Transfer Student is the newest card to join Hearthstone and is currently available for free simply for logging in!
The card effect states that based on the game board you're playing on, you're going to get a new effect. We've gone through each of the boards to figure out which effect each one gives Transfer Student. The effect is usually based on mechanics that arrived with each game board's associated set, or it has an effect based on the board's flavor.
Transfer Student's Card Effects by Gameboard
Here are all the Transfer Student effects that are currently available in the client. Since the board for Scholomance is not yet available, much like the dual-class cards, that effect won't be seen yet.
Classic Boards
- Orgrimmar - Battlecry: Deal 2 Damage
- Stormwind - Divine Shield
- Stranglethorn - Stealth, Poisonous
- Pandaria - Battlecry: Give a friendly minion +1/+2.
Expansions (Pre Years)
- Naxxramas - Deathrattle: Add a random Deathrattle minion to your hand.
- Goblins vs Gnomes - Battlecry and Deathrattle: Add a Spare Part to your hand.
- Blackrock Mountain - At the end of your turn, reduce the cost of a random card in your hand by (2).
- The Grand Tournament - Inspire: Draw a card.
- The Museum (Explorers) - Battlecry: Discover a new Basic Hero Power.
- Excavation Site (Explorers) - Battlecry: Add a random weapon to your hand.
Year of the Kraken
- Stormwind (Old Gods) - Battlecry: Spend all your mana, summon a minion of that cost.
- Karazhan - Battlecry: Add a Karazhan portal spell to your hand.
- Mean Streets of Gadgetzan - Battlecry: Give a random minion in your hand +2/+2.
Year of the Mammoth
- Un'goro - Battlecry: Adapt.
- Frozen Throne - Deathrattle: Add a random Death Knight card to your hand.
- Kobolds and Catacombs - Battlecry: Recruit a minion that costs (2) or less.
Year of the Raven
- The Witchwood - Echo, Rush.
- Boomsday - Taunt, Battlecry: If you have 10 mana crystals gain +5/+5.
- Rastakhans Rumble - Rush, Overkill: Draw a card.
Year of the Dragon
- Dalaran - Battlecry: Add a Lackey to your hand.
- Uldum - Reborn.
- Uldum (Alt) - Battlecry: Add an Uldum plague spell to your hand.
- Dragons - Battlecry: Discover a Dragon.
Year of the Phoenix
- Ashes of Outland - Dormant for 2 turns, then deal 3 damage to two random enemy minions.
- Scholomance Academy - Battlecry: Add a Dual Class card to your hand.
The Effect Will Update for a Couple of Years
Hearthstone's Chadd Nervig has confirmed that the effect will be updated as new expansions come out, though once Transfer Student moves out of Standard, those updates will cease.
Quote From Chadd Nervig This is basically correct. We plan to update Transfer Student with custom effects for new boards, while he is in Standard. After he rotates to Wild, new boards will get a consistent "Battlecry: Discover a <Expansion> card." for each board.
Plans may change in the future, but that's what we're thinking right now, at least.
Comments
I decided to follow up on my own post earlier about a visual for Transfer Student. Not the best quality, but hopefully it helps others in this discussion.
Transfer_Student.gif (August 2020)
After it rotates out of standard is still 2 years from now. so thats another 4 types that will be made before it becomes "discover a card from the board's expansion" which is fine actually.
I like its versatility and the fact that they just gave us a pair
Its effect does not work if randomly summoned. Wonder if that's intentional. Cause if so... no one is ever going to put it in a deck, and we will never see its effect outside of Arena.
Any chance this article will include a screenshot/image or hover-over-text-pop-up of the boards associated with each effect (in addition to the names already listed)? For example:
I know that it isn't necessary, but it would be super helpful for players of all kinds. I understand that it may be difficult/inundating, so I respect that if it doesn't happen.
Nevertheless, great summary of all of the effects, and kudos for the expedient write-up!
I don't like this card at all. This introduces a whole new dimension of RNG to an already RNG heavy game. We already have a lot of cards which add a significant amount of randomness to this game (discover, add random, cast random, etc.). Now the (random) board you are assigned will also have an effect. I was quite happy when the devs said that they will turn down the amount of randomness (i.e. discover) earlier and now they are adding this instead. Also this is not a meme card but will surely see play as some of the options are really good.
This is much better RNG than other cards.
I know what the card will do as soon as I see the board. Cards like blessed maul (and other cards with "gain bonus when drawn" are much worse than this card, but don't mind that either. A lot of cards (and I means a lot) are generated completely random (lackeys into random dragon or spell into random other things). This card isn't that bad, because you know what is does. You know what it does when your opponent plays it. It's a good 2 mana 2/2 with a tempo feature. All of them are almost equally as good. So I don't see a problem.
Slotted this guy into a few decks and he's shown his value bigtime. He's insane. He's had divine shield, reborn, stealth/poisonous, and buff a minion so far and each time it was a power play. Haven't gotten the get a plague one yet.
Some of the wild ones are pretty...wild. Love it!
Wow this is card is on a new level of randomness!!
I'm curious what his "default" ability will be on new boards in Wild after he rotates.
Funky idea, at least.
"Hearthstone's Chadd Nervig has confirmed that the effect will be updated as new expansions come out, though once Transfer Student moves out of Standard, those updates will cease."
"We plan to update Transfer Student with custom effects for new boards, while he is in Standard. After he rotates to Wild, new boards will get a consistent "Battlecry: Discover a <Expansion> card." for each board.
