A little Hearthstone Ranting

[Janaschi]

Currently, I find Rogues to have the most broken strategies available to them. Not only are their class-spells extremely cheap and deadly, but they also have amazing synergy with both goblin auctioneer and questing adventurer.

Then we get to their hero-weapon combo, where they deadly poison either their default blade or the assassins' blade, where they can shatter it and essentially destroy everything on the board. No other class has the capability to do 6-12 damage to every single enemy on the board with minimal cost.

Then we have the fact that they have numerous cards that allow them to place a cheap charger onto the field, return that charger to their hand, and keep playing them before finally stealthing their entire field after combat for the next 2 turns, essentially sealing in a win unless good enough taunters are able to hold onto dear life until the brutality is finally over (and we still have not taken into account their combo card that allows them to deal 4 damage directly to your hero)!

Thank God for AoE and flare, which is why I enjoy playing a Hunter control deck, but there are times where it simply is not enough to combat Rogue synergy.

Uhh actually warlock has shadowflame which does the attack of a minion to the entire board. Only difference is it doesn't hit the player

That is true - however, I can truthfully say I have never once seen that card used. Either way, that still means very little to my overall point.

Well I do agree 100% about shadowstep combo being broken (especially when you can draw your whole damn deck by turn 10 removing any sense of rng). It is just that almost every class has a way to deal AOE damage which with the right combination can do massive damage

Ultimately, it comes down to luck a lot of times. But running a Hunter control deck, Rogues are really the only class to give me any serious issues on a consistent basis, and I cannot tell you how many games I have played where I watched helplessly as they did 20+ damage to me in a single turn, even after my establishing of board control and having them within the grasp of death.

 

[squid5580]

Currently, I find Rogues to have the most broken strategies available to them. Not only are their class-spells extremely cheap and deadly, but they also have amazing synergy with both goblin auctioneer and questing adventurer.

Then we get to their hero-weapon combo, where they deadly poison either their default blade or the assassins' blade, where they can shatter it and essentially destroy everything on the board. No other class has the capability to do 6-12 damage to every single enemy on the board with minimal cost.

Then we have the fact that they have numerous cards that allow them to place a cheap charger onto the field, return that charger to their hand, and keep playing them before finally stealthing their entire field after combat for the next 2 turns, essentially sealing in a win unless good enough taunters are able to hold onto dear life until the brutality is finally over (and we still have not taken into account their combo card that allows them to deal 4 damage directly to your hero)!

Thank God for AoE and flare, which is why I enjoy playing a Hunter control deck, but there are times where it simply is not enough to combat Rogue synergy.

Uhh actually warlock has shadowflame which does the attack of a minion to the entire board. Only difference is it doesn't hit the player

That is true - however, I can truthfully say I have never once seen that card used. Either way, that still means very little to my overall point.

Well I do agree 100% about shadowstep combo being broken (especially when you can draw your whole damn deck by turn 10 removing any sense of rng). It is just that almost every class has a way to deal AOE damage which with the right combination can do massive damage

Ultimately, it comes down to luck a lot of times. But running a Hunter control deck, Rogues are really the only class to give me any serious issues on a consistent basis, and I cannot tell you how many games I have played where I watched helplessly as they did 20+ damage to me in a single turn, even after my establishing of board control and having them within the grasp of death.

Right luck. They only need to draw 1 card to pull off the win. Then they just mill through their deck in a turn or 2 til they get everything they need.

 

[Janaschi]

Currently, I find Rogues to have the most broken strategies available to them. Not only are their class-spells extremely cheap and deadly, but they also have amazing synergy with both goblin auctioneer and questing adventurer.

Then we get to their hero-weapon combo, where they deadly poison either their default blade or the assassins' blade, where they can shatter it and essentially destroy everything on the board. No other class has the capability to do 6-12 damage to every single enemy on the board with minimal cost.

Then we have the fact that they have numerous cards that allow them to place a cheap charger onto the field, return that charger to their hand, and keep playing them before finally stealthing their entire field after combat for the next 2 turns, essentially sealing in a win unless good enough taunters are able to hold onto dear life until the brutality is finally over (and we still have not taken into account their combo card that allows them to deal 4 damage directly to your hero)!

Thank God for AoE and flare, which is why I enjoy playing a Hunter control deck, but there are times where it simply is not enough to combat Rogue synergy.

Uhh actually warlock has shadowflame which does the attack of a minion to the entire board. Only difference is it doesn't hit the player

That is true - however, I can truthfully say I have never once seen that card used. Either way, that still means very little to my overall point.

Well I do agree 100% about shadowstep combo being broken (especially when you can draw your whole damn deck by turn 10 removing any sense of rng). It is just that almost every class has a way to deal AOE damage which with the right combination can do massive damage

Ultimately, it comes down to luck a lot of times. But running a Hunter control deck, Rogues are really the only class to give me any serious issues on a consistent basis, and I cannot tell you how many games I have played where I watched helplessly as they did 20+ damage to me in a single turn, even after my establishing of board control and having them within the grasp of death.

