Hearthstone: The Grand Tournament

So, the Grand Tournament. Let's talk about that.

If you don't already know what it is, Hearthstone is a rathe fun little spin-off from Warcraft that you can play on PC or mobile phones, and it's absolutely fun! You basically go into battle with other players with a deck you've constructed, and it's kind of like most other Trading Card Games like Magic: The Gathering or Yu-Gi-Oh or whatever, but with Warcraft characters and voice-acting and a rather tongue-in-cheek tone.

I have been playing for less than a month, and while my collection isn't impressive by any stretch, I do believe I have the hang of the game to talk about it. Now Hearthstone has gotten several updates since its inception: two 'Adventure Modes', which are adaptations of Raids from World of Warcraft, as well as an expansion, Goblins & Gnomes, which features like a hundred new cards. This August, Hearthstone is going to have its second expansion, the Grand Tournament -- itself based on the Argent Tournament event from World of Warcraft -- which will feature several new mechanics and cards. Blizzard's site has a trailer and whatnot you can watch, but let's talk a bit about the new cards revealed so far. They're revealing a new card every day, and people can vote for whichever card they want out of two artworks shown, which is a fun way to hype it up.

So the Grand Tournament's main theme, in addition to the whole Argent Tournament thing, is going to be about hero powers. We've got a new keyword, Inspire, which is kind of like Battlecry and Deathrattle, but instead of being activated upon a minion's entrance or death, Inspire is activated whenever a hero plays his/her hero power. We've also got cards that allows you to use a hero power multiple times, or upgrades your hero power, which adds to the whole hero power synergy.

I think Rogues are the ones that'll get the biggest shaft from the Inspire mechanic, because the Rogue hero power summons a 2/1 weapon... which doesn't stack with itself, so if your Rogue has a better weapon, or is able to use her hero power multiple times... it's kind of moot compared to the others -- spamming a Warlock's drawing ability, or a Priest's healing, or a Mage or Hunter's instant damage, or the Warrior and Druid's armour bonus, or the Paladin and Shaman creating little dudes... the Rogue doesn't really get much mileage from being able to spam her power. Shame.

Keep in mind, I'm not well-versed in the whole metagame thing so I can't say I can talk about how this card will impact the metagame or how well a card will work in a stall or control deck or whatever, so, um, sorry? I mean, I understand how most decks work, but I'm just not quite that experienced to predict the metagame and whatnot. The Hearthstone Wiki has a page for the Grand Tournament that displays all the cards revealed through the site, Twitch streams and other sources, so I'm going to use it as a source to kind of just talk about how this expansion will affect the game.

Let go from the neutral cards first...

• Lowly Squire: 1/2 for 1 mana, with Inspire: gain +1 attack. It's just an example of how the inspire mechanic will work, really. On its surface the Lowly Squire isn't much... it's a cheap 1-mana drop, for sure, and kind of an inferior version of Micro Machine since you probably won't use your hero power every turn... but still, it's a nice little minion to show how your using hero powers can benefit your minions. It's kind of like the Mana Wyrm, I guess, where it has the potential to snowball really badly, but it's a bit too slow in most situations. 

• Silver Hand Regent: 3/3 for 3 mana, with Inspire: summon a 1/1 Silver Hand Recruit. It's kind of odd that this fellow isn't a Paladin-exclusive minion, but it's a relatively solid 3-drop I think. If you can get its inspire effect out, good for you -- free minion -- but if you don't, not really a big loss. I think the big thing about inspire is that you can control when you want the effect to happen, instead of stuff like, for example, Mana Wyrm's "if you play a spell", which sometimes you can't take advantage of due to the limited amount of spells in your hand. Hero power's always available. And getting a little bonus dude as a bonus while lobbing a fireball or summoning a totem? It's kinda cool.

• Maiden of the Lake: 2/6 for 4 mana, causes your hero power to cost (1). Definitely awesome, and one of the many minions that will allow you to spam your hero power. Again, combined with the Coldarra Drake, this card can potentially cause you to Fireball ten times in one turn -- that's twenty damage you can distribute fully, and a +10 to your Lowly Squire. Of course you might not exactly pull it off, but still in any event it's a pretty cool effect for any deck, not just mages.

