Hearthstone's 3rd expansion, Whispers of the Old Gods, will have 134 new cards and will be released on April 26, 2016. The set will include many altered minions that have been corrupted by the power of the Old Gods (for instance, compare Loot Hoarder to Polluted Hoarder).
This thread is dedicated to discussing the impact of these new cards on the Arena environment.
C'Thun awaits your arrival!
If you'd like to read my initial thoughts on how I rate these cards for Arena you can start HERE.
Rating: 1(Excellent), 2(Good), 3(Average), 4(Poor), and 5 (Terrible)
LEGENDARY:
Anomalus Rating 4(Poor): He's a highly situational board reset button and most of the time you are not going to want to play him and risk wiping out your entire side of the board.
Cho'gall Rating 2(Good): It probably won't be often that you can take advantage of his Battlecry, but when you do it should make an impact with allowing you to do more than you normally would within your turn. I'll admit most of the time he will probably just be a War Golem, but his ability does give him an edge.
Deathwing, Dragonlord Rating 3(Average): He's huge, but expensive too. It's unlikely you'll get a benefit from his Battlecry and I think he just shows up too late.
Fandral Staghelm Rating 3(Average): Most of the time you won't be faced with those choice cards in Arena, but occasionally you'll have some fun with him.
Herald Volazj Rating 3(Average): I could see this being really good in certain decks with a lot of Deathrattle effects (and certainly in constructed), but most of the time you'll end up with maybe a couple extra 1/1 minions. It would likely be a "Win More" card if you're already ahead, but otherwise it's just okay.
Hogger, Doom of Elwynn Rating 2(Good): This card can really be fun with Mage, but regardless of class it's still goimg to cause problems for your opponent. It needs to be killed with a single spell/minion or it will really get out of control.
Malkorok Rating 2(Good): He's a decent-sized minion, but the Battlecry for the random weapon makes him worthwhile. If he had a little more Health he would definitely rate higher.
Mukla, Tyrant of the Vale Rating 4(Poor): I like the Bananas, but he seems expensive. If you want to use them right away, then he really costs 8 mana. I think you're better off with Boulderfist Ogre or Pit Fighter.
Nat, the Darkfisher Rating 5(Terrible): This card is absolute and utter garbage.
N'Zoth the Corruptor Rating 4(Poor): There's really no way to know how much Deathrattle minions you can draft and this minion is so expensive you could probably get better use from a Boulderfist Ogre.
Princess Huhuran Rating 2(Good): Even though the Battlecry is going to be very situational with an Arena draft, the stats are still decent for 5 mana. She's a Beast too, which can certainly offer some synergy with other cards.
Ragnaros, Lightlord Rating 1(Excellent): That's a ridiculous amount of healing each turn. He's like a mega Lightwell fueled by your opponent's tears.
Shifter Zerus Rating 3(Average): The concept is really cool, but there are going to be many times that he turns into Dr. Boom on your 2nd turn with no way to cast him then back to a Wisp whenever you can. It's fun, but pretty unreliable.
Soggoth the Slitherer Rating 2(Good): This is a big Taunt that's difficult to get rid of. I think he may be a little too expensive, but he's still going to be difficult to deal with unless he's facing another big minion.
The Boogeymonster Rating 3(Average): I really do like this minion, but you have to be dedicated to killing your opponent's minions to make him better, instead of smashing them in the face. If you're drafting Control Priest, then this will probably be right up your alley.
Xaril, Poisoned Mind Rating 2(Good): I love that this minion has both a Battlecry and Deathrattle ability. The Toxins have some really cool effects that can be useful in a variety of situations and could be key in winning the match. However, he's incredibly easy to kill with such crappy stats. (-1 on 4/6/16)
Yogg-Saron, Hope's End Rating 5(Terrible): He's expensive and completely unreliable. In Arena he might do nothing with his special ability...or he could be the thing that kills you.
Y'Shaarj, Rage Unbound Rating 2(Good) This minion is extremely late game, but has a great effect. You always run the risk of missing out on an important Battlecry from a minion that his ability drops on the board, but you should certainly be at an advantage, regardless.
EPIC:
Ancient Harbinger Rating 4(Poor): It's very unlikely that you would have a 10-cost minion in your deck that would benefit from having this card. However, it's still a decent-sized minion and not absolutely terrible on its own.
Blood of The Ancient One Rating 4(Poor): It is highly unlikely this would ever be more than just a 9/9 minion. Sure, he's big, but he's also expensive and doesn't offer anything special.
Blood Warriors Rating 3(Average): I want to rate this higher, but it will take some planning to get the most out of it. If you play your cards right (literally) you can get tremendous value from this card.
Cabalist's Tome Rating 1(Excellent): Even though the cards drawn are random it's still a huge advantage to be able to get 3 cards at once.
Call of the Wild Rating 1(Excellent): Being able to get 3 minions at once is good, but keep in mind that with Huffer you will be able to attack immediately for 5 damage (with the bonus from Leokk. Then you have a 5/4 Misha to protect you on the next turn - not a bad deal at all.
Cyclopian Horror Rating 2(Good): Depending on the board state this could be devastating to your opponent. If you're facing an empty board, then obviously he's not good at all.
Darkspeaker Rating 3(Average): Initially I thought this was a terrible card, but now I can see how you could immediately make a trade via stat swap that your opponent doesn't see coming.
DOOM! Rating 2(Good): Even though this card is expensive, it's the ultimate in card-draw and removal for Warlock all rolled up into one spell. I would definitely draft this if it was offered to me, but it's still not a definitive "win"card. (-1 on 3/31/16)
Embrace the Shadow Rating 4(Poor): I can't see this being useful in most situations, but depending on your draft this could become an interesting card. I wouldn't count it useless, but definitely situational.
Eternal Sentinel Rating 3(Average): Most of the time he'll get played on turn 2, but sometimes he will be able to clear out all your Overloaded crystals.
Faceless Shambler Rating 4(Poor): This is another card that depends on you having something else decent in play to be any good. You'll rarely play it on turn 4 and it's just very situational.
Forbidden Ancient Rating 3(Average): He's flexible, but since he doesn't have Taunt or any other ability he's probably just going to be "okay" most of the time.
Forbidden Flame Rating 2 (Good): This is really good removal for Arena and it would be amazing (probably too amazing) if you could target your opponent. I can see players screwing up with this mechanic and scorching a mid-sized minion for 10 mana and not being able to cast anything else their turn or miscalculating and playing a minion first, but not leaving enough mana to do as much damage as they wanted.
Forbidden Healing Rating 3(Average): Wow! I usually prefer damage or minions over heals, but this card has so much going for it. It's cheap, it's big, and you can target minions or players with it. It has a lot of flexibility and can really disrupt your opponent when you suddenly heal for 20 points. Even as cool as this is you probably want to be drafting minions or damage over heals. (-2 on 3/31/16)
Forbidden Shaping Rating 1(Excellent): This is an extremely flexible card that allows you to play something regardless of how much mana you have, or hold onto it until the late game and drop a huge minion. Like with the other "Forbidden" cards, you really need to plan your turn and not screw up how much mana you use for this spell.
