Hearthstone Update 18.2 Patch Notes Include Private Battlegrounds Matches

Blizzard has revealed the patch notes for Hearthstone‘s upcoming 18.2 update, and they feature extensive changes to the game’s Constructed and Battlegrounds modes that are set to debut on September 8.

Arguably the biggest addition featured in this upcoming update is the addition of a Battlegrounds Parties option, which is essentially a way to create custom Battlegrounds lobbies. Basically, it allows up to four friends to queue into a standard Battlegrounds match together. However, if you get five or more friends to queue together, you can create a private Battlegrounds match that supports up to eight players. This has been one of the most requested Hearthstone features for quite some time now, and we imagine it will be very popular among Battlegrounds players.

Said Battlegrounds players will also soon be able to enjoy an array of new heroes and minions set to debut as part of this patch. Here’s a breakdown of the new Battlegrounds heroes and their abilities:

Lord Barov

• Friendly Wager [Cost 1]- Guess which player will win their next combat. If they win, get three Coins.

Jandice Barov

• Swap, Lock, & Shop It [Cost 0] – Swap a friendly non-golden minion with a random one in Bob’s Tavern.

Forest Warden Omu

• Everbloom [Passive] – After you upgrade Bob’s Tavern, gain 2 Gold this turn only.

Micro Mummy is also joining the Battlegrounds minion roster while Pack Leader is being nerfed slightly. The new version of Pack Leader has 1 less attack than before and grants summoned beasts +2 attack rather than +3 attack.

As for the game’s constructed mode, Secret Passage, Cabal Acolyte, and Darkglare are all being nerfed. Secret Passage will draw 1 less card than before, Cabal Acolyte has 2 less health, and Darkglare cost, attack, health, and mana refresh ability are all being reduced by 1. Interestingly, two cards (Totem Goliath and Archwitch Willow) are receiving what amounts to buffs. It’s rare to see constructed cards get buffed in the middle of a content season, and it will be fascinating to see whether or not they see more play as a result of these alterations.

Additional Hearthstone content additions include a new single-player adventure called Hearthstone Book of Heroes. This upcoming adventure will feature narrative campaigns for all 10 of the game’s base heroes. Each campaign features eight bosses you have to defeat and completing the stories will reward you with a pack containing cards for the hero you’ve played as. The Book of Heroes adventure starts on September 15 with the release of the Jaina Proudmoore campaign. The plan is for additional campaigns to be released over the course of a year.

This is a massive upcoming update that seemingly reinforces Blizzard’s commitment to updating Hearthstone more often than they did in the past when the game was sometimes criticized for its prolonged periods of stagnant competitive content.