the complete guide for hearthstone

8/8/2019 The Complete Guide for Hearthstone

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ASMODEUS | THE COMPLETE GUIDE FOR HEARTHSTONE PLAYER 1

youtube.com/AsmoeusC!"#s | $smoeusb!o%.tumb!&.com | t'"tc(.t)/$smoeusst&e$m * +,- D$&"us M0y1c$2

https://www.youtube.com/AsmodeusClipshttps://www.youtube.com/AsmodeusClipshttp://asmodeusblog.tumblr.com/post/99082032301/coaching-with-asmodeushttp://www.twitch.tv/asmodeusstreamhttp://www.twitch.tv/asmodeusstreamhttp://asmodeusblog.tumblr.com/post/99082032301/coaching-with-asmodeushttp://www.twitch.tv/asmodeusstreamhttps://www.youtube.com/AsmodeusClips


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THE COMPLETE GUIDEFOR HEARTHSTONE PLAYER

-by Asmodeus

T("s "s u3o44"c"$! %u"e "3 3o '$y $ssoc"$te '"t( o& e3o&se by 5!"$&E3te&t$"3me3t6

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&e#&ouce "3 $3y '$y $3y co#y&"%(te m$te&"$!9 t&$em$&2s9 o& ot(e& #&o#&"et$&y

"34o&m$t"o3 be!o3%"3% to Asmoeus o& ot(e&s '"t(out obt$"3"3% t(e #&"o& '&"tte3 co3se3to4 t(e o'3e& o4 suc( &"%(ts.


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Thank you, to everyone who contributes to Hearthstone and the gaming

community. Whether you're a big streamer and content creator or someone

who just helps other players by answering few of their questions on forums.

ou are elevating gaming and e!sports to a higher level. "nd thank you reader

for picking up this e!book in an attempt to become a better player. # wish you

the best of luck.

! "smodeus


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Table of contents

Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

Part I – Beginner . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7

1. Getting started . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8

2. Building your collection and earning gold . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10

3. Crafting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13

4. Game fundamentals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20

5. Hidden rules and exceptions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22

6. Common mistakes and misconceptions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25

. Building your first deck ! constructed play . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28

". Basic arena strategy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32

#. $axxramas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35

Part II – Intermediate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51

1%. &empo and 'alue . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52

11. (ynergy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55

12. &)e correct order of actions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57

13. *oresig)t . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

14. *inding t)e )idden play . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62

15. &ile and decision+making . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6!

16. *ocus and mindset . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66

1. Ho, to impro'e . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68

1". &racking your results . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71




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Part III – "d#anced . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7!

1#. &)e art of mulligan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75

2%. -eading and predicting t)e enemy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77

21. eeper understanding of a card game . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80

22. (imilarity to poker ! using poker resources . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82

23. Calculating pro/a/ility . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8!

24. eck/uilding . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 87

25. 0dusting decks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8

26. nno'ating . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1

$ecommended resources . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3

Personal coac%ing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . !




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Introduction

'ie, playing games at t)e )ig)est le'el as a form of art. layers express

t)emsel'es t)roug) t)eir playstyles and t)eir gameplay paints a picture ,)ic) is admired /y t)eir fans all o'er t)e ,orld. )en you reac) a )ig) le'el of proficiency at a game you

disco'er a completely ne, dimension. ou can finally play around and still /e successful.

ou can start meta+gaming and outsmarting your enemies. &)is is ,)at most enoy a/out

games and t)at7s ,)y )elp ot)er players to get /etter.

7m gi'ing t)is e+/ook a,ay to e'eryone ,)o ,ants to /ecome a /etter Heart)stone

player t)an t)ey7re currently ,it) t)e )ope of adding ust a little /it to t)e Heart)stone

community and ele'ating t)e a'erage skill le'el of Heart)stone player+/ase ust /y a little

/it.

&)is e+/ook is designed to to )elp players of all le'els /ecome /etter at

Heart)stone. f you7re a /eginner it ,ill speed up t)e initial learning cur'e /y a lot. ou

,ill learn )o, to a'oid t)e most common mistakes and find some decks and ad'ice t)at

you can follo, step /y step rig)t a,ay. f you7re an intermediate player you7ll learn a/out

t)e most important concepts of t)e game and ,)at is t)e difference /et,een you and t)e

/est players. 8ore ad'anced players ,ill find resources and met)ods of getting small

ad'antages and finding t)eir strong points to maximi9e t)eir ,ins.

-emem/er t)at e'eryone in Heart)stone starts from t)e same place so )a'e fun playing and learning and enoy t)e rest of t)is e+/ook:

+0smodeus




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Part I

e!"##er




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&%a'ter 1.

(etting started

$%irst came the chicken.$

)en you log in to Heart)stone for t)e first time you7ll /e guided /y t)e innkeepert)roug) t)e 'ery /asics and after playing a fe, matc)es against 0 you7ll /e left on your

o,n to explore and disco'er ,)at t)e game )as to offer.

8y first ad'ice to you is ! read e#er)t%ing* t ,ill sa'e you a lot of time

confusion and effort if you ust read e'eryt)ing you encounter. )en you see a ne, card

take a ,)ile to read t)e text on it. $o/ody ,ants to sit do,n and learn card descriptions

one /y one. &)is is playtime not sc)ool so spare yourself t)e effort and get to kno, e'ery

card as soon as possi/le one at a time. Before you kno, it you7ll /e familiar ,it) most

playa/le cards and ready to take t)e next step.

+e#eling and ,uests

n )eart)stone t)ere are 2 types of ;uests. aily ;uests and uni;ue ;uests ,)ic)

you can complete only one time. *or no, ,e7ll focus on t)e latter.

&)ere are currently # playa/le classes in Heart)stone eac) of t)em offers you a setof basic cards ,)ic) you can ac;uire simply /y getting to le'el 1% ,it) eac) class. &)is

s)ould /e t)e first t)ing you do.


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$ext you can ump into practice mode and fig)t against t)e expert 0. Beating all

of t)e expert 0 opponents ,ill grant you anot)er 1%% gold. *ocus on playing 1 class at a

time and /ecome familiar ,it) t)eir cards and )ero po,er.


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&%a'ter 2.

Building )our collection and earning gold

$+ne way or another #'m gonna get ya*$

?nless you7re prepared to spend a fortune on card packs /uilding your collection

,ill take some time /ut many people )a'e already pro'en t)at you can get access to e'ery

competiti'e deck ,)ile going completely @free to play@ on any account.

T%ere are multi'le a)s of getting cards

• 0ll /asic cards are earned /y le'eling eac) class to l'l 1%

• Axpert packs + 1%% gold eac) ! re,ard you ,it) 5 random expert cards

• 0rena re,ards ! you can get random expert cards and 1+2 expert packs aftercompleting an arena run

• (oul/ound cards ! t)ey7re a,arded for completing ;uests and single player

ad'entures suc) as $axxramas

A'eryt)ing mentioned a/o'e can /e ac;uired ,it) real money or t)e in game

currency. &)e /est use of your gold in t)e /eginning of your Heart)stone ourney is /y far

t)e 0rena entrance fee /ut in order to get t)e re;uired 15% gold first you7ll )a'e to get t)e

gold from play mode first.

o to get t%e most out of dail) ,uests

A'ery day you7ll recei'e a daily ;uest for completing ,)ic) you7ll earn eit)er 4%

6% or 1%% gold. ou can )old up to 3 ;uests at any gi'en time. &)e /asic strategy of doing

daily ;uests in'ol'es t)e a/ility to re+roll one ;uest per day. By pressing t)e red @x@ in t)e

top rig)t corner you7ll /e a/le to exc)ange t)at ;uest for a ne, random one. uests t)at

gi'e 6% and 1%% gold are more rare and t)us you s)ould ne'er try to exc)ange t)em.