Giant Sand Worm Rating 1(Excellent): The only thing missing from this guy is Charge. You can potentially take out your opponent's entire line and still be able to slam them in the face. This is definitely one to watch out for.
Hammer of Twilight Rating 1(Excellent): It's a great weapon, but having a built-in minion is a fantastic addition.
Scaled Nightmare Rating 1(Excellent): Unless your opponent can kill this minion immediately he is going to get completely out of control in no time at all.
Shadowcaster Rating 4(Poor): It's an interesting concept that will work much better in constructed. In Arena I think the results you'd see would be disappointing most of the time.
Renounce Darkness Rating 5(Terrible): This card is just awful for Arena. Any class cards you've wasted time drafting are gone and you have no idea how to plan ahead with the new cards you get. If you draft this card you really should have just picked another class to start with.
Tentacles for Arms Rating 3(Average): Having a perpetual weapon for Arena is pretty amazing. With no way for your opponent to permanently get rid of this weapon I would definitely take it as one of my picks. Due to the cost of the weapon it's going to be very mana-intensive to keep casting it again and again. (-2 on 3/31/16)
Twilight Summoner Rating 2(Good): I dislike that he has to die before you really get a benefit from him, but getting a 5/5 out of the deal is not a bad bargain to make.
Validated Doomsayer Rating 3(Average): If you are able to protect this minion for 1 turn, he's great. Otherwise your opponent gets a free shot at him and can either kill him or bring him reasonably low within that initial turn you play him.
Vilefin Inquisitor Rating 4(Poor): This doesn't really change anything for Paladin unless you are drafting a Murloc-heavy deck that can take advantage of all the extra fish folk. (-2 on 4/6/16)
Wisps of the Old Gods Rating 4(Poor): This is really expensive for a card that's likely only going to help you if you're already winning. You could use the Wisp ability paired with Power of the Wild, but even that's a stretch.
RARE:
Addled Grizzly Rating 3(Average): If you're able to protect this minion, then his value goes up for sure. Otherwise, he's just too easy to kill before he can make a noticeable impact.
Blackwater Pirate Rating 4(Poor): The stats aren't great and it's hard to say how useful the special ability will be. If you did draft any weapons then his value increases only slightly.
Bloodsail Cultist Rating 3(Average): If you've drafted weapons, then this minion will rate higher. Otherwise, it's still a good sized minion for the cost.
Blood To Ichor Rating 2(Good): This is a fun card to use on your own dying minion before he charges into your opponent and there are plenty of other effects this card can trigger.
Corrupted Healbot Rating 3(Average): He's a cheap, big guy with a drawback similar to Zombie Chow, but he doesn't come out quite as fast. I'm still undecided, but he probably won't hit the board until the life gain drawback will actually work in your opponent's favor.
Corrupted Seer Rating 4(Poor): I just think he's too expensive and his AOE can hit your minions too.
Darkshire Librarian Rating 4(Poor): For a standard 2-drop this card feels weak. The net gain is zero cards, which leaves you with a 3/2 body. You should definitely be able to find comparable minions for the same cost.
Demented Frostcaller Rating 4(Poor): Depending on the deck you draft you could really have fun with this guy. You will definitely see him in constructed, but he's pretty situational in Arena.
Eater of Secrets Rating 5(Terrible): You normally don't have to worry so much about Secrets in Arena, so he has a very limited use and his mana cost does not make him very attractive at all. The 4-drop slot is pretty important and you really don't need it clogged up with this guy. (-1 on 3/31/16)
Evolve Rating 2(Good): This certainly has the potential to give you the edge against your opponent, especially after an attack.
Forbidden Ritual Rating 2(Good): This could really be a fun card, but completely devastated by any AOE.
Forlorn Stalker Rating 3(Average): It's doubtful you'll get anything out of his Battlecry, but you'll still end up with a 4/2 body for 3-mana and that's not too bad.
Infest Rating 3(Average): I think this is a really cool card, giving you the ability to make everything a Webspinner, but it all depends on how many minions you have out as to how good it really is. If you have a board full of minions or can pair it with Unleash the Hounds then it's great, but if you're behind and only have 1 minion out, then it's probably not what you want to see.
Infested Wolf Rating 2(Good): Getting overall stats of 5/5 isn't bad for the cost and he's a Beast, so that adds some value too.
Journey Below Rating 3(Average): This is a nice, cheap card to use for Combos.
Master of Evolution Rating 1(Excellent): At the very worst he's still going to be a Chillwind Yeti, but having the ability to upgrade one of your minions is pretty good. I'm actually surprised they didn't add an Overload cost to him.
Midnight Drake Rating 3(Average): If you draw him in your opening hand he's great, but like with Twilight Drake he becomes more 'meh' the longer it takes to cast him.
Mire Keeper Rating 2(Good): I like having options, but I think the 2/2 body will probably win out most of the time. It's not a bad cost and seems to be a decent 4-drop.
Rallying Blade Rating 2(Good): Weapons are always at a premium and it's a decent cost and not out of the question to actually utilize its Battlecry.
Selfless Hero Rating 3(Average): You might not get to benefit from this Deathrattle, depending on what class you are facing, but it's still a decent 1-drop.
Servant of Yogg-Saron Rating 4(Poor): I like the concept, but this could conceivably help your opponent (yeah, they totally needed that [/card]Blessing of Kings[/card] on their minion). His stats are also pretty 'meh'.
Shadow Word: Horror Rating 5(Terrible): It is unlikely you will get a lot of value and wipe your opponent's board unless they are a Paladin and just played Muster for Battle or something. It's probably a safer bet to stick with Shadow Word: Pain. I'd also like to point out this card destroys ALL minions - so it hits your guys too.
Shatter Rating 5(Terrible): Unless you were able to draft very specific cards this will be absolutely useless to you.
Shifting Shade Rating 2(Good): Getting an extra spell or minion from your opponent after he dies makes him like a bigger Loot Hoarder. You could get something crappy, but the extra card is really nice and gives you a glimpse inside their deck.
Silithid Swarmer Rating 5(Terrible): This would go up only slightly for Rogue or Druid, but most of the time it will be complete junk.
Spreading Madness Rating 2(Good): This is another card where you end up rolling the dice and taking a chance. You have to be really careful when you use this or you could be helping your opponent by putting yourself within kill range. Otherwise, it's a ton of damage for a very cheap cost.
Steward of Darkshire Rating 3(Average): It is highly unlikely you will get much use out of this minion unless you drafted a ton of Jeweled Scarab or Magma Rager. It seems to be more of a constructed card, but at least you still have a 3/3 body. (+1 on 4/15/16)
Thing from Below Rating 2(Good): I would expect this one to cost around 5-mana on average, which is great for a 5/5 Taunt. If you draw him later in the game he could potentially be free to cast.
Thistle Tea Rating 4(Poor): It seems really overcosted to draw a card (even if you get two copies of it) to not be able to do anything else that turn, if played on turn 6. It is similar to Cabalist's Tome, but I think I enjoy the notion of getting any additional burn spells when you may not have drafted any, while this card only duplicates from your existing deck.
