The Tavern Brawls in Hearthstone have “crazy rules” that are different each time. This makes them fun to play. It provides an entertaining challenge with all kinds of unexpected things happening during a match.
If that isn’t enough to entice players, there is also a prize. Win one match in a Tavern Brawl – and you get a free Classic pack of cards. I’ve been trying to get into the Tavern Brawls every time I notice that one has appeared (but may have missed a few).
The Great Summoner Competition Tavern Brawl added an extra amount of randomness to the game. The screenshots you see in this blog were taken on August 16, 2015.
This Tavern Brawl required players to create a deck from their own card collection. (Some of the other Tavern Brawls have handed players a pre-made deck to use). I decided to use a Mage deck.
The Great Summoner Competition says: Summoners from across the world have come to compete. When you cast a spell, a random minion of the same cost is summoned for you! I got into this Tavern Brawl on the very last day it was open.
This is the deck I put together for The Great Summoner Competition. I’m putting this screenshot in here not because I think it is a super amazing deck, but because it shows what cards I was using. As you will see, I ended up summoning minion cards that absolutely were not in my deck.
What made this Tavern Brawl fun was that I wouldn’t know ahead of time what minions I would summon. I love being able to play with cards that I don’t actually own (and might never own). The first match I played resulted in a defeat, so I will share screenshots from the second match I played.
I was playing a Mage deck, and my opponent was playing a Druid deck. Here we go!
I have no idea what card I played on my first turn, but will take a guess, based on what was in my Mage deck. It was probably a Mirror Image card. That card costs 1 mana to use. It says: Summon two 0/2 minions with Taunt. When I used that spell, it summoned a Worgen Infiltrator, which costs 1 health (the same as the Mana Wyrm minion).
The Worgen Infiltrator says: Stealth. At the end of your turn, give another random friendly minion +1 Health. The Worgan Infiltrator card costs 1 mana to play, but I got to play it for free thanks to the rules of this Tavern Brawl.
On my second turn, I played a Frostbolt card. It says: Deal 3 damage to a character and Freeze it. Frostbolt costs 2 mana to play. That spell summoned a Crazed Alchemist card, which also costs 2 mana to play. It says: Battlecry: Swap the Attack and Health of a minion. I didn’t have to pay any mana to put that card on the board, thanks to the crazy rules in this Tavern Brawl.
On my third turn, I played a Mana Wyrm card, which costs 1 mana. That card says: Whenever you cast a spell, gain +1 Attack. I used 2 more mana to hit my opponent with my Fireblast Hero Power (and giving him one damage). I used my Worgan Infiltrator on my opponent, making him lose 2 more health.
On my fourth turn, I used a Polymorph spell to turn one of my opponent’s minions into a sheep. That spell cost 4 mana. It summoned Ancient Brewmaster card, which also costs 4 mana to play. (Again, I got it on the board for free, thanks to the rules of this Brawl). The Ancient Brewmaster card says: Battlecry: Return a friendly minion from the battlefield to your hand.
I used all three of my minions against my opponent. He was now at 18 health. As you can see, my opponent used his Ironbeak Owl to silence my Mana Wyrm. It could no longer “grow bigger” when I used a spell. The Ironbeak Owl cost 2 mana to play. Playing that card allowed my opponent to summon a Goblin Auto-Barber card, which also cost 2 mana to play. He got to play it for free, thanks to the rules of this Tavern Brawl. The Goblin Auto-Barber card says: Battlecry: Give your weapon +1 Attack.
Skipping ahead a little bit, I played my Annoy-o-Tron card, which costs 2 mana to play. That card says: Taunt. Divine Shield. Playing that card summoned a Puddlestomper card. It’s a Murloc that has 3/2 and that costs 2 mana to play (usually). I’ve never seen this card before!
I used my Ancient Brewmaster card to kill my opponent’s Booty Bay Bodyguard card. It is a 5/4 card with Taunt. With that card out of the way, I was able to use my other minions to attack my opponent.
On turn seven, I used my Flamestrike card. It costs 7 mana to use. The Flamestrike card says: Deal 4 damage to all enemy minions. Unexpectedly, using that spell summoned Troggzor the Earthinator. I’d never seen this card before, do not own it, and therefore have never used it. That card says: Whenever your opponent casts a spell, summon a Burly Rockjaw Trogg.
The Troggzor the Earthinator card is powerful enough all by itself, with 6/6. It’s special ability has a remarkable effect on The Great Summoner’s Competition Tavern Brawl. From this point on, every time my opponent used a spell, Troggzor would spawn a Burly Rockjaw Trogg card onto the board. This particular Tavern Brawl gives players extra minions, for free, when they use a spell.
My opponent has to choose between letting this card spawn extra minions for me, or not using any more spells at all to avoid having that happen. If he doesn’t use spells – he can’t summon any extra minions for himself. The Burly Rockjaw Trogg card is a 3/5 card that says: Whenever your opponent casts a spell, gain +2 Attack.
What if my opponent used a spell? The Troggzor card will spawn a Burly Rockjaw Trogg minion. The second time he uses a spell, the Burly Rockjaw Trogg will become a 5/5 minion and Troggzor will spawn an additional Trogg. This pattern will continue until Troggzor, and all of the Troggs, are dead.
I cannot believe Blizzard included Troggzor the Earthinator into this Tavern Brawl! It feels like a “you just won the game” card. Don’t get me wrong, it was exciting to have on the board (even if nothing happened). But, is it fair? I don’t think so.
I WIN!
Winning that match helped me to complete the “Hunter or Mage Victory” Daily Quest I was working on. I earned 40 gold. Finishing a Daily Quest as a result of something that happened in a Tavern Brawl is the only way to earn gold in the Tavern Brawl. (You can’t earn gold for winning a Tavern Brawl match.)
Winning that match also put me one step closer to finishing a “3 Victories!” Daily Quest. I had 2 out of 3 required wins.
Players who win their first match in a Tavern Brawl receive a free Classic Pack of cards as a reward.
Just for fun, here is the screenshot that shows the 1 match I won in The Great Summoner Competition Tavern Brawl.
What cards are hiding inside this free Classic Pack?
Fen Creeper is a card that can be used by all classes – and placed into any deck. It has Taunt. I’ve got one of these cards, and a golden version of it (with cool artwork). This card is fun to play. The white gem means it is a Common card.
Forked Lightning is a card that can only be used in a Shaman deck. It says: Deal 2 damage to 2 random enemy minions. Overload: 2. I have barely used my Shaman deck and need to finish leveling it up. This is a card that I’m going to have to use a few times before I fully understand what it does. The white gem means this is a Common card.
Holy Fire is a card that can only be used in a Priest deck. It says: Deal 5 damage. Restore 5 Health to your hero. I have had the opportunity to use this card only once in the time between when I got it and when I posted this blog. Unfortunately, I was playing while tired, and accidentally selected the 5 damage to go to….. myself. “Not quite what was planned.” I have learned not to do that again! The blue gem means that this is a Rare card.
Circle of Healing is a card that can only be used in a Priest deck. It says: Restore 4 Health to ALL minions. If I’m understanding this correctly, playing this card will result in your minions healing, and your opponent’s minions healing. It’s probably best to wait to use this card until your opponent doesn’t have any minions on the board. The white gem means that this is a Common card.
Conceal is a card that can only be used in a Rogue deck. It says: Give your minions Stealth until your next turn. The advantage of using this card is that your opponent cannot target minions that are in Stealth for one turn. The potential disadvantage is that your opponent might be able to target you directly. The white gem means that this is a Common card.