I feel like this should probably be a Dormant minion.
I get where you're coming from, but a Dormant minion wouldn't fit the flavor of holding the line until a hero comes to save the day, like Gandalf in The Return of the King. It's not like Blizzard hasn't printed very similar cards implemented with different mechanics (like Feral Spirit VS Saronite Chain Gang).
I'll probably try to think something else, because I think many people could have similar criticism, but I wanted to explain the reasoning behind it.
Feedback:
linkblade91
The first three cards are very solid, but I think my favorite one is Sigil of Momentum. Effects that allow you to keep something from previous turns are always very original and interesting.
Demonxz95
Voodoo Grounds is a bit too on the nose. I think I prefer Icewing Bunker.
BasilAnguis
I really like Pacifism, very flavorful and interesting. It should probably cost 1, since your opponent can also take advantage of it.
I'd also remove the Alterac watermark from both Pacifism and Cover Fire: all Objective cards in this expansion are Rare, depict a place and last exactly 3 turns. These cards feel a bit out of place in this context, but in another expansion they would be fine.
BloodMefist
I really appreciate the pun in Rain of Chaos, but the text looks too crammed. Massive Hoard is also cool, so I'd go with it.
Aerojulwin
I really like the core idea behind Arcane Insight. However, it looks very weak. Yeah, it costs 0, but it doesn't give you card advantage, you need to build around it and takes several turns to pay off.
I'd personally drop the second part and make it last 3 turns by default. Maybe the cost should be risen to 1 in this case, but I don't think it would be necessary.
This was exactly my question when I read that! I do expect the Dragon Aspects will stay in the game - can't very well have a Nozdormu day without Nozdormu, and those Dragons have been a central part of Hearthstone for a long time.
Of the other new cards, there aren't a ton you couldn't live without. Illidari Inquisitor is the one most relevant to any deck's win condition, while some like Nordrassil Druid and Crimson Clergy never really took off. Most of the ones that do see some play (e.g. Thrive in the Shadows, Bloodsail Deckhand, Taelan Fordring) could probably still see play in Wild after rotation, but aren't strictly necessary for the decks they'd support.
Id add Gan'arg Glaivesmith to that aswell (espcially if rotational unerfs happen again) for odd dh.
Mini update: I reached level 150 and Legend in Wild along the way. Now waiting for the new patch with bugfixes and the upcoming mini-set, hopefully arriving soon™
Dont expect the miniset to arrive anytime soon. we will probably get a BG patch in a week or 2 and if it hold up the miniset mid or late february.
Arena is yet another unworkable relic of Hearthstone's attempt to emulate physical card games. They wanted a draft mode, but they couldn't figure out how to do an actual draft, so we got this abomination. It needs to be rebuilt from the ground up.
IIRC it sounded like they were finally considering going there without waiting to add monks. Either way Pandaria looks to be some way off still, but it might offer more hope for it appearing in 2023 than if we had to wait for the monk class.
It's a shame they put it off for so long. We went to Icecrown without any wait for a DK class, and Pandaria is probably more interesting in many ways since we see the scourge all over the place, while most things in Pandaria are unique to that land.
Boy we really underestimated this one, didn't we? Who would have thought that something as slow and greedy as this could not only spawn but also carry an entirely new archetype.
I am only a casual Arena player, playing only from time to time recently.
Arena offers something unique comparing to all other game modes. Drafting and trading actually matters (which was so core to Hearthstone experience for quite some time).
Currently many people complain about crazy Combo decks in Constructed modes. I'm afraid that's just the direction HS is going, whether we like it or not.
In Arena, those Combo decks are not existent (Yes, sometimes crazy Combo happens, but not that often). So it offers something different comparing to Constructed.
Except... Arena has it's own problems, mainly - 1. Not regular enough balancing, 2. Crazy power level differences between some cards (creates unfun moments and increases the feeling of being hopeless).
So it's a real shame, I agree. Arena does not need that much workforce to maintain it and keep in reasonable balance state...
And yet, Team5 somehow can't deliver even that.
Despite many years of non-existent balancing, Arena survived, and keeps some dedicated playerbase.
This was exactly my question when I read that! I do expect the Dragon Aspects will stay in the game - can't very well have a Nozdormu day without Nozdormu, and those Dragons have been a central part of Hearthstone for a long time.
