Blizzard just posted patch notes for the 32.4.2 update launching today. It’s a relatively big update with changes for Standard and Battlegrounds formats. The patch notes came out of nowhere, because we didn’t get the usual teaser 1-2 days ahead. Anyway, let’s get to the update.
In Standard, we’re getting a mid-sized update focused on buffs for Day of Rebirth mini-set cards. According to the devs, the meta is relatively balanced, but the mini-set didn’t land as well as they hoped. They acknowledged that many players are asking for nerfs to the Neutral package including Fyrakk the Blazing and promise to keep a close eye on those cards. They also understand the suggestions to buff more Quests, but they think that too many competitive Quests wouldn’t be fun or healthy. They believe that the next expansion is a better place to implement the feedback rather than extensive balance patches.
You can find a full comment in the blog post below. I’ll just say that I don’t remember the last time I disagreed with devs on such fundamental level when it comes to game balance. Their comment sounds like they’re giving up on this expansion without even trying to fix it. I’m frankly not sure what’s going on, many of the prior expansions didn’t land where they wanted at launch but they got fixed through patches. Why is this one any different? Anyway, here’s a list of card changes in Standard:
Tortotem is now a 1 mana 0/3 (previously 2 mana 0/4).
33.4.2 is also a rather hefty balance update for Battlegrounds. In that mode, we’re getting a few dozen changes across the board – Minon buffs and nerfs, Spell and Quest changes, Minion and Spell pool changes, Hero Armor adjustments. The update mostly focuses on refining the meta before a big mid-season patch coming in a few weeks. Quilboar and Elementals have been scaled down to perform more in line with the rest of the meta, while Undead, Beasts, Mechs and Murlocs have all received a boost.
You can check out the full patch notes here:
Patch 33.4.2 launches today with updates for Hearthstone and Battlegrounds, as well as a few bug fixes.
Hearthstone Updates
Dev Comment: We’d like to share an update on the current state of Hearthstone and what to expect from this patch.
The data shows a relatively balanced meta, with no dominant power outliers or play patterns demanding nerfs. At the same time, the Day of Rebirth Mini-Set didn’t land as we hoped. This patch focuses on targeted buffs to help a few of those cards better realize their potential. Some of these changes support Quest decks, while also opening up new options across other archetypes (more details below).
We understand that many of you were hoping for bigger changes. We’ve seen a lot of feedback about the strong neutral package of Fyrakk, Elise, Naralex, and Ysera, and we’ll be keeping a close eye on them moving forward. We’ve also continued to hear suggestions to buff nearly every new Quest so they become competitive archetypes. However, as we’ve shared before, too many competitive Quests in the long term can lead to a metagame that isn’t fun or healthy.
More broadly, we believe future expansions are a better place to bring community feedback to life than trying to overhaul the current set through balance patches. We fell short of our goal of introducing enough new competitive options this expansion. As we look ahead to the next expansion and beyond, we’re keeping your response to this set in mind and are using it to help shape the future of Hearthstone.
Card Changes
Khelos (From Egg of Khelos)
New: Khelos now has Taunt.
Dev Comment: We’ve seen a lot of experimentation with Khelos, often in combination with Dissolving Ooze. We want to preserve that synergy while also giving Khelos a stronger standalone presence by adding Taunt.
Mirrex, the Crystalline
Old: While in your hand, this is a 3/3 copy of the last minion your opponent played.
New: While in your hand, this is a 3/4 copy of the last minion your opponent played.
Posessed Animancer
Old: [6 mana]
New: [5 mana]
Dev Comment: We’ve seen players tapping into the potential of Possessed Animancer, and we’re making it more efficient to use. Alongside that, we’re also improving one of its favorite partners, Asphyxiodon. We wouldn’t be giga sore if you tried using it with another Beast, either.
Asphyxiodon
Old: 6/10
New: 6/12
Ritual of Life
Old: Discover a 3-Cost minion. Summon a 2/2 copy of it.
New: Discover a 3-Cost minion. Summon a 2/3 copy of it.
Ankylodon
Old: [8 mana] 7/7
New: [6 mana] 7/5
Dev Comment: Upgrading Ankylodon gives Hunter a powerful Discover option through effects like Detailed Notes, while also making it a solid Beast for Quest Hunter and other Hunter decks.
Longneck Egg
Old: Deathrattle: Summon a 1/2 Beast. Give your minions +1/+1.
New: Deathrattle: Summon a 3/3 Beast. Give your minions +1/+1.
Costume Merchant
Old: 1/3
New: 2/4
Tortotem
Old: [2 mana] 0/4
New: [1 mana] 0/3
Dev Comment: We’ve found that players already complete the Shaman Quest fairly quickly, but we still wanted to give Tortotem a small boost. Lowering its cost helps it contribute to Quest completion while also enabling earlier minion generation to fuel the payoff once the Quest is complete.
