Hearthstone: Saviors of Uldum card analyses (Part 5)

Hearthstone is in the middle of the Year of the Dragon and now it is time for the year's second big expansion. The ongoing storyline for this year continues, as the League of E.V.I.L. journeys to the desert for Hearthstone's next expansion, Saviors of Uldum. Blizzard is unveiling another round of 135 cards to join the Standard and Wild rotations.

That means it's time once again for Shacknews to break down each of the expansion's cards, one-by-one. Before the card reveals begin in earnest, we're going to take a look at the cards unveiled, some of which utilize some brand new mechanics to Hearthstone.

Before we start, a quick recap of what we've unveiled to this point:

Hearthstone: Saviors of Uldum card analyses (Part 1)
Hearthstone: Saviors of Uldum card analyses (Part 2)
Hearthstone: Saviors of Uldum card analyses (Part 3)
Hearthstone: Saviors of Uldum - The livestream card reveals

Hearthstone: Saviors of Uldum - Plague of Murlocs interview

And now, let's get started.

(3) Hooked Scimitar (2/2)
Type: Weapon
Class: Rogue
Rarity: Common
Commbo: Gain +2 Attack.
Source: MKRR on YouTube

Analysis: The Rogue has a slew of Combo cards and many of those Combos prove to be plenty useful. This probably won't be one of them, as the base stats are rather weak and it's going to require multiple resources to merely turn it into a lesser Truesilver Champion.

You can't even get a boost from Spirit of the Shark here. This feels like a weak addition to the Rogue arsenal.

(8) Tortollan Pilgrim (5/5)
Type: Minion
Class: Mage
Rarity: Epic
Battlecry: Discover a copy of a spell in your deck and cast it with random targets.
Source: Nightmare on YouTube

Analysis: Big Spell Mage has largely gone by the wayside in recent expansions, but Tortollan Pilgrim will be a useful minion should it ever make its way back into the meta. This will pull out a discovered copy of a spell in your deck and cast it right away. So if you've filled your deck with Blizzard or Flamestrike, this is going to prove mighty useful.

Big Spell Mage probably won't make any sort of comeback in this meta, but I'd keep this guy in mind for the future.

(1) Mogu Cultist (1/1)
Type: Minion
Class: Neutral
Rarity: Epic
Battlecry: If your board is full of Mogu Cultists, sacrifice them all and summon Highkeeper Ra.
Source: Gamespot

Analysis: Earlier this week, we talked about Desert Obelisk and I scratched my head as to how that combo could work. With Mogu Cultist, there is no such question. The sneaky Rogue has all the tools it needs to pull this combo off.

All you're going to need is the Togwaggle's Scheme/Tak Nozwhisker combo to make this work by filling your hand with Mogu Cultists.

Your toughest obstacle will be if the opponent sees the combo coming and simply opts to leave Tak on board. Make sure to pack a Shadowstep to get him out of your way, just in case.

(9) Anubisath Warbringer (9/6)
Type: Minion
Class: Neutral
Rarity: Common
Deathrattle: Give all minions in your hand +3/+3.
Source: Blizzard ANZ on Twitter

Analysis: We've seen similar minions to this guy in the past, but Anubisath Warbringer is the most expensive of the bunch. His 9-Cost and relatively weak 9/6 stats almost make him unplayable in constructed decks. Maybe if you're a Warlock running Fel Lord Betrug and Plot Twist, but there are better cards to run in those decks.

He'll be a half-decent pick in Arena and he'll be sighted the most there. But if there's a better choice out there, don't go out of your way to pick this guy.

(4) Diseased Vulture (3/5)
Type: Minion - Beast
Class: Warlock
Rarity: Epic
After your hero takes damage on your turn, summon a random 3-Cost minion.
Source: UDN Game

Analysis: "OH, IT DIES! SQUAWK!"

Yes, this is a much better version of Vex Crow, able to summon a higher cost minion through any of the Warlock's various means to hurt himself. A Turn 5 Vulture with Flame Imp isn't a bad play at all, right?

Diseased Vulture will prove quite popular in both constructed and Arena decks, given how easy it is to activate its effect. On top of that, its 3/5 stats make it a tough removal, so it'll probably stick around for a turn. That's long enough to use your Hero Power to get a card and a 3-Cost minion on the board.

(2) Neferset Ritualist (2/3)
Type: Minion
Class: Neutral
Rarity: Rare
Battlecry: Restore adjacent minions to full Health.
Source: UDN Game

Analysis: On its face, this doesn't look all that impressive. You certainly won't see it a lot in constructed play.

But this will be every Arena player's best friend. It's a much better Hozen Healer, able to be played for half the Cost and for double the effect. It can be played on Turn 2 as a vanilla minion or it can be played in the late game, where it will undoubtedly swing the game by healing a big-time minion all the way to full health. This is going to prove to be a very popular card in Arena play.

(1) Into the Fray
Type: Spell
Class: Warrior
Rarity: Rare
Give all Taunt minions in your hand +2/+2.
Source: YiBenDao on Douyu

Analysis: Blizzard continues to add a lot of cards that will be a big help to the other Warrior quest and not the one that they're introducing. Into the Fray will help get your Taunts to higher stats, which could prove to be a decent Turn 1 play. It could get your Zilliax up to 5/4, which is just filthy. It'll also buff your Armagedillo, which will later buff your other Taunt minions even further.

