Hearthpwn

Quote from dirvenstylez >>

 Hahahaha, the Waste Warden got me. I think they are gonna buff Foxy Fraud, they will give it the Beast tribe. (I mean it is a cat right?)

 I don't think that's a good idea because anthropomorphized animals have been created as potential romantic interests for human characters. Stripping them of their human nature creates a whole new subset of problems. (sorry for using difficult wording, i am self educated)

Quote from Kedalin >>

I disagree with some of your predictions. For example, I think the Outrider's Axe will be changed to a 4/2, because those are different numbers.

But the real big oversight you made was Demon Hunter. Yes, Silence Demon Hunter will undoubtedly make its triumphant resurgence, but what is the key card in that deck? That's right, Illidari Inquisitor. And let's be honest, the card is underperforming right now. So how can we improve this card without making it too oppressive? That's right, give it "Outcast: Windfury." Why Windfury? Because sometimes the opponent has TWO taunts. Why Outcast? Because sometimes the opponent has TWO taunts.

 I agree with the way you think, it makes sense for Demon Hunter to get 2 buffs, because they really hyped it up.

Hi, beta player here and more recently a double Legend rank player. I wanted to share my opinion on buffs/nerfs, particularly because people like to see this but also to explain my game philosophy.

Let's look at what we know so far. The sources can be found in the article about the nerfs/buffs on the front page:

5 nerfs: 2 neutral (1 murloc), 3 class cards

10 buffs: archetypes that are not as strong as they hoped, with a hint that demon hunter will improve. Caravans not touched.

My opinion about the nerfs:

Prize Vendor - we all know what the murloc nerf will be. Can be a powerful tech card against decks that hold large hands, in burning 1 or 2 key pieces from them. So it will be efficient against Warlock, which will most likely dodge all nerfs and dominate the meta. But to keep the flavor of classes like Shaman and Priest not having access to card draw, my suggested nerf is to chance the text to: "your opponent draws a card". Still very efficient against Warlock or Demon Hunter Otk, while reducing the availability of neutral card draw.

Waste Warden - with the addition of the Quillboar tribe, clearly this card has spiked in power level, being able to hit more targets with no downside. My suggested nerf is: "2 attack instead of 3 attack". This way there are downsides to playing it, as it can no longer trade easily into other minions.

Flamestrike - back to 4 damage. Everyone knows mage is a problem now, and the Flamestrike buff is clearly the main culprit. It is oppressive in arena, so arena players deserve to get the chance to make meaningful development of 5 health minions once again.

Invigorating Sermon - cost increased to 5. This way Paladin cannot cheat stats as early as turn 4, giving decks like rush warrior a chance to wait with their own buffs until turn 5 and then make meaningful trades on board. Paladin has dominated the meta since the start of the expansion and I would like to see this card toned down, as it feels oppressive to get punished for letting your opponent develop a board before turn 4.

Doomhammer - windfury removed. Doomhammer Shaman is the only deck that sees a bit of play in standard right now and is the main cause of making the other Shaman archetypes viable. Additionally, it heavily limits design space for attack buffs, and makes other weapons an afterthought. This can be the catalyst of a lot of experimentation in other shaman archetypes.

So these are the nerfs, and we all kinda expect them, but let's talk about the more exciting stuff: the buffs! While after a round of nerfs a lot of players feel like not playing anymore because of the wet noodle feeling (playing with weak cards), buffs can create a lot of exciting new decks. So here is my take: every class will receive one buff on their worst performing archetype. And here is what I would like to see:

Sigil of Silence - Also draws a card for each silenced minion. At this point, Silence Demon Hunter feels like it lost something in Consume Magic. Playing a delayed mass dispell is simply not good enough, and with the card draw the archetype can shine once again. Moreover, the opponent will be able to decide how many cards he will give you, giving them counterplay to burn key cards in your deck.

Razormane Battleguard - 2 mana 2/3 down to 1 mana 1/3. Taunt Druid was very hyped early on, but proved to be just too slow to compete. Accelerating their development by one turn can allow them to seriously contend for the board, while giving meaningful interaction for the newly buffed Sigil of Silence.

Lock and Load - down to 0 mana. They probably were very proud to bring the card back at one mana, creating a fun Miracle Hunter archetype. Unfortunately the card sees no play, and it would not surprise me to see a hail merry from them: "guys this is literally the last thing we can do to improve this card". Some people also suggested it generating spells as an alternative but I prefer the 0 mana spice instead. We cannot only rely on one card (Kolkar Pack Runner) to jam spells at our opponent.

Wyrm Weaver - 4 mana 3/5 to 3 mana 2/4. Once again, despite the initial reduction in cost from 5 to 4, internal data shows that people tend to not include minions in their mage decks, which in turn makes Refreshing Spring Water oppressive. Competing for the 4 cost slot with Kazakus, Golem Shaper also is a problem, so this can hopefully convince more people to include minions in their mage decks - basically kills 2 birds with one stone.

Lothraxion the Redeemed - 5 mana 5/5 down to 1 mana 1/3. Silver Hand Recruit Paladin, despite being one of the oldest and most beloved archetypes, does not work at the moment. The problem with this card is that turn 5 is often a bit too late to give your men bubbles, so an earlier approach can turn memes into dreams. Some of my friends (also legend players) have suggested it to always start in your hand, but I think that would be a bit too strong.

Shadowed Spirit - 3 damage up to 4 damage. People hate playing against Priest. But why? Are they strong? No. Are they powerful? Also no. The problem is that they have no aggressive archetype. And this card alone, with one extra damage, can produce a lot of copies of it and slowly but surely drain down their opponents. If you cannot convince people to stop playing Priest, at least you can convince a percentage of them to play an aggressive archetype.

Swinetusk Shank - Let me explain myself. I am aware this card is quite strong at the moment so why should it be buffed? The answer is simple: you cannot have Acidic Swamp Ooze annihilate an entire archetype on its own. So my suggestion is that on deathrattle, this weapon shuffles back into the deck while keeping all enchantments. Why is it not broken after this change? Because there is already a card that does this, for 1 mana, and it is was never that strong. We need to teach people to stop playing the Ooze and I hope the dev team sees that.

Boggspine Knuckles - Back to 4 attack. The fact that we can no longer play a 0 cost pirate on the same turn makes it more fair and balanced, and now it can answer common minions like Mankrik, Efficient Octo-bot and Luckysoul Hoarder. With the nerf to Doomhammer, it's time for different Shaman weapons to shine, and it's time to be able to punish people for playing 4 health minions.

Shadow Council - +2/+2 changed to +2/+3. Random Demon Warlock was never the deck we wanted it to be, despite the uptick in general quality of demons. With this change, the minions are healthier and are going to take part in many more meaningful trades, while keeping their attack in check, so they don't kill the opponent too fast. It's time to have an interesting Warlock deck once again!

Outrider's Axe - +1 durability. "We initially made it a 3/2". That is funny, not even as a 3/3 is it seeing play right now. But people can be wrong, and that includes the game devs (I kinda felt that it is not very strong though). With another point of durability, it also stops Warriors from jamming only minions in their deck, plus the buff cards, then calling it a day. Time to make compromises to have different meaningful lines of action during your games.

So these are my opinions. I think I am speaking for most of us when I say I want to see these changes, and I personally cannot wait for the announcement (soon maybe?). I am not saying I got these right but I am hoping for at least 11/12 correct guesses. Too da loo.