Hearthstone announces new major expansion

MANILA, Philippines – Blizzard has officially unveiled Escape from Violet Hold, the latest major Hearthstone expansion set to drop on July 8.

The upcoming 135-card set will introduce the “Legendary Rulebreaker” minions and a brand-new “Prepare” keyword that will allow players to run duplicate Legendaries and unlock a second Hero Power.

While the full set arrives next month, players can jump into the chaos as early as today with a series of countdown events offering generous rewards ahead of the newest in-game expansion.

Vanessa VanCleef and the prison break

The newest update follows Vanessa VanCleef as she assembles a ragtag crew of Azeroth’s most infamous outlaws in an attempt to escape Dalaran’s maximum-security prison.

Players will find their path blocked by Warden Maiev Shadowsong, who has twisted the Violet Hold into a shifting arcane maze.

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The event creates a dramatic twist that builds up a massive lore clash between the two fan-beloved in-game legends.

Meet the rulebreakers

For the first time in the game’s history, players can now ignore the foundational rules of the game’s deck-building using the Legendary Rulebreaker minions.

Some of the rulebreaker minions featured in the expansion are the Chainbreaker Hogger, which duplicates all legendary cards that you have in your deck at the start of the game.

Next up is Blood Doctor Thal’ena, who joins the fray as a rule-breaking Death Knight. 

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Her second Hero Power, Vampyr’s Kiss, swaps traditional mana costs for Corpses to offer massive tactical flexibility during matches. 

Finally, Irida Sinseeker, a Demon Hunter Legendary, gives the players the chance to get two cards in exchange for sending their entire deck into the Void.

Additionally, Irida’s lifesteal allows you to survive fatigue damage and enables players to take advantage of an empty deck in outsmarting opponents. 

The meta shifter is incoming

The expansion will also dawn the “Prepare keyword”, a mechanic built around setting up explosive, high-value turns.

For the first time in the game’s history, players can deploy new “Disguised” minions directly onto their opponent’s side of the board.

The new mechanic adds a layer of mind games that enables players to sabotage enemy board space or trigger negative deathrattles on their opponent’s territory.

Anomalies return in Battlegrounds

The Anomalies are also making their return to the Hearthstone Battlegrounds mode, as the developers are set to introduce seven new anomalies, in addition to 17 returning and five updated mechanics.

This update keeps matches fresh by ensuring no two autobattler games are identical, while simultaneously shaking up the second half of Season 13.

In-game rewards and new quests

Starting June 3, the game is rolling out three in-game events that allow players to stack up on in-game loot and “contrabands” leading up to the game’s expansion:

First, the Prison Break Event, which runs from June 3 to 17, where players will help Vanessa VanCleef orchestrate prison transfers and distract Maiev in exchange for rewards.

Next is the Lockdown Event running from June 17 to July 8, where you will aid Maiev in locking down the Violet Hold by completing high-security missions.

Finally, Patch 35.6 launches the Legendary Quest Chain and lets players cash in on early expansion rewards in Standard games.

Pre-order bundles announced

Pre-purchase options are also available in-game in two tiers: the Standard Bundle and the Mega Bundle. 

The Regular bundle is priced at US $49.99 (PHP 3,087), which contains:

• Packs: 60 regular Escape from the Violet Hold packs
• Cards: Two random legendary Escape from the Violet Hold packs
• Cosmetics: High Commander Beatrix card back

Meanwhile, the Mega Bundle is tagged at $79.99 (PHP 4,940), and includes:

• Packs: 80 regular and 10 Golden Escape from the Violet Hold packs
• Cards: One random signature and one random Golden Legendary card from the expansion
• Cosmetics: High Commander Beatrix Hero Skin and matching card back
• Perks: Four Tavern Tickets (valid for the Pre-Release Tavern Brawl or Arena)

Both bundles are available until the expansion launches on July 7. (By Clyde Jan Pascual, INQUIRER.net Intern)