Ok, so a lot of people complain on me taking so long time to write this stuff. Well first of all I am that kind of person that I really want to make sure I have thoroughly tested everything, all type of interactions between the cards and been over 100 of game per class.
I could write educated guesses before the cards were released like most "big names" does but I truly despise that. Because what that usually bring are ideas like,
Sylvanas is a better pick then Nozdormu-- you dont say.
Anyone can say that. The real skills is knowing, which one of this shitty legendaries should I pick. And really is not even about legendaries at all, while they can add that extra flare and secure a win of course its about the common cards. Common cards are the one that is the backbone of the deck, and to be able to say what common card is the best as most of them aren't so amazing, that takes a lot of game testing. (Well if I had not gone to Turkey for 2 weeks last month I would have written this then instead)
So I have played at least 200 arena runs since Goblin vs Gnomes was released now, that runs not games. I would never write any type of guide before doing at least 10 runs per class. Obviously takes a while, one thing I do a lot of helping me friends play. I have one in particular were we almost every day does that he share his screen on Skype while drafting and playing the game. Then I can help him pick cards and play the turns, on the same time I play my own games!
If you have ever see me play, you would see I do my turns in max 10 seconds all the turns, I take roughly 5 seconds on every turn regardless on what turn is it. So the other time of me waiting for my opponent I can look at his screen. Its quite effective so I can play 2 runs on the same time ;) So I done anther 60 runs with him like that or so with Goblins vs Gnomes.
Lastly I should mention like with Naxxramas card I play to get 7!
I don't play to try and get 12. I always take the safe route and continuously get gold. Thats why I almost never move my gold holdings but I can play infinitive arena runs, while only slowly increasing my gold. I have never been a flashy player I just want to win always. I never try to make combos if I don't already have the combo card etc. Only in rare cases do I value taking a combo card when not having the others and so on. I also almost completely ignore curve until card 20+ Value in cards is what matters. I would never pick an early 2 mana drop just because I want early cards with e.g warrior over a great 5 drop. Unless its the 21 pick and I need to fill that place out. Of course if I am trying to build Zoolock I take all cheap cards, I have 2 mindset either I play to get back the cost to get a free pack, I was the first one to farm all cards in Europe with the vanilla cards like this so, no issue really. Or I play to not give a fuck and just try and build the deck I want, like taking all murloc cards that pop up because the first card I got was a murloc theme card.
Anyway let start Druid and I like with Naxxramas will work my way down to the most useful Guide, Neutral cards (I should almost start with that one, shouldn't I but I don't like to change my previous order of Druid > Hunter >...Neutral, basically I did wrong the last time but I stick by it so it don't seem planned, this is something I learned from working at Activision Blizzard ;) don't change old mistakes, pretend like they were intentionally)
So the robo Cub, its a decent addition to the druid chance to get more 2 drops. Thats about it. Its not a fantastic card, its almost always better to place it in 3.2 so it can trade with more cards. A few times, vs e.g rogue it can be good to but it as a 2.3.
Of course its main strength comes from that if a 2.1 is out, you can play it is a 2.3. If its empty board you can instead hope to trade vs a 3.3 and place it as a 3.2. And comparing it to a card like Frostwolf Grunt which is just a 2.2 with taunt this card is much much better then him.(Well Grunt sucks so).
Its an ok card, but it exist a lot better 2 drops and on the uncommon level of cards the picks can be much better 4-5 drops like a Spectral Knight.
This is a pretty good card, clearly it goes up in worth per beast. Its quite strong for a 5 drop and druid got beast with the druid of the fang and the power of the wild + your random crocolisk etc. This is actually one of the better new cards for the arena play. Second best. But its not much to say about it, I can take it even having no beast if its very early as I hope to get e.g Druid of the claws which are always a high pick, also the Power of the wild to get a 3.2 or a 1.1+ to all minions is much better then the Cub btw. So you should get some beast. And this card is not horrible if you cant buff it.
Mech-Bear-Cat is the only good new card for druids!
