Blizzard is starting to move past the controversy of blitzchung, revealing the next chapter of their digital card game.
Announced during Blizzcon, Hearthstone's new set will be focusing around dragons. This is the first main takeaway just coming from the expansion's name, Descent of Dragons.
The set introduces Galakrond to Hearthstone. Galakrond is the father of all dragons, the precursor dragon, if you will. He's also among the strongest dragons to ever grace Azeroth.
This set also continues the story of the League of Explorers, with this expansion concluding their conflict with the League of E.V.I.L.
New Invoke Mechanic
Being the grandest dragon entails its own set of perks. Galakrond appears as a Hero Card, whose effect is devastating for its opponents. Galakrond is only usable for Hearthstone's evil classes: Rouge, Warlock, Shaman, Warrior, and Priest.
To fully reach Galakrond's potential, players could Invoke the Dragon's name. The Invoke mechanic is a new keyword that can be found on cards—similar to other keywords like Battlecry and Deathrattle. Invoking Galakrond increases the card's effect once it's played—and Invoke is potent regardless of where Galakrond is.
Meanwhile, the other four classes will have their own Dragons, too. Druid will have Ysera Unleashed, the first and only dragon to be revealed so far. Check out this page for the real-time announcement of new cards on this set.
Finally, a new Sidequest mechanic will also be introduced. Sidequests work similarly to quests: players will earn rewards for performing specific actions during the game. However, unlike quests, sidequests won't be available immediately at the start of the game—they have to be triggered.
Descent of Dragons will be released on December 10. Until then, players could pre-purchase the set with 60-boosters and 100-boosters packages.
Riding the Hype
The new expansion will release at the same time as a new game mode for Hearthstone. Called Battlegrounds, Hearthstone will have its own auto-battler, just in time for the Holidays. The game mode will be choosable from the client and will not require a separate launcher to run.
Players were able to try the game mode during Blizzcon, to a lukewarm reception. Hearthstone's auto-battler seems to have an identity-crisis: its card strategy nature getting in the way of the action of an auto-battler. Playing the game mode is a strange experience, indeed.
Long Live the Queen
Blizzcon also saw the crowning of Hearthstone's first female world champion. Li "VKLiooon" Xiaomeng was also the first woman to compete on this stage of the sport. However, she wasn't contented at just joining the tournament—she went on to win it.
VKLiooon's win was decisive—stomping her grand finals opponent Brian "Bloodyface" Eason 3-0. With her victory, VKLiooon also becomes the first Hearthstone Grandmasters Champion.
VKLiooon wishes that her win would inspire other women to follow in her footsteps. On her victory speech, she said, "I want to say to all the girls out there who have a dream for e-Sports, for competition, for glory: if you want to do it, and you believe in yourself, you should just forget your gender and go for it."
This win is a milestone in the gaming community, which has had a long history of gatekeeping and sexism.
