Hello there! The new Core Set for the next Hearthstone year just got announced and I was actually quiet excited what they would change this time! Sadly I'm not all too happy with the result. Partly because they changed some cards too much - in my humble opinion.
Even though the game has changed over the years and we need stronger cards for the Core Set to make an impact, I believe that there should be a consistency in balance and design. Right now some buffs seem strong, some don't do anything, some might be nerfs. That seems silly to say the least. For example:
- For Demon Hunter the buff to Flamereaper (+1 attack from 4 to 5) is quiet strong, but not overpowered. It's just a really good high mana weapon. The two minions that got buffed - Gan'arg Glaivesmith and Wrathscale Naga (+ 1 Health from 2 to 3) - seem also quiet strong when you compare them to old Hearthstone. It's hard for me to evaluate them for today though. And Metamorphosis was changed from 5 to 4 Mana, but it's old nerf (from 5 to 4 damage) was not reverted. I think that is inconsistent. Would have liked to see the nerf reverted too. Legendary cards should be able to feel broken in a way, moreso then other rarities.
- For Druid Witchwood Apple was buffed from 2 to 1 mana and the Treants also got updated from 2 to 1 mana. Still they reduced the number of Treants you receive from three to two. Personally I think they should have stuck with three Treants. Even with the buffs, I don't think two Treants are enough.
Then they changed Ancient of Lore from a 5/5 to a 7/7 and also his healing ability from 5 to 7. Yes, that is a significant buff and yes this card should get more love again. Still here a mana buff would have been better (from 7 to 6 or even 5), that would have made it more playable still. And for consistency reason, why don't they buff Ancient of War too? It has always been more useless then it's brother. Originally they both felt like late game power-houses, today they still feel outdated. A wasted chance to give back to them what they have lost.
Druid of the Claw now changed for the third time and it does not resemble it's former self all too much anymore. Why not just change it back to when it was a 4/4 that could get charge at a cost of 5 mana (or +2 health and taunt). Would that be too broken? It would maybe still be useful like this. Now it is just a bunch of stats - with an increased mana cost even - that will not be played.
- For Hunter they added the buffed version of Doggie Biscuit to Core and I always thought this card is way too strong for 2 mana, The design (especially since the buff) has been pushed. In old times this would have been a 4 mana card. I just don't like it. Cards like this don't leave much room for other cheap cards to improve, or otherwise they get REALLY broken.
- I could go on with the other classes and the neutrals, but I think you get my point. Also was shocked that they actually NERFED Catrina Muerte!! Yes cutting her cost from 8 to 7 would be a good change, but now she ONLY resurrects Undead type minions instead of ANY .... I played her back in the day in my control/big Priest decks and the point was to get ANY cool big guy back. Now most of them are out of the picture because they are not Undead. So I think this is actually the worst change they've made.
Let me know your thoughts on my take and the new Core Set plus it's changes!
Witchwood apple currently costs 2, not 3. They reduced it's cost by one, and the cost of the treants by 1 to make it into landscaping with small upside. I'll probably include it in my odd treat druid now.
I can understand that people would dislike Catrina Muerte and Big Priest in general. Still I think she actually does what Legendaries are made for: to give you a LEGENDARY payoff! It might be a frustrating card in certain archetypes, yet it was never broken in it's old state.
Legendary cards are the highest rarity and should feel like something with a high impact and the opponent should feel like "How do I deal with this?". For example in comparison: why print Thori'belore the way it is? It just does not feel strong enough and Warrior really could need some help. When you play it, your opponent only feels "Whatever".
Of course Legendaries also should not play the game by themselves (#questlineswereamistake). But that's not what Catrina does. Her effect only goes off at the end of the turn, so the opponent has a whole turn to find a way to deal with her. If Big Priest ever dominates the meta again, then people need to tech in Silence and Transform effects. As I said, maybe it's frustrating, but by far not broken, you can deal with it, if you expect it to appear in your matches.
