Ancharrr (4) - Slightly worse then a 3/2 weapon, but drawing 1 card from this makes this excellent.
Dread Raven (4) - Solid tribe and stats. Seldom seen upside.
Kobold Stickyfinger (3) - Similar to Kezan Mystic, but slightly worse body per cost, but upside is higher with stealing a weapon. Can be an okay pick if offered along with worse.
Transmogrifier (4) - Nice 2 drop with Pseudo Taunt. Legendary cards can be wide ranging, and being only a 2 drop it's unlikely to see more then 1 draw.
Breath of the Infinite (5) - Good card for Priest, upside is not insane, but solid. Balanced card.
Diving Gryphon (5) - Beast/Rush/Minion synergies. 3 mana, 4 Damage removal WITH upside to replace itself ? Insane card.
Cumulo-Maximus (4) - The overload condition should be an all game requirement which makes this card more consistent. A 5/5 for 5 with a relevant tag still makes this playable, but the battlecry makes this insane. It's somewhere in the middle.
Zzeraku the Warped (4) - High HP win condition. It's hard to remove on turn 8, and on turn 10, it just snowballs out of control. A slow card value card, but very hard to deal with.
Bad Luck Albatross (4) - A really good 3 drop that disrupts your opponents draws. This potentially can win you the game without you knowing it by giving dead draws to your opponent when he needs an answer or pressure. Super good card. Knock on it is the effect is a DR instead of BC.
Dragoncaster (2) - Big spell, small spell Mage, i'm not sure what the theme is right now in this expansion but surely it revolves around spells. Basic set is rotating back in, so a big Flamestrike with a 4/4 seems promising, but it does have the Dragon requirement too. Seems inconsistent.
Arcane Breath (4) - Fair card for 1 mana even without the condition, with the condition it's a very good card.
Nithogg (5) - Slight immediate tempo loss, but the 8/8 Rush stats the following turn should easily pick it up. Fringe cases where the 0/3s can be utilized the turn they come into play, but not out of the question.
Bandersmosh (4) - Interesting card, can lead to some insane tempo cheating since this only costs 5 mana, but the RNG factor holds this from being anything more then a 5 mana 5/5 with occasional up/downsides which isn't that bad.
Chenvaala (4) - 3 drop stats are fair, but the upside is a bit of a stretch to achieve. It's an Elemental which counts for something.
Dragonqueen Alexstrasza (5) - The average deck likely will have at least 1 or 2 duplicates which makes this slightly less consistent. However, it's usually a 9+ turn play which gives you time to draw the duplicates, as well as being a "playable" 8/8 for 9. The upside of the card is insane, especially with the new high value Dragons in existent right now, this card can single handedly win games through tempo or refill after playing it.
Sanctuary (4) - Insane card to open with. It either forces opponents into suboptimal face hits to prevent a 3/6 tempo swing or potentially forces 2 mana pings early. Coin this out early and you probably win on turn 2. It also protects your own board from trades, and this fits perfectly into Paladins plans.
Zul'Drak Ritualist (3) - Probably still decent in some situations. 3 extra small minions can have minimal impact in some classes or board states.
Flik Skyshiv (5) - Less conditional Vilespine Slayer on average. Occasionally a board clear (example: Silverhand Recruits), and occasionally nuke your own guy.
Valdris Felgorge (4) - Not the right class for the ability, but great value card regardless.
Abyssal Summoner (4) - At 6 mana, it's fair. You'll need at least 4 cards in hand to break even, which seems reasonable by turn 6.
Chromatic Egg - (3) - Probably similar to Mechano Egg with the 8/8 Devilsaur. Really slow card, and most Dragons either have strong battlecries or lack initiative like Rush, so the Discover minion will have delayed impact as a big body only usually.
Dragon Breeder - (4) - Reasonable card with some upside. Should be consistent to get value from this card for 2 mana.
Dragonrider Talritha (4) - A playable 3 drop with a pretty powerful deathrattle. Judging by the initial reveals there seems to be ample opportunity for Dragon synergies, so this should be pretty consistent.
Shu'ma (4) - It's not the most powerful Legendary, but acts as a win condition. Stats on an empty board is quite strong, and the effect is reoccurring.
Envoy of Lazul (3) - Weak initial body, and odds of hitting the correct card seems lower then it's 3 mana counter part Curious Glimmerroot.
Secure the Deck (3) - Not all that bad, and can be completed without RNG draws or drafts.
Clear the Way (2) - Dependent on Rush minions in the meta, but the summon effect means cards like Desert Spear can trigger this Quest.
Deathwing, Mad Aspect (5) - 8 mana 12/12 on empty board. Huge come back card, less good if ahead.
Dragonbane (5) - 6 mana, 7 face damage on empty board. Otherwise, better Auchenai Soulpriest ability. Insane card.
Nozdormu the Timeless (5) - Basically a 4 mana 8/8 in the mid/late game. Even turn 4, it's not easy to respond to an 8/8 without minions on the board or removal in hand even with 10 mana available.
Malygos, Aspect of Magic (5) - Upgraded spells are very powerful. Body is fair. Ability should trigger fairly consistently.
Sathrovarr (5) - Lots of Value packed into this card. Draw a card + 2x bodies for 9. Potential to blow a game open.
Waxadred (5) - Over sized body, but weak health makes it more manageable. Deathrattle is solid delayed upside.
Ysera, Unleashed (4) - Lots of value in this card and future tempo, but the initial body lacks is weak for a 9 drop and without initiative makes it less powerful. The value and tempo gained by the 7 dragon draws will make it up if you draw 1, let alone more.
Epic
Toxic Reinforcements (1) - Generally garbage, 3 turns of hero powering is reserved for the late game, is this worth a card in the late game? Hell no.
Rare
Breath of Dreams (2) - 2 mana cycle a card, so pretty bad. Really good if you open with this for ramp.
Dragon's Hoard (3) - Will be higher value then other discover cards, although, less flexible if you needed an answer, as opposed to a value minion.
Lightning Breath (4) - Very solid, and potentially a 3 mana mini Flamestrike. Can be insane.
Molten Breath (4) - Good removal card. Armor bonus is less valuable in Warrior.
Phase Stalker (4) - Deck thinning for 2 mana, as well as some value. Otherwise generic 2 drop beast which is good for Hunter.
Common
Azure Explorer (4) - Cycles itself and cheap enough to spell damage boost cards in a relevant class. Body is on the weaker side, but the dragon discover is high value.
Candle Breath (3) - Fine card, 3 for 3 is great upside, but not game breaking.
Corrosive Breath (4) - Solid removal for cost, with upside that could matter.
Dwarven Sharpshooter (5) - Premium 1 drop that improves your hero power and protects itself from 2 drops.
Emerald Explorer (5) - Bonkers card. Properly statted with high value battlecry.
Evasive Drakonid (5) - Another bonkers card. There's a reason not many large untargetable minions exist, it blows out games. This will likely do that. It's a common so it will be in Arena a lot.
