Hearthpwn

 What is Arena?

Arena is a fun, yet challenging game mode that gives you an opportunity to improve your playing skills and earn some serious rewards.  You select the class you want to play from a choice of three randomized Heroes, then select cards to compile your deck, also from 3 randomized choices, until you have 30 cards.  After your deck is complete, you will play against other players with the same or similar win/loss record until you have either lost 3 games or won 12, whichever comes first.  The entry fee for the Arena is 150 gold or $1.99 USD (€1.99 EUR, £1.99 GBP or R$4.50 BRL). Check out the video below to see more details about the Arena game mode.

What kind of rewards can I earn?

For competing in the Arena you can earn Gold, Arcane Dust, regular or golden cards, and packs of cards.  Regardless of your final score you will always be awarded at least 1 pack of cards from the current expansion.  If you'd like to see a complete list of possible rewards you can view them HERE.

How do I get started?

If you are playing on a new account you will need to unlock ALL 9 classes before you are eligible to enter the Arena.  You can go to Solo Adventures > Practice Mode to defeat each hero at least once in order to unlock them.  After you unlock all the classes your first entry fee into the Arena will be free, as part of a one-time promotion.

 

Which class should I choose to play?

Ideally, you should  play the class that you are most comfortable with, but your favorite hero may not be one of your choices.  If you want to know how each class is currently rated you should check out the stats on HSReplay. Currently the top 4 classes according to win rates are Rogue, Warlock, Druid, and Paladin (in that order).  You can find more detailed discussion on who the players think are the best classes on the tier lists HERE.

What is a mana curve?

A mana curve is a graphical representation of the card distribution for the deck that you've drafted.  You will be able to see this during your actual draft, so you can more effectively plan which cards to pick based on the type of deck you're trying to build (i.e. Aggro, Midrange, Control, etc.) and how many cards you've already selected for a particular slot.  You can learn more about the mana curve from the article found HERE.

 

 How do I know which cards to pick?

These decisions are always up for a lot of debate, but the most important things to consider are value, cost, and effect.  You should give preference to solid 2-drops, cards that offer removal, and cards that include the Discover mechanic or draw effects.  Below is a current list of cards that are potent enough on their own that they should always be on the forefront of your decision-making.  I've only included five cards from each class and omitted any Legendaries, so it will not include absolutely everything that should be given consideration.  When viewing this list keep in mind there will always be exceptions, but it's a good reference point.  You can also find a detailed tier list put together by HearthArena, right HERE.  They also have a handy tool that creates an overlay on your screen and will give you draft advice in real time.  You can download the HearthArena Companion App (Overwolf) for free right HERE.

Neutral: Bog Creeper, Primordial Drake, Tar Creeper, Bonemare, and Cobalt Scalebane.
Druid: Swipe, Druid of the Claw, Wrath, Shellshifter, and Spreading Plague.
Hunter: Kill Command, Savannah Highmane, Alleycat, Crackling Razormaw, and Bearshark.
Mage: Flamestrike, Fireball, Firelands Portal, Meteor, and Ice Walker.
Paladin: Truesilver Champion, Blessing of Kings, Aldor Peacekeeper, Vinecleaver, and Spikeridged Steed.
Priest: Holy Nova, Shifting Shade, Dragonfire Potion, Free From Amber, and Obsidian Statue.
Rogue: Assassinate, SI:7 Agent, Eviscerate, Vilespine Slayer, and Shadowblade.
Shaman: Fire Elemental, Hex, Lightning Storm, Flamewreathed Faceless, and Volcano.
Warlock: Dread Infernal, Siphon Soul, Abyssal Enforcer, Blastcrystal Potion, and Defile.
Warrior: Arcanite Reaper, Execute, Gorehowl, Brawl and Blood Razor.

 I've already drafted two Eviscerate, can I draft a third one?

Absolutely!  Arena does not follow the same deckbuilding rules as Constructed and you can draft multiple copies of the same card.  You can even draft more than one of the same Legendary card.

I never see certain cards in Arena.  Is something wrong?

There are certain cards that are not offered for Arena drafts or have a significantly lowered drop rate.  You will not find any Quest or C'thun cards and several others were removed that were either too situational or negatively impacted the game.  You can find a complete list of changes on the official Blizzard forum, HERE.  On average your Arena drafts will be offered 60% Commons, 28% Rare, 10% Epic, and about 2% Legendary cards, with Class Minions being offered 100% more than Neutral cards and Class Spells and Weapons showing up 175% more often than Neutral cards.

Do I have to play all my games in one sitting?

No.  You can take as long as you like to finish your current Arena draft.  If you close the game and go back to the Arena button later you'll find your deck intact and ready for you to continue.  You can also retire a deck early if you choose not to finish your games, but I don't recommend it, as you will always get less of a reward than would be possible if you played to completion.

I'm terrible!  I went 0-3 on my last Arena run!