Needless to say, you're probably running this card if you're running the old Quest Warrior in Wild. Keep building that wall on your way to victory.

(2) Pressure Plate
Type: Spell
Class: Hunter
Rarity: Common
Secret: After your opponent casts a spell, destroy a random enemy minion.
Source: Pahtra Cadness on YouTube

Analysis: This is the Spider Bomb effect, only as a Secret. It's another irritating weapon in the Hunter Secret arsenal.

It plays well with a slew of the other Hunter Secrets, however it is a situational play. It's not going to do you much good against zoo decks and clever players will figure out a way to work around this, like putting a Mechanical Whelp on the board. It's a nice idea on paper, but it doesn't look like it's going to land on the higher tier of Hunter Secrets.

(3) Infested Goblin (2/3)
Type: Minion
Class: Neutral
Rarity: Rare
Taunt. Deathrattle: Add two 1/1 Scarabs with Taunt to your hand.
Source: Tarreo

Analysis: Here's yet another Taunt minion that'll fit like a glove in the old Wild Quest Warrior set. Infested Goblin will get in your opponent's way before offering two more Taunt minions to keep getting in your opponent's way.

This can fit nicely in Warlock zoo decks, especially with the 1/1 Scarabs working as ideal targets for Grim Rally. It'll make for an even better Arena minion, especially in the early game.

(2) Frightened Flunky (2/2)
Type: Minion
Class: Warrior
Rarity: Common
Taunt. Battlecry: Discover a Taunt minion.
Source: Tarreo

Analysis: Zoinks! The Warrior just got a nice tool for its Taunt arsenal. Frightened Flunky won't scare anyone with its 2/2 stats... unless you combine it with the Into the Fray spell from earlier. But you're not playing this for stats, you're playing for tempo while you also add a much better Taunt minion to your hand.

Again, this is another fantastic addition to the Wild Quest Warrior, which will look to make a big comeback with this expansion. The Warrior certainly won't be short on Taunt minions to work with.

(5) Wasteland Assassin (4/2)
Type: Minion
Class: Neutral
Rarity: Common
Stealth. Reborn
Source: Dekkster on YouTube

Analysis: There isn't much to say about the Wasteland Assassin, other than you'd better make its play count. These 4/2 stats are excessively weak and the idea is that Reborn will allow it to strike more than once. But there are a lot of ways to dispatch two health minions, so be careful when playing against a spell-heavy class that can ruin your day.

(2) Grandmummy (1/2)
Type: Minion
Class: Priest
Rarity: Rare
Reborn. Deathrattle: Give a random friendly minion +1/+1.
Source: Yahoo Esports Taiwan

Analysis: Grandmummy is an excellent Turn 2 tempo play for the Priest player, especially the one hoping to give Northshire Cleric a little bit of a boost. The downside would be if the opponent goes after the Cleric first, giving the Grandmummy nothing to boost.

There are certainly much worse cards out there and I can see Grandmummy finding a place in a number of constructed and Arena decks going forward.

(10) Colossus of the Moon (10/10)
Type: Minion
Class: Neutral
Rarity: Legendary
Divine Shield. Reborn
Source: Hearthside Chat – Secrets of the Sands | Saviors of Uldum

Analysis: Oh, this isn't even fair. Look at this thing! A massive 10/10 monolith with Divine Shield and if you do somehow manage to kill it, it just comes back with one health... and a Divine Shield!

I'm not even talking about dropping this thing as a Turn 10 play, though that's certainly possible. But Conjurer Mages are going to have a field day with this thing, turning their Sea Giant into one of these. It's going to be the object of Mage opponent's nightmares.

And needless to say, he's a big winner in Arena by a significant margin.

(5) Plague of Wrath
Type: Spell
Class: Warrior
Rarity: Rare
Destroy all damaged minions.
Source: Hearthside Chat – Secrets of the Sands | Saviors of Uldum

Analysis: An absolutely devastating Warrior spell, best looked at as a much more powerful Sleep with the Fishes. This is going to be a staple in a lot of Warrior decks, especially given a lot of the Dr. Boom, Mad Genius Hero Powers and the Dyn-o-matic effect. When combined with those, this spell has very little downside.

I wouldn't expect this to outright replace Brawl, but for the same cost, this is a much better removal effect and more efficient if used under the right circumstances.

(4) Sunstruck Henchman (6/5)
Type: Minion
Class: Neutral
Rarity: Rare
At the start of your turn, this has a 50% chance to fall asleep.
Source: Hearthside Chat – Secrets of the Sands | Saviors of Uldum

Analysis: They can't all be winners and the Sunstruck Henchman definitely isn't one. Its effect is far too risky, even if those 6/5 stats on a 4-Cost are pretty sweet. But that doesn't mean this guy is entirely useless. If you end up with a Sunstruck Henchman off a random effect, try giving it Taunt with something like Sunfury Protector. If it's going to fall asleep like a brick wall, at least make your opponent have to go through it first.

That's all for now! There isn't much time before Hearthstone's next expansion arrives, so that means Shacknews had better get rolling with more card analyses. And we'll have them for you all week! Hearthstone: Saviors of Uldum is set to arrive on August 6.