• Tournament Medic: 1/8 for 4 mana, Inspire: restore 2 health to your hero. It's got rather odd stats, and won't hurt anyone, but it allows you to heal your hero any time you use your hero power, effectively allowing Warlock decks to draw an additional card without risking their health too much, and Priest decks can probably play him offensively with Inner Fire. He's not that good thanks to the low attack, making him unable to 'trade' with other minions, but hey, that's a pretty cool ability, if one that will probably prove rather impractical.

• North Sea Kraken: 9/7 for 9 mana, Battlecry: deal 4 damage. It's kind of costly for 9 mana, and while dealing 4 damage is a nice little bonus, I don't think this card is really viable considering how fragile it is -- the likes of Shaman's far more economical Fire Elemental can probably fit the 'deal 4 damage' niche pretty well, and stuff like Starfall and Flamestrike deal that amount of amage for far less mana. And while the Kraken can probably take down several lesser minions I don't think he's worth it for 9 mana. Granted, unleashing the Kraken will probably deal a fair amount of damage to your opponent's minions, but at that point in the game usually the enemy already has the board set up and the Kraken is basically blocked by most 6-drops and 7-drops... clearing common taunters like Lord of the Arena will leave the Kraken at one health, a juicy meal for easy one damage clears like Fireball or Fan of Knives.

• Coliseum Manager: 2/5 for 3 mana, Inspire: return this card to your hand. A rare card, and an odd one at that... 2/5 isn't exactly good value, and I don't see the point of returning him to my hand. To heal him, I guess? But that means I'll waste 3 more mana next turn to summon him next turn, and for an additional 2 damage I don't think he's worth it. Not entirely pointless, but I don't think I'll find much mileage from this card if I get him.

• Garrison Commander: 2/3 for 2 mana, you can use your hero power twice in a turn. Now this is awesome. A cheap 2 mana drop, and while his stats isn't anything special it allows you to make Inspire effects twice in a turn. Double the Silver Hand Recruit! Double the attack bonus! Double the War Kodos! Probably going to be a nice, solid choice for Inspire-heavy decks. Shame it's Epic, making it difficult to find for FTP dudes.

• Kodorider: 3/5 for 6 mana, Inspire: summon a 3/5 War Kodo. It basically replicates itself every time you lob a fireball, and with Warsong Commander all of its babies can immediately charge the enemy to death. Shame its attack is kind of low for a 6-drop, and you really need to use your hero power at least once to make the 6 mana spend worth it. It's pretty cool, I guess, though again as with everything I'm just speculating with my own opinions and whatnot and by the time TGT rolls around it may be the essential card in every single deck. I dunno. 

• Frost Giant: 8/8 for 10 mana, costs 1 less for each time you used your hero power this game. Another card that encourages you to use hero powers, the Frost Giant is awesome because unlike some cards like Bolvar Fordragon that needs to stick around in your hand for its effect to take place, the Frost Giant counts how many times you lobbed a fireball in a game. And summoning an 8/8 for, like, 4 mana or whatever? Or even 0 mana if you have used your hero power ten times? Pretty awesome. It'll be like the Fel Reaver without the drawback!

• Nexus-Champion Saraad: 4/5 for 5 mana, Inspire: add a random spell to your hand. Kind of like a cheaper version of Nefarian, though it takes spells from every class instead of just the opponent's and does so potentially every turn instead of just once. It's decent for 5 mana, I suppose, and its effects will no doubt lead to hilarious videos on Youtube. Also it looks kinda cool, an Etheral dude on an Etheral... camel? With a lightsaber? Saraad's metal, if nothing else.

• Justicar Trueheart: 6/3 for 6 mana, Batlecry: replace your starting hero power with a better one. This is a card that's either going to be holy shit super awesome (especially, again, combined with Garrison Commander or Coldarra Drake and Maiden of the Lake) by upgrading your hero power. Druids gain +2/+2, Hunters deal 3 damage, Mages deal 2 damage, Paladins summon two dudes, Shamans can choose which totem, Rogues equip a 2/2 weapon, Warriors get +4 armor, Warlocks draw without losing health and Priests heal 4 health. I do think that Rogues and Shamans are kind of shafted in the deal, but apparently they are adding new totems into the Shaman totem pool. I dunno. It's a pretty awesome ability, and reportedly you can cast your original hero power, summon Trueheart, and then use your hero power once more though I think that's just a fun little bonus. Trueheart herself is kind of fragile, basically a better version of the Reckless Rocketeer but without charge, assuring that unless you've got taunt minions she'll probably die before managing to inflict 6 damage where it matters.

