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Cheese's custom revamp of the SHAMAN core sets!
SHAMAN CORE SET REVAMP Introduction Shaman is below average in terms of core set quality. It's not as bad as Paladin, but still bad enough that the class has to rely on expansion cards to ensure its viability. Shaman has historica…
SHAMAN CORE SET REVAMP
Introduction
Shaman is below average in terms of core set quality. It's not as bad as Paladin, but still bad enough that the class has to rely on expansion cards to ensure its viability.
Shaman has historically been a "swing class", meaning it was often either completely broken (eg 2016 Midrange Shaman or 2019 Evolve Shaman) or completely sucks (eg from the very beginning of the game up to the moment Tunnel Trogg was released). This tends to happen to classes whose identity isn't well-defined, which is clearly the case of Shaman. Blizzard's class identity post about shaman was clearly misleading (card generation a shaman weakness?! Hagatha would have a word with you) and clearly not a good starting point.
This link suggests that a weakness shaman *should* have is no standalone early game minion. "When Shaman gets good early game, bad things happen". Snowballing minions may be fine, but plain OP stuff like Trogg into Totem Golem makes Shaman broken.
But shaman needs more. It needs a consistent class identity. Shaman is a jack-of-all-trades class. That some classes are more versatile than others isn't in itself a bad thing, except when it is too extreme. What could be Shaman's strengths and weaknesses?
There's one aspect that is supposed to be core of its identity yet is underexploited: Totems. The main characteristic of Totems is to have a powerful ongoing effect. A shaman relies on keeping them on the board to snowball.
Do note that I struggled with the "weak at card draw/generation" thing. At first I was going to go completely against it and give plenty of card generation to Shaman. I think that a class needs to have at least one of those two (card draw or card generation) in order to be interesting, otherwise it's going to be a one-dimensional aggro-to-midrange class like pre-2017 Hunter...
...at the end of the day, however, I couldn't fit card draw/generation anywhere, but I thought that value generation is not just about adding new cards to your hand like Rogue and Priest do; it's also about creating new stuff directly on board or good synergies... value ≠ card generation.
Directions
Blizzard's official post on class identity is weird. It mixes class mechanics with strengths and weaknesses so most of the stuff doesn't make sense. The way I proceeded is completely different. I started by listing what should be the primary and secondary mechanics of the class, the strengths and weaknesses of the class as well as the archetypes available to it should follow from this list.
I say "core sets" a lot, but the Basic and Classic set are NOT interchangeable in their functions.
- The Basic set is the spine of the class. It ensures the class' viability and establishes its primary mechanics.
- Must be simple. Most cards must have 2 lines of text or less. Only simple keywords.
- Versatile to support multiple playstyles
- Minimal kit of everything a class needs to be viable (card draw; removal; direct damage; good standalone minions;...) even if not part of identity
- Fine if slightly more OP than what you would expect from expansions
- The Classic set is the limbs of the class. It ensures the class' internal diversity and estables its secondary mechanics.
- Presents the more "complex" mechanics of the game (Deathrattle, etc...)
- Because Classic packs are bought, there should be a sense of progression
- Unlike the Basic set, Classic cards should be slightly below average to let room for expansions
About tribal synergies, each minion type has its own identity
- Beasts
- All size of minions
- Good standalone value
- Buff each other a lot
- Each type of Beast has its subtheme (Bears=Taunt; Boars=Rush; Cats=Stealth; Wolves=buff other beasts; etc...)
- Most common type of minions, as such their identity is less precise
- Demons (Warlock & DH)
- All size of minions
- Powerful but with a drawback (taking damage; discard; ...)
- Dragons
- Medium to big minions
- "If you're holding a Dragon"
- Hand synergy
- Lots of legendaries
- 4/12 statline as a signature
- Elementals
- All size of minions
- "If you played an Elemental last turn"
- Value generation
- Battlecries
- Mechs
- Mechs were the focus of only 2 expansions (GvG and Boomsday) but they're otherwise a rare tribe and have no central identity!
