【My Mothers Friend 5】

The My Mothers Friend 5party is in full swing. All the cards from Heathstone’s One Night in Karazhan adventure can now be unlocked, and most serious players have had a chance to test out the most promising new additions.

With all 45 new cards out on the ladder, it’s time to highlight a handful of the best. Not only do these cards offer serious fun and power, but they’ve also been helping to shape the metagame in meaningful ways. Here are the five most impactful additions from One Night in Karazhan.

1. Barnes

Few cards have had as striking an impact in creating new decks as Barnes, Karazhan’s operatic stage manager. The legendary minion can be played across classes, and it has proven a worthy addition to multiple different play styles. Some new decks seem specifically designed to take advantage of the extra tempo and board control that his battlecry offers, making it the top choice for most impactful card from One Night in Karazhan.

It’s generally less impactful if it brings a second battlecry card into action, but just about any other major mechanic can come into play in a meaningful way, even as just a 1/1 body. Imagine having another Sylvanas Windrunner in your deck, or Ragnaros or Cairne Bloodhoof. That’s a scary and exciting thought. If you haven’t explored the meta options unlocked by this card, get yourself to the second wing of One Night in Karazhanand start the fun.

2. Kindly Grandmother

Hunter decks are back on the upswing these days after a dry spell, with several variants currently in action on the standard ladder. Whether you like the Hybrid, Mid-Range, or Secret version, there’s a good chance that Kindly Grandmother was a reason you came back to the class.

The card is a great match for both tempo and aggressive decks. Its sticky board presence actually poses a bigger threat after the initial minion dies. And it offers massive value, with total stats of 4 attack/3 health for just two mana. Given the phasing out of silence cards, Kindly Grandmother is an excellent early-game addition for the Hunters.

3. Onyx Bishop

Even with the uproar over Purify, Priests actually made out pretty well in Karazhan with a couple powerful new class cards. Many streamers have been testing out Priest builds and wind up surprised to start racking up wins. Priest of the Feast is worth consideration in several builds, but Onyx Bishop is the real standout. The card has helped spark a surge in Resurrect decks, built around keeping board presence from re-summoning minions that have died.

Priest can a challenging class to play well, and especially in lesser hands, its not always the most effective option on ladder. But it’s good to see Blizzard finding ways to stay true to the core concepts of the original World of Warcraft class and translating them into meta-friendly Hearthstone cards.

4. Arcane Giant

Over the years, Blizzard has offered players several different takes on the Giant cards. Molten Giants cost less based on how much damage your hero has taken, while the Mountain Giant mana discount is based on cards in the player’s hand. Reducing mana cost around spells played makes Arcane Giant a useful resource in lots of different deck styles. It has made appearances in everything from Freeze Mage to Token Druid.

Many deck styles expect you to run a few big, beefy minions to help seal a late-game victory. The Arcane Giant is a great way to fill that role, especially for players who might not have the heavy hitters that were released in past expansions. The card is a great take on the overall Giant dynamic and has been a welcome addition thus far.

5. Menagerie Warden

Have you been running into the Beast Druid build on ladder and getting stomped? It’s all Menagerie Warden’s fault. Other expansions have tried to emphasize the class’ beast-centric cards, but most of those additions weren’t quite strong or consistent enough for beast decks to make a spash. Until now.

The huge power of the battlecry has inspired some devastating beast synergy builds, especially when backed by other new Druid additions such as Mounted Raptor, Mark of Y’Shaarj, and The Curator. It’s good to see this beast permutation adding to the richness and variety of the Druid class.