Of the other new cards, there aren't a ton you couldn't live without. Illidari Inquisitor is the one most relevant to any deck's win condition, while some like Nordrassil Druid and Crimson Clergy never really took off. Most of the ones that do see some play (e.g. Thrive in the Shadows, Bloodsail Deckhand, Taelan Fordring) could probably still see play in Wild after rotation, but aren't strictly necessary for the decks they'd support.
I'd say this is more likely part of a upcoming Lunar New Year Bundle. Iksar mentioned that they are saving the Pandarian Theme for when they eventually release a Monk class and (in a different Q&A) that they are currently not working on a new class.
Excellent headline, team! I got quite the kick out of it.
I also like that Blizz is figuring out Battlegrounds cosmetics (like the board) that you can enjoy every game, not just when you happen to roll a particular hero.
Hot take: cards made for the core set that are rotating away should be purchasable as a miniset for Wild. Maybe not for a 2000 gold price, those aren't worth that much, but this way, both parties win. Blizzard gets money/a gold sink, and players don't have to craft those cards. They can't be opened in packs anyway.
Its likely entangled together with additional balancing issues, and the fact that they'd have to nail dhunters right or otherwise it just turns into either an overpowered mess or a class aping another class. The decision on the hero power alone would probably make a 2 hour documentary.
So I'd understand if they wanted to make it temporary, because then the design work becomes simpler. Overpowered or underpowered, its all temporary, and as diablo has shown, you might not even need to bother creating new cards to make it a success.
"...Mission failed, we'll get them next time! Well, at least we tried. The North America site will be taken down as we had zero participants to the Shaman bogs last Sunday!! After giving it some thought though, we are to make an effort to keep our Class master tournament open worldwide. In order to do this we will have to have another meeting with the guys from 121gameon.com so we set some things straight and maybe make some changes on their site too in order to make what we want possible. We can't guarantee that we will be successful for now but we surely want to try! Word has it that someone or some players tried to join the Shaman Bogs but were met with a message that was saying that they had not sufficient decks in order to participate! So we want to have a closer look on what caused this problem there.
Until then, please have a visit to our European site (to be worldwide?) and enjoy your stroll in our new environment! Read the rules and get charmed! ...The winter of '22 tournament is about to start!"
Most difficult might have been whether to make Demon Hunter temporary or permanent.
Wow, I didn't even know this was a decision they'd consider. I understand the additional class means less neutral cards printed and in essence the game got slightly more expensive with 2 additional class legendries but I'm glad they kept DH, or we wouldn't have all those different Kurtrus'
If they actually removed cards from the core set and properly retire those cards, I'll have to say Im more than okay with it. The fact is that most TCGs out there have loads of cards that are either underpowered or practically carbon copies of others, which is why often enough those cards are retired away. Since core cards aren't bought or earned, there's no conflict here about losing value.
Yes, we might lose some real gems, like Alexstrasza the Life-Binder or Taelan Fordring, but with that will come new cards. And these cards aren't gone for life, just for the year. They might come back later, slightly tweaked or otherwise.
Quest Trading - Play A Friend!
Battletag: CalmUp5#2761
Region: EU
Trade Only?: Yes, you first
Counting On You - Card Design Competition Discussion Thread
Congrats
Keep On Ticking - Card Design Competition Discussion Thread
I get where you're coming from, but a Dormant minion wouldn't fit the flavor of holding the line until a hero comes to save the day, like Gandalf in The Return of the King. It's not like Blizzard hasn't printed very similar cards implemented with different mechanics (like Feral Spirit VS Saronite Chain Gang).
I'll probably try to think something else, because I think many people could have similar criticism, but I wanted to explain the reasoning behind it.
Feedback:
I'd also remove the Alterac watermark from both Pacifism and Cover Fire: all Objective cards in this expansion are Rare, depict a place and last exactly 3 turns. These cards feel a bit out of place in this context, but in another expansion they would be fine.
I'd personally drop the second part and make it last 3 turns by default. Maybe the cost should be risen to 1 in this case, but I don't think it would be necessary.
Dean Ayala's Hearthstone Q&A Recap #37 - Nazjatar, Arena Balance, Big Changes for Core Set, Developer Podcast Idea
Id add Gan'arg Glaivesmith to that aswell (espcially if rotational unerfs happen again) for odd dh.
Rewards Track Progress: 4.0
Any news on these damned bug fixes?
