31.6 Patch Notes – Hearthstone
Patch 31.6, launching today, opens the portal to Hearthstone’s next expansion, Into the Emerald Dream, brings a massive mid-season shakeup to Battlegrounds, and more!Prepare to drift off Into the Emerald Dream on March 25! The Emerald Dream, the magical realm from which all Nature flows, is under attack. The Old Gods are spreading their corrupting influence and turning the Dream into a Nightmare! Imbue yourself with the power of the World Tree or Discover the Old Gods’ Dark Gifts, rallying dragons, druids, and Wild Gods to your side. The portal is open, it’s nearly time to step Into the Emerald Dream!Into the Emerald Dream has 145 new collectible cards. You can learn more about all the dreams and nightmares in the Into the Emerald Dream Announcement Blog. Dreamy pre-purchase bundles are available now!Pre-purchaseLog in to Hearthstone now to get the guardian of the Dream herself, the Ysera, Emerald Aspect Legendary card for free!* Merely adding her to your deck lets you dream bigger; playing her can make your dreams come true.* Limit one per account. After Patch 32.4, Ysera, Emerald Aspect will be granted upon opening your first Into the Emerald Dream pack, instead of upon login.Head to the in-game Shop and claim your first Dark Gifts: 2 copies of the Common card, Creature of Madness, for free!* Discover the power of Old Gods’ corruption and give your opponents nightmares.* Available in the in-game Shop until Patch 32.4. Available through packs and card grants with Patch 32.0 and available through all normal means with the launch of Into the Emerald Dream.Sink your teeth into a new in-game event before we head Into the Emerald Dream and kick off the Year of the Raptor! From March 4 to March 25, complete event quests to earn XP on the special rewards track. Complete the rewards track to start your new Hearthstone year off right with: 2 Raptor Herald Epic minions,* 2 Golden Raptor Herald Epic minions, 2 Into the Emerald Dream Packs, 2 random The Great Dark Beyond Epic cards, 2 Golden Creature of Madness Common minions, 2 Tavern Tickets, and the Soulbringer Inge Death Knight Hero Skin.* Raptor Herald will be added to the special Event set and will be playable immediately upon earning. Raptor Herald is scheduled to stay in Standard until the 2026 Standard rotation along with Champions of Azeroth, Bob the Bartender, and Avatar of Hearthstone (Harth Stonebrew and the 11 “Gift” cards are leaving in the upcoming 2025 Standard rotation).Dev Comment: This mid-season update is a big one! It brings StarCraft to Battlegrounds with new heroes and the rewards track cosmetics unlocks; it brings back and updates Anomalies; and it brings a much requested feature: combat speed-up! There’s so much to cover that we can’t even fit it all in the patch notes. So, jump into the Tavern and see it for yourself—all these changes are live now!Anomalies are back in Battlegrounds and, for the first time, in Duos! Anomalies are tavern-transforming effects that apply to all players from the start of each game. Adapt to the chaotic influence of the Old Gods to claim your crown!Compared to last time they were in the Tavern, we removed several of the less popular Anomalies, adjusted some that are returning, and created 21 new Anomalies (4 of which are Duos-only).The new Anomalies will be more likely to appear for the first two weeks of the patch. Secrets of Norgannon (Tavern Tier 7) has returned and also has an increased appearance rate. Here are all the Anomalies that will be in the pool:Kerrigan, Queen of Blades (12 Armor)Jim Raynor (12 Armor)Artanis (15 Armor)For two weeks following Patch 31.6 all three new Heroes will be in the initial hero offerings for every game, which also means they can’t be rerolled into during that period.The following minions have been removed from the minion pool:The following minions have been returned to the minion pool:Technical Element [Tier 3, Elemental/Mech] Captain Bonerender [Tier 4, Pirate/Undead] Gentle Stag [Tier 3, Beast]Bellowing Tyrant [Tier 7, Beast]Arcane Behemoth [Tier 7, Elemental]Stitched Salvager [Tier 7, Undead]Tortollan Blue Shell [Tier 4]Mythrax the Unraveller [Tier 4]Shellemental [Tier 4, Elemental/Naga]Sprightly Scarab [Tier 3, Beast]Mystic Sporebat [Tier 5, Beast]Ichoron the Protector [Tier 4, Elemental]Tidemistress Athissa [Tier 6, Naga]Forest’s Bounty [Tier 4]Sharing is Caring [Tier 7]Blade of Ambition [Tier 7]Hallowed Ritual [Tier 7]Fandral’s Fortune [Tier 6]Sacred Gift [Tier 7]When Patch 31.6 launches, all current Arena runs will end and a new Arena season will begin. The Arena pool will be adjusted so that the following sets make up the card pool this season:
