Since there is no dedicated reveal thread for every card, cause the game is not as popular yet ( :( )
I want to disscuss the new cards revealed they don't seem as strong as previous cards but I think they are worth discussing.
Maokai - I already mentioned it in the article comments but he isn't playable by itself, making a 2/1 ethereal challenger for 4 mana AND summoning another unit is really weak also being a 1/4.. guess he is like heimer a champion that never attack and is a generator of sort.. but turrets for every spells is probably much much better than a 2/1 challenger once every turn.
Also I am not that big of a believer in his effect you need to wait 4 turns for your opponent to lose, most games don't get to 10 mana anyway..
also I think tossing or killing your units 25 times is a LOT and it's certainly not easy, so dunno it comes online quite late but if you play a full controll/fatigue deck.. alright I guess. I see a potential synergy with hecarim though so who knows.. maybe he is good enough as he takes around 2 turns to really pay for itself tempowise.. at least it can block and you wouldn't feel too bad about playing him defensively as contrary to heimer.
Sap Magic- not sure really 3 mana heal everything 3 for 3 cards you would never draw anyway seems good for a fatigue deck, maybe also other decks looking for healing, healling your units is very niche in hs such effect costs 2 and heals for 6 in priest, I think that if you are not looking at tossing as an upside then this card is not worth running.
Thorny Toad - a 1/4 statline for 2 is very defensive can save you quite a lot of time looking for those removal options, specially with the heal for 2, which I think is fine in maokai decks, this probably fits such builds
Deadbloom Wanderer - a 3/2 lifesteal for 3 in hs it's garbage but here most of the time units do trade.. a 2/2 lifesteal for 3 is not that great, but one attack is probably important cause of fearsome and the 3 hp breakpoints. also toss archtype who knows..
Overgrown Snapvine - now I think this card is really interesting but VERY costly, it can create a lot of copies of itself summoning spiders.. also enable death triggers I can't wait to build around this card seems really fun.. but is it good? nah probably not.. costs too much but certainly good in sacrificial decks.
Honestly, I started thinking him because he hides mushrooms in the opponent's deck similar to how the Easter bunny hides eggs. Then I saw the header or skin you're talking about and was like "Well, it's most likely a Champion card so yeah… let's find him." And as soon as I did I was like "Oh WTF?!?!?!" This was fun, but my puzzle-loving brain wouldn't let me sleep until I found them all! LOL
Now this might just be an ego thing, but I believe very strongly that Plot twist Warlock is no longer a pure meme. So far the best version of the deck has a 52% winrate (which isn't amazing, but better than Libram Paladin at least) and that build doesn't even look that optimized.
I've taken my own list to diamond 10 and I believe that if DH gets nerfed again (because that's a terrible matchup and you cann't efficiently run Sac Pact) it could shine. I've managed to beat basically all the Galakrond Warlock I've run into purely on the basis of having enough removal and a stronger endgame and I've also dealt with a lot of aggressive decks well (except DH, but we know that class is ridiculous)
Basically what I'm saying is that if DH gets another set of nerfs that makes it less easy for them to close out game then you have a deck that beats them as well as the deck meant to counter them (galakrond Warlock) so all you need is to dodge Priests and you're fine.
I just checked back on that deck and jesus christ the winrate skyrocketed since the last time I looked at it. I honestly think this might be the best Shaman deck out there and it's not even refined yet.
Most of these changes were already leaked, but I like that they're buffing a lot of non-champion cards that see little to no play. Freljords especially, could really use the love they're being given.
Draven's buff seems a little overzealous as he's probably the best Noxus champion at the moment. Darius and Vladimir could've used a buff more.
Watchlist makes sense. Karma and Ezreal have been, together with Elise, pretty much the most consistent and present champions throughout the beta.
I actually think that Paladin suffers from players being too greedy.
Too many people go "Tempo? let's go Pure" or "let's just go full greedy control because Pyromancer is Op, lol"
The article mentions that Paladin doesn't have a good class 1-drop....so let's just go for Argent Squire and Murmy. those are almost guaranteed to stick turn 1 so you can use Libram or Hand on them.
To add to that approach, what if we go for a really funky win condition that technically only takes up two card slots: Stonetusk Boar and Blessed Champion.
After you play LIadrin you should have a number of Librams or Hands which you can stack on your Boar for free, double the attack and then smash it face. Realistically that would probably give you somewhere around 14-18 damage (assuming you can empty your hand enough before playing Liadrin). Since that doesn't qualify for an OTk you just need to play somewhat aggressively while using Weapons and Healing (and Libram of Justice) to maintain the board. We don't go true tempo, but we also don't realy go control. We go midrange, trying to chip at the opponent's face and punish them when they overcommit.
