Core is the primary card set of Hearthstone. It was first made available on March 30, 2021, along with Forged in the Barrens launch.

The purpose of the Core is to provide a modern collection of starting cards to players of all types and make Hearthstone even more approachable for newcomers. Some of the Core cards are returning from previous sets, some are reimagined favorites, some are completely new. Regardless, all Core cards can be obtained for free through leveling up classes, while their golden cards can be obtained by winning in Ranked, Arena, or Duels games.

Unlike Basic and Classic, which were the main card sets of Hearthstone, Core will be refreshed each year. At the end of every year, a new Core Set will take the place of the previous, comprised of new and existing cards. When that happens, Core cards that are rotating will be swapped with new ones in the player's Collection automatically. The original versions of these cards can still be crafted and disenchanted, but the player will be unable to keep their Core versions.^[1][2]

Core cards can be used at any time in Standard and Wild format, as well as Twist format provided the set is in the current available card sets, although you may still only have the normal number of copies of any given card in your deck (two for most rarities, one for legendaries).

Notes

• All the old cards in the Core set will have two versions that exist in parallel: One from the original set, and one from the Core set.
  • The original version can be crafted or disenchanted for Arcane Dust, while the Core version is uncraftable.
  • The Core set version is temporary and can be removed depending on the announcement of the next year's Core set.
  • In Wild format, both the original and Core versions are associated; therefore you can only bring either 2 copies of either of them. For example, you can only put:
    • 2 Annoy-o-Tron (Core)
    • 2 Annoy-o-Tron
    • or 1 Annoy-o-Tron and 1 Annoy-o-Tron (Core).
  • Both versions are treated as the same cards for the Highlander cards' conditions.
  • Both versions are treated as separate cards for some mechanics like Discover and generation. For example:
    • In Wild format, you can Discover Gorillabot A-3 with Gorillabot A-3 (Core).
    • In Wild format, after you use Illidari Studies, there is chance that Spectral Sight and Spectral Sight (Core) are offered at the same time.
  • In Collection manager, when you filter cards by format (Standard Cards or Wild Cards), the collection manager will prioritize the Core version over the original one if you have any copies of the Core version to display.
  • The Core set version functions like how Wild Event did.
• Core versions of Legacy cards are not usable in Classic format. Only their original Legacy versions are usable.

How to get

Core cards are free to obtain without using gold or real money to purchase them.

• Regular Core cards can be obtained by raising your class levels, up to 10 for class cards, and sum of them to 60 for neutral cards.
• Golden Core cards can be obtained through the Progression achievements, which involve in winning Ranked, Arena, or Duels games.

Cards

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Design

At the time of the Core set's introduction, the Classic set comprised 240 cards while the Basic set had another 143, for a total of 383 evergreen cards. With 148 less cards each year, the dev team can focus on making each set of evergreen cards more consistently impactful and relevant to the current meta.^[3]

History

• Year of the Gryphon Core set
  • On February 9, 2021, Core set was first announced, giving the players a brief description of how the Core set and the rotation works.^[4]
  • On February 19, 2021, along with announcement of Forged in the Barrens and Year of the Gryphon, some of the core cards had been revealed.^[5]
  • On February 25, 2021, the full details of Year of the Gryphon's Core set had been revealed on PlayHearthstone Library website.
  • Between February 25 and early March 2021, Stonetusk Boar and Bluegill Warrior were originally part of the first Core set, but both were changed from Charge to Rush in exchange for 1 more attack. Due to player feedback, the two minions were left unchanged for the Legacy set, while the new minions Emerald Skytalon and Redgill Razorjaw took their place with the intended changes.^[6]
  • On March 30, 2021, Year of the Gryphon's Core set was released.
• Year of the Hydra Core set
  • On April 5, 2022, the full details of Year of the Hydra's Core set had been revealed, with 57 cards leaving the Core set and 72 cards entering, increasing the total number of cards of Core set from 235 to 250.^[7]
  • On April 12, 2022, Year of the Hydra's Core set was released.
  • During the Knights of Hallow's End event, all Core versions of Knights of the Frozen Throne cards, excluding ones which were already available like Drain Soul, were created to make them available in Standard until March of the Lich King release. A list of those versions can be seen here.
  • On Patch 25.0.0.158725, 32 Death Knight cards were added, but unavailable until March of the Lich King launched.
    • This patch was also the first time new Core cards were introduced into the set outside of the regular set rotation.
• Year of the Wolf Core set
  • On March 23, 2023, the full details of Year of the Wolf's Core set were revealed, with 70 cards both leaving and entering the Core set.^[8]
  • On April 11, 2023, Year of the Wolf's Core set was released.
  • Year of the Wolf's Core set introduced Tradeable as a new evergreen keyword, as well as Magnetic returning for just this year. Priests also received a new class-exclusive keyword, Overheal, which was proactively added to older cards.
  • This year's Core set was designed to be "more flexible" than usual by allowing for both planned adjustments and unplanned balance changes. Cards could be rotated from Core early or new cards could be added in the middle of the year as needed.
  • In Patch 27.0.0.181554, two new cards were added to the Core set and used right away: Resistance Aura and Crusader Aura. From this onwards, Aura is considered to be one of Paladin's design spaces.^[9]

References

Card sets (Expansions / Adventures / Mini-sets) Standard Path of Arthas Core TITANS Festival of Legends (Audiopocalypse) March of the Lich King (Return to Naxxramas) Murder at Castle Nathria (Maw and Disorder) Voyage to the Sunken City (Throne of the Tides) Wild Caverns of Time Fractured in Alterac Valley (Onyxia's Lair) United in Stormwind (Deadmines) Forged in the Barrens (Wailing Caverns) Madness at the Darkmoon Faire (Darkmoon Races) Scholomance Academy Demon Hunter Initiate Ashes of Outland Galakrond's Awakening Descent of Dragons Saviors of Uldum Rise of Shadows Rastakhan's Rumble The Boomsday Project The Witchwood Kobolds & Catacombs Knights of the Frozen Throne Journey to Un'Goro Mean Streets of Gadgetzan One Night in Karazhan Whispers of the Old Gods The League of Explorers The Grand Tournament Blackrock Mountain Goblins vs Gnomes Curse of Naxxramas Legacy Classic Classic Removed Promotion Reward Basic Classic Hall of Fame Wild Event