Join us as we bid farewell to the Year of the Dragon and welcome the Year of the Phoenix! 

The new Hearthstone Year will kick off with Ashes of Outland, which takes place in the shattered and war-torn world that was the setting for 2007’s World of Warcraft: The Burning Crusade. This exciting expansion set aims to shake up the meta game with a set of powerful new cards alongside Hearthstone’s first-ever all new class. . .

1. New Class, The Demon Hunter

Are you prepared? The Year of the Phoenix will introduce Hearthstone’s first new class since launch: The Demon Hunter. Driven by fury and vengeance, the Demon Hunter excels at unbridled aggression, exemplified by its Hero Power Demon Claws, a one mana-cost single-turn boost to the hero’s Attack, designed around robust synergies with its class cards. Demon Hunters also have access to cards with the Outcast keyword, which become more powerful when played from the right- or leftmost position of your hand.

The Demon Hunter is a full-fledged, permanent class free for all Hearthstone players who complete the Demon Hunter Prologue missions, which retells Illidan Stormrage’s origin story from his perspective . . . and with a Hearthstone twist. Players will also receive, free, all 10 Demon Hunter Basic cards, as well as a 20-card Demon Hunter Starter set. Starting with Ashes of Outland, players can expand their collections with 15 new Demon Hunter cards, with 45 in total being planned for the Year of the Phoenix across the year’s upcoming three expansions.

2. New Legendary, The Prime

New to Ashes of Outland, Primes are powerful minions who shuffle a vastly-upgraded version of themselves back into your deck when they’re taken off the board. Every class save the Demon Hunter has its own unique Prime, like the Warrior minion Kargath Bladefist. An aggressive 4 mana 4/4 with Rush in his starting form, Kargath upgrades into Kargath Prime, an 8 mana 10/10 with Rush, who grants you 10 armor whenever he kills an enemy minion.

3. Beware of the Imprisoned Demon

Ashes of Outland also introduces Imprisoned Demons, who come into play “dormant” for two turns. Initially unable to attack and impervious to any threats, these powerful minions unleash tempo-shifting effects once they’re activated, with the potential to swing the outcome of a match.

Kael’thas Sunstrider, a Legendary neutral minion, is also breaking free in Ashes of Outland, will enter Hearthstone a month early! All players can log in on March 18 to receive the Lord of the Blood Elves and harness his unique power—with Kael’thas in play, your third spell every turn is free.