Finally, you don't actually need Boar necessarily, you can just try to stick any minion on the board and if it survives, use Champion as a surprise finisher....kinda like Combo Priest used to work.
I'm not really a Paladin player, but it seems that the Libram decks just don't put enough pressure on their opponents because they are too focused on trying to outvalue them, which doesn't work if you only have 2 board wipes.
Totem Shaman definitely would have made it In, but this report was written before it exploded in popularity. Next week will be a different story. Hard to keep up with the meta right now!
same. Warrior hasn't exactly been weak for a while and they lost a ton of stuff while still having a number of strong buildarounds for later expansions (Bloodsworn Mercenary is still busted).
As long as Brawl is still as much of an instant win against tempo and midrange decks Control Warrior will always return as long as you give them something to do lategame.
I mean Galakrond Warrior would be fine if only Warrior had better card draw. Give them one or two more consistent draw cards and that deck will return instantly to smash your face in. Leeroy was only mildly better than Kor'kron Elite anyways.
that is assuming that Demon Hunter (who also happens to be a better Rogue in almost all aspects aside from single target removal) won't get nerfed again.
Priestess, Battlefiend, Altruis, and Kayn are still ridiculously undercosted/overstatted and the main reason why DHs can run away with wins.
I actually got dumpstered as Tempo DH against a Hunter who managed to fight for the board early with Rush minions and eventually push me off it. Granted I draw poorly, but I don't think it's unreasonable to assume that Hunter might be able to contest with DH after another round of nerfs to their consistency. Demon Hunters don't heal that much anymore, so Hunter's constant pressure actually becomes a problem for them, and they rely very much on maintaining the board, which a horde of Rush minions can make difficult.
Really, I think just the fact that Altruis is such a reliable comeback tool that also pushes face damage is the main reason why DH keeps taking wins that they shouldn't reasonably get. Make that thing target minions only and watch their winrates plummet.
13th April update: tbranson1's WILD Big Recruit Warrior: Facing a Rez Priest called 'God'?! (1080p)
Ah yes. Recruit Warrior (or "Big Warrior"). Great to see a viable deck. Thanks to tbranson1. An interesting series of games, including a Priest called "God", who was playing a standard deck?! Of course, it makes sense that "God" was playing a resurrection deck!
Check out the guide: https://www.hearthpwn.com/decks/1335051-big-recruit-warrior-works
Honestly I think the deck has promise. At first I didn't believe it but it really says something that an archetypes that got like 1 support card per expansion can suddenly snowball ahead if you manage to stick any valuable totem in the early game (and holy balls, Spell Damage puts in work)
I think most people are just put off by how unreliable it seems (when it really isn't). Serpentshrine Portal also seems like such a strong tempo and finisher.
Then again if it catches on, people will just prioritize murdering your totems and your entire buildaround is ineffectual. Can't see the deck really beat Demon Hunter if they actually just clear all totems early. (unless of course you meme them to death with Totemic Might.
Either way it's probably not a good fit against Warlocks who can just murder your board over and over again (I wonder if Plague of Flames will get nerfed eventually)
Seems like you can make a suicide token deck and then just delete your opponent's deck. Hmm.
Yeah but 25 tokens dying is A LOT.. tossing AND playing tokens is the way to level him up.
Also is a 4 turns timer on the enemy worth it? I mean unless it's a control v control games tend to end quite quickly and a turn 1X Maokai level up doesn't mean there will be turn 1x +4
I agree that these numbers sound super discouraging, but I have to believe Riot did some internal testing to generate them. Plus: they are just numbers--very easy to patch/tune, and I've been extremely impressed with their commitment to ensuring no archetype completely fails (*cough* librium paladin *couch*).
Maokai's level one SUCKS though it's 2 mana for actually nothing (1/4 stat line is a bad 2 drop stats), it's a dead card the whole game until he is your win condition.. well like with ezreal.
I dunno; the free 2/1 challengers aren't anything to sneeze at. Plus I think the ephemeral tag is actually a boon here: it would probably die regardless, but now it also enables sharks and Hecarim. I admit he's not looking like a top-tier candidate, but I'm definitely seeing the potential for some fun off-meta decks.
I fixed an issue where a couple of the clues were numbered wrong on the achievement side, leading to confusion within the widget. When the few people originally brought up issues with the ordering, it seems like it was a poor choice of words since I don't think that's what they were really talking about.
Anyway, numbers are correct now so if you're missing something, recheck which clue you might be missing.
