Not scry per se, since it looks at 3 cards throughout your deck. As such, it's a bit less reliable--you may or may not get your optimal Outcast set up.
But wow. When it goes off it's gonna go off. And on a solid body too. We're gonna see this one a lot.
The only question I have is whether this is something you want in your control deck, since Pit Commander could pull this, and I don't think that's something most players want happening. But on the other hand, it could set up sick Skull of Gul'dan or Eye Beam plays or whatever. What do you guys think?
Reminds me of Ancient of War: slightly smaller stats in exchange for Rush... and getting both forms... for one more mana.
That's kind of crazy, gotta be honest. Though, if you drop it against a board full of smaller smorcing minions, it'll be harder to stabilize, since you won't be able to trade it successfully. Great if you are ahead, terrible if you are behind--unless your opponent has large minions.
Average cost for Mage spells (revealed so far) post-rotation is about 3.25. So with a Sorcerer's Apprentice and a Mana Cyclone, you could probably get a lot of value out of this card.
The card that this reminds me the most of is The Soularium, which draws three cards and discards them at end of turn.
You can get much more than three cards from Evocation, with the offset being that they are random Mage spells, instead of planned synergistic spells. But then again, you're basically drawing anywhere from one to ten random cards that you wouldn't have had access to before. And if you discard them--I mean, no harm, no foul, they weren't yours in the first place.
And with a well-timed Mana Cyclone and a Sorcerer's Apprentice or two, you can get a lot of permanent value out of this card. (Maybe even... a randomly generated Evocation?) Could be pretty good!
Permanent stealth--as featured on adventure runs like Dungeon Run or any of its derivatives--usually features prominently in an aggro-focused deck. That's because your opponent can't directly deal with your perma-stealthed minions, so they just target your face.
But if it's just one of your minions with this...
A couple different strategies come to mind. One is to make Akama your main damage dealer and back him up with support cards like the sapper guy that was revealed, clearing your enemy's obstacles out of the way. The other is to feature Akama in a more aggressive tempo deck where Akama is just one utility piece of a much more aggressive playstyle.
I suspect that, since most of the Galakrond package is sticking around, Akama will feature in those decklists as a finisher, not a central role. But the meta might slow down enough for an Akama-centric deck to come around.
Okay, let's take a serious look at what cards will be in this pool and what their stats and cost would look like (that we know of so far)(at the time of this post; I may update):
People are calling it a meme card, which I can see, but this expansion is going to be pretty demon-heavy. And those random demons could include a wide swath of demons from other classes--but bigger.
This gives you a handful of Embiggened demons. I bet that you could fill your hand with filler and then unleash some disgusting power moves with this card.
This and any cheap spell is a Crushing Hand. Without Overload.
Spell-heavy decks--which, given the text, is likely to be a supported archetype--will probably run this card. Especially if other decks feature big, controlling minions like those Primes.
Hunters have to set up specific conditions to incentivize an unwanted minion getting removed--removing smaller minions, tricking the opponent into thinking that it's another trap...
Rogues just drop a random secret and boom! No more taunt dude or sticky deathrattle or whatever.
Also, since this is a minion and not a spell, it gets around the "Can't be targeted" buff. So long to those nasty Embiggened dragons and whatnot.
"Players will no longer have to purchase packs. . . . Players will no longer need to purchase packs to get these perks."
Sorry, but--who was complaining about this? Was anyone really complaining "oh gee, I have to go and sink my gold into actual Hearthstone value in order to enjoy Battlegrounds"? I doubt it. The wording makes it sound like this was such a drag--having to buy packs that would give you cards that you could use in other modes, heaven forbid.
Instead, we are so lucky! We get to dump 2500 gold--25 packs worth--into a mode for literally pay-to-win perks like extra hero choices. And we are so fortunate to not get anything other than Battlegrounds out of our gold. Definitely didn't want to get anything of actual monetary value for my investment! Who needs cards, anyway?
This just makes Battlegrounds a game mode for the whales. They can have at it.
With the modifications made to Priest, this is solidly two new classes.
Did you see all of the cost reductions? And even more importantly, the viable early drop minions? The cost-favorable board clears? Priest can go aggro now. Priest can go zoo. Priest can go nuts!
Crafting a Golden Whizbang is single-handedly the best use of dust I have ever invested.
3200 dust? For a gimmick card?
Oh, but what a gimmick. You lose all stress of crafting decks and cards that you want to try. Just roll with Whizbang for a few rounds and you'll get to try out many of the deck ideas in a given meta, though admittedly unoptimized. And having everything golden gives you a feel for prestige that most F2P players, or even non-whales, will never ever get to experience.
Hands down the best use of dust I have used so far. I really hope they make him Classic at some point--because out of all other cards, this one deserves it most.
Not scry per se, since it looks at 3 cards throughout your deck. As such, it's a bit less reliable--you may or may not get your optimal Outcast set up.
But wow. When it goes off it's gonna go off. And on a solid body too. We're gonna see this one a lot.
The only question I have is whether this is something you want in your control deck, since Pit Commander could pull this, and I don't think that's something most players want happening. But on the other hand, it could set up sick Skull of Gul'dan or Eye Beam plays or whatever. What do you guys think?
Any card that sets up Outcast plays is going to see play in Demon Hunter. 5 stars.