- Murlocs
- Small minions
- Board-wide buffs for other Murlocs
- Relies on early-game snowballing. If allowed to stay on the board, they become nearly unstoppable
- Pirates
- Small to medium minions
- Weapon synergy
- Lots of direct damage
- Totems (Shaman)
- Small minions
- 0 attack with some exceptions
- Powerful ongoing effects (aura/end of turn/whenever)
Tribal synergies are part of a class primary identity in only 3 cases
- Beasts for Hunter
- Totems for Shaman
- Demons for Walocks and DHs
All other class-tribe associations are mostly a matter of coincidence as these tribes happen to fit in the class identity (eg pirates for Warrior/Rogue)
About which keywords I chose to keep in the core sets
- Charge vs Rush - As you know, Charge is a dangerous keyword. This is why Rush was introduced...however there are a few cards that were meant to be finishers that wouldn't make sense without Rush. I will replace Charge with Rush on all core cards with Charge (and tweak stats accordingly) EXCEPT when Charge is on a legendary minion. There are 4 legendary minions with Charge in the classic set and they will keep Charge
- Al'Akir the Windlord
- Grommash Hellscream
- King Krush
- Leeroy Jenkins (will be nerfed though)
- Discover - Disover offers a choice between cards that are in standard. Due to how easy Discover can become skewed when the right cards are printed, there will be no Discover cards in my core sets.
- Poisonous - There were originally no Poisonous cards in the Basic set before the introduction of [Hearthstone Card (Master Poisoner) Not Found]. I will therefore also have poisonous cards in my basic set
- Lifesteal - There are currently no Lifesteal cards in the core sets. However the keyword is simple and I will therefore introduce some.
TL;DR Shamans wins by keeping board control. The longer it keeps the board, the more powerful it becomes. Shaman is also the best at burst damage. On the flip side they struggle to recover a lost board.
I tried not to steer away too much from what Blizzard defined for the class, although there are definitely some directions I disagree with and went against. I will signal it when it is the case.
- PRIMARY MECHANICS
- Totems - Totems are (generally) 0-attack minions with a powerful ongoing effect. Shaman is rewarded by keeping its Totems alive and snowball into victory.
- Overload - AKA "anti-ramp". Shaman can play cards that are OP for their costs. As per the official post, "they are able to overload their Mana Crystals with lightning, allowing them to ramp up for a burst of power faster than other classes. Shamans are thus rewarded for planning a few turns ahead by tuning their mana curve."
- Snowballing - A generalization of the above theme. Shaman wins by keeping board control. The longer it has board control, the more likely it is to win.
- SECONDARY MECHANICS
- Burst Damage - Due in part to Overload & Windfury, Shaman is king to dish out high amount of damage in one turn - either from spells, weapons, or from minions - provided your opponent didn't disrupt your game plan! This one is tricky though. Putting too much burst damage in the class will not only make the class uninteractive, but will also restruct future design space because burst damage is additive. I hope I balanced this right by giving Shaman just the right amount of burst damage in its Classic set to define the class and not break the game.
- Evolving - AKA the "transform minion into one that costs more" mechanic. This mechanic was introduced in WOTOG and has since received continuous support, with most expanions having at least 1 evolving card. This fits very well into Shaman's theme of leveraging board control.
- Battlecries - Shaman has a lot of good battlecries and battlecry synergy. This theme is mostly represented by Elementals which also give Shaman some value generation. Also fits well with Evolving since Battlecry minions are generally weak for their cost.
- Versatility - Although Shaman has an identity, it is also more versatile compared to other classes. Aggro, Midrange, Control, Combo, Shaman has the tools to do it all. A trait it shares with Druid.
- Shaman is GOOD at
- Minion swarms/"horizontal" pressure (through Totems mostly)
- Board clears
- Direct damage, from spells, minions, and weapons
- ()
- Shaman is AVERAGE at
- Big minions/"vertical" pressure ("Reincarnate" cards or big overload minions)
- Single-target removals (Transform & direct damage)
- Value generation (through battlecries)
- Surviving (it has some healing a some taunt minions)
- Shaman is BAD at
- Card draw
- Tempo (Shaman struggles to go back on board when it loses board control completely)
The new core sets
The changes are, surprisingly to me, bigger than the changes I made for Priest.
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COMMONS
RARES
EPICS
LEGENDARY
Justifications
Basic
- Healing Stream (CUSTOM!) - HS replaces the almost never used Ancestral Healing. AH isn't a badly designed card per se but it has nothing to do in the core set. In WoW Classic, shamans excel at AOE healing. In Hearthstone, Healing Rain already showcased this aspect. I bring this new card to the core set to give shaman a functional AOE heal, and enable healing synergies for shaman.