Undercity Huckster Rating 2(Good): Card draw is good and this minion is reasonably priced. Being able to draw from your opponent's class can make for a lot of fun situations.
COMMON:
Aberrant Berserker Rating 2(Good): He has a better chance of surviving an attack than his brother, Amani Berserker, and the cost seems right.
A Light in the Darkness Rating 2(Good): Being able to Discover a minion and buff it at the same time is a pretty good deal for a low cost.
Am'gam Rager Rating 5(Terrible): The play on Magma Rager is not funny or cool enough to make me ever want to draft this card.
Cult Apothecary Rating 3(Average): On average I would expect to get maybe 4 Health from this minion, which is decent for the cost. It would be awesome if it had one more point of Health, but I still think it's alright. (-1 on 4/15/16)
Darkshire Alchemist Rating 4(Poor): The stats and heals are nice, but the cost is a little high, IMO.
Darkshire Councilman Rating 2(Good): This minion is cheap and can get out of hand very quickly.
Divine Strength Rating 3(Average): The additional bump in Health could help out with survivability early on.
Duskboar Rating 3(Average): He's incredibly easy to kill, but he's so cheap he could potentially make a great trade after your opponent coins something out.
Eldritch Horror Rating 4(Poor): He's another big, expensive minion.
Faceless Behemoth Rating 5(Terrible): Sure, he's huge, but he's too expensive to have zero special abilities.
Faceless Summoner Rating 1(Excellent): This is an awesome card! Getting a 9-mana value on turn 6 is a no-brainer. And it's common!
Feral Rage Rating 3(Average): It's a decent cost to let you one shot some early/mid range minions or a nice finisher when going for face.
Fiery Bat Rating 3(Average): He could potentially trade up, but can also be easily killed. There will be times that he works in your favor, depending on the situation.
Grotesque Dragonhawk Rating 4(Poor): He's a pretty expensive for something that will likely be killed immediately. If he does manage to survive he can do some serious damage.
Infested Tauren Rating 3(Average): I think this card is alright, but I wish it's stats were a little better. Everyone will compare it to Piloted Shredder and if it had at least 1 more point in Attack I think I would rate it better. You're still basically getting 4/5 worth of stats overall, so that's not too bad.
Mark of Y'Shaarj Rating 3(Average): Depending on the deck you're able to draft I would rate this higher. If you've got a lot of Beasts then I would definitely grab this over Mark of the Wild. Even though you're losing the Taunt aspect I would rather have the card draw anyway.
Nerubian Prophet Rating 3(Average): If you get this card on the draw, then it's great. Otherwise, not so much.
N'Zoth's First Mate Rating 1(Excellent): Getting a weapon to equip on the first turn is pretty good because you can start doing damage immediately and it can certainly disrupt your opponent's second turn, giving you the ability to kill most two-drops. (+1 on 3/31/16)
On the Hunt Rating 3(Average): I feel like this is just okay, but can give you an edge when faced with a first-turn 2/1 minion.
Polluted Hoarder Rating 3(Average): This minion is not going to make efficient trades and is often times going to be a disappointment. There are better, cheaper ways to get card draw into your Arena deck. (+1 on 3/31/16)
Possessed Villager Rating 2(Good): I like this little guy and I think he offers good value for a low mana cost.
Power Word: Tentacles Rating 3(Average): It offers a ridiculous amount of Health, but it's quite expensive. It has the ability to make a mediocre minion quite annoying and very difficult to kill.
Primal Fusion Rating 4(Poor): I feel this is really too situational to rate higher. Most of the time you'll just be able to get a +1/+1 out of the card and that doesn't feel special enough to take up a deck slot.
Psych-o-Tron Rating 3(Average): He's a little on the expensive side, but he should prove as annoying as his sibling Annoy-o-Tron.
Ravaging Ghoul Rating 3(Average): The 1-damage AOE is nice, but since it hits everything I don't think it's amazing. It could be a nice way to pop some shields, but it probably won't have a huge impact unless you're getting swarmed by a wall of 1/1 minions.
Shadow Strike Rating 2(Good): It's nice to see more cheap removal for Rogue that lets you avoid smashing your face into something.
Southsea Squidface Rating 2(Good): This guy has a good cost and a great Battlecry that is easy to benefit from.
Spawn of N'Zoth Rating 2(Good): This is a fun card. It basically forces your opponent to deal with all your other minions on their next turn or this guy will kamikaze into one of their minions and your board gets bigger and even harder to deal with.
Squirming Tentacle Rating 2(Good): I think it's a fair cost and a decent minion with Taunt.
Stand Against Darkness Rating 2(Good): In Arena the ability to drop 5 minions at once is pretty nice, and this is especially good with Paladin. It makes is really easy to ensure you'll have something on the board for your Blessing of Kings or Seal of Champions. If you draft a Knife Juggler this card will get some amazing value!
Stormcrack Rating 2(Good): This is a cheap, hefty removal that doesn't suffer a dismal Overload cost.
Tentacle of N'Zoth Rating 3(Average): It's cheap and can trade up, but it's really going to be situational, especially since it damages your own minions. With careful planning you may be able to find a use for this minion. (+1 on 3/31/16)
Twilight Flamecaller Rating 2(Good): Getting an Arcane Explosion combined with a minion isn't bad at all. He doesn't have the best stats, but he doesn't really need to with his Battlecry.
Twisted Worgen Rating 2(Good): This is another big, cheap minion. His Stealth can make for a difficult decision for your opponent, depending on the board state.
The only card of the initial reveal that interests me is Corrupted Healbot. The card has better stats than Pit Fighter and the deathrattle won't matter in value focused classes like Mage, Warrior, and Priest. The card is probably unplayable in Hunter and Warlock based on how aggressive those classes have to be. Corrupted Healbot can be an above average card depending on the draft and I like the card because it makes the player think about the tempo of the meta and whether their deck is tempo based.
Arena will not have the C’Thun cards included. Since they have specific synergy with 1 card they decided to not have them even show up in arena at all.
I fixed the listing - thanks! I didn't have that information when I initially created the thread.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
"To build or destroy...only you decide which joy." - Last Crack
Rating: 1(Excellent), 2(Good), 3(Average), 4(Poor), and 5 (Terrible)
Forbidden Healing Rating 1(Excellent): Wow! I usually prefer damage or minions over heals, but this card has so much going for it. It's cheap, it's big, and you can target minions or players with it. It has a lot of flexibility and can really disrupt your opponent when you suddenly heal for 20 points.
Stand Against Darkness Rating 2(Good): In Arena the ability to drop 5 minions at once is pretty nice, and this is especially good with Paladin. It makes is really easy to ensure you'll have something on the board for your Blessing of Kings or Seal of Champions. If you draft a Knife Juggler this card will get some amazing value!
I agree to all others, these two I see different.
Forbidden Healing: Poor (4). Sheer card disadvange, the healing rarely matters, and I'd rather pick Holy Light, which still sucks. Not to mention Forbidden Healing is epic, thus competing with many, much better cards.
