How to use the Excavate keyword in Hearthstone

The Excavate keyword in Hearthstone’s newest expansion, Showdown in the Badlands, allows you to dig for treasure cards; and the more you do it, the stronger those treasures become. There are three total tiers of treasures, each with five possible treasures.

When you use the keyword for the first time, you’ll be given a random treasure from the five tier 1 treasures. All of these treasures are of Common quality and cost 1 mana:

• Escaping Trogg: 2/2 minion with Rush.
• Rock: spell that deals 3 damage.
• Water Source: spell that restores 3 Health and draws a card.
• Pouch of Coins: spell that gives you two Coins.
• Fool’s Azerite: spell with “Discover a 2-Cost card. It costs (0).”

After you’ve obtained one of those tier 1 treasures, play another card that has the Excavate effect to find a random treasure from the five tier 2 treasures. These are Rare quality cards that all cost 2 mana:

• Living Stone: 2/4 Elemental minion with Taunt and “Deathrattle: Summon a random 2-Cost minion.”
• Canary: 2/1 Beast minion with “Battlecry: Return an enemy minion to its owner’s hand.”
• Glowing Glyph: spell that gives a minion and its neighbors +1/+2.
• Falling Stalactite: spell that deals 3 damage to a minion and the enemy hero.
• Azerite Chunk: spell with “Discover a 3-Cost card. It costs (0).”

Once you’ve secured your tier 2 treasure, use the Excavate keyword again and you’ll be rewarded with one of five possible tier 3 rewards. They’re Epic quality cards that cost 3 mana:

• Ogrefist Boulder: 2 durability Location that reads: “Set a minion’s stats to 6/7.”
• Motherlode Drake: 4/3 Dragon minion with Rush, Divine Shield, and Lifesteal.
• Steelhide Mole: 2/7 Beast minion with Taunt, Reborn, and “Can’t be targeted by spells or Hero Powers.”
• Collapse!: spell that deals 3 damage to all enemies.
• Azerite Gem: spell with “Discover a 5-Cost card. It costs (0).”

Now comes the fun part — assuming you’re playing as one of the five classes aligned with the Bloodrock Mining Company. Each of those classes gets a tier 4 Treasure. They’re Legendary 4-mana cost, 5/5 minions with the Elemental and Beast tags, and a very powerful Battlecry effect:

• (Death Knight) The Azerite Rat: Resurrect your highest Cost minion. Give it +2/+2, Reborn, and Lifesteal.
• (Warlock) The Azerite Snake: Your hero steals 10 Health from the enemy hero.
• (Mage) The Azerite Hawk: Get a random Titan. It costs (1).
• (Rogue) The Azerite Scorpion: Get 4 random spells. If you’ve Excavated 8 times, they cost (0).
• (Warrior) The Azerite Ox: Discover two 8-Cost minions. Summon them.

Once you get your final Excavate treasure — either the tier 4 Legendary treasure for the five classes above, or a tier 3 Epic treasure for the other six, you’ll be reset back to tier 1 the next time you Excavate, essentially starting over.

Excavate is a fun mechanic, and the fact that Treasures are conveniently coded with increasing mana costs and rarities makes it easy to keep track of which tier you’re on, and what you should expect next. The five classes that get access to Legendary Treasures will be more likely to use it, for sure, but there are worthwhile rewards for everyone.

The Excavate keyword goes live with the Showdown in the Badlands expansion, launching November 14!