- Whirling Ash (CUSTOM!) - Shaman needs a simple and effective WF minion in its core sets. I didn't use Whirling Zap-o-Matic because it is potentially OP and shaman isn't really a mech class.
- Mana Tide Totem - Transferred from Classic to Basic. This is because every class needs card draw in its Basic set, and this is core enough to be it.
- Totemic Vigor (CUSTOM!) - Well, that one is very straigtforward. It would enshrine Token Shaman as a generic playstyle of the Shaman class. I'm surprised it's not part of the existing basic set to be honest. I don't think the combo with Windshear Stormcaller is an issue given the power level of Wild.
- Thunderstorm (CUSTOM!) - Shaman is an AoE class yet it doesn't have an AOE in its Classic set. Lightning Storm is also very bad as an aoe because it's random and clunky. In my new basic set Shaman already has 2 cards in the 6 mana which is why I made this cost (5). I know this looks somewhat OP compared to Flamestrike but I believe it is balanced because at this point of the game only swarm decks will suffer against this.
- Bloodlust - I didn't make any change to the card, however I strongly hesitated to. Bloodlust is an iconic card for Shaman that correlates very well with what it does in WoW. Unfortunately it can quickly become broken when Shaman has a way to make its board stick. Which means it could become a win condition of its own like the now-retired DS/IF combo in Priest, and therefore limit design space. This is NOT good for a core card. However I let it there because the deckbuilding space (≠ design space) it opens up is great; it's only good if you manage to keep your board alive, and is therefore interactive unlike Fireball; and it's never been broken in its 6 years of existence...I wanted to nerf this to 6 mana just to be sure but I've been convinced not to.
Classic
- Fishy Witch (CUSTOM!) - Yes, this is basically Witchy Lackey as a murloc. This card serves as a presentation of "evolve" as one of shaman's secondary identities.
I originally planned to make this a 2-Cost 2/2 so that it can't be easily comboed with cost-reduction cards like Mutate is. However, making it a 2-Cost minion means you can curve it on turn 2 with a 1-Cost minion, and this would run counter to my "no good early-game minions" policy and would likely make it an auto-include everywhere. As a 1-Cost minion, it can't simply be vomited on turn 1 without any reflection.
Fun fact: I started my custom revamp in late 2019. I originally planned to have Evolve as the, erm, evolve card. However by sheer coincidence Evolve came back to Standard as part of an event...and it instantly became absolute cancer with Desert Hare. So, yeah, Evolve shouldn't be evergreen. - Hammer of Sparks (CUSTOM!) - A replacement for Stormforged Axe. I chose to make a completely new card rather than change Stormforged Axe because SA's art is very ugly. I am aware that this card may appear problematic and run counter to my "no good aggro cards for Shaman" policy however this card is a weapon, not a minion. It can help you keep control of the board in the early game but its aggro potential is limited.
- Lightning Bolt - It seems to be a general rule of CCGs that cards that deal 3 damage for 1 mana are very good, especially when they're called Lightning Bolt.
LB was on the edge of being rotated out for this reason. A card that is both a mana-effective removal and mana-effective burst damage is dangerous, but I think it is too iconic to change, which is why I reduced Shaman's burst potential elsewhere (HoF Lava Burst; etc...). Besides, one OP card per set for each class evens out I'd say! - Tuskarr Totemic - Perfect for the core sets! Not too redundant with the Totemic Vigor I just created because this is a Battlecry minion, which means Battlecry synergies of course.
- Earth Elemental (Rarity changed to Common; Attack increased to 8) - Rarity changed because it doesn't feel like an epic at all!
- Rockbiter (Moved to Classic as a rare card; Name changed to simply "Rockbiter"; Effect only affects minions; gives Taunt; lasts on your opponent's turn) - Rockbiter is a card I've struggled with A LOT. I made at least 5 iterations of this shit. As it is today, RB is clearly unplayable, at 1 mana however it was clearly OP when combined with Doomhammer. DH (or Chieftain's Axe as I renamed it) is clearly an essential and flavorful part of Shaman so I wanted to change RB instead. This effect is the best alternative I could find. It can no longer target face but it gives Taunt and lasts for your opponent's turn. This effect is more in line with what it does in WoW and is still good when put on a Windfury minion.
