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BlizzConline - Hearthstone Chat and Opening Ceremony - What's Next?

We are hours away from the BlizzConline Opening Ceremony, at 2pm PT/ 5pm ET/ 23:00 CET. We will live recap it in this very post, so keep an eye on it if you want to keep up. We have already gotten some teasers about what we can expect to hear about, so check them out below if you haven't yet.

For tonight's full schedule see our post from last week with all the details as well as a link to the official site.

Otherwise, just use this post to comment with your thoughts and ideas about what's coming! Let's get HYPE!

The Live Recap of the Opening Ceremony

Join us for the Live recap of the Opening Cermony!

• BlizzConline started with a long cinematic about 30 years Blizzard!
• J. Allen Brack takes the stage and adresses us about the last year, and how the last year has meant that even though we are apart physically that we are still united by games.
• J. Allen Brack is proud of his colleagues for how they managed to still keep working through the challenges and deliver.
• He now mentions some aspects of Esports of the different Blizzard games.
• To the games!
• Blizzard Arcade Collection: Lost Vikings, Rock and Roll Racing and Blackthorn. Now in definitive editions!
• FREE for anyone that bought an Anniversary bundle!
• World of Warcraft!
• Shadowlands: Chains of Domination will be the next big patch in Retail.
• We see an AMAZING cinematic where Anduin is not who we thought he is and is about to bring about a terrible fate for the world of Azeroth!
• Charity Pet Program: New way to donate. Everyone can donate what they want, or not, and still everyone will get the new pet. If the stretch goal for donations is reached, we get a second pet!
• Bananas and Digsy are the pets!
• Classic: Burning Crusade is the next Classic adventure.
• Coming in 2021! Beta starting soon.
• Every Classic character will get the choice to go to Burning Crusade or to stay in Classic.
• Diablo
• New Playable Class in Diablo 4: Rogue
• Diablo 2: Resurrected. Remastered version!
• Coming to PC and consoles.
• Full HD remaster of both the main game and the expansion. All cinematics remastered as well.
• J Allen Brack thanks us for being Blizzard gamers and hopes we will have epic gaming experiences far into the future.
• That's it for the Opening Ceremony!
• The Opening Ceremony closes with METALLICA!

• Hearthstone!
• New Year: Year of the Gryphon
• Standard will get a Core set. Totally free and with 29 new cards.
• Ysera changed to a Battlecry for all her cards.
• Malygos now a Battlecry that gives you spells.
• Deathwing, still clears the board, but only discards a card for every minion removed.
• New Expansion: Forged in the Barrens
• Set in the Barrens, we get to meet characters there.
• New Legendary: Shadow Hunter Vol'jin. FREE for everyone on log in.
• FREE: 30 years of Blizzard Card Back
• New Key Word: Frenzy: First time your minion takes damage and survives, this triggers.
• New spells, that upgrade at 5 and 10 Mana.
• Alliance will get content later this year!
• New Game mode: Hearthstone Mercaneries: Build teams of some of the most iconic heroes and villains.
• Level them, give them gear and maybe even evolve them into more powerful versions.
• Launches later this year!

A Leak

A short while ago a new Logo popped up on Reddit, which seems inline with earlier leaks to suggest that the name of the expansion will be "Forged in the Barrens". Come discuss the evidence in our dedicated Expansion post!

Teaser video

World of Warcraft Loading Screen

This is the loading screen for the Razorfen Downs dungeon in World of Warcraft. It looks eerily similar to imagery in the teaser video above.

Teaser Tweet

Where will the Hearthstone clock land after the Year of the Phoenix? ✨

Tune-in to #BlizzConline on February 19 - 20 to learn about the upcoming year! pic.twitter.com/x8JOq4dX44

— Hearthstone (@PlayHearthstone) February 18, 2021