Analyzing replacing candidates for Hearthstone's new Hall of Fame cards

The Year of the Mammoth is bringing big changes to Hearthstone and it’s more than the Standard expansion rotation. Six of the game’s most popular Classic cards are being retired from Standard play and being honored with induction into the new Hall of Fame set. The reasons for this have been made fairly clear: the cards are far too versatile and advantageous for what they are. They fit in so many workable situations that there was never a debate on what could replace them.

With their placement in the Hall of Fame, however, Blizzard has now forced the debate among esports circles. Exactly what can replace these individual cards? While there’s still one more expansion set to release before the Year of the Mammoth begins, today, we look at a handful of existing cards to see what pros may use to fill these massive voids.

Sylvanas Windrunner

No one card can fill Sylvanas’ boots. She was a reliable 5/5, 6-mana drop that represented an immediate threat, even against larger minions, thanks to her Mind Control effect. Considering the Priest’s Mind Control spell cost a full 10 mana, the value was insane. So what one card could replace her? The answer is that a single card can’t; it’s going to take two.

The Mean Streets of Gadgetzan expansion introduced the pesky Dirty Rat, which has found its way into many pro decks. Mages often use it before clearing the board with Flamestrike, while Warlocks love forcing out a legendary minion before sending it to the void with Twisting Nether. However, the Hearthstone ladder has also found a noble companion for it: Mind Control Tech.

The Dirty Rat/Mind Control Tech combo has been used several times in pro play to force the MCT’s four-minion condition and then swipe one. One of the most recent instances occurred in the HCT Europe Winter Playoffs, when Thijs Molendijk used the combo to pull out a 5/5 Jade Chieftain (before it could activate its Jade Golem-summoning Battlecry) and then stole it.

Over the years, pros have learned to play around Sylvanas’ Deathrattle, through Polymorph, creative board clears, or even pre-emptive theft (stealing the opponent’s Sylvanas, instead). It’s far more difficult to play around the Dirty Rat/MCT combo, because it’s tougher to predict when it’s coming. Even with the loss of Brann Bronzebeard in the next Standard rotation, Dirty Rat/MCT will prove no less viable.

Azure Drake

Azure Drake was arguably the game’s best 5-mana minion, offering a 4/4 body, additional spell damage, and a card draw. It’s hard to fathom anything taking its place for turn 5, but Blizzard certainly has a couple of options that might fit into a few existing deck types.

The best candidate is Burgly Bully, another 5-cost minion that was released during the Mean Streets of Gadgetzan expansion. It doesn’t have the spell damage boost or card draw benefit that Azure Drake has, but it has some major benefits of its own to offer. Burgly Bully has bulky 4/6 stats that make it difficult to remove without a spell. If an opponent does use a spell, the player receives a fresh Coin, precious 0-mana spells that have proven exceptionally valuable for Rogue and Druid players that rely on the 6-cost Gadgetzan Auctioneer for card draws. It will further prove necessary for the Rogue player that stands to lose Tomb Pillager in the Year of the Mammoth.

The same goes for Mage players that need an easy trigger for Archmage Antonidas. Even with the coming departure of Emperor Thaurissan and Reno Jackson, turning Coins into Fireballs is a critical late-game strategy.

Some pros are already ahead of the curve. Americas Winter Playoffs runner-up Julien “DocPwn” Bachand-Fleurent, Leonardo “Leomane” Almeida, and Frank “Fr0zen” Zhang have Burgly Bully entrenched in their Reno Mage decks. Expect Burgly Bully to see even more action once Azure Drake flies away for good.

Ragnaros the Firelord

There’s no getting around it, this one’s going to hurt. Ragnaros the Firelord fit in just about every play style Hearthstone had to offer and would always present an imminent threat on the board. Nothing can outright replace the Firelord, but there are a few options to lessen the pain.

The immediate thought is that this opens up a slot for the Old Gods to return. The powerful Warcraft deities have seen their play drastically decline to the point that they made no appearances during the first two HCT Winter Playoff weekends. Even in his nerfed state, Yogg-Saron, Hope’s End still has potential to cause massive damage and can swing a game from the brink. Tempo Mage, highlander Warlock, and even Jade Druid decks may want to give the God of Death another chance. There’s no denying his greater potential to backfire and the total risk of using him when nearing fatigue state. But at his best, Yogg-Saron can provide a much-needed board clear, as well as fresh cards from spells like Thoughtsteal, Burgle, and Infest.

Blizzard has also hinted that the next expansion will include some noteworthy Deathrattle minions and while it’s impossible to speculate how good those cards will be, it’s not impossible to predict that it could lead to a triumphant return for N’Zoth, the Corruptor.

The Old Gods don’t exactly slot into the 8-mana spot that Ragnaros comfortably filled, but with the staggering lack of reliable 8-mana drops, they may be the best option. The days of turn 7 Dr. Boom and turn 8 Ragnaros in Standard play are gone and it’s reasonable to believe that Blizzard isn’t about to bring them back again.

The irreplaceable spells

The other three Hall of Fame cards are individual class spells that promise to wreak havoc on certain play styles.

Conceal is a Stealth spell often used by Rogue players to protect big bodies like Edwin VanCleef and Questing Adventurer. Judging by this play at the HCT Americas Winter Playoffs, those bodies are clearly worth protecting. The spell is often used after Cold Blood, leaving high-attack minions in place with few options to remove them. Master of Disguise can provide Stealth to a single minion, but at 4-mana, it’s not viable for the aforementioned scenarios.

Ice Lance is often a finisher for Freeze Mages, used as the nail in the coffin in a round of spells that whack opponents for 30 HP or more. This is a double whammy for the Mage, as it stands to lose both Ice Lance and the mana-discounting Emperor Thaurissan. Fireballs are always reliable, but the Freeze Mage’s one-turn kill days are likely over.

Power Overwhelming is the Warlock’s single-turn answer to Cold Blood, usable as both a finisher (combined with a Charge minion like Leeroy Jenkins) and as a reliable way to trade a smaller minion into a bigger body. The instant death effect would also provide a helpful boost when used on Deathrattle minions like Sylvanas Windrunner. There are minions like Abusive Sergeant that can provide an attack boost, but there’s nothing that can offer the boost for such cheap value that Power Overwhelming does.

To sum up, minions that have proven staples of the Hearthstone game come and go and new replacements will eventually surface. These three spells, however, may ultimately prove to be irreplaceable.

Ozzie Mejia loves a good Dirty Rat play. Follow him on Twitter @Ozz_Mejia.