Follow one Hearthstone player’s quest to reach Legend

A grind — this is an apt description for the digital collectible card battler Hearthstone: Heroes of Warcraft.

Hearthstone: Heroes of Warcraft is about repetition. The pressure is on the player to learn and adapt. At the peak of the grind is the rank of “Legend,” which you from winning enough games to reach it in Ranked Mode. It’s the ultimate divider between the casual and the competitive player — and I’m going to find out just how to cross this line by trying to reach this lofty rank in August, with weekly updates on GamesBeat following my progress.

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I’m by no means a top player. While I’ve won a few open tournaments and leagues and made Legend before, the grind is by far the hardest obstacle and wall to overcome. On most months, it’s the most difficult opponent to deal with. For professional Hearthstone players or grinders, it’s their job. But for those that just play to have fun, reaching legend is an actual feat and accomplishment every season. It means you understand the trends (known as “the meta,” which points to the strongest decks and cards) conquered the ladder, and reached the elite tier of the ranked mode. That’s worthy of celebration. With just a couple of weeks away from The Grand Tournament, this will be an account of how an average player that put in the time, and not the cash, made legend.

The grind

Whether you’re a tournament player or a casual enthusiast, there is no escape from this in-game mechanic. To grind in Hearthstone is to play match-after-match in succession, a constant tug-of-war until you reach a set objective. To reach Legend, a player must climb ranks until they reach level one and then win out the necessary games to break through and claim their legendary status for the season (one month).

Now, here’s why it’s difficult — after you reach Rank 5, Hearthstone no longer gives you a win-streak bonuses. Every game is its own challenge, thus the grind. When you push to the single-digit ranks, you’ll face similar skill/decks that have either tournament or ladder success. It’s good practice for those that want exposure to better play in Hearthstone and a way to test out your innovations and creativity.

For my chase to Legend, I’ll be using a combination of fast and slow decks. My favorite decks reflect my play style — combo-heavy and aggressive. The decks will be: Aggressive Paladin, Hybrid Hunter, Combo Rogue and Warlock, and Freeze Mage.