Stand Against Darkness: Average (3): While it certainly is not a bad card, but there are a lot better common 5 drops. Spiteful Smith, Spectral Knight, Kvaldir Raider (yeah ok, not a true 5 drop), Pit Fighter, Stranglethorn Tiger and Silver Hand Knight come to my mind right now. Unless played on an empty board, you can usually expect one to die to ping and at least another one to a minion, leaving you with 5 mana 3x 1/1 and 1 damage to a minion of your opponents choice. Comparing it to Dark Wispers, 'd even tend to say below average, as you usually want the +5/+5 Taunt from the Whisper (so this is better than 5x 1/1), and still Dark Whispers is not better than average. Granted, it costs 6 instead of 5, but I think you get the idea.
Like I said, not bad, but certainly not above average in my opinion.
(omg, I just realized right now - after 2 years into HS - the pun in Dark Wispers name because the [card]-tag didn't work when I wrote Dark Whispers. xD
(Pun obviously not working in my language)
Edit: If someone is reading this later: This comment was written when Forbidden Healing was the latest released card, thus I do not necessarily agree to OPs opinion on the cards that were released later.
I disagree with almost all of your ratings.. also you should rate depending on classes.. it's too early though also I would just remova the cultist we get it they don't impact arena so just removing them is fine.
Hogger, Doom of Elwynn will be a great card would rate 1, why? cause it has a value of a 8/8 at minimum and your opponent can't always deal with him, he counters mage and paladin hard in arena since they rely on partial removals if they can't remove it in one hit they are in trouble..
Forbidden Flame removal in arena is great specially when it's THAT flexible (1)
Forbidden Healing (5 terrible)- arena is a TEMPO game you gain 0 tempo from this card wasting a turn healing for 20 and nothing more is weak turn and it doesn't impact the board at all Holy Light isn't used.. why use this then?
Validated doom sayer terrible arena card that just get chipped for free or just outright destroyed, win more card and needs proper protecting behind a taunt, if you can do that it's great but it's arena you can't count on that.
Corrupted Healbot 1 excellent HP in arena isn't important but tempo is Pit Fighter is excellent, this card is stronger than Pit Fighter so this card is even better.
Eater of secrets (terrible 5)*
Polluted Hoarder (good 2) the cardgives card draw which is good in general in arena think of cult master, cult master is great in arena in certain decks, this one is a guranteed draw and never a useless top deck card, it can trade up into 5/4ss which is also a thing and it gives you a card it's an ok card.. maybe 3 tbh it's only ok.
I disagree with almost all of your ratings.. also you should rate depending on classes.. it's too early though also I would just remova the cultist we get it they don't impact arena so just removing them is fine.
Hogger, Doom of Elwynn will be a great card would rate 1, why? cause it has a value of a 8/8 at minimum and your opponent can't always deal with him, he counters mage and paladin hard in arena since they rely on partial removals if they can't remove it in one hit they are in trouble..
Forbidden Flame removal in arena is great specially when it's THAT flexible (1)
Forbidden Healing (5 terrible)- arena is a TEMPO game you gain 0 tempo from this card wasting a turn healing for 20 and nothing more is weak turn and it doesn't impact the board at all Holy Light isn't used.. why use this then?
Validated doom sayer terrible arena card that just get chipped for free or just outright destroyed, win more card and needs proper protecting behind a taunt, if you can do that it's great but it's arena you can't count on that.
Corrupted Healbot 1 excellent HP in arena isn't important but tempo is Pit Fighter is excellent, this card is stronger than Pit Fighter so this card is even better.
Eater of secrets (terrible 5)*
Polluted Hoarder (good 2) the cardgives card draw which is good in general in arena think of cult master, cult master is great in arena in certain decks, this one is a guranteed draw and never a useless top deck card, it can trade up into 5/4ss which is also a thing and it gives you a card it's an ok card.. maybe 3 tbh it's only ok.
Stand against darkness, agree 2 is just right.
Some slight differences are nothing at all, but I want to write a short comment to some of your explainations.
Hogger just 2, because he is slow. 7 Mana for a 6/6 can only be dropped if you kinda stabalized the board, meaning you're already ahead (at least a bit). He's not gonna help much if you get rushed down by a fleet of 2 and 3 drops, which is pretty common for aggressive arena decks.
Forbidden Flame doesn't quite make the cut to 1 for me because it is relatively expensive, especially if you want to remove a big target, which is something you want to do in order to outcontrol your opponent. The flexibility makes up a lot, so I'd say 2+ ;)
Validated Doomsayer is definitely not terrible. If you manage to drop him on an emtpy board - not unlikely for classes like Mage and Rogue at least - it is a force to deal with. If played somewhat carefully, it is decent in average, thus 3.
Corrupted Healbot: I'd pick Pit Fighter over this every single time. Unless I'm priest with 2+ Auchenais. HP does not matter in the first 5-6 turns, then it becomes quite important. If one player still is at 25-30 while the other has dropped to 10-15, the first player can play much more aggressively while the latter player often is forced to do unfavourable trades in order to stay alive. Heavily depends on the deck you drafted of course. Still, anyone who topdecked a Zombie Chow in a topdeck war will know that you really don't want the deathrattle to go off sometimes. While you usually aim for favourable trades, I guess pretty much 50% of my games I win through an aggressive lategame, which often leaves me with a card disadvantage, and all that matters is health. Therefore, 2.
Polluted Hoarder: Cultmaster is exactly what I thought of to rank this guy. My conclusion: Cult Master usually is better. Also is a guaranteed draw if you're not already lost anyway, and potentially more. Polluted Hoarder has terrible stats, Gnomish Inventor is clearly better and also gets you the card immediately. Still the Inventor is not among the top 4drop choices, but I'd rate it 2. Polluted hoarder is worse, so 3. Also my experience with Cultmaster tells me that it is much more likely to die to something that deals 2-3 damage (spell or minion) then to trade with any other 4 drops. Unless you're ahead by a decent margin and your opponent struggles to keep up already.
Hearthstone's 3rd expansion, Whispers of the Old Gods, will have 134 new cards and will be released on April 26, 2016. The set will include many altered minions that have been corrupted by the power of the Old Gods (for instance, compare Loot Hoarder to Polluted Hoarder).
This thread is dedicated to discussing the impact of these new cards on the Arena environment.
C'Thun awaits your arrival!
If you'd like to read my initial thoughts on how I rate these cards for Arena you can start HERE.
For more information visit Whispers of the Old Gods Guide.
Scroll down to view Class specific cards or click on one of the links below.
TOXINS
NEUTRAL
Update 3/11/16: Created thread. Added C'Thun, Validated Doomsayer, Corrupted Healbot, Beckoner of Evil, Polluted Hoarder, and Twilight Elder. Added initial rankings for non-C'Thun cards.
Update 3/12/16: Added Stand Against Darkness.
Update 3/13/16: Added Giant Sand Worm, Hogger, Doom of Elwynn, and Eater of Secrets.
