Hearthstone 18.0.2 Patch Notes Feature Constructed and Battlegrounds Nerfs

Blizzard has released the patch notes for Hearthstone‘s upcoming 18.0.2 update, and they include some major changes to some of the most notable cards in Hearthstone‘s Constructed and Battlegrounds modes.

Let’s start with constructed where the dominant Kael’thas Sunstrider will soon suffer the biggest nerf. Previously, Sunstrider made every third spell you played in a turn cost 0. It wasn’t long before players found ways to trigger this devastating effect multiple times a turn and essentially win the game without the opponent being able to stop them.

The new version of Kael’thas Sunstrider will instead reduce the cost of the third spell played each turn to 1. That should eliminate some of the most frustrating combos the card is capable of producing, but it will likely still see play in certain decks.

Mindrender Illucia is also receiving a nerf just one week after being added to the game as part of the Scholomance Academy expansion. Its effect allows you to swap hands and decks with your opponent for a turn, which it turns out could be intelligently (and somewhat easily) used to ruin your opponent’s winning strategy and generally frustrate them. The card’s mana cost is being changed from “2” to “3,” which should help reduce its potential impact somewhat.

Battlegrounds players will also surely welcome a variety of upcoming changes to the auto-battler which will alter the costs and mechanics of the mode’s various minions and heroes.

The various beasts in Battlegrounds should receive a bit of a buff as Pack Leader is being moved from Tier 3 to Tier 2 while Rabid Saurolisk and Monstrous Macaw are getting an extra attack point. Rat Pack is being moved from Tier 2 to Tier 3, but Beast and Deathrattle builds should still benefit from a bit of an early game buff.

Speaking of Beast buffs, the powerful Mama Bear card is being moved from Tier 6 to Tier 5 but is suffering a -1/-1 state reduction as part of the move. Goldrinn, the Great Wolf will remain in Tier 6, but it will now give friendly beasts +5/+5 when it dies rather than the previous +4/+4 buff.

Nat Pagle, Extreme Angler and Primalfin Lookout are also receiving much-needed re-works. Nat Pagle will now add a minion to your hand when its effect is triggered while Primalfin Lookout can now only discover minions from your current tavern tier or below. Primalfin Lookout is being moved to Tier 4 as a result of this nerf while Nat Pagle will stay in Tier 5. Gentle Megasaur and Arcane Canon, meanwhile, have been removed from Battlegrounds entirely.

Finally, Reno Jackson and The Lich King’s Battlegrounds hero powers are now free while Captain Eudora’s hero power now requires one more use before you’re rewarded with a golden card. For more information (including a few bug fixes) be sure to check out the full patch notes right here.

There’s no word on this update’s release date, but Blizzard says that it should arrive sometime in the “coming days.” While Shcholomance Academy injected quite a bit of life into Hearthstone‘s constructed mode and Battlegrounds remains one of our favorite auto-battlers, we can’t wait to try these updates as they’re all sorely needed.