With Hearthstone’s Year of the Mammoth drawing to an end, it’s time for the next year of content to head to Blizzard’s CCG. 2017 heralded the arrival of the three new expansions, as well as two single-player campaigns, each with a host of new cards and features, and 2018 will be no different.
Hearthstone quests will get more rewarding in Year of the Raven.
Blizzard have just announced that the next year of content for Hearthstone will be named the Year of the Raven. Details are still reasonably scarce, but as with previous years, Hearthstone Year of the Raven will usher in three new expansions. There’ll also be a new Hearthstone hero, and brand-new single-player modes are coming throughout the year.
Hearthstone Year of the Raven release date
There’s no release date for Hearthstone’s Year of the Raven just yet, but it’s likely not very far away. Last year, the Year of the Mammoth began in April 2017, and is set to run for 12 months, so it’s a pretty safe bet to assume that the Year of the Raven will drop at a similar time. At a recent press event, Hearthstone’s lead artist Ben Thompson says the next expansion, which will herald the arrival of Year of the Raven, is on its way “very, very soon.”
It’s also been announced that game director Ben Brode and lead producer Yong Woo will be taking part in a Q&A on March 2, at 11:00 PST (14:00 ET, 19:00 GMT, 20:00 CET, and 06:00 on March 3 AET). It’s likely that the first expansion will, at least, be teased then.
Hearthstone The Witchwood expansion
The first expansion for the Year of the Raven is The Witchwood. The expansion will add a bunch of new mechanics to the game, including cards that change their stats each turn, cards that encourage all-even or all-odd mana cost decks, and cards with the new Rush and Echo abilities.
Hearthstone Year of the Raven expansions
Just as with previous years, Hearthstone Year of the Raven will introduce two more brand-new expansions to the game. Sadly, however, Blizzard are keeping pretty quiet about exactly what they’ll contain. The only concrete information we have so far stems from a teaser shown in the Year of the Raven, showing art for all three of the expansions set to release this year.
We don’t know anything for sure, of course, but those pictures do offer a few potential hints. The second Year of the Raven expansion definitely shows off something to do with the void or Ethereals and the Twisting Nether – that purple magic circle is a bit of a no-brainer. Year of the Raven expansion three is a lot more difficult to figure out, but could potentially point to something either Shaman or Goblin focused.
What we do know for sure is that the beginning of the Year of the Raven will see the three expansions introduced as part of the Year of the Kraken rotated out of Standard play. That means that once the next expansion drops, you won’t be able to play any cards from Whispers of the Old Gods, One Night in Karazhan, or Mean Streets of Gadgetzan in Standard matches. Never fear though – if your aggro pirate deck can’t survive without patches, or you don’t know what to do without C’Thun, you can still play all the old cards in Wild.
Hearthstone Year of the Raven single-player
Hearthstone’s Year of the Raven will introduce three new single-player missions. The Year of the Mammoth brought in two of these missions, in the form of Knights of the Frozen Throne and Kobolds & Catacombs’ Dungeon Run. For the Year of the Raven, however, Blizzard say they’re “committed to introducing single-player modes with each and every expansion.” That means one single-player mission to go with each expansion coming in the Year of the Raven. We don’t know what they’ll be, but they’re likely to be slightly different based on the exact content of those expansions.
Hearthstone Year of the Raven heroes
Hearthstone’s Year of Raven will bring with it a brand new hero. Lunara will be a new hero in the druid class, acting as an alternative to Malfurion. We don’t know what Lunara’s hero power will be just yet, but lead artist Ben Thompson says she “really brings a lot of charm and whimsy” to the game, so it’s fair to assume that she’ll have a very different power to Hearthstone’s other resident Druid. If you want access to Lunara, you can get it by simply winning 10 standard games once the Year of the Raven begins.
Hearthstone Year of the Raven Quests
Hearthstone’s quests are about to get way more rewarding. With the start of Year of the Raven, Hearthstone quests will be easier to complete, and reward you with more gold than before.
Once Year of the Raven begins, all 40-gold quests will become 50 gold quests, meaning that every time you complete two quests, no matter what they are, you’ll be able to afford a pack. On top of that, quests are getting easier – those that ask you to win two games as any class, for example, will now only ask you to complete one. Blizzard say that quests will all be getting around twice as easy once the new year begins.
With all those extra cards you’ll be getting, it’ll be easier than ever to craft the cards you actually need – Blizzard say that despite higher rewards, the amount of dust you’ll get from disenchanted cards won’t change.
Hearthstone Year of the Raven Tournament Mode
Blizzard are finally adding a tournament mode to Hearthstone in Year of the Raven. The mode will help you and your friends all play together in a tournament, and will include options for Conquest, Last Man Standing, and maybe more. It’ll also help Innkeepers run tournaments at Hearthstone’s fireside gatherings.
Blizzard say that while you’ll organise the tournaments, they’ll take care of the more complicated aspects of play. Matchmaking and deck validation (to make sure players aren’t swapping decks around between games) will all take place in-client. Sadly, rewards won’t be offered in the same way, as you’ll have to provide your own.
That’s everything we know about Hearthstone’s Year of the Raven so far, but make sure to check back for updates as Blizzard reveal more information.