Don't beat yourself up too bad, because according to statistics found on the Hearthstone Wiki, only 50% of players will reach three wins during a run and less than 1% will actually achieve twelve wins! Even the best streamers sometimes have bad games and end up with zero wins too.

What is the program that shows your decklist on the screen, and is it legal?

There are several programs that will display your decklist for constructed or Arena play and they are perfectly legal and accepted by Blizzard for use with Hearthstone.  You can download our very own Innkeeper to keep track of everything for you, or try another popular one called Hearthstone Deck Tracker.

I'm trying hard, but I really need help to get better.  What can I do?

There are a LOT of things you can do to improve your gameplay and start gaining some consistency in your Arena drafts.

1. Minimize distractions when you play.  It's best if you can find some place quiet so it's easier to concentrate, but you definitely want to turn OFF the TV.  I'm guilty of this infraction and I can attest that it's just not possible to pay attention to what's on the TV and simultaneously play your best game.  Be prepared for lots of frustration if you choose to ignore this suggestion.
2. Watch popular streamers to see how they draft, evaluate cards, and win in tough situations.  You'll find links to some of my favorites below:
   
   

   
   Adwcta and Merps    
   Trump    
   ItsHafu    
   Amaz

   
   Kripparrian    
   Shadybunny    
   Dreads    
   Isherwood

3. Record your games.  Being able to go back and see where you made a mistake or should have done something differently will really help to develop your evaluation skills.
4. Participate in discussions here on the Arena forum.  People are always willing to assist players and give suggestions when they can.  You'll find that other players can be a great resource for improving.
5. Take plenty of time to complete your turns. It's not a race and if you make snap decisions just to end your turn quickly you will discover that you're often making the wrong plays. Give yourself a moment to think about ALL the possible actions for your turn and you'll see your gameplay improve drastically.
6. Even though it's from several years ago, Pilleri wrote an excellent Guide that still holds up pretty well today.  He also put together a great resource to familiarize yourself with many of the terms you will encounter in Arena and Hearthstone in general.  It can be found HERE.

Below you will find quick links for all the sources in this article.

Reference:

• Blizzard Arena Forums
• Hearthpwn Arena Forums
• Hearthstone Wiki
• Pilleri's Arena Guide
• Shadybunny's Going Infinite Guide

Statistics:

• HSReplay
• HearthArena Tier List
• Hearthstone Meta Stats
• Vicious Syndicate

Tools:

• Innkeeper
• Hearthstone Deck Tracker
• HearthArena Companion App (Overwolf)
• Open Broadcaster Software

Amazing post Thank you!! :D

Quote from Dr_Smash »

Can I just point out that you seem to overvalue Fireball.....    Frostbolt & Flamestrike are usually more useful commons. 

It's hard to dispute the value of being able to do 6 damage to a minion OR your opponent for only four mana.  I used Fireball as an example because it's easy to see its usefulness in a variety of situations.  Pilleri recently posted about the most frequent cards found in winning Arena decks and Fireball was in the top slot for Mage.

Quote from Angusiasty »

I think only 1st Flamestrike is better than Fireball. After that I would "always" pick Fireball.

I would agree with this post 100%.  That first Flamestrike is really important, and if you're unlucky enough to have to choose between Flamestrike and Fireball this is a good way to look at it.  

I would add that, mana curve reasons aside, I would generally pick Fireball over Frostbolt all of the time.  But the mana curve reasons create some important situations where I may value things slightly differently, since Mage is a class where it's possibly for your 4-mana slot to get a little clogged up.

Speaking of that, I like that you chose Truesilver Champion over Consecration, but I do feel like Consecration deserves some honorable mention.  In Paladin, those are the two really important cards to draft of course, and it just feels weird to think about one without thinking about the other, since they also complement each other rather well, both dealing with two different types of board threats (one big guy or lots of little guys) very efficiently.  

I've also found that Argent Protector is sometimes dramatically undervalued by people as a value card.  I once had a Paladin deck with 4x Argent Protector and not a lot else that stood out, and I was hoping to get 3-3 out of it because I figured that having so many Argent Protectors and so few other 2-drops (I think I had a few other decent 2-drop standards, a Faerie and an Ooze and a Creeper or something)  would mean my early game would be too wonky, even though it was a decent draft.

11 games later I was 11-0 with every single game utilizing at least 2 Argent Protectors to just create insane board control.  That is one beastly 2/2. I'm not saying he's on par with Truesilver or Consecration, but I've always felt he's underrated somehow.

I think some people are missing the point of the post, which is a VERY basic introduction about how to approach the Arena.  I'm not trying to say that Fireball is the absolute best card in every situation, but 9/10 it should be the pick you make.  You have to be able to evaluate what your choices are and determine what will benefit you the most, but that is outside the scope of this post.  More in depth concepts are covered in a variety of posts, like Pilleri’s Arena Guide.

this is a post that contains a lot of useful data

Quote from Dr_Smash »

Can I just point out that you seem to overvalue Fireball.....    Frostbolt & Flamestrike are usually more useful commons. 

