Players will have to deckbuild without Curse of Naxxramas and Goblins vs Gnomes to win slices of the $30,000 prize pool.
Over the next three days, 16 high profile card slingers will battle in the first attempt at a Standard tournament. While the format of the tournament still lacks the changes to be made to the Classic set in the future as well as the release of the spring expansion, it will exile Naxx and GvG from play.
Hearthstone experts have spoken at length about the upcoming rotation and what it might mean for the game when it arrives, and it’s even easier to predict in the case of the Curse Trials. With defensive cards like [card]Antique Healbot[/card] and [card]Sludge Belcher[/card] gone, aggro decks like Shaman have even more chances to shine. Druids are also expected to have a field day, as their builds consist mostly of classic cards, their combo power will remain untouched and they will only have to find replacements for midrange minions such as [card]Piloted Shredder[/card] and [card]Shade of Naxxramas[/card].
Speaking of Shredder, his presence at the 4-slot will be heavily missed and players will likely have to gravitate towards other solid midrange drops, [card]Chillwind Yeti[/card] or [card]Mechanical Yeti[/card], for example, or even [card]Sen'jin Shieldmasta[/card]. Meanwhile, many theorize that the departure of Belcher and Healbot might mean increased appearance of [card]Cairne Bloodhoof[/card], who previously traded badly with Belcher, and [card]Refreshment Vendor[/card] as an additional source of healing.
Turning an eye to the actual groups, however, we have Group A and Group B played today, February 17, with the other two following the next day. Playoffs are on February 19.