0l,ays try to re+roll t)e 4% gold ;uests and if you get anot)er 4% gold ;uest t)at in'ol'esa class ,)ic) you can a'oid playing sa'e it for t)e next day so t)at you can try to re+roll it

again in case your next daily ;uest ,ill /e t)e one ,it) 6% or 1%% gold re,ard lea'ing you

,it) an option to sa'e it and try to exc)ange t)e old one.




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arning gold from 'la) mode

lay mode ! often referred to as Constructed + is ,)ere you can test your skills ,it)

custom made decks in eit)er casual or ranked matc)es. *or e'ery 3 'ictories in t)is mode

you7ll get 1% gold and you can repeat t)at 1% times ! gi'ing you maximum of 1%% eac)day. t doesn7t matter )o, many losses you get you don7t )a'e to streak t)e ,ins so ,it)

time you can al,ays get your gold t)is ,ay if you ,ant to.

(old s'ending strateg)

(pending your )ard earned gold. &)is is ,)ere most people fall into t)e instant

gratification trap. f you follo, t)e ad'ice in t)e next fe, paragrap)s you can sa#e

)ourself a lot of time t)at e;uate to a lot of money simply /y spending your goldcorrectly and /eing patient.

*irst of all ! ne#er /uy expert card packs ,it) gold. Aspecially in t)e /eginning if

you /uy a pack instead of an arena entrance fee you deny yourself t)e opportunity to get

lucky /ut e'en more importantly you deny yourself t)e opportunity to impro'e at arena.

)y is it so important Because arena is t%e fastest a) of earning gold and cards in

Heart)stone once you get good at it and t)e /est ,ay to get good at it is to play it.

This applies mostly to beginners, if you're already a veteran with a bank of k gold, youhave my blessing to go on a pack shopping spree*

0n a'erage ,in rate of 5%D ,)ic) e;uals to 3 ,ins in arena re,ards you ,it)

almost t)e same amount of potential cards as 15 expert card packs. 0nyt)ing extra is

simply a /onus. 0rena is strictly more efficient ,ay of spending your gold /ecause you7re

getting more 'alue for your currency.

t may seem counter intuiti'e /ut ,aiting for more gold to enter t)e arena instead

of /uying packs is going to get you cards muc) faster in t)e long run. 0t first your priority

is ust to /ecome more proficient at it /ut once you can a'erage around 6 ,ins ,it) t)e

)elp of daily ;uests you can keep playing arena indefinitely and /uild a gold /ank toget)er

,it) your collection rapidly increasing in si9e.

0s a /eginner you ,on7t get enoug) ,ins to play only arena /ut you can @c)eat@ it

a little /it /y using multiple accounts. By playing on more t)an 1 ser'erEaccount you7ll get

more t)an 1 daily ;uest per day and alternating accounts ,ill let you play more arena7s.

&)at ,ay you can get /etter at it muc) faster and transition to playing only on your main

account once you can keep playing arena t)ere.




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'ending mone) on eart%stone

Ho, muc) you ,ant to support Bli99ard is completely up to you /ut )ere are my

recommendations for you in regards to spending money on Heart)stone.

1. $axxramas is currently t)e /est use of your money. ou kno, ,)at you get you

pay for a single player c)allenge ,)ic) is a lot of fun to complete and t)e ;uality

of re,ards is 'ery )ig). efinitely ,ort) /uying one ,ay or t)e ot)er.

2. 0rena entrance ! if you7re planning to play t)is game for more t)an fe, ,eeks

in'esting in your a/ility to /ecome self sustaining arena player is muc) more

'alua/le t)an t)e s)ort /oost of cards t)at7s ,)y recommend /uying arena o'er

expert card packs.

3. Axpert card packs ! if you already a'erage 6F ,ins in arena or your collection is'ery ric) /ut you7re looking to get lucky or /uild golden decks t)is is t)e main

purpose of /uying packs.

Tr) to get 60 and 100 gold ,uests b) re4rolling t%e !0g ones

a#e gold for arena

(et a second account or alternate ser#ers to get faster gold for arenas

(et aramas before bu)ing card 'ac-s




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&%a'ter 3.

&rafting

$# solemnly swear to uphold the dust, and never disenchant a card without thinking$

– The "rgent )ust +ath

Crafting cards is one of t)e most re,arding features in Heart)stone. &)e more

patient you ,ill /e t)e /igger t)e re,ards and satisfaction. ou can craft most cards using

arcane dust ,)ic) you ,ill get eit)er from arena re,ards or disenc)anting ot)er cards.

ou can disenc)ant only t)e cards ,)ic) you can also craft.

&ards t%at cannot be crafted include

• Golden promotion cards =suc) as golden Gel/in 8ekkator;ue>

• $on+golden $axxramas =and any future ad'enture> cards

• Cards from t)e /asic set

• (oul/ound ;uest re,ards

Before you start crafting it7s important to understand as muc) as you can a/out t)e

cards and t)e crafting process itself

He thought disenchanting Hogger was a good idea, until control warriors showed that

Hogger really is super powerful*




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&)e ta/le /elo, ,ill s)o, you t)e cost and re,ard for crafting and disenc)anting a

card of eac) rarity type

$arit) &ost of &rafting $eard for isenc%anting

$egular (olden $egular (olden

&ommon 4% 4%% 5 5%

$are 1%% "%% 2% 1%%

'ic 4%% 16%% 1%% 4%%

+egendar) 16%% 32%% 4%% 16%%

0n exception to t)ese rules is applied ,)ene'er Bli99ards decides to /uffEnerf or

alter )o, any particular card ,orks in any ,ay. 0fter a patc) ,it) t)ese c)anges goes li'e

you can disenc)ant affected cards for full 'alue. &)at means if you )appen to )a'e some

extra pyro/lasts and t)at card is affected /y a patc) you ,ill )a'e a/out 2 ,eeks from t)e

time t)e patc) goes li'e during ,)ic) you can disenc)ant pyro/last and get 4%% arcane

dust /ack /ecause it7s an epic card.

%ic% legendar) to craft first9

&)is is one of t)e most commonly asked ;uestions on forums. Aarning 16%% dust

takes some time and it7s an important decision /ecause next c)ance to craft a legendary of

your c)oice may not )appen for some time. &)ere are a couple of factors t)at go into

crafting legendary cards.

*irstly ! do you )a'e a main class f t)ere is a specific class ,)ic) you enoy

playing t)e most you may ,ant to in'est in t)e class specific legendary. $ot all classes

use t)eir legendary card so i di'ided t)em into 3 categories.

&lass s'ecific legendaries used commonl) – t%e strongest ones

• Tirion :ordring

• din ;an&leef

• +ord


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&lass s'ecific legendaries used sometimes – strong but o'tional

• "rc%mage "ntonidas

• &enarius

• "l="-ir T%e indlord

&lass s'ecific legendaries rarel) 'la)ed – limited use> not recommended

• Pro'%et ;elen

• ?ing ?rus%

(econdly ,e )a'e to consider legendary cards t)at fit in most decks eit)er /ecause

of t)eir 'ersatility or s)eer po,er. ordered t)e neutral legendary cards so t)at you can see

,)ic) ones you s)ould consider crafting first and ,)ic) ones are not e'en ,ort) keeping.

