Blizzard Officially Announces Next Hearthstone Expansion

Blizzard has revealed its next Hearthstone expansion, Journey to Un'Goro, which is set to introduce more than 100 new cards and some interesting new mechanics.

Blizzard has officially announced its next Hearthstone expansion, which will apparently be titled Journey to Un'Goro, contrary to earlier leaks. The expansion will introduce a total of 135 minions, spells, and other cards when it arrives in early April. Journey to Un'Goro is set to introduce some new gameplay concepts to the ever-expanding library of cards that Hearthstone players have to choose from. Some existing minions will receive the Elemental type, which will offer synergies with a number of new cards set to be added to the game as part of the expansion.

There will also be a new card keyword for players to deal with, Adapt. Cards with Adapt will give players three Adaptations to choose (from a pool of ten) in a mechanic that Blizzard's announcement blog post compares to the Discover ability that's already in the game. A new type of legendary card will also be included in the expansion in the form of Quests. Players can only include one Quest card in each deck, and it's guaranteed to land in their opening hand - completing its requirements will give "incredible rewards."

For example, the 'Awaken the Masters' Quest card revealed today asks players to summon 7 minions with a Deathrattle effect. If they succeed, they will be awarded with the powerful 'Amara, Warden of Hope' card for use in that match. As of tomorrow, Hearthstone players will be able to per-purchase 50 Journey to Un'Goro card packs for the special price of $49.99, which will contain the special fossil card back as a bonus. Blizzard hasn't confirmed a specific release date, but did announce that the expansion would arrive in early April, with card reveals getting underway on March 17.

Hearthstone is out now for PC and mobile devices.