Custom Expansion - The Trials Within Us

The first of three proposed expansions for my entry in the Timestream Tracking Year-Competition, The Trials Within Us has been a work in progress since I first began creating custom cards. I was brainstorming "Trial" cards long before they were ever called that lol. Know that this expansion is intended to exist *before* the Year of the Dragon, based on when the Competition took place.

In The Burdens of Shaohao animated video series, Emperor Shaohao gained enlightenment and saved Pandaria from The Great Sundering by overcoming the Sha - manifestations of negative emotions - that burdened his soul and held him back. The Trials Within Us tells nine separate tales of defeating one's personal demons and tackling adversity.

Trials and Tribulations

Each class has a Trial card, a new type of card that plays like a reverse-Quest: you are granted an immediate and lasting benefit, but a heavy Burden is placed upon you. That Burden takes the form of an on-going penalty or a rule you must follow. These Trials reference various events across Warcraft's timeline, including the orcs taking Mannoroth's Blood-curse within themselves and Kael'thas' journey to sate the Blood Elves' addiction to magic.

Trial cards do not cost mana, because they are played automatically at the start of the game. They take up space in your deck initially, but they cannot be drawn or generated and they remove themselves from your deck upon activation, after the mulligan.

A reminder for the Burden takes the form of a purple gem, just like the orange gem for Quests. They have unique names, art, and card text, but they are not something that can be held in your hand like a token.

A Note on Set Rotation

In creating an entire Year, we were tasked to consider rotating certain cards to Wild, much like Blizzard would do come every April. I decided to rotate Divine Favor, Preparation, and Gadgetzan Auctioneer to the Hall of Fame. Divine Favor was a problem at the time (and can easily become one again), while the other two were removed from Standard to force open the Rogue class and eliminate her dependence on them. Preparation has shaped the Rogue class since the game's inception, warping every class card around it, while the Auctioneer would become heavily broken with the Rogue's new means of Coin generation.

Each Class Tells A Story

In addition to their Trial card, each class is also represented by a specific Sha - Hatred, Arrogance, Doubt, etc. - and the archetypes the Trials inspire are reflective of them and what it might require of you as a person to overcome that negative quality. By mastering your personal demons, you can benefit in ways that would have crippled you otherwise.

The Druid

The Druid's Sha is Fear: A dark force seeks to consume the Emerald Dream from within. When a mortal has become corrupted by the Nightmare, there is no return; only death will set them free.

Intended Archetype: "Feral" Mid-Range Druid. Minions clear a path for your hero, using cards like Claw, Bite, and the new additions to buff your hero's attack power and finish off your opponent. Conversely, you can use the double damage to kill enemy minions with your face and leave your board healthy.

Story Legendary - Xavius, Nightmare Lord. The first of the Satyrs, Xavius was a powerful magic user before being transformed by N'Zoth, the Corruptor. Xavius would manipulate his puppet, Fandral Staghelm, into corrupting Teladrassil the World Tree, thereby corrupting the Emerald Dream and Ysera from within.

The Hunter

The Hunter's Sha is Hatred: Her desire for vengeance pushes Alleria beyond the Dark Portal. She will come to know a thousand years of war, in the Twisting Nether.

Intended Archetype: Even Sniper/Inspire Hunter. Paired with Genn Greymane (who would have been in Standard at the time), the Trial gives you a permanent Steamwheedle Sniper effect to help you control the board. It seems Blizzard and I had the same idea, with cards like Dragonbane and Dwarven Sharpshooter that we're getting in Descent of Dragons :P

Story Legendary: Alleria Windrunner. Once the ranger-captain of Silvermoon, Alleria led her rangers on an expedition into the Twisting Nether. Now members of the Army of the Light, from their perspective a thousand years passed before they reappeared on Azeroth for the final battle against the Burning Legion. After absorbing the power of a dark naaru, Alleria became the first of the Void Elves.

The Mage

The Mage's Sha is Gluttony: Dependent on the power of the Sunwell for centuries, the "Blood Elves" are addicted to magic. What lengths will they go to sate their appetite?

Intended Archetype: Deathrattle Burn Mage. Defending yourself with Deathrattle minions while stockpiling fuel; preparation for a turn where you can kill off a bunch of minions and then unload the spells with a Dragon's Breath/Solemn Vigil-like effect. Kael'thas Sunstrider gives you the fuel, and Verdant Sphere gives you the additional punch for lethal.

