I wouldn't mind it going back to 3 mana, perhaps at the cost of lower stats. But this is me only speaking from a wild POV.
Dapperdog is right that prenerf it was far too efficient for standard.
For now though, bomb warrior is a good counter to all the reno priests. It can also play defensively so its matchup against all the kingsbane rogues and darkglare warlocks isn't bad either.
The new one drop from Targon Gift Giver, might be worth running in a nightfall deck, with the gem it can also work as an activator on two diferent turns.
Albatross is sure a good tech against highlander decks, but the problem with it reside in the fact that it is also efficient against class that don't have good card draw for instance shaman, priest or paladin.
Some classes have no good card draw? -> To the library!
Only aggro decks can go the library :-)
Only hyper aggressive decks with an extremely low curve can go to the library.
maybe a 3 mana 2/4 or 2/5 to give opp time to answer, but honestly if they print another OP highlander card/ set it's just going to get worse. Maybe it's time all classes received answers like beneath the grounds.
Albatross is sure a good tech against highlander decks, but the problem with it reside in the fact that it is also efficient against class that don't have good card draw for instance shaman, priest or paladin.
Some classes have no good card draw? -> To the library!
Albatros was nerfed because it was a tech card against all decks. It felt all decks had to have it because it made your opponents decks significantly worse when played, without a downside.
On its face, Lunari Duskbringer does seem to pull the whole Nightfall deck together. But I'm still not convinced it's going to work. Given the curve of Nightfall cards we've seen so far, here's basically how you'd imagine the idealized play turn by turn:
Stygian Onlooker for early game damage before your opponent can put up a defense against Fearsome
Duskrider to finish the enemy off thanks to Nocturne's lining up fearsome attacks
Of course, the problem here is that every one of these cards needs to be the second card you play, so you need lots of cheap activators. Lunari Duskbringer is a 3-of in that deck, and can act as two activators if you draw it, but you can't rely on it alone to consistently curve out your Nightfall cards. Maybe Fading Memories helps get you over the line of this, but the core problem is still that the archetype looks like an aggro deck that plays a turn behind curve by design. You could always run the archetype with Bilgewater for access to more good cheap starting plays, but then you lose out on the valuable Targon activators.
Mayba Diana makes this all worth it, but it seems clunky regardless of Lunari Duskbringer
Albatros at 4 is a dead card but most people don't like Albatros at 3. I personally never minded old Albatros. If i was getting rekt at least it was by a cute card
I just fear there might be a disappointment from people if they try those decks and they are 8+ stars players. Talking with my friends I found out there are sometimes absolute trash decks dominating those ranks, just cause people can't handle aggro well or don't understand resource management needed for more complicated decks.
I think the article is fine. Really. I'm in a same boat. I want to use some legendaries that I got, but are out of the meta. But I do understand what I'm getting into. Like struggling 40% winrate.
I would argue the Albatross at (4) is still a good way to counter Reno decks, if that's what you want to do. Tech cards shouldn't also be great against everything else. They should be a bit sub-par but still OK in those match-ups, and that's exactly where the Albatross is.
You have to keep in mind how cut-throat the definition of a 'good' card is to most players, with anything not currently seeing play in a high tier deck labelled as 'bad' or often 'unplayable', when in reality they are good in certain metas but almost nobody thinks to try them again if they were from more than 1 expansion ago. Occasionally they are tried out and then suddenly the community that has been calling them garbage for years thinks they're amazing (see Vanish for a good example).
Albatross is sure a good tech against highlander decks, but the problem with it reside in the fact that it is also efficient against class that don't have good card draw for instance shaman, priest or paladin.
Some classes have no good card draw? -> To the library!
No. While I sympathize with you over the reno decks, albatross had the nasty side effect of basically jamming classes with no card draw. At least the bombs would simply draw you the next card, those birds are a pure 1 mana 1/1 menace that sticks in your hand. There was a time where Bad Luck Albatross was basically in every deck in standard, and I really would rather they not be.