Reminds me of Ancient of War: slightly smaller stats in exchange for Rush... and getting both forms... for one more mana.
That's kind of crazy, gotta be honest. Though, if you drop it against a board full of smaller smorcing minions, it'll be harder to stabilize, since you won't be able to trade it successfully. Great if you are ahead, terrible if you are behind--unless your opponent has large minions.
It'll depend on the meta.
Demon Hunter: Dark green card, Fel green demonic angles lining the border
Hunter: Bright green card, golden-and-green 'leaf' pattern lining the border
Note that Ysera Dream cards have the same decoration as Hunter cards
Players are going to have to find ways to deal with Demon Hunters without relying on walls of Taunts to slow them down...
Average cost for Mage spells (revealed so far) post-rotation is about 3.25. So with a Sorcerer's Apprentice and a Mana Cyclone, you could probably get a lot of value out of this card.
The card that this reminds me the most of is The Soularium, which draws three cards and discards them at end of turn.
You can get much more than three cards from Evocation, with the offset being that they are random Mage spells, instead of planned synergistic spells. But then again, you're basically drawing anywhere from one to ten random cards that you wouldn't have had access to before. And if you discard them--I mean, no harm, no foul, they weren't yours in the first place.
And with a well-timed Mana Cyclone and a Sorcerer's Apprentice or two, you can get a lot of permanent value out of this card. (Maybe even... a randomly generated Evocation?) Could be pretty good!
Permanent stealth--as featured on adventure runs like Dungeon Run or any of its derivatives--usually features prominently in an aggro-focused deck. That's because your opponent can't directly deal with your perma-stealthed minions, so they just target your face.
But if it's just one of your minions with this...
A couple different strategies come to mind. One is to make Akama your main damage dealer and back him up with support cards like the sapper guy that was revealed, clearing your enemy's obstacles out of the way. The other is to feature Akama in a more aggressive tempo deck where Akama is just one utility piece of a much more aggressive playstyle.
I suspect that, since most of the Galakrond package is sticking around, Akama will feature in those decklists as a finisher, not a central role. But the meta might slow down enough for an Akama-centric deck to come around.
I have to wonder what the title for the 1,000 win portrait will be. "Illidan, King of Outland"? "Illidan, Hero of Azeroth"? "Illidan, the Prepared"?
That 1,000 win portrait is beautiful. Well worth the earning.
EDIT: And that UI! I was wondering about that! I mean, I bet a lot of us were. But that new UI looks perfect.
Okay, let's take a serious look at what cards will be in this pool and what their stats and cost would look like (that we know of so far)(at the time of this post; I may update):
Warlock Demons
Demon Hunter Demons
Other Class Demons
Neutral Demons
People are calling it a meme card, which I can see, but this expansion is going to be pretty demon-heavy. And those random demons could include a wide swath of demons from other classes--but bigger.
This gives you a handful of Embiggened demons. I bet that you could fill your hand with filler and then unleash some disgusting power moves with this card.
This and any cheap spell is a Crushing Hand. Without Overload.
Spell-heavy decks--which, given the text, is likely to be a supported archetype--will probably run this card. Especially if other decks feature big, controlling minions like those Primes.
Targeted Freezing Trap. Insane.
Hunters have to set up specific conditions to incentivize an unwanted minion getting removed--removing smaller minions, tricking the opponent into thinking that it's another trap...
Rogues just drop a random secret and boom! No more taunt dude or sticky deathrattle or whatever.
Also, since this is a minion and not a spell, it gets around the "Can't be targeted" buff. So long to those nasty Embiggened dragons and whatnot.
The wording is disingenuous.
"Players will no longer have to purchase packs. . . . Players will no longer need to purchase packs to get these perks."
Sorry, but--who was complaining about this? Was anyone really complaining "oh gee, I have to go and sink my gold into actual Hearthstone value in order to enjoy Battlegrounds"? I doubt it. The wording makes it sound like this was such a drag--having to buy packs that would give you cards that you could use in other modes, heaven forbid.
Instead, we are so lucky! We get to dump 2500 gold--25 packs worth--into a mode for literally pay-to-win perks like extra hero choices. And we are so fortunate to not get anything other than Battlegrounds out of our gold. Definitely didn't want to get anything of actual monetary value for my investment! Who needs cards, anyway?
This just makes Battlegrounds a game mode for the whales. They can have at it.
This isn't just one new class.
With the modifications made to Priest, this is solidly two new classes.
Did you see all of the cost reductions? And even more importantly, the viable early drop minions? The cost-favorable board clears? Priest can go aggro now. Priest can go zoo. Priest can go nuts!
As a longtime Priest player, this is insanity.
Crafting a Golden Whizbang is single-handedly the best use of dust I have ever invested.
3200 dust? For a gimmick card?
Oh, but what a gimmick. You lose all stress of crafting decks and cards that you want to try. Just roll with Whizbang for a few rounds and you'll get to try out many of the deck ideas in a given meta, though admittedly unoptimized. And having everything golden gives you a feel for prestige that most F2P players, or even non-whales, will never ever get to experience.
Hands down the best use of dust I have used so far. I really hope they make him Classic at some point--because out of all other cards, this one deserves it most.
Yes--a golden copy of that card works even better, in my experience.