Hearthpwn

How was heartstone played way back in June 2014? Some users here might not even have started playing the game back then, and everybody, including myself, needs a refresher about which decks and mechanics dominated the game.

First some general points:
1: Some of the cards were AMAZING in their unnerfed forms, and would even be all over Wild today. These include: Leeroy Jenkins, Innervate, Force of Nature, Hunter's Mark, Wild Growth, Soulfire and Starving Buzzard, Big Game Hunter and others.
2: There were almost no synergies, the notable exception was beasts in hunter.
3: There was almost no card creation, with Thoughtsteal the only real exception.
4: There were almost no random minion summons, Bane of Doom saw little play.
5: The powerlevel of "curve" minions was a LOT lower than in later expansions. Oasis Snapjaw was played in midrange hunter, and Sen'jin Shieldmasta was an absolute staple in defensive decks.
6: Lord Jaraxxus was the only option for grinding out your opponent with value.
7: Only druid had vibale turn 7-plays. Other classes had to resort to cards like sunwalker and cairne bloodhoof, awaiting ragnaros the firelord on turn 8.

8: The "a board in a card" and resurrect mechanics were still far off, and did not take off until N'Zoth, the Corruptor. The minions you put in your deck were the ones you would see in play, once each, which was a reason why Faceless Manipulator saw so much play.

So where to start deckbuilding for the new format? 2 classes really stand out, Druid and Hunter.
Here is a fairly standard double combo druid Frezzar used at Dreamhack Summer:

DreamHack Summer 2014 - Ro8 - Frezzar Druid Unknown Deck by Fluxflashor - Jun 18, 2014 View Deck String Export to BBCode Export to Cockatrice Export to MarkDown Export to Html Clone this deck
Minion (18) 1x Bloodmage Thalnos 1x Cenarius 1x The Black Knight 2x Ancient of Lore 1x Big Game Hunter 2x Argent Commander 1x Azure Drake 2x Keeper of the Grove 1x Sunfury Protector 2x Harvest Golem 2x Chillwind Yeti 2x Druid of the Claw	Ability (12) 2x Force of Nature 2x Innervate 2x Wild Growth 2x Wrath 2x Savage Roar 2x Swipe
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But it was also possible to take a more defensive approach, like Reynad did in the same tournament. Some players also made compromises between the 2 approaches, running 1 or 1,5x the FON/SR combo:

DreamHack Summer 2014 - Group Stage - Reynad Druid Unknown Deck by Fluxflashor - Jun 18, 2014 View Deck String Export to BBCode Export to Cockatrice Export to MarkDown Export to Html Clone this deck
Minion (22) 1x Cairne Bloodhoof 1x Cenarius 1x Sylvanas Windrunner 2x Ancient of Lore 2x Ancient of War 1x Azure Drake 2x Keeper of the Grove 2x Sunwalker 2x Harvest Golem 2x Chillwind Yeti 2x Druid of the Claw 2x Earthen Ring Farseer 2x Sen'jin Shieldmasta	Ability (8) 2x Innervate 2x Wild Growth 2x Wrath 2x Swipe
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What about face hunter? Yes, it was there! This is was Amaz brought, and it is hard to make it any faster:

DreamHack Summer 2014 - Group Stage - Amaz Hunter Unknown Deck by Fluxflashor - Jun 18, 2014 View Deck String Export to BBCode Export to Cockatrice Export to MarkDown Export to Html Clone this deck
Minion (11) 1x Leeroy Jenkins 2x Arcane Golem 2x Leper Gnome 2x Starving Buzzard 2x Stonetusk Boar 1x Timber Wolf 1x Wolfrider	Ability (17) 1x Arcane Shot 1x Flare 1x Misdirection 2x Tracking 1x Snipe 2x Unleash the Hounds 2x Animal Companion 1x Deadly Shot 1x Explosive Trap 1x Freezing Trap 2x Hunter's Mark 2x Kill Command	Weapon (2) 2x Eaglehorn Bow
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But more beast-focused midrange decks like this one from Reynad were also a very solid option, as well as taking elements from both approaches:

Reynad DH Summer Midrange Hunter Unknown Deck by Hotax - Jun 14, 2014 View Deck String Export to BBCode Export to Cockatrice Export to MarkDown Export to Html Clone this deck
Minion (15) 2x Savannah Highmane 2x River Crocolisk 2x Scavenging Hyena 1x Stranglethorn Tiger 2x Houndmaster 2x Oasis Snapjaw 2x Starving Buzzard 2x Stonetusk Boar	Ability (13) 2x Flare 2x Tracking 2x Unleash the Hounds 2x Animal Companion 1x Freezing Trap 2x Hunter's Mark 2x Kill Command	Weapon (2) 2x Eaglehorn Bow
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And then, there was an old favourite of mine: the Leeroy Jenkins combo handlock. Giants, taunts and big burst damage, what is there not to love in this archetype?

DreamHack Summer 2014 - Group Stage - Realz Handlock Unknown Deck by Fluxflashor - Jun 18, 2014 View Deck String Export to BBCode Export to Cockatrice Export to MarkDown Export to Html Clone this deck
Minion (19) 1x Alexstrasza 1x Leeroy Jenkins 1x Faceless Manipulator 2x Molten Giant 2x Mountain Giant 2x Ancient Watcher 2x Defender of Argus 2x Sunfury Protector 2x Twilight Drake 2x Earthen Ring Farseer 2x Ironbeak Owl	Ability (11) 2x Shadowflame 2x Siphon Soul 1x Power Overwhelming 1x Hellfire 2x Mortal Coil 1x Shadow Bolt 2x Soulfire
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Others might miss the old miracle rogue decks more, a highly technical combo deck where counting damage and turns was absolutely crucial:

DreamHack Summer 2014 - Ro8 - RDU Miracle Unknown Deck by Fluxflashor - Jun 18, 2014 View Deck String Export to BBCode Export to Cockatrice Export to MarkDown Export to Html Clone this deck
Minion (11) 1x Bloodmage Thalnos 1x Edwin VanCleef 1x Leeroy Jenkins 2x Azure Drake 2x Gadgetzan Auctioneer 2x SI:7 Agent 2x Earthen Ring Farseer	Ability (18) 2x Preparation 1x Blade Flurry 1x Conceal 2x Backstab 1x Cold Blood 2x Deadly Poison 2x Eviscerate 1x Fan of Knives 2x Shadowstep 2x Sap 2x Shiv	Weapon (1) 1x Assassin's Blade
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But backspace also had an interresting take on how to abuse the class:

Backspace Coldlight Rogue Unknown Deck by backspaceHS - Jun 2, 2014 View Deck String Export to BBCode Export to Cockatrice Export to MarkDown Export to Html Clone this deck
Minion (18) 1x King Mukla 1x Leeroy Jenkins 2x Arcane Golem 2x Coldlight Oracle 2x SI:7 Agent 1x Defias Ringleader 2x Leper Gnome 2x Southsea Deckhand 2x Argent Squire 1x Faerie Dragon 2x Loot Hoarder	Ability (11) 1x Blade Flurry 2x Cold Blood 2x Deadly Poison 2x Eviscerate 2x Shadowstep 2x Sap	Weapon (1) 1x Assassin's Blade
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What about shaman? They had their bidding on a midrange deck with overload focus, note the burst from Doomhammer+Rockbiter Weapon.

DreamHack Summer 2014 - Ro8 - Frezzar Shaman Unknown Deck by Fluxflashor - Jun 18, 2014 View Deck String Export to BBCode Export to Cockatrice Export to MarkDown Export to Html Clone this deck
Minion (17) 1x Al'Akir the Windlord 1x Bloodmage Thalnos 2x Azure Drake 2x Defender of Argus 1x Mana Tide Totem 2x Argent Squire 2x Chillwind Yeti 2x Fire Elemental 2x Flametongue Totem 2x Unbound Elemental	Ability (12) 2x Feral Spirit 2x Lightning Storm 2x Earth Shock 2x Hex 2x Lightning Bolt 2x Rockbiter Weapon	Weapon (1) 1x Doomhammer
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And here is RDU's freeze mage deck, as it belongs here:

RDU's Freeze Mage - Dreamhack Winner Unknown Deck by Bibikis - Jun 16, 2014 View Deck String Export to BBCode Export to Cockatrice Export to MarkDown Export to Html Clone this deck
Minion (9) 1x Alexstrasza 1x Bloodmage Thalnos 2x Doomsayer 1x Azure Drake 2x Acolyte of Pain 2x Loot Hoarder	Ability (21) 2x Flamestrike 2x Ice Block 1x Pyroblast 2x Blizzard 1x Vaporize 2x Ice Lance 2x Arcane Intellect 2x Fireball 1x Ice Barrier 2x Frost Nova 2x Frostbolt 2x Mirror Image
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Warrior was not in its best spot with all the midrange decks, as they had a hard time keeping up with the steady stream of threats followed by burst, but they did exist. Note that double Brawl was not invented yet, but time will tell if it was an oversight or if it actually made sense at the time:

Warrior control (anti-aggro/anti-meta) Unknown Deck by ur2ezchaos - Apr 21, 2014 View Deck String Export to BBCode Export to Cockatrice Export to MarkDown Export to Html Clone this deck
Minion (17) 1x Alexstrasza 1x Baron Geddon 1x Cairne Bloodhoof 1x Grommash Hellscream 1x Ragnaros the Firelord 1x Big Game Hunter 1x Faceless Manipulator 2x Armorsmith 1x Wild Pyromancer 1x Spellbreaker 1x Acolyte of Pain 2x Cruel Taskmaster 2x Sen'jin Shieldmasta 1x Kor'kron Elite	Ability (11) 1x Brawl 2x Shield Slam 2x Execute 2x Shield Block 1x Slam 2x Whirlwind 1x Cleave	Weapon (2) 2x Fiery War Axe
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Priests were not that popular, but clever players used decks like this one:

Zetalot Priest Unknown Deck by PoeticStanziel - Jun 10, 2014 View Deck String Export to BBCode Export to Cockatrice Export to MarkDown Export to Html Clone this deck
Minion (15) 1x Prophet Velen 1x Sylvanas Windrunner 1x Cabal Shadow Priest 2x Auchenai Soulpriest 2x Azure Drake 2x Injured Blademaster 1x Sunfury Protector 2x Wild Pyromancer 1x Earthen Ring Farseer 2x Northshire Cleric	Ability (15) 2x Holy Fire 2x Circle of Healing 2x Thoughtsteal 2x Holy Nova 2x Holy Smite 1x Mind Blast 2x Shadow Word: Death 2x Power Word: Shield
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Finally, the most liked deck from the time at heartpwn, Kolento's Rank 1 legend paladin, an overlooked class:

Kolento #1 Legend Paladin Unknown Deck by user-5956366 - Jul 6, 2014 View Deck String Export to BBCode Export to Cockatrice Export to MarkDown Export to Html Clone this deck
Minion (20) 1x Tirion Fordring 2x Aldor Peacekeeper 2x Azure Drake 1x Defender of Argus 1x Guardian of Kings 2x Knife Juggler 1x Stampeding Kodo 2x Sunwalker 2x Wild Pyromancer 2x Harvest Golem 1x Acolyte of Pain 1x Elven Archer 2x Sen'jin Shieldmasta	Ability (8) 1x Lay on Hands 2x Equality 1x Holy Light 2x Consecration 1x Hammer of Wrath 1x Humility	Weapon (2) 2x Truesilver Champion
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In general, this was a MIDRANGE metagame, but with a lot of focus on burst combos. I It will be interresting to see if the best deckbuilders of the day reached the highest powerlevel of the patch, or if the decks above can be improved with the knowledge and tools of today, using the old cards.

I am certainly looking forward to revisiting the olden days of heartstone!

I am definitely planning on dusting off my old freeze mage deck. It was the first one I ever climbed the latter with. Ice block and ice lance feel like old friends I haven't seen in a while.

Face Hunter? Rogues doing a lot of stuff each turn? Druids cheating big boards all of sudden?

