by JR Cook - 10 years ago     show comments

When I was approached to offer my perspective on the value of the new Naxxramas cards, I was definitely excited by the prospect. Until we see the full neutral card list released – which, at this point, is unlikely to happen prior to the actual Naxxramas release – it’s too early to properly evaluate the neutral cards, but we can definitely look at the class cards and make some judgements on both their inherent value, as well as the combinations that will maximize their effectiveness.

Without further ado, let’s jump right in and look at what the new cards have to offer!

9. Paladin – Avenge

It was a tough call to decide which card was the absolute weakest, but I’m going to go ahead and say that Avenge is liable to be the overall loser out of the Naxxramas class cards. One of the biggest factors going into this decision is the patch change from early March, which tweaked Secrets as a whole to only trigger on your opponent’s turn. The loss of that control removed a significant amount of the tactical decision making and planning that had previously made cards like Redemption playable.

Avenge could see some mileage in place of, or in addition to, Noble Sacrifice in the Aggro Paladin style decks. The combination of both Secrets behind a lone Minion on the board in the early game is almost the only time that the Paladin can control what Minion Avenge would be applied to, unfortunately, and that lack of choice as to what the Secret is applied to is its biggest drawback. The other notable weakness of this Secret is that it will only trigger if you have a Minion alive, so board clears nullify its potential. Early game plays might be powerful, but mid- or late-game it could accidentally set up a Big Game Hunter or put a safe minion into Shadow Word: Death range. It could even actively discourage a Paladin from using their own Hero Power, trying to maximize the value of  the Secret, which is unlikely to be a good play in the long run.

Powerful play: An early game Avenge/Noble Sacrifice combination in tandem with a Knife Juggler or Harvest Golem could do a lot of work, in the rare circumstances that the Paladin gets a great opening hand against a non-aggressive opponent.

8. Warlock – Voidcaller

Warlocks don’t need a lot of help in the current meta, with two very unique and equally powerful styles of deck available to them in Zoo and Handlock. Maybe that’s why their new class card is so mediocre. The card’s stats make it a weak play if it gets silenced, and even if it doesn’t, the Deathrattle only works if you have another Demon card in hand, which could force you to hold this Minion as a dead drop for a long time.

Many (most?) of the other Demon cards are also not good plays of themselves, so a number of them simply aren’t run to begin with. If a mid-range Warlock deck using more Demons did emerge, the Voidcaller would no doubt feature prominently, but the absolute golden rule in Hearthstone is – and has always been – that running cards that are useless unless combined with other cards is a bad idea.

Powerful play: If you can build the hand for it, suiciding a Voidcaller into an enemy Minion (or using it to attack your enemy’s Hero, then destroying it with Sacrificial Pact) to summon a Doomguard without the discard could potentially yield value.

7. Mage – Duplicate

Mages come in at a low rank with their new class card for similar reasons to the Paladin – Secrets just aren’t as valuable as they used to be (Ice Block gets a pass). This Secret is more powerful than the Paladin one, functioning like something of a modified Thoughtsteal by providing two cards for one. Above and beyond the general drawback of being a Secret, though, the mana cost is the true limitation of this card.

On the one hand, a three mana cost internally is fairly high, and a weak tempo play in the early game. On the other hand, Duplicate can only be played in tandem with a Minion of seven or less mana in the late game. Arguments can be made for the possibility of playing it on to an empty board and following up with a higher cost Minion (the only useful example is Ragnaros), or playing it on a turn after a beefy Minion survived, but that reaches into truly best case scenario territory. Basically, by the time an optimal Duplicate play would exist, the Mage is already ahead. Also, getting copies back of any Minion without a Battlecry, Charge, or another special effect (especially if they are above a five mana cost), while nice, is a slow play. Giants Mage might use Duplicate instead of Ice Barrier, but that’s risky.

Powerful play: Archmage Antonidas into Duplicate is the obvious choice, but heavily dependent on your opponent targeting Antonidas. If, at the time of that play, Antonidas is your only Minion on the board, you’re probably behind, and that’s a bad play if you’re staring down the barrel.

6. Rogue – Anub’ar Ambusher

There are definite pros and cons to the new Rogue card. A 5/5 Minion on four mana is very powerful – almost as good as the Pit Lord – and the drawback on the Deathrattle is not as bad as many of the neutral or Warlock Minions (Arcane Golem, Felguard, Pit Lord, King Mukla, even Doomguard).

Luckily, there are two ways to offset that drawback. On a blank board, the Deathrattle won’t have any effect; alternately, the Rogue can force their opponent to answer other Minions with valuable Battlecry effects before touching the Ambusher itself. A good Rogue could even use the Ambusher in a Miracle-esque deck, but that is a very specific combination that may not work out often.

Powerful play: Whether before, after, or at the same time, get an Anub’ar Ambusher on the board with your SI:7 Agent. Unlock the Maximum Value Ever achievement by clearing your opponent’s Sylvanas with an Anub’ar Ambusher (that was played first!) to protect a valuable Minion on your side!