Learn Draconic (2) - Redeeming factor is you can play this on turn 9 and spend 8 mana worth of spells for a free 6/6. It's controllable to an extent which keeps this from being total garbage.
Primordial Explorer (5) - How did Emperor Cobra get a discover effect. Makes no sense. Insane power creep.
Sand Breath (4) - Busted in the first couple turns. Less good late, but the shield has value in the late game.
Twin Tyrant (5) - A better Multi-Shot attached to a fair 7 drop for 8 mana. Massive threat that will lately win games when played.
Pretty interesting to see Hunter as my worst match up. I believe the stats that Heartharena collects are based off of the Portrait hero (1st hero you choose) so this potentially means that Hunter as a 1st pick might be under estimated by hsreplay.net which currently ranks it 7th overall. I am absolutely getting SHELLED going 2nd against (50% WR), which makes sense if they had Steady Shot, but without it, it's a bit surprising to see, I can't really pinpoint the reasoning.
Warrior and Warlock is no surprise as tough customers, they are both top classes to choose. Boosted class cards make these classes extremely hard to deal. I played against someone last night that drafted 5x Death's Bites, Fools Bane and a Blood Razor. It was ridiculous.
Reference 70% WR is 7 win average.
Paladin and Priest are the other top classes to choose, but I am doing significantly better against them (~76% WR) then Warrior and Warlock.
Another interesting note - Mage which is the weakest class based on hsreplay.net is my 3rd most encountered class, this is probably due to newer players entering the Arena with limited class knowledge, so they choose classes they are familiar with or have previous strong arena experiences with.
Druid ranks 5th on hsreplay, but i've taken them to the cleaners this meta which seems a bit out of line as well.
Sample size is becoming relevant but variance can explain some of these oddities. Another thing that could account massively is the hero power. Unfortunately these stats only separate the Portrait here and dont go into the hero powers. It would be a nice stat to have to be able to see how well i've done against the various combinations or hero powers separately.
Curious how everyone else is faring so far in Duals, any outliers or strange stats you care to discuss or share ?
Initial Impressions of dual Arenas after about 100 games.
My choices for 1st/2nd class. Anecdotal.
Paladin, Warlock, Shaman / Rogue, Warlock, Mage
Establishing early board is extremely important. In general, there seems to a be a lack of quality reactive offerings to make strong come backs with. What that means is, if you get ahead, you will likely STAY ahead and win.
The format (no buckets) rewards strong drafting knowledge. Without strong come from behind cards, having good drafting fundamentals goes a longer way. Curve and Tempo is king. Make sure you have proper "curve" minions (a 3 mana 2/2 is NOT a curve minion), a mix of initiative and some way to finish off games. There's no more predictive drafting, where we expect certain cards to pop up because the pools and buckets were so limited. Sometimes you just have to make Lemonade when you are offered lemons, this is the beauty of a system without buckets.
Defensive cards seem to be premium. Less taunts (Bone Wraith, War Bear, Kharut Defender) means less ways to prevent face damage. There also seems to be less good healing options as well (Voodoo Doctor, Farseer removed). A good sized taunt (even something as average as a 3/8 for 6 mana) is a nice luxury minion and usually is extremely hard to remove since the Meta is lacking removal cards in general. Bog Creeper and Tar Creeper feel ultra premium right now.
Removal is a premium. A deck full of good statted bodies is great, but you'll still need at least 1 or 2 strong removal cards to deal with trouble taunts, or to swing the game back while you are going 2nd. Take them early in your drafts to make sure you have it. In general, it feels like removal is more scarce, but i haven't dived too deep into the details just anecdotal. (I did get psy screamed 3 times yesterday on curve, DOOM'd, as well as Dragon Fired all in one day)
Take your time. Lots of cards we haven't seen for a while so don't make dumb misplays by not reading the cards. (I played Plague Scientist twice without the combo, and I played Doom Pact thinking it was Army of the Dead, all in 1 day) This also means to take some time to familiarize yourself with the card pools.
Don't play around anything - this is just my general feeling, but usual culprits like Scorcher on 5 or Flamestrike on 7 are not applicable here. Most decks are just so janky and fragile, you can't afford to play around anything most of the time and developing + face is generally correct.
Overall i'm enjoying it. It feels more like Arena (bad decks, limited synergies, rewards drafting and game play fundamentals like trading) Some negatives would probably include lack of class identity and neutralstone which favors the class with the better hero power. Another negative is the strength of going 1st. Without strong reactive cards, most deck archetypes will lean towards early tempo and aggression, this favors heavily the player going 1st. Its similar to the Rise of Mechs meta where early tempo was key.
Just some random thoughts so far, let me know if you agree or disagree, and your experiences.
Zephrys the Great (2): Similar to Kazakus in power level and digging ability. It might be even better in some classes that can pull off the highlander deck list.
Octosari (2): It's fine - even if you don't full draw the 8 cards, or mill your deck it's still a good value card and a big thing.
Vessina (2): Playable stats with a must kill ability. Overload is a bit inflexible at times.
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Blatant Decoy (4): Pretty bad card, you can set it up in some classes, but overall a 6 mana 5/5 with a mirror effect is very unpredictable.
Body Wrapper (3): Delayed value ability. Stats are fair enough.
Crystal Merchant (3): I think the card is okay - the stats are playable on 2 in a pinch or you can play it as a draw 1 in the late game with a reoccuring affect. Flexible enough.
History Buff (2): This is a good 3-drop similar to Beastmaster in power level, maybe stronger since it can trigger right away and multiple times.
Mischief Maker (3): Unpredictable, but will be more favorable for you since you can "control" when to play it.
Vulpera Scoundrel (1): Better then Kabal Courier - this is potentially the go to discover card. Stats are weak, but very flexible for option.
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Dune Sculptor (3): Mana Cyclone as a 3 drop - except for minions. How reliable has Mana Cyclone been ?
Garden Gnome (3): There are solid Druid big spells and holding one in hand to trigger this seems like an easy way to cheat tempo early.
Holy Ripple (1): Very good small AOE for priest - it's better value per mana then Holy Nova.
Hyena Alpha (3): Hard to make work since the secret needs to be played and not triggered. You can play on T6, but playing a secret for the sake of a 2/2 is not optimal use of the secret.
Mogu Fleshshaper (3): Probably OK in Shaman, but it's not a huge tempo swing for the requirements. Compare this to Undercity Fence.
Naga Sand Witch (3): Playable, and occasionally lead to some insanity on turn 10.
Quicksand Elemental (1): It's good - but potentially overhyped a bit. The reduction is better in Priest then other classes. For 2 mana - it's an easy pick if bucketed low.
Ramkahen Wildtamer (2): Fine stats with value upside. Hunter should consistently have options for this more then other classes.
Swarm of Locusts (2): 5-7 minions is good/great. Anything else is average or worse. It's a catch up card for Hunter that generates minions which is pretty good.