Phew glad we don't have any of that these days

Does anyone think it will be possible to find a deck that wasn't meta/played back then with the knowledge players have now? Totally different game but the Classic WoW meta now is a very different to the game I played 15 years ago. Has HS got that room for new discoveries?

Personally I'm not sure deck building is going to be any fun and Blizz might as well just release classic with 2/3 decks for each class rather than a whole set of cards. It will be interesting to have to think a bit more though and will be good to  have games not being won by discovered cards or pure RNG.

I started during the Naxx release; I got wing 1 for free because apparently there was a Blizzard eff-up on the timeline so they did it to compensate... but I wasn't even a player at the time :p  (Just to give perspective on timeline)  Back then, the most popular decks were Undertaker Facehunter, Control Warrior, Handlock, and Combo Druid (Old Force of Nature + Savage Roar)  I used to play a secret mage back when I started, and NOBODY knew what the mage secrets did because mage was 9th on playrate at the time (freeze mage had just had pyroblast and a couple other cards nerfed right before I started, and people were still butthurt over it) and I would get legend back handlocks dumping giants on turn 4 into mirror entity.  My dream f2p opening was Mana Wyrm on 1 and coin into Kirin Tor + any secret.  I can't believe it took until 2019-2020 for people to figure out Kirin Tor Mage was good...

What to expect:

1)Leeroy +2 x Shadowstep and 2 x Cold Blood (10 mana) to deal 26 face damage in a single turn. 

2)Force of Nature + Savage Roar for 12 face damage in a single turn.

3)Face Hunter, nuff said.

It'll be fun for a month, but will die out soon after.

 Thank you very much for this article! Well done indeed. I hope everybody thanx you and appreciates the time it took to make this. Very informative and nostalgic as well. Awesome!!

Quote from dragonsdemesne >>

I started during the Naxx release; I got wing 1 for free because apparently there was a Blizzard eff-up on the timeline so they did it to compensate... but I wasn't even a player at the time :p  (Just to give perspective on timeline)  Back then, the most popular decks were Undertaker Facehunter, Control Warrior, Handlock, and Combo Druid (Old Force of Nature + Savage Roar)  I used to play a secret mage back when I started, and NOBODY knew what the mage secrets did because mage was 9th on playrate at the time (freeze mage had just had pyroblast and a couple other cards nerfed right before I started, and people were still butthurt over it) and I would get legend back handlocks dumping giants on turn 4 into mirror entity.  My dream f2p opening was Mana Wyrm on 1 and coin into Kirin Tor + any secret.  I can't believe it took until 2019-2020 for people to figure out Kirin Tor Mage was good...

You have to remember how important Mad Scientist was for mage secrets, and even so, tempo based mages did not break through until Goblin Blastmage and Flamewaker. Arcanologist should have been printed a lot sooner, and I don't think it would have been problematic at all.

Mage had some good cards, but pre-nax, going minion based ended up just being a worse druid.

Oh Gods... Miracle Cancer Rogue again.... ugh...
I'll pass on this mode...

the coreset gets new toys, so the meta wont be the same. if they did their homework they playtested topdecks from all the seasons against each other and came up with something balanced.

 

but man those decks feel like a lifetime ago

Quote from DeafKnight >>

Oh Gods... Miracle Cancer Rogue again.... ugh...
I'll pass on this mode...

 Eh... it was a viable deck, but by no means the only good one at the time. Remember Rogue had not defensive tool in a meta packed with burst damage.

My guess is freeze mage, combo druid and in some cases handlock.

@ OP

Could you create a Classic Format forum, rather than deleting 2 days of posts and create an echo chamber?

Basics of foruming.

Quote from Tykaine_J >>

@ OP

Could you create a Classic Format forum, rather than deleting 2 days of posts and create an echo chamber?

Basics of foruming.

Not that I have nor ever had the power to create new forums, but tbh, I think this site needs LESS separate forums rather than more to not spread the activity too thin. I have a feeling most just clicks whatever comes up on the front page anyway.

Idk what you are talking about with the deleted posts and echo chamber.

Bumping this, it just became relevant!