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Recently Blizzard threw together
another much anticipated live stream for Hearthstone: Heroes of
Warcraft. This time the live stream featured the Arena, a build and
battle mode accessible by players inside the game. If you missed the
live stream or are just looking for a refresher on what exactly the
Arena is, look no further! Read on to find out all the details we
currently have about the Hearthstone Arena.

Arena Overview

As mentioned above, the Arena in Hearthstone
is a build and battle mode in which players construct a
30-card deck, and then then use that deck to battle other players.
This method has an awesome sense of randomness since deck selection
is totally done on the fly. Players will be presented with three
cards from which they can choose one to place in their deck. This
process will continue until the player as obtained 30 cards.

Entering the Hearthstone Arena

Now that you have an idea of what the
Arena is, you probably can't wait to find out how you can pop inside.
Access to this feature is easy, with the only requirement being an as
of yet undetermined entry fee that can be paid with gold acquired in
game, or real cash.

Arena Selection

Once inside, you will be able to choose
the Hero you want to base your deck around. Out of the nine Heroes
you will be presented with a random selection of three to choose
from. Once your Hero has been chosen you can then begin selecting
cards. As briefly reviewed above, for your first selection you will
be given the choice between three random cards and you will need to
choose just one. Neutral cards and cards specific to your class can
be displayed here and if they are already in your collection has no
bearing on if they will show up.

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Choices here will be difficult,
especially considering that you may not go back and choose again.
Thankfully, there is no time limit here so selection of cards and
your Hero can take as long as you wish. After you have chosen your
first card you will have to re-do the selection process 30 times to
create a full deck. With your full deck firmly in hand you will be
pitted against an opponent that have similar win and loss records.
This makes the Arena a great place to hone and test your skills.

Winning and Losing

You might be wondering what exactly you
get if you win a battle and that is an excellent question. Players
who win their Arena battle will level up a key that can be viewed on
the Arena screen in game. The better the key, the better treasure it
will eventually unlock for you.

There are a few limits on leveling up
your keys. If you win nine times, your key will become upgraded to
max level, the Grand Master Key, which grants the biggest and best
rewards out there and you will lose your current deck. However, if
you lose three times, your deck will also be revoked. Once your deck
is gone, you will receive rewards based only on how much your key has
been upgraded BEFORE you managed to lose three times.

Still a tiny bit confused? A great
example of the above information would be if you earn 4 wins before
you reach three losses, you will ultimately get better rewards (more
key upgrades) than if you had only 1 win and three losses. Also, it
won't do to worry about trying to complete all these wins (or
possible losses) in one sitting. Unless you lose three times with a
specific deck or win nine times, that deck will remain in tact even
if you leave the game and come back later.

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The Forge?

If you have been keeping up with
Hearthstone news, you will notice that the Arena was once known as
the Forge. Why the name change you ask? The answer is simple;
clarity. The Forge makes us think of a place where crafting takes
place and, if you have read the previous information, that is not
what the Arena is about at all. So Blizzard has changed the name to
better capture the true essence of this Hearthstone feature.

That concludes our overview of the
Hearthstone: Heroes of Warcraft Arena. Be sure to check out the live
stream of The Arena – Honing Hearthstone's Heroes for more exciting
information. Will you be doing some theory crafting to prepare
yourself for this in game feature or will you be avoiding it
altogether? Share your thoughts with us using the comment section
below!


To read the latest guides, news, and features you can visit our World of Warcraft Game Page.

Last Updated: Mar 29, 2016

About The Author

Amunet, also fondly known as Memtron, is an organic life form best known for its ongoing obsession with Blizzard Entertainment's numerous properties. To that end, Amu has authored hundreds (thousands?) of the most popular World of Warcraft guides, editorials, and Top 10 lists on the planet. When not gaming and writing, Amu is busy chasing after her three children in a perpetual loop of ongoing disaster.

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