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Get your Hearthstone Golden Gelbin card before beta ends
Hearthstone fans, it's worth noting that the game's beta is on its last leg. WoW Insider reports on Blizzard's announcement post, which, while it doesn't provide a definitive end point, does say that you've got a limited amount of time to claim your Golden Gelbin Mekkatorque beta reward card. Once Hearthstone releases, you'll still be able to craft a non-gold version of Gelbin, but you'll need to get the gilded card sooner rather than later.
New Hearthstone card backs revealed
A post on the Hearthstone: Heroes of Warcraft Facebook page has unveiled several alternate artwork options for the backs of your cards. They are colorful and fun, and will be visible to both you and your opponent while you play a match. You can earn the card backs by attaining certain ranks in ranked play. Thus, your card backs can serve as reminder to your opponents just who they're up against. Hearthstone CM Zeriyah has also let it be known that the new card backs will be animated, though we don't yet have a preview of that. Currently, my favorite of the lot is the rainbow (who doesn't love rainbows? Besides imps, anyway), but I'll withhold my final judgement until we get to see just what the animations look like. I'm sure more unique, animated card backs will be on their way in the future, as well, and they'll provide a nice goal for collectors and competitive players to work toward.
The Lord of the Rings cast as Hearthstone cards
If you're in the US you may very well be currently enjoying the Hearthstone open beta. If you're not, though, you've got to find some way to kill the time until open beta to hit your shores, and what better way to do it than with these Lord of the Rings-themed Hearthstone cards? Imgur user splatypus took the time to create a custom deck of Hearthstone cards based on the characters and iconic moments of the Lord of the Rings movies. While not particularly balanced in some respects, it's at the very least highly entertaining. My favorite card is at the very end, proving that people really do save the best for last. I'm glad this deck doesn't actually exist, because it would be frustrating to both play with and play against. But I'd probably do it at least once, if I could, just for the novelty factor. Thanks to splatypus for this fun, tongue-in-cheek bit of creativity. Commenters of WoW Insider: if you could create a themed Hearthstone deck of your own, what would it be about? What would be its flagship cards?
Hearthstone: Mage nerfs in latest patch
A new Hearthstone patch is being applied today. Arena players will be happy to learn that their issues with actually getting into it will be fixed. Other big changes? Nerfs to the mana cost of mage spells Blizzard, Cone of Cold, and Frost Nova. You disenchant Blizzard and Cone of Cold for their original costs temporarily. I'll outline my thoughts on the mage nerfs after the jump and provide a few mage decklists that were used prior to the patch. Hearthstone Update: Arena Issue and Upcoming Changes We've been keeping an eye on Freeze mechanics for the past few months, and we've decided to make some changes to certain cards that utilize Freeze in this patch: Cone of Cold, Blizzard and Frost Nova. These cards are all having their mana costs increased by one. We understand that the Freeze mechanic can be frustrating to play against, and we feel that these changes should allow the opponent some additional time to be aggressive with their minions and well as slow the overall pacing of the control-based Mage play style while still keeping Freeze playable in many different types of decks. Thank you for continuing to test Hearthstone and giving us your feedback! source
Hearthstone Beta patch notes for December 10
Blizzard Community Manager Keganbe has put together a comprehensive set of notes for patch 1.0.0.4217 to the Hearthstone: Heroes of Warcraft beta. As ever, you can hit the break for the full post, but we'll pull out some highlights here: You are now able to abandon one quest per day. When you abandon a quest, you'll receive a new, random quest in its place. This is a huge deal, as we'd commented on how quests and their stagnant style of sitting in your log until completed were an irritation. Particularly if, for whatever reason, you really disliked playing a certain class, the quests could be a real burden. You now have the option to keep the sound playing while the game is running in the background. Finally! Now we can alt-tab away while our opponent plays, or while the game finder is playing its weird tune, and tab back in when we're ready to go! This is a simple little quality of life change that's been a long time coming. There are also drastic changes to the ranking system, minions and portraits have been added, and the "seasons" last for a month. You now win and lose stars for winning and losing games, and once you hit the top 10,000 players you'll have your specific ranking displayed. A lot has changed! Hit the break for the full notes.
