Blizzard has just revealed a new cosmetic coming in soon (in Patch 30.4). It was kind of teased in a blog post a few weeks ago, but we can finally see it in action. What’s interesting is that it’s the first dual-class skin. You will be able to use it both as a Shaman and as a Warrior.
I’ll be honest – the skin looks AMAZING. I haven’t been a big fan of the previous 3D skins except C’thun, but this one genuinely looks like a lot of effort went into it with things like insane custom attack/victory/death animations. Ragnaros also changes your whole side of the board, making him kind of the first “custom board” cosmetic available in Hearthstone.
The only issue is, of course, the price. The skin will be bundled with 3 Shaman + 3 Warrior packs and cost… $60. And while I get that you’re kind of getting double the value by it being accessible by two classes, it’s still an insane price point for a single cosmetic item if you ask me. I’m sure that many players will still buy it, and honestly that’s okay, paying for cosmetics keeps the game going. But for me personally, that price point is way too high to even consider getting it.
In the same blog post, they teased an in-game event with a card back, a custom Coin, and two hero skins as rewards. That’s A LOT of cosmetics for a single event. And if anything, that’s a strategy I would like to see more. Keep releasing cosmetics at all price points – free ones, cheap ones, and expensive ones. This way everyone gets something and is happy.
Also coming in Patch 30.4 are all of the Wild boards getting added to the Standard rotation. The option to “favorite boards” (like you can do with other cosmetics) will come later down the line. A big Arena update is being worked on and is still planned for early next year. Cosmetic pets are also on track for next year, more info will be shared in early 2025. And finally, they will be trying something they have never done before as a build-up to the next Standard expansion, but that’s all the info we’ve got for now.
Learn more about all of that in the blog post below:
Greetings, everyone.
Last month, I committed to being more transparent with you and to proactively share changes we are making with our community, along with context for why we’re making those changes. With that in mind, I’m here to share some details about what we’re working on, starting with something coming right around the corner.
Allow me to introduce the coolest (hottest?) hero skin we’ve ever made: Ragnaros, the Firelord! Ragnaros is our first-ever Mythic skin, pushing the boundaries even further than our Legendary skins. The team went all-out with Ragnaros: his emotive 3D portrait oozes Hearthstone charm; he pops out of the frame and SMASHES your opponents with Sulfuras for his attack animation; he sprawls over your side of the board; he has explosive victory and death screens; and he’s our first-ever dual class Hero Skin, usable in both Shaman and Warrior!
Ragnaros rises out of his portrait to attack and burns the entire board to ash for his victory animation. DIE, INSECT!
He has a special defeat animation, too, if you manage to take him down.
Ragnaros is really emotive. I can’t wait for you to see (and hear) him in his full glory in-game.
Ragnaros is coming in our next major patch, Patch 30.4, bundled with 3 Shaman packs and 3 Warrior packs for $60 (USD) or 6000 Runestones. That’s one of the priciest cosmetic bundles we’ve ever done, so I wanted to talk a little about our product strategy as a whole and what it means for all Hearthstone players.
First, let me say that our main goal for Hearthstone is that it remains a game that is easy to pick up and play. That means removing barriers that would prevent players from joining us all in the Tavern, including cost barriers. The core game is about collecting cards and winning on ladder, and that’s where we’ve continuously made the game more approachable for our players. You’ve seen our work in this area through features like catch-up packs, improved loaner decks, the recently revamped new- and returning-player experience, and so much more, going all the way back to changes like duplicate protection and our ladder revamps. These are the types of improvements that keep it so that players can jump into Hearthstone without spending anything, build up a good collection, and climb up the ladder.
But Hearthstone is a game with all kinds of different players, and we’re also working to make sure every type of player has something that delights them in the Tavern.
What we’ve learned over time is there are many Hearthstone players who really care about cosmetics. These are players who have shown a lot of excitement for cosmetics with a higher quality bar–like the C’Thun hero skin and our revamped Signature cards. Part of the draw for these players is awesome visuals and effects, and being delighted by the additional work and artistry that goes into making something at that high bar. Though we know not every player falls in that category, we do want to continue serving those players with the most awesome cosmetics we can.
Premier cosmetics like Ragnaros and future Mythic Hero Skins will let us deliver an awesome experience to players who want the ultimate flair–and let me tell you, Ragnaros is awesome. And what’s great about cosmetics is that they’re never mandatory to play and enjoy the game; instead, they help us invest more into the offerings and systems within Hearthstone.
Part of our strategy to keep these types of ultra-premium cosmetics special is that we don’t seek to do too many of them. We do plan to continue to regularly offer options across a range of price points, including free grants and items earned through play. One of my favorite experiences when I’m playing Hearthstone is when I see an older card back or skin on ladder that I haven’t seen in awhile and I get to rediscover how beautiful or funny they are. I love seeing the personality of my opponents in that way and I hope you do, too, whether you want to spend money on cosmetics or not. In this same patch we’ll have a free event that gives a card back, a cosmetic coin, and two different hero skins. This is also the patch where all Wild game boards will be in rotation for the Standard format–and we have plans for a “Favorite Boards” feature to come later down the line, too.
We have a lot of other exciting irons in the fire, too. We’re currently deep into work on the major Arena update we have planned for early next year. And, for our core Standard players, we have some fun updates ahead of us with the build up to our next expansion, including something we’ve never done before!
Finally, I haven’t forgotten that I teased pets in my last post. Those are on-track for next year, so I’ll probably have more to share on that in early 2025.
A Hearthstone player and writer from Poland, Stonekeep has been in a love-hate relationship with Hearthstone since Closed Beta. Over that time, he has achieved many high Legend climbs and infinite Arena runs. He's the current admin of Hearthstone Top Decks.
