Article:
Impressions of Wrathgate, the WoW TCG (Part 1 - Heroes)

We’ve all opened packs of the first World of Warcraft card game set produced by Cryptozoic – most of us have seen the impact that it had on the NACCs and the EUCCs, as well as the World Qualifiers. This series of articles covers my impressions on cards that have made an impact due to Wrathgate.

Heroes

When a new set is introduced, the first thing to look at are heroes. They set the stage for Limited play options, and they may introduce new options for constructed. The big things to look for in heroes are:

1) Are there new races/professions/talents that appear in some classes?
2) Are there powerful flip powers?
3) Are there new abilities/equipment that reach back to previous heroes that makes them better than they were?

Here’s a quick review over the classes in Wrathgate:

Death Knight
Krunkle Deadspark is the first gnome death knight, and it’s also the first Blood talent death knight for the Alliance. He also happens to be the only death knight with Alchemy and Enchanting, and although that’s not a huge deal at the moment it’s something to keep in mind.

Krog the Deathfist is the first orc death knight, and he is the only death knight with Engineering and Tailoring. He’s the second Blood talent death knight for the Horde, meaning they still have yet to have a Frost talent death knight. Krog affects the meta in a big way as he is the first death knight able to use the racial location Ogrimmar and racial champion Kazamon Steelskin; allowing the Ogrimmar engine from Lionar to port over into the death knight suite.

Krunkle and Krog both bring new things to the table for death knights; Krog noticeably for the ability to bring Orgrimmar to the table.

Druid
Lunira and Harona both have new professions for their class, but this class (for both races) has seen this race over and over again. Lunira’s flip is interesting, but druid ally rush decks, especially with druid allies, are few and far between; and other druid talents (such as Traitor and Feral) tend to receive much more attention in the Alliance. Harona’s flip is more doable, especially since ALAMO decks already exist, but if using Restoration, a flip like Dorn the Tranquil’s is a little more effective as it can spread the healing around. As a bonus, it can even trigger Nourish, if the deck decides to go that way.