Hearthstone brain teasers teach you about the game
If you've been keeping up with the official Hearthstone blog, you may be familiar with their puzzle series. They present a few game set-ups and then give you an objective to complete that turn -- usually it's to win the game! Many of the set-ups seem impossible or near-impossible, but that's what makes the puzzles so intriguing. What a great method for teaching players how to approach even seemingly dire situations. So far there have been three Hearthstone puzzle posts: Puzzles and Hearthstone Puzzles and Hearthstone 2 Puzzles and Hearthstone 3 The first post contains two puzzles, and the next two each contain three. The puzzles are ranked in order of difficulty on a scale of mana crystals; 5/5 being the most difficult, 1/5 being the simplest. So far the puzzles have definitely skewed toward the quite difficult, so make sure you bring your A game. Head on over to the official Hearthstone site to test your knowledge of the game with these set-ups, and let us know how you do!
Breakfast Topic: Have you gotten started with Hearthstone?
The latest activity on the PlayHearthstone Twitter account has all been about beta invites going out in North America and Europe. Anecdotally, I can tell you that this has led to more of my friends' list being active in Hearthstone, but I want to know about you, readers: have you gotten into the Hearthstone beta? Or do you even care about getting into the Hearthstone beta? While I've clearly been sucked in by the lure of yet another daily quest, I know not everyone feels the same. (And, really, you may be the smart ones.) So tell me, readers -- what are you doing in the Hearthstone beta, if anything? (And if you're still waiting for an invite, take heart: with the rate at which Blizzard is sending out beta invites, anyone who's opted in to the beta has a good chance of a beta invite hitting their mailbox.)
Hearthstone beta patch today
The big patch to the closed Hearthstone beta will be happening today. After you can log in at 6pm PDT (9pm EDT) you'll find that all of your cards have reset and everything is as if you've just logged onto the game for the first time. Except any money that you spent has been converted to in-game gold, which you can then spend on card packs and tournament entries. This patch has been expected for awhile, and the card wipe itself has been known since day one of the Hearthstone announcement. Furthermore, Blizzard has said that they do not expect to perform any additional card wipes -- the cards and progress you make now will carry over to the live game upon release. Blizzard's full announcement is as follows: Hearthstone Maintenance The Hearthstone closed beta test for the North American region will be down for maintenance on October 2nd, from 8:00 AM to 6:00 PM PDT. The Hearthstone closed beta test for the European region will be down for maintenance on October 2nd, from 6:00 PM to 10:00 PM PDT. This maintenance will contain the recently announced closed beta patch and all Hearthstone account information, including card collections, will be wiped during this maintenance. source
Brace Yourselves: Hearthstone opt-ins are coming
We all know that the Hearthstone beta wipe is just around the proverbial corner, but as of this forum post by Zeriyah, we now know a little bit more about why. In addition to the expected reasons such as rebalancing cards and heroes, it turns out that Hearthstone is also being migrated to more robust hardware that can handle a larger player pool. Yes, one of the reasons you may have not yet received a beta invite is because the servers couldn't handle it. All that should change post-migration, and there should be more closed beta invites on the way. Thus, as Zeriyah said: brace yourselves! The opt-ins are coming.
Hearthstone account wipe is coming
In an update posted today on the Hearthstone website, Zeriyah has let it be known that soon all Hearthstone players' accounts will be cleared an reset. This goes for all Hearthstone players, in both the Americas and Europe. Before you ask, the wipe does mean a complete wipe. All the cards you have unlocked, or bought, or earned, all the rankings you have achieved, the levels of your heroes -- everything will be reset. This does mean that you will have to go through the tutorial again, once you log into Hearthstone after the wipe. The wipe is set to correspond with the release of a major patch to Hearthstone: Heroes of Warcraft. What that patch may entail is currently unknown, but I think it's safe to assume it will contain some rebalancing of certain known, imbalanced cards. Beyond that, it's anybody's guess. If you have purchased cards in the Hearthstone beta, or entered the arena, you will be reimbursed your purchase with in-game gold. Each pack is worth 100 gold, and each arena entry is worth 150 gold. Thus, if you bought the two-pack option for $2.99, you will receive 200 gold for that purchase, and if you bought, say, three arena entries, you will receive 450 gold for those entries. If you earned the Gelbin Mekkatorque legendary, you will receive him again after clearing the tutorials. There's something I'm forgetting. What is it? Oh, yes. Any cards or rankings you earn after the closed beta wipe, you get to keep. Forever. Into the actual game's release. Don't believe me? Check out the official post for more information!