To' tier neutral legendaries – 'la)ed in man) of t%e best dec-s

• )l#anas indrunner

• &airne Blood%oof

• T%e Blac- ?nig%t

(ood legendar) cards – definitel) ort% crafting

• Bloodmage T%alanos

• $agnaros t%e :irelord

• "lestras@a

• Asera

• Baron (eddon

ituational legendar) cards – for s'ecific dec-s – good in t%eir nic%e

• al)gos

• ?ing u-la

• arrison


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!00 dust> or sentimental #alue

• o@dormu

• (ruul

• Illidan tormrage• lite Tauren &%ieftain

• &a'tain (reens-in

• (elbin e--ator,ue

• Tin-master C#ers'ar-

• at Pagle

• ill%ouse anastorm

• +oreal-er &%o

How ironic that the most powerful of ogres - ruul - sees much less playing time than a

simple boulderfist ogre

&rafting e'ic cards

&)ese cards are less 'alua/le t)an legendaries /ut you s)ould still understand

,)ic) ones are important and ,)ic) ones you can dust to craft your desired deck instead.

ust like ,it) legendaries ,e )a'e to take a look at t)e class specific epics first. f

t)ere is a particular class ,)ic) you7d like to explore more you can sa'e all t)eir epic

cards ust in case ! ot)er,ise ! you can follo, t)is list. $um/er in t)e /rackets

represents )o, many copies of t)at card you7ll need for all of t)e good and esta/lis)ed

decks ,)ic) are played currently.

ruid

• "ncient of +ore D2E

• "ncient of ar D2E

• :orce of ature D2E

unter

• Bestial rat% D0E

• (ladiator=s +ongbo D0E

•

na-e Tra' D2E




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age

• Ice Bloc- D2E

• P)roblast D1E

• 'ellbender D0E

Paladin

• "#enging rat% D1E

• +a) on ands D1E

• ord of


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0nd no, for t)e neutral epic cards ,)ic) you can craft and disenc)ant. &)ere are

certain neutral epics ,)ic) are ,idely used in many decks and on t)e ot)er )and t)ere are

t)ose ,)ic) you almost ne'er see. Here t)ey are di'ided into 3 main categories

eutral e'ics %ic% are useful for more t%an one dec-

• Big (ame unter

• oomsa)er

• :aceless ani'ulator

• olten (iant

• ountain (iant

eutral e'ics %ic% are situational and nic%e cards

• Blood ?nig%t

• urloc arleader

• ea (iant

100 dust

• ungr) &rab

• out%sea &a'tain




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&rafting dec-s

n t)e /eginning you7ll play around ,it) t)e /asic decks /ut t)ey can only get you

to a certain point. 0fter t)at if you ,ant to progress in constructed ranks you7ll )a'e to

/uild a stronger deck using t)e expert cards. ?ntil you de'elop a strong sense of t)egame card interactions and t)e metagame it7s /est if you ust copy a deck t)at7s tested /y

experienced players. opular streamers and top pro players often keep t)eir decks

a'aila/le to t)e pu/lic and after e'ery tournament ne, decks are released for e'eryone to

copy and take ad'antage of t)e deck/uilding talent and expertise of pro players. ou can

also find current popular decklists on 'arious ,e/sites. &)ere is often an option to sort t)e

decks /y t)e crafting cost so t)at you can find somet)ing afforda/le for yourself.

0t t)e start it7s /est to stick ,it) c)eap aggro decks /ecause you can craft t)em

fairly ;uickly and earning gold in play mode ,it) t)em is faster. Hunter and @9oo@ ,arlock

are currently t)e most popular of t)e c)eap aggro decks t)at are capa/le of reac)inglegend rank in t)e )ands of a skilled player.

Consult a list or an experienced player /efore you disenc)ant a card

(tart crafting ,it) t)e essential cards for your main deck

Craft cards starting from t)ose ,)ic) you7re t)e least likely to get ot)er,ise

(tart /y copying c)eap aggro decks




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&%a'ter !.

(ame :undamentals

$ /rrraggglhlhghghlgh@

Basic mec%anics and in conditions

n Heart)stone t)ere are many ,ays to ,in t)e game /ut t)e most /asic of t)em is

,inning t)roug) /oard control. &)is means prioriti9ing putting as muc) po,er in play as

you safely can and remo'ing enemy minions from t)e /oard to limit )is options. By

trading efficiently ,it) enemy minions and using appropriate spells to remo'e enemy

t)reats you can create small ad'antages for yourself e'ery turn and ,)en t)e enemy runs

out of ans,ers or simply gets o'er,)elmed your minions ,ill easily finis) )im off.

laying for /oard control means t)at you don7t )a'e to ,orry a/out your enemy H

until you can kill )im ,it)in 1+2 turns. ou s)ould focus on remo'ing enemy minionse'en if t)at means dealing 6 damage to a 3 H minion. Iimiting t)e options of your enemy

and pre'enting )im from utili9ing 'arious /uffs is t)e safest ,ay to t)e 'ictory.

)en you kill an enemy minion ,it) your o,n ,it)out losing it you can force t)e

enemy to use anot)er card in order to deal ,it) your damaged creature. &)at ,ay you gain

card ad'antage /ecause )e )ad to spend t,o cards in order to deal ,it) your one.

The term 0drop1 relates to a creature that can be played on it's own for specific mana

cost. %or e2ample 3iver 4rocolisk is a 5!drop, and 4hillwind eti is a 6!drop.

&ard ad#antage and draing cards

0not)er ,ay to ,in t)e game is + to gain a significant card ad'antage. n later turns

of t)e game ,)en you )a'e more mana a'aila/le you7re a/le to play multiple cards eac)

turn and since you7re naturally dra,ing only one card per turn you run t)e risk of running

out of cards.

Whenever a player is out of cards - it's called a topdecking mode. Topdecking refers to

playing a card that you just got from the top of your deck.




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Ha'ing some card dra, mec)anics in your deck is 'ery important /ut too muc) of

it can lead to clogging up your )and if you can7t empty it out fast enoug). Balancing t)e

amount of card dra, in a deck comes ,it) experience. ou can also gain card ad'antage

/y playing /igger minions ,)ic) are a/le to trade for t,o or more smaller minions played /y t)e enemy or you can play 0


22/96


&%a'ter 5.

idden rules and ece'tions

$H" H""""""* ...wait, that's not what i had in mind.$

n t)is c)apter you ,ill learn a/out some not+so+o/'ious rules in Heart)stone.


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1. eat)rattle triggers after t)e com/at )appens in t)e order in ,)ic) t)e minions

,ere played one /y one.

2. Pla)ing a card or a minion means playing it from your )and. 8inions and effects

summoned /y ot)er means do not count as @layed@.

3. Battlecries ,ork only ,)en t)e minion is played from your )and.

4. estroying a minion ! for example using ()ado, ord ain on it doesn7t deal any

damage to t)e minion so it doesn7t trigger any effects t)at )appen ,)en damage is

dealt.

5. &)e maximum mana pool you can )a'e is 1% ! if you7re at 1% and ,ant to play acoin or inner'ate you )a'e to spend some of your mana first.

6. ou can )a'e maximum of minions on /oard at once and ,)en t)e /oard is full

you cannot play any more.

. (ecrets suc) as mirror entity are triggered after /attlecries occur.

". (ecrets trigger in t)e order t)ey ,ere played.

#. estroying di'ine s)ield does not count as dealing damage.

