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It's no secret to anyone that the popularity of the collectible card game Hearthstone (originally known as Hearthstone: Heroes of Warcraft ), created by Blizzard Entertainment, does not stop growing. Blizzard is also the creator of World of Warcraft and Warcraft , as well as other famous e-sports such as Overwatch and StarCraft II. not by chance, Hearthstone was inspired by the success of Warcraft and released in 2014. Three years after its release, in 2017, the game reached the mark of 70 million players and the number is likely to increase in the coming years.
With such tremendous visibility, the game's professional tournaments and championships are played all year round, and now you have the chance to bet on them. In this guide we will see not only how to bet on Hearthstone , but also which sites open bets for e-sport. What are the types of open markets? How do eSports betting work? What events are available? These are just some of the questions we will answer in this article.
Before, however, we talked about the basics of the game for those who are not familiar with it: its objectives, gameplay , rules, decks of cards and heroes. If you're already a Hearthstone player, or if you know the game well enough, you can skip this part and go straight to the betting guide.
On the other hand, if you don't know what the game is about or how it works, we strongly recommend reading our basic manual and even using the resources that we have separated at the end of the article to better understand its objectives and operation. Only understanding perfectly Hearthstone you will be able to place profitable bets , and we all want to profit from betting, don't we? So, hands on! Let's get down to business.
Table of contents
About the game
Hearthstone is a strategic card game, played entirely online. It is of the genus collectible card game (CCG). In the game, each player can form unique decks of cards and battle against other players using cards that cast spells, minions, and weapons.
Hearthstone developed and released worldwide by Blizzard Entertainment in 2014. By the end of the same year, 10 million players had already registered for the game. In 2017, it reached the mark of 70 million players around the world – an impressive figure considering that it is a card game. Today, it is one of the best-known esports worldwide and is available for free on a multitude of platforms, including mobile platforms: Mac, Windows, iOs, Android.
This is Blizzard's first completely free game. He was inspired by the heroes and universe of World of Warcraft , which is a game also released by Blizzard. This influence has caused many players to Warcraft I've been playing Hearthstone since its release.
In 2014, the first World Championship of the game, called Hearthstone World Championship , was organized by Blizzard during their annual event, the BlizzCon . In the tournament, four of the best players from each region of the world competed for the title of World Champion. Any player could reach the final as long as he was winning the knockout stages.
O World Championship of 2014 offered a prize of 250 thousand dollars to the winner. Since then, Blizzard has continued to organize the event annually, raising the prize offered to one million dollars and gaining more and more viewers. Several spectators even bet on their favorite players during the matches of the World Championship and other tournaments, as they would bet, for example, on the matches of the FIFA World Cup .
In Hearthstone, each player uses their 30-card deck with a particular hero. Two players face off in turn-based matches in which they use their cards to beat their opponent and collect points and rewards for their heroes.
As your slogan suggests, Hearthstone it is a “supposedly simple and tremendously fun " game. And indeed, it unites the simplicity of a card game with an engaging gameplay and characters that, in turn, have to level up to advance. In addition, the game is extremely convenient – anyone can download it to their computer or mobile phone and start playing for free instantly.
Its design is professional and attractive, and the universe presented is magical and familiar, as it seeks its inspirations in Warcraft , loved by millions. In addition, the game is quite light and does not weigh down on the computer or mobile device. This certainly does not harm your reputation. What's up? Have I convinced you to try it?
There are several reasons that have made the game extremely popular. Let's look at the main ones:
- Easy to learn : You don't need to know Warcraft before playing Hearthstone. On the contrary, each card is self-explanatory and there is a tutorial that accompanies new players during the first match. That is, the mechanics of the game are very easy and anyone can learn it. Take the tutorial and you'll be familiar enough to start playing.
- Simple to play : And engaging! As in role-playing games, in Hearthstone you need to earn rewards and gold to level up and unlock game features.
- Versatile: Play anywhere, on any device you have, for free. Its versatility is truly unprecedented.
- Quick matches: The game takes place quickly, with matches that can be completed in less than 15 minutes. There is a certain time for each player to make his move, which makes the game move steadily.