Ancestral Guardian (2): Aggressively statted with some healing is pretty nice. Should trade decently as well with both bodies for 4 mana.
Ancient Mysteries (4): Pretty deck dependent but a secret tutor to work with your synergy cards could make this viable.
Beaming Sidekick (2): Nice card, about as impactful as a tempo 1 drop can be.
Bug Collector (2): 3/2 over 2 bodies, with a bit of initative. The ping is going to be huge in the Reborn meta.
Candletaker (1): Better then Harvest Golem and better then Mounted Raptor. This card is one of the best 3-drops around.
Clever Disguise (3): The range of cards is too wide with random spells. It's worse then Violet Haze, since Haze gives deathrattle minions which have value built into the cards. The spell pool is too wide for this to be that good.
Desert Hare (3): Slightly worse Microtech controller with beast synergy.
Faceless Lurker (3): Small upside Fen Creeper that hurts more from a silence.
Golden Scarab (2): Bit of value, will be better in classes with strong class 4 cost cards.
Injured Tol'vir (2): One of the better 2 drops around. Great in Priest
Neferset Thrasher (2): Yeti on T3, into 2 trades is great. It will cost you 6 hp for 2 trades, but that probably saves you more in the long run. Also can be played and silenced or sacrificed without losing hp.
Oasis Surger (1): Really nice card. Flexible multi target removal, or a single minion attacker. It can be played as 2x 3/3s for 5 as well on an empty board.
Penance (2): Good cheap removal card with some extra healing which might not be that good in the Priest class.
Phalanx Commander (3): With the pool of taunt minions in the next rotation, this will find some use, but otherwise it's an understatted 5 drop.
Pit Crocolisk (1): Great card, comparable to Kraken, Fire elemental and of course Firelands Portal. Giving neutral reach to all classes will definitely make this a meta defining card.
Sandhoof Waterbearer (1): Great card and will break games open if left unchecked.
Sandstorm Elemental (1): Elemental Twilight Flamecaller. Really strong card for a class that needs the ping aoe.
Sinister Deal (2): Flexible but lackeys generally don't create much value - paying +1 mana for this spell then +1 mana for a lackey reduces the tempo advantages the Lackeys provide.
Spitting Camel (3): Better in slower drafts and classes. Worse in swarmy, aggressive drafts.
Subdue (2): Worse then Dark Conviction, but still very decent large removal.
Temple Berserker (2): One of the best aggressive 2 drops. 1/2 followed by a 3/1 after it comes back. Similar to Kindly Grandmother in Hunter which is a nightmare to deal with early.
Totemic Surge (4): Better then Totemic Might since it can surprise damage, but still pretty bad and inflexible.
Wasteland Scorpid (2): Expensive but highly durable body should go 2 for 1.
Colossus of the Moon (2): Big dumb minion that will be impossible to removal via minions. Lack of initiative and flexibility makes this card a high average card at best.
Plague of Wrath (3): Seems fine, a weaker Sleep with the Fishes type card for Warrior. It's King Mosh's ability without the 9/7 body.
Sunstruck Henchman (3): Seems poor, but probably performs similarly to Ogres and their 50% chance to miss effects.
Anubisath Defender (3): Tempo minion potentially. Should perform similarly to Arcane Tyrant.
Overflow (2): Better then Sprint. The Heal will be controllable to benefit you, so usually to a much stronger positive effect, then negative.
Plague of Flames (1): For 1 mana, if it's a 1 mana do 2 damage to kill a minion + trade type of card, it's fine. On the high roll side, it's a 1 mana Twisting Nether, If you get a huge flip with it, you can redevelop with all your mana. It's really strong.
Micro Mummy (2): Bit annoying and you'll get some value from this card, if you don't, it's a 2 body pseudo taunt that soaks up some damage.
Livewire Lance (1): Great card. The Lackeys generated will make up for the 2 attack on 3 mana.
Dark Pharaoh Tekahn (4): 5 mana 4/4 with limited upside? Pretty bad. Not much lackey support so far. More a constructed card.
Desert Spear (1): Great weapon for Hunter. It's similar to Perdition's Blade and Piranha Launcher. The split damages help Hunter take care of complex boards and has beast synergies to boot.
Vilefiend (3): Slightly average card. Can find some use in classes that need a small heal or a Demon to synergize with.
Pharaoh's Blessing (1): Blessing of King + Hand of Protection + Taunt Spare part. It's a great card by itself, but huge buffs can be awkward for Paladin since Spikeridged Steed is rotating back in.
Tomb Warden (2): It's a good card by itself, however not as good as Power of Creation for example, but with any kind of hand buffs, this card gets insane.
Embalming Ritual (2): Probably a better Ancestral Spirit. For 1 mana it's worth it on almost any minion.
Pharaoh Cat (1): Cheap combo card and 1-drop. Generated card always gets value due to the Reborn mechanic.
Bone Wraith (1): 4 mana Sludge Belcher. Makes Infested Tauren look like complete garbage. This card (among many others) will spell the end for Aggro this upcoming rotation.
Shadow of Death (5): 4 mana do nothing is hard to make work in Arena.
Mortuary Machine (3): This card probably works better as a late game Tempo finisher when cards are exhausted or on an empty board as opposed to a mid game play. It's not a trader since the opponent will have a significant value edge, so it's a face card for sure.
Conjured Mirage (5): Garbage unless you can silence this. Anti fatigue card in constructed?
Siamat (1): Very powerful legend. At worst, its a Warbear, at best it's a 2 for 1 trader, that threatens 12 damage next turn.
Flame Ward (2): This is one of the stronger secrets with a nice AOE effect for 3 mana. It further complicates the tests you have to do while secrets are up.
King Phaoris (4): Obviously powerful effect, but borderline undraftable, as a condition 10 drop that requires conditions to be met to extract value. In the slowest metas, I can see this working though.
Sahket Mercenary (1): Fair statted 4 drop with a built in random Sap. A very disruptive card that requires removal before developing.
Khartut Defender (2): Very defensive card, but really weak tempo on the turn you play it. 3 attack does not fair well against minions in the 4-5-6 range. It's a Lord of the Arena card that heals you for 6HP. It has uses and is quite decent as a recovery card.
Wretched Reclaimer (1): Fair 3 drop that is a usually a full heal, as well as a well to get additional value from Reborn, Deathrattles, Rush, and Divine Shielded cards. Can be insane tempo and value.
Wrapped Golem (1): Insane neutral threat. Generates tons of value, protects your board, and has reoccuring value. It's a bomb.
Diseased Vulture (1): Fair 4 drop stats with upside. Can snow ball out of control and generate quite a bit of value. As a 6 mana play, it should be better on average then Murloc Knight.
Neferset Ritualist (1): Very painful win more card. If you can free trade and heal with this card, it's going to give you a strangle hold on the board. Generic 2 drop stats with late game flexibility makes this card incredible powerful.
Anubisath Warbringer (4): Probably undraftable. Poor stats with an effect that requires you to give up a 9 drop.