Right luck. They only need to draw 1 card to pull off the win. Then they just mill through their deck in a turn or 2 til they get everything they need.

I really do not see where you are going with that tract of thought.

 

[squid5580]

Currently, I find Rogues to have the most broken strategies available to them. Not only are their class-spells extremely cheap and deadly, but they also have amazing synergy with both goblin auctioneer and questing adventurer.

Then we get to their hero-weapon combo, where they deadly poison either their default blade or the assassins' blade, where they can shatter it and essentially destroy everything on the board. No other class has the capability to do 6-12 damage to every single enemy on the board with minimal cost.

Then we have the fact that they have numerous cards that allow them to place a cheap charger onto the field, return that charger to their hand, and keep playing them before finally stealthing their entire field after combat for the next 2 turns, essentially sealing in a win unless good enough taunters are able to hold onto dear life until the brutality is finally over (and we still have not taken into account their combo card that allows them to deal 4 damage directly to your hero)!

Thank God for AoE and flare, which is why I enjoy playing a Hunter control deck, but there are times where it simply is not enough to combat Rogue synergy.

Uhh actually warlock has shadowflame which does the attack of a minion to the entire board. Only difference is it doesn't hit the player

That is true - however, I can truthfully say I have never once seen that card used. Either way, that still means very little to my overall point.

Well I do agree 100% about shadowstep combo being broken (especially when you can draw your whole damn deck by turn 10 removing any sense of rng). It is just that almost every class has a way to deal AOE damage which with the right combination can do massive damage

Ultimately, it comes down to luck a lot of times. But running a Hunter control deck, Rogues are really the only class to give me any serious issues on a consistent basis, and I cannot tell you how many games I have played where I watched helplessly as they did 20+ damage to me in a single turn, even after my establishing of board control and having them within the grasp of death.

Right luck. They only need to draw 1 card to pull off the win. Then they just mill through their deck in a turn or 2 til they get everything they need.

I really do not see where you are going with that tract of thought.

Because miracle rogue doesn't take luck other than getting auctioneer not on the bottom of their deck to pull off the 3x leeroy (give or take cold blood in the mix). As a hunter you might get lucky and snipe it but that is the only counter to it. A good miracle won't play auctioneer with an empty hand but most of their deck is spells so they are almost guaranteed to be able to play at least 1 and cycle through their cards removing any sense of luck for them to draw their combo.

 

[Jandau]

While I can see the point about Life Tap, bitching about innervate is just silly. Yes, it allows you to bring out bigger cards sooner, but then you'd better make damn sure that those cards have an effect. For example, Druid goes second, on turn 2 he plays Innervate -> Coin -> Druid of the Claw. Next turn, Shaman plays Hex. Shaman gets a 3 for 1 trade (2 for 1 if you don't count the coin). Innervate is a solid card, but it's more than balanced out by the fairly substantial amounts of removal in the game.

 

[BloatedGuppy]

Ranked play in Hearthstone is always going to be infuriating because of net-decking. Get to a certain rank and you're going to be playing against the same half dozen decks ad-infinitum. It's tedious, and agitating, and as those decks are all over tuned you either join them or be prepared to lose to them more often than not. Warlocks actually used to be one of the more entertaining classes to play because of the 1-2 turns of mystery where you determine whether you're playing a Handlock or a Zoolock. Oooh, excitement.

Hearthstone is fun in Arena. Ranked is like an annoying chore you complete for free Arena runs.

 

[squid5580]

Ranked play in Hearthstone is always going to be infuriating because of net-decking. Get to a certain rank and you're going to be playing against the same half dozen decks ad-infinitum. It's tedious, and agitating, and as those decks are all over tuned you either join them or be prepared to lose to them more often than not. Warlocks actually used to be one of the more entertaining classes to play because of the 1-2 turns of mystery where you determine whether you're playing a Handlock or a Zoolock. Oooh, excitement.

Hearthstone is fun in Arena. Ranked is like an annoying chore you complete for free Arena runs.

Other than all of the warlock net decks 15-20 has tons of creative decks.

 

[BloatedGuppy]

Other than all of the warlock net decks 15-20 has tons of creative decks.

I tend to live in 10-20 since by the time I've played enough ranked to creep up the season has reset, and I'd say it's about 75-80% net decks. 90% of the Hearthstone commentary I share with my friend when we're both online and playing ranked is...

"Oh look, a Hunter. I wonder if he'll go vulture/hyena/hounds."
"Oh look, a Handlock."
"Oh look, a Handlock."
"Whoops, that one was a Zoolock with a bad hand."
"Oh look, a Handlock."
"I hate this fucking game."

 

[squid5580]

Other than all of the warlock net decks 15-20 has tons of creative decks.

I tend to live in 10-20 since by the time I've played enough ranked to creep up the season has reset, and I'd say it's about 75-80% net decks. 90% of the Hearthstone commentary I share with my friend when we're both online and playing ranked is...