Gameplay
Hearthstone is a card game in which you must use strategies to win. It takes place in turns between two opponents, each utilizing their own previously chosen 30-card deck, along with a hero who possesses unique Heroic Power. At the beginning of the game, you can choose your hero from the nine available. The hero's power can differ enormously in essence: while one can deal damage to the opponent, for example, another can deal twice as much damage to himself in exchange for drawing a card.
To conjure the cards, you must use a certain amount of “mana”, which are represented by crystals on the game screen. At the beginning of each match, players receive one crystal, and with each passing turn, they receive one more. The maximum amount of mana a player can accumulate is 10. Players must strategically choose which card to cast each turn, as they all have different mana costs.
In addition to mana Crystals, each player starts the match with 30 Life points. To win, you need to exhaust your opponent's life points by attacking him with your cards.
When you win a match, you receive gold, which in turn allows you to buy card packs or participate in events in the Arena and Tavern. In the Arena, you play with unique decks, and in the tavern, you face other players in matches with unique rules. We'll talk more about these two game modes below.
Here it is important to remember that:
- Each player starts the match with 30 Life points and three cards in their hand. To determine who starts the match, a coin is thrown. The last player to make the first move wins one more card from their deck, taking four instead of three. Playing first offers a small strategic advantage, so the loser of the coin toss receives the coin, which has zero mana cost and offers a full crystal on the turn it is thrown.
- In the starting hand, players can reject Cards and try to receive a better hand. When both players are satisfied with their hands, the match begins.
- Each round, each of the players receives a card from their deck and a mana crystal.
- Like every card game, the game is turn-based and limits each player's movements using the mana Crystal Bar.
- The decks of Cards are built by the player himself who, as he progresses in the game, will have more possibilities of cards to add to his decks.
- The maximum number of cards each deck can hold is 30.
Additionally, it is important to note that as an online card game, Hearthstone uses a random number generator (RNG) to distribute the cards two decks. In this sense, there is an element of luck / bad luck acting in the game. It can be compared to poker , in which luck and skill in the game are both key requirements for winning.
No matter how good you are at the game – if you keep getting cards that don't help you win, you will inevitably lose the match. That's why it's so important to put together good decks and know how to adjust your strategies based on the situation in front of you. According to the game's director, Ben Brode, this is one of the main abilities that the random element of Hearthstone try to test on players.
Hearthstone cards fall into three main types:
- Magic cards: These cast spells that have different effects on the game. They can be dealt to another card in particular, or to the entire table in the game.
- Weapon charts : When used, your hero receives a weapon that lasts for several turns, but is destroyed with each attack and disappears upon reaching zero. Each weapon card has an attack and durability value.
- Minions cards : Also called MinIONs, minions are monsters that fight by your side to destroy the enemy. These are common cards that appear in large numbers in the decks. They are divided by Types: General, Beast, Dragon, Murloc, Totem, Demon and Pirate.
Heroes
To start playing, you must choose one of the nine heroes of the game. Each hero presents a unique power and their own special cards. They are:
- Maga: Jaina Proudmore
- Ladina: Valira Sanguinar
- Priest: Anduin Wrynn
- Shaman: Thrall
- Wizard: Gul'dan
- Druid: Malfurion Tempesfuria
- Warrior: Garrosh Hellscream
- Paladin: Uther, the Herald of light
- Hunter: Rexxar
Game modes
The game features several different modes that can completely change your perspective on Table battles. If you get tired, for example, of playing in normal mode, you can change the game mode to find another perspective of your cards.
Take Arena mode as an example. By paying a small entrance fee in gold, you can build an amazing deck from all the cards in the game and compete with other decks that have been chosen in the same way as yours.
Currently available game modes are:
- Play (Play mode): This is the normal game mode. In it, you compete against online opponents to improve your ranking in the game. You can also complete daily missions to earn rewards. In this mode, you always play against someone of the same level as you. Thus, the matches are balanced.
- Practice: Test your skills and knowledge with your deck, playing against the computer itself. In this mode, you can also unlock other heroes of the game.
- Arena: In this mode, which we talked about a little bit just above, you can assemble a deck from all the cards in the game and battle with other players who have assembled their decks in the same way. To enter the Arena, you can pay 150 gold coins or use real money (it's not expensive, just a few Dollar (NZD)). In the Arena, you get rewards based on your number of wins.
- Duel: In this mode, you can face players who are on your friends list.
- Adventure Mode: This game mode consists of battling within a storyline: the player will win objectives within the story to unlock new cards. There are several different types of adventures.