Seems like you can make a suicide token deck and then just delete your opponent's deck. Hmm.
Yeah but 25 tokens dying is A LOT.. tossing AND playing tokens is the way to level him up.
Maokai's level one SUCKS though it's 2 mana for actually nothing (1/4 stat line is a bad 2 drop stats), it's a dead card the whole game until he is your win condition.. well like with ezreal.
But ezreal at least can be played sometimes maokai.. just never, so I think you can never play him in a none dedicated deck.. so I really don't like his design he is very one dimensional... you either play a maokai deck (probably with another champion to not deck out as fast), or don't play maokai at all since he is useless if not built around 100%, but that being said.. there could be a "toss package" which could be tried in several decks I am not saying it's just one deck that will be a "maokai deck" but it's a heavy restriction to play him.
Also is a 4 turns timer on the enemy worth it? I mean unless it's a control v control games tend to end quite quickly and a turn 1X Maokai level up doesn't mean there will be turn 1x +4
New shadow isles package opinions (Maokai's reveal)
Since there is no dedicated reveal thread for every card, cause the game is not as popular yet ( :( )
I want to disscuss the new cards revealed they don't seem as strong as previous cards but I think they are worth discussing.
Maokai - I already mentioned it in the article comments but he isn't playable by itself, making a 2/1 ethereal challenger for 4 mana AND summoning another unit is really weak also being a 1/4.. guess he is like heimer a champion that never attack and is a generator of sort.. but turrets for every spells is probably much much better than a 2/1 challenger once every turn.
Also I am not that big of a believer in his effect you need to wait 4 turns for your opponent to lose, most games don't get to 10 mana anyway..
also I think tossing or killing your units 25 times is a LOT and it's certainly not easy, so dunno it comes online quite late but if you play a full controll/fatigue deck.. alright I guess. I see a potential synergy with hecarim though so who knows.. maybe he is good enough as he takes around 2 turns to really pay for itself tempowise.. at least it can block and you wouldn't feel too bad about playing him defensively as contrary to heimer.
Sap Magic- not sure really 3 mana heal everything 3 for 3 cards you would never draw anyway seems good for a fatigue deck, maybe also other decks looking for healing, healling your units is very niche in hs such effect costs 2 and heals for 6 in priest, I think that if you are not looking at tossing as an upside then this card is not worth running.
Thorny Toad - a 1/4 statline for 2 is very defensive can save you quite a lot of time looking for those removal options, specially with the heal for 2, which I think is fine in maokai decks, this probably fits such builds
Deadbloom Wanderer - a 3/2 lifesteal for 3 in hs it's garbage but here most of the time units do trade.. a 2/2 lifesteal for 3 is not that great, but one attack is probably important cause of fearsome and the 3 hp breakpoints. also toss archtype who knows..
Overgrown Snapvine - now I think this card is really interesting but VERY costly, it can create a lot of copies of itself summoning spiders.. also enable death triggers I can't wait to build around this card seems really fun.. but is it good? nah probably not.. costs too much but certainly good in sacrificial decks.
The Out of Cards Great Egg Hunt of 2020
Standard Meta Report #29 - Top Hearthstone Decks April 5, 2020 - April 12, 2020
Now this might just be an ego thing, but I believe very strongly that Plot twist Warlock is no longer a pure meme. So far the best version of the deck has a 52% winrate (which isn't amazing, but better than Libram Paladin at least) and that build doesn't even look that optimized.
I've taken my own list to diamond 10 and I believe that if DH gets nerfed again (because that's a terrible matchup and you cann't efficiently run Sac Pact) it could shine. I've managed to beat basically all the Galakrond Warlock I've run into purely on the basis of having enough removal and a stronger endgame and I've also dealt with a lot of aggressive decks well (except DH, but we know that class is ridiculous)
Basically Kanrethad Ebonlocke and Enhanced Dreadlord are really strong together and if you get Ebonlocke twice via Fel Lord Betrug you can close out most games.
Basically what I'm saying is that if DH gets another set of nerfs that makes it less easy for them to close out game then you have a deck that beats them as well as the deck meant to counter them (galakrond Warlock) so all you need is to dodge Priests and you're fine.
Standard Meta Report #29 - Top Hearthstone Decks April 5, 2020 - April 12, 2020
I just checked back on that deck and jesus christ the winrate skyrocketed since the last time I looked at it. I honestly think this might be the best Shaman deck out there and it's not even refined yet.
Standard Meta Report #29 - Top Hearthstone Decks April 5, 2020 - April 12, 2020
give it some time, people are probably still being too greedy without actually building to win games.