5. Druid – Poison Seeds

We’re getting into the grey area where I expect to find disagreements over placement. Personally, I love Poison Seeds, but I recognize that it is something of a niche spell. It gives Druid a really great answer to Handlock, or even something of a solution to the Gadgetzan Auctioneer hidden with Conceal, but it’s primarily a defensive utility. There is a possibility to play into an upgraded Token style with Poison Seeds and Power of the Wild, but this is again one of those combinations that requires you to be at a snowballed advantage already.

Poison Seeds is also very clear about the fact that it destroys Minions, meaning every Deathrattle on the board will be triggered. That could be good for the Druid if they have Harvest Golems, Cairne, or even the new Nerubian Egg on the board, but it will have that same effect for your opponent.

Powerful play: There are plenty to choose from here! Poison Seeds into Starfall, Soul of the Forest into Poison Seeds, or even simply Poison Seeds followed with a Defender of Argus. Druids finally have a (somewhat limited) board “clear”, with the right follow-up.

4. Hunter – Webspinner

Contentious placement status: Achieved. A lot of people have come out arguing that the Webspinner is of limited utility, but I think the overwhelming Beast synergy already available to Hunters is only amplified by the addition of another low-cost Beast Minion. As a true early drop, the risk of the Webspinner being Silenced is very low, and even if it is, baiting out an Ironbeak Owl at the very beginning of the game to protect a Highmane or other mid- to late-game drop is a straight victory.

Hunters in general are in a bit of a tricky place right now in the meta. The class itself has a ton of great answers to the major threats it might see, but slight variations are required for the different match-ups. Hunters make a great tournament class and a middling ranked ladder class because of this. Webspinner might inject some new life into both the Aggro and Midrange Hunter styles, though.

Powerful play: As tempting as it might be to drop Webspinners early – and that’s not a bad choice – the real winner will be playing Webspinner(s) after a Tundra Rhino. You’re most likely to draw a Beast with low attack value (1-2), but there are only really three (out of 26!) Beast cards you don’t want to see, and a roughly 25% chance to see a 4+ attack Minion. The dream draw is a Savannah Highmane, but lots of even the low damage Beasts have useful perks, and the synergies with Starving Buzzards or Scavenging Hyenas are incredible.

3. Shaman – Reincarnate

(Note: The card name has been changed, but Blizzard has not released updated artwork for it yet.)

Judging by recent decklists, Shaman have some crazy options opening up for them. The new Crusher Shaman is a great example of what some iteration and innovation can still bring to the table in Hearthstone, and that’s before we see Naxxramas or any other future new cards.

Reincarnate is clearly designed with defensive combinations on to Minions with Deathrattle in mind, but has applications beyond that. Using it on a Sylvanas or Cairne is still the optimal play, but an Ancestral Spirit into Reincarnate combination is an easy way to double up on a powerful Minion. It can also pair well with Charge Minions and either or both of Rockbiter or Windfury for a Shadowstep-esque effect.

Powerful play: Sylvanas, Ancestral Spirit, Reincarnate. Let me know what your opponent’s tears taste like.

2. Warrior – Death’s Bite

Does this make my Warrior bias evident? 😉

Warrior decks of all shapes and sizes will benefit from the incredible synergy that Death’s Bite has to offer. The Deathrattle effect is going to combine beautifully with the Control deck style, providing value on Armorsmiths, Acolytes of Pain, and Frothing Berkserkers. It can also take the place of an Arcanite Reaper in an aggressive Warrior deck, for the extra point of damage on Minions or to activate Amani Berserkers. Even setting up Executes without needing to sacrifice a Minion or use up a precious Whirlwind is a great feature of this weapon.

Even if the weapon is destroyed, the Deathrattle still triggers, which is going to make it a scary proposition in tandem with the rest of the Warrior toolkit to shut down aggro decks.

Powerful play: Set your board up with a Control opening with an Armorsmith and one or both of an Acolyte of Pain or Frothing Berserker. Clear your opponent’s Minion(s) with your Death’s Bite, and that second attack will light a synergy grin up on your face.

1. Priest – Dark Cultist

This should come as no surprise. Even on vanilla stats, the Dark Cultist is a major shift – the first ever 3/4 Minion on 3 mana. If, by luck or circumstance, it also has the opportunity to provide a health buff (which synergizes beautifully with the Priest toolkit), its value is even greater.

Priests definitely have room for a good upgrade on their three drops, but regardless, a Minion with this amount of value will feature in every Priest deck from the moment it is released. It can make a good 1- or 2-drop into a very useful mid-game Minion, set up room for Northshire Clerics to get draw off of Minions that can’t be cleared without hard removal in the earlier stages of the game, or even just beef up a late-game drop with some extra health. The room that all of the Priest’s health buffs set up for some very impressive Inner Fire plays is growing even scarier with this addition, too.

Powerful play: Put the Dark Cultist on the board.

What are your thoughts on which cards are going to make big appearances or major waves when Naxxramas releases? Let us know in the comments. Also, stay tuned for a comprehensive look at the complete range of Neutral cards from Naxxramas when it comes out!