Whispers of the Old Gods is inching closer and closer to its April 26th release, and the slow trickle of card reveals is starting to yield some interesting cards. I want to talk about a few that I am really excited about. I won't go over every single card because there are plenty of places you can get that sort of review and I don't want to waste time on cards that I think are underwhelming.
The first 2 cards I want to talk about have me really excited about the future of Shaman. Our totem wielding friend already has a very strong early game with Tunnel Trogg and Totem Golem, but midrange versions of Shaman have struggled mightily in the mid game where their Overload cards really hurt them. They have a tendency to fall behind on turns 3-5 then try to rely on cards like Lightning Storm and Fire Elemental to catch back up. Unfortunately, they haven't been able to do that in a world of Piloted Shredder and Dr. Boom. Both of these cards should help create a viable midrange Shaman deck. If this kind of stuff doesn't do it then nothing will. Hallazeal is less impactful partially because it is legendary, but his stats are fine by itself and it has the potential to completely swing the game when paired with Lightning Storm or Elemental Destruction. Master of Evolution could be the best card in the set. 4/5 for 4 is already a fine stat line but we also get to upgrade another minion. Everything about this card fits into what Shaman wants to do. The Overload from Totem Golem has worn off on turn 4 or if you don't have your ideal 2 drop, something like Tuskarr Totemic on turn three into Master of Evolution transforming your 3/2 into another 4 drop really has the potential to run away with the game. The worst case scenario is you "only" get to use it on a totem summoned by your hero power. In that case you are still getting a 4/5 and a random 2 drop which is nothing to scoff at. Shaman has the potential to become the premier tempo deck of Standard in a similar way that Secret Paladin did post Grand Tournament. They look to have strong plays on nearly every turn of the game and can potentially win the game simply by curving out.
Mire Keeper is another example of what a "fixed" Piloted Shredder might look like. For 4 mana you get a 3/3 and a 2/2 or a ramp effect. The strength of this card is that both of the options it gives you are strong at different points of the game. The mana crystal is weaker on turn 4 than turn 2 from Wild Growth obviously, but we have seen powerful Ramp Druid decks in the past that rely on getting 5/10 taunts and other powerful late game minions on the board as quickly as possible. I think it's safe to assume that some aspect of the Savage Roar/Force of Nature combo will be changed, so we may be forced to return to that huge minion play style. Mire Keeper isn't on the power level of Master of Evolution but it is a very fair card at a spot on the curve that Druid has struggled with in the past. I expect to see this card played pretty often.
Cho'Gall is probably my second favorite card that has been revealed to this point. Cards that let you cheat mana have been extremely strong throughout Hearthstone's lifespan. Innervate has been an automatic two-of in every Druid deck since day one. Emperor Thaurissan has enabled dozens of card combinations that would otherwise be unplayable in the same turn from the original Patron Warrior, to Leeroy Jenkins/Power Overwhelming/Faceless Manipulator. People even wanted Mechwarper nerfed because of the strong starts it enabled in the Mech Mage days. Cho'Gall is the next in this line of cards and I expect it to have a similar effect. The two cards I am seeing referenced to combo with Cho'Gall are Siphon Soul and Shadowflame. Siphon Soul effectively lets you kill any minion for only 3 life on top of your 7/7 body. This guy into Shadowflame allows you to deal with almost any board state your opponent has while starting from an empty board. Even something like Bane of Doom gives you a 7/7 and another minion. The big thing to remember about cards like this is it gets better as more cards are released. Cho'Gall will have 2 years in Standard and forever in Wild and it WILL make a splash in both formats.
The last card I want to talk about today is Undercity Huckster. This card is flying under the radar a bit. It's not the type of card that people will be screaming to nerf in 2 months time, but it is a good value card that Rogue stands to gain a lot from in my opinion. Two drop has long been a weak spot for Rogues. They usually end up using their hero power and just waiting to set up for the later turns where they use a Blade Flurry or combination of cards to catch back up. Undercity Huckster gives Rogues a two drop they can play and feel comfortable trading early game and still get some value from. The random aspect of the card is certainly relevant and at times this card will give you a useless card, but there are other times it will give you a Flamewaker or Equality or Nourish. It's cards like this and Master of Evolution that provide a level of randomness that keeps games interesting and different without providing such a huge swing that they will win or lose games on their own.
Well that's all I'm going to cover for today. There are some other cards I am excited about like N'Zoth but I will wait until we see the entire set to make any kind of judgement. I think we are starting to get to the meat of the expansion and have a decent number of cards that will make a splash.
Thanks as always for reading! Until next time,
Chris
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