• Skycap'n Skragg: 4/6 for 7 mana, with Charrrrrge, and costs 1 less for each friendly pirate. He's a motherfucking orc pirate riding a giant parrot and is therefore awesome. Skragg is extremely inefficient for 7 mana, obviously, and I guess it works in pirate synergy decks... I just don't really play much with pirates, and besides we just need more decent pirate cards. I do like how we're getting some dragons and pirates and Murlocs in this expansion, helping to pad out those themed decks. Skragg is absolutely worthless if you're not playing a pirate deck, regrettably. 

And now the class cards...

• Ball of Spiders [Hunter]: 6 mana, summon three 1/1 Webspinners. 6 mana for three 1/1's is extremely inefficient, and while the Webspinner's deathrattle could be beneficial -- basically ensuring you get three random beasts -- emphasis on the word 'random'. While you could end up with awesome cards like Maexnna or Savannah Highmane, you're equally likely to end up with worthless Angry Chickens and Hungry Crabs... and besides, if you really want random beasts, why not just, y'know, clear Naxxramas and put in two Webspinners in your deck?

• Lock and Load [Hunter]: 2 mana, add a random Hunter card to your hand each time you cast a spell this turn. Depending on how many spells you have in your hand, I guess this could be beneficial? It's limited to the late game and only if you haven't used up your Multi-Shots and Arcane Shots and whatever in the early game, and, again, being random means that you could end up with useless stuff as well. It could potentially be useful late in the game, restocking on the spell cards spent early on and giving you extra removal options, but you'll have to kind of plan it out to make the most use out of it. 

• Fallen Hero [Mage]: 3/2 for 2 mana, your hero power deals extra 1 damage. It's probably a card that I'll stuff into my mage deck pretty quickly. 3/2 is a rather decent 2-drop, and it allows me to launch 2-damage fireballs (3-damage with Justicar Trueheart) wherever I want. Mages are already versatile because the 1-damage Fireball can bypass Taunt and whatnot, allowing them to launch double that damage, and still get a relatively good-value 2-drop on the side is pretty good. Shame Fallen Hero's probably going to die in the next turn, but I guess it can trade off pretty well with its 3 attack. It would also be awesome, again, combined with Coldarra Drake and the Maiden of the Lake.

• Effigy [Mage]: 3 mana, Secret: when a friendly minion dies, summon a random minion with the same cost. Pretty cool little secret, I guess. I mean, again it depends on the random number generator, but unlike the Webspinner example above (random beast) you are at least ensuring that you get something of equal value to the stuff you just lost. Hell, potentially even getting stuff like Deathwing from losing the Frost Giant above. Pretty cool, I guess.

• Coldarra Drake [Mage]: 6/6 for 6 mana. You can use your hero power any number of times. I think Coldarra Drake here is going to be a staple in most mage decks, allowing you to fireball twice -- and that's without the synergy offered by Fallen Hero, Maiden of the Lake and Justicar Trueheart to make your fireballs more painful and/or efficient. Or all the Inspire effects. And Coldarra is actually a pretty solid 6-drop. Definitely want this dude on my mage deck.

• Sacred Warrior Holy Champion [Priest]: 3/5 for 4 mana. Whenever a character is healed, gain +2 attack. A more powerful version of the Lightwarden minion, its pretty awesome. With solid stats for a 4-drop, and the potential to snowball really quickly, I can see this card being really awesome if not taken out quickly. And even if it does happen, she's still doing her job doling out 3 damage to whoever does her in. 

• Poisoned Blade [Rogue]: 1/3 weapon, 4 mana. Your hero power gives this weapon +1 attack instead of replacing it. I guess it's the reassurance that the Rogue's hero power isn't going to be completely useless in the new metagame? It's wholly dependent on whether you have this weapon in hand or not, though, and 4 mana is a bit too expensive when it'll take a total of 6 mana to turn it into a 2/3 weapon, whereas Assassin's blade is 3/4 for 5 mana. I guess you get to activate Inspire effects, and I dunno how the other Rogue cards will play out, but again, it doesn't seem too good a consolation prize for Rogues.