Into the Fray (4): The effect is very strong for the mana cost, but having the taunt minions in hand can lead to inconsistencies. Even getting 1 buff might make this worth while.
Pressure Plate (3): Spell condition makes this a bit less likely, but a 2 mana Deadly shot that has the secret confusion value isn't the worst.
Infested Goblin (3): Bit understatted initially, but the value comes from the 2 separate taunts afterwards. Fair card.
Frightened Flunky (1): Very strong card. Better then other 2 mana class minions that generate value. Also a discover.
Wasteland Assassin (2): 2x Jungle Panthers in 1 body. 4 attack is serviceable on turn 5 and having the ability to trade twice for 1 card makes this a strong card.
High Priest Amet (2): Fair stats, with a strong effect. It's flexible to play on T4, but it's real value comes from being played in the late game in combination with other cheaper minions.
Generous Mummy (4): Reduced cost is a lot different then additional mana. The comparison card being Arcane Golem and I think this card is similar but potentially worse. The effect is hard to get rid of, and scales poorly as the game progresses. -1 mana off cards is basically adding 1 mana crystal per card played. I don't think this card is good enough to justify the tempo gain.
Grandmummy (3): +2/+2 on a 2 drop deathrattle as well as 2x 1/2 bodies. The card seems okay - a bit slow and weak, but has value.
Riftcleaver (1): Has some limitations since you're obligated to kill something when you play this. Otherwise it's insane.
EVIL Recruiter (3): Without ROS lackey support, the new set needs to show me more lackeys before I give this the disgusting (1) rating it most certainly will warrant.
Hunter's Pack (1): Draw 3 for 3. 1 card is guaranteed reach (weapon). Hunter beasts are also better then random neutrals. Secret is a bit of a crap shoot, but can still be good. Scary card.
Fishflinger (2): This is better then a generic 3/2 for 2 mana. You have initiative with both minions most likely and since Murlocs can buff each other, this potentially is quite beneficial with the initiative.
Bloodsworn Mercenary (1): Playable 3 drop with insane late game value. Really good card.
Anka, the Buried (3): Fair stat line with a slight negative battlecry. Deathrattles are delayed, so tempoing 1/1s won't be as effective on the immediate turn. The minion bodies might be more valuable then the 1/1s as well.
Arcane Flakmage (2): It's a 2 drop with upside. How often does Medivh's Valet go off ? Ya, it's not often.
Cloud Prince (3): Under statted drop with upside, but setting up and keeping the secret is difficult unless you plan to play this for 9 mana with a secret. Again, how often do you see secret synergy pulled off in Arena ? Not often.
Splitting Axe (3): Overpriced weapon for Shaman. Upside is weak as well unless we see better totems released this expansion.
Whirlkick Master (3): Cheap value card for Rogue. Not a big fan of the stat line but a 2 mana minion that cycles itself and is used as a combo activator can find a spot in some drafts.
Hooked Scimitar (1): Great tempo play, similar to Perditions the turn you play it, but stronger over 2 turns. Will be a great coin turn 2 against opposing 3 drops.
Tortollan Pilgrim (4): The oriignal 8 mana 5/4 turtle was a bit better since it doesn't require the spell condition and can dig spells outside your deck. If you played or drew your spells before playing this - it's a 8 mana 5/5.
Bazaar Mugger (1): Feels like a premium card. It's going to often be a 2 for 1 card, maybe more. 5hp means it's likely to survive a small kill. The random class minion is likely better quality then random all minion.
Armagedillo (2): Decent stats for a 6 - although not premium. The effect is insane, and has game winning capabilities if it goes off more then once. Keep it mind it's an "all" effect, not just one, so it can be quite devastating with multiple hits in hand.
Dinotamer Brann (4): Probably unplayable in Hunter, but there's an outside chance of this working, and the 7 mana King Krush is just insane.
Elise the Enlightened (3): Fine stats with an upside that's good but not as game breaking for it's requirement.
Reno the Relicologist (4): Below average stat line for the the mana cost, but has an insane AOE effect if you can work the high lander build.
Sir Finley of the Sands (2): Tribe 2 drop with fair stats. The effect is again quite good for Arena but the requirement is stiff.
Expired Merchant (2): Pretty nice value card for Warlock. It's a small investment and with 1hp probably comes back immediately. It's similar to Loot Hoarder.
Murmy (2): Good alternative to Mecharoo and Possessed Villager. The lack of deathrattle tag hurts in some spots - but it also has a relevent Tag to make it up a bit.
Scarlet Webweaver (2): Potentially a 5/5 for 1 mana swing for Hunter. It's similar to Menagerie Warden, but better since the minion doesn't have to be in play and can still be in your hand.
Wild Bloodstinger (3): It's a disruptive card that has huge upside. Anything less then 3 attack being pulled out will make this card a bargain since it essentially delivers a 6/6 for 6, while removing a card from your opponents hand. The up coming Arena meta rotation will bring a lot of poisonous minions so this could be a huge risk for this card, not to mention some really strong larger minions like Violet Wurm.
Hidden Oasis (2): 6 mana 6/6 Taunt is solid - the heal option is over priced, but the flexibility is there so it does give the card added value.
Plague of Madness (1): Insane tempo swing on the turn you play this. It's a 1 mana Envenom weapon, or doubles as 1 mana 2 damage weapon. You will always have the initiative when you play this which should make it more valuable to you then your opponent.
Psychopomp (1): Extremely high value card. It's essentially a Resurrect with Reborn plus a bad 2 drop body. That's a lot of value rolled into 1 card. It's situational, but has some flexibility in it's mana cost.
Brazen Zealot (2): Think this card can get out of hand pretty easily. It's a summon effect so it's +1 attack with your hero power, or any kind of X summons Y type minion. For 1 mana - it's a good threat.
Salhet's Pride (4): 3 mana 3/1s are awful. A conditional delayed draw doesn't make it that much better.
Sandwasp Queen (2): Stats are weak for a 2 drop but the battlecry gives it flexibility to fill curve later. It's also playable as a 4 drop as well. Overall seems to fit Paladin's board centric playstyle.
Plague of Murlocs (3): The average Murloc in the current pool is on the weak side, probably around 3/3. High rolls include Murloc Knight and Scargill. So using this as a pseudo Hex or Devolve isn't the worst play. There is some flexibility where you can use this spell offensively as well, transforming a weak board into one with more stats and potential reach/charge.
Impbalming (1): Not much competition for Warlock hard removals, and if bucketed "low" it should be a snap pick. The prevalence of this card might depend on how Demonbolt is bucketed. The draw back is irrelevant if you never draw it, but it's worth noting that the 1/1s can be horrible draws.
Earthquake (2): Expensive double sided AOE. Not convinced it works for Shaman as a control class in the upcoming rotation. As a card, it's fair and can deal with a tricky minion, or allow you to make some cheeky plays. For example, Sunwalker would survive the AOE, or having small minions with Deathrattles that summon large minions.
BEEEES!!! (1): Pretty interesting card, and should perform well due to it's flexibility and synergy in a class that can enhance cards that spread out. It'd put this card ahead of Wrath actually.
Weaponized Wasp (3): Feels conditional for now, albeit a strong effect. Based on the current lackey generation pool, this needs more support to be better.
I'm not a big Arena player, but if I may, it feels a bit strange for 1 to the highest rating, and 5 to be the lowest. In most cases, you expect the other way around.
I was also confused first time I saw it. You'll get use to it.
Stowaway (2) - 5 mana 4/4 with minimal upside. Generally bad.
Frizz Kindleroost (4) - Standard 4 drop, with a relevant upside for this rotation. Should average minion most of the time though.
Ancharrr (4) - Slightly worse then a 3/2 weapon, but drawing 1 card from this makes this excellent.
Dread Raven (4) - Solid tribe and stats. Seldom seen upside.
Kobold Stickyfinger (3) - Similar to Kezan Mystic, but slightly worse body per cost, but upside is higher with stealing a weapon. Can be an okay pick if offered along with worse.
Transmogrifier (4) - Nice 2 drop with Pseudo Taunt. Legendary cards can be wide ranging, and being only a 2 drop it's unlikely to see more then 1 draw.
Breath of the Infinite (5) - Good card for Priest, upside is not insane, but solid. Balanced card.
Diving Gryphon (5) - Beast/Rush/Minion synergies. 3 mana, 4 Damage removal WITH upside to replace itself ? Insane card.
Cumulo-Maximus (4) - The overload condition should be an all game requirement which makes this card more consistent. A 5/5 for 5 with a relevant tag still makes this playable, but the battlecry makes this insane. It's somewhere in the middle.
Zzeraku the Warped (4) - High HP win condition. It's hard to remove on turn 8, and on turn 10, it just snowballs out of control. A slow card value card, but very hard to deal with.
Bad Luck Albatross (4) - A really good 3 drop that disrupts your opponents draws. This potentially can win you the game without you knowing it by giving dead draws to your opponent when he needs an answer or pressure. Super good card. Knock on it is the effect is a DR instead of BC.
Dragoncaster (2) - Big spell, small spell Mage, i'm not sure what the theme is right now in this expansion but surely it revolves around spells. Basic set is rotating back in, so a big Flamestrike with a 4/4 seems promising, but it does have the Dragon requirement too. Seems inconsistent.
Arcane Breath (4) - Fair card for 1 mana even without the condition, with the condition it's a very good card.
Nithogg (5) - Slight immediate tempo loss, but the 8/8 Rush stats the following turn should easily pick it up. Fringe cases where the 0/3s can be utilized the turn they come into play, but not out of the question.
Bandersmosh (4) - Interesting card, can lead to some insane tempo cheating since this only costs 5 mana, but the RNG factor holds this from being anything more then a 5 mana 5/5 with occasional up/downsides which isn't that bad.
Chenvaala (4) - 3 drop stats are fair, but the upside is a bit of a stretch to achieve. It's an Elemental which counts for something.
Dragonqueen Alexstrasza (5) - The average deck likely will have at least 1 or 2 duplicates which makes this slightly less consistent. However, it's usually a 9+ turn play which gives you time to draw the duplicates, as well as being a "playable" 8/8 for 9. The upside of the card is insane, especially with the new high value Dragons in existent right now, this card can single handedly win games through tempo or refill after playing it.
Sanctuary (4) - Insane card to open with. It either forces opponents into suboptimal face hits to prevent a 3/6 tempo swing or potentially forces 2 mana pings early. Coin this out early and you probably win on turn 2. It also protects your own board from trades, and this fits perfectly into Paladins plans.
Zul'Drak Ritualist (3) - Probably still decent in some situations. 3 extra small minions can have minimal impact in some classes or board states.
Flik Skyshiv (5) - Less conditional Vilespine Slayer on average. Occasionally a board clear (example: Silverhand Recruits), and occasionally nuke your own guy.
Valdris Felgorge (4) - Not the right class for the ability, but great value card regardless.
Abyssal Summoner (4) - At 6 mana, it's fair. You'll need at least 4 cards in hand to break even, which seems reasonable by turn 6.
Chromatic Egg - (3) - Probably similar to Mechano Egg with the 8/8 Devilsaur. Really slow card, and most Dragons either have strong battlecries or lack initiative like Rush, so the Discover minion will have delayed impact as a big body only usually.
Dragon Breeder - (4) - Reasonable card with some upside. Should be consistent to get value from this card for 2 mana.
Veranus (5) - Equality attached to a properly statted 6 drop. I mean, this set is getting ridiculous.
Necrium Apothecary (4) - Similar to Elven Minstrel in terms of value. Very solid option.
Crazed Netherwing (5) - A better Duskbreaker basically, and with more Dragons in this meta, this card will be more consistent.
Nether Breath (4) - Probably slightly better then Demonfire since there is solid upside with the Dragon synergy.
Camouflaged Dirigible (3) - Standard 6 drop with some upside to hide Mechs. Will depend on mech pool in the meta. Seems like that is lacking.
Hot Air Balloon (3) - OK 1-drop, probably on the average side, but not horrible
Dragonrider Talritha (4) - A playable 3 drop with a pretty powerful deathrattle. Judging by the initial reveals there seems to be ample opportunity for Dragon synergies, so this should be pretty consistent.
Shu'ma (4) - It's not the most powerful Legendary, but acts as a win condition. Stats on an empty board is quite strong, and the effect is reoccurring.
Envoy of Lazul (3) - Weak initial body, and odds of hitting the correct card seems lower then it's 3 mana counter part Curious Glimmerroot.
Secure the Deck (3) - Not all that bad, and can be completed without RNG draws or drafts.
Clear the Way (2) - Dependent on Rush minions in the meta, but the summon effect means cards like Desert Spear can trigger this Quest.
There was a 3x class card offering adjustment that happened mid way through dual class event.
Blizzard did not revert this adjustment when dual class ended.
Blizzard has just reverted this adjustment as of the latest patch update.
You'll be seeing 5-8 class cards as opposed to the 20+ class cards we saw previously.
Classes that relied more on class cards to do well (mainly classes with poor hero powers) will be affected negatively in win rates.
Play accordingly.
Fairly certain when you play Nozdomu you will gain empty crystals until both players reach 10.
Your opponent will get to use the full 10 crystals FIRST.
Pretty interesting to see Hunter as my worst match up. I believe the stats that Heartharena collects are based off of the Portrait hero (1st hero you choose) so this potentially means that Hunter as a 1st pick might be under estimated by hsreplay.net which currently ranks it 7th overall. I am absolutely getting SHELLED going 2nd against (50% WR), which makes sense if they had Steady Shot, but without it, it's a bit surprising to see, I can't really pinpoint the reasoning.