"Oh look, a Hunter. I wonder if he'll go vulture/hyena/hounds."
"Oh look, a Handlock."
"Oh look, a Handlock."
"Whoops, that one was a Zoolock with a bad hand."
"Oh look, a Handlock."
"I hate this fucking game."

I live in the 15-20 range. Sometimes I make it up to 10 but then drop like a stone thanks to my non net deck pally which I love. I do run into a lot of zoo (more than handlock) but non warlock classes do usually surprise me with their wacky combos. Mainly because I am expecting the meta plays. Bright side is once the initial season reset rush is over and it balances itself out I don't see many miracle rogues.

I hate arena. I consistently get the worst picks imaginable. My last run as a mage was here is lots of soc apprentices and spell damage minions and a single frostbolt

 

[BloatedGuppy]

I live in the 15-20 range. Sometimes I make it up to 10 but then drop like a stone thanks to my non net deck pally which I love. I do run into a lot of zoo (more than handlock) but non warlock classes do usually surprise me with their wacky combos. Mainly because I am expecting the meta plays. Bright side is once the initial season reset rush is over and it balances itself out I don't see many miracle rogues.

I hate arena. I consistently get the worst picks imaginable. My last run as a mage was here is lots of soc apprentices and spell damage minions and a single frostbolt

Arena does suffer from a lot of random, but I enjoy scrambling to make something out of the hill of parts. Sometimes I get decks that feel "stacked" and barely hit .500, and sometimes I get decks with surprising synergy. And it's nice not seeing the same meta-game crap every single match.

 

[squid5580]

I live in the 15-20 range. Sometimes I make it up to 10 but then drop like a stone thanks to my non net deck pally which I love. I do run into a lot of zoo (more than handlock) but non warlock classes do usually surprise me with their wacky combos. Mainly because I am expecting the meta plays. Bright side is once the initial season reset rush is over and it balances itself out I don't see many miracle rogues.

I hate arena. I consistently get the worst picks imaginable. My last run as a mage was here is lots of soc apprentices and spell damage minions and a single frostbolt

Arena does suffer from a lot of random, but I enjoy scrambling to make something out of the hill of parts. Sometimes I get decks that feel "stacked" and barely hit .500, and sometimes I get decks with surprising synergy. And it's nice not seeing the same meta-game crap every single match.

Lol I know. Some decks I have drafted I thought were awesome to go 0/3. Other decks I thought were going to suck went for 5-6 wins. I will probably start arena runs again once I have enough saved for Naxx (since Blizz hates Canadian money).

 

[laggyteabag]

I hate mages. Fireballs, Pyroblasts, Polymorphs, Flamestrikes, Frostbolts, Arcane Explosions and Antonidas. Bloody hell, its a lot of removal.

 

[The Madman]

I know they're not overpowered, but for some reason priests really get under my skin. I hate em, I HATE EM ALL. Stupid death words and card draws and inner spirits.

*grumble grumble*

As for innervate it's really not overpowered. I took them out of my control druid deck because for every match you get that perfect startup that lets you get a big minion out quickly, there's a half dozen others where innervate sits in your hand gathering dust as you wait for the right moment to use it only for that moment to never come. At least with wild growth it can be used for card draw late game, innervate is absolutely useless if you don't get the opportunity to use it early and I hate having to rely so heavily on luck just for a shot at winning.

Meanwhile Savage Roar + Force of Nature is indeed good, but it's also the druids lone real burst combo. Druids suck in terms of late-game removal, beyond big game hunter I don't really have any options for getting rid of something like a Ragnaros or even just a Boulderfist Ogre, druids *have* to rely on being able to deliver sudden, powerful punches in order to win. And don't say naturalize, giving my opponents more opportunity to draw even bigger creatures makes for shitty long-term planning. It's good for maybe getting a taunt out of your way if you have lethal, but that's about it. Otherwise naturalize hurts the druid as much as it helps, I don't even keep any in my deck.

Mind you I've also mostly been playing warrior recently. Lots of ridiculously fun combo to be had there and it's nice to wallop someone in the face with a big weapon.

 

[The Madman]

Honestly I don't believe Hearthstone was ever meant to be balanced. Blizzard seem to be trying to copy other card games like Magic the gathering by creating only certain cards which are actually viable.

I mean I've look at the cards before when I was trying to get into the game and on many the manna costs just don't add up with many cards (especially Rare higher value cards) giving far better card and or manna economy than many others. Yes there are a hand full of cards in the commons that trade well but with most legendary cards you can be assured of a 1 for 1 trade or better and the only difference is how easy or hard it is to play the card to gain the good trades.

It balances out pretty well actually, otherwise there wouldn't be topics like this debating smaller nitpicks as opposed to just dismissing the game outright as unbalanced. A deck without legendaries can do fantastic, hell, my warrior deck I'm rocking right now doesn't have any and my control druid deck which easily gets me to around rank 10ish only has one for some late-game punch.

It's not perfect mind you, but it works and it's a blast to play, which in the end is what matters most as a game.