Hearthstone reveals Murder at Castle Nathria, its next card expansion set that combines Clue with the Shadowlands from World of Warcraft.
Hearthstone’s first expansion from the Year of the Hydra, Voyage to the Sunken City, has been a rousing success. As Hearthstone enters the second half of the year, it has revealed its next major card set expansion: Murder at Castle Nathria.
This new Hearthstone card set takes place in Revendreth, which first appeared in World of Warcraft: Shadowlands. Sire Denathrius, ruler of Revendreth and master of Castle Nathria, has been murdered, and it is up to Murloc Holmes and his trusty sidekick, Watfin, to discover which of the ten suspects were responsible.
Each of the suspects, as well as Holmes himself, make up some of the 135 cards coming in Murder at Castle Nathria. A new keyword and card type are coming to Hearthstone in the set: Infuse and Locations. Infuse cards grow stronger if a set number of friendly creatures die with the card in hand, similarly to how the Corrupt mechanic worked in Madness at the Darkmoon Faire. Locations are special cards with an ability similar to Hero Power. Locations have durability like Weapons to limit their uses, and have a 1-turn cooldown to use again, but are otherwise free after they are played.
The rhyming trailer for Murder at Castle Nathria gave players clues as to what characters might show up in the Hearthstone set. Baroness Vashj and Decimator Olgra–the naga lieutenant of Illidan Stormrage and the oft-memed wife of Mankrik–have had their cards revealed already, but players will likely see Warcraft superstars like Draka, Kel’thuzad, and Pelagos get new cards of their own. Among several others, it seems Rafaam–the Arch-Villain from previous Hearthstone sets–has landed himself in the Shadowlands as well.
Murder at Castle Nathria does not have a direct connection to the previous set, Voyage to the Sunken City. Though some older Hearthstone expansions did not link to those which came before and after, most recent Hearthstone sets have come in sets of three, all of which explored a similar timeline, location, or story. It seems Murder at Castle Nathria is breaking that trend after several years.
Many players are excited to see what the new Hearthstone set will hold. While World of Warcraft: Shadowlands was not a popular expansion, most fans loved Revendreth, Sire Denathrius, and Castle Nathria, so an expansion around them is a great idea. Players interested in learning more about the upcoming set will be able to see new card reveals all through July, and can log in now to receive the Prince Renathal Legendary card.
Hearthstone is available now for mobile and PC. Murder at Castle Nathria launches August 2nd.