Praise Galakrond! Or don't, since its likely on the chopping block along with other overperforming Shaman cards in a balance patch scheduled for some time next week, as confirmed by the PlayHearthstone twitter.
Assuming it arrives on schedule, this will be the fastest balance change in Hearthstone history.
Quote From Blizzard We’re currently working on a balance update that will arrive within the next week containing adjustments for #DescentofDragons, including some changes aimed at Shaman.
Any cards that are affected will be given full arcane dust refunds. Stay tuned for more details next week.
Comments
I'm pretty sure C'Thun Warrior and Druid lasted whole expansion and everyone played them.
Oh yeah, I guess so. It's crazy to think that Old Gods was almost four years ago now. I have next to no memory of what that meta was like
I would like to see a nerf on Faceless Corruptor with stats closer to [Hearthstone Card (Oasis Surger) Not Found]. Like 5 mana 4/3.
It should be much worse than Oasis Surger because Oasis Surger is a class card
I mean, Faceless needs another minion to clone itself and don't have the Choose One versatility so a nerf to a 4/3 seems fair to me. And class card only adds a point to the "design pool".
I get why you think that, but I don't think that's the right view.
With your change, in the case where you're transforming a 1/1, you're getting 4/3 and 3/2 in stats for 5 mana. In terms of raw stats, that's basically the same as Oasis Surger, but you had to have a target to transform to get the value, so it makes some sense that the minor stat adjustment you've recommended would be fair - Faceless Corruptor now generates the same number of stats, but requires more set up.
But this view assumes that the transform is a drawback. If I'm already ahead on board, I have the opportunity to push face damage prior to the transformation, or to make a value trade before the transformation for extra board control.
In this way, the Faceless Corruptor problem runs much deeper than a minor stat line issue. It is inherently way too powerful in decks that play early, board-centric strategies (like Galakrond Shaman) - they get ahead on board, and then leverage this card to hold the board without having to lose any minions. It's this snowball effect that makes the card so unfair and puts it so far over the power curve of even class cards like Oasis Surger.
Consider Galakrond Deathrattle Rogue. It's very common to see those decks run one or two copies of Wisp because it activates Necrium Apothecary and Faceless Corruptor. While it's generally fun to see players revisit cards they wouldn't have thought to run before, the fact that running a card as far below the power curve as Wisp is a good strategy highlights just how far over the power curve Faceless Corruptor is as a neutral. We saw this same thing with Baku the Mooneater - its effect was so far above the power curve in certain classes that the right strategy was often to run cards which would historically be considered way too far below the curve to see play.
Of course, Faceless Corruptor is not nearly as degenerate as Baku the Mooneater, but it's having a similar effect of warping the metagame around it. It's strongest in decks that fight for early board control, Galakrond Shaman is the best deck at that today, and subsequently the massive Galakrond board swings mean the only decks that can compete are similarly swingy, board-centric decks like Galakrond Deathrattle Rogue. This warping has effectively crushed any serious control strategies, as they either run out of AOE, or don't have AOE available early enough to beat the swing turns.
Such a nice reply! As much as I can see the transform as an advantage for combat trading value if we are realistic I don't think a nerf beyond a Faceless for 6 Mana 5/4 or 5 Mana 4/3. If they push the nerf to a 3/3 I think the card would be left behind.
Yeah, you may be right that making it a 5 mana 3/3 (or something more extreme) will nerf it out of play, but I don't really have a problem with that.
The comparison Horus made to Corridor Creeper a couple of comments down from here is exactly right. It had some trade-offs built into it (had to draw it, had to trade stuff on your board), but ultimately it just acted as an easy pay-off for board-centric decks that warped the metagame. Blizzard solved that with a nerf so extreme it dropped it out of the metagame.
I'd love to see it as a 3/3 if anything because it would have the same statline as Faceless Manipulator, the card that inspired it.
On a sidenote: how retarded is Faceless Corruptor?
It's not a card. It's a brainfart.
A completely unnecessary one too.
What is the side-note?
Take my wife, please.
Each set have their lots of broken cards that see too much play until adjusted by Blizz in the following weeks of a release.This one is simply the Corridor Creeper of its expansion, if you will.
Corridor Creeper is a very apt comparison - they need to nerf Faceless Corruptor out of existence they way they did Corridor Creeper
This is a good new! Shaman feels too much powerful right now; it's strong versus everything but shirvallah paladin and the mirror matches are decided by the first player that play Galakrond.
After the first few hours of release was already boring
The Shaman decks also lose to Zoolocks. The Invoke cards having the ol' Odd Paladin effect in Warlock generating two 1/1 imps can help push damage quick. I haven't played a lot of Zoolock just yet, but I've beat every Shaman I faced with the deck. Doesn't mean Shaman doesn't need balance, but it's another option if you're finding nothing but Shaman opponents.
Don't worry guys, Blizzard will nerf Flametongue Totem to 4 Mana :)
They had better not forget to nerf Hex to 5 mana as well.
Imagine a 2 mana flametongue totem in this meta though
Obviously to 5, you can't make it even. that's the problem.
no! MY ODD SHAMAN will get nerfed!