Some decks don't have to give them up if they can draw them quickly. Though I agree it's a tough choice. I was building with it and had to stop myself at some points.
I ended up with a deathrattle/outcast demon hunter shaved down a bit to fit Drek'Thar. It's been working somewhat. Taunt Druid and Pirate Warrior fall to it (if the warrior doesn't run Brawls, apparently that's a thing). Quest Mage and Quest Lock are tough but winnable with an early Drek. I could probably make this even more aggressive.
I'll see what the site comes up with. I am sure there is a better, faster deck out there already.
I like the theme of this expansion. The choice of legendary is nice and the faction war associated with it looks fun, we'll see how it plays out. Hero cards are very hit or miss. With speed and game ending potential of some of these questlines we'll see if they can stand up with out becoming the problem.
Honorable Kill: Neat idea. I actually loved Overkill as an idea. It wasn't executed well on most cards but still has potential if they bring it back. I actually was hoping they would here. Still lining up exact shots sounds fun too.
Objectives (the spells that persist for 3turns): Neat idea. I like the idea of Aura spells. Might be too slow but we'll see.
Excited for reveal season. I was already enjoying Deadmines additions so I was okay to wait a bit but glad it didn't get pushed back by mercenaries delays like the miniset seemed to have been.
I'm actually watching Kibbler play a Amulet Priest.
I believe both are good cards for sure. I just think Drek'Thar being faster gives him the edge. I went horde and am enjoying Drek'Thar. Having a lot of fun with a Deathrattle Demon Hunter with a lower curve.
First of all, I love this idea. Choice in legendary is a great thing. The factions fighting is a great story, love to see more battle grounds get into HS. Speaking of story I actually liked the United in Stormwind stuff so far. Can't wait to see where it concludes! Now to the cards:
Vanndar Stormpike I love this effect but feels real slow. Wish his stats were a bit beefier too. Seems rough to put him in what I currently use as Commencement Warrior. But I can see it in a slower priest or ramp druid.
Drek'Thar This is just the faster and potentially stronger card. I think this is going to be the winner for sure. I just see him fitting easily into a lot of classes. The less than 4 cost thing is a bit restrictive. I can see some aggressive classes wanting 1 or 2 5-7 cost for finishers (Mr. Smite).
Both fun build arounds, like the deck building restriction of card costs. However my choice is clear. I played an Orc Shaman in WoW so For the Horde!
Portraits are weird in packs. Would of rather these have been craftable for coins or even pay. Just makes packs feel a bit more awkward. Already strange enough with the coin thing.
Equipment is also strange. Some items are cool and change abilities or effect them in some way. Others are just +1 power. Not all can be amazing but really feels like the characters only have 1 real option for items. (I only have 1 team at 30 and don't have a ton of characters unlocked so this could change). I'd just like to see more options in equipment. More items that change how you play a character rather than just flat Damage.
Maybe I have to play more but I'm not excited to do tasks and get equipment for +1 damage. I realize they upgrade but if I want more damage I'll upgrade the abilities instead. Equipment should do more exciting stuff.
I'm with you there. I don't play casual, rank or bust. I never get to a high rank anyway and it is more exciting to be rewarded for wins.
Played a N'zoth Commencement Warrior. No Noz opponents but won all my games so that's a plus. I'll probably run it for a few more days hoping to catch another Noz player.
I'm enjoying it. Didn't buy any of the bundles (preorder or otherwise).
Just enjoying leveling up the starter heroes (all 25+ now) and exploring other low level comps.
Did a few pvp matches, looks like it will be interesting if I get a few more heroes. Shore up some synergies.
I do a few games of HS, some Mercs, then back. Nice break up yet still fun in the same world. We'll see how long it goes but so far it's got potential.
Lady Prestor I remember well. Not only was Onyxia's Layer my first raid, a classic dragon fight with many whelps, but finding out Prestor was Onyxia is one of my first "dragons are cool" lore moments!
I remember the old machinima "craft of war: blind" having that awesome fight scene of Valera vs Prestor. Hooked me good back in the day.
Love her card effect too. Very fun to play a one mana Alexstrasza.
Benedictus didn't get a good reveal or enough screen time in game. With the amount of characters in such a rich world like Warcraft I know it can be tough to get each enough time. Still he's one of the few I really liked the concept of and wanted more.
Shadowlands has been fun to watch with all the souls of past villains being revisited. Was hoping Benedictus would get his redemtion/punishment. Ah well.
Ashes: I would love a prime. However I worry that doing both sides might impact them making another card. Still if I were to choose a prime Kargath! I also agree that Maieve is a great pick.
Scholo: I'm all in on KT. Love that card and concept alot. Would love him Diamond. Alura, priest pally legend, would be good too. Rattlegore is always a top pick too!
Faire: Tickatus for sure. Loved and hated and great art. Again concern about the time but still, I want it. Also one of the gods should get it. I love N'zoth but I think YShaarj should get it for the corrupt theme. Don't forget the races too. Moonfang would look cool I think.
Questlines overall are my favorite version of the quest mechanic. The smaller rewards have a nice impact on the early game and they can stick around long enough to trigger your quests matter cards more often. The end rewards mostly feel really good too (was surprised by DH). However I do agree they can be completed way too quick. The priest one seems to be the slowest and probably should still be. But the others should be brought closer in line to that questline's completion time.
Stealer of Souls: I've talked about this in other places but static effects with unlimited cost reduction are very hard to balance. First off aura effects like this or Sorcers apprentice cause a lot of issues, especially on cheap cards. Second I understand the limit here is supposed to be your life pool but even with an opponent hitting them warlocks can spend 20-40 life on cards because of all the healing they have access too. That's an obsurd number. In most cases that would matter but because they are ending the game that turn or next it doesn't matter. It really should. I love the idea of price for power but this is just nearly free power.
Overload: Similar to the above if they keep printing cards that make overload a bonus or undo it's effects it is no longer an issue (same with discard). Cards get printed with a big overload cost at cheap mana but then you play a card that says overload never happened well that's just free mana. I don't know if they hit the breaking point here but just like exchanging life for mana in warlock they'll get there.
Weaknesess that have some bonuses and effects are fine but again too many that undo it just leads to a critical mass and makes the entire mechanic irrelevant.
Mercenaries looked cool but I'm just not a pre-order or cosmetic customer usually. I did look into them a bit and was shocked at the prices for sure. But I also know I don't have a real reference for what the value of these packs is. In Hearthstone I can at least judge from my previous pack purchases what I'd get. Mercenaries being a separate entity and giving out tokens has the consumers at a bit of a disadvantage. Overall with their pre-orders I'd love to see more choice. Their bundles are always these big $50-80 dollar things with lots of cosmetics. If they did a set of bundles at some point that was lower priced I think the community would appreciate it. I am sure there are people who can't drop that much that would maybe pitch in with bundles around $10-20 instead. Maybe I'm off but it seems strange to have the bundles all be so expensive. Mercenaries had 3 at 50. Why wasn't there a smaller starter bundle that's like 5 bucks for a few packs to get people hyped to have something to open? Just seems like a missed opportunity. I believe the previous "welcome" bundles for hearthstone did well. Maybe they are waiting until release to offer such things? Just think it's a missed opportunity not to offer more options.
As far as wild goes Stealer of Souls will be a problem forever under it's current printing. Just hands down it's a problem card. I love the idea and theme they went for. Think the effect is fun but without limits it's a problem.Sorcerer's Apprentice falls under the same category to me. Cards that just have static effects need limits. This is especially true for early game or low cost cards. Stealer needs something like "the first card you draw a turn" or similar because just leaving it opened as it is, people will break it. I actually like mana cheating and clever use of cards. I want there to be cool effects and powerful turns. The combination of making cards essentially free with warlocks many draw spells makes this effect too powerful to be open ended. They keep changing this card but hopefully they'll see they can't keep up with it. This is a good lesson on how mana cheat early or often is too powerful and ongoing effects need limitations.
Xyrella, the Devout
Tamsin's Phylactery
Magister Dawngrasp
These are at the top of my list. However this set has a lot of real fun cards. All the hero cards look interesting.
I'm also excited for Freeze Shaman, I may have to save some dust to craft aMoorabi ;)
Fun idea. I love steal cards but it breaks Tess. Sigh.
Some decks don't have to give them up if they can draw them quickly. Though I agree it's a tough choice. I was building with it and had to stop myself at some points.
I ended up with a deathrattle/outcast demon hunter shaved down a bit to fit Drek'Thar. It's been working somewhat. Taunt Druid and Pirate Warrior fall to it (if the warrior doesn't run Brawls, apparently that's a thing). Quest Mage and Quest Lock are tough but winnable with an early Drek. I could probably make this even more aggressive.
I'll see what the site comes up with. I am sure there is a better, faster deck out there already.
I like the theme of this expansion. The choice of legendary is nice and the faction war associated with it looks fun, we'll see how it plays out. Hero cards are very hit or miss. With speed and game ending potential of some of these questlines we'll see if they can stand up with out becoming the problem.
Honorable Kill: Neat idea. I actually loved Overkill as an idea. It wasn't executed well on most cards but still has potential if they bring it back. I actually was hoping they would here. Still lining up exact shots sounds fun too.
Objectives (the spells that persist for 3turns): Neat idea. I like the idea of Aura spells. Might be too slow but we'll see.
Excited for reveal season. I was already enjoying Deadmines additions so I was okay to wait a bit but glad it didn't get pushed back by mercenaries delays like the miniset seemed to have been.
May the best faction win. For the Horde!
I'm actually watching Kibbler play a Amulet Priest.
I believe both are good cards for sure. I just think Drek'Thar being faster gives him the edge. I went horde and am enjoying Drek'Thar. Having a lot of fun with a Deathrattle Demon Hunter with a lower curve.
First of all, I love this idea. Choice in legendary is a great thing. The factions fighting is a great story, love to see more battle grounds get into HS. Speaking of story I actually liked the United in Stormwind stuff so far. Can't wait to see where it concludes! Now to the cards:
Vanndar Stormpike I love this effect but feels real slow. Wish his stats were a bit beefier too. Seems rough to put him in what I currently use as Commencement Warrior. But I can see it in a slower priest or ramp druid.
Drek'Thar This is just the faster and potentially stronger card. I think this is going to be the winner for sure. I just see him fitting easily into a lot of classes. The less than 4 cost thing is a bit restrictive. I can see some aggressive classes wanting 1 or 2 5-7 cost for finishers (Mr. Smite).
Both fun build arounds, like the deck building restriction of card costs. However my choice is clear. I played an Orc Shaman in WoW so For the Horde!
Alright that's a good announcement. Got me laughing from the "hurry fall back" transition.
Guff making a snowman out of scabbs was also amusing.
Believe she is Dranei (sp?) So Alliance.
Love Squashling creatures. They aren't used that much so this take on them is awesome.
Also love the cauldron on the Swamp Worgen!
Portraits are weird in packs. Would of rather these have been craftable for coins or even pay. Just makes packs feel a bit more awkward. Already strange enough with the coin thing.
Equipment is also strange. Some items are cool and change abilities or effect them in some way. Others are just +1 power. Not all can be amazing but really feels like the characters only have 1 real option for items. (I only have 1 team at 30 and don't have a ton of characters unlocked so this could change). I'd just like to see more options in equipment. More items that change how you play a character rather than just flat Damage.
Maybe I have to play more but I'm not excited to do tasks and get equipment for +1 damage. I realize they upgrade but if I want more damage I'll upgrade the abilities instead. Equipment should do more exciting stuff.
I'm with you there. I don't play casual, rank or bust. I never get to a high rank anyway and it is more exciting to be rewarded for wins.
Played a N'zoth Commencement Warrior. No Noz opponents but won all my games so that's a plus. I'll probably run it for a few more days hoping to catch another Noz player.
I'm enjoying it. Didn't buy any of the bundles (preorder or otherwise).
Just enjoying leveling up the starter heroes (all 25+ now) and exploring other low level comps.
Did a few pvp matches, looks like it will be interesting if I get a few more heroes. Shore up some synergies.
I do a few games of HS, some Mercs, then back. Nice break up yet still fun in the same world. We'll see how long it goes but so far it's got potential.
Lady Prestor I remember well. Not only was Onyxia's Layer my first raid, a classic dragon fight with many whelps, but finding out Prestor was Onyxia is one of my first "dragons are cool" lore moments!
I remember the old machinima "craft of war: blind" having that awesome fight scene of Valera vs Prestor. Hooked me good back in the day.