Update 3/15/16: Added Klaxxi Amber-Weaver.
Update 3/16/16: Added C'Thun's Chosen and Ancient Shieldbearer.
Update 3/17/16: Added Forbidden Flame and Forbidden Shaping.
Update 3/18/16: Added Forbidden Healing.
Update 3/21/16: Added Herald Volazj, Infested Tauren, and DOOM!.
Update 3/22/16: Added Tentacle of N'Zoth and Hallazeal the Ascended.
Update 3/23/16: Added N'Zoth's First Mate.
Update 3/24/16: Added Faceless Shambler, N'Zoth, the Corruptor, Undercity Huckster, and Renounce Darkness.
Update 3/25/16: Added Spawn of N'Zoth and The Boogeymonster.
Update 3/28/16: Added Tentacles for Arms, Xaril, Poisoned Mind, Infest, Ragnaros, Lightlord, Cult Apothecary, and Mukla, Tyrant of the Vale.
Update 3/29/16: Added Shadow Word: Horror and Mark of Y'Shaarj.
Update 3/30/16: Added Scaled Nightmare and Steward of Darkshire.
Update 3/31/16: Added Skeram Cultist, Cabalist's Tome, Y'Shaarj, Rage Unbound, and Ancient Harbinger.
Update 4/1/16: Added Vilefin Inquisitor and Thing from Below.
Update 4/7/16: Added Master of Evolution, Ravaging Ghoul, Mire Keeper, Hammer of Twilight, Blood of The Ancient One, The Ancient One, Blood Warriors, Call of the Wild, Yogg-Saron, Hope's End, Spreading Madness, and Cho'gall.
Update 4/15/16: Added Soggoth the Slitherer, Wisps of the Old Gods, Possessed Villager, Thistle Tea, Twilight Summoner, Embrace the Shadow, Deathwing, Dragonlord, Faceless Summoner, Servant of Yogg-Saron, Shadowcaster, Forlorn Stalker, Demented Frostcaller, and Shifting Shade.
Update 4/18/16: Added Twilight Flamecaller, Princess Huhuran, Dark Arakkoa, and Shifter Zerus.
This is a work in progress.
"To build or destroy...only you decide which joy." - Last Crack
DRUID
"To build or destroy...only you decide which joy." - Last Crack
HUNTER
"To build or destroy...only you decide which joy." - Last Crack
MAGE
"To build or destroy...only you decide which joy." - Last Crack
PALADIN
"To build or destroy...only you decide which joy." - Last Crack
PRIEST
"To build or destroy...only you decide which joy." - Last Crack
ROGUE
"To build or destroy...only you decide which joy." - Last Crack
SHAMAN
"To build or destroy...only you decide which joy." - Last Crack
WARLOCK
"To build or destroy...only you decide which joy." - Last Crack
WARRIOR
"To build or destroy...only you decide which joy." - Last Crack
TOXINS
"To build or destroy...only you decide which joy." - Last Crack
Rating: 1(Excellent), 2(Good), 3(Average), 4(Poor), and 5 (Terrible)
LEGENDARY:
Anomalus Rating 4(Poor): He's a highly situational board reset button and most of the time you are not going to want to play him and risk wiping out your entire side of the board.
Cho'gall Rating 2(Good): It probably won't be often that you can take advantage of his Battlecry, but when you do it should make an impact with allowing you to do more than you normally would within your turn. I'll admit most of the time he will probably just be a War Golem, but his ability does give him an edge.
C'Thun: Not used in Arena
Deathwing, Dragonlord Rating 3(Average): He's huge, but expensive too. It's unlikely you'll get a benefit from his Battlecry and I think he just shows up too late.
Fandral Staghelm Rating 3(Average): Most of the time you won't be faced with those choice cards in Arena, but occasionally you'll have some fun with him.
Hallazeal the Ascended Rating 2(Good): The stats are good even if you don't have any spells to cast. This minion could really be interesting with Lightning Storm or Elemental Destruction.
Herald Volazj Rating 3(Average): I could see this being really good in certain decks with a lot of Deathrattle effects (and certainly in constructed), but most of the time you'll end up with maybe a couple extra 1/1 minions. It would likely be a "Win More" card if you're already ahead, but otherwise it's just okay.
Hogger, Doom of Elwynn Rating 2(Good): This card can really be fun with Mage, but regardless of class it's still goimg to cause problems for your opponent. It needs to be killed with a single spell/minion or it will really get out of control.
Malkorok Rating 2(Good): He's a decent-sized minion, but the Battlecry for the random weapon makes him worthwhile. If he had a little more Health he would definitely rate higher.
Mukla, Tyrant of the Vale Rating 4(Poor): I like the Bananas, but he seems expensive. If you want to use them right away, then he really costs 8 mana. I think you're better off with Boulderfist Ogre or Pit Fighter.
Nat, the Darkfisher Rating 5(Terrible): This card is absolute and utter garbage.
N'Zoth the Corruptor Rating 4(Poor): There's really no way to know how much Deathrattle minions you can draft and this minion is so expensive you could probably get better use from a Boulderfist Ogre.
Princess Huhuran Rating 2(Good): Even though the Battlecry is going to be very situational with an Arena draft, the stats are still decent for 5 mana. She's a Beast too, which can certainly offer some synergy with other cards.
Ragnaros, Lightlord Rating 1(Excellent): That's a ridiculous amount of healing each turn. He's like a mega Lightwell fueled by your opponent's tears.
Shifter Zerus Rating 3(Average): The concept is really cool, but there are going to be many times that he turns into Dr. Boom on your 2nd turn with no way to cast him then back to a Wisp whenever you can. It's fun, but pretty unreliable.
Soggoth the Slitherer Rating 2(Good): This is a big Taunt that's difficult to get rid of. I think he may be a little too expensive, but he's still going to be difficult to deal with unless he's facing another big minion.
The Boogeymonster Rating 3(Average): I really do like this minion, but you have to be dedicated to killing your opponent's minions to make him better, instead of smashing them in the face. If you're drafting Control Priest, then this will probably be right up your alley.
Twin Emperor Vek'lor: Not used in Arena
Xaril, Poisoned Mind Rating 2(Good): I love that this minion has both a Battlecry and Deathrattle ability. The Toxins have some really cool effects that can be useful in a variety of situations and could be key in winning the match. However, he's incredibly easy to kill with such crappy stats. (-1 on 4/6/16)
Yogg-Saron, Hope's End Rating 5(Terrible): He's expensive and completely unreliable. In Arena he might do nothing with his special ability...or he could be the thing that kills you.
Y'Shaarj, Rage Unbound Rating 2(Good) This minion is extremely late game, but has a great effect. You always run the risk of missing out on an important Battlecry from a minion that his ability drops on the board, but you should certainly be at an advantage, regardless.
EPIC:
Ancient Harbinger Rating 4(Poor): It's very unlikely that you would have a 10-cost minion in your deck that would benefit from having this card. However, it's still a decent-sized minion and not absolutely terrible on its own.
