Week 7 of the Hearthstone Grandmasters starts tomorrow. The top 48 players in the world -- 16 from each region -- compete weekly; with the top 4 from each region advancing to the playoff portion of the event. The top player from each region will join the Season 1 winners, plus two Gold Series Champions from China to crown this year's Hearthstone World Champion at Blizzcon!
The top 4 classes are dominating the tournament meta. As we mentioned last week, without a shake-up from Blizzard we may be in for a long ride over the last few weeks. However, we are due for an announcement which will reintroduce 23 Wild cards into the Standard field. Whether Blizzard chooses to make those changes soon or wait until Season 2 concludes remains to be seen. As we draw closer to the end of the season, it is important to note that the bottom player in each group risks being relegated and replaced in Grandmasters next year.
- Che0nsu has separated himself from the rest of the field and now holds the best record at 10-2.
- While many of the 1st place players have developed a bit of a lead, qualifying spots 2-4 remain tight in most groups.
- Combo Priest's dominance is shaping the meta. While it may not have the best winrate in the tournament, most players are basing lineups, bans, and shields around it.
Twitch Drops for Grandmasters and Playoffs!
Twitch Drops have returned! Check out the full blog post by Blizzard about it here
Quote from BlizzardTwitch Drops will be returning for the remainder of Grandmasters Season 2! Running on the Twitch.tv/PlayHearthstone channel exclusively during the designated time frames, we’ll make it rain Saviors of Uldum card packs--at random, once an hour, we’ll drop 1,500 packs to viewers who have linked their Twitch and Battle.net accounts.
Season 2 Twitch Drop Dates and Times (Twitch.tv/PlayHearthstone only):
- October 4, 2 a.m. – 4 p.m. PDT
- October 5, 2 a.m. – 4 p.m. PDT
- October 6, 2 a.m. – 4 p.m. PDT
Featured Match-ups
We've chosen one must watch match-up from each region this week. While the weekend is sure to be packed with action, these are the matches you'll definitely want to make time for! We'll link VODs of each of the three match-ups when the weekend concludes.
Amnesiac vs. Monsanto - Saturday - 7:00pm PT/10:00pm ET/2:00am GMT/4:00am CEST
Monsanto sits in 4th place with Amnesiac hot on his heels. Monsanto's best finish came at HCT Buenos Aires in 2018 where he came in 2nd. Amnesiac won back to back events in 2018, winning the PAX East Showdown and HCT Austin.
Rdu vs. Kolento - Friday - 10:00am PT/1:00pm ET/5:00pm GMT/7:00pm CEST
Rdu looks to move into the top 4 with a solid showing this weekend. He squares off against Kolento who has a multitude of top finishes in tournaments since 2014. Hailing from Romania, Rdu has won two separate Dreamhack tournaments as a pro.
che0nsu vs. SamuelTsao - Friday - 5:00am PT/8:00am ET/12:00pm GMT/2:00pm CEST
SamuelTsao hopes to make some waves by defeating the top player in the tournament. A win would bring him a step closer to breaking into the top 4. Che0nsu was the winner of WCG 2019. SamuelTsao has several top finishes in HCT events spanning 2018-19.
Player Spotlights
Fr0zen
- Name: Frank Zhang
- Team: Team Liquid
- Division: Americas: Group B
- Hometown: Northville, Michigan
- Earnings: $278,377
Quote from BlizzardFr0zen is a familiar face for most that have followed competitive Hearthstone over the years. He’s taken home over USD $250,000 in prize money, with his biggest win coming from placing second in the 2017 World Championship. Fr0zen’s parents were initially unhappy with his choice to play games for a living, but eventually came around in a big way; going so far as to invest in a Hearthstone team in China. Fr0zen also placed 3rd/4th in the Americas Season 1 Grandmasters Playoffs.
Kolento
- Name: Aleksandr Malsh
- Team: Cloud 9
- Division: Europe: Group A
- Hometown: Donetsk, Ukraine
- Earnings: $268,057
Quote from BlizzardKolento is a Hearthstone scene veteran, having competed at events with Cloud9 since 2014, and ranking high Legend consistently. When he’s not playing computer games, he enjoys watching anime, playing table tennis, go-carting, and singing karaoke with his friends.
glory
- Name: Kenta Sato
- Team: N/A
- Division: Asia-Pacific: Group B
- Hometown: Yokohama, Japan
- Earnings: $21,750
Quote from BlizzardGlory, who was born and raised in Japan, started playing Hearthstone with a budget Mech Mage deck in January 2016. Glory has several impressive placements, including taking first place at the APAC Summer Playoffs. He loves anime and manga.
