Saturday, September 7, 2013

Hearthstone Beta Tips For Efficient Gold Grinding



Hearthstone Beta Gold Grinding
Hearthstone

Grinding For Gold In Hearthstone

Having been given one of the first rounds of Hearthstone Beta Keys because of my Warcraft community influence as a WoW podcast host on The Eviscerated Gaming Podcast, I've had a lot of time to dig into Blizzards upcoming CCG, Hearthstone.  In this post on Grinding Gold In Hearthstone, I will share some of the tips and tricks I have discovered while being a Hearthstone Beta Tester.

Getting Gold In Hearthstone


Gold is the currency that can be earned in game from completing daily quests, completing achievements, and winning matches against random opponents.  You can then spend the gold you've earned on either booster packs (for 100 gold each) or on Arena Entries (150 gold each).  I understand that the goal for many new players will be to grind as much gold as possible in Hearthstone to unlock booster packs without having to spend money on the game.  That's why I am writing this guide on earning gold in Hearthstone.

Sources of Gold in Hearthstone:

  1. Daily Quests - Mosts award 40-60 gold, but 1 awards 100 gold.
  2. Completion Rewards - Completing certain objectives and achievements can award gold.
  3. Winning Matches - Beating other players in Play mode or Arena matches awards 5 gold per 5 wins 10 gold for every 3 wins.
Earn Hearthstone Gold From Daily Quests

You can have up to a total of 3 active daily quests in your quest log.  You must complete one to make room for a new quest as 3 is the maximum number of quests you can have active at one time.  Here is a table with each quest and their respective gold rewards:


Druid VictoryWin 2 Games with a Druid40 Gold
Hunter VictoryWin 2 Games with a Hunter40 Gold
Mage VictoryWin 2 Games with a Mage40 Gold
Paladin VictoryWin 2 Games with a Paladin40 Gold
Priest VictoryWin 2 Games with a Priest40 Gold
Rogue VictoryWin 2 Games with a Rogue40 Gold
Shaman VictoryWin 2 Games with a Shaman40 Gold
Warlock VictoryWin 2 Games with a Warlock40 Gold
Warrior VictoryWin 2 Games with a Warrior40 Gold
Druid DominanceWin 5 Games with a Druid60 Gold
Hunter DominanceWin 5 Games with a Hunter60 Gold
Mage DominanceWin 5 Games with a Mage60 Gold
Paladin DominanceWin 5 Games with a Paladin60 Gold
Priest DominanceWin 5 Games with a Priest60 Gold
Rogue DominanceWin 5 Games with a Rogue60 Gold
Shaman DominanceWin 5 Games with a Shaman60 Gold
Warlock DominanceWin 5 Games with a Warlock60 Gold
Warrior DominanceWin 5 Games with a Warrior60 Gold
Destroy Them All!Destroy 40 Minions40 Gold
Only the MightyPlay 20 Minions that cost 5 or more40 Gold
The Meek shall InheritPlay 40 Minions that cost 2 or less40 Gold
Spell MasterPlay 40 Spells40 Gold
Beat DownDeal 100 damage to enemy heroes40 Gold
Total DominanceWin 7 games in any mode100 Gold
3 Victories!Win 3 Games with any Class40 Gold


Earning Hearthstone Gold & Packs From Completion Awards

Collect All Basic CardsGet Every Hero to Level 10100 Gold
Crushed Them AllBeat Every AI Hero At Expert Level100 Gold
Chicken Dinner100 Wins In Any Mode300 Gold
Big Winner1000 Wins In Any Mode300 Gold
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First BloodPlay Once in Play Mode1 Pack
Enter The ArenaFirst Arena Entry Is Free1 Pack+
Level UpGet a Class to Level 101 Pack


Winning Matches For Gold In Hearthstone

In the Hearthstone Closed Beta you earn 5 gold for every 5 10 gold for every 3 matches you win against randomly paired opponents.  These awards are cumulative along with the daily quests so, let's say your Daily Quest is to win two games as the druid, those 2 wins will also count towards your next 5 win 5 gold 10 gold for 3 wins payout.

One thing to be aware of is that the 5 gold for 5 wins  - 10 gold for 3 wins -only counts if you are playing random opponents.  

NOTE:  Since the major Hearthstone Patch & Wipe, the gold earned from Play Mode wins has thankfully been increased to 10 gold per 3 wins.  This makes grinding for gold in Hearthstone much easier and greatly speeds up the rate at which you can earn gold as a F2P player.

You cannot earn gold or complete quests when playing against your friends; the matches must be against random opponents.