Love her card effect too. Very fun to play a one mana Alexstrasza.
Benedictus didn't get a good reveal or enough screen time in game. With the amount of characters in such a rich world like Warcraft I know it can be tough to get each enough time. Still he's one of the few I really liked the concept of and wanted more.
Shadowlands has been fun to watch with all the souls of past villains being revisited. Was hoping Benedictus would get his redemtion/punishment. Ah well.
Even buffed, have not seen this guy.
Call of the Grave was fun. Made for an interesting game. Only did one and done.
If I did it again I'd maybe try Blessed Goods
My votes.
Ashes: I would love a prime. However I worry that doing both sides might impact them making another card. Still if I were to choose a prime Kargath! I also agree that Maieve is a great pick.
Scholo: I'm all in on KT. Love that card and concept alot. Would love him Diamond. Alura, priest pally legend, would be good too. Rattlegore is always a top pick too!
Faire: Tickatus for sure. Loved and hated and great art. Again concern about the time but still, I want it. Also one of the gods should get it. I love N'zoth but I think YShaarj should get it for the corrupt theme. Don't forget the races too. Moonfang would look cool I think.
On phone so this may be messy:
Questlines overall are my favorite version of the quest mechanic. The smaller rewards have a nice impact on the early game and they can stick around long enough to trigger your quests matter cards more often. The end rewards mostly feel really good too (was surprised by DH). However I do agree they can be completed way too quick. The priest one seems to be the slowest and probably should still be. But the others should be brought closer in line to that questline's completion time.
Stealer of Souls: I've talked about this in other places but static effects with unlimited cost reduction are very hard to balance. First off aura effects like this or Sorcers apprentice cause a lot of issues, especially on cheap cards. Second I understand the limit here is supposed to be your life pool but even with an opponent hitting them warlocks can spend 20-40 life on cards because of all the healing they have access too. That's an obsurd number. In most cases that would matter but because they are ending the game that turn or next it doesn't matter. It really should. I love the idea of price for power but this is just nearly free power.
Overload: Similar to the above if they keep printing cards that make overload a bonus or undo it's effects it is no longer an issue (same with discard). Cards get printed with a big overload cost at cheap mana but then you play a card that says overload never happened well that's just free mana. I don't know if they hit the breaking point here but just like exchanging life for mana in warlock they'll get there.
Weaknesess that have some bonuses and effects are fine but again too many that undo it just leads to a critical mass and makes the entire mechanic irrelevant.
Mercenaries looked cool but I'm just not a pre-order or cosmetic customer usually. I did look into them a bit and was shocked at the prices for sure. But I also know I don't have a real reference for what the value of these packs is. In Hearthstone I can at least judge from my previous pack purchases what I'd get. Mercenaries being a separate entity and giving out tokens has the consumers at a bit of a disadvantage. Overall with their pre-orders I'd love to see more choice. Their bundles are always these big $50-80 dollar things with lots of cosmetics. If they did a set of bundles at some point that was lower priced I think the community would appreciate it. I am sure there are people who can't drop that much that would maybe pitch in with bundles around $10-20 instead. Maybe I'm off but it seems strange to have the bundles all be so expensive. Mercenaries had 3 at 50. Why wasn't there a smaller starter bundle that's like 5 bucks for a few packs to get people hyped to have something to open? Just seems like a missed opportunity. I believe the previous "welcome" bundles for hearthstone did well. Maybe they are waiting until release to offer such things? Just think it's a missed opportunity not to offer more options.
As far as wild goes Stealer of Souls will be a problem forever under it's current printing. Just hands down it's a problem card. I love the idea and theme they went for. Think the effect is fun but without limits it's a problem.Sorcerer's Apprentice falls under the same category to me. Cards that just have static effects need limits. This is especially true for early game or low cost cards. Stealer needs something like "the first card you draw a turn" or similar because just leaving it opened as it is, people will break it. I actually like mana cheating and clever use of cards. I want there to be cool effects and powerful turns. The combination of making cards essentially free with warlocks many draw spells makes this effect too powerful to be open ended. They keep changing this card but hopefully they'll see they can't keep up with it. This is a good lesson on how mana cheat early or often is too powerful and ongoing effects need limitations.
Really nice set of cards. Love cards like Rakanishu and Splat! Great stuff.