Hearthstone

Famm said:

World Champion Hearthstone Player Defeated by IBM's Super-Powered Random Number Generator

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At press time, IBM was setting up for Deep Dice to play against yet another Hearthstone champion, Reynad, who called the computer a “stupid noob piece of shit.”

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Ravishing said:

Some thoughts

Overall: Power level in general seems off the charts. Quests are insane and don't seem incredibly difficult to complete. Most games are going to be decided by who finishes their quest first. Hard to say if enough counters exist. The stream showcased every game finishing before turn 10... with trash-tier decks. Tons of taunts and Poisonous to hopefully delay games but will it be enough? Defense is rarely the correct play.

Druid

• Jade Cancer seems like it'll be at an all-time High. The Druid Quest should work with Jades.
• Barnabus+Kun Druid will be alive, OTK isn't dead.
• Tyrantus still trash compared to these other 2 more mature decks, but the idea of 0 mana Tyrantus and gain 13 or 27 armor same turn is appealing.

Hunter

• Aggro/Face is back, has multiple ways to prevent running out of steam, lots of deathrattles and beasts for stickyness
• I personally don't think Dinomancy will be good. Hunter power is too crucial to finishing out games.
• So many beasts, Jeweled Macaw is another RNG cancer card. Probably in every deck simply because it counts toward quest.

Mage

• Freeze Mage isn't dead, their Quest is the ultimate cheese. Giants on board+Alex, Charge Minions, or just Antonidas+Fireball chains, plenty of ways to kill off opponent once Quest completes.
• Burgly Bully is a great card for this Quest. I don't think Cabalist Tome is even necessary or ideal.
• Even Arcanologist adds to the Freeze Mage theme...
• I'm fairly certain that every mage deck will have a Quest package in it as a finisher. Lots of options on how to build, though.

Paladin

• Buff Paladin actually seems decent if not OP. Consistency is questionable but Paladin have plenty of tools to go into late game, and this expansion is giving them two 2-drops which are sorely needed for the class.
• Their weapon is expensive but seems good, but won't be in every deck obviously. Combos nicely with their legendary.
• Galvadon is just insane and seems like it'll be completed fairly quickly most games. Should count on him having Stealth & Windfury practically every game...
• Streetwise Investigator doesn't even seem like a good enough counter since it's 5 mana and likely won't have it and a removal in hand for the crystals you have available. Will need to use other methods: AoE Freeze, Devolve, Taunts, etc.

Priest

• Is 40 health enough for this meta?! Somehow I doubt it.
• Priest was looking strong but might end up being trash tier simply because they lack as much power as other heroes.
• You can try some janky divine spirit+inner fire stuff with the Legendary
• Priest seems weakest to me at first look

Rogue

• Losing Conceal and Pillager, makes Miracle a lot worse if not extinct.
• Vilespine Slayer seems like the winner here, going to be super annoying having this card continuously bounced & killing your shit over and over.
• Seems like you either go Quest Rogue or go home. Maybe Jades or Miracle will exist, but doubtful.

Shaman

• Losing a whole lot. Their early game isn't being replaced with anything as good as Trogg+TotemGolem.
• They do have some of the strongest counters for what is entering the game with Devolve / AoE / Hex.
• Aggro probably still exists, just slightly weaker early, but if they can get a turn 3 Unbound followed by turn 4 7/7 then have fun

Warlock

• I think Discardlock and/or Zoo will be super strong again. Everything they got helps them out here. Not much demon support this time around.

Warrior

• Control Warrior maybe back, but I have lots of doubts. They are losing Justicar and can't get infinite armor anymore.
• Sulfuras is nice.. I don't see games lasting long enough for it to matter. Too many tokens & sticky stuff out there to play around it.
• I really think Pirate Warrior is dead but maybe I'll be proven wrong. Too many taunts really screw up the deck already, plus extra weapon hate with Ooze, just seems bad.
• I think Warrior is going to be pretty weak, like tier 3 or 4.

Prediction Summary:
Tier 1:
Druid
Paladin
Hunter
Warlock

Tier 2:
Shaman
Mage

Tier 3/4:
Priest
Rogue
Warrior

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• Jade Druid: They are getting even more tools to survive early game. Jades should continue to reign. I do not think Skulking Geist will be prominent enough to hurt Jade Druid. Even if it does make a (very few) decks, Jade Druid can still pack enough punch to win.
  
  
• Aggro Druid also get more tools, a 2 mana 1/5 taunt OR 1/2 poisonous, tons of CHEAP high-health minions to protect their other stuff & then buff up. Aggro druid will be stronger for sure.
  
  
• Druid DeathKnight is cheap enough to fit in practically every Druid deck, including aggro. They can hero power for 3 damage a turn, nuff said.
  
  
• Full-on taunt deck likely doesn't work, but Hadronox may see play as a finisher in Big Druid & Jade Druid.
  
  
• Big Druid still sees play, gets a little stronger, it has high win percentage against slower decks as well as Jade Druid. Suffers against Aggro, but maybe Gnash & Prince Valanar see play to give a little breather early on.

• Hunter will be tough.Their existing tier 3 deck probably stays mostly in tact. They can slot in Bearshark to get some better board control. Everything else doesn't make too much sense or is too niche or expensive.
  
  
• It'll be a struggle to find a new deck that works. They get Bloatbat & DeathKnight battlecry as very expensive board AoEs, which hunter have lacked, they can slot in some Lifesteal to heal, but it might all just be way too cumbersome or come way too late to be viable.
  
  
• Secret Hunter may have the best chance at survival, perhaps a very strong Secret deck lurks.
  