1%. (pell damage affects e'ery card t)at is a spell and deals damage and it affects only

t)at.

ilence

(ilence is one of t)e most confusing game mec)anics for many players. &)e easiest

,ay you can look at it is to t)ink of silence simply as an eraser or a ru//er. )en you)o'er o'er a minion you can see t)e description and 'arious /uffs or de/uffs if t)ey7re

present. (ilence remo'es all of t)at. &)e only t)ing t)at stays is t)e minion statistics suc)

as mana cost attack )ealt) and t)e minion type =Beast ragon etc.>

ou can silence enemy /uffs taunts di'ine s)ields deat)rattle and trigger effects

/ut you can also silence de/uffs from your o,n guys. (ilencing a minion t)at )as /een

fro9en ,ill remo'e t)e free9e effect and let you attack ,it) it t)is turn ust make sure t)at

t)e minion doesn7t )a'e ot)er /eneficial effects /ecause silence ,ill remo'e all of t)em.

ou can e'en silence minions after e;uality to restore t)eir )p or minions affected /y

0ldor eacekeeper to /ring /ack t)eir attack po,er.




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olymorp) and )ex turn creatures into completely different minions t)ey7re not

counted as de/uffs and t)us you can7t silence t)em to get your original minions /ack.

:ilencing 3agnaros the %irelord will let the owner attack with him like with a simple ;


25/96


&%a'ter 6.

&ommon mista-es and misconce'tions

$ou can do everything with a shield... no, really.$

Getting good at anyt)ing re;uires you to make a lot of mistake. &)at is to /e

expected and you s)ould em/race it. &)e more mistakes you make t)e more ,ays you

find of )o, not to do t)ings. A'ery mistake t)at you notice is a /ig step to,ards /ecoming

a /etter player and reac)ing your goals. it) t)e small mistakes you7ll )a'e to deal

yourself or ,it) personal coac)ing /ut rig)t no, 7ll )elp you a'oid some of t)e /ig

mistakes t)at could ot)er,ise set you /ack if left unc)ecked.

&reating bad %abits

-epeating t)e same t)ing for a long time ,ill cause you to de'elop a )a/it of

doing it. our o/ is to make sure you e'aluate t)e ,ay you play to find any /ad )a/its you

mig)t /e creating. 0 good example of t)is ,ould /e dra,ing t)e cards first.

)en you7re planning out your turn and you decide t)at it ,ill include dra,ing a card you

s)ould dra, first in case t)e ne, card can )elp you make a /etter and more efficient play.

&)e key is to al,ays act as if t)at ,as important e'en ,)en it isn7t. By dra,ing first e'en

if you )old t)e /est possi/le ans,er in your )and you7re reinforcing a good )a/it and you

eliminate t)e c)ance of misplaying ,)en it actually matters.

)raw first, ask questions later*

Being ;$A o'timistic

&)is is a 'ery common mistake and a reason ,)y many players struggle to impro'e

,)ile /eing stuck in a plateau. &)ere is not)ing ,rong ,it) /eing positi'e and optimistic

,)at 7m talking a/out is al,ays expecting fa'oura/le outcome and not looking at t)e

/igger picture.

&)is )appens during deck /uilding drafting arena decks and during t)e game itself.

eople get stuck at t)e first idea t)at pops into t)eir )ead.




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– Hey man if # pick this "larm!o =ot # could get like a really big creature or even a

legendary and get it on board for free, that would be cra>y* 9et's pick it.

&)at scenario is possi/le /ut it7s so unlikely t)at it7s a/solutely not ,ort) picking a card

like an 0larm+o Bot in arena. ou )a'e to look at all t)e possi/le options and try to guess)o, likely it is t)at t)e one you7re imagining is going to )appen.

&)is is especially important for t)e ne, players ,)o are o'erestimating com/o7s

and synergies. Before you gain a lot of experience ,it) t)ese cards and get a firm grasp on

,)at usually )appens you s)ould try to stay 'ery realistic and go ,it) t)e c)oices t)at

seem t)e most solid and consistent.

Pla)ing too fast

A'en t)e /est of t)e /est are guilty of t)is sometimes. -us)ing and making ;uick

decisions can only lead to /ad t)ings. &)ere is often a )idden and marginally /etter play to

make and acting too fast may ro/ you of t)at opportunity.

&)e simplicity of Heart)stone is often misleading. t appears 'ery easy and casual

and t)at7s ,)y t)e difference /et,een t)e /est and a'erage players may sometimes /e not

o/'ious. t7s all a/out increasing your c)ances. &aking your time eac) turn ensures t)at.

=onus tip? right click on the enemy portrait and squelch him at the start of each game, so

that they don't bother you when you're thinking through your turn.

ot loo-ing at t%e bigger 'icture and being im'atient

&)is one is a dead gi'ea,ay to e'eryone t)at t)ey deal ,it) a /rand ne, player.

7m talking a/out asting s'ells and attac-s to %it t%e enem) face and caring too muc)

a/out your o,n )ealt).

?sing ,eapons and )ero po,ers to attack minions is one of t)e /est ,ays to gain

card ad#antage and pull a)ead in t)e game.

$e, players often care too muc) a/out t)eir )ealt) and t)e enemy )ealt).


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&)ink a/out t)e future turns and try to anticipate ,)at can )appen. t7s /etter to use

spells to protect your minions /ecause your minions can )it t)e enemy face multiple

times ,)ile spells are gone after you cast t)em.

9ethal - refers to having enough damage to kill the enemy hero right away

Tr)ing to rein#ent t%e %eel before learning t%e basics

&)is one applies pro/a/ly t)e most to constructed play. Creating ne, decks is fun.

*or me it is t)e most interesting aspect of t)e entire game /ut /efore you can create a deck

t)at is successful and ,orks against ot)er players you )a'e to make sure you kno, t)e

game itself and current metagame like t)e /ack of your )and.&)e /est ,ay to experience and learn t)e game is to experiment and encourage

you to do so )o,e'er ,)en you7d like to mo'e up in t)e ladder and your goal is to ,in

more you s)ould take ad'antage of all t)e great ,ork t)at ot)er Heart)stone players )a'e

done for you.

ou can netdeck somet)ing t)at fits your style and learning to play good decks and

getting to understand )o, t)ey ,ork is a 'ery 'alua/le experience /ecause you can see

,)at ,orks and ,)at doesn7t 'ery clearly.

8etdecking is simply copying decks from the internet. :ome people look down upon it, butthat's beacuse they've lost to netdecking players too many times*

0l,ays try to make optimal c)oices to create good )a/its

&ake your time eac) turn

Hero )ealt) is ust a resource don7t /e afraid to use it

(tick ,it) tried and tested strategy until you fully understand )o, it ,orks




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&%a'ter 7.

Building )our first dec- – constructed 'la)

$# may be a novice, but # can still kick your butt*$

0t t)e /eginning in order to earn your gold from daily ;uests and 'ictories in t)e

play mode you ,ill need some starting decks.


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+nce you get more cards that you'd like to put in your original decks, you can consult the

arena tier list, to see which cards are better than the ones you were using.

Become familiar ,it) e'ery class in play mode /efore you go into t)e 0rena

(tart ,it) t)e /asic decks from t)is c)apter and upgrade t)em as you earn cards

Basic decks can take you only so far /ut pro/a/ly muc) furt)er t)an you t)ink

(tay positi'e e'eryone in Heart)stone started from t)e same place




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&%a'ter 8.

"rena draft strateg)

0:ome day #'ll be just like that popular streamer*1

0rena is t)e true test for )o, strong your fundamentals are.