Story Legendary: Kael'thas Sunstrider. Once the Prince of Quel'Thalas, Kael'thas allied his people with Illidan Stormrage to quell their addiction to magic after the loss of the Sunwell. Kael'thas later betrayed Illidan and joined the Burning Legion, with promises that the demon lord Kil'jaeden would save the Blood Elves from their plight. He would eventually be defeated by the Shattered Sun Offensive.

The Paladin

The Paladin's Sha is Despair: Enslaved by the Iron Horde, their leader lost, her people betrayed; Yrel will take it upon herself to lead the draenei into the Light. One could lose hope walking such a lonely road...

Intended Archetype: 1-vs-Many Control Paladin/Healadin. The Trial states you can only ever have one minion, meaning you must maximize the value gained from every minion played. Healing, defensive spells, and high-Health Taunt walls combine to outlast the opponent's resources, emphasizing the ultimate fantasy expression of the Paladin character (an unstoppable badass fighting evil).

Story Legendary: Yrel, Light of Hope. One of the main protagonists of Warlords of Draenor, Yrel comes from the other version of Azeroth dominated by the Iron Horde. A priestess enslaved by orcs, she would become a formidable fighter alongside the Alliance. After the death of Velen and various betrayals from her own people, Yrel would take it upon herself to become leader of the draenei.

The Priest

The Priest's Sha is Arrogance: "I consume the essence of the weak and foolish," the blade whispers in your mind. "You're not weak...are you?" Only the mad would dare wield such an artifact.

Intended Archetype: Shadow Face Priest, an attempt to kill the enemy with sheer power before you kill yourself. I imagine a constant, dramatic juggling of one's Health total as the Priest heals back the self-inflicted damage...or not, if they choose to go all-in. The ultimate expression of the Shadowform playstyle.

Story Legendary: Xal'atath, (Blade) of the Black Empire. An artifact used by shadow priests, Xal'atath is a sentient weapon that is said to be a claw of N'Zoth, the Corruptor himself. Wielders of the blade must be wary of its whispers, for it speaks of nothing but lies and madness.

The Rogue

The Rogue's Sha is Zeal: The Defias Brotherhood want what they're owed...but ambition will be their undoing. Revolutions demand attention, and that's exactly what they'll get.

Intended Archetype: Coin Combo Rogue. With the loss of Preparation, the Rogue is allowed access to new board control elements that would be otherwise impossible, in the form of Insanity Bomb. The archetype includes new ways to generate Coins and interact with them in various ways. Malygos combined with Coin-Flipper and/or Vengeance can make for a powerful finisher, turning the Coins into Fireballs and the Sinister Strikes into Flame Lances to the face.

Story Legendary: Vanessa VanCleef. The daughter of Edwin VanCleef, and his successor as head of the Defias Brotherhood. While not a super-skilled fighter, she is a master of poisons, especially those that cause hallucinations. After adventurers stormed her stronghold and "killed" her, Vanessa easily escaped, as the adventurers' minds were blinded by her neurotoxins.

The Shaman

The Shaman's Sha is Doubt: Doubt can paralyze the mind and Freeze the body, prior failures haunting one's thoughts like apparitions. How does one escape such a prison?

Intended Archetype: Freeze-Wall Shaman. Because your minions are cheaper, you can play the value game by dropping larger minions before your opponent can. Uniting a defensive force that can provide value without having to attack right away (to get around the Freeze), the ultimate goal is to stall out your opponent until they run out of resources. This includes Taunts, Deathrattles, and auras.

Story Legendary: Aggralan. Thrall's Life-Mate, she was originally tasked with teaching Thrall the traditional shaman ways. She would become a great ally, staying with Thrall while he suffered many trying tasks as leader of the Horde. When an agent of the Twilight Hammer struck Thrall with dark magic, it was Aggralan's power that restored his mind. They have multiple children together.

The Warlock

The Warlock's Sha is Violence: Binding his soul to the Burning Legion, Gul'dan will know power and blood as Darkness Incarnate. The Legion is infinite; their tolerance for failure is not.

Intended Archetype: Token Handlock. Pushing Handlock in a different direction than simply using Mountain Giants or Twilight Drakes. The end result is a wider board, to emphasize the fantasy of the infinite Burning Legion. Kil'jaeden serves as a powerful finisher, destroying all of your other minions in a reckless attempt to end the game.