- Tavern: In this game mode, you participate in special matches with unique rules, available every week, that is, for a limited time. This mode may require players to use already formed decks of cards, or to build decks based on different objectives. The tavern mode is not competitive like the others – it is accessible to all players. However, it is only unlocked when the player reaches Level 20 with their hero.
- Default: It is a game mode that allows all players to challenge themselves using only the cards released in the latest versions of the game. This limits your decks to those that were built with basic, classic, or recent (released in recent years) Cards.
- Free: While the Standard mode focuses on the recently released Cards, The Free Mode allows you to play with absolutely all the cards already released in the game.
Decks of Cards
There are several decks of cards in the game. Blizzard is constantly adding expansions to the game that add new decks that you can buy with gold or money. You can, however, complete the basic deck simply by playing in Play mode. Playing in Adventure Mode is also possible to earn new sets of Cards.
As we already mentioned above, Hearthstone cards are divided between minions, spells and weapons. While some of these cards have effects in the game quite simple to understand, others have slightly more complicated effects, such as lasting effects. Additionally, the effects of some cards can be combined and trigger a “combo”. There are a high number of possible combo effects, as some cards intensify others.
To do well in the game, you must know how to combine the cards and complement them to defeat your opponent. You can acquire new cards for your deck whenever you want. There are four ways to do this:
- Buying card packs : Each pack of the game costs 100 gold coins. They can also be purchased for real Money. There are five types of decks, one of them is classic and the other five came with the game's expansions. In the pack can come ordinary, Rare, Epic and Legendary cards. In each pack, you are guaranteed to receive at least one rare card, while Epic and Legendary Cards are more difficult to get. Golden cards can also come, which add an animation to the card.
- Winning packages : You can earn certain packs by playing in the Arena, Tavern, and also by completing quests that offer packs as rewards.
- Ranking of the month : Depending on your ranking (your position) in the game at the end of the month, you can earn Golden cards.
- Disenchanting letters : You can destroy cards to get "Arcane Dust", which is used to build other cards. Golden and Legendary cards generate the most dust.
Why is Hearthstone considered an e-sport?
It is considered an e-sport an online video game that has gained worldwide attention and that is played in a professional way, either by teams or individual players, in tournaments that are organized in various parts of the world. We wrote more about the recent e-sports phenomenon in our e-sports Main guide , in case you are interested in reading more about it.
Hearthstone has been a hit since its release. Very different from the most popular e-sports, because it is a card game, it received great reviews and accumulated an impressive number of players in its first month of life.
By early 2015, less than a year after its launch, 25 million users had already registered. In 2016, the number grew to 50 million, and in 2017 it reached the 70 million player mark across all platforms.
With worldwide attention and acclaim, the game's competitive landscape started early, Sponsored by Blizzard itself. Soon, professional players and coaches began competing in tournaments. In 2015, it was the third most viewed game on the platform Twitch.tv (the best-known e-sports streaming channel), unseating the popular Dota 2 . In 2016, it remained firmly among the top five most watched games.
In view of these figures, one can consider Hearthstone an e-sport since its first World competition in 2014. In addition to players, it attracts fans who watch professional matches, comment on them and place bets on their favorite players.
Betting guide
Hearthstone is a great game to watch. It is not for nothing that he gathers such a huge number of spectators, tournaments and prizes. With so many people involved and with so much money circulating in this medium, it is only natural that bookmakers open markets so that you can bet on your favorite players. After all, if you are going to closely follow the entire tournament, why not try to profit from your guess of who will be the winner?
Expansions of the game are constantly released – and most of them contain about 100 new cards. In this sense, bet on Hearthstone requires a commitment to the novelties of the game , plus knowledge about the professional players and the official events calendar. In addition to watching the matches online on platforms such as YouTube and Twitch.tv, more dedicated bettors can also watch players train to better understand their playing style.
As in other eSports betting and nas betting on traditional sports , there are different markets that can be opened for a given match. The single bet (money line) is the most common, but it is not the only one.
In the next sections of this guide, we will guide you through the world of Hearthstone betting from the beginning. Get comfortable, you will enjoy the journey!