Battlegrounds Updates
Dev Comment: We’re heading into the midseason update with one last round of balance changes, and we’re feeling good about how things are shaping up. Since its introduction at the start of Season 11, Rally has performed well and earned its place as an evergreen keyword. That said, future updates will likely dial back its overall prevalence in the game. We’ve also received great feedback on Quests as a system and are actively discussing potential adjustments if and when they return.
This update focuses on refining the meta to keep gameplay engaging and fun. Quilboar and Elementals have been scaled back to better align with the rest of the field, while Undead, Beasts, Dragons, Mechs, and Murlocs have received a boost to help them stand out more competitively.
We also fine-tuned Quest difficulty to make the experience more consistent and reduce the impact of “high roll” and “low roll” outcomes. To support that goal, Unlikely Duo now triggers on “buy” instead of “play,” and Cry for Help has been removed from the Quest pool. These changes, along with other targeted adjustments to individual Quests and Rewards, are intended to reduce variance and discourage holding cards going into Turn 4. Holding cards could give some players too much acceleration on the Quest turn, so this update should help ensure Quest difficulty feels consistently fair across the lobby.
We’ll continue monitoring the meta and making updates as needed. There are exciting things on the horizon for the midseason update, and we’re looking forward to sharing more soon. See you in the Tavern!
Minion and Spell Pool Changes
The following cards have been removed from the minion pool:
Stray Satyr
Carbonic Copy
Scourge Harvester
Canopy Swinger
Sharp-Eyed Sabretooth
Merciless Mammoth
The following cards have been returned to the minion pool (all with adjustments, see below):
Saltscale Honcho
Gentle Djinni
Young Murk-Eye
Minion Changes
Razorfen Vineweaver
Old: [Tier 4] 4/4. Rally: Play 3 permanent Blood Gems on this.
New: [Tier 5] 5/5. Rally: Play 3 permanent Blood Gems on this.
Roadboar
Old: 3/2. Rally: Get 3 Blood Gems.
New: 3/4. Rally: Get 2 Blood Gems.
Champion of Sargeras
Old: 12/12. Battlecry and Deathrattle: Minions in the Tavern have +5/+5 this game.
New: 10/10. Battlecry and Deathrattle: Minions in the Tavern have +4/+4 this game.
Raptor Elder
Old: 2/8. Your Beasts have +2/+2. (Improved by each Beast you’ve summoned this combat!)
New: 2/7. Stealth. Your Beasts have +3/+2. (Improved by each Beast you’ve summoned this combat!)
Stomping Stegodon
Old: 4/4. Rally: Give your other Beasts +2 Attack and this Rally.
New: 3/3. Rally: Give your other Beasts +3 Attack and this Rally.
Mama Bear
Old: 5/5. Whenever you summon a Beast, give it +5/+5.
New: 6/6. Whenever you summon a Beast, give it +6/+6.
Goldrinn, the Great Wolf
Old: 5/5. Deathrattle: For the rest of this combat, your Beasts have +5/+5.
New: 6/6. Deathrattle: For the rest of this combat, your Beasts have +6/+6.
River Skipper
Old: 2/1. When you sell this, get a random Tier 1 minion.
New: 1/1. When you sell this, get a random Tier 1 minion.
Saltscale Honcho
Old: [Tier 1] 3/3. After you play a Murloc, give a friendly Murloc other than it +1 Health.
New: [Tier 2] 5/2. After you play a Murloc, give a friendly Murloc other than it +2 Health.
Mrglin’ Burglar
Old: 6/6. After you play a Murloc, give a friendly minion and a minion in your hand +3/+3.
New: 8/6. After you play a Murloc, give a friendly minion and a minion in your hand +4/+3.
Young Murk-Eye
Old: 9/6. At the end of your turn, trigger the Battlecry of an adjacent minion.
New: 10/5. At the end of your turn, trigger the Battlecries of adjacent Murlocs.
Grease Bot
Old: 2/5. Divine Shield. After a friendly minion loses Divine Shield, give it +2/+1 permanently.
New: 2/4. Divine Shield. After a friendly minion loses Divine Shield, give it +2/+2 permanently.
Utility Drone
Old: 4/5. At the end of your turn, give your minions +1/+1 for each Magnetization they have.
New: 3/5. At the end of your turn, give your minions +2/+1 for each Magnetization they have.
Charging Czarina
Old: 6/3. Divine Shield. Whenever you cast a Tavern spell, give your minions with Divine Shield +2 Attack.
New: 5/3. Divine Shield. Whenever you cast a Tavern spell, give your minions with Divine Shield +3 Attack.
