Hearthstone Dev Tracker

Patch 31.2.2 is releasing today with the following updates:

Hearthstone Updates 

Dev Comment: This is our last round of changes before the holiday break, so we’re aiming to keep this patch smaller and lower risk. The mini-set is also coming in the not too distant future, and we expect it to do a good job of shaking things up in its own right. Our goal with this patch was to hit the biggest outliers (per usual, considering both play experience and balance).

The following cards are being adjusted to be weaker:

Sonya Waterdancer

• Old: After you play a 1-Cost card, get a copy of it that costs (0).
• New: After you play a 1-Cost minion, get a copy of it that costs (0).
• Dev Comment: We’ve seen this happen many times before—a rogue card or deck that isn’t overly powerful outside of very high level play, but which is a problem for top legend. Sonya has been a focal point in rogue for a...

Patch 31.2, launching tomorrow, kicks off Battlegrounds Season 9, sends an invitation to Bob’s Holiday Bash, and more!

Enter the Technotavern in Battlegrounds Season 9

On December 3, Battlegrounds Season 8 will end and Season 9 will begin. That means ratings will reset in Battlegrounds and Duos, Trinkets will be removed, and the Battlegrounds Rewards Track will switch over. All rewards that were earned on the Season 8 track, but not yet claimed, will be automatically claimed. Learn more about the upcoming Season in our ...

Patch 31.0.3 is rolling out today with the following updates:

Hearthstone Card Changes

Dev Comments: The goal of this patch is to focus on The Great Dark Beyond. The power level of new decks and archetypes is lower than we intended it to be, and older archetypes are more dominant than we’d like. To make new decks and cards stand out more, we’re weakening a number of cards (mostly from older sets) and strengthening others (all from The Great Dark Beyond).

Our long-term ambition is for the overall power level of the game to be closer to The Great Dark Beyond than the power level of the sets before it, but we think some buffs are warranted and needed to hit our immediate goal encouraging exploration in The Great Dark Beyond. Between balancing our immediate and long-term goals, plus the sheer number of changes in this patch, we expect there will be some level of follow-up adjustments that we plan to work on in the next balance patch wind...

Patch 31.0 launches tomorrow and starts the final countdown until we set off into The Great Dark Beyond on November 5!

Explore the Cosmos!

The Great Dark Beyond, Hearthstone’s next expansion, blasts off on November 5. The new 145-card expansion includes the new Starship keyword, new Draenei minion type, returning Spellburst keyword, and more! See all the new cards in the official Card Library today. Don’t forget to grab your Pre-Purchase...

Patch 30.6.2 is rolling out today with the following updates: 

Hearthstone Changes

Dev Comment: This round of changes is focusing on preparing for our next expansion: The Great Dark Beyond, launching on November 5 (when Prince Renathal rotates back out of Standard). As we plan for the post-launch meta, our focus is primarily on adjusting harsh play patterns like fast board floods, powerful board wipes, huge life swings, and cards that get end-game cards out too quickly.

Some of these are reversions to prior changes—our balance philosophy remains that we’ll try to make the best changes for the game in each specific patch window and not be afraid to revert changes when they don’t work out or the circumstances are no longer right for them.

Finally, in Wild, we’re changing Radiant Elemental to be consistent with Sorcerer’s Apprentice. This effect is generally very powerful, even by Wild’s standards, and this change is be...

Patch 30.6, launching today, starts the countdown to Hearthstone’s next expansion, The Great Dark Beyond, brings Prince Renathal back to Standard for a limited time, includes free Legendary cards, brings a new infusion of Trinkets to Battlegrounds, and more!

Pre-Purchase The Great Dark Beyond

Prepare to blast off into The Great Dark Beyond on November 5! The Draenei’s planet was taken over by the Burning Legion. Now these “exiled ones” are on the run, and in search of a new home. Join them in their journey and explore everything the cosmos has to offer: build-your-own Starships, the new Draenei minion type, the returning Spellburst keyword, an unstoppable demon army, and more. It’s nearly time to venture into The Great Dark Beyond!

The Great Dark Beyond has 145 all-n...

Patch 30.4.3, launching today, brings updates to Hearthstone and Battlegrounds.

Hearthstone Updates

Dev Comments: This patch is focused on adjustments to the mini-set. We have another patch window in a few weeks, between expansion announcement and launch, where we plan to look at the meta more broadly.

The mini-set introduced a major outlier: Big Spell Mage. Although some players enjoy the play pattern, the deck causes frustration due to how prevalent it is and how early it can get its power spike. The goal of these changes is to push back the average Big Spell turn a bit and to shave a little power from the deck, while allowing it to keep its core functionality.

With one mini-set Tourist getting toned down, we wanted to give the other one some help so that players can try another fun vacation destination and make the most of what it has to offer.

Portalmancer Skyla

• Old: [5 Mana]
• ...

Patch 30.4, launching tomorrow, includes a special vacation package: The Traveling Travel Agency Mini-Set, our first-ever Mythic hero skin, and more!

