meta. If that's the case, it may be worth switching decks for a bit. I currently have 3 decks that I really like to play and fiddle with (an oversized garth deck, a zhanna attachment deck, and a victor ramp deck). Typically one or two of them will be good at any given time, if the meta adapts to counter one, I'll switch to another one that is strong in that type of meta.

[XanteseZerylliom]

This is definitely a L2P sort of situation. I think in any mathchup, when a particular card or strategy gives you trouble, you should go through this line of thinking:

1 - Are there cards in my deck that could have countered that card? If so, how should I change my strategy in the future to manage that when I know that card is coming? This can include hard counters like mind control (completely makes the player regret playing fagin) or soft counters, like ground shift (turns off fagin's attack, buying you some time). It may also be more subtle things like taking out a rogue's draw so that they don't have enough cards to really make use of fagin.

2 - Are there cards in my card pool that might counter that card/deck? If it's not currently in the deck, perhaps you need to add something. This is often a decision influenced by the metagame - if a lot of people are playing a particular deck, you may want to put some hard counters in your deck. If only a few people are playing it, it may still be worth using soft counters. Soft counters typically have the advantage of being flexible tools, useful in multiple situations.

3 - Have I tried playing that deck yet? Sometimes a deck seems strong when you go against it...if you don't quite understand what counters that deck, you should try copying that deck and playing it for a while. See where it is weak, and think of ways you might be able to exploit those weaknesses with your decks. I did this with embers Jericho several times. I don't particularly like playing that deck, but I just wanted to understand it better, so I played it a lot. I did the same with discard zaladar and twilight aramia in SF, and more recently with different flavors of Baduruu. Before you start crying for nerfs, you should try this step. For me, if a card is OP, it will be obvious when I start playing that deck and win games that I don't deserve to win.

4 - It may also be the case that a certain pet deck of yours is just weak against a deck that is dominant in the meta. If that's the case, it may be worth switching decks for a bit. I currently have 3 decks that I really like to play and fiddle with (an oversized garth deck, a zhanna attachment deck, and a victor ramp deck). Typically one or two of them will be good at any given time, if the meta adapts to counter one, I'll switch to another one that is strong in that type of meta.

I don't think there's a better method to follow than this. Oliver's so conditional, and he ought to be good for 7cc (or the serious downside of Garina Road's non-controller ability). Many have made suggestions as to how to beat him, too, so that should help with steps 1 and 2 of this list.

I love several heroes that just don't typically do well, but I will switch to more serious options when I participate in more serious events or if I'm frustrated because I'm losing. That's just part of the game, I'm afraid, as some heroes will be better than others (though those others are often interesting meta choices, especially if they catch opponents off guard or counter a particularly popular build).