Blade of C'Thun: Not used in Arena
Blood of The Ancient One Rating 4(Poor): It is highly unlikely this would ever be more than just a 9/9 minion. Sure, he's big, but he's also expensive and doesn't offer anything special.
Blood Warriors Rating 3(Average): I want to rate this higher, but it will take some planning to get the most out of it. If you play your cards right (literally) you can get tremendous value from this card.
Cabalist's Tome Rating 1(Excellent): Even though the cards drawn are random it's still a huge advantage to be able to get 3 cards at once.
Call of the Wild Rating 1(Excellent): Being able to get 3 minions at once is good, but keep in mind that with Huffer you will be able to attack immediately for 5 damage (with the bonus from Leokk. Then you have a 5/4 Misha to protect you on the next turn - not a bad deal at all.
Crazed Worshipper: Not used in Arena
Cyclopian Horror Rating 2(Good): Depending on the board state this could be devastating to your opponent. If you're facing an empty board, then obviously he's not good at all.
Darkspeaker Rating 3(Average): Initially I thought this was a terrible card, but now I can see how you could immediately make a trade via stat swap that your opponent doesn't see coming.
DOOM! Rating 2(Good): Even though this card is expensive, it's the ultimate in card-draw and removal for Warlock all rolled up into one spell. I would definitely draft this if it was offered to me, but it's still not a definitive "win"card. (-1 on 3/31/16)
Embrace the Shadow Rating 4(Poor): I can't see this being useful in most situations, but depending on your draft this could become an interesting card. I wouldn't count it useless, but definitely situational.
Eternal Sentinel Rating 3(Average): Most of the time he'll get played on turn 2, but sometimes he will be able to clear out all your Overloaded crystals.
Faceless Shambler Rating 4(Poor): This is another card that depends on you having something else decent in play to be any good. You'll rarely play it on turn 4 and it's just very situational.
Forbidden Ancient Rating 3(Average): He's flexible, but since he doesn't have Taunt or any other ability he's probably just going to be "okay" most of the time.
Forbidden Flame Rating 2 (Good): This is really good removal for Arena and it would be amazing (probably too amazing) if you could target your opponent. I can see players screwing up with this mechanic and scorching a mid-sized minion for 10 mana and not being able to cast anything else their turn or miscalculating and playing a minion first, but not leaving enough mana to do as much damage as they wanted.
Forbidden Healing Rating 3(Average): Wow! I usually prefer damage or minions over heals, but this card has so much going for it. It's cheap, it's big, and you can target minions or players with it. It has a lot of flexibility and can really disrupt your opponent when you suddenly heal for 20 points. Even as cool as this is you probably want to be drafting minions or damage over heals. (-2 on 3/31/16)
Forbidden Shaping Rating 1(Excellent): This is an extremely flexible card that allows you to play something regardless of how much mana you have, or hold onto it until the late game and drop a huge minion. Like with the other "Forbidden" cards, you really need to plan your turn and not screw up how much mana you use for this spell.
Giant Sand Worm Rating 1(Excellent): The only thing missing from this guy is Charge. You can potentially take out your opponent's entire line and still be able to slam them in the face. This is definitely one to watch out for.
Hammer of Twilight Rating 1(Excellent): It's a great weapon, but having a built-in minion is a fantastic addition.
Scaled Nightmare Rating 1(Excellent): Unless your opponent can kill this minion immediately he is going to get completely out of control in no time at all.
Shadowcaster Rating 4(Poor): It's an interesting concept that will work much better in constructed. In Arena I think the results you'd see would be disappointing most of the time.
Renounce Darkness Rating 5(Terrible): This card is just awful for Arena. Any class cards you've wasted time drafting are gone and you have no idea how to plan ahead with the new cards you get. If you draft this card you really should have just picked another class to start with.
Tentacles for Arms Rating 3(Average): Having a perpetual weapon for Arena is pretty amazing. With no way for your opponent to permanently get rid of this weapon I would definitely take it as one of my picks. Due to the cost of the weapon it's going to be very mana-intensive to keep casting it again and again. (-2 on 3/31/16)
Twilight Summoner Rating 2(Good): I dislike that he has to die before you really get a benefit from him, but getting a 5/5 out of the deal is not a bad bargain to make.
Validated Doomsayer Rating 3(Average): If you are able to protect this minion for 1 turn, he's great. Otherwise your opponent gets a free shot at him and can either kill him or bring him reasonably low within that initial turn you play him.
Vilefin Inquisitor Rating 4(Poor): This doesn't really change anything for Paladin unless you are drafting a Murloc-heavy deck that can take advantage of all the extra fish folk. (-2 on 4/6/16)
Wisps of the Old Gods Rating 4(Poor): This is really expensive for a card that's likely only going to help you if you're already winning. You could use the Wisp ability paired with Power of the Wild, but even that's a stretch.
RARE:
Addled Grizzly Rating 3(Average): If you're able to protect this minion, then his value goes up for sure. Otherwise, he's just too easy to kill before he can make a noticeable impact.
Ancient Shieldbearer: Not used in Arena
Blackwater Pirate Rating 4(Poor): The stats aren't great and it's hard to say how useful the special ability will be. If you did draft any weapons then his value increases only slightly.
Bloodsail Cultist Rating 3(Average): If you've drafted weapons, then this minion will rate higher. Otherwise, it's still a good sized minion for the cost.
Blood To Ichor Rating 2(Good): This is a fun card to use on your own dying minion before he charges into your opponent and there are plenty of other effects this card can trigger.
Corrupted Healbot Rating 3(Average): He's a cheap, big guy with a drawback similar to Zombie Chow, but he doesn't come out quite as fast. I'm still undecided, but he probably won't hit the board until the life gain drawback will actually work in your opponent's favor.
Corrupted Seer Rating 4(Poor): I just think he's too expensive and his AOE can hit your minions too.
Cult Sorcerer: Not used in Arena
Darkshire Librarian Rating 4(Poor): For a standard 2-drop this card feels weak. The net gain is zero cards, which leaves you with a 3/2 body. You should definitely be able to find comparable minions for the same cost.
Demented Frostcaller Rating 4(Poor): Depending on the deck you draft you could really have fun with this guy. You will definitely see him in constructed, but he's pretty situational in Arena.
Disciple of C'Thun: Not used in Arena
Doomcaller: Not used in Arena
Eater of Secrets Rating 5(Terrible): You normally don't have to worry so much about Secrets in Arena, so he has a very limited use and his mana cost does not make him very attractive at all. The 4-drop slot is pretty important and you really don't need it clogged up with this guy. (-1 on 3/31/16)
Evolve Rating 2(Good): This certainly has the potential to give you the edge against your opponent, especially after an attack.
Forbidden Ritual Rating 2(Good): This could really be a fun card, but completely devastated by any AOE.
Forlorn Stalker Rating 3(Average): It's doubtful you'll get anything out of his Battlecry, but you'll still end up with a 4/2 body for 3-mana and that's not too bad.