Requiem for the Defias Ringleader
If you've been playing a lot of competitive Hearthstone, you might have a few opinions about some of the decks. One of those decks might be the rogue deck, and you wouldn't be wrong for thinking it's at least a tad overpowered. The Hearthstone podcast Turn2 recently interviewed Hearthstone developer Eric Dodds, and he confirms that the team feels that the rogue deck is incredibly strong right now. In particular, the Defias Ringleader card is a noted culprit. If you play the Defias Ringleader in combination with another card in your deck, the Ringleader summons another minion: the Defias Bandit. Seeing as the Defias Ringleader costs only two mana to play, and playing it in conjunction with "The Coin" counts as a combo, it is possible to get both the Ringleader and its Bandit minion on your first turn of play, if you happen to be going second. This is a devastating opener and has been singled out as one of the reasons the rogue deck needs to be reined in. On the other end of the scale, Dodds also stated that the team recognizes that priests and warriors feel a little underpowered at the moment, and they are looking into ways to improve their performance in the game. Most of it seems to come down to finding the right balance in numbers, which will hopefully be a relatively easy fix. You can listen to the entire interview on Turn2, and save a moment of silence for the Defias Ringleader whenever the updated Hearthstone build is released.
EU Hearthstone closed beta begins
Blizzard announced today that the closed beta test of Hearthstone for the European Union folks has begun. The US beta has already been going on for a while, and for the most part, reviews have been positive. Blizzard also recently ended their US-based Facebook sweepstakes where people had the change to get one of a thousand beta keys. There is no indication yet if such a contest will be offered for the EU side of things. However, keep an eye out -- one has to believe they'll be doing something. If you haven't already you can opt-in to the beta by logging into your Battle.net account and adding Hearthstone to your beta profile. Invites via the opt-in method seem to go out every week or so. You can catch up on all our latest Hearthstone coverage, and tune in to the podcast every Monday night at 11pm EDT -- we're usually playing it while we talk about WoW.
The Queue: Super Sentai
Welcome back to The Queue, the daily Q&A column in which the WoW Insider team answers your questions about the World of Warcraft. Alex Ziebart will be your host today. Everyone who ever watched Power Rangers as a kid knows that the show cannibalized the Japanese series Super Sentai for its Ranger footage. One of the most recent Super Sentai series, Gokaiger, opens with a battle scene that includes every Power Ranger/Sentai ever. All 199 of them. Forever Red, you have been put to shame. Nurpholomew asked: If you could add one and only one achievement to the game what would it be and why?
Mage deck mayhem in Hearthstone
Fair warning to all: I am not an experienced card game player. I did pick up Magic: the Gathering from time to time in grade school and college, but the sheer amount of cards plus the expense of purchasing booster packs and such always put me off in the end. This is one of the things that's been a relief to me when it comes to Hearthstone -- I find deck sizes much more manageable and the game sorts my cards for me so I don't get overwhelmed with choice. Plus I have non-monetary options to more cards if I want. Total money I've spent on Hearthstone so far? $2.99, baby. Aw yeah. As a result I don't have any of the best cards for my deck. I'm okay with that! This article has been written in the spirit of the complete noob to mostly beginner player, because I get the impression that there are a good number of other folks like myself, who are interested in Hearthstone but don't have much of a background in card games. If you're an advanced card-game player you probably aren't going to find much in what's going on here, and that's okay! However, if you're a hesitant beginner, like myself, then please read on!
What we love and what we hate about the Hearthstone beta
It's no secret that your friendly neighborhood WoW Insider writers have been playing Hearthstone lately -- and, for the most part, enjoying it. Like all of our favorite games, it's the sort of game you can enjoy playing so much that you lose track of time... sometimes dangerously. (And the addictive, clicky, "one more fight" nature of the game is definitely something we both love and hate about Hearthstone's gameplay.) But despite our enthusiasm, the game is definitely in beta -- which is to say it's not without its flaws. So Team WoW Insider got together to discuss what we liked most and what we liked least in the Hearthstone beta so far, and after a lot of excited chatter that primarily consisted of babbling about our favorite cards (Flamestrike with +spell power minions, Equality with Consecration, anything with taunt), we had a pretty good discussion about Hearthstone's mechanics. So without further ado, read on for our greatest likes and dislikes about the world of Hearthstone.