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rafting )our arena dec-

0fter c)oosing your class you ,ill /e offered a c)oice /et,een 3 semi random

cards until you create a full deck. )en learning to play arena recommend you consult

an arena tier list until you de'elop a strong sense for eac) card so t)at you can make t)e /est c)oice a'aila/le to you. ou ,ill find links to arena tier lists at t)e end of t)is c)apter.

T%e rules of drafting a good arena dec-

• Good 3+drops are )ard to get ,)en you )a'e a )ard c)oice lean to,ards t)em. ou

s)ould )a'e at least four 3+drops

• &)ere are some great 4+drops you can /e more picky a/out t)em.

• on7t pick too many cards t)at cost 6F mana t)e peak of your mana cur'e s)ould

/e around 4 mana.

• Be a,are of )o, many picks you )a'e left

/ana curve is the distribution of your cards mana cost across the deck. %or e2ample ! a

lot of cheap cards makes for a 0low1 mana curve.

A'ery fe, picks you s)ould take a look at )o, many cards you )a'e left and )o,

your deck looks so far. &ry to identify strong and ,eak points in it so t)at you can proceed

,it) t)e draft accordingly. t is important to )a'e a plan and t)ink a/out )o, you ,ill try

to ,in t)e game. f your deck consists of many small minions you s)ould get a little moredra, po,er ,)en gi'en t)e c)ance and if your deck seems 'ery top )ea'y ,it) multiple

/ig creatures you s)ould look to fill your early game )oles.

0round pick 15 and e'en more after 2% you s)ould prioriti9e a little ,eaker cards

in order to /alance your mana cur'e. A'en legendary cards ,on7t sa'e you if you lose

/adly t)e fig)t o'er /oard control in t)e first 4 turns.

-emo'al spells suc) as *ire/all and (,ipe are 'ery 'ersatile pick a lot of t)em.


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ust like ,it) remo'al you can consider e'ery card in t)at sense. 8inions and

spells t)at are 'ersatile and good in e'ery situation s)ould take priority o'er nic)e and

situational cards t)at re;uire special conditions to ,ork ,ell.

Good ,ay to /alance your deck is to )a'e ust enoug) dra, ust enoug) remo'al ust enoug) /ig t)reats and a lot of ,ays to ,in or stay e'en in t)e early game =turns 1+4>.

&)e more experience you )a'e playing arena t)e easier it ,ill /e for you to identify t)ese

t)res)olds.

)nerg) in arena

(ynergy and com/o7s are 'ery often o'er'alued /y ne, players. )ene'er you7re

trying to /uild a deck around certain synergies like Houndmaster or 8ad (cientist you

s)ould look at ,)at you already )a'e in your deck rat)er t)an trying to t)ink a/out ,)at

you can get in future picks. ou can7t predict ,)at t)e draft ,ill gi'e you t)at7s ,)y youneed to focus on t)e information t)at you already kno,. Iook to t)e future /ut rely on t)e

deck t)at you already )a'e. ou can also expect specific mana cost minions more relia/ly

t)an spells.

Try to remember, or better yet - screenshot your decklist before you jump to your first

match in arena

"rena draft tier lists

Bot) of t)ese players did a great o/ of putting t)ese lists toget)er and it ,ill )elp you

greatly in learning t)e 'alue of eac) card. -emem/er t)at it7s only a guideline.

AntiGrav1ty's list JerkyGunner's list

ick your /est class

*ocus on t)e )ig)est 'alue cards at t)e /eginning of your draft

0round pick 15 start filling your mana cur'e

Constantly look at your deck and e'aluate it


https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/pub?key=0AifXEOqTcGcLdFVvWk1GRjVJTHJUaTVLcGViR1RRTFE&gid=20https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/pub?key=0AhaXYbyLVAVodDRrbXZCUzVNNWs0bzI0a09aaF9iRnc&gid=16https://www.youtube.com/AsmodeusClipshttps://www.youtube.com/AsmodeusClipshttp://asmodeusblog.tumblr.com/post/99082032301/coaching-with-asmodeushttp://www.twitch.tv/asmodeusstreamhttp://www.twitch.tv/asmodeusstreamhttp://asmodeusblog.tumblr.com/post/99082032301/coaching-with-asmodeushttp://www.twitch.tv/asmodeusstreamhttps://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/pub?key=0AifXEOqTcGcLdFVvWk1GRjVJTHJUaTVLcGViR1RRTFE&gid=20https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/pub?key=0AhaXYbyLVAVodDRrbXZCUzVNNWs0bzI0a09aaF9iRnc&gid=16https://www.youtube.com/AsmodeusClips


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&%a'ter .

aramas

0=ring it on Ael'Thu>ad*1

Curse of $axxramas is t)e first ad'enture mode added to Heart)stone. t consists of

fi'e ,ings containing 15 /osses to defeat. Beating eac) /oss re,ards you ,it) 2 copies of

a specific ne, card o/taina/le only from $axxramas. 0dditionally after completing eac)

,ing you ,ill get a specific $axxramas legendary card. &)ere are also class c)allenges

,it) class specific cards as a re,ard.

ou can /uy eac) ,ing of t)e ad'enture for %% gold or access t)em /y spending

real money. f you7re considering paying for anyt)ing in Heart)stone /uying t)e entire

$axxramas ad'enture is definitely ,ort) t)e money. ou kno, /efore)and ,)ic) cards

you7re going to get =t)ere are 3% collecti/le cards to get> and t)ey7re used in almost e'ery

competiti'e deck. t7s a lot of fun to experiment and find creati'e ,ays of defeating t)e /osses especially in t)e )eroic mode ,)ere t)e c)allenge /ecomes significantly )arder.

n order to get all t)e cards you ,ill )a'e to complete t)e class c)allenges ,)ic)

gi'e you a predetermined deck to fig)t one of t)e /osses from regular $axxramas ,ings

and you7ll )a'e to defeat t)e /osses t)emsel'es in normal mode.

Heroic mode is completely optional and t)e re,ard for it is a t)emed card /ack. &o

get t)e cards you7ll )a'e to /eat eac) /oss only in t)e normal mode. 7'e created a deck for

eac) of t)em to )elp you get started. tested e'ery single one of t)em in t)e $axxramas

ad'enture and /eat eac) /oss on t)e first try. &)e good ne,s is t)at you ,ill need only /asic cards to /uild t)ese decks and ,it) expert cards you can impro'e t)em significantly

to /eat t)e )eroic mode.




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Basic dec-s for eac% of t%e 15 aramas bosses.

T%e "rac%nid Fuarter

"nub=$e-%an

Beating t)is /oss s)ould not /e a pro/lem.

&)e fig)t is 'ery straig)tfor,ard ust make sure

you7re controlling t)e /oard ,)ic) s)ould /e easy

,it) t)e card c)oice of t)is deck. lay your

minions kill )is minions and once you get enoug)

of an ad'antage s;uas) t)at nasty /ug.




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(rand ido :aerlina

&)is deck deals 'ery ,ell ,it) t)e Grand ido,.

e7re playing ,arlock )ere to a'oid )er )ero

po,er doing too muc) damage. ou can empty

your )and really fast and as a ,arlock you ,ill

not run out of card due to t)e Iife &ap )ero a/ility.

&)e minion c)oice emp)asi9es creatures ,it)more )ealt) so t)at you7re guaranteed to )a'e a

/oard after s)e launc)es )er missiles. (imply

spend your cards as fast as you can and you ,ill

,in /y o'errunning )er.




