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A trade is the loss of one or more cards Cards are the basic pieces that make up the game of Hearthstone. Each card represents an action that the player can take by playing that card. There are three main types of cards: spell cards, in exchange for the elimination of one or more enemy cards. Most often, trading refers to minions Bloodfen Raptor, a simple minion card. A Beast-type minion, it has 3 Attack, 2 Health and a mana cost of 2. Minions are persistent creatures on the battlefield that will fight for their hero. Minion dying in combat This page describes the act of attacking. For the Attack attribute, see Attribute. Attacking or combat is what occurs when a player commands one character to attack another, causing them to simultaneously deal damage to , but the term may be extended to refer to spells Fireball, a simple mage spell. It costs 4 mana, dealing 6 damage to a chosen target. Spell cards are cards that can be played to trigger a one time effect or ability, described in the and weapons Garrosh Hellscream ready to attack using an equipped Fiery War Axe For the equip ability, see Equip Weapons are special cards which can be equipped by heroes. Each weapon has an Attack value and a as well. Its several variations are used to identify the tactical advantage gained or lost in the exchanges.
Discussion
The simplest type of trade is an "even trade", where two single minions kill each other in combat. For instance, two opposing 3/2 Bloodfen Raptors would both die if one attacked another; neither player gains a clear advantage from such a combat. Trades can occur over the course of multiple attacks, for instance, two Sen`jin Shieldmastas Sen jin Shieldmasta Set: Basic Type: Minion Cost: 4 Attack: 3 Health: 5 Abilities: Taunt TauntSen jin Villiage is nice, if you like trolls and dust.See this card on Hearthpwn data page] "Taz dingo!" Sen jin Shieldmasta is a could attack each other in 2 separate combats and result in an even trade.
Minions may "trade up" or "trade down" based on the mana cost of the minions involved. For instance, a 1 mana Injured Kvaldir Injured Kvaldir Set: The Grand Tournament Type: Minion Rarity: Rare Cost: 1 Attack: 2 Health: 4 Abilities: Battlecry, Deal damage Battlecry: Deal 3 damage to this minion.Don t worry. With a little skin cream he s going can kill a 2 mana Bloodfen Raptor Bloodfen Raptor Set: Basic Type: Minion Subtype: Beast Cost: 2 Attack: 3 Health: 2 "Kill 30 raptors." - Hemet NesingwarySee this card on Hearthpwn data page] Bloodfen Raptor is a neutral minion card, from the , creating an advantage for its owner, who could then cast their own 2- drop "Drop" is a colloquial term used to describe a minion of a specific mana cost. For instance, a "3-drop" is a minion which costs 3 mana, such as a Silverback Patriarch. The term may be without it being at risk of death from the Raptor. Trading up does not create card advantage since 1 card is still lost by each player, but it can create a tempo advantage by ensuring that the player`s limited mana is used to greater effect than the opponent`s.
If a minion is killed by another without killing it in return, it has failed to trade with its killer. Another minion or spell will likely be needed to finish off the enemy, resulting in an overall "2-for-1" trade, generating card advantage for the player losing only one card. For instance, a Chillwind Yeti Chillwind Yeti Set: Basic Type: Minion Cost: 4 Attack: 4 Health: 5 He always dreamed of coming down from the mountains and opening a noodle shop, but he never got the nerve.See this card on killing an Ogre Magi Ogre Magi Set: Basic Type: Minion Cost: 4 Attack: 4 Health: 4 Abilities: Spell Damage Spell Damage +1Training Ogres in the art of spellcasting is a questionable decision.See this card on Hearthpwn data page] Ogre is left at 1 health, and may then trade with a Thrallmar Farseer Thrallmar Farseer Set: Classic Type: Minion Rarity: Common Cost: 3 Attack: 2 Health: 3 Abilities: Windfury WindfuryHe s stationed in the Hellfire Peninsula, but he s hoping for a reassignment closer to Orgrimmar, or really anywhere the . Higher numbers may be used the more cards are involved in the interaction: A Blood Knight Blood Knight Set: Classic Type: Minion Rarity: Epic Cost: 3 Attack: 3 Health: 3 Abilities: Battlecry Tags: Divine Shield-related Battlecry: All minions lose Divine Shield. Gain +3/+3 for each Shield lost.The Blood Knights get their may kill a Frostwolf Grunt Frostwolf Grunt Set: Basic Type: Minion Cost: 2 Attack: 2 Health: 2 Abilities: Taunt TauntGrunting is what his father did and his father before that. It s more than just a job.See this card on Hearthpwn , be killed by a Dalaran Mage Dalaran Mage Set: Basic Type: Minion Cost: 3 Attack: 1 Health: 4 Abilities: Spell Damage Spell Damage +1You don t see a lot of Dalaran warriors.See this card on Hearthpwn data page] Dalaran Mage is a , which is used to hit a Silvermoon Guardian Silvermoon Guardian Set: Classic Type: Minion Rarity: Common Cost: 4 Attack: 3 Health: 3 Abilities: Divine Shield Divine ShieldThe first time they tried to guard Silvermoon against the scourge, it didn’t go so well…See this , which finally trades into an Emperor Cobra Emperor Cobra Set: Classic Type: Minion Subtype: Beast Rarity: Rare Cost: 3 Attack: 2 Health: 3 Abilities: Destroy, Poisonous Tags: Damage-related, Triggered effect PoisonousThe Sholazar Basin is home to a lot of really horrible things. - a 3-for-2 exchange in favor of the Blood Knight and Silvermoon Guardian. In the same vein, a series of interrelated combats may result in an approximately even trade even if each individual combat was lopsided in one direction or another.
