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| Set: |  Legacy |
|---|---|
| Type: | Spell |
| Class: |  Warrior |
| Rarity: |  Epic |
| Cost: | 5  |
| Abilities: | Destroy |
| Wiki tags: | Area of effect, Random |
Do you know the first rule of Brawl Club?
Brawl is an epic warrior spell card, from the Classic set. It is an area of effect spell that directly destroys all but one target, with the significant drawback that the target is chosen randomly.
How to get
Brawl can be obtained through Classic card packs, through crafting, or as an Arena reward. Regular Brawl can also be obtained through the Highest Rank Bonus chest at the end of a Ranked season, or as a first-time reward for first time reaching Platinum 10 or Diamond 10 in Ranked mode.
| Card | Crafting cost | Disenchanting |
|---|---|---|
| Brawl | 400 | 100 |
| Golden Brawl | 1600 | 400 |
Notes
- Brawl destroys all but one randomly selected minion. Ownership has no effect on the selection.[1]
- Despite the animation, Brawl actually works by randomly selecting a minion in play, and then applying a destroy effect to all other minions simultaneously.
- Brawl will trigger Deathrattles of all destroyed minions, in the order they were played, just as if they'd been killed by any other effect.
- Brawl does not work by destroying minions repeatedly until only one is left. It is therefore entirely possible for multiple minions to be left over after a Brawl, if one of the destroyed minion's Deathrattles summoned another minion.
- Brawl does not cause any minions to take damage.
- Brawl has a long animation, and the player will not be able to attack or target the surviving minion, cast any spells which require minions, or summon any new minions, until the animation has completed. If left too late in the turn, this can prevent the player from taking any actions following the Brawl that turn. If planning to use Brawl, play it well before the end of the turn to allow time for subsequent actions.
Strategy
Brawl is both highly tactical, and wildly unpredictable. The outlook for the card depends entirely on the minions currently on the battlefield. If the board is dominated by your opponent, it can be a very effective way to reset things, although you will likely still be left with one of their minions. Generally speaking, the card offers an advantage to whichever player has the fewer or less valuable minions on the field. If you are playing this card, that should always be you.
Due to warriors having very good access to weapons, a single attack on the surviving minion is often all that is needed to completely wipe a board. Baiting out several enemy minions and keeping your field empty whilst arming yourself with a weapon can lead to a devastating turn 5 play, with the warrior's Hero Power allowing them to absorb damage they expose themselves to.
Brawl is one of the most random cards in the game, and should not be played without consideration of the many possible outcomes. The major use of Brawl is for countering a substantial minion disadvantage. Note that the card does not require you to have any minions on the field; it can be played against 7 enemy minions, and will simply destroy all but one of them, regardless of their health or abilities, for only 5 mana. In this situation, it is extremely effective. Less common uses include playing it when you have more minions than your opponent, in order to have a good chance of removing a single, very powerful enemy minion. However, this of course has the potential to backfire badly.
Another use of Brawl is seen when the player places a single minion of their own onto the board against a single formidable enemy, and essentially flips a coin for control of the board. This typically comes up in the late game, when an empty board is suddenly filled with a minion like Boulderfist Ogre or even Deathwing, and the warrior has nothing but Brawl and a small minion with which to respond. While a last resort, when left with no better alternatives, this has a 50% chance of wresting control of the game back into the warrior's hands.
Brawl can be one of the most difficult to play cards in Hearthstone. By its very nature it costs you all of your minions on the board, minus a chance that it will be your minion that is chosen randomly to remain alive. When played at the wrong time, it can lead to a quick defeat, but where it shines is in denying opponent strategies with 4-6 turn preparation times such as minion aggro with Divine Shield.
At only a 5 mana crystal cost it can also be used as a hard wipe in situations where your starting draw is significantly weaker than your opponents or you are confident that his greatest threat has been played on the board.
Because Brawl is actually a standard destroy effect, it is ineffective at removing sticky minions like Harvest Golem and Savannah Highmane. On the other hand, hitting an Abomination may mop up any survivors, while using it in combination with one's own Sylvanas Windrunner will necessarily result in either an allied minion surviving, or taking the opponent's surviving minion due to Sylvanas' Deathrattle.
Unless you have two Brawls in your hand, or are confident of drawing another soon, pick your moment for using Brawl with great care and patience. If you have no minions on the board, it is easy to play Brawl against 3 or 4 enemy minions simply in order to even things up a bit and break the opponent's tempo, and this is a respectable play. As with other area of effect spells, however, the opponent may be holding back from fully committing to the board, perhaps even anticipating Brawl, and may follow what seemed like a solid board clear by playing a new selection of even more powerful minions. It is often unwise to play Brawl during the early game for precisely this reason. However, when used as a defensive measure against an aggro deck, it is often most important simply to break their tempo before too much damage is taken.
Lore
While this card does not appear to be based on a specific ability from World of Warcraft, its flavor text references the film Fight Club, which is also quoted in the introduction to the Brawler's Guild in WoW.
The Brawler's Guild is the name for a number of underground fighting rings that have sprung up in recent times in Orgrimmar and Stormwind. Open only to those clutching a Blood-Soaked Invitation, these are brutal arenas where hardened adventurers can go to do battle against a range of special bosses. A unique solo PvE challenge, fights are performed in the centre of the ring for all to see, and success is rewarded with progression through the guild's ranks and access to even tougher opponents, as well as the grudging respect of your fellow brawlers.
The Tavern Brawl game mode also fits with the concept behind this card, although it was not added until more than 2 years later.
Trivia
- A common joke states that
Armorsmith will always win a Brawl. - This card's flavor text references the 1999 film Fight Club.
- This card's artwork was originally used in the TCG to depict the Gurubashi Arena, a troll arena in Northern Stranglethorn.
Artist
Template:Setartist
Gallery
Brawl, full art |
Patch changes
- Patch 1.1.0.6024 (2014-07-22): Resolved an issue with Brawl where the last minion to enter the fray was always the victor of the ensuing battle.
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References
- ↑ Ben Brode on Twitter. (2015-09-15).