38/96


aena

*ig)t against 8aexxna is a 'ery interesting

one. &)ere are many ,ays of /eating )er /ut t)e

easiest one is /y using minions ,it) /attlecries

c)arge and small token minions t)at ,ill play

around )er )ero a/ility.


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T%e Plague Fuarter

ot% t%e Plaguebringer

&)is /oss can /e tricky if you7re not careful.

our o/ecti'e in t)is c)allange s)ould /e

to keep your minions ali'e t)at7s ,)y priest

is t)e /est c)oice )ere. ou can )eal your

minions up and increase t)eir )ealt) to

a'oid $ot)7s passi'e )ero a/ility. 0oe

damage from deat)rattles and your )oly

no'a ,ill /e enaug) to deal ,it) )is 1E1

skeletons t)at spa,n e'entually. on7t panic

,)en )e destroys all your minions ust

make sure to dra, cards from your cleric

and you can catc) up 'ery easily.




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eigan t%e /nclean

&o defeat Heigan you can use t)e exact

same deck t)at you used for $ot) t)e

lague/ringer. ositioning your minions

correctly is 'ery important in t)is fig)t.

8ake sure to put creature ,it) t)e most

)ealt) on t)e left side of your /oard. f you

manage to /uff it ,it) o,er ord()ieldor i'ine (pirit you t)e game s)ould /e a

piece of cake from t)at point. ou can

continue to )eal t)e leftmost minion ,it)

your )ero po,er ,)en you can and ,in

t)roug) /oard control.




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+oat%eb

laying against Ioat)e/ can /e 'ery fun.

&)e finis) is al,ays 'ery explosi'e due to

t)e spores ,)ic) /uff your creatures. &ry to

flood t)e /oard as muc) as you can ,it)

small minions and your )ero a/ility. )en

you manage to keep se'eral minions on t)e

/oard you can use one of t)em or

somet)ing like consecration to gain t)e

attack /uff and finis) loat)e/ in 1 turn sodon7t ,orry a/out )is )ealt) untill you fill

your side of t)e /oard ,it) minions.




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T%e ilitar) Fuarter

Instructor $a@u#ious

&)is /oss is all a/out preparation. f you

kno, ,)at7s ,aiting and you come ,it)

correct deck you can ,in ,it)out any

pro/lems ot)er,ise nstructor can destroy

you in ust a couple of )its. 8ake sure to

get your ,ater elementals and oo9es early

t)ey7re t)e key to ,inning t)is /attle. ou

don7t need to acti'ate t)e crystal until after

you take 1 )it from )is ,eapon feel free to

de'elop your /oard /y playing t)e early

minions.


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(ot%i- t%e ar#ester

n order to defeat Got)ik you7ll need to

utili9e t)e token minions you get from

killing off )is creatures. laying a ,arlock

allo,s you to keep up ,it) )is )ero po,er

dra,ing cards. 8ake sure to sa'e /uffs like

()attered (un Cleric for t)e (pectralminions and once you /uff t)em use t)em

to trade ,it) enemy minions to a'oid taking

too muc) damage =/ut don7t ,orry a/out

t)at damage too muc) t)e fig)t ,ill /e o'er

/efore it matters>.




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T%e :our orsemen




45/96


&)e *our Horseman may seem scary /ut if

you manage to dra, ()ado, ord ain

and sa'e t)e 0cidic (,amp


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T%e &onstruct Fuarter

Patc%er-

atc),erk is a 'ery uni;ue /oss. He doesn7t

)a'e any cards except )is giant )ook. ust

like in t)e nstructor -a9u'ious encounter

you ,ill rely on mages a/ility to free9e

mirror images and 0cidic (,amp


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(robbulus

&)is )ideous fello, ,ill try to 0


48/96


(lut%

Glut) is one of t)e )arder opponents in

$axxramas. His ,eapon can /ecome a

pro/lem o'er time so try to clear t)e /oard

,)en it7s not e;uiped or ,)en you can play

t)e


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T%addius

&)is encounter can /e 'ery fun and

unpredicta/le. ou can take ad'antage of

t)e 0


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:rost)rm +air

a''%iron

&)e encounter ,it) (app)iron can last a

long time and e'en take you to fatigue /ut

it7s only due to (app)iron free9ing your

minions and t)e limitation of )is )ero

po,er t)at ,ill let only 2 of your minions to

sur'i'e eac) turn. &)e fig)t is actually 'ery

easy it ust takes a ,)ile to finis) t)e

mig)ty frost+,yrm.

&ry to keep 2 /iggest minions t)at are

a'aila/le to you on t)e /oard one on eac)

side of t)e *ro9en C)ampion. Keep )ealing

t)em and killing off (app)iron7s t)reats.


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?el=T%u@ad

efinitely t)e most c)allanging /oss in all

of $axxramas =)e ,ould like me sayingt)at>. &)e most important card against K& is

*lamestrike. ou can sur'i'e a lot of )is

*rost Blasts ust try to de'elop your /oard

and kill )is armor once you7ll )a'e at least

mana and a flamestrike or *rost $o'a

a'aila/le. He ,ill play a lot of minions at

t)e same time and you7ll )a'e to catc) up /y

using 0


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Part II

I#termed"ate




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&%a'ter 10.

Tem'o and #alue

Total )ominanceB* Cuest accepted*

Tem'o

&)e understanding of tempo is incredi/ly important in Heart)stone. n t)e most

/asic sense it refers to )o, muc) you can do ,it) t)e same amount of mana as your

enemy. laying faster or )a'ing /etter tempo means t)at you can put in play more

meaningful stats =)ealt) and attack> /y using efficient minions or deal more damage /y

using c)eap spells.

ecks /ased on tempo rely on playing lots of c)eap cards and dealing a lot of

damage 'ery ;uickly =for example 8iracle -ogue> or o'errunning t)e enemy ,it) a

/oard full of minions ,)ic) are a/le to trade efficiently =suc) as Loo arlock>.

&)e trade+off for playing faster decks is t)e fact t)at you ,ould /e spending cards

too fast to stay rele'ant for more t)an fe, turns. Because of t)at decks t)at rely on tempo

re;uire muc) more dra, po,er.

/iracle 3ogue is able to recover its hand si>e by using the adget>an "uctioneer, and

Doo Warlock supplements his natural draw with the hero ability - 9ife Tap.

;alue

Jalue refers to )o, muc) a card can accomplis) in terms of gaining card ad'antage

and in relation to its mana cost. *or a simple example let7s take a look a 2E4 Gnomis)

n'entor 's. 4E5 C)ill,ind eti. Bot) cards cost 4 mana t)at7s ,)y it7s easy to compare

t)em. Gnomis) n'entor is a good card it allo,s you to put a minion in play and dra, a

card )o,e'er you ,ould need t)ree Gnomis) n'entors to take out t)e C)ill,ind eti

and )e ,ould kill all t)ree of t)em in t)e process. n a 'acuum t)is situation ,ould gi'e 1card ad'antage to t)e player ,)o c)ose t)e eti and ,e can say t)at t)e eti )as

significantly )ig)er 'alue t)an Gnomis) n'entor.




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ou can also compare t)e com/ined 'alue of all t)e cards in your deck ,it) your

enemies deck. f you7re playing a ramp druid 's. an aggro deck consisting of small and

c)eap creatures you ,ill pro/a/ly need only 15 or 2% of your cards to kill off t)e entire 3%

card deck of your enemy =t)e difficult part is sur'i'ing long enoug) to dra, and play

t)em>.

ero 'oer

Hero a/ilities are anot)er ,ay to gain 'alue. By killing off a damaged creature ,it)

your )ero a/ility you can eliminate enemy card from play ,it)out spending any cards of

your o,n. (ame ,it) )ealing your inured minions. f you keep t)em )ealt)y t)ey7ll /e

a/le to trade for more t)an 1 enemy minion and put )im at a disad'antage. Hero a/ility

lets you gain 'alue for t)e cost of tempo.

