Patch notes
Alpha Patch 002: Rising Tide
Hey everyone, it's cyberbaby again and I'm back with another patch, just 3 weeks after the last! Patch 002: Rising Tide is mostly about adding power to cards that were not earning their place in decks previously. 25 cards change, with 5 from each prism AND another hero power change should shake the meta up considerably and unleash a world of new brewing potential.
As always, we'll keep an eye on things, folks.... keep us posted on how you feel about it in Discord!
Stillmind (Willow)
nerfHero Power- Was
- Every 5 max mana, your hero gains 3 health and you draw a card.
- Now
- Every 5 max mana, your hero gains 2 health and you draw a card.
Small trim to the Sanctuary hero power: each trigger now heals 2 instead of 3. The card draw is untouched.
Double Agent
rework- Name
was Bodyguard→Double Agent- Cost
was 5→4
- Was
- Guard Play: Give a target unit Guard.
- Now
- Guard Play: Give a target enemy unit Guard.
Renamed to Double Agent. Down to 4 mana with its 4/6 body kept, paid for by a real drawback: it hands an enemy unit Guard. That body would sit above the curve for a 4-drop, so the drawback is what keeps it fair. It can target an enemy that already has Guard to soften the cost, and its Shatter attachment deals 5 to a Guard unit, so the two can combo.
Fruit Bat
buff- Was
- Lifesteal Sunset: Attach Siphon to this unit.
- Now
- Lifesteal Summon & Sunset: Attach Leech to this unit.
Gets its Leech the turn it lands instead of having to survive a turn first.
Pawn Broker
buff- Cost
was 5→4
5 mana for a 3/3 Stealth plus a 1-drop with Dash is too slow. At 4 it is a tempo play that tutors and deploys in one go.
Pit Bully
rework- Power
was 5→6
- Was
- Dash Your hero and your units take no counter-attack damage when they attack.
- Now
- Dash When this unit attacks an enemy unit with less Power than it, it takes no counter-attack damage.
Full rework. Turning off counter-attack damage for your hero and every unit removed combat as a cost for the whole board and powered some of the most oppressive hero-attack lines in the game. The bully now only picks on smaller targets: it attacks anything weaker for free, but a big enough blocker trades with it and 3 health keeps it easy to remove. Power goes to 6 so it can bully most of the board.
Repo Rustler
buff- Health
was 2→3
- Was
- Stealth, Wither Glory: Dust the top unit of the enemy graveyard to summon a Ghoul.
- Now
- Stealth, Wither Glory: Summon a Ghoul. Dust the highest-cost unit in the enemy graveyard.
The Ghoul no longer requires a unit in the enemy grave, so it can come down turn 2 and still work, and 3 health lets it survive the trade that triggers Glory.
Sparring Partner
buff- Was
- Sunrise: Give another random ally unit +1 attack and attach a Searing Sigil to it.
- Now
- Sunset: Give another random ally unit +1 attack and attach a Searing Sigil to it.
Moving to Sunset so it no longer has to survive a turn to do anything.
Sworn Lance
buff- Health
was 3→4
A 3-mana 3/3 Dash lost to the 2-mana 3/2 Dash units. Grove gets the bigger body for the extra mana.
Underwriter
rework- Was
- Sunset: If your hero took no damage this turn, draw a card. If it took damage, summon a Ghoul.
- Now
- Sunset: If your hero lost health this turn, draw a card. If your hero gained health this turn, summon a Ghoul.
The old version only ever did one thing and often did nothing useful. Now it rewards both sides of the Vale's game: taking hits draws you cards, and healing builds your board. Do both in the same turn and you get both.
Whisper Nymph
buff- Health
was 3→4
Small buff to a starter 2-drop that also comes off Whisper Watcher. One extra health lets it hold the line long enough for the Death heal to matter.
Yellowbelly
buff- Power
was 1→2- Health
was 5→6
Was a strictly worse Stubborn Stump (1/5 vanilla vs 2/5 Guard at the same cost). Now a 2/6: the biggest body at 2 mana, paid for by having no Guard.
