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Mean Streets of Gadgetzan guide

Our continuously updated guide to Hearthstone's upcoming expansion.

Update 9th November: We've added four new cards to our galleries. One's for the Hunter class, another for the Warrior and the remaining two are added to the Neutral pile!

Further details of Hearthstone's next expansion - The Mean Streets of Gadgetzan - have been confirmed at BlizzCon's opening ceremony and subsequent dedicated panel this weekend. To help yuo get up to speed on the latest developments, we've pulled everything that's currently known together into one - hopefully handy - guide.

First of all, let's get the headline stuff out of the way:

- The expansion is themed around the criminal underbelly of Warcraft's Gadgetzan trade hub.

- The expansion will feature three different factions, with cards associated with each faction.

  • Grimy Goons - Brutes and enforcers of Gadgetzan. They offer protection but not as much as they like taking it away.
  • Jade Lotus - Not as crude as the Goons. A sleek and secretive syndicate, like spies and assassins.
  • Kabal - Spellcasters who've been kicked out of their own guilds due to “creative differences”. They hide in secret brewing potions and lending magical aid to those in need.

BREAKING NEWS! - Don't miss our essential guide to the best Gadgetzan decks that are dominating the new metagame right now.

New cards

There will be a total of 132 new cards in Mean Streets of Gadgetzan. If you want to look at individual galleries for specific classes, simply browse the links below.

Card galleries:

Factions and Heroes

Each faction is associated with three of the game's nine heroes. They are split between the factions as follows:

  • Grimy Goons: Hunter, Paladin, Warrior
  • Kabal: Mage, Priest, Warlock
  • Jade Lotus: Druid, Rogue, Shaman

Why go to all this trouble? Well, each faction also has a selection of so-called “tri-class” cards that can be used by all three of the associated heroes.

One example given was the Kabal Courier, a 3 Mana 2/2 with the following flavour text:

Battlecry. Discover a Mage, Priest or Warlock card.

Each faction has a leader, The Kabal's leader Kazakus (a Legendary card) is a 4 Mana 3/3 and has the following text:

Battlecry If your deck has no duplicates, create a custom spell.

Custom spells work by you first selecting a Mana cost that suits your current curve. Then you discover an effect, followed by a second effect, before the card is added to your hand. There are more than 100 different potions to craft. Have a look at our custom spell guide for more info.

Here's a video that explains how all of this potion-crafting works in practise:

Cover image for YouTube videoMean Streets of Gadgetzan - Kazakus

Release date and pre-order bonuses

The expansion will be released in early December, and is in fact playable at BlizzCon if you're lucky enough to be there.

As has become traditional at this point, there's a special pack price bundle offer for those who pre-purchase it before the release of Mean Streets of Gadgetzan. The offer provides you with 50 Gadgetzan card packs for $49.99 or £34.99 over here in the UK.

If you want to pick this special bundle up, just head to the Blizzard Store and hand your money over.

Pre-reveal teaser info

Note that all of this information was put together before the official reveal of Mean Streets of Gadgetzan. We're keeping it here though, for those who want a complete history of the build-up!

We already know from the BlizzCon schedule that tonight's Hearthstone session will provide us with our first proper look at the next Hearthstone expansion, heavily rumoured to be themed around Warcraft's Gadgetzan hub. Rest assured that we'll be updating this guide throughout tonight's Hearthstone presentation, adding all of the new cards, features and release date information as and when it's all officially revealed.

Before we get to that though, we thought we'd pull together everything that's been teased about the Gadgetzan expansion over the last couple of weeks. The marketing people at Blizzard have been pretty busy dropping teasers about the new update on social media and official sites - if you've not been keeping up with it all, you might like to get a recap ahead of the big night.

It all started last week with a postcard titled 'Greetings from Gadgetzan', which first appeared on the official Hearthstone Twitter account. You can take a look at it below, and we've also got a complete reproduction of the tiny disclaimer text that runs all around the image a little further down the page.

The word “safe” is not meant to constitute a binding agreement and does not imply safety, security, protection, preservation, peace of mind, confidence, reliability, dependability, or trustworthines. Mayor Noggenfogger is not responsible for any accidents, burglaries, thoughtsteals, mind visions, hellfires, vanishes, whirlwinds, revenges, lightbombs, elemental destructions, escavated evils, consecrations, holy novas, flamestrikes, demonwraths, starfalls, shadowflames, swipes, explosive traps, arcane explosions, brawls, DOOM!s, lightning storms, blizzard, twisting nethers and other acts of Old Gods, magical mayhem or disfigurement that may ensue.