Maybe when it rotates to wild. Team5 have unnerf cards before and if Im not mistaken they say they're not opposed to do that again.
Albatross is sure a good tech against highlander decks, but the problem with it reside in the fact that it is also efficient against class that don't have good card draw for instance shaman, priest or paladin. And it really sucks for those to have their card draw compromised.
As a 3 mana 4/3 it was like "Draw 2 cards" against class with no good card draw, while having decent stat for the mana. Now as a 4 mana 4/3 it's still good against highlander decks while being a little slower.
If the albatross shuffled in the opponent deck where "Cast when drawn" kind of card, i won't mind the albatross being even a 1 mana 1/3 since it can't compromise card draw, it will be even balanced since you will be summoning 2 * 1/1 for free in future turns in exchange for being able to counter highlander decks.
That's the only region which the non-Premium HSReplay shows you. If they had "all ranks" stats, I would've used those. Another fact is that I fear the winrate of some of the stat-selected decks here would take a big dive had I used Diamond-Legend instead...
Had this article been focused on best (off-meta) decks to climb with, I definitely would've needed to bite that bullet. Now I think I can get away with the low rank region as this is supposed to be more like a "here's some ideas how to use these legendaries" post.
When Bad Luck Albatross was 3 mana it was used a lot, especially in Wild against Reno decks.
Then it got nerfed to 4 mana and nobody plays it since then - even when Reno Priest is "everywhere" and a top deck with an answer to everything and no real weaknesses anymore.
With Albatross you often had enough time to kill the Priest until he heals for 20 or more HP for 6 Mana with a 4/6 body attached to it.
Maybe Albatross was and would still be too strong as a 3 mana 4/3 - but for 4 mana with the same stats it is way too weak.
---
So what do you think: Is Albatross fine at the moment as it is or should it be buffed in some way again?
Should it be a 3 Mana 4/3 again or how about other solutions, for example be a 3/3 for 3 mana or a 5/4 for 4 mana?
In the article you constantly using stats from HSreplay (nothing wrong with that) using "Bronze to Gold" data. And I got curious. I know, most players are in the Bronze to Gold category. Not playing much, going battlegrounds and all that stuff... but from people, who visit this site regularly and try to follow news, meta - I think they are above average casual players. They spend some time investing in the game beyond playing it.
So, in my opinion, using that kinda stats for articles here is just wrong.
I was worried this meta might be a complete mess, but I am honestly having quite allot of fun. Sure, there are some extremely annoying matches and moments, but the balancing in this meta is kinda like ''let's get every class a ton of powerful options''. I personally like it way more than the previous one. Back then something like Twin Tyrant was a monster you were completely afraid of, since it would often decide the match. Now the card is still very powerful, but it's just one of the powerful tools you have at your disposal.
And it really needs to be said, the amount of card generation/discovery right now is nuts. In majority of other meta's, a card like Twilight Runner would be a super-premium card, while now he is ''just'' a very nice card.
I guess your assumptions are mostly correct. I am always up to new ideas so it will be fun to see if this structure works or not. Worst case, Riot can always change it later on as they see fit.
I am interested to know how the company is going to keep new content appealing once the card pool gets really big. A standard structure like Magic/Hearthstone won't do for this game, given that some Champions are too reliant on certain cards/mechanics to work.
[Game] Card Treasure Hunt (The Resurrection Attempt)
It's very very close (:
Should Bad Luck Albatross be buffed again?
I wouldn't mind it going back to 3 mana, perhaps at the cost of lower stats. But this is me only speaking from a wild POV.
Dapperdog is right that prenerf it was far too efficient for standard.
For now though, bomb warrior is a good counter to all the reno priests. It can also play defensively so its matchup against all the kingsbane rogues and darkglare warlocks isn't bad either.
Would recommend.
New Targon Card - Lunari Duskbringer
The new one drop from Targon Gift Giver, might be worth running in a nightfall deck, with the gem it can also work as an activator on two diferent turns.
