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While Hearthstone is set firmly in the Warcraft universe, many characters, abilities and weapons have made their debut with Hearthstone itself. Hearthstone has also introduced numerous new character types, and titles for existing types.

This page provides a list of named characters original to Hearthstone. For an overview and history of new lore, see Hearthstone lore. For a list of Hearthstone cards inspired by the WoW TCG, see World of Warcraft Trading Card Game.

History

The vast majority of the characters, abilities and weapons in the game's early card sets came from World of Warcraft, with even generic character types in most cases corresponding to specific mobs within the latter game. Innovation was initially confined to variations in art and personality, with bosses like Kel'Thuzad featuring a notably comic streak compared to their original World of Warcraft incarnations. Many of each class's core Basic (and some Classic) cards are based on core or iconic abilities from World of Warcraft, such as LegacyPolymorph, LegacyBloodlust, LegacyBlessing of Kings, LegacyInnervate and LegacyMind Control.

However, with each new release the developers began to introduce more and more original characters and card concepts. Goblins vs Gnomes notably saw an increase in the proportion of original cards, with distinctive personalities like Goblins vs GnomesAnnoy-o-Tron and Goblins vs GnomesSnowchugger marking the first truly original Hearthstone characters. The first original named Hearthstone characters didn't come until The Grand Tournament, with a smattering of characters like The Grand TournamentSkycap'n Kragg and The Grand TournamentBolf Ramshield, although there is one exception: the Innkeeper, who has been part of Hearthstone since its inception.

As of Mean Streets of Gadgetzan, most cards featured in new releases are now original to Hearthstone, with most new releases also featuring a cast of original named characters. Some new spells and weapons are still based on World of Warcraft, and many minion types are often familiar to players of that game, although they are still usually given a new title or fresh twist compared to their World of Warcraft equivalents. Adventures remain the strongest tie between the two game, with most bosses modelled on familiar characters, but even here the subjects usually undergo substantial reimagining, and most other cards tend to be original. Alternate heroes are also usually drawn from the established Warcraft universe, although there are a number of exceptions.

Named characters

Below are listed all named original characters to appear in Hearthstone. Characters marked with a * have subsequently appeared in World of Warcraft, but are original to Hearthstone. Characters marked with a ** originally appeared in Hearthstone but were first named in World of Warcraft.

Rise of Shadows
Rastakhan's Rumble
The Boomsday Project
The Witchwood
Kobolds and Catacombs
Knights of the Frozen Throne
Journey to Un'Goro
Mean Streets of Gadgetzan
One Night in Karazhan
Whispers of the Old Gods
  • Whispers of the Old GodsShifter Zerus
  • Whispers of the Old GodsThe Ancient One - despite being described as the Old Gods' greatest creation, this minion is not seen outside of Hearthstone
  • Whispers of the Old GodsThe Boogeymonster[3] - this could be the name of an individual, or a mistaken term for an entire race of creatures. If the latter, the race also appears to be original to Hearthstone, although it may be related to the mistlurkers.
The League of Explorers
The Grand Tournament
Mentioned

New versions

While many established characters are given a new lease on life in Hearthstone, the following are significantly and explicitly changed from their previously known forms, due to specific causes. As such, they represent new versions of those characters.

Corruption

Whispers of the Old Gods

Introduced with Whispers of the Old Gods, the following characters were corrupted, transforming them into new, twisted forms.

Knights of the Frozen Throne

Introduced with Knights of the Frozen Throne, the following characters have been transformed into undead death knights by Knights of the Frozen ThroneThe Lich King, granting them unholy powers.

Other

Various other sets have included scattered numbers of corrupted characters.

Advancement

While not original to Hearthstone, these characters have significantly and explicitly risen in status or power since their previous appearances.