Infest Rating 3(Average): I think this is a really cool card, giving you the ability to make everything a Webspinner, but it all depends on how many minions you have out as to how good it really is. If you have a board full of minions or can pair it with Unleash the Hounds then it's great, but if you're behind and only have 1 minion out, then it's probably not what you want to see.
Infested Wolf Rating 2(Good): Getting overall stats of 5/5 isn't bad for the cost and he's a Beast, so that adds some value too.
Journey Below Rating 3(Average): This is a nice, cheap card to use for Combos.
Klaxxi Amber-Weaver: Not used in Arena
Master of Evolution Rating 1(Excellent): At the very worst he's still going to be a Chillwind Yeti, but having the ability to upgrade one of your minions is pretty good. I'm actually surprised they didn't add an Overload cost to him.
Midnight Drake Rating 3(Average): If you draw him in your opening hand he's great, but like with Twilight Drake he becomes more 'meh' the longer it takes to cast him.
Mire Keeper Rating 2(Good): I like having options, but I think the 2/2 body will probably win out most of the time. It's not a bad cost and seems to be a decent 4-drop.
Rallying Blade Rating 2(Good): Weapons are always at a premium and it's a decent cost and not out of the question to actually utilize its Battlecry.
Selfless Hero Rating 3(Average): You might not get to benefit from this Deathrattle, depending on what class you are facing, but it's still a decent 1-drop.
Servant of Yogg-Saron Rating 4(Poor): I like the concept, but this could conceivably help your opponent (yeah, they totally needed that [/card]Blessing of Kings[/card] on their minion). His stats are also pretty 'meh'.
Shadow Word: Horror Rating 5(Terrible): It is unlikely you will get a lot of value and wipe your opponent's board unless they are a Paladin and just played Muster for Battle or something. It's probably a safer bet to stick with Shadow Word: Pain. I'd also like to point out this card destroys ALL minions - so it hits your guys too.
Shatter Rating 5(Terrible): Unless you were able to draft very specific cards this will be absolutely useless to you.
Shifting Shade Rating 2(Good): Getting an extra spell or minion from your opponent after he dies makes him like a bigger Loot Hoarder. You could get something crappy, but the extra card is really nice and gives you a glimpse inside their deck.
Silithid Swarmer Rating 5(Terrible): This would go up only slightly for Rogue or Druid, but most of the time it will be complete junk.
Skeram Cultist: Not used in Arena
Spreading Madness Rating 2(Good): This is another card where you end up rolling the dice and taking a chance. You have to be really careful when you use this or you could be helping your opponent by putting yourself within kill range. Otherwise, it's a ton of damage for a very cheap cost.
Steward of Darkshire Rating 3(Average): It is highly unlikely you will get much use out of this minion unless you drafted a ton of Jeweled Scarab or Magma Rager. It seems to be more of a constructed card, but at least you still have a 3/3 body. (+1 on 4/15/16)
Thing from Below Rating 2(Good): I would expect this one to cost around 5-mana on average, which is great for a 5/5 Taunt. If you draw him later in the game he could potentially be free to cast.
Thistle Tea Rating 4(Poor): It seems really overcosted to draw a card (even if you get two copies of it) to not be able to do anything else that turn, if played on turn 6. It is similar to Cabalist's Tome, but I think I enjoy the notion of getting any additional burn spells when you may not have drafted any, while this card only duplicates from your existing deck.
Twilight Darkmender: Not used in Arena
Undercity Huckster Rating 2(Good): Card draw is good and this minion is reasonably priced. Being able to draw from your opponent's class can make for a lot of fun situations.
COMMON:
Aberrant Berserker Rating 2(Good): He has a better chance of surviving an attack than his brother, Amani Berserker, and the cost seems right.
A Light in the Darkness Rating 2(Good): Being able to Discover a minion and buff it at the same time is a pretty good deal for a low cost.
Am'gam Rager Rating 5(Terrible): The play on Magma Rager is not funny or cool enough to make me ever want to draft this card.
Beckoner of Evil: Not used in Arena
Bilefin Tidehunter Rating 2(Good): He's cheap and comes with a Taunt minion to accompany him. Not bad at all.
Bladed Cultist Rating 2(Good): This is another great card for Combos and not difficult to trigger the Battlecry at all.
Bloodhoof Brave Rating 2(Good): This is a pretty beefy Taunt that gets even bigger after being damaged. He's the perfect companion to Blood To Ichor.
Bog Creeper Rating 2(Good): He's expensive, but he's a huge Taunt and can really cause problems for your opponent.
Carrion Grub Rating 3(Average): He will be able to make some decent trades and isn't too bad for the cost.
C'Thun's Chosen: Not used in Arena
Cult Apothecary Rating 3(Average): On average I would expect to get maybe 4 Health from this minion, which is decent for the cost. It would be awesome if it had one more point of Health, but I still think it's alright. (-1 on 4/15/16)
Dark Arakkoa: Not used in Arena
Darkshire Alchemist Rating 4(Poor): The stats and heals are nice, but the cost is a little high, IMO.
Darkshire Councilman Rating 2(Good): This minion is cheap and can get out of hand very quickly.
Divine Strength Rating 3(Average): The additional bump in Health could help out with survivability early on.
Duskboar Rating 3(Average): He's incredibly easy to kill, but he's so cheap he could potentially make a great trade after your opponent coins something out.
Eldritch Horror Rating 4(Poor): He's another big, expensive minion.
Evolved Kobold Rating 5(Terrible): Just say no.
Faceless Behemoth Rating 5(Terrible): Sure, he's huge, but he's too expensive to have zero special abilities.
Faceless Summoner Rating 1(Excellent): This is an awesome card! Getting a 9-mana value on turn 6 is a no-brainer. And it's common!
Feral Rage Rating 3(Average): It's a decent cost to let you one shot some early/mid range minions or a nice finisher when going for face.
Fiery Bat Rating 3(Average): He could potentially trade up, but can also be easily killed. There will be times that he works in your favor, depending on the situation.
Flamewreathed Faceless Rating 1(Excellent): This is a better Fireguard Destroyer and I'm not too concerned with the Overload cost because he's huge!
Grotesque Dragonhawk Rating 4(Poor): He's a pretty expensive for something that will likely be killed immediately. If he does manage to survive he can do some serious damage.
Hooded Acolyte: Not used in Arena
Infested Tauren Rating 3(Average): I think this card is alright, but I wish it's stats were a little better. Everyone will compare it to Piloted Shredder and if it had at least 1 more point in Attack I think I would rate it better. You're still basically getting 4/5 worth of stats overall, so that's not too bad.
Mark of Y'Shaarj Rating 3(Average): Depending on the deck you're able to draft I would rate this higher. If you've got a lot of Beasts then I would definitely grab this over Mark of the Wild. Even though you're losing the Taunt aspect I would rather have the card draw anyway.
Nerubian Prophet Rating 3(Average): If you get this card on the draw, then it's great. Otherwise, not so much.
N'Zoth's First Mate Rating 1(Excellent): Getting a weapon to equip on the first turn is pretty good because you can start doing damage immediately and it can certainly disrupt your opponent's second turn, giving you the ability to kill most two-drops. (+1 on 3/31/16)
On the Hunt Rating 3(Average): I feel like this is just okay, but can give you an edge when faced with a first-turn 2/1 minion.