Hearthstone Costume Jewelry Bracelet Keychain
Glow in the Dark Hearthstone Bracelets / Keychains

Gold Farming Strategy & Tips for Beginners

The first things you should focus on as a new Hearthstone player are:

  1. Get your Mage Deck to Level 10 - Earn 1 Booster Pack
  2. Unlock all other Class Decks (By beating each of them in Practice Mode) - Earn 100 gold
  3. Get all Class Decks to Level 10 - Earn 100 gold
  4. Defeat each Deck once in Expert AI Mode - Earn 100 gold
  5. Grind your daily quests - Earn 40 gold per day
  6. Use MyPoints Rewards For Free Card Packs
I would strongly advise that you do not play ranked matches until you have unlocked all decks, have all of those decks' basic cards unlocked, and have beaten every AI class on Expert Mode.  The way the ranking system works, you will rank up as you win matches, so unlocking all of the cards first against either the AI or in unranked PvP matches will be the best option.  This way you have all of your basic cards unlocked and can build better custom decks before starting to earn wins and rank up, which will lead you to face tougher opponents.  This will also help you each day on your daily quests because you will be playing with every class deck.  You don't want to pick your favorite deck, get a bunch of ranked wins, and then get stuck playing against high ranked opponents with your weak alternate class decks that don't have cards unlocked on the days those daily quests come up.  Trust me!  Unlock all decks and those decks' cards before playing ranked matches and advancing in rank.

Then once you have the above objectives completed:
  1. Play 1 ranked match - Earn 1 Booster Pack
  2. Play 1 Arena Match - Earn 1 Booster Pack plus extra Gold, Dust, and possible Golden Cards depending on how well you do.  The first Arena Entry is free, so that is why you get at least 1 free booster from trying out the Arena Mode.

Those are the easy ways to earn gold and free Hearthstone booster packs.  From there on you will be working towards your 100 Wins to get 300 gold and then 1000 total Wins to earn another 300 gold.  To get those wins you have 2 choices:  Play Arena, or Grind Gold against random PvP opponents.  The good thing is that the wins in Arena also count towards your Daily Quests, 5 gold for 5 Wins, and Achievements.

If you want to Grind Gold in Play Mode

I recommend building a speed deck.  Pick one of the faster decks that can bring out a quick force of minions and then support those minions with your own creature control, direct damage, and removal spells to clear the way for your minions to attack quickly.  In my opinion the 3 fastest decks for this strategy are Mage, Rogue, & Hunter.  All 3 have direct damage dealing Class Abilities and Class Spells that include plenty of creature control options.  You should build a deck with small cheap creatures, lots of removal, and some direct damage spells.

Here as an example: Hearthstone Mage Deck w Basic Cards Only.

The goal is to either win or lose quickly, since the more matches you play the more chances you have of increasing your potential gold per hour.  Win fast or lose fast.  If you win, then great.  If not, move on to the next match as quickly as possible.  If your goal is to grind gold for free booster packs, then you want speed wins and quick losses.  You do not want to be playing a deck that thrives in the mid to late game and takes a long time to determine the match's outcome.  If you are grinding for gold, you are much better off playing a speed deck and turning over opponents quickly.

You can play in Ranked or Unranked matches, so Unranked is the better choice because you when you rank up you cannot descend in rank.  As you get higher in rank, you will face tougher opponents.


If you want to Play Arena Mode For Gold & Packs:

I really enjoy Arena Mode.  Arena Mode costs 150 gold (or $1.99) to enter, but what you can win is determined by how well you perform with your deck.

When you play Arena Mode you build your deck from randomly selected cards.  You are given 3 card options and get to pick 1 that will go directly into your deck.  You repeat this selection process 30 times to build your 30 card deck.  You then duel random opponents until you get to 3 losses.

Every Arena Entry will award you with 1 Booster Pack and then dust, gold, and golden cards based on your final record.  Your break even is around 5 wins (I've hit in 4 wins as well) per Arena Entry if you are using the 150 gold entry fee.  Since you get a Booster Pack which costs 100 gold, you only need to make up 50 gold in your bonus prizes in order to break even.  If you can win over 5 matches you will earn slightly more gold and dust, but the real goal should be to hit 7 or more wins each time you play Arena Mode.  At 7 wins the awards get much better and you can start to earn back your entire 150 gold entry fee in addition to the booster pack, dust, and golden cards.  For example, I had an 8-3 record and was awarded: a Booster Pack, 55 Dust, a Golden "Flare" Hunter card, and 170 gold!  So I made a profit on that round of the Arena.

