This article is part of our Hearthstone series.
We know all of the cards that will be released in the new expansion. We know the expansion went live today. Now all that is left to know is what cards do we need to craft! There are a TON of super strong cards in this expansion as the power level across the board is just crazy, but we narrowed it down to the 10 best cards of the expansion for you.
10. Arcane Tyrant
A free 4/4?! We have seen cards similar to this before (Happy Ghoul and Nerubian Prophet) and they have fallen short. However this one will not fall short because of just how easy it is to pull off. This could fit perfectly into Druid decks right now, being instantly playable after Ultimate Infestation, Spreading Plague or Nourish. Expect this to be a popular final card of a deck with big and vital spells.
9. Healing Rain
A Volcano of healing?? As a class who makes its living off of generating wide boards, an area of effect healing card is exactly what they needed. This card allows Shamans to gain extreme benefits from value trading, as well as choosing what minions to kill off to help target specific minions. Even if they don't have a lot of damaged minions, a 3-mana heal for 12 is the best heal in the game right now.
8. Fal'dorie Strider
This is a much, much-improved version of Beneath The Grounds. What fell short about that spell was the tempo lost by not having any immediate impact on board. Now, Rogues can manufacture the three unexpected 4/4 bodies from their own deck without sacrificing an entire turn. Also, Rogues lacked a reliable 4-mana minion as Sherazin and Saronite Chain Gang just are not effective enough, making Fal'dorie even more valuable.
7. Evasion
Ice Block for Rogues… That is terrifying. First off, this simplified version of Ice Block is how the mechanic should actually work, but that is for a different rant. Rogues are a class that uses its life as a resource very often as well as a class than can set up deadly combos, both of which benefit greatly from a card that can delay lethal for another turn. This could also set up extremely worrisome interactions with the Rogue Death Knight (if anybody remembers that card).
6. Explosive Runes
This is exactly the secret that Tempo/Secret Mage needed to become a viable deck. These decks usually play Mirror Entity in the slot, which is lackluster as you just end up copying a 1/2 most of the time. Explosive Runes is the perfect tool for both preventing opponent development and pushing damage to the face. Your opponent will also have a very difficult time playing around it as he will not know whether to play a bad minion (with low health) to play around Mirror Entity or play a big minion to prevent taking face damage.
5. Psychic Scream
This becomes the best board clear in the game and provides much-needed protection to arguably the strongest deck in Hearthstone, Highlander Priest. What makes this card so strong is that since the cards are shuffled into the deck, you don't even have to worry about the consequences of any Deathrattle effects as none of the effects will be triggered. While you could argue it only delays the problem, Highlander only needs time in order to win and this card creates plenty of time to get the job done.
4. Twilight Acolyte
Call it an Aldor Peacekeeper, call it an attack version of Vol'jin, just don't call it a bad card. This is insanely powerful from a control perspective as it can both eliminate a threat while becoming a threat on its own. "Oh cute Bittertide Hydra," boom here's a 3-mana 8/4 that just eliminated the biggest threat in their deck.
3. Dragonslayer
The Dragon-Golakka Crawler! Although this is a very bland and frustrating counter to a strong tribe, it is also extremely effective. This is arguably better than Golakka as it can hit much larger targets, and we already see Golakka running the meta. As Dragons grow in popularity, so will this card, and so will the number of people screaming at their monitors.
2. Kobold Librarian
Oh my god this card is just incredible. The first ever true 1-mana draw a card, and it goes to the class that has Zoo as a tier-1 deck. The way that you know this card is absolutely insane is that you could make a case to put this card in any deck of any class in Hearthstone. It is on Patches level in terms of strength as you can just have a 2/1 on turn 1 without ever even having to sacrifice a card.
1. Duskbreaker
Oh, my, god. Remember how Control Priests would use Excavated Evil as a vital tool to eliminate early boards? Now, what if I told you that it was back, cost one less mana and you get a 3/3 minion on board? Ridiculous right? This is the 'Ultimate Infestation' of this set so far, as it's the card that feels so overpowered that it's frustrating to think about. This card helps to bring Dragon Priest back to a top-tier deck as it helps deal with the early pressure of aggro decks. This card allows the deck to stick to its control style, stealing cards with Drakonid Operative and creating more Dragons with Netherspite Historian.