Polluted Hoarder Rating 3(Average): This minion is not going to make efficient trades and is often times going to be a disappointment. There are better, cheaper ways to get card draw into your Arena deck. (+1 on 3/31/16)
Possessed Villager Rating 2(Good): I like this little guy and I think he offers good value for a low mana cost.
Power Word: Tentacles Rating 3(Average): It offers a ridiculous amount of Health, but it's quite expensive. It has the ability to make a mediocre minion quite annoying and very difficult to kill.
Primal Fusion Rating 4(Poor): I feel this is really too situational to rate higher. Most of the time you'll just be able to get a +1/+1 out of the card and that doesn't feel special enough to take up a deck slot.
Psych-o-Tron Rating 3(Average): He's a little on the expensive side, but he should prove as annoying as his sibling Annoy-o-Tron.
Ravaging Ghoul Rating 3(Average): The 1-damage AOE is nice, but since it hits everything I don't think it's amazing. It could be a nice way to pop some shields, but it probably won't have a huge impact unless you're getting swarmed by a wall of 1/1 minions.
Shadow Strike Rating 2(Good): It's nice to see more cheap removal for Rogue that lets you avoid smashing your face into something.
Southsea Squidface Rating 2(Good): This guy has a good cost and a great Battlecry that is easy to benefit from.
Spawn of N'Zoth Rating 2(Good): This is a fun card. It basically forces your opponent to deal with all your other minions on their next turn or this guy will kamikaze into one of their minions and your board gets bigger and even harder to deal with.
Squirming Tentacle Rating 2(Good): I think it's a fair cost and a decent minion with Taunt.
Stand Against Darkness Rating 2(Good): In Arena the ability to drop 5 minions at once is pretty nice, and this is especially good with Paladin. It makes is really easy to ensure you'll have something on the board for your Blessing of Kings or Seal of Champions. If you draft a Knife Juggler this card will get some amazing value!
Stormcrack Rating 2(Good): This is a cheap, hefty removal that doesn't suffer a dismal Overload cost.
Tentacle of N'Zoth Rating 3(Average): It's cheap and can trade up, but it's really going to be situational, especially since it damages your own minions. With careful planning you may be able to find a use for this minion. (+1 on 3/31/16)
Twilight Elder: Not used in Arena
Twilight Flamecaller Rating 2(Good): Getting an Arcane Explosion combined with a minion isn't bad at all. He doesn't have the best stats, but he doesn't really need to with his Battlecry.
Twilight Geomancer: Not used in Arena
Twisted Worgen Rating 2(Good): This is another big, cheap minion. His Stealth can make for a difficult decision for your opponent, depending on the board state.
Usher of Souls: Not used in Arena
Zealous Initiate Rating 3(Average): I think he's got a decent ability for the cost, even if your opponent can plan around it.
"To build or destroy...only you decide which joy." - Last Crack
I will be making many updates shortly, so please be patient. Thanks!Updates are finished now. Please share your thoughts on these new cards!
"To build or destroy...only you decide which joy." - Last Crack
The only card of the initial reveal that interests me is Corrupted Healbot. The card has better stats than Pit Fighter and the deathrattle won't matter in value focused classes like Mage, Warrior, and Priest. The card is probably unplayable in Hunter and Warlock based on how aggressive those classes have to be. Corrupted Healbot can be an above average card depending on the draft and I like the card because it makes the player think about the tempo of the meta and whether their deck is tempo based.
4x Top 150 arena player
#95 June 2017 6.80, #108 Aug 2017 7.67, #127 Feb 2018 Wildfest 7.7, #33 Nov 2018 7.53
HCT Challenger Finals qualifier: 2018 Season 1, 2, 3
"To build or destroy...only you decide which joy." - Last Crack
will this change the reward packs given at arena? i have stopped playing arena bcz i dont want to get gvg packs :0
I agree to all others, these two I see different.
Forbidden Healing: Poor (4). Sheer card disadvange, the healing rarely matters, and I'd rather pick Holy Light, which still sucks. Not to mention Forbidden Healing is epic, thus competing with many, much better cards.
Stand Against Darkness: Average (3): While it certainly is not a bad card, but there are a lot better common 5 drops. Spiteful Smith, Spectral Knight, Kvaldir Raider (yeah ok, not a true 5 drop), Pit Fighter, Stranglethorn Tiger and Silver Hand Knight come to my mind right now. Unless played on an empty board, you can usually expect one to die to ping and at least another one to a minion, leaving you with 5 mana 3x 1/1 and 1 damage to a minion of your opponents choice. Comparing it to Dark Wispers, 'd even tend to say below average, as you usually want the +5/+5 Taunt from the Whisper (so this is better than 5x 1/1), and still Dark Whispers is not better than average. Granted, it costs 6 instead of 5, but I think you get the idea.
Like I said, not bad, but certainly not above average in my opinion.
(omg, I just realized right now - after 2 years into HS - the pun in Dark Wispers name because the [card]-tag didn't work when I wrote Dark Whispers. xD
(Pun obviously not working in my language)
Edit: If someone is reading this later: This comment was written when Forbidden Healing was the latest released card, thus I do not necessarily agree to OPs opinion on the cards that were released later.
Arena Leaderboard EU - September 2018: #47 (@7.77 Wins Average)
I disagree with almost all of your ratings.. also you should rate depending on classes.. it's too early though also I would just remova the cultist we get it they don't impact arena so just removing them is fine.
Hogger, Doom of Elwynn will be a great card would rate 1, why? cause it has a value of a 8/8 at minimum and your opponent can't always deal with him, he counters mage and paladin hard in arena since they rely on partial removals if they can't remove it in one hit they are in trouble..
Forbidden Flame removal in arena is great specially when it's THAT flexible (1)
Forbidden Healing (5 terrible)- arena is a TEMPO game you gain 0 tempo from this card wasting a turn healing for 20 and nothing more is weak turn and it doesn't impact the board at all Holy Light isn't used.. why use this then?
Forbidden Shaping agree crazy arena card.
Giant sandworm agree
Validated doom sayer terrible arena card that just get chipped for free or just outright destroyed, win more card and needs proper protecting behind a taunt, if you can do that it's great but it's arena you can't count on that.
Corrupted Healbot 1 excellent HP in arena isn't important but tempo is Pit Fighter is excellent, this card is stronger than Pit Fighter so this card is even better.
Eater of secrets (terrible 5)*
Polluted Hoarder (good 2) the cardgives card draw which is good in general in arena think of cult master, cult master is great in arena in certain decks, this one is a guranteed draw and never a useless top deck card, it can trade up into 5/4ss which is also a thing and it gives you a card it's an ok card.. maybe 3 tbh it's only ok.
Stand against darkness, agree 2 is just right.
Arena Leaderboard EU - September 2018: #47 (@7.77 Wins Average)
"To build or destroy...only you decide which joy." - Last Crack