Also Catrina is actually a different card now with her effect changed. I don't like this kinds of reworks. Then just don't put in the Core Set instead of changing the card.
Legendary cards are the highest rarity and should feel like something with a high impact and the opponent should feel like "How do I deal with this?"
No, thank you. Legendaries should not be stronger than commons. They should enable archetypes, to be unique and exciting but making them the only cards that matter (and this is what you advocate for) is wrong and boring. Hearthstone should stop making stuff like a two-drop legendary that is better than any other two drop no matter what deck you play, not produce more of that.
For example in comparison: why print Thori'belore the way it is? It just does not feel strong enough and Warrior really could need some help
My theory is that it was nerfed based on how it plays with future expansions. Remember that they playtest way ahead of what we see. And I can totally see it being good with a better and larger fire spell package.
If Big Priest ever dominates the meta again, then people need to tech in Silence and Transform effects
I dare you to try that in wild against the current version of Big Priest. To be honest I don't remember silence or transformation working against any version of big priest unless you go for a ridiculous amount of those. Aggroing them down, killing them with OTK combos or having so many removals that you don't care are (and were) the only ways to deal with the big priests
As I said, I don't think, that Legendaries should win the game on their own, but they certainly should feel better then playing a Common. They are most expensive (in dust and least likely to open in packs) so you should definitly get more value and bigger plays. To make it balanced there should of course be a flexibility with the other rarities. Also that you can use the other rarities twice is actually a big bonus for them already.
What I agree with, is that low mana value Legendaries are scary in that sense. They certainly need to be more balanced then high end ones. I think that low mana cards in general need to be tuned down more. They are already too strong for the price, no matter the rarity.
For Thori'belore I think it doesn't matter if you are able to consistently revive it two times. It still feels too weak as it is. So they messed up the balance again (if they nerfed it before).
I also do struggle with Big Priest in Wild sometimes. Yet it needs a while to get going and is still fair compared to questlines (which are the only cards that I really can't stand).
I know this isn't directly related to your main point of this thread, but the Metamorphosis change really makes me wish that Genn Greymane would just have a text change to "If your deck has only even-Cost cards, your starting Hero Power costs (1) less."
Have they given a solid reason for why they haven't done this yet? It doesn't seem too fair that Demon Hunter is the only class in the game that doesn't get to utilize Genn Greymane.
Kurtrus hero card is one of the reasons Genn should never work for DH but at this stage, I guess it wouldn't matter to add another broken interaction to the abomination that Wild is.
And which questline does see play in wild? I play nothing but wild and quest decks are very rare while big priest is everywhere
That's the point. They were so strong, that they needed to be nerfed over and over again. One even got banned and is not safe to unban still in it's current form. The Warlock, Hunter and Warrior Questlines were always totally degenerated and still are. Also would you rather face a Big Priest or a Questline Priest? I'm still more against facing the Questline. But that's only my personal opinion.
I would take the quest priest every game instead of big. Hunter questline is still annoying, but bearable after the nerf. Warrior quest is just bad since it got nerfed the last time. Warlock quest they might change before unbanning or try it out first.
big priest is the epitome of degenerate game play, doesn’t even matter if it’s good or not. It has literally the lowest skill cap in the game
I'm curious about the cheap AOE damage they're adding here. Consecration and hellfire for 3 makes them actual anti aggro cards and defile was a mad control card. At the same time aggro and/or token decks are getting a boost, which (hopefully) may add balance to the burn and tempo rich meta that we're seeing now
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
To post a comment, please login or register a new account.
Hello there! The new Core Set for the next Hearthstone year just got announced and I was actually quiet excited what they would change this time! Sadly I'm not all too happy with the result. Partly because they changed some cards too much - in my humble opinion.