Fang is ok, and cub is decent. But this is the only real new powerful card and its not actually that great either but its better then other ones. Comparing it to the classic Ogre, a plain 6.7. This got the same stats, but 7.6 same value for the mana and with a pretty good ability. Of course it would be better as a 6.7 for 2 reasons. harder to kill and its ability as it triggers from taking damage = better with more health.
But still its hard to kill at 6. It can kill almost anything with 7 in attack, it will take 1-2 attacks to get down likely, so a high chance for trading +1 in cards just like the ogre and if it does you also get 2 spare parts.
Its not better then Keeper of the Grove, which as mentioned is by far the best Rare Card for the Druid. Its also not better then Starfall as AoE is awesome to have, but after this is for many decks the 3d strongest rare to get.
I see it as an ogre that will at least also give a spare part and that says a lot as Ogres are really good.
So this card is horrible, like the rest of the new druid cards. But this is probably the worst one. Druid needed a good single target removal this is not it. A Hex is great as it does not trigger Deathrattle, this also don't trigger it but it cost 3 more mana,.,and the card can later be played anyway. This effect is horrible, temporarily removing their 1 legendary card so it can be played latter and stuff. I mean I love it as a Mill Druid player one of my my stay decks in Constructed were you can lock their next draw with Recycle in the end or do it and then mill so it gets discarded etc. Thats pretty interesting. In arena, just like Grove Tender its really bad. Its a super expansive bad removal. Better then Naturalize for the most time but t hat don't say a lot.
This is another bad card its actually so bad that it lowers the Druid Win ratio, I talk about that a little further down.
First of all, no one is ever gonna be able to utilize the 5 minions in a good way. SO no one never does summon them. Meaning this is just 5.5+ and taunt for 6. And that is bad, really bad.
Comparable to Blessing of kings which gives 4.4+ for 4 and this then give 1.1+ more and taunt, which is kinda in line with taunt being worth 1 mana in the game in general, just that 1 mana is not at all worth taunt in value wise.
But the main issue is that, Blessing of Kings is awesome, it gives you great trades, it gives you a bomb early game and you can remove their guys or you can finish someone etc.
This card is expansive so it can affect the game as much as BoK just from that, but worse is that 4.4 is enough to be able to survive a trade, while 5.5 is just overall. So the extra 2 mana for that is completely wasted and that taunt almost never does anything. As you will mainly use this for trading leaving your buffed bomb at low health so people are gonna kill it anyway that makes the taunt redundant in almost every game. Worst epic Druid has by far.
Actually Scratch that this is the worst Druid card by far, not even just Epic. I forgot it existed. WHO will ever pick this in Arena, its horrible and lowers the Druid Ratio.
So Malorne is also pretty bad. Its like a better war golem, 2 more attack. So its not horrible but probably one of the least impacttul Legendaries in the game, far worse then Cenarius.Its another Druid card that does not belong in Arena.
Judgment Druid: Goblins vs Gnomes
Druid is far worse off with these shit cards. The thing why Druid was so, so strong in the beginning was because all their class cards are bonkers in Arena, especially their 3 original epic cards are all very, very good.
Here instead both epic cards are shit, especially tree of life. And that actually decreases the chance for the player to draw them, because instead of getting 2 neutral epic and 1 awesome epic druid card. You can get 2 neutral epics and 1 horrible epic card. SO its more random now, in the old vanilla arena play, many neutral epic sucks in arena so Druid would always take their class card instead, were for example Rogue got horrible class epics instead and would always have to take some neutral card. Here druid is going that way instead, so this expasnion just makes getting good Druid cards lower. Malorne as well is much worse then Cenarius in almost any situation because he is still expansive at 7 and does nothing in the game really. So you much rather g et 2 random neutral and to Druid card were the card only can be Cenarius. And of course Groove Keeper and Recycle are also card you do not want....so yeah, its only the common cards which are decent and Mech-Bear-Cat that you should consider. Were the common ones are often worse then the neutral commons.
Looking at chance to get good class cards fat minus for Druid.