Unlocking all of the other decks and playing them to unlock all of the decks' cards is great training for learning the other classes and their decks, because you will be using various classes on the arena because you have to choose from a random set of 3 classes each time you play in Arena Mode.

Arena mode is a bit of a gamble with its extra 50 gold entry fee, but once you get the hang of the game it can be very rewarding.  Arena Mode requires a different set of skills, since you are building your decks from random cards, but it is also a lot of fun too.  And once you get good at Arena, you have the chance to keep playing for free if you can get to 7 or 8 wins each time and recoup your entry fee as well as your booster pack and other rewards.  Good luck in there!

Other Tips For Playing Hearthstone Efficiently


  1. Don't Play Ranked Matches Early On - Unlock all basic cards first.
  2. Daily Quests - Always complete them each day.
  3. When Gold Grinding For Wins - Always use a speed deck.  Fast wins & losses are better than drawn out wins or losses.
  4. Conceding Is Good - If you've lost, Concede.  Conceding moves you to a new opponenets faster and increases your potential gold per hour earnings.
  5. Do Not Disenchant & Craft Cards If You Plan To Buy Packs - Wait until you have bought your packs before doing any crafting.  The worst thing you can do is waste a bunch of dust to craft a card and then find it in a booster pack you open.
  6. Playing Ranked Matches Is Optional - You can still earn gold for wins and complete daily quests for gold while playing in Unranked Mode.
NOTE:  Crushed Them All quest is currently bugged and will sometimes not be awarded once you beat all of the AI decks on expert mode.  This happened to me post-wipe, but all you need to do is go back through and beat them all over again until you get credit for the quest (and the wins that didn't get counted the first time).  Annoying, but it's worth doubling back through the game just to get the pack and you can use a second deck and unlock extra basic cards while you complete the Crushed Them All Achievement.

I hope this Starter's Guide For Grinding Gold In Hearthstone is a big help to you.  Enjoy your time in Hearthstone and look out.  I'll be coming for you!

Be sure to also read: Hearthstone: How To Earn More Experience Per Match


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Update:  Post-Patch & Wipe, I've been having a rather easy time farming gold and winning ranked matches using my current Top Hearthstone Deck: Priest Card Draw Control.

I've also started a series on Common Mistakes Hearthstone Players Make.

Looking For Heroes of the Storm Gold Making Tips?


Recommended Guides: 
Hearthstone Secrets | Hearthstone Ownage | HS Arena Drafting

19 comments:

  1. In daily games winning 2 games means 2 ranked games or 2 unranked games? Or practice games count too ?

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  2. Both ranked and unranked games count for earning gold and for daily quest completion - practice games do not count for either. I still haven't found a reason to even play ranked mode other than for bragging about what rank you are in.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. XP earned is higher when facing other humans compared to practice

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    2. True, but that bonus applies to both ranked & unranked play modes.

      Delete
  3. Thank you for this entry!

    I'm crying for Gold in Hearthstone! :D

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yeah, it's a hell of a slow grind unless you are good in the arena, which also relies on random cards to choose from.

      Delete
    2. Yeah, i'm no silver 1 and try'd arena one time, and i only won 1 game >.<

      Delete
  4. what would you include in a speed deck for Mage, Rogue, & Hunter?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hang on & check back. I will toss up a post with 3 sample speed deck builds using basic cards only for you.

      Delete
  5. do arena wins count in your 5 wins for 5 gold thingy?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yes! Arena wins count for both daily quests &5 gold for 5 wins.

      Delete
  6. Hey Scott, would you mind if we post your article on our upcoming Hearthstone Community Site?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. As long as you give proper credit and link back to original, without just copying the content.

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    2. Update: arena no longer counts as a win for the gold earnings of 10g per 3 wins. They changed it on initial patch/ wipe.

      Delete
  7. hmm i have heard you get gold by defeating each ai on expert but it didnt sems to work is it with a basic deck i have to defeat em or can i use a build deck or shall my character be under lvl. 10

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. There is a bug currently where you don't get credit for all the defeats, so you have to go back thru and beat em all over again until you get credit for the ones that got skipped. This happened to me too, but the award is still in game!

      Delete
  8. Hey !!

    Thank you for this fabulous post has allowed me to discover the last missions I was missing to complete the list of missions that I was writing! +1 The post and favorites.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Maybe this is a silly question but should I spend my initial 100 gold on a booster right away or is there some reason to save up gold?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Choice is yours. You can buy a booster or save the gold for 150g arena entries. I only play arena entries and then open the packs that I get as rewards from arena. Remember you always get at least 1 pack from arena and as long as you win 4+ games you will get most if not all of the extra 50g back as rewards too.

      Delete

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