I don't think these early access cards are going to break the game. If they were good cards, it would be a different story, but it looks like they chose "trap" cards that will not be worth playing until after rotation (and maybe not even then).
I think this is a MUCH better move than destroying the meta by temporarily re-releasing un-nerfed cards as they have in the past.
Wrath of Air Totem back? Yup! We want to celebrate Hearthstone's history with this core set, and Wrath of Air Totem felt like a part of that history worth celebrating.
Why, exactly, is a bad card (that's not even a real card) worth celebrating? Should we also celebrate Angry Chicken? Both of these are iconic for being bad, nothing more.
Correct. You will lose access to all of your current Core cards if they are not part of the new Core set. Patchwerk is out, so if you didn't have a "real" copy, you will no longer have access to the card. The golden copy you got as a reward was a Core card, not a "real" card.
On the bright side, you will automatically get golden copies of all DK Core cards that are rotating in.
Rotation never happens in a vacuum -- there's always a new expansion involved. Departing cards are often replaced with new cards that perform a similar function. We could easily see new Rogue Secret synergy, and I'd be extremely surprised if Druid doesn't get new ways to ramp.
In a game where Brann allows a Warrior to generate multiple Astalors that deal 21 damage each, this doesn't seem like such a big deal. (Yes, I know Astalor is rotating, but it's illustrative of the burst damage potential in Hearthstone these days.)
It's worth noting that both Totem Shaman and Miner Paladin use this card, both are Tier 1 right now, and Totem Shaman doesn't even run any other Excavate cards.
I can't believe they didn't even consider nerfing this ridiculous card. "Rest of the game" cards need a much more difficult condition than just building a singleton deck.
I'm walking back my previous snark. This card is absolutely necessary to the current meta, as Miner Paladin helps keep that ridiculous Druid Combo deck in check, all thanks to brave Sir Finley.
You are mistaken if you think Blizzard ever had fresh ideas, apart from the first Diablo and the first Warcraft. Everything else they've ever done is just iterations and borrowing ideas from other developers' IPs. Within Hearthstone, all they've ever done is pull fantasy genre tropes and pop culture references into the framework of a card game. They don't even get credit for fixing MtG's terrible mana system, because Pokémon did that first.
In trying to give excavate to two more classes in a small set of cards, they've created a monster. I'm not sure which class will be more annoying now, but it's usually Paladin.
I don't think these early access cards are going to break the game. If they were good cards, it would be a different story, but it looks like they chose "trap" cards that will not be worth playing until after rotation (and maybe not even then).
I think this is a MUCH better move than destroying the meta by temporarily re-releasing un-nerfed cards as they have in the past.
They are not going to do it for mini-sets because you cannot pre-order mini-sets. (Also, the pre-release phase of mini-sets is only a week.)
Why, exactly, is a bad card (that's not even a real card) worth celebrating? Should we also celebrate Angry Chicken? Both of these are iconic for being bad, nothing more.
If you're celebrating Hearthstone history, you gotta have Deathwing, but let's face it -- the original Deathwing is not a good card anymore.
Correct. You will lose access to all of your current Core cards if they are not part of the new Core set. Patchwerk is out, so if you didn't have a "real" copy, you will no longer have access to the card. The golden copy you got as a reward was a Core card, not a "real" card.
On the bright side, you will automatically get golden copies of all DK Core cards that are rotating in.
Rotation never happens in a vacuum -- there's always a new expansion involved. Departing cards are often replaced with new cards that perform a similar function. We could easily see new Rogue Secret synergy, and I'd be extremely surprised if Druid doesn't get new ways to ramp.
(Also, Splish-Splash Whelp isn't going anywhere. Dragon Druid was ramping just fine without Wild Growth.)
Tradeable Big Game Hunter ... interesting.
Twisting Nether destroys locations ... VERY interesting.
Asphyxiate, Gnome Muncher have no runes ... gross. I always felt like runeless DK cards should be slightly bad, not auto-include.
In a game where Brann allows a Warrior to generate multiple Astalors that deal 21 damage each, this doesn't seem like such a big deal. (Yes, I know Astalor is rotating, but it's illustrative of the burst damage potential in Hearthstone these days.)
It's worth noting that both Totem Shaman and Miner Paladin use this card, both are Tier 1 right now, and Totem Shaman doesn't even run any other Excavate cards.
Do I want to live in a world where Odyn, Prime Designate and Justicar Trueheart both exist in Standard? No. No, I do not.
Might as well just call it Year of the Warrior.
I can't believe they didn't even consider nerfing this ridiculous card. "Rest of the game" cards need a much more difficult condition than just building a singleton deck.
Why do you expect to be able to play it when Blizzard has clearly stated multiple times that they will nerf it whenever it's competitive?
It exists as a "just for fun" archetype for players who want to play it for fun, not for climbing.
I'm walking back my previous snark. This card is absolutely necessary to the current meta, as Miner Paladin helps keep that ridiculous Druid Combo deck in check, all thanks to brave Sir Finley.
My first game was against Aggro Paladin, and I fell in love.
My second game was against Curselock, and now I want to break up.
You can use it with Shattershambler, but that doesn't seem very efficient.
I bet they lower the Cost someday.
If this does work out, I propose that the new archetype be named Jacksonium (so, "Jacksonium Priest," Jacksonium Mage," etc.).
Hey, 'member these excavated treasures from the Winter's Veil Tavern Brawl? I 'member ...
You are mistaken if you think Blizzard ever had fresh ideas, apart from the first Diablo and the first Warcraft. Everything else they've ever done is just iterations and borrowing ideas from other developers' IPs. Within Hearthstone, all they've ever done is pull fantasy genre tropes and pop culture references into the framework of a card game. They don't even get credit for fixing MtG's terrible mana system, because Pokémon did that first.
Warrior has absolutely no use for it, but in Totem Shaman (which was already completely viable), it's way too strong.
In trying to give excavate to two more classes in a small set of cards, they've created a monster. I'm not sure which class will be more annoying now, but it's usually Paladin.