Legends of Runeterra - Patch 0.9.4 Card Balance Changes
Most of these changes were already leaked, but I like that they're buffing a lot of non-champion cards that see little to no play. Freljords especially, could really use the love they're being given.
Draven's buff seems a little overzealous as he's probably the best Noxus champion at the moment. Darius and Vladimir could've used a buff more.
Watchlist makes sense. Karma and Ezreal have been, together with Elise, pretty much the most consistent and present champions throughout the beta.
Standard Meta Report #29 - Top Hearthstone Decks April 5, 2020 - April 12, 2020
You were the chosen one, Librams! The one(s) that would bring balance to the Paladin, not destroy it!
Standard Meta Report #29 - Top Hearthstone Decks April 5, 2020 - April 12, 2020
I actually think that Paladin suffers from players being too greedy.
Too many people go "Tempo? let's go Pure" or "let's just go full greedy control because Pyromancer is Op, lol"
The article mentions that Paladin doesn't have a good class 1-drop....so let's just go for Argent Squire and Murmy. those are almost guaranteed to stick turn 1 so you can use Libram or Hand on them.
To add to that approach, what if we go for a really funky win condition that technically only takes up two card slots: Stonetusk Boar and Blessed Champion.
After you play LIadrin you should have a number of Librams or Hands which you can stack on your Boar for free, double the attack and then smash it face. Realistically that would probably give you somewhere around 14-18 damage (assuming you can empty your hand enough before playing Liadrin). Since that doesn't qualify for an OTk you just need to play somewhat aggressively while using Weapons and Healing (and Libram of Justice) to maintain the board. We don't go true tempo, but we also don't realy go control. We go midrange, trying to chip at the opponent's face and punish them when they overcommit.
Finally, you don't actually need Boar necessarily, you can just try to stick any minion on the board and if it survives, use Champion as a surprise finisher....kinda like Combo Priest used to work.
I'm not really a Paladin player, but it seems that the Libram decks just don't put enough pressure on their opponents because they are too focused on trying to outvalue them, which doesn't work if you only have 2 board wipes.
Standard Meta Report #29 - Top Hearthstone Decks April 5, 2020 - April 12, 2020
Yea my point was exactly that it seems really bad if they just kill every totem you throw at the board, but some may stick.
Noblegarden Egg
Eggs, we need eggs
Standard Meta Report #29 - Top Hearthstone Decks April 5, 2020 - April 12, 2020
Totem Shaman definitely would have made it In, but this report was written before it exploded in popularity. Next week will be a different story. Hard to keep up with the meta right now!
Quest Trading - Play A Friend!
Battletag: andquester#1994
Region: ASIA
Trade only?: Yes, you first.
DONE with ermahgerd
Standard Meta Report #29 - Top Hearthstone Decks April 5, 2020 - April 12, 2020
No problem, Horus, my pleasure.
Standard Meta Report #29 - Top Hearthstone Decks April 5, 2020 - April 12, 2020
same. Warrior hasn't exactly been weak for a while and they lost a ton of stuff while still having a number of strong buildarounds for later expansions (Bloodsworn Mercenary is still busted).
As long as Brawl is still as much of an instant win against tempo and midrange decks Control Warrior will always return as long as you give them something to do lategame.
I mean Galakrond Warrior would be fine if only Warrior had better card draw. Give them one or two more consistent draw cards and that deck will return instantly to smash your face in. Leeroy was only mildly better than Kor'kron Elite anyways.
Standard Meta Report #29 - Top Hearthstone Decks April 5, 2020 - April 12, 2020
that is assuming that Demon Hunter (who also happens to be a better Rogue in almost all aspects aside from single target removal) won't get nerfed again.
Priestess, Battlefiend, Altruis, and Kayn are still ridiculously undercosted/overstatted and the main reason why DHs can run away with wins.
I actually got dumpstered as Tempo DH against a Hunter who managed to fight for the board early with Rush minions and eventually push me off it. Granted I draw poorly, but I don't think it's unreasonable to assume that Hunter might be able to contest with DH after another round of nerfs to their consistency. Demon Hunters don't heal that much anymore, so Hunter's constant pressure actually becomes a problem for them, and they rely very much on maintaining the board, which a horde of Rush minions can make difficult.
Really, I think just the fact that Altruis is such a reliable comeback tool that also pushes face damage is the main reason why DH keeps taking wins that they shouldn't reasonably get. Make that thing target minions only and watch their winrates plummet.