Extend Your Vacation with the Traveling Travel Agency Mini-Set

The Marin’s launch has kicked off a Tourism boom in Hearthstone. Dungar and Zephrys are teaming up to make vacation dreams come true—and they run a tight ship. Get the most out of your trip with more Tourist options, informational Brochure cards, and more!

The Traveling Travel Agency Mini-Set has 38 all-new cards. Get them in Perils in Paradise packs or as a complete 72-card* Mini-Set. Get the normal version for $14.99 or 2000 Gold, or get the all-Golden version for $69.99 or 10,000 Gold. The all-Golden version comes with a bonus Diamond copy of the Travelmaster Dunga...

Patch 30.2.2, launching today, includes balance changes across modes.

Hearthstone Updates

The following cards have been adjusted to be weaker:

Dev Comment: The Standard metagame has a variety of decks that are feeling balanced against one another. Because of that, we’re only changing a couple cards that are leading to unhealthy play patterns that we want to address. Tidepool Pupil is quite strong, and is allowing decks to copy key cards too easily and play them too many times per game. We hope this change doesn’t delete the card from the metagame entirely, but does make it less effective as an enabler for combos and spells that are particularly effective when repeated many times per game. Doomkin isn’t as much a statistical outlier, but is causing more frustration. The card seems to have overstayed its welcome, so we are slowing it down by a turn to decrease its popularity.

Tidepool Pupil

• Old: [1 Mana] 2/1
• ...

Patch 30.2, launching on August 20, brings Battlegrounds Season 8: Trinkets & Travels!

• Battlegrounds Season 8, Featuring Trinkets!
• Lesser Trinkets
• Greater Trinkets
• ...

Patch 30.0.3, launching today, includes balance changes to Standard, Battlegrounds, and more!

Hearthstone Updates

Dev Comment: Since the launch of Perils in Paradise, we’ve been happy to see a lot of evolving strategies—but we think there’s still room for more new and interesting cards to get a chance to shine. Our main goal with this patch is to add more competitive options from Perils in Paradise. We’re doing that by curbing a few cards that are showing up too often and by buffing some new cards that have some room to improve. We’ll see how the meta reacts to these changes and make further adjustments, if needed, in about three weeks.

The following cards have been adjusted to be weaker:

Hydration Station

• Old: Resurrect your 3 highest Cost Taunt minions.
• New: Resurrect 3 of your different highest Cost Taunt minions.

...

Patch 30.0 launches tomorrow and sets sail for Perils in Paradise, coming to Hearthstone on July 23!

Welcome to Paradise!

Perils in Paradise, Hearthstone’s next expansion, touches down on July 23. The new 145-card expansion includes the new Tourist keyword, tasty Drinks, re-opening Locations, and more! See all the new cards in the official Card Library today. This is your last chance to book your Pre-Purchase bundle, only available until the expansion goes live next week, so don’t miss out!

Patch 29.6.2, launching today, brings balance changes and more!

Hearthstone Updates

Dev Comment: This is a smaller patch, designed to prepare for the launch of Perils in Paradise by weakening a few cards that are warping the meta in a way that could stifle new expansion development. As a note, we want to let that early post-expansion meta develop a bit before we step in, so our next major balance pass is scheduled for slightly later than the last few (about two weeks after expansion launch instead of about 10 days).

Reno, Lone Ranger

• Old: [9 Mana]
• New: [10 Mana]

Zilliax Deluxe 3000 (Virus Module)

• Old: [3 Mana]
• New: [4 Mana]

...

Patch 29.6, launching today, starts planning for Hearthstone’s next expansion, Perils in Paradise, returns Baku and Genn to the free Core Set for a limited time, brings Buddies back to Battlegrounds (including Battlegrounds Duos), sets the stage for the next Twist season, and more!

Pre-Purchase Perils in Paradise

Prepare for an island vacation to Hearthstone’s next expansion, Perils in Paradise, arriving on July 23! The old fox Marin has put his questing days behind him and is taking on a new adventure: resort management. Tucked away in the Spiral Isles, his new resort has everything you need for an unforgettable adventure—class-hopping Tourists, tasty Drinks, Locations you’ll want to visit over and over again, and a dash of danger. Book your tickets now, it’s almost time for Perils in Paradise!

...

Patch 29.4.2, launching today, brings the following balance changes, Weekly Quest updates, and more!

Weekly Quest Updates

Before the Weekly Quests changed in Patch 29.2, we didn’t adequately communicate the changes that were coming, or our reasoning for them. That’s something we’ll keep improving on.

Over the last few weeks, we’ve been listening to your experiences and looking at our data, and it’s clear that the new Weekly Quests didn’t do their job of rewarding you for your time playing the game. Going forward, we want to strike a much better balance between your time spent in Hearthstone and the rewards given by Weekly Quests.

So we’re making some more updates in this patch, reducing the requirements on the Weekly Quests that seem to be blocking player progression for many of you, while leaving the increased XP where it is. We hope these new changes will still reward you more while keeping Weekly Quests an attaina...