  • Mean Streets of GadgetzanAuctionmaster Beardo - Apparently the same as Auctioneer Beardo, this character appears to have acquired far more wealth and renown than his fairly unremarkable World of Warcraft incarnation, and is now hailed as "Gadgetzan's King of Bling" and "a one-goblin financial advice powerhouse".[5]
  • The WitchwoodPrince Liam - Prince Liam Greymane has been long dead in World of Warcraft (and remains dead to this day), but in The Witchwood his ghostly spirit is seen aiding Gilneas in its time of need.
  • The Boomsday ProjectDr. Boom, Mad Genius - Dr. Boom is an extremely minor character in World of Warcraft, but since his first appearance in Goblins vs. Gnomes, he built a secret laboratory in the Netherstorm and is the lead scientist of The Boomsday Project, a research project of sorts with no given goal.
  • Hero SkinsMecha-Jaraxxus - LegacyLord Jaraxxus seems to have received mechanical enhancements from Goblins vs GnomesDr. Boom- although how and what led to his creation is unknown.
  • The Boomsday ProjectMecha'thun - This being is a mechanical recreation of the Old God Whispers of the Old GodsC'Thun, created as part of the Boomsday Project for reasons not even Dr. Boom himself knows.
  • The Boomsday ProjectSubject 9 - In World of Warcraft, Subject Nine was last seen departing from Azshara with her offspring in a rocket. In Hearthstone lore, she ended up in Boom Labs, where she received a number of robotic new body parts. As a result, the Hearthstone version of Subject 9 is far more mechanical in appearance than her World of Warcraft incarnation.[6]

First depictions

While these characters are established in Warcraft lore, this is the first time they have been depicted, making them in a sense original to Hearthstone.

  • Rise of ShadowsNozari - She previously appeared in the Caverns of Time split between a shapeshifted adult and child form. This is the first time her dragon form has been seen.
  • Whispers of the Old GodsN'Zoth, the Corruptor - this is the first time N'Zoth been depicted, revealed or even described in detail.[7][8] The depiction is intended to be canonical.[9] The title "the Corruptor" is also original.
  • Rastakhan's RumbleShirvallah, the Tiger - Despite having been first introduced in classic World of Warcraft and referenced at various points throughout WoW's history, Shirvallah has previously never been directly seen or depicted in Warcraft media. Her overall personality and especially her association with paladins is entirely unique to Hearthstone, as she is described only sparingly in previous material.
  • Whispers of the Old GodsY'Shaarj, Rage Unbound - Y'Shaarj has previously been very sparingly described, and illustrated in a single mural in World of Warcraft, but this is the first time he has been properly depicted. This appearance also differs significantly from earlier descriptions and the mural. The title "Rage Unbound" is also original.

New titles

The following characters feature titles which are original to Hearthstone, but do not feature any other innovations. For characters with new titles alongside other differences, see the above subsections.

Other cards

Tortollans are an entirely new race original to Hearthstone.

The Kobolds & CatacombsFeral Gibberer is unique to Hearthstone and does not closely resemble any previously known creature from the Warcraft universe.

With the majority of new cards now original to Hearthstone, there is little point in listing all such cards. Information on the origins of specific cards can be found in the Lore section on each card page.

An incomplete list of original cards of all types released prior to Mean Streets of Gadgetzan can be found in the history.

Lore

Main article: Hearthstone lore

Original characters comprise a substantial part of the emerging Hearthstone lore. However, since most of these characters exist purely within the Hearthstone card game itself, it is not certain whether they are intended to be modelled upon "real" people and classes in the Hearthstone universe, or are simply fictional characters invented by the makers of the game for the purpose of entertainment. Some original characters do exist beyond their appearances as cards, such as in The Innkeeper's Journal or the Gadgetzan Gazette, which could be taken as confirming their presence as real characters within the larger Hearthstone canon.

References

 
  1. Ben Brode quoted on reddit. (2016-10-03).  - I love Morgl. I think its cool because it feels very hearthstoney. Morgl was created by our team, and it was really cool to add something to the universe of Warcraft.
  2. Peter Whalen on Twitter. (2017-11-30). 
  3. Ben Brode on Twitter. (2016-07-19). 
  4. 4.0 4.1 4.2 Ben Brode on Twitter. (2015-08-15). 
  5. Gadgetzan Gazette
  6. Peter Whalen on Twitter. (2018-11-17). 
  7. So... N'zoth.. (2016-03-21). 
  8. Ben Brode on Twitter. (2016-03-20). 
  9. Ben Brode on Twitter. (2016-03-29). 


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