Standings
Americas | ||
---|---|---|
Group A | Overall W/L | Week 5 W/L |
1. Eddie | 9-3 | 2-0 |
2. Nalguidan | 8-4 | 1-1 |
3. Purple | 7-5 | 1-1 |
4. Gallon | 6-6 | 0-2 |
5. muzzy | 6-6 | 1-1 |
6. Firebat | 5-7 | 0-2 |
7. ETC | 4-8 | 2-0 |
8. StrifeCro | 3-9 | 1-1 |
Americas | ||
---|---|---|
Group B | Overall W/L | Week 5 W/L |
1. justsaiyan | 8-4 | 0-2 |
2. bloodyface | 8-4 | 2-0 |
3. Fr0zen | 7-5 | 1-1 |
4. Monsanto | 7-5 | 1-1 |
5. Amnesiac | 6-6 | 0-2 |
6. PNC ** | 5-7 | 2-0 |
7. Zalae | 4-8 | 1-1 |
8. Rase | 3-9 | 1-1 |
Europe | ||
---|---|---|
Group A | Overall W/L | Week 5 W/L |
1. Hunterace | 9-3 | 0-2 |
2. Kolento | 8-4 | 2-0 |
3. Thijs | 6-6 | 1-1 |
4. SilverName | 6-6 | 1-1 |
5. Rdu | 5-7 | 2-0 |
6. Swidz | 5-7 | 1-1 |
7. Orange | 5-7 | 0-2 |
8. Viper | 4-8 | 1-1 |
Europe | ||
---|---|---|
Group B | Overall W/L | Week 5 W/L |
1. Jarla | 8-4 | 0-2 |
2. Bunnyhopper | 8-4 | 0-2 |
3. Casie | 7-5 | 2-0 |
4. Pavel | 7-5 | 1-1 |
5. BoarControl | 6-6 | 1-1 |
6. Bozzzton | 5-7 | 1-1 |
7. Seiko | 4-8 | 2-0 |
8. Fenomeno ** | 3-9 | 1-1 |
Asia-Pacific | ||
---|---|---|
Group A | Overall W/L | Week 5 W/L |
1. che0nsu | 10-2 | 1-1 |
2. Shaxy | 7-5 | 1-1 |
3. Surrender ** | 7-5 | 2-0 |
4. Tyler | 6-6 | 1-1 |
5. SamuelTsao | 6-6 | 2-0 |
6. Flurry | 6-6 | 1-1 |
7. Ryvius | 5-7 | 0-2 |
8. Bloodtrail | 1-11 | 0-2 |
Asia-Pacific | ||
---|---|---|
Group B | Overall W/L | Week 5 W/L |
1. tom60229 | 8-4 | 1-1 |
2. glory | 8-4 | 1-1 |
3. Staz |
7-5 | 2-0 |
4. DawN | 7-5 | 0-2 |
5. Alutemu | 6-6 | 1-1 |
6. FroStee | 6-6 | 2-0 |
7. blitzchung | 4-8 | 1-1 |
8. Pathra | 2-10 | 0-2 |
Around the Fern
The 2nd installment of "Around the Fern" aired during this week's competition. Much like the Season 1 video featuring Frodan and Dog, it's worth a watch if you're a fan of deadpan comedy.
The overviews every week are very nice!
You got 2 packs free only for the playoffs not during the normal league matches.
yeah that's really BS .... last time 2 Packs, but this time, by just having the stream opened in a window, watching it from time to time when it's not a priest mirror, i'm at 10 packs since the event started (+2 coming this week end), that's a shame really, 10 more packs total ?????? what were they thinking ...
Europe group 1, anybody from Thijs to Viper can get relegated in next 3 days.
no one cares about playoffs
we want to see relegation DRAMA!
I wish they would adjust their Pack drop system.
Last week I got 3 Packs while others gotten none. One is good enough for me , it’s kinda annoying to see so many ppl spamming in chat they never got a pack. It would be smarter to split them even.
It would be a bit nicer if the number of packs would be tied to the number of watchers. 15.000 watchers => 1500 packs. 40.000 watchers => 4.000 packs.
I got 2 packs in 60h+ watching. Tbf, I really watched only few hours in total, Feels bad nonetheless :/
It would be nice
Farming time again (i wonder how many do watch the stream and dont just have it open muted while do anything else)