Hearthstone's Giggling Inventor, Mana Wyrm, and Aviana cards have been nerfed

Despite saying in September that it had no immediate plans to change Hearthstone's Giggling Inventor, Blizzard announced today that it is being nerfed, and the card will now cost a whopping 7 Mana to play, rather than 5. Two other cards, Mana Wyrm and Aviana, are also having their cost increased. 

"Giggling Inventor is one of the most powerful and popular cards we’ve ever created. There’s virtually no downside to including it in a deck, and because it’s neutral, it’s played in almost every deck," Blizzard explained.   

"We think it’s important to take risks when making powerful cards, especially when it comes to neutral taunts, given the role they can play in encouraging minion interactions and making games more interesting. However, Giggling Inventor has stepped beyond its intended role, and we don’t feel that it should be as effective as it currently is." 

A 2-Mana increase is a pretty heavy hit, but testing showed that the card was still too powerful at 6, particularly since it has no "build-around requirements," Blizzard said. "At 7 mana, we expect Giggling Inventor will find its way into fewer decks in general—and be much less effective in Quest Rogue—while remaining situationally playable within specific deck archetypes, such as Evolve Shaman." 

Mana Wyrm will now cost 2 mana instead of 1, which is an even bigger deal than the Giggling Inventor change—it's only one point, but that one point doubles the cost, which is a significant nerf. The higher mana cost fits with Blizzard's gradual move away from powerful early-game cards. Doubling the Mana cost will make it harder to buff the card with cheap, early spells, and while it should remain a viable card in decks built around cheap spells, it probably won't be seen as much elsewhere.

Aviana is also getting a 1 Mana increase, from 9 to 10, meaning "it will no longer be possible to play Aviana and Kun the Forgotten King on the same turn without some additional help from cards like Innervate or The Coin." Juicy Psychmelon will also no longer draw both Aviana and Kun, which Blizzard expects will reduce the consistency of their combos, "while still allowing decks that use the combos to exist for the players that enjoy playing them." The mere fact Blizzard is making a nerf with the Wild mode in mind, which is the main format Aviana is playable in these days, will come as some relief to its playerbase. 

The three-card Hearthstone update is live now. Full details are available at playhearthstone.com

Andy Chalk
US News Lead

Andy has been gaming on PCs from the very beginning, starting as a youngster with text adventures and primitive action games on a cassette-based TRS80. From there he graduated to the glory days of Sierra Online adventures and Microprose sims, ran a local BBS, learned how to build PCs, and developed a longstanding love of RPGs, immersive sims, and shooters. He began writing videogame news in 2007 for The Escapist and somehow managed to avoid getting fired until 2014, when he joined the storied ranks of PC Gamer. He covers all aspects of the industry, from new game announcements and patch notes to legal disputes, Twitch beefs, esports, and Henry Cavill. Lots of Henry Cavill.

Latest in Card Game
A snakewoman holding a sickle
Magic: The Gathering's Tarkir: Dragonstorm set isn't just about dragons
A blue dragon rises into storm clouds
Wizards of the Coast throws a bone to players who miss vanilla Magic: The Gathering with a dragon-themed set called Tarkir: Dragonstorm
A joker card with other cards in the background
Balatro's publisher doesn't know how big the 1.1 update will be or when it's coming: 'He's just gonna show up one day and say, here's 100 new jokers'
The jester from Balatro, portrayed in unsettling detail in real life, wears an uncanny smile and stares at the viewer.
Balatro's LocalThunk isn't 'trying to pull a Banksy', he just 'wanted to be left alone to make his game'
Hands pushing poker chips on a table
Winning $2.6 billion in this poker videogame has completely ruined fake poker for me
A pack of real life Balatro cards.
The official Balatro Timeline documents the history of 2024's biggest game as its developer went from 'obsessed' with making it to 'shocked' at the reception
Latest in News
The titular character from Princess Mononoke is depicted riding the wolf goddess Moro and carrying a spear.
Studio Ghibli AI image trend floods social media, cheered on by OpenAI and denounced by critics as an insult to Hayao Miyazaki
Marvel Rivals tier list - Wolverine
Marvel Rivals director says a future patch will reduce the shooter's insatiable hunger for RAM: 'It's a very big problem'
Hogwarts Legacy potions professor holding a potion
An unannounced Hogwarts Legacy expansion and 'definitive edition' have reportedly been cancelled
Story of Seasons - A cahacter in a purple tuxedo stands outside in a town square talking to the player
Story of Seasons is doing another Harvest Moon remake and it might be the best the series has ever looked
Assassin's Creed Shadows change seasons - An upper-body shot of Yasuke looking cheerfully up into the distance.
Assassin's Creed Shadows puts up the 'second highest day-one sales revenue in Assassin's Creed franchise history'
A witch riding a broom sails past a Fish and Chips shop.
Cozy gamers rejoice: Witchbrook finally has a release window, and yes, you can fly around on a broom with your friends