Mechagnome Interpreter
Old: 2/4. Whenever a friendly Magnetic minion is played or Magnetized, give it +2/+2.
New: 2/3. Whenever you play or Magnetize a Mech, give it +2/+1.
Prized Promo-Drake
Old: 2/2. Start of Combat: Give your Dragons +3/+3.
New: 1/1. Start of Combat: Give your Dragons +4/+4.
Roaring Recruiter
Old: 2/6.
New: 2/8.
Tarecgosa
Old: [Tier 3] 4/4.
New: [Tier 2] 3/3.
Twilight Watcher
Old: 3/8. Whenever a friendly Dragon attacks, give your Dragons +1/+2.
New: 3/7. Whenever a friendly Dragon attacks, give your Dragons +1/+3.
Noisul of the Many Faces
Old: [Tier 6] 3/9.
New: [Tier 5] 2/8.
Oranomonos, the Wilted
Old: [Tier 5] 3/8. After a friendly minion is Reborn, your Undead have +1 Attack this game (wherever they are).
New: [Tier 6] 4/9. After a friendly minion is Reborn, your Undead have +2 Attack this game (wherever they are).
Campfire Shadow
Old: [Tier 5] 6/4.
New: [Tier 4] 4/2.
Gentle Djinni
Old: [Tier 6] Taunt Battlecry and Deathrattle: Get a random Elemental.
New: [Tier 5] Taunt Deathrattle: Get a random Elemental.
Spell Changes
Sanctify
Old: Give your minions with Divine Shield +5 Attack.
New: Give your minions with Divine Shield +7 Attack.
Azerite Empowerment
Old: Give your minions +4/+4.
New: Give your minions +3/+3 twice.
Quest Changes
The following Quests are now easier to complete:
Reenact The Murder
Round Up the Suspects
Crack the Case
The following Quest is now harder to complete:
Dust For Prints
Quest Card Changes
Unlikely Duo
Old: Quest: Play 5 (minion type) or (minion type).
New: Quest: Buy 4 (minion type) or (minion type).
Quest Reward Changes
The following Quest Rewards are now easier to obtain:
Smelting Chamber
Bloodsoaked Tome
Beyond the Mirage
Magicfin Relic
Yogg-tastic Tasties
Timeline Acceleration
Quest Reward Card Changes
Untold Riches
Old: Get a 7-Gold Coin Pouch. Increase your maximum Gold by 7.
New: Get a 5-Gold Coin Pouch. Increase your maximum Gold by 5.
Perpetual Incantation
Old: Your Tavern spells give an extra +1/+1. (+1/+1 can be earned endlessly!)
New: Your Tavern spells give an extra +2/+1. (+2/+1 can be earned endlessly!)
Hero Updates
Armor Changes
The following Heroes have had their armor values increased.
Galewing has 10 Armor and 8 Armor in Duos
Vol’jin has 17 Armor, 14 Armor in Duos, and 15 Armor in low ranks
Maiev Shadowsong has 15 Armor, 13 Armor in Duos, and 18 Armor in low ranks
Kurtrus Ashfallen has 15 Armor and 12 Armor in Duos
Sir Finley Mrrgglton has 14 Armor and 12 Armor in Duos
Galakrond has 17 Armor and 15 Armor in Duos
Guff Runetotem has 12 Armor and 10 Armor in Duos
Tess Greymane has 18 Armor and 16 Armor in Duos
Shudderwock has 12 Armor and 10 Armor in Duos
Dinotamer Brann has 18 Armor and 16 Armor in Duos
Skycap’n Kragg has 17 Armor and 15 Armor in Duos
Y’Shaarj has 17 Armor and 15 Armor in Duos
Rakanishu has 18 Armor and 16 Armor in Duos
Kerrigan, Queen of Blades has 14 Armor and 12 Armor in Duos
Bug Fixes
[Arena] Fixed a bug where Anachronos, Frostmourne, and Barak Kodobane didn’t have Legendary buckets. They have been returned to the card pool.
[Hearthstone] Fixed a bug where the pop-up Reward Scroll said “Sharp-Eyed Lookout” when receiving Staff of the Endbringer.
A Hearthstone player and writer from Poland, Stonekeep has been in a love-hate relationship with Hearthstone since Closed Beta. Over that time, he has achieved many high Legend climbs and infinite Arena runs. He's the current admin of Hearthstone Top Decks.
Im in the same boat. I read it thinking the egg itself had taunt.
For a few minutes there, I was like “wow, that was a really well thought out buff”, something I havent said about Team 5 in quite sometime… but nope, its a shitty useless buff…
I’m pretty sure they want to tone down the overall power level, hence no more buffs for the quests.
