New Classic Cards Coming to Hearthstone, Tournaments On Hold, Halloween, New Welcome Bundle, New Paladin Hero
Hearthstone is getting some big updates soon! Check out everything that is coming in the coming months including new classic cards!
- Blizzard is currently happy with the meta. They are keeping their eyes on Giggling Inventor
- Mages, Warlocks, and Rogues are getting new classic cards to fill in holes. These are brand new cards.
- New ranks are being added for new players only. New players will start at rank 50.
- Tournament Mode has been put on hold.
- Fireside Gatherings will have more brawls to choose from.
- The Welcome Bundle is returning but instead of giving class legendaries, it includes one of six classic dragon legendaries.
- If you previously purchased the welcome bundle, you can buy it again.
- Hallow's End returns October 17th with Dual Class Arena like last year.
- A new Paladin Hero will be available through a special deal, arriving during Hallow's End. The hero is "Sir Annoy-O".
- According to art on the press site, it looks like you may get Sir Annoy-O with a special purchase of 20 Witchwood packs. Not confirmed.
This is one time where you really don't want to skip the annnoucement post, so read that down below.
New Cards
Four new cards are being added to the Classic set in a future update. We've got dedicated discussion threads for each one.
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Blog Post
Quote from DaxxarriWelcome to Hearthstone’s first In the Works update. Here we’re giving you a brief look at what’s coming in the next few months for Hearthstone—game updates and events, esports, and more!
There’s a lot to talk about, so read on to find out what’s in store.
Game Updates
The State of the MetaWe’ve seen the meta-game start to stabilize in the wake of The Boomsday Project’s release. Decks like Odd Warrior, Odd Paladin, Token Druid, Tempo Mage, Taunt Druid, Zoo Warlock, Quest Rogue, Secret Hunter, Even Paladin, Deathrattle Hunter, and Even Warlock, have all been top performers.
While those decks stand out from the pack slightly, there are effective decks from every class. Evolve Shaman and Combo Priest have both seen success, for example.
Overall we’re happy with the excellent diversity of decks we’re seeing at all levels of Ranked Play.
Cards to WatchGiggling Inventor is hugely popular and shows up in a lot of decks. We intended for Giggling Inventor to be powerful because we’ve found that having powerful neutral Taunt minions tends to make games more interesting. We’ve seen that with cards like Sludge Belcher and Tar Creeper in the past. Cards that fulfill this role need to be strong to get that job done, but there’s a line where they might be too good.
We aren’t planning any changes to Giggling Inventor for now, but we’re keeping an eye on it in the meantime. We’d like to know what you think.
Wild BalanceThere’s been an ongoing discussion within the team regarding how Wild should play. Right now, Wild feels somewhat like Standard but with an elevated power level and a vast library of cards. Should Wild live up to its name more, where we allow really crazy and powerful combos to happen, even in the early game? Generally, it’s harder for any one strategy to be dominant in Wild since everything is so powerful and everyone has access to so many tools, but do we want those strategies to exist? We know that there are players who would prefer to have a mode that offers that kind of gameplay.
There’s also the point to consider that the reason to have multiple modes in Hearthstone is for them to play differently, so there are downsides to trying to put the reins on Wild too much. But we also recognize that there might be decks like Naga Sea Witch that become too prevalent and simply aren’t fun to play against.
We’d love to hear your opinions about what you want from Wild. What do you think of how it is now, and what’s the role you see for it in the future of Hearthstone?
New Classic CardsIf you’ve been playing Hearthstone for a while, then you already know that with each new Hearthstone year, we’ve chosen certain cards to rotate out of the Standard format. Some of those cards have been part of the Classic format, which is usually an evergreen part of the Standard format.
A few of the cards that left Standard were Class cards, but we want each Class to have a roughly equal number of cards available in the Classic set. To accomplish that, we’re adding four all-new cards to fill the gap.
Here are the new Class cards being added to the Classic set. You’ll be able to craft them or open them in Classic card packs next month:
When designing these cards we are thinking about new players’ first experiences playing Hearthstone. They should be relatively straightforward while still creating some exciting moments. They also give players a chance to see and play with cards that they don't own. At the same time it’s important that they aren’t so powerful that they limit future design or cause problems (since they’ll be in Standard for longer than 2 years.)
Looking forward, we expect more cards to join the Hall of Fame. There are also still some gaps in Classic where neutral Legendary cards joined the Hall of Fame, so we’re considering adding some new cards to the Classic set in the future.
New Player Experience ImprovementsEven at Rank 25, competition in the Tavern can be fierce, especially if you’ve never played Hearthstone before. We’d like to ease new players into the fray a little more gently, so we’re taking some steps toward improving the new player experience. Here’s what newcomers to the Hearthstone tavern can expect to find:
New players will start at Rank 50. Ranks 50 through 26 will be for new players only, and just like ranks 25 through 20, you can’t lose Stars while ranking up. Once a player achieves Rank 25, they’ll never drop below that rank again. We hope this gives players who are new to Hearthstone a little more time to get used to the Tavern, and we’ll also be giving them a few free gifts along the way to help them get up to speed. If you’re an experienced player making an additional account, there will be an option to skip the New Player Experience (and some loot, so consider carefully!) so you can get back into the competition faster. There are a few more details that we’ll provide in the future, but that’s the gist of it!