No beasts, demons, dragons, mechs, murlocs, pirates, or totems were harmed, abused, disfigured, dismembered, declawed, details, decommissioned, exorcised, disarmed, or toppled in the creation of this postcard. We take no responsibility on the claims made on this souvenir of propaganda, or any predictions, suppositions, predictions, prophecies, harbingers, omens, portents, or conclusions that may arise.

What does the above suggest? Not a great deal beyond the setting, although the general consensus when this appeared was that the much-request Pirate expansion was on its way. Wishful thinking? Perhaps.

Shortly after the release of this teaser postcard, Blizzard revealed an issue of something called The Gadgetzan Gazette.

If your eyesight's not what it was, we'll have the text contained in the main story reproduced for you further down the page, but note the URL under the Talan's Bar section. Chatting with this clever Facebook bot reveals a number of images related to the new expansion.

After several explosion-related delays, goblin contractors finally completed construction on the new state of the art First Bank of Gadgetzan building today. Spokesgoblins for the contracting firm say the explosions were simply part of contractually mandated break periods and no one important was seriously hurt. Despite the delays, the new structure is quite impressive - from its neon signs to its gold plated columns, it reeks of class.

In cooperation with the bank's new owners, the mayor's office provided a tour of the new financial building for press and parties with an interest in the project. Mayor Noggenfogger, who owns the contracting firm that built the bank, led the tour group, proudly pointing out each new security feature in turn. The revolving doors at the entrance feature a kodo-proof cage and unhexable glass. The bank lobby, tastefully carpeted in orange and purple, also features anti-kodo barriers at regular intervals. In addition, each teller's station is equipped with a large, red, candy-like button that, when pressed, releases a burst of confetti (and dispenses armed explosives) from hidden alcoves in the ceiling. Not one, but two Sprocketspring 5000 vault doors on a fuse-locking system protect cavernous vaults with plenty of room for hold, arcane dust and other valuables. Mayor Noggenfogger was quick to point out that each vault door is rated to withstand kodo pressures exceeding several hundred tons and, as an added bonus, have chance to blow up when tampered with.

”The previous bank was plagued by mismanagement and inadequate security. It was an easy target for filty, unscrupulous, kodo-loving bank robbers,” Noggenfogger said. “Our economy is taking off like a rocket-chicken, and Gadgetzan's citizens need a secure place to store their valuables where only the deserving can get to them! Thanks to a hefty investment by the new owner, the First Bank of Gadgetzan is a wonder of technology and a fitting centerpiece for our beautiful city.

”In fact, I declare this bank 110% unrobbable, and I can't wait to see the look on the faces of any poor saps who try!” When asked why the mayor's office would be concerned about theft after repeatedly denying Gadgetzan's skyrocketing crime statistics in the past, the mayor deflected to his security detail. “Knuckles, would you be so kind as to escort this young lady outside? I think she wandered in off the street.”

Citizens can see the new building for themselves when the First Bank of Gadgetzan opens to the public with a ribbon-cutting ceremony next week.

With the release of this particular teaser, we started to suspect a criminal underworld/heist theme for the next update. The security features mentioned in the update also presumably relate to new card types about to hit the game. Perhaps we might even end up getting a second Adventure for 2016 rather than an Old Gods-esque expansion set, one themed around robbery?

Towards the end of last month a new edition of the Gadgetzan Gazette appeared, reproduced again for you below.

Gadgetzan port officials today announced record-breaking rates of trade as measure in tons of goods and cargo. Once a landlocked oasis on the fringes of the vast Tanaris desert, Gadgetzan’s plucky citizens have truly risen above disaster and capitalized on new opportunities to make it Azeroth’s premier port city and shopping destination.

Mayor Noggenfogger was on hand to celebrate the announcement by collecting docking fees and praising the port operators (after he’d counted the earnings). The mayor cited Gadgetzan’s new proximity to the Great Sea, along with his policies endorsing low barriers to trade–and disinterest in the “silly laws and regulations” espoused by his less visionary counterparts in other cities–as major contributors to the city’s success. The mayor had no (printable) comment regarding the claim that his laissez-faire policies have allowed a new class of hoodlum to flourish in the shadows, a charge the mayor’s office has staunchly denied.