Warrior and Warlock is no surprise as tough customers, they are both top classes to choose. Boosted class cards make these classes extremely hard to deal. I played against someone last night that drafted 5x Death's Bites, Fools Bane and a Blood Razor. It was ridiculous.
Reference 70% WR is 7 win average.
Paladin and Priest are the other top classes to choose, but I am doing significantly better against them (~76% WR) then Warrior and Warlock.
Another interesting note - Mage which is the weakest class based on hsreplay.net is my 3rd most encountered class, this is probably due to newer players entering the Arena with limited class knowledge, so they choose classes they are familiar with or have previous strong arena experiences with.
Druid ranks 5th on hsreplay, but i've taken them to the cleaners this meta which seems a bit out of line as well.
Sample size is becoming relevant but variance can explain some of these oddities. Another thing that could account massively is the hero power. Unfortunately these stats only separate the Portrait here and dont go into the hero powers. It would be a nice stat to have to be able to see how well i've done against the various combinations or hero powers separately.
Curious how everyone else is faring so far in Duals, any outliers or strange stats you care to discuss or share ?
Initial Impressions of dual Arenas after about 100 games.
My choices for 1st/2nd class. Anecdotal.
Paladin, Warlock, Shaman / Rogue, Warlock, Mage
Establishing early board is extremely important. In general, there seems to a be a lack of quality reactive offerings to make strong come backs with. What that means is, if you get ahead, you will likely STAY ahead and win.
The format (no buckets) rewards strong drafting knowledge. Without strong come from behind cards, having good drafting fundamentals goes a longer way. Curve and Tempo is king. Make sure you have proper "curve" minions (a 3 mana 2/2 is NOT a curve minion), a mix of initiative and some way to finish off games. There's no more predictive drafting, where we expect certain cards to pop up because the pools and buckets were so limited. Sometimes you just have to make Lemonade when you are offered lemons, this is the beauty of a system without buckets.
Defensive cards seem to be premium. Less taunts (Bone Wraith, War Bear, Kharut Defender) means less ways to prevent face damage. There also seems to be less good healing options as well (Voodoo Doctor, Farseer removed). A good sized taunt (even something as average as a 3/8 for 6 mana) is a nice luxury minion and usually is extremely hard to remove since the Meta is lacking removal cards in general. Bog Creeper and Tar Creeper feel ultra premium right now.
Removal is a premium. A deck full of good statted bodies is great, but you'll still need at least 1 or 2 strong removal cards to deal with trouble taunts, or to swing the game back while you are going 2nd. Take them early in your drafts to make sure you have it. In general, it feels like removal is more scarce, but i haven't dived too deep into the details just anecdotal. (I did get psy screamed 3 times yesterday on curve, DOOM'd, as well as Dragon Fired all in one day)
Take your time. Lots of cards we haven't seen for a while so don't make dumb misplays by not reading the cards. (I played Plague Scientist twice without the combo, and I played Doom Pact thinking it was Army of the Dead, all in 1 day) This also means to take some time to familiarize yourself with the card pools.
Don't play around anything - this is just my general feeling, but usual culprits like Scorcher on 5 or Flamestrike on 7 are not applicable here. Most decks are just so janky and fragile, you can't afford to play around anything most of the time and developing + face is generally correct.
Overall i'm enjoying it. It feels more like Arena (bad decks, limited synergies, rewards drafting and game play fundamentals like trading) Some negatives would probably include lack of class identity and neutralstone which favors the class with the better hero power. Another negative is the strength of going 1st. Without strong reactive cards, most deck archetypes will lean towards early tempo and aggression, this favors heavily the player going 1st. Its similar to the Rise of Mechs meta where early tempo was key.
Just some random thoughts so far, let me know if you agree or disagree, and your experiences.
Zephrys the Great (2): Similar to Kazakus in power level and digging ability. It might be even better in some classes that can pull off the highlander deck list.
Octosari (2): It's fine - even if you don't full draw the 8 cards, or mill your deck it's still a good value card and a big thing.
Vessina (2): Playable stats with a must kill ability. Overload is a bit inflexible at times.
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Blatant Decoy (4): Pretty bad card, you can set it up in some classes, but overall a 6 mana 5/5 with a mirror effect is very unpredictable.
Body Wrapper (3): Delayed value ability. Stats are fair enough.
Crystal Merchant (3): I think the card is okay - the stats are playable on 2 in a pinch or you can play it as a draw 1 in the late game with a reoccuring affect. Flexible enough.
Dwarven Archaeologist (3): Standard 2 drop with some upside.
History Buff (2): This is a good 3-drop similar to Beastmaster in power level, maybe stronger since it can trigger right away and multiple times.
Mischief Maker (3): Unpredictable, but will be more favorable for you since you can "control" when to play it.
Vulpera Scoundrel (1): Better then Kabal Courier - this is potentially the go to discover card. Stats are weak, but very flexible for option.
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Dune Sculptor (3): Mana Cyclone as a 3 drop - except for minions. How reliable has Mana Cyclone been ?
Garden Gnome (3): There are solid Druid big spells and holding one in hand to trigger this seems like an easy way to cheat tempo early.
Holy Ripple (1): Very good small AOE for priest - it's better value per mana then Holy Nova.
Hyena Alpha (3): Hard to make work since the secret needs to be played and not triggered. You can play on T6, but playing a secret for the sake of a 2/2 is not optimal use of the secret.
Mogu Fleshshaper (3): Probably OK in Shaman, but it's not a huge tempo swing for the requirements. Compare this to Undercity Fence.
Naga Sand Witch (3): Playable, and occasionally lead to some insanity on turn 10.
Quicksand Elemental (1): It's good - but potentially overhyped a bit. The reduction is better in Priest then other classes. For 2 mana - it's an easy pick if bucketed low.
Ramkahen Wildtamer (2): Fine stats with value upside. Hunter should consistently have options for this more then other classes.
Swarm of Locusts (2): 5-7 minions is good/great. Anything else is average or worse. It's a catch up card for Hunter that generates minions which is pretty good.
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Armored Goon (2): Better Boulderfist. Helps with weapon swinging. Solid card.
Ancestral Guardian (2): Aggressively statted with some healing is pretty nice. Should trade decently as well with both bodies for 4 mana.
Ancient Mysteries (4): Pretty deck dependent but a secret tutor to work with your synergy cards could make this viable.
Beaming Sidekick (2): Nice card, about as impactful as a tempo 1 drop can be.
Bug Collector (2): 3/2 over 2 bodies, with a bit of initative. The ping is going to be huge in the Reborn meta.
Candletaker (1): Better then Harvest Golem and better then Mounted Raptor. This card is one of the best 3-drops around.
Clever Disguise (3): The range of cards is too wide with random spells. It's worse then Violet Haze, since Haze gives deathrattle minions which have value built into the cards. The spell pool is too wide for this to be that good.
Desert Hare (3): Slightly worse Microtech controller with beast synergy.