Well this thread didn't age well :D
Arena Balance in Hearthstone Being Rethought After Tian Ding Left Blizzard
It's just sad to me that a billion dollar company cant afford to devote 1 person to manage a game mode that costs players money (gold) to play.
Dean Ayala's Hearthstone Q&A Recap #37 - Nazjatar, Arena Balance, Big Changes for Core Set, Developer Podcast Idea
I'm willing to let Demon Hunter rotate out. Blizzard, you have my permission.
Arena Balance in Hearthstone Being Rethought After Tian Ding Left Blizzard
Arena is yet another unworkable relic of Hearthstone's attempt to emulate physical card games. They wanted a draft mode, but they couldn't figure out how to do an actual draft, so we got this abomination. It needs to be rebuilt from the ground up.
Hearthstone Battlegrounds Might be Getting a New Jade-themed Board - Jade Gardens
IIRC it sounded like they were finally considering going there without waiting to add monks. Either way Pandaria looks to be some way off still, but it might offer more hope for it appearing in 2023 than if we had to wait for the monk class.
It's a shame they put it off for so long. We went to Icecrown without any wait for a DK class, and Pandaria is probably more interesting in many ways since we see the scourge all over the place, while most things in Pandaria are unique to that land.
New Hunter Minion - Wing Commander Ichman
Boy we really underestimated this one, didn't we? Who would have thought that something as slow and greedy as this could not only spawn but also carry an entirely new archetype.
Arena Balance in Hearthstone Being Rethought After Tian Ding Left Blizzard
In all honesty, seeing over the years that they don't want to dedicate any people to Arena, feels very sad.
The only reasonable solution in this situation is to introduce some kind of auto-balancing mechanism.
Set some rules, set timelines for balancing (to have some time to collect data).
For example, after 3 days, 7 days, 30 days, 60 days of an expansion, auto balancing happens.
And then, just let someone check from time to time, if there are no bugs, if something isn't broken.
Counting On You - Card Design Competition Discussion Thread
Yeah, tends to happen.
Thing you put hours of effort and thought behind? Barely any traction.
Thing you made on a whim, barely thinking about? 10 MILLION VIEWS!
Congrats either way!
Arena Balance in Hearthstone Being Rethought After Tian Ding Left Blizzard
I am only a casual Arena player, playing only from time to time recently.
Arena offers something unique comparing to all other game modes. Drafting and trading actually matters (which was so core to Hearthstone experience for quite some time).
Currently many people complain about crazy Combo decks in Constructed modes. I'm afraid that's just the direction HS is going, whether we like it or not.
In Arena, those Combo decks are not existent (Yes, sometimes crazy Combo happens, but not that often). So it offers something different comparing to Constructed.
Except... Arena has it's own problems, mainly - 1. Not regular enough balancing, 2. Crazy power level differences between some cards (creates unfun moments and increases the feeling of being hopeless).
So it's a real shame, I agree. Arena does not need that much workforce to maintain it and keep in reasonable balance state...
And yet, Team5 somehow can't deliver even that.
Despite many years of non-existent balancing, Arena survived, and keeps some dedicated playerbase.
Dean Ayala's Hearthstone Q&A Recap #37 - Nazjatar, Arena Balance, Big Changes for Core Set, Developer Podcast Idea
Absolutely based and birdpilled.
Dean Ayala's Hearthstone Q&A Recap #37 - Nazjatar, Arena Balance, Big Changes for Core Set, Developer Podcast Idea
This was exactly my question when I read that! I do expect the Dragon Aspects will stay in the game - can't very well have a Nozdormu day without Nozdormu, and those Dragons have been a central part of Hearthstone for a long time.
Of the other new cards, there aren't a ton you couldn't live without. Illidari Inquisitor is the one most relevant to any deck's win condition, while some like Nordrassil Druid and Crimson Clergy never really took off. Most of the ones that do see some play (e.g. Thrive in the Shadows, Bloodsail Deckhand, Taelan Fordring) could probably still see play in Wild after rotation, but aren't strictly necessary for the decks they'd support.
Hearthstone Battlegrounds Might be Getting a New Jade-themed Board - Jade Gardens
I'd say this is more likely part of a upcoming Lunar New Year Bundle. Iksar mentioned that they are saving the Pandarian Theme for when they eventually release a Monk class and (in a different Q&A) that they are currently not working on a new class.