- Totemic Might (Cost increased to 1; Effect changed to +1/+1; Moved to Classic as a rare card) - Totem synergy and board buff, in line with Shaman's swarm synergies. Did you remember this card even existed. Now you do. With my changes, this card has perhaps some chance to see play one day.
- Murmuring Elemental - Added here for the Battlecry synergy. I know this card is somewhat design-space limiting, but I think the *deckbuilding* space it opens up is bigger than the design space it limits.
- Magma Totem (CUSTOM!) - A mini-ragnaros. IMO Shaman doesn't have enough Totems in its current Classic set. This one in particular is very potent when it survives. Fun fact: The artwork is a part of the artwork for Primal Fusion. It is not the first time that a single artwork is used for several cards. Murloc Raider, the "Murloc Scout" token, and Old Murk-Eye all come from the same artwork.
- Elemental Destruction (Damage buffed to 5 mana without randomness) - I strongly hesitated to put this into Shaman's Classic set given the presence of Thunderstorm in the core set. However I needed a big overload card and I didn't have any idea other than this existing one. Its effect is a bit extreme, however it didn't see any play during the TGT era
- Ancestral Totem (CUSTOM!) - Replaces Ancestral spirit a bit. Made it into a Totem because there aren't enough in Shaman's core sets.
- Chieftain's Axe (replaces Doomhammer) - Now why did I choose to just rename Doomhammer ? Well that's because Doomhammer is an iconic legendary weapon like Ashbringer, so I thought it deserves better than simply be an epic card. Doomhammer as a card is therefore still up for grabs.
- Al'Akir the Windlord - Al'akir is one of the 4 cards that will keep the Charge keyword in my revamps. See the "general directions" section for more infos.
Hall of Fame
These cards have a fundamentally unbalanced and unbalanceable effect (ie it can't be made balanced just by tweaking numbers).
On the contrary, these cards are just uninteresting and often straight up bad.
These cards are too widespread and limits novelty. They aren't interesting enough to just be nerfed.
On the contrary, these cards are too specific and narrow to be core cards.
These cards could be OK in another class but don't fit Shaman class identity.
These cards are fine and could have stayed. However there were better cards to fill their spots.
Shortlisted cards
The following cards almost made it into my core sets, but didn't because there were no room left for them.
- Darkspear Totemic (CUSTOM!) - More Totem support for the Classic set. The cost may look a bit high, however it has to be high due to design space issues. If one day an OP combo Totem is released it could become broken if this card is cheaper. Ultimately scrapped because I thought Totemic Might is enough Totem synergy, and I also wanted to keep a minimal quota of Overload cards to showcase the mechanic correctly. This ended up being replaced by Elemental Destruction
- Discharge (CUSTOM!) - Always thought Shaman needed a card like that in its set. The card draw is just an excuse to make it cost 2 mana since it would be OP as less. Scrapped because IMO it kinda goes against the philosophy of Overload.
- Totemic Cummunion (CUSTOM!) - Again, this heavily rewards keeping your Totems alive. Although Shaman isn't good at card draw, the very conditional nature of this card makes it OK I guess. Notice that it isn't limited to *friendly* Totems meaning that it also synergizes with *enemy* Totems. Scrapped because it's too OP with Totemic Vigor and, yeah, the shaman card draw thing.
- Witch's Apprentice - Spell generation. As I said, I wanted to go against Blizz decision and give Shaman some spell generation. Ultimately scrapped due to lack of room.
- Big Bad Voodoo - BBV replaces Ancestral Spirit. represents further support for the "evolve" shell as well as a foundation for the "Give minion Deathrattle" micro-theme of Shaman. Replaced with Ancestral Totem because I needed totems.
- Vitality Totem - Combines Totem and healing. Was scrapped because I think Shaman should have its own identity when it comes to healing: effective AOE healing like it does in WoW, rather than just healing the hero.
- Stone Sentinel - Felt like Shaman needed a bit of Elem synergy. But it already has lots of elementals and this card in particular is very weak.
- Crackling Doom (Arena exclusive card) - I really wanted to put this one instead of Elemental Destruction at first, but I heard the pitchforks in the distance.
