Gaming
Gaming
The misjudged cards from Journey to Un’Goro
The cards that were predicted for greatness or dismal failure, but actually turned out differently.
Naturally, the first thing pro players and analysts do once new cards are revealed in a Hearthstone set, is muse on their potential and theorycraft new decks they may fit in successfully. In this arena of semi-educated guesswork and (mostly) wild speculation, though, there is more than enough room to make an incorrect judgement on a card. The meta may shift in an entirely different direction, obscure new decks may emerge that push players towards specific counter cards, or seemingly innocuous cards may turn out to be vastly more powerful than a first look would suggest.
Now, a month on since the launch of Journey to Un’Goro, let’s take a look at the cards that caught many players off-guard and those that were hyped up beyond their capabilities.
Lakkari Sacrifice
Recipient of an infamous five-star rating Tempo Storm’s Trump, Lakkari Sacrifice turned out to be less than deserving of its full marks from the Mayor of Value Town following a few weeks of experimentation with Journey to Un’Goro.
With the discard requirement fitting in with a number of powerful Warlock cards, Lakkari Sacrifice does seem incredibly powerful at first glance. An unremovable portal? That continually summons 3/2 imps? Extraordinary! It failed to translate into a successful deck type though, and after the initial excitement had died down, Warlock players briefly turned back to the old-and-faithful Handlock. That deck has struggled to re-establish itself too, and so Warlock sits in a difficult spot right now.
Fire Plume’s Heart
Are these worth adding to your deck?
© Blizzard
Recipient of an infamous one-star rating from Trump, Fire Plume’s Heart has since become a deck-defining card for Taunt Warrior. Along with Pirate Warrior, Quest Warrior is *the* deck used to climb ladder or power through tournaments by pro players.
Before the release of the expansion, any concerns surrounding Fire Plume’s Heart were to do with the high requirement of Taunt minions that needed to be played. These cards, which are often under-statted for their mana cost, seemed difficult to incorporate enough of into a deck without crippling itself elsewhere. A number of cards from the new set helped, including the next surprising entry on our list.
Stonehill Defender
Part of the reason Fire Plume’s Heart has rocketed in power is thanks to this three mana 1/4. While it makes a mockery of the classic Silverback Patriarch, this Taunt minion generator looked unremarkable in the early days of Un’Goro. There was excitement for its potential use in Paladin decks, as the Discover mechanic would provide a greater chance of offering Paladin specific taunts, including the immensely powerful Tirion Fording, Wickerflame Burnbristle and Sunkeeper Tarim. Yet, while Stonehill Defender has found success there, it’s with the Quest Warrior where it’s truly shined, by making that seven taunt minion target easier to reach, so players can unleash Sulfuras.
Gluttonous Ooze
For a long time in Hearthstone, if you needed weapon removal, you had two options: Acidic Swamp Ooze or Harrison Jones. While both cards saw some play, you were never particularly happy about having to include either one in your deck to counter a few very specific classes. Gluttonous Ooze drew attention as it provided another option to deal with those pesky value-seeking weapons – and it gave you a shred of armour on top, another boon for control decks. What happened? Nothing, absolutely nothing. The greedy ball of sludge has been ignored or forgotten by most players.
The Caverns Below
At the other end of the spectrum to Lakkari Sacrifice is the the Rogue quest, The Caverns Below. There were so many concerns about the viability of this card before the launch of Journey to Un’Goro. Namely, if you spent your first few turns playing the same card over and over again, essentially doing nothing, your opponent would just nonchalantly whittle you down. That has certainly happened to a lot of players looking for the Crystal Core, but others found themselves dominating the early days of ladder, laughing away as they converted Stonetusk Boars, Wisps and all manner of silly, previously unplayable cards into threatening 5/5 minions.
Glacial Shard
How about these cards?
© Blizzard
It’s easy to completely pass over the power of very normal-looking common cards. Glacial Shard is the type of minion that, because it was nothing more than a one mana 2/1, didn’t inspire many players upon its reveal. It deserves more than a passing shrug, however, thanks to the cheap freeze ability that can help set up a win condition or delay your opponent for little mana cost. Perhaps not one to rush to include in all constructed decks, but it definitely has a spot in some aggro decks and is a solid one drop in Arena despite how basic it looks.
Lyra the Sunshard
With its ability to add random priest spells to your hand for every spell you cast, and the lack of enthusiasm shown to similar ‘lock and load’ style mechanics from previous card sets, the expectation with Lyra was that she would follow the same path. While nowhere near as meta defining as a number of cards on this list, in fact, Lyra has still popped up in Priest decks, with its spell generating ability setting up some ludicrous combos and game-saving opportunities.
Living Mana
On first glance, opinion on Living Mana was all over the place. It was a challenge to predict its impact because there simply wasn’t anything like it in Hearthstone at the time. However, it felt like the consensus fell further towards labelling it an unviable card. Putting your mana at risk to fill the board with 2/2 minions was not a fantastic idea when a Shaman Devolve or Mage freeze effect could destroy you next turn. And with the way Team 5 seemed to be pushing big, high-stat minions with the Druid quest, there didn’t seem to be a role for it. It has found a place in aggro Druid, though, as a powerful finisher and an alternative to the prevalent Jade decks.
For more eSports coverage, follow @RedBulleSports on Twitter and Instagram and like us on Facebook.