Plans may change in the future, but that's what we're thinking right now, at least."
A little disappointed in their current plans for when it rotates. It really shouldn't be hard to make it continue to follow the new expansion themes even once it rotates. Being just "Discover a <Expansion> card" is really boring. Hopefully their plans change.
I honestly have conflicting feelings about the card.
It's pretty cool idea to incorporate the board type into the game, but at the same time... it isn't.
I just played my first match with Transfer Student in my deck, and I know I cannot make assumptions based off of one game, but the fact that it only took one game to find an example of my concerns kind of proves my point.
I slid a copy of Transfer Student into my Highlander Hunter list. I queue into a Druid, which I correctly assume is a Spell Druid on the DoD board.
I had Transfer Student in my mulligan (the game really wanted me to try the new card), giving me a 2 mana Discover a Dragon on a 2/2 body. Not bad.
I play it on-curve and was offered Veranus, Onyxia and Cobalt Spellkin. Expecting a mana ramp into a turn 7 Exotic Mountseller, I pick Veranus.
Long story short, he curves into Exotic Mountseller on his 7, right as I hit turn 6 to clear his board using the Veranus I discovered from Transfer Student, continue the pressure, and win the game.
The entire reason I won that match, is because we were on the DoD game board. I did not draw any other answer to that T7, and had we been on say the Uldum board, I would have lost.
I am fully expecting to see a lot of Trollden videos surrounding this card. People losing matches on Orgrimmar with 2 damage going face etc etc.
It may not happen enough to matter, but it will be rather frustrating to lose a game just because of which game board you got stuck with.
"The entire reason I won that match, is because we were on the DoD game board."
I would say you are under-selling yourself and how much deterministic thought went into this. Yes the board was what presented you with the discover options, but you yourself read the situation well and chose a card that would lead to you winning. Good decisions won the game just as much as RNG did.
I think once people get a decent idea of what game boards lead to what effects (which is pretty easy to guess at since they are mostly based on the associated expansion's mechanics) then the board-determined RNG aspect vanishes as soon as you see what board you are on, which is before you even mulligan. From that point on the decisions on how to use the card or play around it are no different to anything else. It is not like a randomly generated card in your opponent's hand that you cannot guess at: you know what it will do and can adapt accordingly. That's a sign of a good player, and is perhaps the best example out there of where RNG actually rewards better players.
While the RNG of Transfer Student is going to be frustrating, I think your complaint is a little misguided considering we're talking about Hearthstone. In fact, your statement, "The entire reason I won that match, is because we were on the DoD game board. I did not draw any other answer to that T7, and had we been on say the Uldum board, I would have lost" could be applied to any of the other RNG mechanics/cards that already exist.
For example, a Mage who hits Nagrand Slam off of Puzzle Box of Yogg-Saron or What Does This Do? and wins the game from that card wouldn't have won the game if they didn't hit that card off of the Puzzle Box/Hero Power, and they certainly wouldn't have had an out like that normally since it's a Hunter card. Likewise, a [Hearthstone Card (Demon Hunter) Not Found] who discovers a second Metamorphosis from Vulpera Scoundrel and wins the game via the extra damage wouldn't have normally been able to put that many Metamorphosis's in their deck, but RNG'd them for the win.
I agree that the RNG in Hearthstone is becoming exhausting, but this has been the state of Hearthstone since Yogg. The issue isn't this card or this new type of RNG in my opinion, but rather that the devs seem to prefer chaotic, "fun" design over consistent, competitive design.
I agree that it gives you options you wouldn't have otherwise based on the board, but I feel like that eventually, players will learn the effects of the card and know what to play around based on the board. If it was instead the Boomsday board, you will know to consider holding at least one removal spell on the account that your opponent may drop a 7/7 taunt Transfer Student.
Your case was unique since it was randomly discovered, but I've also had games where I discover Veranus against a Spell Druid as well which also won me the game, but I got it off Primordial Explorer. Some games in Hearthstone do end because of something like Primordial Glyph > Primordial Glyph > Primordial Glyph > Pyroblast, but the odds that actually happens often are extremely low. Moments like these are not reliable win conditions, it's just that a card you happen to play in your deck happens to have been able to execute a nutty combo that won you the game (like in the case of [Hearthstone Card (Edwin Van Cleef) Not Found], people don't play him to get a 12/12 on turn 4, but because he's just a good card, and he can just so happen to sometimes be a 12/12 on turn 4).
Now I'm not saying this kind of out-of-your-control variance is a good thing. In fact, I think the vast disparity in power level between the boards (a Shotbot on the Uldum board compared to a better EVIL Cable Rat on the RoS board) is what's cause for concern. Perhaps these moments where the stars align won't be too frequent, else there's probably going to be some controversy around this card, potentially even seeing it banned in tournaments because of how swingy it is.
Classic Boards
Expansions (Pre Years)
Year of the Kraken
Year of the Mammoth
Year of the Raven
Year of the Dragon
Year of the Phoenix
Interesting card.
But if the effect can be game changing to play, and we can't choose the effect, that means the card is either extremely strong or stupidly weak depending on an rng system no one has control of.
Man its going to be some dark times when we start seeing this card winning matches for your opponent because we happen to be in a game board that favors our opponent instead of us. How is this even remotely justified in a supposedly competitive game?
I am really disappointed that they will stop giving him updates after he rotates out of standard :(.
I like this guy already...
stupid question ... how the gameboard is decided? never cared about that ...
Board is always randomized at the start of the game. The only place it isn't is inside adventures and some Tavern Brawls.