Even though the game has changed over the years and we need stronger cards for the Core Set to make an impact, I believe that there should be a consistency in balance and design. Right now some buffs seem strong, some don't do anything, some might be nerfs. That seems silly to say the least. For example:
- For Demon Hunter the buff to Flamereaper (+1 attack from 4 to 5) is quiet strong, but not overpowered. It's just a really good high mana weapon. The two minions that got buffed - Gan'arg Glaivesmith and Wrathscale Naga (+ 1 Health from 2 to 3) - seem also quiet strong when you compare them to old Hearthstone. It's hard for me to evaluate them for today though. And Metamorphosis was changed from 5 to 4 Mana, but it's old nerf (from 5 to 4 damage) was not reverted. I think that is inconsistent. Would have liked to see the nerf reverted too. Legendary cards should be able to feel broken in a way, moreso then other rarities.
- For Druid Witchwood Apple was buffed from 2 to 1 mana and the Treants also got updated from 2 to 1 mana. Still they reduced the number of Treants you receive from three to two. Personally I think they should have stuck with three Treants. Even with the buffs, I don't think two Treants are enough.
Then they changed Ancient of Lore from a 5/5 to a 7/7 and also his healing ability from 5 to 7. Yes, that is a significant buff and yes this card should get more love again. Still here a mana buff would have been better (from 7 to 6 or even 5), that would have made it more playable still. And for consistency reason, why don't they buff Ancient of War too? It has always been more useless then it's brother. Originally they both felt like late game power-houses, today they still feel outdated. A wasted chance to give back to them what they have lost.
Druid of the Claw now changed for the third time and it does not resemble it's former self all too much anymore. Why not just change it back to when it was a 4/4 that could get charge at a cost of 5 mana (or +2 health and taunt). Would that be too broken? It would maybe still be useful like this. Now it is just a bunch of stats - with an increased mana cost even - that will not be played.
Soul of the Forest seems borderline broken at 3 mana now (down from 4).
- For Hunter they added the buffed version of Doggie Biscuit to Core and I always thought this card is way too strong for 2 mana, The design (especially since the buff) has been pushed. In old times this would have been a 4 mana card. I just don't like it. Cards like this don't leave much room for other cheap cards to improve, or otherwise they get REALLY broken.
- I could go on with the other classes and the neutrals, but I think you get my point. Also was shocked that they actually NERFED Catrina Muerte!! Yes cutting her cost from 8 to 7 would be a good change, but now she ONLY resurrects Undead type minions instead of ANY .... I played her back in the day in my control/big Priest decks and the point was to get ANY cool big guy back. Now most of them are out of the picture because they are not Undead. So I think this is actually the worst change they've made.
Let me know your thoughts on my take and the new Core Set plus it's changes!
Witchwood apple currently costs 2, not 3. They reduced it's cost by one, and the cost of the treants by 1 to make it into landscaping with small upside. I'll probably include it in my odd treat druid now.
You're right. Sorry, corrected it. Really did think it would cost 3 before.
Catrina Muerte is one of the most PTSD card for me.
All buffs are good.
Catrina change is good because it allows them to keep printing resurrect cards in the future without having ptsd from neptulon bullshit.
And buffing 1 mana is way stronger than nerfing to only resurrect undead. It's literally an overall buff.
The only nerf is druid of the claw. They should keep the new text with old mana cost.
Dead simulation of a game filled with bots and bullshit. Blizzard is dead. There is only Activision and they ruin everything they touch.
I can understand that people would dislike Catrina Muerte and Big Priest in general. Still I think she actually does what Legendaries are made for: to give you a LEGENDARY payoff! It might be a frustrating card in certain archetypes, yet it was never broken in it's old state.
Legendary cards are the highest rarity and should feel like something with a high impact and the opponent should feel like "How do I deal with this?". For example in comparison: why print Thori'belore the way it is? It just does not feel strong enough and Warrior really could need some help. When you play it, your opponent only feels "Whatever".