Yes Man
buff- Health
was 3→4
- Was
- Stealth After your hero attacks an enemy unit, this unit attacks that unit.
- Now
- Stealth After your hero attacks an enemy, this unit attacks that enemy.
The follow-up now includes the enemy hero, so it works in hero-face decks instead of needing a unit target, and at 1/4 it survives long enough to follow up more than once.
Cremate
buff- Cost
was 3→2
- Was
- Deal 3 damage to a target. If this kills it, dust it.
- Now
- Deal 3 damage to a target unit. If this kills it, dust it.
Was a 2-mana effect priced at 3 for the dust rider, and Sanctuary has cheaper ways to dust. At 2 it is efficient removal that answers Death-ability units. Restricted to units so the cheaper version is not also 3 face damage. This also makes Powder Keg, which adds Cremate on Death, a better card.
Foul Play
buff- Was
- Wither Deal 4 damage to a target unit.
- Now
- Wither Deal 5 damage to a target unit.
Strictly worse than Trick or Treat, which does the same 4 damage with a heal option. 5 damage hits a meaningful breakpoint (the 5-health Guards and 4/5 bodies) and gives it a reason to be picked.
Gale Force
buff- Cost
was 5→4
Part of the five-card element anthem cycle. At 5 mana these took your entire turn and the single draw never made up the tempo. Moving the whole cycle to 4 so you can pair it with a 1-drop or a hero power.
Growth Spurt
buff- Cost
was 5→4
Element anthem cycle, see Gale Force.
Heartwood's Bounty
buff- Cost
was 5→4
Element anthem cycle, see Gale Force. This and Total Eclipse are the rest-of-game versions, so they are the two we will watch most closely at 4.
Hotwire
buff- Was
- Play: Summon a copy of a random 1-cost unit from the enemy deck. It gains Dash.
- Now
- Play: Summon a copy of a random 1-cost unit from the enemy deck. If you can't, conjure one from the enemy's prisms instead. It gains Dash.
No more dead draws against decks without 1-drops. Community fallback if this is too strong: a 1/1 Dash failcase.
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Liquid Courage
rework- Cost
was 2→1
- Was
- Give a target ally unit +1/+1.
- Now
- Give a target unit +2/-1.
Down to 1 mana, with a new effect. +2/-1 is a real choice: pump an attacker for the turn's trade, or aim it at an enemy 1-health unit to finish it. Since Auspicious Peddler hands one to both players, your opponent gets the same choice, which is what makes Peddler an interesting card to attack.
Pick Clean
buff- Cost
was 3→2
Effectively draw-a-card for 3; at 2 it is a fair tutor.
Play with Fire
buff- Cost
was 3→2
3 mana for 1 damage to enemy units plus a middling 4-drop was too expensive. At 2 it is a cheap sweep for tokens that refunds a card.
Rising Tide
buff- Cost
was 5→4
Element anthem cycle, see Gale Force.
Rolling Start
buff- Was
- Play: Your units gain Dash.
- Now
- Play: Your units gain Dash. Draw a card.
Giving Dash to a whole board is rarely needed, and without a draw it was worse than Tag Team. Stapling on a draw makes it a card you are never sad to see.
Set in Stone
buff- Was
- Dust each of your top dead spells costing 1 or more, summoning a Crystal Construct for each until your board is full.
- Now
- Dust each of your top dead spells costing 1 or more, summoning a Crystal Construct with Guard for each until your board is full.
Even when it filled the board, the Constructs had no Guard, so the opponent walked past them to your hero or swept them late game. Guard makes the payoff actually protect you.
Shallow Grave
buff- Cost
was 2→1
Was a strictly worse Speak of the Devil (same return, no Death trigger, same cost). At 1 mana it is the cheap, clean version of the effect.
Total Eclipse
buff- Cost
was 5→4
Element anthem cycle, see Gale Force. Rest-of-game version; watching closely.
Tell us how it plays
Balance feedback goes straight to the team on Discord.