What you need to know to start betting
Each e-sport has its particularities, of course. It's like we're talking about traditional sports. Therefore, betting on a basketball match can be a little different than betting on a football match. However, at heart, the basic principles are the same: you must understand the betting markets (types of bets available), you must understand the odds presented, you must familiarize yourself with the online betting sites and you should follow a few steps to become an experienced bettor. All this, of course, if your goal is to profit from betting.
Hearthstone is different from most other esports. This is because it is played between individual players, while most esports is played between teams. In this way, it can be said that determining the winner of a match becomes easier. The 1×1 model exposes fewer variables to calculate when we define the chances that each side has of winning the match.
However, it can be challenging to try to analyze a Hearthstone player's mistakes, successes, advantages, and weaknesses just by watching a match – unless you know the game very well. Luckily, many professional gamblers talk openly about their thought and decision process, and watching these videos can give you an edge when it comes to betting.
The fact that Hearthstone utilizes an RNG to distribute players ' decks also affects their betting, and this is something that no one can control. However, you can focus on the information available to better understand each player's style. Some are more aggressive, using their best cards early in the match. Others, on the contrary, are more cautious and tend to defend themselves very well. Spending some time researching each player before placing your bets can be very advantageous.
Check out five key points before placing bets on Hearthstone:
- To succeed as a bettor, you should start by stipulating a fixed budget for your bets. Choose an amount that takes into account how much you can spend and never exceed it.
- There are dozens of sites to place your bets. If you do not know where to bet, we evaluate each of them and in this guide we recommend the best!
- Understand the odds before placing your bets. They determine the profit you can receive.
- It is common for large websites to offer several types of bet bonus . You'll see some of these offers right here in this guide. Always keep in mind that bonuses can be advantageous, but that they come tied to certain rules and that you have to comply with them to be able to use them.
- Be well informed about the game and its updates before placing bets. Knowing the players well and the format of the championships can give you a great advantage in betting.
Below, read more about the odds and open betting markets for esports.
Hearthstone betting Odds and markets
The odds that you will find on Hearthstone bets are exactly the same as the odds of other esports and sports, in general. They can be presented in various formats, the most common and easiest to understand being the decimal format.
The odds reflect the probability of an individual or team winning the match. They vary enormously according to the odds for the match and according to the bets placed by other people. If you place live bets, for example, the odds vary over the course of the entire match, depending on the performance of the teams or players. The odds also determine how much you can profit from the bet.
Betting sites (also called bookmakers) set the odds that suit them, and so you will find different odds on different sites. It is worth remembering that through the odds, the betting site establishes a percentage of profit for the company. This is how they make money (and, of course, when you lose the bet).
In case you are not familiar with any type of online betting and need a more detailed explanation of the odds, we recommend visiting our special article on how to place bets on esports . In it, we give more details about the odds, probabilities, expected profit, among other factors, all applied to eSports betting.
About Hearthstone betting markets, they are not very diverse. There are two possible types of bets, usually:
- Single Bets.
- Handicap Betting.
In general, all sites offer single bets (moneyline), in which you bet on the winner of the match or on the draw. Handicap bets, on the other hand, place an imaginary advantage on one of the players, in order to balance the odds. Handicap bets are more complicated to understand, but they are not impossible and are present in almost all types of sports.
We explain with an example:
If Player X faces Player Z and the betting site gave a handicap of -1 to Player X, this means that this value (1) is subtracted from the final result, and in order to win a match by betting on Player X, he would have to win with a score that covered this difference. For example, if the final result of the match was 3-2 for Player X, but you bet on handicap -1, you would not win the bet, because applying the handicap, the result is 2-2, a draw. For you to win by betting on Player X, he would have to get a result that contemplates the handicap, i.e. 4-2, 2-0, and so on.
Handicap is also known as point spread and you can read more about it in our guide on how to place sports bets.
Where to watch the matches?
As with other esports, you can watch Hearthstone matches from free streaming channels such as Twitch.tv and Youtube. There you will find live matches or entire matches to watch whenever you want.
Best sites to bet
We know that it is difficult to find a reliable and safe site to bet online from New Zealand. As players and bettors, we have created New ZealandCasinos precisely to offer New Zealand players more clarity and security when it comes to online betting.
Our team tests, evaluates and ranks various eSports betting sites on a regular basis. Based on these reviews, we can list the best sites to bet on Hearthstone from New Zealand. Below we have indicated our top five of the best sites to place your bets on Hearthstone. Additionally, visit our reviews to learn more about each of them and learn about their advantages, payment methods and bonuses offered.