Of course Legendaries also should not play the game by themselves (#questlineswereamistake). But that's not what Catrina does. Her effect only goes off at the end of the turn, so the opponent has a whole turn to find a way to deal with her. If Big Priest ever dominates the meta again, then people need to tech in Silence and Transform effects. As I said, maybe it's frustrating, but by far not broken, you can deal with it, if you expect it to appear in your matches.
Also Catrina is actually a different card now with her effect changed. I don't like this kinds of reworks. Then just don't put in the Core Set instead of changing the card.
No, thank you. Legendaries should not be stronger than commons. They should enable archetypes, to be unique and exciting but making them the only cards that matter (and this is what you advocate for) is wrong and boring. Hearthstone should stop making stuff like a two-drop legendary that is better than any other two drop no matter what deck you play, not produce more of that.
My theory is that it was nerfed based on how it plays with future expansions. Remember that they playtest way ahead of what we see. And I can totally see it being good with a better and larger fire spell package.
I dare you to try that in wild against the current version of Big Priest. To be honest I don't remember silence or transformation working against any version of big priest unless you go for a ridiculous amount of those. Aggroing them down, killing them with OTK combos or having so many removals that you don't care are (and were) the only ways to deal with the big priests
As I said, I don't think, that Legendaries should win the game on their own, but they certainly should feel better then playing a Common. They are most expensive (in dust and least likely to open in packs) so you should definitly get more value and bigger plays. To make it balanced there should of course be a flexibility with the other rarities. Also that you can use the other rarities twice is actually a big bonus for them already.
What I agree with, is that low mana value Legendaries are scary in that sense. They certainly need to be more balanced then high end ones. I think that low mana cards in general need to be tuned down more. They are already too strong for the price, no matter the rarity.
For Thori'belore I think it doesn't matter if you are able to consistently revive it two times. It still feels too weak as it is. So they messed up the balance again (if they nerfed it before).
I also do struggle with Big Priest in Wild sometimes. Yet it needs a while to get going and is still fair compared to questlines (which are the only cards that I really can't stand).
Which Questline summons neptulon on turn 3-5 again?
And which questline does see play in wild? I play nothing but wild and quest decks are very rare while big priest is everywhere
I know this isn't directly related to your main point of this thread, but the Metamorphosis change really makes me wish that Genn Greymane would just have a text change to "If your deck has only even-Cost cards, your starting Hero Power costs (1) less."
Have they given a solid reason for why they haven't done this yet? It doesn't seem too fair that Demon Hunter is the only class in the game that doesn't get to utilize Genn Greymane.
Kurtrus hero card is one of the reasons Genn should never work for DH but at this stage, I guess it wouldn't matter to add another broken interaction to the abomination that Wild is.
neither Genn nor Baku affect hero card hps, only basic ones…
I personally think bringing Kayn back is a great mistake. We'll be seeing a lot of face demon hunters, presumably...
And keeping Shadow Step in standard along with the new bouncing tools given to rogue this expansion is completely nonsense...
Thank God Dirty Rat is back, to save us from a few of those bull###t games.
That's the point. They were so strong, that they needed to be nerfed over and over again. One even got banned and is not safe to unban still in it's current form. The Warlock, Hunter and Warrior Questlines were always totally degenerated and still are. Also would you rather face a Big Priest or a Questline Priest? I'm still more against facing the Questline. But that's only my personal opinion.
I would take the quest priest every game instead of big.
Hunter questline is still annoying, but bearable after the nerf. Warrior quest is just bad since it got nerfed the last time. Warlock quest they might change before unbanning or try it out first.
big priest is the epitome of degenerate game play, doesn’t even matter if it’s good or not. It has literally the lowest skill cap in the game
I'm curious about the cheap AOE damage they're adding here. Consecration and hellfire for 3 makes them actual anti aggro cards and defile was a mad control card. At the same time aggro and/or token decks are getting a boost, which (hopefully) may add balance to the burn and tempo rich meta that we're seeing now