Whispers of the Old Gods, combined with the implementation of the Standard and Wild formats and the Classic card nerfs, has made the game the best it’s ever been. Key to the Whispers of the Old Gods expansion are the titular Old Gods, ancient beings that wish only to bring darkness and chaos into the world of Azeroth. Their Hearthstone cards all bring something special to the table, so let’s take a minute and rank them by their usefulness, effects, and all around monstrousness.
Y’Shaarj, Rage Unbound
A 10/10 for 10 mana isn’t the worst card imaginable, but his effect is very situational, at best. Bringing out a minion from your deck at the end of your turn means that if it has a battlecry, it doesn’t trigger. Your best bet for what Y’Shaarj will pull is a high-cost taunt minion, maybe with a Deathrattle. Obviously, there are conditions that make him a bigger power play – in conjunctino with Naga Sea Witch and Faceless Manipulator, but that’s a very situational play that very few people will bother with. Known in the lore as the strongest of the Old Gods, that prowess didn’t exactly transfer over the Hearthstone all that well.
Yogg Saron, Hope’s End
Hearthstone generally gets a lot of praise for its fun take on the collectible card game, but many people will give it guff over the randomness of many cards (commonly referred to as RNG). So what does Blizzard do? They make a card with the most random effect in the entire game, bar none. For every spell you cast, Yogg-Saron will cast a spell when he’s played, but targeted spells can affect anyone, including you! Yogg-Saron is the ultimate test of randomness, as you’re almost as likely to eat a Fireball than you are to win the game, depending on the state of the board. It fits his Warcraft roots as a god of both death and madness. In many instances for late-game Druids, Rogues, and Mages, this turns a bad situation into a coin-flip, essentially.
C’Thun, C’Thun, C’Thun!
The poster child for Whispers of the Old Gods, C’Thun is a 6/6 for 10 mana. Unimpressive, until you start building his stats with his underlings. C’Thun has over a dozen minions that buff or interact with him in some shape or form. Turn this 6/6 into a 18/18, or even higher in some circumstances. Combine him with Brann Bronzebeard to double his effect. He’s a great finishing move, or even a board clear if your opponent’s defenses are bolstered enough. C’Thun is partially responsible for the increase in class-based removal cards like Hex and Polymorph, and while C’Thun decks aren’t dominating the meta, they made a great first impression.
N’Zoth the Corruptor
N’Zoth’s stats aren’t the strongest, being a 5/7 for 10 mana. But his battecry, which summons every deathrattle minion that’s been killed, easily makes up for this shortcoming. While the list of deathrattle minions isn’t super-high in Standard play, minions like Sylvanas Windrunner, Baine Bloodhoof, Chillmaw, and Tirion Fordring can make N’Zoth decks a venerable nightmare to play against. There are entire deck archetypes committed to N’Zoth, and it couples well with many of the other Old Gods on this list. Obviously, Paladin and Rogue are where N’Zoth will see the most play, but don’t overlook classes like Hunter or even Mage when it comes to this powerhouse.
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