In addition to a vast (some have called it chaotic) network of docks and warehouses, the port district is home to the Gadgetzan Mega Market, called the “Mega-est Market in the World” by the Gadgetzan boad of tourism. The influx of trade from just about everywhere has contributed a huge spike in the Gadgetzan economy, as well as the shopping district’s growth. Locals claim you can find anything you could ever want (and a few things you don’t) among its maze of shops and stalls, from rare alchemical ingredients to exotic creatures, and everything in between–all under one huge roof.

We met with Mayor Noggenfogger in the Meta Market’s “chow kingdom” to grab a bite to eat and talk about the role that shopping plays in Gadgetzan’s economy. “The Mega Market is one of my favorite places in the city! There’s nothing like the musical clink of gold coins to soothe a goblin’s soul, and it warms my heart to see the glorious gears of capitalism grinding away for the good of Gadgetzan! The city is proud to play host to an institution like the Mega Market. it’s a place where an anybody can start turning themselves into a somebody.”

When asked about rumors of mysterious cloaked and hooded figures linked with smuggling, illicit potion parlors, and strange red mana that seem to originate from the port, the mayor was incredulous, “Oh, swell. Conspiracy theories now? What is it with you people? I bet you’ll be asking me about dragon people in disguise infiltrating the city next!” Unfortunately, the mayor found pressing business elsewhere and departed before we were able to follow up with him regarding a promising new lead on secret dragon people rumored to be infiltrating the city.

Right at the start of November, a third and final edition of the Gazette was revealed by Blizzard. This time around the talk was of a museum arriving in Gadgetzan.

A world-class museum is planned to open in our beautiful city next week, elevating Gadgetzan to a city noted for its first-class culture and sophistication as well as its booming economy and bustling industry. A generous grant from the noted philanthropists, the Blackpaw family, made the purchase of one of Mayor Noggenfogger’s old mansions possible as a site for the museum, though the erstwhile abode has been updated with more understated styling, in keeping with the museum’s scholarly tone. Noggenfogger’s old manor has history of its own, as it was built over underground ruins which predated the original founding of Gadgetzan, leading some to speculate that the home may be haunted by restless spirits. A museum spokesman said they chose the site carefully, since the ruins can be used to store artifacts for study when they aren’t on display.

While Mayor Noggenfogger repudiated rumors that his former home was haunted, he remarked, “Have you seen those freaky statues the Blackpaws shipped in when they bought the place? You should ask Madam Goya if those things are haunted.” When asked about his unfounded superstitions and obvious disdain for ancient cultures, the mayor replied, “I really don’t know why I bother talking to you, lady.”

Though the museum already possesses an enormous collection of arcane artifacts, museums administrators are still soliciting new exhibits from the citizenry. Gadgetzan’s position as a trade capital has made it possible for normal citizens to put on an archaeologist’s hat in order to sift rare and interesting finds from the flow of good through the city. The museum will be offering free artifact appraisals to all museum visitors, and has announced that they will offer gold rewards and accept donations of artifacts suitable for the coming Mysteries of Pandaria exhibition. For generous citizens who choose to donate their funds, curator Madam Goya promises to credit the finder on a nifty plaque.

The museum may have difficulties putting the finishing touches on its jade exhibition. The demand for the precious green stone has gone up in Gadgetzan recently, as residents report a spate of jade curios and jewelry disappearing across the city. Could the thefts be related to nighttime sightings of shadowy masked figures leaping from rooftop to rooftop? Be sure to buy next week’s edition of the Gadgetzan Gazette to find out!

Finally, Blizzard dropped a new image on the official Hearthstone Instagram account. The postcard appears once again, along with some coins which include pirate ship and skull and crossbone motifs. The Latin text on the coins translates to “I have absolute ownership”.

That's all for now! Don't forget to check back once the official presentation is underway at 12:30 PDT. We'll be updating this guide constantly as all of the new cards are revealed and the release date is confirmed!

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John Bedford avatar

John Bedford

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John is Metabomb's Editor in Chief and looks after the day to day running of the site when he's not writing about Hearthstone.

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