Hearthstone ups the ante (literally) with the pricey Heroic Brawliseum Tavern Brawl [Standard]

This week’s Hearthstone Tavern Brawl, Heroic Brawliseum [Standard], is a strange amalgamation of the Arena and the Ladder. Like Arena, this Brawl has an entry fee and a “three strikes and you’re out” mechanic that finishes your run as soon as you loose three matches. Unlike Arena, there’s no draft, which means you’re going to have to craft your own deck in order to play. That makes this week’s Brawl both a challenging experience and an expensive way to play — because it costs either 1000 Runestones (about $10) or 1000 gold to enter the Brawliseum.

Fortunately, even if you don’t play this, you can still get a free pack this week. You should see a Legendary Quest called “Call of the Brawl” which will provide a pack for playing 1 game of any mode.

But if you’re willing to pay for this Tavern Brawl, you can earn some nice rewards. So let’s dig into how to win the Heroic Brawliseum Tavern Brawl.

Tavern Brawl basics

• Name: Heroic Brawliseum
• Description: Make a Standard deck to compete with the best! Stakes are high, the competition is intense. More wins means more rewards. Can you make it to 12 wins, or will 3 losses end your run?
• Fun level: 3/10
• Difficulty: 10/10
• Replayability: 3/10
• Format: Standard
• Type: PVP
• Deck: Constructed
• Rewards: Varies based upon how much you win

Step one to playing this week’s brawl to get your wallet. The entry fee is either 1000 Runestones ($10) or 1000 in-game gold — that’s significantly pricier than an Arena run, but the rewards are potentially better as well — if you win. Once you’ve paid your entry fee, you’ll need to build a Standard deck before starting your first game. The game itself it plays out exactly like a normal match — use your awesome cards and bring your opponent’s life total to zero.

You continue your run by playing additional games until you experience the thrill of 12 victories or the agony of three defeats, whichever comes first. Fortunately you can stop between games and come back later to continue your run, so you don’t need to have a marathon play session to win. Every victory increases the difficulty of your next opponent. If you have four wins, you’re matched up against other players who also have four wins.

But each victory also upgrades the chest your get at the end of your run. Here’s a handy dandy chart of the winnings:

Can you win enough to make the entry fee worth it? If we assume 1 pack equals 100 gold, the the break even point is somewhere around 7 or 8 wins depending on how you want to value the Arcane Dust into your equation.

How to win the Heroic Brawliseum Tavern Brawl [Standard]

Most Constructed Brawls fall into their own meta, but with this Brawl, the Brawl meta is the Standard Ladder meta. You’ll see the same decks that dominate on the Ladder — so if you play much Standard ranked Hearthstone, this Brawl will be very familiar. Like most Constructed Brawls, the key to winning is building a good deck and piloting it well.

With the high $10 admission fee to this Brawl, if you’re not familiar with the Hearthstone meta, or don’t have a large card collection, I strongly recommend you skip this Brawl. And even if you are familiar with the Standard meta, stick to proven decks: this isn’t the time to try something new or off meta. Stick to the tried and true decks, and think about consistency over big plays. Survive and advance should be your mindset.

Here are five decks that have high win rates on the Standard Ladder and should serve you well in the Heroic Brawliseum Tavern Brawl. The first one, the Shaman deck, is considered “tier 1” decks, the “best” Standard decks you can play. The rest are just a tick below.

Top Standard Decks for Heroic Brawliseum

It’s the Aggro deck’s world and we’re just living in it. We’ve returned to a time in Hearthstone where anything over 6 mana just feels much too slow.

Pirate Shaman

• Deck code:

  AAECAaoICObkBfboBY31BcOPBsekBvzABrrOBqXTBgvl5AWQgwazjQaopwbrqQbWwAb2wAatxQbR0AaU5gbk6gYAAQPzswbHpAb2swbHpAbo3gbHpAYAAA==

• A new season, but the same piratical tribe still rules the meta. Instead of Demon Hunter or Rogue, Shaman has become the best home for this deck, though with a card like Carefree Cookie, you’ll still see powerful Demon Hunter cards in this deck like Patches the Pilot. The basic game plan is to flood the board and pressure your opponent’s face. This is a classic aggro deck. Kill them before they can kill you.

Secret Hunter

• Deck code:

  AAECAR8E458Ex6QGrLYGguYGDejoBd/tBeryBeT1Bfz4BcuOBs6OBu2bBpCeBvGlBv2oBty4BtfzBgABA/GzBsekBvKzBsekBujeBsekBgAA

• Secret Hunter’s basic gameplay strategy is to force your opponent into suboptimal plays by working around your Secrets. Each one makes your Starsong Bow cost less. This deck has a bunch of them with nearly half the deck dedicated to Secrets. You shouldn’t have any problem drawing one, but Costumed Singer and Titanforged Traps are there to fill in any gaps.

Handbuff Paladin

• Deck code:

  AAECAZ8FCObkBcj4BY3+BcekBtOpBtG/BubmBsn0BgvJoATLxAW4xQXYxgW5/gX4lQbOnAa0ngbQqQbRqQabywYAAQPyswbHpAb1swbHpAbo3gbHpAYAAA==

• You’ve got two Charge minions in Southsea Deckhand and Leeroy Jenkins. The strategy for this deck is to get both of those minions in your hand buff them up with Grimstreet Outfitter, Muscle-o-tron, and Painter’s Virtue. Once those three minions are nice a large, play them from your hand and destroy your opponent.

Zarimi Priest

• Deck code:

  AAECAa0GCP3EBc/2BcekBsOoBumoBrrOBtfSBszhBgui6APIxgW7xwWC7AWFjgbGnAbxnAbqqAbrqAbz4Qbc8wYAAQbt9wX9xAXJgAb9xAWQwQb9xAXzswbHpAb2swbHpAbo3gbHpAYAAA==

• As the name implies, this deck is all about using Timewinder Zarimi. After you summon 8 Dragons, Zarimi gives you two turns in a row. Make sure you can take your opponent to lethal in those two turns and then execute your plan.

Elemental Mage

• Deck code:

  AAECAf0EAsv+BcLqBg6x/gXf/gXUlQbxmwaYnQayngbTngbBnwbMogaozgbb4wbt5gaZ6gbf6gYAAA==

• This deck abuses Elemental synergies to build your board and deal with your opponent. You should have no problem maintaining a streak of consecutive turns of playing Elementals to get a board full of Overflow Surgers, or to draw several cards from Unchained Gladiator. Time your Solar Flares well. You should be able to cast them for much less than 5 mana, but you’ve only got two and that’s really the only AoE available to you. Mulligan for Aqua Archivist or Flame Revenant.

Are you feeling lucky?

If your main use of Tavern Brawls is to enjoy a rollicking good time where the size of your card collection may not matter much, the only winning play this week might be to not play. If you’re going to play, I’d suggest playing early in the week — Wednesday or Thursday — when you still have people trying out the Brawl. Later in the week, it will likely be serious players only.

If you’re just looking for your pack, remember the “Call of the Brawl” quest. You can play Casual, Ranked, or even Battlegrounds to earn your win — and your free pack.

If you’re consistently hitting high ranks on the Standard Ladder and are confident in your abilities, there are some fantastic prizes to be had. Best of luck to you if you choose to venture in!

Originally published September 23, 2020; last updated December 4, 2024