How Do You Handle the Game's Explosive Pace?

Multiplayer Discussion
1

So, I gave the game another try to see if it’s any better or less frustrating than before.

I think I’ve pinpointed my personal issue with it now: I just can’t handle the explosiveness of certain turns that the game throws at you.

Here’s the deal: I prefer a slow buildup, where small, deliberate plays lead to victory. You showcase your skill through those incremental moves, and in my mind, if you’ve built a solid foundation throughout the game, it shouldn’t be possible for a single explosive turn to completely undo multiple turns’ worth of work.

But that’s not how it is. After a 90-day plus break, I was given six options for return decks, and I picked Aggro Pirate DH, just because.

In my first match against a Paladin, I played the first few turns flawlessly. Then, they dropped a 3-mana 4/6 Divine Shield Taunt. Okay, I cleared it. But then they played a card that replayed the 10-cost minion. Like… how am I supposed to compete with that? I was completely out of gas and conceded.

On top of that, why am I still at the same MMR I was months ago? I’m facing meta decks while I’ve got almost nothing. I have to wait 7 days for a loaner deck, but in the meantime, I’m just getting stomped at high MMR without a decent deck to play.

Anyway, enough of that. I want to ask this question to see if I’m just a dinosaur when it comes to enjoying HS.

Do you guys actually enjoy the explosive turns? Do you like going from 10 Health to 30, or winning out of nowhere because of some crazy combo? Am I the weird one for wanting slow, steady accumulation over multiple turns to be the way to win? Is it weird to want Health be an actual resource, and not just a threshold for OTK decks to exist?

2 Likes
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If everything is explosive then nothing is and what you call explosive is just the norm.

3

Yep, that’s the current design direction: just make everything kind of broken at around the same pace. You get balance, but it’s not everyone’s cup of tea.

4

I totally get where you’re coming from, and you’re not alone in feeling frustrated by those explosive turns. The appeal of slow, strategic play where each decision builds on the last is a style that resonates with a lot of players, especially those who prefer a more methodical approach to winning. It’s about earning victory through careful planning and outplaying your opponent over time, rather than everything hinging on one massive, game-changing turn.

The current meta can feel like it’s all about high-impact plays and swinging the board in one turn, which doesn’t give you much room to recover, especially when you’ve laid a solid foundation. It can be demoralizing when all your work gets undone in a single move. I think part of the challenge is that the game has evolved to cater to faster-paced, flashier moments, and while some players enjoy that unpredictability and excitement, it’s definitely not for everyone.

As for the MMR situation, it does seem a bit rough to be thrown back into the same high-level competition without the right tools. It feels like you’re being set up for failure, and that just adds to the frustration. Hopefully, once you get a loaner deck, it’ll feel more balanced.

And no, you’re not weird for preferring the slower, more deliberate style. It’s just that the game has shifted over time to reward explosiveness more than gradual buildup. That said, there are still plenty of players who share your preference for thoughtful, strategic play, so you’re definitely not alone in that.

It’s worth sticking with the game a bit longer once you have better options, but if the style doesn’t change, it’s understandable to feel like it might not be your thing anymore. Hopefully, future updates or metas will bring more balance between the two playstyles.

1 Like
5

Except this is the literal point of a combination deck.

I don’t know what game you’re playing, but it’s pretty much always been this way all the way back to warlock dropping giants and gg.

I think you’re recalling a time when more people than not played bad lists poorly rather than anything about the design of the game.

The fact is information exchange and game knowledge is very different, making most players better informed and thereby better set up to win.

6

They purposefully design the game to be swing turn after swing turn.

Direct quote citation can be found here:

https://www.reddit.com/r/hearthstone/comments/1e5ky8p/do_you_agree_with_the_developers_that_explosive/

You are not alone, a large, maybe majority, population of dedicated players disagree at least with the frequency of board resets and swing turns, if not outright hate it.

But devs don’t really care they push and peddle what they think is good for the game, likely pushing out whatever loyal player base they still have.

1 Like
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I might be a few days late to this topic. But I wanted to point out my personal experience with the game right now if this may help you in the future.

I actually returned 3 weeks ago after several years of being absent from the game. Last time I played was the Frozen throne expansion, then I quit for the rest of those years. However I have been watching hearthstone vids as much as I could, studying, improving, refining my deck over and over again to a point where my winrate has increased tremendously since I started. I have disenchanted all the cards I didn’t want to make this deck work in my best interest, so it’s entirely personal growth.

Pirate Aggro is actually extremely good against paladins in the early game, but around 3-5 mana cost is when paladins start to beef up with some incredibly strong cards, and I know this because I play a pure paladin, midrange/control deck that is specifically designed to prolong the game’s mana cycle(Not tempo deck). And this took a lot of practice and preparation before I started recognizing other player’s synergies. So far my wins and losses are consistent with each other, but I have been improving on my playstyle which allowed me to beat a spellmage deck that actually counters mine by a huge margin. It usually depends sometimes. I lost my second game to a spellmage, and I won the next two simply by being patient with my cards.

I am so glad you mentioned this because my deck is designed for this playstyle you’re looking for.

If you want I can offer you my Deck Code if it’s something you wish to experiment with, I always keep refining my deck to ensure that I can play it the way I need to, and succeed without major problems. I think for now I may have perfected the playstyle, but I am still looking for cards that may overall improve my performance with it. Unfortunately I don’t provide my deck code on the forums because I like to be personal with my stuff.

If you wanna chat or do some duels together, and practice playstyles, you can add me at ShadowReaper #1586

8

How do I handle it. I look at my quests, build decks around them, complete quest, then log out. I only play to keep up with gold and dust in the hope the game will have less toxic cards in the future.

9

It doesn’t matter what the few people here think.

Blizzard data says the people who spend money want the game play you don’t, that’s typical of mobile games, and you aren’t their target market anymore. This is what the game is now and our only choice is play or move on.

We are long past “I want to make a really great card game” and way into “how do we milk this cash cow to improve our margins?”