2016 Hearthstone World Championship



The 2016 Hearthstone World Championship was the third year of the Hearthstone World Championship and the finale for the 2016 Hearthstone Championship Tour. It took place from October 26 - November 5, with the Top 8 contenders competing at in Anaheim, CA. The total prize pool for the Championship was $1,000,000.

Pavel defeated DrHippi to become the 2016 Hearthstone World Champion.

For general information and a list of other World Championship years, see Hearthstone World Championship.

Structure


The Championship saw 16 players from around the world competing for a substantial $1,000,000 cash prize, as well as the glory of being crowned Hearthstone World Champion. The Championship was preceded by regional Season Preliminaries and regional Season Championships, in which the best 40 players from each region were narrowed down to 4 from each, whom then progressed to the World Championship. Players qualified for their Season Championships through earning qualification points, gained through Ranked Play and participation in selected Blizzard-sanctioned tournaments.

These players competed throughout the year in online Hearthstone Cups, onsite Hearthstone Major tournaments, and Ranked Play ladder seasons to earn enough HCT points to participate in one of the Season Championships or Last Calls. For each Championship, the players faced off in a best-of-seven single-elimination bracket using the Conquest match format modified with a ban.

The first points-giving event of the 2016 Hearthstone Championship Tour took place at DreamHack Winter 2015 on November 26–29. Players were eligible to earn 2016 HCT points via Ranked Play beginning on December 2015.

Changes since last year
This Championship Tour saw a number of massive changes to the tournament structure. Based on feedback from last year’s tournaments, the following changes were implemented for 2016:
 * The 2016 Championship Tour saw more competition among players within their region. Four tournaments (three Season Championships and one Last Call Invitational per region) helped determine the Hearthstone World Championship invitees.
 * No instant byes were given in Hearthstone Majors. Invited players could have their spots reserved, but they started in the same round as all other players to ensure an even playing field.
 * The prize pool of the Hearthstone World Championship was increased to $1 million, up from the $250,000 seen for the 2015 World Championship, with a $100,000 prize pool for each of the nine Season Championships for the Americas, Europe, and Asia-Pacific Season Championships.
 * More onsite events were supported, with multiple Fireside Gatherings serving as the setting for the Season Preliminaries that led into the Season Championships. There were more opportunities for players and fans to attend local events to either compete or cheer for their favorite players.
 * More emphasis was put on accumulating HCT Points. With points decaying after each Championship Season, and Last Call Invitational qualifications relying on total accumulated points, collecting points gave more opportunities to join the HCT competition at any time.
 * Point distribution was rebalanced. The top placing players in a given event received fewer points, and the lower placing players received more points. For Ranked Play, this also extended to providing points to every player that achieved the Legend Rank in an eligible season.
 * More flexible match and tournament formats were seen. An opportunity was taken with the year’s new structure to iterate and improve on the match format from each Championship Season to the next. It was encouraged that event organizers be creative with their match and tournament formats, as long as they encouraged fair competition.

World Championship
The 2016 Hearthstone World Championship saw 16 exceptional players, four apiece from Europe, China, Asia-Pacific, and the Americas, came together to duel for their share of a $1,000,000 prize pool and the title of Hearthstone World Champion. Four groups of four players (one from each region) competed against each other in a double-elimination tournament format until only eight players remained, at which point the competition shifted to a single-elimination bracket. All matches were played in a Conquest format with a ban.


 * Date: October 26 - November 5, 2016
 * Location: Anaheim, CA
 * Prize Pool: $1,000,000

Pavel defeated DrHippi in the grand finals. Babbling Book turned out to be a major swing card for Pavel during the match, and the coined meme "Paveled" arose in the Hearthstone community to refer to any swing turn caused by RNG.


 * 2016 Hearthstone World Championship - Reddit
 * 2016 Top 16 Brackets - Battle.net
 * 2016 Hearthstone World Championship Playlist - YouTube
 * 2016 Hearthstone World Championship - Day Two - YouTube

Last Call Invitationals
The final competitors for the Hearthstone World Championship were determined by the Last Call Invitationals for each region, featuring players who earned the most HCT points across all three Hearthstone Championship Tour seasons.


 * Last Call Invitationals - Reddit
 * Americas Last Call Invitational
 * Americas Last Call Invitational - Brackets
 * Europe Last Call Invitational
 * Europe Last Call Invitational - Brackets
 * Asia-Pacific Last Call Invitational
 * Asia-Pacific Last Call Invitational - Brackets

Summer Championships
For each Championship, the players faced off in a best-of-seven single-elimination bracket using the Conquest match format with a ban. The winner will claim the Summer Championship title, the $25,000 first place prize, and a spot at the 2016 Hearthstone World Championship.

120 HCT points each.


 * HCT Summer Championships
 * HCT Americas Summer Championship
 * HCT Europe Summer Championship
 * HCT Asia-Pacific Summer Championship

Spring Championships
Across three consecutive weekends in June, the Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Americas Spring Championships took place at the Hollywood Riviera Studios in Torrance, California. Each weekend, the eight qualifying players from their respective region’s Preliminary event were flown in to battle it out to become that region’s Spring Champion. The winners also earned a spot in the 2016 Hearthstone World Championship at BlizzCon 2016.


 * HCT Spring Championships
 * HCT Europe Spring Championship - Reddit
 * HCT Asia-Pacific Spring Championship - Reddit
 * HCT Americas Spring Championship - Reddit

Winter Championships
The 2016 Winter Championships were held in Raleigh Studios in Hollywood, California. On each of three weekends, the eight qualifying players from their respective region’s Preliminary event were flown in to battle it out to become that region’s Winter Champion. The winners also secured a spot in the 2016 Hearthstone World Championship.

The Winter Championships used a modified Conquest format with a ban. Each player submitted four decks of unique classes for the Season Preliminaries and again for the Season Championship. At the start of each best-of-five series, each player will inform their opponent of the four classes that they have brought. The players will then inform the admin which of their opponent’s classes they wish to ban. From there, the players will compete in a standard Conquest format with their three remaining decks.


 * HCT Winter Championships