Hearthstone beta key sweepstakes
If you're still looking for a Hearthstone beta key, you may find your luck lies with the official Hearthstone Facebook page beta key sweepstakes. Follow Hearthstone on Facebook, fill out the form, and enter for your chance to win. There will be two drawings of 500 winners each, one on August 27th and one on September 3rd. That's a grand total of 1,000 winners from this particular giveaway -- not too shabby! So click that link and throw your metaphorical hat in the ring; and good luck! We hope to run into you in the beta!
Weekly news roundup with Panser of TradeChat
It's time again for Panser of TradeChat's official WoW Insider weekly news recap. There's lots of news this week, from Hearthstone to patch 5.4 to the end of the current PvP season, to an upcoming interview with Dave Kosak. Prime points of interest for this show are: Launch of the Hearthstone closed beta Speaking of betas, the open beta for the new Battle.net launcher is in full swing The patch 5.4 trailer is available, and it's great Patch 5.4's release date August 27th Discussion Topic: What's your least favorite class to play? If you like the show, make sure to subscribe to TradeChat, leave comments, and tune in next week for a new episode!
Step into the Hearthstone Arena
The Hearthstone beta has started, and most of us here at WoW Insider have been captivated by the free-to-play card game like a cat to a laser pointer. I know that I have sacrificed what would have been a very productive weekend for the greater good of gaming. Okay, so I probably wouldn't have cured cancer or solved world hunger, but still the game is very addictive despite being quite simple on its surface. As I'm exploring everything Hearthstone has to offer, I have to say that one of the most enjoyable aspects of the game is the Arena. Essentially, the Arena is a game mode where you assemble a deck using one of three randomized heroes and a selection of semi-randomized cards and square off against other players. The more you win, the larger your heap of treasure will be. Lose three times and you're out, though you'll still receive some rewards for the highest level you were able to obtain. %Gallery-196226%
Hearthstone closed beta has begun in the Americas
Just what the title says, everyone! Blizzard has officially announced the beginning of their closed beta testing for Hearthstone: Heroes of Warcraft in the Americas. Apologies to the rest of the world, but there doesn't seem to be a concrete date yet for the closed beta's beginning in any other region. Once we know, we won't be quiet about it, of course! If you haven't yet but would like to have a shot at the closed beta, you can do so either by logging into your Battle.net account and heading to the Beta Profile page, where you can elect to opt-in. After that you'll have to wait for an invite, which will be delivered via email. If you do receive an invite, it will also appear on your Battle.net account, so you can check there too. Anyone in the comments gotten one yet? Just curious! Oh, and in case you're wondering, there is no NDA for this closed beta. None, nada, zip. Film your matches and broadcast them to the world, take screenshots, write detailed blog posts, go nuts. Just remember to report bugs so the Hearthstone team can get on them. Good luck to those of you who are hoping for an invite, let us know how it goes!
Hearthstone: State of the Beta
Blizzard Community Manager Zeriyah has been doing some serious blogging lately, writing up the huge reveal of the Forge system, which allows players to create pre-made decks and battle others for keys and glory, and now she's returned to fill us all in on the big, burning question that's got us shuffling our decks at night. What's going on with the beta? As ever, Zeriyah's full post is after the break in all its glory, but I've pulled out some key points here for your perusal. First up, Zeriyah reassures the world that Blizzard aren't planning to break their promise to the community: there will be a beta before summer is done. In fact she documents at great length how the development team are pulling out all the stops to fix bugs and eat doughnuts at the greatest possible speed. While she also clarifies that the US beta will be the first to roll out, Zeriyah informs us that betas for other regions will appear shortly thereafter with fully localized versions of the game. So, is smart money still on a Gamescom beta announcement? I'm not so sure... Hit the break for Zeriyah's full post.