• Totem Golem [Shaman]: 3/4 for 2 mana, Overload 1. Extremely solid 2 drop, easily tanking most other 2-drops, and the fact that it's a totem helps synergy with some of the other cards below (Draenei Totemcarver, Thunder Bluff Valiant) and other Shaman cards that already have decent synergy with Totems and Overload... pretty cool.

• Tuskarr Totemic [Shaman]: 3/2 for 3 mana, Battlecry: summon any random totem. Pretty awesome, as the Tuskarr Totemic itself is already a pretty decent 3-drop, and the potential to summon a free Totem Golem or Flametongue Totem is pretty awesome. None of the totems are really bad choices (unlike the 'get a random beast' or 'get a random spell' choices above) and again, it gives great syngery with the other Shaman cards revealed, which is cool.

• Draenei Totemcarver [Shaman]: 4/4 for 4 mana, Battlecry: gain +1/+1 for each friendly totem. While at first glance it's a pretty awesome syngeric card with all the new totems and totem-summoning cards and whatnot, it's still a battlecry effect, making the Draenei Totemcarver a cheaper and more specific version of the already-m'eh Frostwolf Warlord. Granted, it could be aweome considering the relatively low 4-mana cost, but I dunno, I'm not that impressed.

• Thunder Bluff Valiant [Shaman]: 3/6 for 5 mana, Inspire: give your totems +2 attack. Probably going to be a massive threat if it's dropped in a totem-filled field. And the fact that the Valiant buffs even the newly-summoned totem, and allowed totems summoned from previous turns to just launch a barrage of 2 attacks... its stats are nothing to balk at either, making it not quite that easy to remove. Kind of situational depending on how many totems you have, but it's pretty cool and one I will probably stuff into my Shaman deck pretty quickly.

• Wilfred Fizzlebang [Warlock]: 4/4 for 6 mana, Cards you draw from your hero power cost 0. TRIFLING GNOME YOUR ARROGANCE WILL BE YOUR UNDOING! Most famous for the memorable short battle in WoW where Wilfred summons the gigantic ham known as JARAXXUS EREDAR LORD OF THE BURNING LEGION, Wilfred is now a card! You'll probably want to play Wilfred in turn 8 so you can life tap immediately, allowing you to potentially summon gigantic threats like, oh, I dunno, Infernals or Deathwings or Alexstraszas or Dr. Booms or JARAXXUS EREDAR LORD OF THE BURNING LEGION for 0 mana. Shame its stats are kind of pitiful. It is safe from the Priests' shadow words, but removing him will be a top priority for the enemy and it can equally backfire pretty badly if the enemy takes control of your Wilfred. He's pretty interesting, though, and while it's a gamble (you are likely to draw, like, Overwhelming Power instead of that Lord Jaraxxus you want) I do want this card just for the hilarity. 

• King's Defender [Warrior]: 3/2 weapon, 3 mana, Battlecry: for every minion with taunt you control, gain +1 durability. Not really exciting, to be honest. Can probably replace the Fiery War Axe, but it really is situational and honestly not even that good. With rumours saying that the finalized text may even say "if you have a minion with taunt, gain +1 durability" instead of gaining 1 for each minion, it kind of sucks even more.

Overall those are my first impressions. Not exactly professional and metagame-versed and all that jazz, but I'm certainly excited. Mage and Shaman seem to be getting the most love amongst the recent reveals, with Rogues and Warriors being the most m'eh and underwhleming, but we still have, oh, like a good hundred or so cards to go, so those classes' good cards will probably shine in a later date. I'm certainly pumped for this new expansion and am saving my gold to buy those expansion packs. Shame the Arena reward packs will now be randomized between the three expansions, meaning spamming Arena with my gold is not quite viable to get as many Grand Tournament packs as I can.

Alas, this expansion means it'll probably drain all the gold I've stockpiled, meaning my dream to unlock Naxxramas and Blackrock Mountain may have to wait...