Hearthstone Update – August 26 – Card Balance Updates

Now that Saviors of Uldum is live and new cards have been introduced, a few decks have surfaced which we feel need to be addressed in order to make for a better ladder experience for Hearthstone players. Read on for more details on today’s balance adjustments:

Mage

[[Conjurer’s Calling]] – Mana cost increased from 3 to 4

[[Luna’s Pocket Galaxy]] – Mana cost increase from 5 to 7

Warrior

[[Dr. Boom, Mad Genius]] – Mana cost increased from 7 to 9

Priest

[[Extra Arms]] – Mana cost increased from 2 to 3

Neutral

[[Barnes]] – Mana cost increased from 4 to 5

As with previous changes, players will be able to disenchant these cards for full Arcane Dust value for the two weeks following this update.

For insight into why we’ve decided to make these specific card changes, check out our announcement blog here.

Game Improvements & Bug Fixes

[[Zephrys the Great]]:

• Fixed several bugs involving weapon removal:
  • [[Acidic Swamp Ooze]] was sometimes not offered against 1-Durability weapons.
  • [[Harrison Jones]] was sometimes offered against 1-Durability weapons when he could not be played that turn.
  • Weapon removal cards were not offered against 0-Attack weapons.
  • Weapon removal cards were not offered when it would prevent your opponent from having lethal on their next turn.
• Fixed several bugs involving certain cards not being offered:
  • [[Blessed Champion]]
  • [[Inner Rage]]
  • [[Bloodsail Corsair]]
  • [[Holy Fire]]
  • [[Heroic Strike]]
  • [[Avenging Wrath]]
  • [[Spellbreaker]]
• Fixed several bugs involving Hero Powers:
  • Hero Powers were sometimes assumed to be usable, even if they had already been used that turn.
  • The current cost for Hero Powers is now considered, instead of assuming a cost of 2.
  • Damage and healing modifiers on hero powers are now accounted for.
  • Upgraded Hero Powers (such as through [[Sir Finley of the Sands]], or [[Justicar Trueheart]]) are now considered.
  • If your Hero Power has been replaced, Zephrys will no longer assume your base Hero Power is still usable.
• Fixed a bug where [[Betrayal]] was not appropriately counting as a single-target removal option when it would only damage one target.
• Fixed a bug where [[Alexstrasza]] was being offered based upon the opponent’s combined Health and Armor, instead of only their Health.
• Fixed a bug where silence cards were not offered to unfreeze your own minions for lethal.
• Among potential lethal options, silence cards will now be favored, in order to help minimize potential interference from Deathrattles or other unique card effects.
• Fixed a bug where Zephrys did not properly consider multiple Deathrattles on the same minion (most commonly from Magnetic minions).
• Improved Zephrys’s evaluation of the value of healing this turn vs next turn.

Be sure to let us know what you think of these upcoming changes on the official Hearthstone Forums. We’ll see you in the tavern!