In-game Tournaments UpdateEarlier this year we talked about adding a new feature to Hearthstone that would make it easier to organize tournaments for Fireside Gatherings and private events. The team has been working on this feature for some time, and it was originally slated to arrive this year. Unfortunately, In-game Tournaments are now on hold, so we wanted to take this opportunity to explain why.
We have a lot of plans to improve many features of Hearthstone, including its social experience, and In-game Tournaments are an important part of that. Tournaments can serve many different audiences, but the implementation we’d arrived at catered to a very specific audience of players. Instead of broadening Hearthstone with an exciting new way to play, it felt “tacked on”, and wasn’t integrating well into the larger Hearthstone experience.
Ultimately, we were forced to conclude that we needed to think about how and where we want to improve Hearthstone’s overall social experience before we can tackle adding a satisfying and robust implementation of In-game Tournaments that all players can enjoy. As developers, sometimes we have to make the difficult decision to step away from a design that isn’t working. We no longer felt that the end result would deliver on everyone’s expectations or the high standards we have for Hearthstone.
As a result, while we want to revisit In-Game Tournaments at a later date, the feature is on hold for the foreseeable future.
Fireside GatheringsIf you’ve never attended a Fireside Gathering, or organized one of your own, you’re missing one of the most fun ways to enjoy Hearthstone with friends! They’re more fun than ever—including private events in your own home—so drop by the Fireside Gatherings site and check it out.
Innkeepers are soon going to have even more options to spice up their events. It was already possible to experience Fireside Brawls (Tavern Brawls that can only be experienced at Fireside Gatherings), and now they’ll have a whole menu of Brawls to choose from to offer their attendees. In addition to the rotating monthly Fireside Brawl, Innkeepers will be able to select one additional Fireside Brawl from a curated library of brawls that their patrons will have access to during their Fireside Gathering.
EsportsThe 2018 HCT Fall Championship is coming mid-October! Watch it live on stream or live in-person at the Blizzard Arena in Los Angeles.
It’s going to be a thrilling event to witness, and if you can be there live, it gets even better! You’ll get to meet Hearthstone developers, enjoy pick-up tournaments on-site, snap up cool stuff like Hearthstone and Blizzard Arena merchandise and earn the Thrill of Victory card back just for attending!
You can get your tickets here. Get them fast before they sell out as seating is limited!
Welcome Bundle’s Roaring ReturnOkay, it never left, but it IS getting a majestic make-over. It will still offer 10 Classic card packs at a very low price (great time to try to pick up those new Classic Class cards!), but instead of a random Class Legendary card, it will now include one of six Legendary dragons from the Classic set: Alexstrasza, Deathwing, Malygos, Nozdormu, Onyxia, or Ysera!
There’s even better news! What could be better than dragons, you ask? Even if you’ve purchased the Welcome Bundle before, you’ll be able to grab this one too!
Upcoming Game Events
Hallow’s End
The Headless Horseman returns for another spooktacular Hallow’s End event starting October 17! Just like last year, the Tavern will be decked out in horrific fashion, the dual Class Arena returns, and you’ll face the Headless Horseman in the Tavern Brawl. In the spirit of the season, we’re tossing a few more treats in the bag this year, and we’ll let you know all about them as the Headless Horseman’s return draws nigh.
Hallow’s End also marks the arrival of a friendly new Paladin Hero who will be available for purchase as a part of a special deal!
And that’s what’s In the Works for Hearthstone! Thanks for joining us, and we look forward to hearing what you think, so let us know on social media, or in the comments below.
They pretended they did with Dreadsteed and Shadowboxer nerf. But then they printed Psychmelon and even Giants felt less oppresive to me. Razakus Priest or Cubelock are jokes compared to Druid combo decks. :(
FFS for what everyone is crying again? This forum should forbid everyone talking about artifact and crying for everything that is happening in HS.
-Today we have announcement for new welcome bundle (which is extremly cheap).
-New cards for classic set.
-And awesome arena event from last year is back.
And for what everyone is crying? That some stupid hero will be paid? I too don't understand why they lock this behind old packs, for which even if I would pay , I don't need them just, but however. We have 3 heroes for paladin... who the **** care that we will not receive one of them for free. Actually I guess that it will be related with cheers in twitch after some milestone is reached (the event for HGG)
The only negative thing is that Tournament is put on hold for which I actually don't care. As they stated this is targeted to so small group of people right now that it will not be practical as they though... it sounds reasonable. Anyway I never wanted to participate in tournament (as I guess more than 95 % of whiner here).
So in total we have 3 positive news out of 4 ( I don't count hero as a news).
Guys face it. If you dont like it go wherever you want and stop spamming your genius opinion like someone is caring for it.
I understand your frustration. However, do we let you preview everything that is said by everyone? Come on. That’s part of forum. Some good, some bad. Peace.
-Today we have announcement for new welcome bundle (which is extremly cheap).
Part of what made the original Welcome Bundle so good was you got a random class legendary with it, and most of the class legendaries were really good. This new one is just the Legendary Dragons, and most of them kinda suck, or people already have them.
-New cards for classic set.
And all four of them really suck, the Mage Epic especially.
-And awesome arena event from last year is back.
No one is complaining about the Hallow's End event.
-And for what everyone is crying?
Let's see: Tournament Mode has been shelved, and knowing Blizzard's track record probably forever just like Diablo 3's PvP mode. They said some pretty concerning things regarding Wild balancing as they want the turn 3 wins. No word on Warlock and Druid who are currently dominating the meta to the point where several classes are just unplayable.
-( I don't count hero as a news).
You should. We used to get hero portraits for free. (Stop replying to me about the OG 3. I know they were paid, BECAUSE THEY WERE THE FIRST THREE HEROES! People voted with their wallets and as a result, we got free heroes instead.) But now they're paywalled again, locked in expensive card bundles, and now you people are cheering for that?!
-Guys face it. If you dont like it go wherever you want and stop spamming your genius opinion like someone is caring for it.
Good idea. Hey everyone, why don't we spam our genius opinions on this guy?
Can you shut the fuck up about this already? Specifically, the hero portraits. First of all, this is only the sixth paid hero out of thirteen - so more than half of them have been free. Second of all, the Mega Bundle only happened once. Who the fuck knows if it will again, but don't make assumptions you can't justify. Third of all, we don't even know the goddamn price of this one. What if it's $5? Or $500? We don't know, but somewhere very near the former is likely, I'm assuming up to $20.
Fourth of all, they're cosmetic.
c o s m e t i c .
It doesn't impact gameplay, it impacts nothing but your heart.
There's nothing to argue about. The fact of the matter is, there is currently no issue with paywalling heroes. Sure, you might not have them all, but it doesn't matter, now does it? Who cares if Billy McExample buys it because he wants it? He's not being misled or anything, either, in this case.
And no, I don't think the game's in a good place. But I'm not making issues out of things that have no right to be an issue.
So glad I haven't crafted Malygos yet. It just so happens to be the last dragon out of those I don't have yet
Yogg-saron casino mage is sallivating at the randomness - MORE!
Wow how many news!! Classic cards could be better.. and why another hero for paladin when other classes have only one? (2 with the base hero)
at least, they are covering the spaces that the hall of fame lat to the classes
Good to see new ranks, i played in other servers accounts where i don't have card and rank 25 it's horribly filled with meta decks which is really bad for new players, but the art are....ehm, ...let's keep the new ranks are a good new xd
bundles....ok... i guess
Paladin hero.....really?...PALADIN hero?...PALADIN?....ok i stop now
Dual class arena, always wellcome, i loved it last year
At least it's a unique hero, like Morgl and Mecha-Jaraxxus
Can't wait to make a smurf so I can actually enjoy a mode that won't include any netdecks (not that I'm against it, I just want a different experience)
Also my first thought when I saw those changes. Playing noob decks against actual noob decks might finally be the throwback I dreamed of for so long
new classic cards to fill in holes!! I think your moving the wrong direction guys.. you will keep fill in the holes for the rest of your life, god bless Hearthstone
Hey look, another hero behind a paywall. Nice job blizzard once again!
Btw paladin has 4, four, FOUR heroes now.
I think it's not enough. We need more. I mean there are 8 other classes, but lets be hones: paladin needs at least 10 before we consider any other.
Oh, while we are being sarcastic: I totally agree - hero portraits are a game changing aspect and one of the fundamental pillars of Hearthstone that basically decide victory or defeat merely by looking at them. Potentially adding a hero to a card bundle as additional reward is basically a crime against humanity, if you think about it. They are part of the basic human needs: food, drink, oxygen, sleep, shelter and hero portraits.
I know what they are going to say, and my answer is "What does 'optional' even mean?". We NEED to have every hero portrait and we need them all for free.
most sincerely,
your entitled "customer" (kidding, we don't pay)
If the would add it to card pack bundles or better yet the welcome bundle i would be totaly fine with it. Actualyl quite happy, that is how you should do it. But that never happened. They alwasy do some inconvinient or straigh up retarded promotion where a lot of players are locked out baseline. Due to country restrictions, accessibility, platform etc. They did not specifiy what it will be added for so i assume from previous ones that it will be some upseting deal most people will have no chance of getting.
Well, I can certainly agree that country restrictions are somewhat upsetting.^^
I hope artifact will be a blast because Hearthstone is taking a piss on our heads. HS needs to compete with something otherwise it will be just this shit all over again.
What sane person would choose that ugly mech hero portrait over Arthas or Lady Liadrin unless they are literally giving it away for free.
Arthas for me please.
same people that use nemsy, love triggering people with that portrait lol