Faceless Lurker (3): Small upside Fen Creeper that hurts more from a silence.
Golden Scarab (2): Bit of value, will be better in classes with strong class 4 cost cards.
Injured Tol'vir (2): One of the better 2 drops around. Great in Priest
Kobold Sandtrooper (4): Pretty bad 2 drop. OK in aggro drafts.
Living Monument (3): Just a big dumb threat.
Neferset Thrasher (2): Yeti on T3, into 2 trades is great. It will cost you 6 hp for 2 trades, but that probably saves you more in the long run. Also can be played and silenced or sacrificed without losing hp.
Oasis Surger (1): Really nice card. Flexible multi target removal, or a single minion attacker. It can be played as 2x 3/3s for 5 as well on an empty board.
Penance (2): Good cheap removal card with some extra healing which might not be that good in the Priest class.
Phalanx Commander (3): With the pool of taunt minions in the next rotation, this will find some use, but otherwise it's an understatted 5 drop.
Pit Crocolisk (1): Great card, comparable to Kraken, Fire elemental and of course Firelands Portal. Giving neutral reach to all classes will definitely make this a meta defining card.
Sandhoof Waterbearer (1): Great card and will break games open if left unchecked.
Sandstorm Elemental (1): Elemental Twilight Flamecaller. Really strong card for a class that needs the ping aoe.
Serpent Egg (4): A slightly worse Neubrian Egg.
Sinister Deal (2): Flexible but lackeys generally don't create much value - paying +1 mana for this spell then +1 mana for a lackey reduces the tempo advantages the Lackeys provide.
Spitting Camel (3): Better in slower drafts and classes. Worse in swarmy, aggressive drafts.
Subdue (2): Worse then Dark Conviction, but still very decent large removal.
Temple Berserker (2): One of the best aggressive 2 drops. 1/2 followed by a 3/1 after it comes back. Similar to Kindly Grandmother in Hunter which is a nightmare to deal with early.
Totemic Surge (4): Better then Totemic Might since it can surprise damage, but still pretty bad and inflexible.
Wasteland Scorpid (2): Expensive but highly durable body should go 2 for 1.
Worthy Expedition (2): Flexible dig for flexible options.
Colossus of the Moon (2): Big dumb minion that will be impossible to removal via minions. Lack of initiative and flexibility makes this card a high average card at best.
Plague of Wrath (3): Seems fine, a weaker Sleep with the Fishes type card for Warrior. It's King Mosh's ability without the 9/7 body.
Sunstruck Henchman (3): Seems poor, but probably performs similarly to Ogres and their 50% chance to miss effects.
Anubisath Defender (3): Tempo minion potentially. Should perform similarly to Arcane Tyrant.
Overflow (2): Better then Sprint. The Heal will be controllable to benefit you, so usually to a much stronger positive effect, then negative.
Plague of Flames (1): For 1 mana, if it's a 1 mana do 2 damage to kill a minion + trade type of card, it's fine. On the high roll side, it's a 1 mana Twisting Nether, If you get a huge flip with it, you can redevelop with all your mana. It's really strong.
Micro Mummy (2): Bit annoying and you'll get some value from this card, if you don't, it's a 2 body pseudo taunt that soaks up some damage.
Livewire Lance (1): Great card. The Lackeys generated will make up for the 2 attack on 3 mana.
Dark Pharaoh Tekahn (4): 5 mana 4/4 with limited upside? Pretty bad. Not much lackey support so far. More a constructed card.
Desert Spear (1): Great weapon for Hunter. It's similar to Perdition's Blade and Piranha Launcher. The split damages help Hunter take care of complex boards and has beast synergies to boot.
Vilefiend (3): Slightly average card. Can find some use in classes that need a small heal or a Demon to synergize with.
Pharaoh's Blessing (1): Blessing of King + Hand of Protection + Taunt Spare part. It's a great card by itself, but huge buffs can be awkward for Paladin since Spikeridged Steed is rotating back in.
Tomb Warden (2): It's a good card by itself, however not as good as Power of Creation for example, but with any kind of hand buffs, this card gets insane.
Embalming Ritual (2): Probably a better Ancestral Spirit. For 1 mana it's worth it on almost any minion.
Pharaoh Cat (1): Cheap combo card and 1-drop. Generated card always gets value due to the Reborn mechanic.
Bone Wraith (1): 4 mana Sludge Belcher. Makes Infested Tauren look like complete garbage. This card (among many others) will spell the end for Aggro this upcoming rotation.
Shadow of Death (5): 4 mana do nothing is hard to make work in Arena.
Mortuary Machine (3): This card probably works better as a late game Tempo finisher when cards are exhausted or on an empty board as opposed to a mid game play. It's not a trader since the opponent will have a significant value edge, so it's a face card for sure.
Conjured Mirage (5): Garbage unless you can silence this. Anti fatigue card in constructed?
Siamat (1): Very powerful legend. At worst, its a Warbear, at best it's a 2 for 1 trader, that threatens 12 damage next turn.
Flame Ward (2): This is one of the stronger secrets with a nice AOE effect for 3 mana. It further complicates the tests you have to do while secrets are up.
King Phaoris (4): Obviously powerful effect, but borderline undraftable, as a condition 10 drop that requires conditions to be met to extract value. In the slowest metas, I can see this working though.
Sahket Mercenary (1): Fair statted 4 drop with a built in random Sap. A very disruptive card that requires removal before developing.
Khartut Defender (2): Very defensive card, but really weak tempo on the turn you play it. 3 attack does not fair well against minions in the 4-5-6 range. It's a Lord of the Arena card that heals you for 6HP. It has uses and is quite decent as a recovery card.
Wretched Reclaimer (1): Fair 3 drop that is a usually a full heal, as well as a well to get additional value from Reborn, Deathrattles, Rush, and Divine Shielded cards. Can be insane tempo and value.
Wrapped Golem (1): Insane neutral threat. Generates tons of value, protects your board, and has reoccuring value. It's a bomb.
Diseased Vulture (1): Fair 4 drop stats with upside. Can snow ball out of control and generate quite a bit of value. As a 6 mana play, it should be better on average then Murloc Knight.
Neferset Ritualist (1): Very painful win more card. If you can free trade and heal with this card, it's going to give you a strangle hold on the board. Generic 2 drop stats with late game flexibility makes this card incredible powerful.
Anubisath Warbringer (4): Probably undraftable. Poor stats with an effect that requires you to give up a 9 drop.
Into the Fray (4): The effect is very strong for the mana cost, but having the taunt minions in hand can lead to inconsistencies. Even getting 1 buff might make this worth while.
Pressure Plate (3): Spell condition makes this a bit less likely, but a 2 mana Deadly shot that has the secret confusion value isn't the worst.
Infested Goblin (3): Bit understatted initially, but the value comes from the 2 separate taunts afterwards. Fair card.
Frightened Flunky (1): Very strong card. Better then other 2 mana class minions that generate value. Also a discover.