  
• I'll still try to make Quest Hunter work, but it is likely to be very inconsistent.

• Mage possibly get more viable decks focused on: Elemental / Grinder / Dragon. Mage could have 4-6 very different viable decks in the new meta.
  
  
• Quest Mage may become a legitimate top-tier deck. Simulcrum prevents Dirty Rat from mostly screwing up the main plan, now he would HAVE to pull Antonidas. Pulling Sorcs wouldn't matter so much. Also Coldwraith for more draw, and Ghastly Conjurer helps complete quest sooner. Quest Mage is an absolute counter to control & slow decks.
  
  
• Freeze Mage is already a Tier 2 deck and is getting a couple tools to assist with their plan. Coldwraith for more card draw, Ghastly Conjurer adds a 1 mana spell to hand which will become another Fireball & stall card.
  
  
• Secret Mage is also a Tier 2 deck and do not get much at first glance. Glacial Mysteries doesn't seem viable while Arconologist exists. The new secret is more for value than Board Control. Secret Mage probably exists mostly in their current form with maybe a couple card differences. Many decks will be cutting Eater of Secrets during the testing phase.
  
  
• Burn Mage is a Tier 4 deck right now and they don't appear to be getting many tools to assist with Burning... It's an Ice Expansion after all. This deck may just disappear entirely. The winrate is already atrocious and the new decks seem better & more fun.

• Everyone is super high on Paladin right now simply because they are already a Tier 1 deck and it appears like they are getting the BEST Deathknight card - possibly the best card - in the entire set. Will this be another monumental prediction fail? I doubt it. Uther is just insane. Not only do you get an insane weapon but you also churn out 2/2 minions every turn that could just end the game. A 2/2 requires an actual resource to remove, they can't just be pinged off anymore (except by Druid/Warlock/Priest DK, of which Priest/Warlock will be infrequent). It's absolutely crazy pressure for 2 mana a turn. I do believe the 4 Horsemen will determine MANY games, either by outright winning it, or sucking up so many resources you just win anyway.
  
  
• Most of the paladin decks will remain with just a few card swaps... They are already very diverse. Aggro, Mid-Range and Control variants will all exist.
  
  
• Handbuff is the only deck that could be a newcomer, but still probably weaker than the more mature decks.
  
  
• Divine Shield deck with Bolvar & new weapon will be garbage

• This set brings a very diverse set of cards to Priest that are tough to figure out. Silence Priest is their best performing deck currently and they didn't get many tools to assist it.
  
  
• Priest are getting 1 of the best minions in the set: Obsidian Statue. This card alone could be a build around for some very new and exciting decks.
  
  
• Priest have a LOT of potential with a LOT of possible decks. What becomes meta always depends on the other classes. Slower decks mean a Control/Thief list become very strong. Aggro meta means Silence remains a strong deck. It seems like Kazakus & Quest Priest should be able to make a splash at first, but I am betting the Kazakus list doesn't make it too high on the tier list. Priest Deathknight is not strong enough to make it work any better. The OTK combos with Deathknight Anduin just won't work out. I also do not think Quest Priest sees much of a boon. There are many new deathrattles but very few are actually good.
  
  
• I have the most hope for an "Eternal Servitude" list, which maybe is just part of the "Control" list. But only if the meta is slow enough.

• Will definitely keep seeing Miracle Rogue & variants as the main rogue identity.
  
  
• Valeera, Doomerang and Shadowblade will be prominent.
  
  
• Prince Valanar may make it into some lists, but not with Sherazin.
  
  
• Thief Rogue may actually make a Tier list, with Shadowblade, Obsidian Shard, Doomerang, and Prince Valanar as healthy control & sustain tools.
  
  
• I can't see a Jade or N'Zoth decks working
  
  
• Thief or a sleeper C'Thun deck seems most likely to enter the scene.

• All of the new Freeze stuff is just silly and won't work out.
  
  
• Evolve & Token lists will reign and get even stronger. Saronite Chain Gang is an awesome card for Evolve lists. Bloodlust will continue to reign. The Deathknight is just so good for evolve lists, losing totems hurts the swarm though. No more random taunt totems, as well as the other totems, are huge negatives for the Shaman. Might get tossed from lists after a while, having more minions is always preferred for the Bloodlust turn.
  
  
• Water package could easily end up in these lists due to the new Draw card.
  
  
• Elemental lists aren't given much support, will continue to not be good enough.

• Will they rise from the ashes? Is the DeathKnight card good enough? Possibly.
  
  
• Drain Soul, Despicable Dreadlord, Defile, and DeathKnight Gul'Dan are all very good tools for the Warlock.
  
  
• There is a Control list here somewhere. Their hero powers are the strongest in the game. Problem is.. all 3 are super strong... Draw Card, Deal3&Heal3, Summon a 6/6. What do?
  
  
• While I think a list exists somewhere, it's going to have to manifest from somewhere special to be able to compete with all of the other classes (except Hunter).

• Move aside Pirate Warrior, Tempo is back. Control possibly back. Taunt gets stronger.
  
  
• Pirate Warrior basically got nothing. The new Pirate is akin to Bittertide - It doesn't do shit when played. The new weapon is shit for Pirate. The Draw card COULD be an include, just to get those Arcanites into hand.
  
  
• Blood Razor and Forge of Souls will be an auto-include in every single other Warrior deck. Getting your Weapons out of your deck is super important and gives you at least 4 turns of weapon removal starting on turn 3. It's absolute insanity.
  
  
• Warrior are getting a lot and will be very strong. Pirate, Tempo, Taunt and Control may all be very viable... if anything, Pirate is getting weaker, but the fact Patches exists means it'll never die.