3amp )ruid is a deck that uses mana gain mechanics in order to play many big minions,

turn after turn until the enemy has no answers to them and gets out!valued.

&%oosing beteen tem'o and #alue

Kno,ing tempo and 'alue is one t)ing /ut applying it in practice ,ill take some

experience. n general faster plays offer less 'alue and gaining 'alue re;uires playing

slo,er and spending more mana.

*or example ! if you7re playing a priest and )a'e 3 mana t)is turn you can c)ose to

)eal your damaged 2E3 -i'er Crocolisk so t)at )e sur'i'es attacking enemy 2E2 Ko/old

Geomancer and t)at ,ould /e playing for 'alue /ut you can also suicide t)e damaged

-i'er Crocolisk and play ark Cultist lea'ing you ,it) 3E4 on t)e /oard instead of 2E1.

&)at7s playing for tempo. ou sacrifice a card to put more stuff in play.

f you )a'e a significant card ad'antage o'er your enemy you can spend your cards

less efficiently. ou7re unlikely to lose /y )a'ing less cards t)an your enemy so make sure

you don7t fall /e)ind in tempo. nstead of sa'ing your minions /y using )ero po,er you

can play more minions to ad'ance your position on t)e /oard and sacrifice your ,eaker

minions. (pending cards faster t)an your enemy ,ill allo, you to capitali9e on your card

ad'antage.




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&%a'ter 11.

)nerg)

0"ny =lood Anights aroundB1

8any players including me are initially attracted to Heart)stone /ecause of all t)e

cool com/os and synergies. )en t)e stars align you can make some incredi/le plays.ou can e'en kill your enemy ,it) a single attack from an 0ngry C)icken. &)e dra,/ack

of any com/o deck is inconsistency. Currently t)e only com/o deck t)at ,orks 'ery ,ell

is 8iracle -ogue and t)at7s due to t)e incredi/ly po,erful dra, engine ! Gadget9an

0uctioneer ,)ic) allo,s t)e player to dra, so many cards t)at )a'ing t)e necessary

com/o pieces is almost guaranteed.

n t)e /eginnig try to rely on t)e expertise of seasoned players ,)en it comes to

/uilding decks /ased on synergy /et,een specific cards or complicated com/inations.

$e, players often o'erestimate )o, good t)ese decks are /ecause t)ey don7t )a'e any

kind of refference. &)ey don7t kno, )o, likely it is to dra, specific t,o t)ree or e'enmore cards. n order to kno, t)at you need to play enaug) games for t)e luck factor to

e'en out across t)em all t)at ,ay you7ll kno, ,)at to expect on a'erage.

ulti'le small s)nergies #s. Cne %uge combo

?nless you7re dra,ing your entire deck relying on com/inations of cards t)at

re;uire multiple pieces to ,ork is not t)e /est idea. ou ,ill /e muc) /etter off including

in your deck cards t)at synergi9e ,it) more t)an one ot)er element of your deck. *orexample ! a deck suc) as token druid uses multiple cards t)at allo, you to fill your /oard

,it) lots of ,eak minions in order to capitali9e on 0


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an) a)s to s)nergi@e

&)ere are many game mec)anics t)at alo, you to create po,erful decks ,)ic)

include strong synergy /et,een t)e cards. 0 card like ?ndertaker )as 'ery lo, 'alue on

its o,n t)at7s ,)y it7s not t)e /est pick in arena /ut once you add multiple minions ,it)deat)rattle to your deck )e suddenly /ecomes one of t)e /est cards in t)e game. &)is kind

of synergy is /ased around specific card mec)anics. &)ere are also minion type synergies

! suc) as /easts for )unters or demons for t)e ,arlock.

)en adding a ne, card to your deck take a look at t)e cards you alraedy )a'e in

it and ask yourself ,ill t)e card t)at you ,ant to add make any of your ot)er cards

stronger or ,eaker

f it makes more t)an 3+4 cards stronger it )as )a'e )ig)er 'alue and t)at7s considered as

)a'ing great synergy ,it) t)e deck.


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&%a'ter 12.

T%e correct order of actions

0When it comes to loot - )AE before age and beauty.1

ou already kno, from pre'ious c)apters )o, important it is to culti'ate good

)a/its and a'oid creating /ad ones. A'en if t)e situation doesn7t call for it you s)ould

exercise t)e correct ,ay of playing ust to practice and make it automatic. &)at 5D of t)e

time ,)en it actually matters ,ill make t)e difference in your ,in+rate.

Here is a list you can use to make sure you7re doing e'eryt)ing rig)t on your turn.

ou can de'elop your o,n mental c)ecklist /ut t)ese are t)e general guidelines you

s)ould /e using.

1. a-e a mental list of all )our o'tions %en )our enem) ta-es %is turn.

✔ Ho, muc) mana ,ill you )a'e next turn

✔ )ic) cards can you play

✔ Can you use your )ero po,er toget)er ,it) some of t)em

✔ 0re you likely to )a'e let)al damage and finis) t)e game

✔ 0re you a)ead or /e)ind in cards

2. %en it=s )our turn to act> sit bac- and don=t touc% t%e mouse. Aou %a#e 0

seconds to ma-e )our mo#e. In a game based around decision ma-ing> time is

)our friend.

✔ f you )o'er of t)e cards t)at you can play your enemy can guess ,)at7s in your

)and.

✔ magine t)e entire turn in your )ead /efore you start doing anyt)ing to make sure

you )a'e enoug) mana




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3. In most situations t%is is t%e order in %ic% )ou s%ould act during )our turn.

✔ ra, cards if you decided on doing it t)is turn ! t)ey may c)ange ,)at you

ultimately do t)is turn

✔ -oll t)e dice ! for example if you play s)aman getting a specific totem mig)t

affect ,)at you can do t)is turn or )itting certain targets ,it) 8ad Bom/er could

allo, you to trade more efficiently.

✔ lay minions ,it) triggered effects first ! uesting 0d'enturer or Knife uggler

,ill /enefit from playing t)em /efore ot)er minions.

✔ lay t)e rest of your cards or use )ero a/ility.

✔ 0ttack enemy minions or t)e )ero.

!. nd t%e turn after )ou ma-e sure t%ere is not%ing else )ou can or ant to do.

#f there is no possible plays, you'll hear the 0Fob done.1 sound bite and the Gnd Turn

button will turn green.

ractice al,ays playing in t)e correct order

?se t)e time during your opponents turn to plan your next possi/le mo'es

Go t)roug) e'ery card in your )and /efore you act

on7t )o'er o'er cards until you7re ready to take t)e action to conceal t)e

information from your enemy




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&%a'ter 13.

:oresig%t

0arrrr* =lood and plunder* # hope you thought about good insurance*1

&)is a/ility alone is t)e difference /et,een an a'erage player and t)e top of t)e

ladder. it)out it most games ,ould /e determined purely /y luck of t)e dra, and ,)ic)

deck counters ,)ic).

