I've spent thousands of hours in Blizzard games, but Hearthstone isn't one of them. I was recently invited to Blizzard's 35th Anniversary celebrations, and somehow found myself part of the Hearthstone showcase despite having a total blindspot when it comes to it. I thought the worst as I sat down to my first game against another journalist, but luckily for me there were a few others there just as clueless as me (while some were impressively experienced and could reel off card stats like their phone numbers).
Regardless of experience level, we all had a great time. Hearthstone has a surprisingly addictive gameplay loop, and I took my time with my first game very, very seriously (Lewis from The Mirror, if you are reading this, we are due a rematch).
Today marks the first announcement of Hearthstone's next expansion, Cataclysm, which arrives on March 17, 2026.
Yep, "Cataclysm," the expansion that shattered World of Warcraft as we know it, is also now coming to Hearthstone but with its own twist.
Sliding Doors but make it nerdy
Hearthstone has spent over 12 years following the World of Warcraft lore. During the showcase, Lead Designer Cora Georgiou explained that Hearthstone: Cataclysm is exploring a timeline Blizzard never let happen in the MMO. What if Deathwing had actually succeeded in his plans during the Cataclysm?
"As his final act, Murozond pulled this alternate Deathwing into our universe, and now it falls to us to defeat the most powerful Deathwing of all time.
Time-traveling Chromie and the Dragonflights need your help to hold off Deathwing’s forces while she rallies Heroes of Time from across Hearthstone’s history to stop the chaos. Players will battle to save our reality through a new story, powerful cards, and limited-time events."
"Alternate versions of beloved characters feel like a very Hearthstone thing to do," Georgiou explained. This Time Travel-esque narrative allows the team to play with different versions of characters, like they have in the past with a Ranger General Sylvanas.
The Dragon's Hoard is a new players dream
If you've been initimidated by other players building up a decades worth of card history, Blizzard just removed that barrier with this update. Under the "Dragon's Hoard" event which starts on March 10, two full expansions worth of cards, Into the Emerald Dream and The Lost City, will be completely free for all players during the Cataclysm cycle.
The team has built deck recipes using only these free cards, so you can jump into ranked play straight away without spending a cent (though I do recommend getting some practice against the AI first).
There's also a skill-based matchmaking involved, call it newbie protection, where you enter a dedicated track and will only face other beginners, so no worries about being stomped by 10-year veterans day one.
Mechanics that really shake up the game
For the veterans however, Cataclysm will be bringing back the Colossal keyword, so minions so massive they will take up multiple slots on the board. These were originally features in the Voyage to the Sunken City DLC in 2022.
- Class Lieutenants: Classes like Warlock get ChoGall, whill Rogue gets Sinestra.
- The Worldbreaker: Deathwing, Worldbreaker arrives as a Neutral Hero card available to six classes, and will have world-ending abilities like Raze, Topple and Enthrall.
There'll be new keywords, in particular "Herald" used by classes aligned with Deathwing's Lieutenants. The more you use this, the stronger your lieutenants become.
Also being added is "Shatter" for those who ally with the Dragonflights against Deathwing. A “Shatter” card splits into two halves when drawn, on opposite sides of your hand. You can cast them separately, or combine them back together for twice the power and value.
Finally, Triumphs and Last Stands are class specific spell cards that feature each class’s Hero of Time, showing them either claiming victory or making a final heroic stand in the fight to save Azeroth from Deathwing.
All the new cards being added with Cataclysm
- Warmaster Blackhorn (Neutral)
- Supply Run (Hunter)
- Flight Maneuvers (Paladin)
- Battlefield Blaster (Neutral)
- Chamber of Aspects (Paladin)
- Chromatus (Paladin)
- Green Head of Chromatus (Paladin)
- Red Head of Chromatus (Paladin)
- Blue Head of Chromatus (Paladin)
- Bronze Head of Chromatus (Paladin)
- Ebyssian (Hunter)
- Envoy of the End (Neutral)
- Ragnaros, the Great Fire (Warrior)
- Hand of Ragnaros (Warrior)
- Hand of Ragnaros (Warrior)
- Soldier of Ragnaros (Warrior)
- Deathwing, Worldbreaker (Neutral)
- Ruthless
- Dragon's Reign
- Progeny of Deathwing
- Topple
- Raze
- Enthrall
- Dark Iron Harbinger
- Disciple of Demise
- Sands of Time
Year of The Scarab and Blizzcon tease
The Core Set rotation is about to change, and with it, the game meta.The Year of the Raptor is ending, and so begins the Year of the Scarab. The Core Set rotation is about to change and with it the game meta.
Some cards, like Brawl and Shadowstep, are rotating out to be replaced with Decimation and Shadow of Demise.
Players who hit Legend in the 2026 Hearthstone competitive season will get a new cardback. Those hitting it for the first time this year get both the class and new cardback. The Spotlight also had a sneaky joke about something coming at Blizzcon (a theme of most of the spotlights we have seen so far!)
Will you jump into Hearthstone?
It's hard not to get caught up in the celebrations as we get announcement after announcment of all this new content coming to Blizzard games.
Overwatch has already seen a resurgence in players since it's own anniversary spotlight, with Diablo coming later this week. I hope Hearthstone will welcome a bunch of new and returning players, too. Whether you're like me, a totally clueless novice clicking around the board and hoping you'll "get it eventually," or a devotee looking for deeper class identity, Cataclysm looks to be a turning point for the franchise.
Join us on Reddit at r/WindowsCentral to share your insights and discuss our latest news, reviews, and more.