Wasteland Assassin (2): 2x Jungle Panthers in 1 body. 4 attack is serviceable on turn 5 and having the ability to trade twice for 1 card makes this a strong card.
High Priest Amet (2): Fair stats, with a strong effect. It's flexible to play on T4, but it's real value comes from being played in the late game in combination with other cheaper minions.
Generous Mummy (4): Reduced cost is a lot different then additional mana. The comparison card being Arcane Golem and I think this card is similar but potentially worse. The effect is hard to get rid of, and scales poorly as the game progresses. -1 mana off cards is basically adding 1 mana crystal per card played. I don't think this card is good enough to justify the tempo gain.
Grandmummy (3): +2/+2 on a 2 drop deathrattle as well as 2x 1/2 bodies. The card seems okay - a bit slow and weak, but has value.
Desert Obelisk (5): Pure garbage for Arena.
Riftcleaver (1): Has some limitations since you're obligated to kill something when you play this. Otherwise it's insane.
EVIL Recruiter (3): Without ROS lackey support, the new set needs to show me more lackeys before I give this the disgusting (1) rating it most certainly will warrant.
Hunter's Pack (1): Draw 3 for 3. 1 card is guaranteed reach (weapon). Hunter beasts are also better then random neutrals. Secret is a bit of a crap shoot, but can still be good. Scary card.
Tip the Scales (5): Another pure garbage Arena card.
Fishflinger (2): This is better then a generic 3/2 for 2 mana. You have initiative with both minions most likely and since Murlocs can buff each other, this potentially is quite beneficial with the initiative.
Bloodsworn Mercenary (1): Playable 3 drop with insane late game value. Really good card.
Anka, the Buried (3): Fair stat line with a slight negative battlecry. Deathrattles are delayed, so tempoing 1/1s won't be as effective on the immediate turn. The minion bodies might be more valuable then the 1/1s as well.
Arcane Flakmage (2): It's a 2 drop with upside. How often does Medivh's Valet go off ? Ya, it's not often.
Cloud Prince (3): Under statted drop with upside, but setting up and keeping the secret is difficult unless you plan to play this for 9 mana with a secret. Again, how often do you see secret synergy pulled off in Arena ? Not often.
Splitting Axe (3): Overpriced weapon for Shaman. Upside is weak as well unless we see better totems released this expansion.
Whirlkick Master (3): Cheap value card for Rogue. Not a big fan of the stat line but a 2 mana minion that cycles itself and is used as a combo activator can find a spot in some drafts.
Hooked Scimitar (1): Great tempo play, similar to Perditions the turn you play it, but stronger over 2 turns. Will be a great coin turn 2 against opposing 3 drops.
Tortollan Pilgrim (4): The oriignal 8 mana 5/4 turtle was a bit better since it doesn't require the spell condition and can dig spells outside your deck. If you played or drew your spells before playing this - it's a 8 mana 5/5.
Mogu Cultist (5): Another garbage Arena card.
Bazaar Mugger (1): Feels like a premium card. It's going to often be a 2 for 1 card, maybe more. 5hp means it's likely to survive a small kill. The random class minion is likely better quality then random all minion.
Armagedillo (2): Decent stats for a 6 - although not premium. The effect is insane, and has game winning capabilities if it goes off more then once. Keep it mind it's an "all" effect, not just one, so it can be quite devastating with multiple hits in hand.
Dinotamer Brann (4): Probably unplayable in Hunter, but there's an outside chance of this working, and the 7 mana King Krush is just insane.
Elise the Enlightened (3): Fine stats with an upside that's good but not as game breaking for it's requirement.
Reno the Relicologist (4): Below average stat line for the the mana cost, but has an insane AOE effect if you can work the high lander build.
Sir Finley of the Sands (2): Tribe 2 drop with fair stats. The effect is again quite good for Arena but the requirement is stiff.
Expired Merchant (2): Pretty nice value card for Warlock. It's a small investment and with 1hp probably comes back immediately. It's similar to Loot Hoarder.
Murmy (2): Good alternative to Mecharoo and Possessed Villager. The lack of deathrattle tag hurts in some spots - but it also has a relevent Tag to make it up a bit.
Scarlet Webweaver (2): Potentially a 5/5 for 1 mana swing for Hunter. It's similar to Menagerie Warden, but better since the minion doesn't have to be in play and can still be in your hand.
Wild Bloodstinger (3): It's a disruptive card that has huge upside. Anything less then 3 attack being pulled out will make this card a bargain since it essentially delivers a 6/6 for 6, while removing a card from your opponents hand. The up coming Arena meta rotation will bring a lot of poisonous minions so this could be a huge risk for this card, not to mention some really strong larger minions like Violet Wurm.
Hidden Oasis (2): 6 mana 6/6 Taunt is solid - the heal option is over priced, but the flexibility is there so it does give the card added value.
Plague of Madness (1): Insane tempo swing on the turn you play this. It's a 1 mana Envenom weapon, or doubles as 1 mana 2 damage weapon. You will always have the initiative when you play this which should make it more valuable to you then your opponent.
Psychopomp (1): Extremely high value card. It's essentially a Resurrect with Reborn plus a bad 2 drop body. That's a lot of value rolled into 1 card. It's situational, but has some flexibility in it's mana cost.
Brazen Zealot (2): Think this card can get out of hand pretty easily. It's a summon effect so it's +1 attack with your hero power, or any kind of X summons Y type minion. For 1 mana - it's a good threat.
Salhet's Pride (4): 3 mana 3/1s are awful. A conditional delayed draw doesn't make it that much better.
Sandwasp Queen (2): Stats are weak for a 2 drop but the battlecry gives it flexibility to fill curve later. It's also playable as a 4 drop as well. Overall seems to fit Paladin's board centric playstyle.
Plague of Murlocs (3): The average Murloc in the current pool is on the weak side, probably around 3/3. High rolls include Murloc Knight and Scargill. So using this as a pseudo Hex or Devolve isn't the worst play. There is some flexibility where you can use this spell offensively as well, transforming a weak board into one with more stats and potential reach/charge.
Impbalming (1): Not much competition for Warlock hard removals, and if bucketed "low" it should be a snap pick. The prevalence of this card might depend on how Demonbolt is bucketed. The draw back is irrelevant if you never draw it, but it's worth noting that the 1/1s can be horrible draws.
Earthquake (2): Expensive double sided AOE. Not convinced it works for Shaman as a control class in the upcoming rotation. As a card, it's fair and can deal with a tricky minion, or allow you to make some cheeky plays. For example, Sunwalker would survive the AOE, or having small minions with Deathrattles that summon large minions.
BEEEES!!! (1): Pretty interesting card, and should perform well due to it's flexibility and synergy in a class that can enhance cards that spread out. It'd put this card ahead of Wrath actually.
Weaponized Wasp (3): Feels conditional for now, albeit a strong effect. Based on the current lackey generation pool, this needs more support to be better.
I was also confused first time I saw it. You'll get use to it.