[Game] Card Treasure Hunt (The Resurrection Attempt)
Is it... Evasion?
"... waiting for the situation" might indicate that it's a Secret requiring a trigger.
[Game] Card Treasure Hunt (The Resurrection Attempt)
No. The first line has a big hint - "waiting for the situation".
[Game] Card Treasure Hunt (The Resurrection Attempt)
Valeera the Hollow's flavor text sounds fitting, so that's my next guess.
Should Bad Luck Albatross be buffed again?
Only hyper aggressive decks with an extremely low curve can go to the library.
Should Bad Luck Albatross be buffed again?
maybe a 3 mana 2/4 or 2/5 to give opp time to answer, but honestly if they print another OP highlander card/ set it's just going to get worse. Maybe it's time all classes received answers like beneath the grounds.
Should Bad Luck Albatross be buffed again?
Only aggro decks can go the library :-)
Miss the Hearthstone Monthly Stats Newsletter? It Will Return in the Future
Targus, who used to do these, left the Content team. And we haven't found someone who would take up that mantle yet.
Should Bad Luck Albatross be buffed again?
Albatros was nerfed because it was a tech card against all decks. It felt all decks had to have it because it made your opponents decks significantly worse when played, without a downside.
New Targon Card - Lunari Duskbringer
On its face, Lunari Duskbringer does seem to pull the whole Nightfall deck together. But I'm still not convinced it's going to work. Given the curve of Nightfall cards we've seen so far, here's basically how you'd imagine the idealized play turn by turn:
Of course, the problem here is that every one of these cards needs to be the second card you play, so you need lots of cheap activators. Lunari Duskbringer is a 3-of in that deck, and can act as two activators if you draw it, but you can't rely on it alone to consistently curve out your Nightfall cards. Maybe Fading Memories helps get you over the line of this, but the core problem is still that the archetype looks like an aggro deck that plays a turn behind curve by design. You could always run the archetype with Bilgewater for access to more good cheap starting plays, but then you lose out on the valuable Targon activators.
Mayba Diana makes this all worth it, but it seems clunky regardless of Lunari Duskbringer
Should Bad Luck Albatross be buffed again?
Albatros at 4 is a dead card but most people don't like Albatros at 3. I personally never minded old Albatros. If i was getting rekt at least it was by a cute card
7 Off-Meta Decks Using Unpopular Scholomance Legendaries
I just fear there might be a disappointment from people if they try those decks and they are 8+ stars players. Talking with my friends I found out there are sometimes absolute trash decks dominating those ranks, just cause people can't handle aggro well or don't understand resource management needed for more complicated decks.
I think the article is fine. Really. I'm in a same boat. I want to use some legendaries that I got, but are out of the meta. But I do understand what I'm getting into. Like struggling 40% winrate.
Should Bad Luck Albatross be buffed again?
I would argue the Albatross at (4) is still a good way to counter Reno decks, if that's what you want to do. Tech cards shouldn't also be great against everything else. They should be a bit sub-par but still OK in those match-ups, and that's exactly where the Albatross is.
You have to keep in mind how cut-throat the definition of a 'good' card is to most players, with anything not currently seeing play in a high tier deck labelled as 'bad' or often 'unplayable', when in reality they are good in certain metas but almost nobody thinks to try them again if they were from more than 1 expansion ago. Occasionally they are tried out and then suddenly the community that has been calling them garbage for years thinks they're amazing (see Vanish for a good example).
Should Bad Luck Albatross be buffed again?
Some classes have no good card draw? -> To the library!
Should Bad Luck Albatross be buffed again?
No. While I sympathize with you over the reno decks, albatross had the nasty side effect of basically jamming classes with no card draw. At least the bombs would simply draw you the next card, those birds are a pure 1 mana 1/1 menace that sticks in your hand. There was a time where Bad Luck Albatross was basically in every deck in standard, and I really would rather they not be.
Maybe when it rotates to wild. Team5 have unnerf cards before and if Im not mistaken they say they're not opposed to do that again.