Story Legendary: Kil'jaeden, Lord of Flame. Second in command of the Burning Legion under the Dark Titan Sargeras, Kil'jaeden's primary purpose was to assimilate other races into the Legion's armies. Creator of the undead Scourge, he commanded the Lich King to overrun the living and weaken their defenses against future Legion invasion.

The Warrior

The Warrior's Sha is Anger: In pursuit of strength, the orcs submit themselves to Mannoroth's Blood-curse. However, rage is a double-edged sword; will the fire consume them as well?

Intended Archetype: Mid-Range Attack Warrior. Focused on chunking the enemy's Health with an army of strong, expendable minions...but not in the traditional Aggro sense. This archetype would double as one that benefits from self-damage, pairing it with cards such as Rotface and Acolyte of Pain. A new spin on Enrage (now that Enrage is gone lel).

Story Legendary: Mannoroth, the Destructor. Leader of the Pit Lords, third in command of the Legion's armies under Archimonde and Kil'jaeden, he would lead the first invasion of Azeroth. Drinking the blood of Mannoroth, the twelve clans of the Draenor orc Horde would eventually succumb to his corruption, turning their skin green and filling them with a seemingly-uncontrollable rage.

Neutral

Other

You'll need to change the name of Penance now that Penance from Saviors of Uldum exists.

But I'm excited to see this.

Quote From juda

tldr

What were you expecting from a custom expansion

Quote From shatterstar1998

YESSSSSS. I've been a fan of this expansion since day one. Very excited to see where you're going with this. A few balance concern:

Thanks for the words :) I took all three of your suggestions under advisement!

All class cards are completed...at least, they exist in first-draft form. I'm the least confident with the Rogue and Shaman sets; any additional feedback would be greatly appreciated!

Ha, and now I can FCS this (although it possibly wouldn't happen until the beginning of 2020).

Made some changes based on the Discord feedback, namely adding some spells into the Shaman and Warlock.

Quote From PopeNeia

Lots of cool ideas! I like most of them, particularly Priest’s one. (Shadowform always was a cool, but underpowered deck)

However, some burdens like the Warrior’s one is literally unplayable. That is way too much drawback for a mere +2 attack.

Yeah...the Warrior's Burden has gone up and down quite a few times, as I'm unsure as-to the balance of it. Without testing, I can only guess. I'll give it another look.

Thank you for your feedback :)

I added all Neutral legendaries to the set. There are 7, which is two more than normal, but I wanted to fit all of them in: Emperor Shaohao is important to the set, and I figure the August Celestials that guided him during The Burdens of Shaohao would be similarly important. And I added Chen because I could lel.

Not super sure about their balance, or if they even really need to exist at all. I tried to match each card's effect to their purpose as a Celestial: Xuen = Strength, Niuzao = Fortitude, Chi-ji = Hope, and Yu'lon = Growth. Whether that translates well remains to be seen.

Quote From juda

tldr

I'll have you know I added Spoilers to ease the length of the thread. It's still long, but what can you expect: there are 100 cards here lol.

Anyway, I think I'm done with the expansion for now: the Neutral Epics, Rares, and Commons remain, but I don't feel particularly enthused to complete them at the moment.

Quote From CivilKobold

Chi-Ji seems pretty crazy +1/+1 to Healbot for 7 extra Health, guaranteed since it turns to Armor as well.

Hmm...I was hoping Chi-Ji would be about the same, since you can only have one of the Legendary versus two of Antique Healbot...plus the game has come a long way since the days of Healbot, in terms of power-level. I can always tone down her effect.

In the Warrior section, I replaced "War With Everyone" with "Raise the Stakes". I think this archetype would rather punch their way out of problems, versus blowing up the board with an arguably-worse Shadowflame.

Quote From shatterstar1998

Wait. How did you manage to restore not only the threads but also the comments too? Everything wasn't there just couple of days ago.

I....don't know? lol. I Google'd my project to see if I could locate it on HearthPwn, and instead found it here. I guess the content isn't "gone", so much as a question of knowing exactly where to look for it.

Now we could keep this version for the old expansion and the new thread for the rebooted set.

On that note, let's get more attention to these custom sets!