Competitions and tournaments
Since 2014, several Hearthstone tournaments have been organized, the main one being the annual World Championship , which is the biggest e-sport event to date. It is organized by Blizzard and players qualify for it during the Hearthstone Championship Tour (HCT), consisting of several official events around the world. At the end of the HCT, the 16 players with the most points qualify for the World Championship.
Hearthstone World Championship
The winner of the HWC receives the title of World Champion. Each year, the World Championship it brings together the best 16 players in the world – four from each region-competing in matches live-streamed around the world via the Twitch.tv. in 2017, the prize offered to HWC winners was one million dollars.
To qualify for the World Cup, players must compete in Ranked Play mode and HCT, which since 2017 has consisted of three four-month seasons, each with its own Playoffs and championships. The schedule for the 2018 HCT looked like this:
Season 1 of 2018: January, February, March.
Season 2 of 2018: April, May, June, July.
Season 3 of 2018: August, September, October, November.
Upcoming Events
| Event | Month/year | Local | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|
| HCT Oslo | October/2018 | Oslo, Norway | $3.000 |
| HCT Singapore | October/2018 | Singapore | $3.500 |
| HCT Fall Championship | October/2018 | Blizzard Arena, Burbank, USA | $250.000 |
Betting tips, news and informative sites
Placing bets on Hearthstone is not difficult, but you need to be up to date on the game, professional players and tournaments. That's why we've separated tips and resources here that can help you stay informed about the game and make the best bets possible.
- If you search, you will find many sites and forums intended for the game. Read them and find out about e-sport news whenever you can.
- On the official Hearthstone channels of Twitch.tv and the YouTube the matches and live streams of the most important championships are available. Watch them whenever you can to learn about a player and get familiar with professional matches.
- If you are a beginner Punter, we recommend reading our guide on online betting , where we talk about the basic but important aspects of betting, such as how much you should bet, how to manage your budget, among other factors.
Resource:
- Official website-find on the official website of the game a complete manual on the Hearthstone universe. Learn to play, see the list of heroes and their stories, get acquainted with card sets, participate in player forums and read a full news section about the world of esports, including the schedule of events and the ranking of players in the world rankings.
- Official Twitter - Find on the official Twitter of the game the latest news about the game and its Championships.
- Blizzard news-Hearthstone-specific news on the official Blizzard Entertainment website.
FAQ
Hearthstone is an online card game free-to-play , released in 2014 by Blizzard Entertainment. Matches are always between two players, each with their previously built deck of Cards. Each player can form their own deck of Cards (maximum 30 cards) as they progress through the game. Strategic skills and a broad knowledge of the cards are required for you to defeat the opposing players. Hearthstone is also considered an e-sport. The best players from each region of the world face each other annually in the World Championship , the largest official tournament in the game organized by Blizzard.
From New Zealand, you can enter betting sites that make eSports betting available. In this guide, we recommend the best sites our team has ever reviewed. If you prefer, you can also read our reviews of each of them before you register and start betting. To place a bet, the process is simple: choose the match you want to bet on, see the odds offered, make your decision on which player has the best chance of winning and choose an amount for your bet.
No, you don't have to play the game to place bets. However, if your intention is to profit, we recommend that you know the e-sport very well to be able to make accurate guesses. If you bet without knowing the players who are playing the match and without knowing the game, you have little chance of winning.
Check out our article on the best Hearthstone sites to check out our recommendations in detail.
Few types of bets are available for Hearthstone. The most common types are the single bet and the handicap bet.
No. You need to keep an eye on the events calendar to know when Bets will be available.
Smash the game, smash the bets!
In this guide, you have seen step by step how to Hearthstone it works and the best way to place bets on e-sport . But perhaps the secret to getting along in betting is simpler than it sounds: practice your knowledge in the game itself. The best bettors are those who know how to combine their knowledge of online betting with their knowledge of e-sport. Blow the game, blow the bets. And remember to always bet consciously!
(New Zealand lawyer, 36 years experience)
Read and approved: July 23
Updated: July 23
Joseph Kelly is the legal advisor of the creativegiants.co.nz the content of the website has been reviewed and is in accordance with current New Zealand legislation.
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