The next Hearthstone expansion, Saviors of Uldum, will roll around on August 6. But before that happens, players can jump deck-first into the Fire Fest-E.V.I.L., a three-week event with new Tavern Brawls, legendary quests, and a community challenge to reveal new cards coming in the expansion.
Blackrock Crash Week 1, the first Tavern Brawl, players will face off against Blackrock bosses as different members of the League of E.V.I.L. Beating four bosses will get you a Saviors of Uldum card pack, and defeating all eight will add the Ragnaros card back to your collection. Our resident card-slinger notes that you can complete daily quests in the Brawl too—handy for doubling up on your game time to reward ration (just don't ask how he already knows this).
The Fest-E.V.I.L., which feels like particularly delicious reference, also offers timed rewards: Beating all eight bosses in under an hour earns a Golden Bronze Herald card, and doing it in less than 40 minutes gets you a Golden Recurring Villain card.
In Blackrock Crash Week 2, it's the same fight but as a new "Arch-villainous playable Hero." Rewards in the second week include another Saviors of Uldum pack for defeating four bosses, and a Golden Rafaam's Scheme card for beating all eight using Arch-Villain Rafaam.
Things change more dramatically in week 3 with The Burndown, a PvP brawl that assigns random decks to players. If you lose, you'll go into your next match equipped with the deck that beat you, which will presumably up your odds of victory. (Unless you lost because you're just really bad at Hearthstone, I suppose.) The reward for this brawl is a Saviors of Uldum card pack for your first win.
The collective effort to deliver a beatdown on bosses during the Blackrock Crash weeks of the Fire Fest-E.V.I.L. will also reveal some of the cards coming in the Saviors of Uldum expansion. The ultimate goal is to defeat 25 million bosses in Tavern Brawls; cards will be revealed at 25, 50, and 75 percent of the goal, and if all 25 million bosses go down, a Legendard card will be unveiled.
The real-world Fireside Gatherings are also being supported during the Fire Fest-E.V.I.L., with players teaming up to take down the mighty Ragnaros. He has a whopping 15,000 health (which is why this has to be a group effort) but each victory against him will count as 500 defeated bosses in the community challenge. A new Legendary quest will also be unlocked every day during the first week of the event, with rewards including a card pack from one of the current standard sets or "a hefty sum of gold."
Hearthstone's Fire Fest-E.V.I.L. event is live now and runs until 9 am PT/12 pm ET on July 31. Details are up at playhearthstone.com.
Hearthstone fans can also score free cards this weekend by watching the Grandmasters Season 1 Playoffs on Twitch. Watching three hours of streaming, consecutive or not, will earn you a free Rise of Shadows card pack, and if you can hang in for six hours you'll get another one. 1500 eligible viewers will also be chosen to win a free pack every hour during the playoffs.
The following channels are eligible:
The Grandmaster Season 1 Playoffs run July 12-14, from 2am–3pm PT. Don't forget to link your Twitch and Battle.net accounts if you want the stuff.
