It’s finally that time of the year again: Hearthstone is releasing a new expansion and we’re all here for it. It’s intriguingly called Murder at Castle Nathria, and it will be launched worldwide on August 2nd. The expansion will feature 135 new cards, and it features a spooky, yet undeniably interesting murder mystery setting. We are in what they call the Year of the Hydra, and Murder at Castle Nathria is the second expansion this year. The first one, Voyage to the Sunken City, released back in April, and the third one should be made available by the end of the year. For now, there is a lot to unpack in this thrilling mystery.
Image Credit: Blizzard Entertainment
Murder at Castle Nathria’s Premise
The Shadowlands are, as grim as that sounds, the realms of Death. That is where all the dead souls go, or rather the souls of dead mortals. The souls arrive in the Eternal City of Oribos where the Arbiter decides what kind of an afterlife they will have. But what happens when someone dies in the Shadowlands?
Sire Denathrius, who is also the final boss of Castle Nathria in World of Warcraft, has been murdered. It is up to us to find out who has committed the terrible deed. Before it all went down, Denathrius himself invited 10 friends, rivals, and enemies to a dinner party. We know there were 10 people, each representing one of Hearthstone’s classes, there when the murder occured. These 10 guests, all of which are suspects in their own right, are the Legendary minions for each class in this set.
The reason he invited them is because of a rumour of him hoarding anima, which is the essence of mortal souls that enter the Shadowlands. Anima is, for a lack of a better phrase, the life essence in the Shadowlands which also powers it, making it incredibly valuable. Instead of debunking the rumours and clearing his name like he intended, in a weird twist of events, he has been found dead.
Could the reason of the murder be anima itself, or is there something else that’s less obvious? This is where Murloc Holmes comes in. The aptly-named detective and his sidekick Watfin, who also has a familiar sounding name, are here to go through all the clues and conclude which of the 10 guests murdered Sire Denathrius. That is, of course, easier said than done.
New Features
A new keyword is going to be included in this expansion. We have already explained what anima is, in case you didn’t know already, and the newly added Infuse keyword will be tightly connected to it. To Infuse a card, a certain number of minions you have on the board will need to die while you have the card with the keyword in your hand. The sacrifice will be done by absorbing their anima. By doing so, the Infuse cards will reach their most powerful potential, which could prove to be a complete game changer.
Image Credit: Blizzard Entertainment
Not all cards have been revealed yet, as the expansion will be released on August 2nd. Thankfully, we already did get some glimpses of what it is going to look like. For example, one of the new common Infuse cards is going to be Priest of the Deceased. Once three minions die, the card becomes more powerful, gaining +2/+2 over its base form. A 4/5 Taunt minion for just two mana is not bad at all!
Another card that we have already seen is the Buffet Biggun. He summons two Silver Hand Recruits, but after three minions die, those Recruits will also gain +2 Attack and Divine Shield. It’s going to be an interesting addition to the already enticing game, and it will surely provide new fun and exhilarating moments.
Another interesting addition is a new card type, Locations. They will have an initial cost that has to be paid in order to actually play them. Once they are played however, they will be able to be activated on your turn, with powerful effects. In order to activate the ability, it will cost you one Durability, and will also have a one turn Cooldown. All of the classes will have their own Location cards which show where the suspect was at the time of the murder.
Nightcloak Sanctum is one of the new Location cards that has been shown to us. Once placed, you can drag the location onto an enemy minion to freeze it. To make matters more interesting, iit then also summons a 2/2 Volatile Skeleton.
Exciting times lie ahead, as the expansion will be released on August 2nd. We’re thrilled to jump into the new murder mystery themed setting to solve the heinous crime whilst battling it out with everyone along the way. And we know you are too, so get ready because, as Murloc Holmes would probably say, it’s about to get elementary, my dear Watfin. Although probably not.