Should Bad Luck Albatross be buffed again?
Albatross is sure a good tech against highlander decks, but the problem with it reside in the fact that it is also efficient against class that don't have good card draw for instance shaman, priest or paladin. And it really sucks for those to have their card draw compromised.
As a 3 mana 4/3 it was like "Draw 2 cards" against class with no good card draw, while having decent stat for the mana. Now as a 4 mana 4/3 it's still good against highlander decks while being a little slower.
If the albatross shuffled in the opponent deck where "Cast when drawn" kind of card, i won't mind the albatross being even a 1 mana 1/3 since it can't compromise card draw, it will be even balanced since you will be summoning 2 * 1/1 for free in future turns in exchange for being able to counter highlander decks.
Should Bad Luck Albatross be buffed again?
Agree it should be back to (3). Because the effect is a Deathrattle.
(3) 3/3 is best compromise if full unnerf is too much.
But at (4)+DR it kicks in too late to counter Reno, while also having a suboptimal body.
It's basically unplayable as it is now, especially in Wild, where it is a much required tech.
7 Off-Meta Decks Using Unpopular Scholomance Legendaries
That's the only region which the non-Premium HSReplay shows you. If they had "all ranks" stats, I would've used those. Another fact is that I fear the winrate of some of the stat-selected decks here would take a big dive had I used Diamond-Legend instead...
Had this article been focused on best (off-meta) decks to climb with, I definitely would've needed to bite that bullet. Now I think I can get away with the low rank region as this is supposed to be more like a "here's some ideas how to use these legendaries" post.
Should Bad Luck Albatross be buffed again?
When Bad Luck Albatross was 3 mana it was used a lot, especially in Wild against Reno decks.
Then it got nerfed to 4 mana and nobody plays it since then - even when Reno Priest is "everywhere" and a top deck with an answer to everything and no real weaknesses anymore.
With Albatross you often had enough time to kill the Priest until he heals for 20 or more HP for 6 Mana with a 4/6 body attached to it.
Maybe Albatross was and would still be too strong as a 3 mana 4/3 - but for 4 mana with the same stats it is way too weak.
---
So what do you think: Is Albatross fine at the moment as it is or should it be buffed in some way again?
Should it be a 3 Mana 4/3 again or how about other solutions, for example be a 3/3 for 3 mana or a 5/4 for 4 mana?
7 Off-Meta Decks Using Unpopular Scholomance Legendaries
In the article you constantly using stats from HSreplay (nothing wrong with that) using "Bronze to Gold" data. And I got curious. I know, most players are in the Bronze to Gold category. Not playing much, going battlegrounds and all that stuff... but from people, who visit this site regularly and try to follow news, meta - I think they are above average casual players. They spend some time investing in the game beyond playing it.
So, in my opinion, using that kinda stats for articles here is just wrong.
New Targon Card - Lunari Duskbringer
This card is amazing, glues nightfall togheter!!
What is the current state of Arena?
I was worried this meta might be a complete mess, but I am honestly having quite allot of fun. Sure, there are some extremely annoying matches and moments, but the balancing in this meta is kinda like ''let's get every class a ton of powerful options''. I personally like it way more than the previous one. Back then something like Twin Tyrant was a monster you were completely afraid of, since it would often decide the match. Now the card is still very powerful, but it's just one of the powerful tools you have at your disposal.
And it really needs to be said, the amount of card generation/discovery right now is nuts. In majority of other meta's, a card like Twilight Runner would be a super-premium card, while now he is ''just'' a very nice card.
Thoughts on the new sets and expansion structure
I guess your assumptions are mostly correct.
I am always up to new ideas so it will be fun to see if this structure works or not.
Worst case, Riot can always change it later on as they see fit.
I am interested to know how the company is going to keep new content appealing once the card pool gets really big.
A standard structure like Magic/Hearthstone won't do for this game, given that some Champions are too reliant on certain cards/mechanics to work.