New Finisher Animations in Hearthstone Battlegrounds Adds Outstanding Flair to Smacking Your Opponent's Face
Excellent headline, team! I got quite the kick out of it.
I also like that Blizz is figuring out Battlegrounds cosmetics (like the board) that you can enjoy every game, not just when you happen to roll a particular hero.
Good moves all around.
Dean Ayala's Hearthstone Q&A Recap #37 - Nazjatar, Arena Balance, Big Changes for Core Set, Developer Podcast Idea
There actually is a two parted documentary about the DH creation (1 | 2). Some of the Heropowers they tried include:
2 Mana: Deal 2 damage to a minion and your hero
2 Mana: Gain +1 attack and ignore Taunt this turn
2 Mana: Gain +1 attack (can be used twice each turn)
2 Mana: Gain +1 attack (attacking generates Fury) | Fury used to be a DH exclusive ressource
The current 1 mana gain +1 attack was also originally scrapped earlier in development and later revisited after the other failed attempts.
Dean Ayala's Hearthstone Q&A Recap #37 - Nazjatar, Arena Balance, Big Changes for Core Set, Developer Podcast Idea
Hot take: cards made for the core set that are rotating away should be purchasable as a miniset for Wild. Maybe not for a 2000 gold price, those aren't worth that much, but this way, both parties win. Blizzard gets money/a gold sink, and players don't have to craft those cards. They can't be opened in packs anyway.
Dean Ayala's Hearthstone Q&A Recap #37 - Nazjatar, Arena Balance, Big Changes for Core Set, Developer Podcast Idea
Its likely entangled together with additional balancing issues, and the fact that they'd have to nail dhunters right or otherwise it just turns into either an overpowered mess or a class aping another class. The decision on the hero power alone would probably make a 2 hour documentary.
So I'd understand if they wanted to make it temporary, because then the design work becomes simpler. Overpowered or underpowered, its all temporary, and as diablo has shown, you might not even need to bother creating new cards to make it a success.
Arena Balance in Hearthstone Being Rethought After Tian Ding Left Blizzard
As an arena player i am definitely biased here, but i don't understand why they cannot dedicate someone to take care of arena balancing.
From my understanding this doesn't even have to be a full time job, maybe someone of the team works 2 days of the week on arena.
The base tools for this seem to already exist and Tian Ding doesn't seem to have worked on those exclusively either, but did his own job too.
Its a shame that arena is often just an afterthought to the team, when it has a really dedicated player base.
The Hearthstone Class Master Championship (tournament test runs)
NA MISSION FAILED!
"...Mission failed, we'll get them next time! Well, at least we tried. The North America site will be taken down as we had zero participants to the Shaman bogs last Sunday!! After giving it some thought though, we are to make an effort to keep our Class master tournament open worldwide. In order to do this we will have to have another meeting with the guys from 121gameon.com so we set some things straight and maybe make some changes on their site too in order to make what we want possible. We can't guarantee that we will be successful for now but we surely want to try! Word has it that someone or some players tried to join the Shaman Bogs but were met with a message that was saying that they had not sufficient decks in order to participate! So we want to have a closer look on what caused this problem there.
Until then, please have a visit to our European site (to be worldwide?) and enjoy your stroll in our new environment! Read the rules and get charmed! ...The winter of '22 tournament is about to start!"
Dean Ayala's Hearthstone Q&A Recap #37 - Nazjatar, Arena Balance, Big Changes for Core Set, Developer Podcast Idea
Wow, I didn't even know this was a decision they'd consider. I understand the additional class means less neutral cards printed and in essence the game got slightly more expensive with 2 additional class legendries but I'm glad they kept DH, or we wouldn't have all those different Kurtrus'
Dean Ayala's Hearthstone Q&A Recap #37 - Nazjatar, Arena Balance, Big Changes for Core Set, Developer Podcast Idea
If they actually removed cards from the core set and properly retire those cards, I'll have to say Im more than okay with it. The fact is that most TCGs out there have loads of cards that are either underpowered or practically carbon copies of others, which is why often enough those cards are retired away. Since core cards aren't bought or earned, there's no conflict here about losing value.
Yes, we might lose some real gems, like Alexstrasza the Life-Binder or Taelan Fordring, but with that will come new cards. And these cards aren't gone for life, just for the year. They might come back later, slightly tweaked or otherwise.