Darkseeker's channel - 13th November update: KOtsosKOtsos' Reno Evolve Shudderwock Shaman - ft. Archivist Elysiana
13th April update: tbranson1's WILD Big Recruit Warrior: Facing a Rez Priest called 'God'?! (1080p)
Ah yes. Recruit Warrior (or "Big Warrior"). Great to see a viable deck. Thanks to tbranson1. An interesting series of games, including a Priest called "God", who was playing a standard deck?! Of course, it makes sense that "God" was playing a resurrection deck!
Check out the guide: https://www.hearthpwn.com/decks/1335051-big-recruit-warrior-works
Deck code:
AAEBAQcYS5EGrAfhB/8HqKsCxsICucMCws4C/ecCgugCm/MCuPYC+/4CoIAD8qgD360DuLkDvrkDnLsD87sD6r4D9sID+cIDA+fhAurnApaUAwA=
https://youtu.be/opkzKcf2lYQ
Standard Meta Report #29 - Top Hearthstone Decks April 5, 2020 - April 12, 2020
Honestly I think the deck has promise. At first I didn't believe it but it really says something that an archetypes that got like 1 support card per expansion can suddenly snowball ahead if you manage to stick any valuable totem in the early game (and holy balls, Spell Damage puts in work)
I think most people are just put off by how unreliable it seems (when it really isn't). Serpentshrine Portal also seems like such a strong tempo and finisher.
Then again if it catches on, people will just prioritize murdering your totems and your entire buildaround is ineffectual. Can't see the deck really beat Demon Hunter if they actually just clear all totems early. (unless of course you meme them to death with Totemic Might.
Either way it's probably not a good fit against Warlocks who can just murder your board over and over again (I wonder if Plague of Flames will get nerfed eventually)
Maokai is Legend of Runeterra's Newest Champion - New Shadow Isles Card Reveals & Toss Mechanic
I agree that these numbers sound super discouraging, but I have to believe Riot did some internal testing to generate them. Plus: they are just numbers--very easy to patch/tune, and I've been extremely impressed with their commitment to ensuring no archetype completely fails (*cough* librium paladin *couch*).
I dunno; the free 2/1 challengers aren't anything to sneeze at. Plus I think the ephemeral tag is actually a boon here: it would probably die regardless, but now it also enables sharks and Hecarim. I admit he's not looking like a top-tier candidate, but I'm definitely seeing the potential for some fun off-meta decks.
Quest Trading - Play A Friend!
Battletag: DerDon#2884
Region: EU
Trade only?: Yes, you go first.
Standard Meta Report #29 - Top Hearthstone Decks April 5, 2020 - April 12, 2020
I appreciate all Meta Reports, but this one felt even more timely and needed : many thanks
Archspore Msshi'fn
Is there a viable decklist with this? Opened it and now want to use it somewhere, although I miss most druid legendaries and only own a few epics.
Maokai is Legend of Runeterra's Newest Champion - New Shadow Isles Card Reveals & Toss Mechanic
Is it me or does Overgrown Snapvine work really well with The Undying?
Maokai is Legend of Runeterra's Newest Champion - New Shadow Isles Card Reveals & Toss Mechanic
So basically a bad Ledros?
LoR isn't really the type of game that allows you to go for the long game. If you need an inevitable win condition just play Ledros or Fiora
The Out of Cards Great Egg Hunt of 2020
I fixed an issue where a couple of the clues were numbered wrong on the achievement side, leading to confusion within the widget. When the few people originally brought up issues with the ordering, it seems like it was a poor choice of words since I don't think that's what they were really talking about.
Anyway, numbers are correct now so if you're missing something, recheck which clue you might be missing.
Maokai is Legend of Runeterra's Newest Champion - New Shadow Isles Card Reveals & Toss Mechanic
Yeah but 25 tokens dying is A LOT.. tossing AND playing tokens is the way to level him up.
Maokai's level one SUCKS though it's 2 mana for actually nothing (1/4 stat line is a bad 2 drop stats), it's a dead card the whole game until he is your win condition.. well like with ezreal.
But ezreal at least can be played sometimes maokai.. just never, so I think you can never play him in a none dedicated deck.. so I really don't like his design he is very one dimensional... you either play a maokai deck (probably with another champion to not deck out as fast), or don't play maokai at all since he is useless if not built around 100%, but that being said.. there could be a "toss package" which could be tried in several decks I am not saying it's just one deck that will be a "maokai deck" but it's a heavy restriction to play him.
Also is a 4 turns timer on the enemy worth it? I mean unless it's a control v control games tend to end quite quickly and a turn 1X Maokai level up doesn't mean there will be turn 1x +4