Hearthstone debuts the March of the Lich King expansion this week, bringing forth the newest Hero class: The Death Knight. Along with this are a slew of new cards, Rewards Track, Tavern Pass, and more.
The Death Knight has been a staple of the Warcraft setting, ever since it was introduced in Warcraft 3. World of Warcraft: Wrath of the Lich King further expanded the lore of the class as a powerful but corrupted servant of the dark forces that threatens both the Alliance and the Horde. Truly, the Death Knight represents how absolute power can corrupt absolutely.
What does the March of the Lich King have in store for Hearthstone players? Read on for more.
Death Knight
The Death Knight Hero class makes its debut in Hearthstone with the March of the Lich King expansion set. This is perhaps the most versatile Hero Class the digital card game has ever come up with due to its unique deck building feature.
Ghoul Charge
First, the Death Knight Hero Power is the ability to summon an undead ghoul. Ghoul Charge generates a 1/1 Ghoul with Charge. On the surface, this is superior to the Paladin’s Hero Power, but there is a catch. The Ghoul dies at the end of the Death Knight’s turn. However, the Death Knight cards do have interactions that benefit their play when minions die in battle.
Corpse
On that note, the second unique feature of the Death Knight is the Corpse mechanic. Whenever a friendly minion perishes (regardless of whose turn is active), the Death Knight gains a Corpse. Corpses can be used as a resource separate from the Mana Crystals, that can power certain Death Knight cards. And yes, the Ghouls summoned by the Hero Power leave a Corpse behind, as well as other minions (including ones that are resummoned by effects).
Runes
Finally, many of the Death Knight class cards have Runes. These Runes are either red (Blood), blue (Frost), and green (Unholy). Some cards will only have one type of Rune, while others can have two or all three. Each Rune has a specific focus on certain gameplay and builds.
- The Blood Rune cards tend to center on big minions, increasing health, and control effects.
- Frost Rune cards focus on direct and burst damage.
- Unholy Rune cards take advantage of resurrecting undead and shadow minions.
The Death Knight player can focus on building one Rune as the centerpiece of the deck, or they can branch out to other Runes. However, the biggest and most powerful cards tend to be dedicated to commitment to one Rune, so the versatility is balanced out. In relation to this, Death Knight specific cards are also the largest of any Hero class with a 32-card core set.
All players can get the Core Death Knight set for free by completing the Prologue adventure that goes live with March of the Lich King.
Rewards Track
If you haven’t played Hearthstone in a while, the card game based on the Warcraft universe has established a reward model for consistent players. Introduced in Madness at the Darkmoon Faire back in November, 2020, this Rewards Track has similarities to the Season Pass in games like Call of Duty. Players earn XP by simply playing and accomplishing certain achievements.
Once they reach a new Level on the Hearthstone Rewards Track, the associated reward is given. The Rewards Track has two lanes: Free and Paid. The Free Track will have rewards of gold, card packs, cards, and Tavern Tickets.
Meanwhile, the Paid Track can be acquired by purchasing a Tavern Pass. This latter track has exclusive rewards that can only be attained in this manner, such as XP boosts, Diamond versions of cards, Hero skins, Golden versions of cards, a special skin for the Coin card, and more, depending on the expansion set.
For March of the Lich King, the Rewards Track includes the Lor’themar Theron (Uncraftable Legendary), Chromie Epic Mercenary (Free and Paid at Level 1), Grand Magister Rommath Diamond Card (Paid track Level 2), Ranked Skin - Deathkeeper Alleria for the Hunter Hero portrait (Paid track Level 5), Ranked Skin - Runemage Khadgar for the Mage Hero portrait (Paid Track Level 15), and so on. There are hundreds of levels for the Rewards Track, which you can see more information on at the official Blizzard Entertainment site for Heartstone.
Note that once the new March of the Lich King Rewards Track is active, the previous Murder at Castle Nathria Rewards Track will stop awarding XP. Any achievements and rewards that have not been claimed will automatically be applied to the player’s account.
Bundles
Hearthstone players can pre-purchase the March of the Lich King Bundle or Mega Bundle for $49.99 or $79.99 (respectively).
Both will have 60 March of the Lich King card packs, the Lor’themar Card Back, and two randomly chosen Legendary Cards. The Mega Bundle will also include two Signature Legendary Cards, an additional 20 card packs, The Path of Arthas mini-card set, the Lor’themar Hero Skin, and five Signature card packs. Note that The Path of Arthas cards are non-craftable and cannot be acquired through the March of the Lich King expansion packs.
Blizzard Entertainment's The March of the Lich King expansion for Hearthstone goes live December 6, 2022.