This concept can be easily applied to spells and weapons. For instance, a Fireball Fireball Set: Basic Type: Spell Class: Mage Cost: 4 Abilities: Deal damage Deal 6 damage.This spell is useful for burning things. If you re looking for spells that toast things, or just warm them a little, used to kill a Chillwind Yeti Chillwind Yeti Set: Basic Type: Minion Cost: 4 Attack: 4 Health: 5 He always dreamed of coming down from the mountains and opening a noodle shop, but he never got the nerve.See this card on is an even trade, since two 4 mana cards eliminate each other from the game. An Earth Shock Earth Shock Set: Classic Type: Spell Class: Shaman Rarity: Common Cost: 1 Abilities: Deal damage, Silence Silence a minion, then deal 1 damage to it.Earth Shock? Shouldn t it be "Azeroth Shock"?See this card on Hearthpwn used to kill a Twilight Drake Twilight Drake Set: Classic Type: Minion Subtype: Dragon Rarity: Rare Cost: 4 Attack: 4 Health: 1 Abilities: Battlecry Tags: Hand-related Battlecry: Gain +1 Health for each card in your hand.Twilight drakes feed on Mystical Energy. is a significant trade up, since a 1 mana spell was used to kill a 4 mana minion. Area of effect Area of effect (AoE) is the term for an effect which affects all characters of the specified type. Common targets for AoEs include all enemy minions, all minions, and all characters. AoE is defined in spells such as Blizzard Blizzard Set: Classic Type: Spell Class: Mage Rarity: Rare Cost: 6 Abilities: Deal damage, Freeze Tags: Area of effect Deal 2 damage to all enemy minions and Freeze them.This spell can be very Entertaining.See this often create many-for-1 trades by killing multiple minions with a single spell. Weapons can allow several-for-one trades since they can attack more than once without being destroyed.
Minion special abilities can be taken into account when identifying trades. For instance, a Bomb Lobber Bomb Lobber Set: Goblins vs Gnomes Type: Minion Rarity: Rare Cost: 5 Attack: 3 Health: 3 Abilities: Battlecry, Deal damage Tags: Random Battlecry: Deal 4 damage to a random enemy minion.He lobbies Orgrimmar daily on that kills a Salty Dog Salty Dog Set: Goblins vs Gnomes Type: Minion Subtype: Pirate Rarity: Common Cost: 5 Attack: 7 Health: 4 He s recently recovered from being a "scurvy dog."See this card on Hearthpwn data page] Salty Dog is with its Battlecry Battlecry is an ability where a particular effect activates when the card with the Battlecry is played directly from the hand. Although mostly limited to minions, some weapons also have Battlecries. Activation of Battlecries are before trading with a Blood Knight Blood Knight Set: Classic Type: Minion Rarity: Epic Cost: 3 Attack: 3 Health: 3 Abilities: Battlecry Tags: Divine Shield-related Battlecry: All minions lose Divine Shield. Gain +3/+3 for each Shield lost.The Blood Knights get their has given its owner an excellent 2-for-1 trade. Less direct abilities can be more difficult to judge; for instance a Gnomish Inventor Gnomish Inventor Set: Basic Type: Minion Cost: 4 Attack: 2 Health: 4 Abilities: Battlecry, Draw cards Battlecry: Draw a card.She s never quite sure what she s making, she just knows it s AWESOME!See this card on Hearthpwn trading with a Magma Rager Magma Rager Set: Basic Type: Minion Subtype: Elemental Cost: 3 Attack: 5 Health: 1 He likes to think he is powerful, but pretty much anyone can solo Molten Core now.See this card on Hearthpwn data has traded down slightly from the tempo perspective of cards on the board (it cost 4 mana to get Gnomish Inventor in play compared to 3 for the Magma Rager), but has created a 2-for-1 (or arguably a 1-for-0) trade in terms of card advantage, because the Gnomish Inventor essentially drew a replacement for itself via its Battlecry.
"Favorable" and "unfavorable" trading can refer to generating tempo, card advantage, or both, and is an important skill for selecting attacks and casting minions and spells for their fullest potential.
For a deeper discussion of strategies, see Card advantage Sometimes, you’ll find yourself in a position where you can easily play your whole hand while your opponent is still holding on to close to the maximum of 10 cards. Unless you can win the and Tempo Tempo is an unofficial term that describes which way the "momentum" of a match is going, as well as a label for decks which aim to keep tempo on their side. It is one of .
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