Upcoming Hearthstone Balance Changes - Giggling Inventor, Mana Wyrm, Aviana
Three card changes are coming to Hearthstone later this week on October 18th and one of them is purely for Wild!
- [Discuss this Change] Giggling Inventor now costs 7, up from 5.
- [Discuss this Change] Mana Wyrm now costs 2, up from 1.
- [Discuss this Change] Aviana now costs 10, up from 9.
Check out Blizzard's post below for more information on each of the changes.
Quote from BlizzardIn an update that is scheduled to arrive October 18 PDT, the following cards will be changed.
Giggling Inventor – Will cost 7 mana. (Up from 5)
Giggling Inventor is one of the most powerful and popular cards we’ve ever created. There’s virtually no downside to including it in a deck, and because it’s neutral, it’s played in almost every deck. We think it’s important to take risks when making powerful cards, especially when it comes to neutral taunts, given the role they can play in encouraging minion interactions and making games more interesting. However, Giggling Inventor has stepped beyond its intended role, and we don’t feel that it should be as effective as it currently is.
We initially tested this card at (6) mana in both the current Standard format as well as with cards that will be released in the future. Ultimately, we felt that its power level was still higher than is appropriate for a Neutral card with no build-around requirements. At (7) mana, we expect Giggling Inventor will find its way into fewer decks in general—and be much less effective in Quest Rogue—while it might remain situationally playable within specific deck archetypes, such as Evolve Shaman.
Mana Wyrm – Will cost 2 mana. (Up from 1)
Over time, we’ve been moving away from powerful, early-game 1-drops like Mana Wyrm. It can often feel like the outcome of a game is decided by whether Mana Wyrm was played on turn one, and if it could be removed quickly by an opponent. Mana Wyrm has also steered us away from making powerful low-cost Mage spells. We’d like Mana Wyrm to remain an option for decks it synergizes with, while preventing it from being a huge turn one threat.
At (2) mana, it will be easier to deal with Mana Wyrm the turn it’s played, and it will be harder to buff it with cheap spells early in the match. We still expect it to remain an option in decks that have a heavy focus on cheap spells, but it should be a less appealing option in decks that aren’t built with that focus in mind.
Aviana – Will cost 10 mana. (Up from 9)
Changing Aviana to (10) mana means it will no longer be possible to play Aviana and Kun the Forgotten King on the same turn without some additional help from cards like Innervate or The Coin. It also means Juicy Psychmelon will no longer draw both Aviana and Kun. This should make the combos Aviana and Kun produce less consistent, while still allowing decks that use the combos to exist for the players that enjoy playing them.
“We think Giggling Inventor is in a really good spot right now.” -Team 5 at Activision-Blizzard
One week later
”Giggling Inventor is one of the most powerful and popular cards we’ve ever created. There’s virtually no downside to including it in a deck, and because it’s neutral, it’s played in almost every deck.”
Where is the druid nerf in standard?
What about UI?
What about Spreading Plague?
What about the Hero card?
Druid isn't that good in standard and they kind of killed it's combo. Isn't that enough?
UI should have been nerfed 2 expansions ago so we shouldn't expect it to be nerfed now, it's too late! :p Spreading plague is ok in my opinion, the cost is fair, you can play around it and you also have counterplays like Mossy Horror and many spells in most classes. The DK is also fine, Gul' dan is a lot more oppressive and Jaina can turn around the whole game as well, so i think asking for a nerf to Malfurion is unfair!
The problem @thedestructivemewow is that Druid has a lot of tools to make the game in stall.
Spreading is too strong, yes there is counter, but it's 1 card over 30 without so much draw (an aggro for example doesn't have a lot of cards draw).
Also, Branching Paths + spreading Plague is too strong as combo and sometimes it make a losing state in a winning one.
The hero card is simply too strong because you can choose, it can negate a lot of damage.
(also gul'dan is a little busted, we know, but he cost 10 and malfurion only 7 --> turn 3 for druid).
Fuck yeah, off you go Mana Wyrm.
There is a worse nerf than the warsong commander one now, it's the giggling inventor nerf. This card will be absolutely dog shit.
Quest Rogue is nerfed... The giggling inventor nerf might actually make the deck unplayable as that was the card that made it viable again
By nerfing the Giggling Inventor, Quest Rogue was indirectly nerfed. Now we don't have to worry about a 4/4 summoning two 4/4's with Taunt and Divine Shield (typically followed-up with a shadow step, or the death night shadow to summon another one).
I agree. I think that 6 mana would have been fine too... Giggling is almost unplayable I think now. I played Quest Rogue and I can vouch that giggling inventor is the MVP in that deck. It helps you survive aggro and also outvalue midrange and control decks in the lategame with Valeera. 7 Mana won't let you do that anymore... I doubt it will see play now
The Giggling nerf is an indirect nerf for Quest Rogue too, because Quest Rogue is now way weaker against aggro and midrange decks. But sadly the Quest is still broken against control decks. :/
HAHAHAHA I was thinking they'd nerf Giggling Inventor to 6 mana, making it a bit harder for normal decks to use it and making it inacecable to odd decks. Instead they fucking nuked it, I can garentee this card will NEVER see play again.
RIP mage, barely tier2 deck and thats only because it beats quest rogue. Every druid is playing same 20/24 cards yet the "we move away from powerful 1 drops" is more important. Why no nerf to Flame Imp then? Zoolock is even better and more "problematic" so where is nerf to it?
Team 5 why u dont like magethis much? Ice Lance, Ice block, shity legedaries and now mana wyrm...
eh
I know Mana Wyrm is really strong since the 1st day and i hate him so much. but the mana cost nerf really unexpected and probably will kill the card.
good.
Changing the mana cost of cards rarely has the effect of balancing and cards become playable and unplayable with mana balance, with very little in between. Blizzard only has two options: change what the card does entirely, or change the mana cost. Spreading plague went to six mana and still sees tons of play, while Bonemare--until recently in some evenlocks--went to 8 mana and disappeared. It really is that hard.
make it 1 mana 0/3, or 1 mana 1/2; is that hard?
Those are solid recommendations, but you'll always have people bitching about the card either way. You may like those changes, but do you doubt someone else would be making a hate post about the card sucking at 0/3 or even at 1/2 while they'd point at cards like dire mole and other 1 mana 1/3's? Blizzard is rarely in a winning situation when nerfing cards.
Where's the (standard) druid nerfs? =/
RIP giggling
Mana wyrm might still be playable?
Avian nerf is not enough? just run 1 innervate