It isn’t good to do that in the middle of the year, instead of at the end, while waiting for the rotation to bring the power level further down, especially because this feels like giving up on the current expansion.
The feeling I get from dev commentary like this is that they’re absolutely terrified of seeing a repeat of United in Stormwind or The Caverns Below. I understand the sentiment given how the Questline-driven Standard meta seems to still rank as one of the games’ most miserable experiences, but this doesn’t seem to be congruent with the comment that there are “too many competitive Quests”. Right now there’s maybe two or three competitive quests – in my opinion, those would be Warlock and Paladin, maybe Warrior – of which, maybe Warlock needed the help to have something viable since the Emerald Dream meta. Paladin had a good run with Imbue Dragon Paladin and a brief heyday of Murloc experimentation; Dummy Warrior appears to have needed Endbringer Umbra and Elise the Navigator more than anything else.
But that’s still not “too many” competitive Quests, especially given how the rest of the Un’Goro just haven’t hit any stride even after the buffs. If anything, it’s a meta of only a few quests dominating the meta that leads to Caverns Below/Demon Seed flashbacks. Having enjoyed the latest iteration of Quest Warlock – I’ve had matches where I finish the requirements by Turn 4 – I genuinely feel like if any card needed a balancing, Escape the Underfel could easily have deserved a balance unbuff back to “Play 6 Temporary cards”. So I’m not sure why the team feels the need to make Animancer Warlock a thing. Even if Possessed Animancer became viable (I do run Kil’jaeden in my Quest Warlock for longevity + “win more” value with temporary Rotheart Dryad), that’s another option for a class that doesn’t need the help in the present meta.
Objectively the meta does feel somewhat balanced, but mostly because it’s been solved. The underlying issue that hasn’t been addressed is that most of the currently viable decks aren’t centered around the new expansion, but older decks supplemented by one or two of the new cards. The devs genuinely feel like they’ve managed to course correct themselves in the other direction, and doubled down time and time again, much to the consternation of the playerbase.
I didn’t even noticed they released the mini set, until I’ve seen this post ????
at first i read that the _egg itself_ has taunt now, which would have made it much easier to hatch it.
i am just a little bit disappointed that none of the starcraft cards were nerfed to help the newer cards.
i would have appreciated the free dust.
Im in the same boat. I read it thinking the egg itself had taunt.
For a few minutes there, I was like “wow, that was a really well thought out buff”, something I havent said about Team 5 in quite sometime… but nope, its a shitty useless buff…
I’m pretty sure they want to tone down the overall power level, hence no more buffs for the quests.
It isn’t good to do that in the middle of the year, instead of at the end, while waiting for the rotation to bring the power level further down, especially because this feels like giving up on the current expansion.
“However, as we’ve shared before, too many competitive Quests in the long term can lead to a metagame that isn’t fun or healthy.”
Then why even print them? Why devote an entire expansion to them? How out of touch can this dev team be?
The feeling I get from dev commentary like this is that they’re absolutely terrified of seeing a repeat of United in Stormwind or The Caverns Below. I understand the sentiment given how the Questline-driven Standard meta seems to still rank as one of the games’ most miserable experiences, but this doesn’t seem to be congruent with the comment that there are “too many competitive Quests”. Right now there’s maybe two or three competitive quests – in my opinion, those would be Warlock and Paladin, maybe Warrior – of which, maybe Warlock needed the help to have something viable since the Emerald Dream meta. Paladin had a good run with Imbue Dragon Paladin and a brief heyday of Murloc experimentation; Dummy Warrior appears to have needed Endbringer Umbra and Elise the Navigator more than anything else.
But that’s still not “too many” competitive Quests, especially given how the rest of the Un’Goro just haven’t hit any stride even after the buffs. If anything, it’s a meta of only a few quests dominating the meta that leads to Caverns Below/Demon Seed flashbacks. Having enjoyed the latest iteration of Quest Warlock – I’ve had matches where I finish the requirements by Turn 4 – I genuinely feel like if any card needed a balancing, Escape the Underfel could easily have deserved a balance unbuff back to “Play 6 Temporary cards”. So I’m not sure why the team feels the need to make Animancer Warlock a thing. Even if Possessed Animancer became viable (I do run Kil’jaeden in my Quest Warlock for longevity + “win more” value with temporary Rotheart Dryad), that’s another option for a class that doesn’t need the help in the present meta.
Objectively the meta does feel somewhat balanced, but mostly because it’s been solved. The underlying issue that hasn’t been addressed is that most of the currently viable decks aren’t centered around the new expansion, but older decks supplemented by one or two of the new cards. The devs genuinely feel like they’ve managed to course correct themselves in the other direction, and doubled down time and time again, much to the consternation of the playerbase.