I'd say flamestrike is more useful, frostbolt and fireball can be valued fairly similarly.

Quote from TheNewGuy152 »

So i am a new player, and i am about to try out Arena for my 10th time i think.

I can choose between: Warlock, Rogue and Mage. Which one should i pick?

Thanks =)

Wrong thread to post under. But choose the one you're most comfortable with. Personally I would go mage.

Quote from djtwilite »

Nothing in the initial few posts is really new to me and i seem to have the valuation of neutral minions and all spells right, but somehow its incredibly hard to get past 3-4 wins lately. Ive been trying different approaches, ran my cards by arenavalue several times and it usually doesnt surprise me. Im not totally new to this game, been at it for almost a month and i have considerable 'Duel of Champions' experience (if anyone is familiar with that). What i do often try to do is build a little synergistic set of cards if it seems there; mechs/ murlocs/ whatever, i guess that might not be worth it. Otherwise i dont see whats missing exactly. Any advice/ pointers/ things to read or watch welcomed.

You shouldn't be going for any individual synergy when it comes to drafting in Arena. You should focus more on "Mana Curve" and Value cards per the curb itself. Its more about having a great early game, decent mid game, and good late game. Nice amount of minions and some removal/board clears if possible. Trying to get any individual synergy going on purpose actually hurts your overall deck. Trump for instance picks cards in draft like I stated above, and any synergy like mech and such is purely coincidental, every now and then he picks 1 or 2 cards purposely for the synergy but thats when his draft is already top notch. 

I haven't drafted many Argent Protectors but when I face them they are often difficult to deal with and result in more efficient trades for my opponent. This usually gets them ahead in the early game and we all know how important that early game is in arena. Late game I've found that they don't have as much of an impact. I do agree with you on that though, I feel the card is somewhat underrated but I think that's likely due to it being a bit situational as you have to have something on board to get value. 

Hello Everyone,

I am new to this site and noticed that there is a deck builder specifically for Arena. I am a bit confused as to the purpose of it, because arena picks are random and all. Why would I want to same an imaginary arena deck? Sorry if the reason is obvious :L

how does seeing the deck image helps while playing iam not very good at hearthstone :D?

The following is slightly outdated:

You will ALWAYS get at least one Expert card pack, regardless of how well you finish.  At 3 wins or more you are guaranteed gold, and if you make it to 7+ wins you will get at least 150 gold, which covers the cost of the Arena run.

You'll always get one Goblins vs. Gnomes pack now.

ye sry for the late reply just joined this site

btw everything i try in arena its mostly impossible to get out of 5 wins , they always have legendaries past 5 wins and i cant make more wins :/ 

 

if u can help i would appreciate it pls :/

Quote from PinkGhost181 »

Hello Everyone,

I am new to this site and noticed that there is a deck builder specifically for Arena. I am a bit confused as to the purpose of it, because arena picks are random and all. Why would I want to same an imaginary arena deck? Sorry if the reason is obvious :L

One purpose is showing-off or saving the decks you drafted in arena. I saved my first 12-win deck a while ago. The major difference is that the 2-card limit is removed. You could also ask for feedback on arena decks, though that's less helpful since it doesn't show the cards you didn't pick.

Quote from afding »

The following is slightly outdated:

You will ALWAYS get at least one Expert card pack, regardless of how well you finish.  At 3 wins or more you are guaranteed gold, and if you make it to 7+ wins you will get at least 150 gold, which covers the cost of the Arena run.

You'll always get one Goblins vs. Gnomes pack now.

Thanks for the heads-up.  I've updated that section with the new information.

Added "What is the best class to play in Arena right now?"

I've played the arena many times and only once or twice was I asked to choose from 3 legendary card options.  Why the inconsistency?  You'd think that they'd make you pick rares, epics and legendaries each time you enter the arena.  last time I played warlock and had the choice to play Ragnaros and had 3 wins.  Next time I entered I had no choice of legendaries but a couple of epics.  It's just so weird.

Quote from Bramoes »

Hey, I'm stuck at 6-8 wins. Every arena run, I get decent cards, I have to play versus a few mages with an INSANE deck. Fireballs, Flamestrikes, [card]Piloted Sky Golem[/card]s etc. Makes it impossible to reach those 12 wins ;(

Any tips?

That's outside the scope of this thread because this is just general tips to get started.  You may want to check out Pilleri's guide HERE.

I'm a new player so take what I have to say with a grain of salt.  You'll see a common theme in arena starter guides, and it's helped me in my arena matches greatly.  Any monkey and click on the best cards on the tier list; what has helped me the most is stopping at a certain point during the draft (cards 1-10) and actually thinking.  What am I trying to do?  What style is my deck?  I didn't stop losing (as much) until I did that.