$! the ability to predict or the action of predicting what will happen or be needed in the

future.$

Predicting )our enem)

&)ere is a lot of factors t)at go into predicting future plays of your opponent. f you

kno, t)e decklist of your enemy you7ll /e a/le to count t)e cards and keep track of ,)at

)e already used.

n situations suc) as playing against a ne, deck or in arena you )a'e to go ,it)

tendencies and card popularity. laying around t)e cards t)at are almost ne'er played can

get you in more trou/le t)an not playing around t)em ,)ic) is t)e exact opposite ,)en it

comes to cards t)at are popular and expected to rest in your opponents )and.

&)e top players are a/le to o/ser'e t)e position in )and from ,)ic) enemy cards

come into play and /ased on t)at 'ery accurately guess ,)ic) cards does t)e enemy )old.




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Planning )our future turns

&)is one is fairly easy in comparison /ut e;ually important. ?sing coin to play

your 2 drop mig)t seem like a great idea at first /ut if your )and )as no ot)er 2 or 3 drops

you7re going to /e stuck doing not)ing ,)ile t)e enemy pumps out minions e'ery turn and

catc)es up to you.

lanning your turns /ased on cards t)at you can see in your )and is one t)ing /ut

planning your turns /ased on t)e pro/a/ility of dra,ing specific cards takes muc) more

t)oug)t and experience. &)at7s ,)y kno,ledge of your o,n deck is so important. t lets

you calculate t)e odds of dra,ing an early drop ,)en you need it and ,it) t)at

information you can make muc) /etter plays in t)e long run.

nding turn it% t%e best board state

t feels nice to make easy trades and /lo, minions up ,it) spells /ut often if you

consider t)e situation carefully you7ll find a muc) /etter play t)at ,ill set you up for

'ictory later on.

0 )allmark of an excellent player is /eing a/le to stop yourself from making an

o/'ious play in fa'our of doing somet)ing less o/'ious t)at ,ill /enefit you later on.

?nderstanding tempoE'alue and card ad'antage lets you e'aluate your position muc)

/etter and you7re a/le to make t)e correct play /ecause often it7s ,ort) to lose a card ust

to /e a/le to put more po,er in play.

?noing )our dec- and )our outs

mentioned t)is already /ut it is ,ort) a separate point. f you kno, your deck to a

card you7ll /e muc) /etter e;uipped to make )ard decisions. t is also important to keep

track of )o, many cards you7'e already played.

Ha'e you e'er /een in a situation ,)ere you ,onder ,)et)er you s)ould trade or

try to dra, remo'al /ut you7re unsure a/out your c)ances to dra, one or ,)et)er you

e'en )a'e any left in your deck Ho, a/out going all in and ,ondering if you can dra,

additional damage

&)is is t)e kind of kno,ledge t)at lets you make decisi'e plays and marginally ,in

games you ,ould )a'e lost ot)er,ise.




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Ta-ing smart ris-s

0ll of t)e a/o'e points come toget)er in t)is one. 8any of you )a'e seen t)e

famous


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&%a'ter 1!.

:inding t%e %idden 'la)

0Think first - but then. charge forward*1

ece'ti#e sim'licit)

. lan out t)e

/est se;uence of actions to get t)e most out of t)em. f you ,ant to attack and trade ,it)

(orcerer7s 0pprentice make sure to cast any spells you need first.

Turn one 4airne =loodhoof will seem like a great idea every time... until he gets sapped*




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T%e routine tra'

(ometimes it7s easy to miss t)ings t)at you7re not used to. f you &)oug)tsteal a

,eapon as a priest you may forget t)at you )a'e it e;uipped /ecause t)is is not somet)ing

you deal ,it) on regular /asis. ou can miss a deat)rattle t)at ,ill spa,n a minion and

acti'ate your Knife uggler or a ,ay to enrage your minion ,it) t)e (tormpikeCommando /attlecry.

it) 5%% playa/le cards it is impossi/le to kno, /efore)and e'ery interaction

/et,een t)em. &)e more you play t)e more you learn /ut kno,ing t)e general principles

of t)e game and /eing t)oug)tful ,ill gi'e you a /ig edge o'er your enemies regardless

of your experience.

/se e#er) tool

0l,ays look for alternati'e ,ays of dealing ,it) your in+game situation.

mpressi'e and effecti'e plays are not o/'ious and t)at7s ,)y t)ey7re impressi'e. &)ey7re

difficult to spot so make sure you go o'er e'ery card you )a'e in your )and e'en if it

seems o/'ious ,)at you7ll do next.

on7t /e satisfied ,)en you find a good play al,ays try to look for somet)ing e'en /etter

Keep in mind all t)e c)anges t)at ,ill )appen ,)en you take eac) action during

your turn

atc) out of unusual mec)anics you don7t normally interact ,it)

ay special attention to dynamic effects suc) as /uffs de/uffs and /attlecries




65/96


&%a'ter 15.

Tilt and decision ma-ing

0#'ve got the revenge in my sights*1

ecision making is e'eryt)ing in Heart)stone. f you can7t t)ink clearly your

opponent )as a /ig ad'antage. (ome players use t)is to t)eir /enefit /y trying to make t)eenemy impatient or frustrated t)roug) a/using emotes. *or t)at reason recommend t)at

you squelch t)e enemy player at t)e /eginning of eac) matc).

reetings :quelch is a very powerful and underrated combo in Hearthstone*

Tilt

Being on tilt means t)at you make poor plays ,)ic) you kno, are ,rong /ut t)eemotions interfere ,it) your a/ility to stay focused and t)ink clearly. $o/ody is immune

to tilt e'en t)e /est and t)e most calm of players ,ill sometimes /e affected /y it.

&)e most common cause of tilt is )a'ing specific expectations. f you play a card

,it) randomi9ed effect ,)en you7re "%D fa'ourite and lose t)e roll fe, times in a ro,

you mig)t get frustrated /ecause you expected t)e outcome to /e different. &)at7s ,)y

understanding pro/a/ility and statistics )elps a lot ,)en it comes to expecting specific

outcomes.

+osing strea-s

0not)er ,ay of /ecoming frustrated /ecause of your expectations is simply losing

many games in a ro,. f you7re focused on ,inning eac) particular game you may /ecome

angry ,)en you don7t reac) t)at goal o'er and o'er again. &)e simplest ,ay to deal ,it)

it is focusing on )o, you play instead of t)e end result.

ou s)ould /e satisfied as long as you played to t)e /est of your a/ility. on7t try to

control t)ings ,)ic) are outside of your reac) instead focus on t)ings t)at you caninfluence directly. 7ll explain more a/out t)at in t)e next c)apter.




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im'le remed)

A'eryone ,ill tell you t)is ! ,)en you7re on tilt ! take a /reak. eople often ask !

)at s)ould do ,)en 7m on a losing streak

*irst of all stop t)e streak instead of extending it. laying more and trying to c)ase t)eloses ne'er ,orks. f you can record your gameplay it can /e 'ery )elpful to ,atc) t)e

lest fe, games or /etter yet let someone else ,atc) it so t)at t)ey can look at it ,it) a

fres) eye.

:taying healthy through good nutrition and regular e2ercise W#99 make you play better*

&ry to notice t)e triggers for your frustration. Kno,ing yourself )elps ust as muc)

as kno,ing t)e game.

(taying in good p)ysical s)ape reduces your tendency to go on tilt

-ecord your games or let someone ,atc) you play ,)en you7re not sure ,)y you7re

losing

&aking a /reak al,ays )elps ,)en you7re on a losing streak




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&%a'ter 16.

:ocus and mindset

0# have the right mindset* "nd # have the left mindset*1

n order to succeed at anyt)ing you need t,o t)ings. Clear and

the complete guide for hearthstone

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