In Hearthstone there are classes that gain access to powerful spells called Secrets.  Not all classes do though so many players are confused or left wondering what is going to happen next when they are cast.  Have no fear this article will guide you through the Secrets of Hearthstone and how to face them.

What are Secrets and how do they Function?

Secrets are spells in hearthstone that are cast during a players turn but do not resolve until the opponent does some specific action that activates it.  That action could be summoning a minion, casting a spell, or attacking.  Secrets are powerful abilities if timed correctly, but due to the fact that they activate on the next action specified by the secret they can be controlled if you know how.

You may have up to 5 secrets in play at a time waiting to activate, however you can only have 1 of each secret active at any given time.

Which Classes have Secrets?

As mentioned above not all classes have secrets.  There are only three classes that do have access to secrets, those classes are Hunters, Mages, and Paladins.

What are the Secrets Available per Class?

Each of the three classes  have access to multiple different secret spells.  The different spells will be outlined in their own class section below.  However, it is important to note that all of the secrets or a class cost the same amount of mana. 

This is to ensure that no matter which secret you are casting, your opponent will not know which one it is.  Therefore some are a little over priced mana wise, while others are a little under priced.

The cost for Secrets are as follows per class:

• Hunters: 2 mana
• Mages: 3 mana
• Paladins: 1 mana

Hunter Secrets and Hunter Traps

Hunters have access to 5 different cards with the Secret ability.  Three of these are traps and the other two are spells.

Mage Secrets

Mages have access to 5 different spells with the Secret ability as described below.  Mage secret cards tend to be the most powerful of the secrets in the game so far, however they also cost the most.

Paladin Secrets

Paladins have access to the least number of Secrets with only 4.  However they are the cheapest in the game at this time.

How to Get the Most out of your Secrets

A lot of what you need to know about using secrets to the best of their ability can be found in the following section on how to minimize their threat. However the most important thing to remember is timing. Consider what the secret is going to do and when it is most effective. Keep the following examples in mind when casting secrets:

• Using a Paladin's Repentance spell in the first couple of turns is almost always going to be a complete waste, since most minions summoned in the first 2-3 turns will only have 1 or 2 health.
• Using a Hunter's Misdirection when your opponent has no other minions active and you have several is likely not going to have a huge benifit to you.
• Using a Mage's Mirror Entity early in the game will not get you a very powerful minion to copy, however save it for turn 7 and later and you may end up with something huge.

How to Deal with and Minimize the Threat of Secrets

The best way to minimize the threat of the various Secret spells in the game is to understand them and remember that they affect the next thing you do that matches their trigger ability.

This means that you really need to memorize the cards that each class above has and plan your actions appropriately. Remember that 3 mana to play Vaporize is an awesome deal if you then attack the Mage with a 8 mana cost creature. However it is a waste of mana if you hit them with a 1 mana cost creature to trigger it.

Some of the basic tips to remember when playing against each class is as follows.

Hunter’s secrets mainly cause damage, redirect damage, or return the attacking minion to your hand.  Therefore:

• Always attack before summoning minions otherwise you could summon several 1 and 2 health minions and then have them all killed when an explosive trap goes off.
• Always attack with the lowest power minion you have first so that it is cheap to re-summon if needed.
• Always summon your weakest minion first so that you don’t bring out a big minion and have it sniped.

Mage’s secrets help them by canceling spells, protecting minions or themselves, copying minions, or destroying attacking minions.  Therefore:

• Always attack with your lowest power minion first
• Cast weak spells when a secret is up if at all possible before casting the spell you really need to go off.
• Never summon a huge minion when Mage’s have a secret active, they could end up with a copy of your game winning legendary minion.
• Summon minions and cast spells as soon as possible to trigger Mage’s secrets as soon as possible as they have a class specific minion that gains power whenever a secret is in play at the end of a turn.

Paladin’s secrets redirect damage, restore their minions, and lower your minions health.  Therefore:

• Attack with a low power minion first, so that your bigger power minions hit isn’t wasted on a 2/1 defender or doesn’t hit you as well.
• Summon a weak minion when a secret is active so that you do not have your bit 8/8 minion become an 8/1 easy to kill weakling.
• Leave a backup minion if possible for when after you kill that 8/8 of theirs only to have it come back as an 8/1 to attack you next turn.

It is also important to know that if your opponent has multiple secrets in play that are triggered by the same action, the one that was cast first will trigger first.

Comments

The tips and tricks above will get you ready to handle the Secrets of Hearthstone.  However, there is always more to learn, so if you have any additional tips on dealing with secrets, please share them in our comment section below.