This would be real handy if your enemy is made of rock.
COLLECTIBLE
Rockbiter Weapon is a shaman spell card, inducted into the Legacy set, formerly from the Basic set.
Contents
Other versions[]
How to get[]
Regular and golden Rockbiter Weapon are uncraftable and cannot be crafted or disenchanted.
Type | Source | Premium | Q. |
---|---|---|---|
New player | Complete the Ranked's New player experience system | Regular | 2 |
New player | Complete the Ranked's New player experience system | Golden | 2 |
Core set[]
Two copies of regular Rockbiter Weapon are obtained for raising shaman to level 1.
Two copies of golden Rockbiter Weapon (Core) are obtained for winning 50 games as shaman.
Rockbiter Weapon (Core) is uncraftable and cannot be crafted or disenchanted.
Previous availability[]
Prior Year of the Gryphon's rotation on March 30, 2021:
- Two copies of Rockbiter Weapon were automatically included in all players' collections upon unlocking the shaman class.
- Two Golden copies of Rockbiter Weapon were a reward for raising a shaman to levels 36 and 38.
Strategy[]
Rockbiter Weapon is a highly versatile card in the shaman's arsenal. Early on it can be used to remove enemy minions, preferably by targeting the shaman himself and preserving his own board control. It can also act as a sudden, potent boost in damage at any stage of the game. To maximize damage it is best used on a creature with Windfury, or even a shaman equipped with the Doomhammer.
Counter-strategy
While you can't always stop it from being directly played, if you see a Windfury minion or Doomhammer, you can anticipate this. Use a weapon destroyer or kill the Winfury immediately.
Lore[]
In World of Warcraft, Rockbiter Weapon is a shaman ability that adds a 30% threat increase to a shaman's spells and attacks and provides a 5% decrease to all damage taken when a weapon is imbued with it.
Trivia[]
- The artwork for this card comes from the World of Warcraft Trading Card Game "War of the Ancients" series, for the card Axe of Cenarius.
- The weapon that is displayed in the card art is the Axe of Cenarius, wielded by the legendary orc Broxigar the Red.

- The Axe of Cenarius is a two-handed, magical wooden axe crafted by
Malfurion Stormrage, under the direction of the demigod
Cenarius, during the War of the Ancients. It was made specifically for the orc Broxigar, and he described it as being like an extension of his own arm. Created using druidic magic, the axe was enchanted to have the sharpness and density of a diamond and would never break. It proved to be able to slice through any foe with ease.
Gallery[]
![]() Rockbiter Weapon, full art |
![]() The Axe of Cenarius, wielded by Broxigar the Red |
Patch changes[]
Year of the Gryphon rotation (2021-03-30): Moved from Basic to Legacy set.
Patch 20.0.0.77662 (2021-03-25): Now has Nature spell school (previously: no spell school).
Patch 6.1.3.14830 (2016-10-03): Now costs 2 mana (Up from 1).
- Commentary: Rockbiter is the culprit of a few mass burst-damage combos in addition to being a reliable early game removal tool. Due to its strength in a variety of circumstances, it’s been one of the most widely played Shaman cards in Hearthstone’s history. Making changes to Basic cards that show up in every deck will help instigate more variety and help the Standard format succeed in the future. We’re preserving some of the synergistic potential of Rockbiter Weapon but decreasing its value as a removal tool by changing the cost of the card from 1 to 2 Mana.
- We considered other Shaman cards like
Tunnel Trogg and
Totem Golem, but these are both leaving Standard relatively soon, so we thought it would be better to change Rockbiter and improve the Standard format in a more permanent way.
- We considered other Shaman cards like