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Hearthstone: Into the Emerald Dream will start the Year of the Raptor

The Old Gods are threatening Ysera's domain in Hearthstone's next expansion to kick off the new Standard year.

Ozzie Mejia

February 18, 2025 10:35 AM

Blizzard Entertainment

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It's been an exciting week for the Hearthstone team. Late last week, Blizzard announced the roadmap for the game's next Standard year, which will take players through the Year of the Raptor. It's all set to begin with the next expansion, Into the Emerald Dream, which will venture into the magical realm outside of Azeroth. On Tuesday, Blizzard offered some more details on this first expansion of the new year.

Hearthstone: Into the Emerald Dream ventures into Ysera's colorful realm, where all Nature magic eminates from. The realm is under threat by the Old Gods, which threaten to corrupt it and mold it into their nightmarish vision. The Druid, Hunter, Mage, Paladin, Priest, and Shaman will seek to aid Ysera and the other Wild Gods while the Death Knight, Demon Hunter, Rogue, Warrior, and Warlock have succumbed to the call of the Old Gods. Those classes aiding the Wild Gods will receive cards with the new Imbue keyword, which will offer upgraded Hero Powers that can be buffed the more times Imbue cards are played. The other classes will receive cards that grant Dark Gifts, which are standard Hearthstone cards with buffed-up effects.

Into the Emerald Dream will mark the beginning of the Year of the Raptor. In addition to three expansions, look for a refreshed Core set, some unrevealed changes to the classic Arena mode, new Pet cosmetics, and various changes and additions to Battlegrounds.

Look for Hearthstone: Into the Emerald to launch on Tuesday, March 25. Those who log in starting today can pick up the new Neutral Legendary dragon Ysera, Emerald Aspect, which promises to change the meta in a big way. The new Ysera's effect will increase both players' maximum Mana by 5, giving them a total of up to 15 Mana, which could make games with the recent Heroes of StarCraft mini-set a little spicier. The in-game Shop will also contain two free copies of the 2-Cost Creature of Madness, which Discovers a 3-Cost minion with a Dark Gift when played.

Ozzie Mejia

Senior Editor

Ozzie has been playing video games since picking up his first NES controller at age 5. He has been into games ever since, only briefly stepping away during his college years. But he was pulled back in after spending years in QA circles for both THQ and Activision, mostly spending time helping to push forward the Guitar Hero series at its peak. Ozzie has become a big fan of platformers, puzzle games, shooters, and RPGs, just to name a few genres, but he’s also a huge sucker for anything with a good, compelling narrative behind it. Because what are video games if you can't enjoy a good story with a fresh Cherry Coke?