Hoooo boy, it’s that time again… alright, here’s me yapping for 10 minutes knowing damn well no one’s gonna see this.
Tornado + Rage nerfs: I see a lot of people complaining about these two in particular. Both spells have been incredibly popular across all formats for a while now, and people seem to be forgetting they exist for the sake of providing utility, while the damage is just a bonus. Looking at the numbers a bit closer, Rage will still be able to OHKO Spear Goblins, while Tornado will still be able to deal with Skeletons (but no longer be enough for Spear Goblins). The raw utility both cards bring to the game (mainly Tornado and the ability to provide redirection, a commonly overpowered mechanic across other games) has proven to be the deciding factor in between a win and a loss, so toning them down seems a bit fair. Personally, I think people are just overreacting and these two will remain strong within the meta.
Gbstein: it’s been nearly 6 months since this card was released and it’s still an absolute unit. Hell, I play Gbstein CC bait and even I can agree this thing is too strong, however a good part of that is due to the versatility it provides rather than the sheer stats. Feels a bit unnecessary but I don’t see this card magically phasing out of the meta anytime soon. Approved.
DD damage nerf: one extra dagger was really all it took to make this card good again, huh… honestly, I don’t think this card is really that strong on its own, but rather being a tower troop, it’s performance is reliant on the environment. It’s just a matter of seeing how this change plays out. Approved.
Berserker + Sus Bush buffs: honestly these are a bit weird to me. Both cards are clearly underperforming, but the way they were approached doesn’t seem right. Berserker is a cheap, frail card that focuses on speed, so a damage/hit speed buff seems more appropriate. Sus Bush on the other hand is a fun concept, but in practice can be very hit or miss. As it currently is right now, even if the Bush Goblin’s reach the tower, they can easily be dealt with using a mini tank/swarm. If I could suggest a change to this card, it would be adding “impact” damage similar to Gdrill or Skeli Barrel, making it slightly more demanding to deal with from afar.
Tesla Evo buff: this is an unfortunate case of a defensive evolution with no offensive value. It’s not necessarily bad, it’s just outclassed by other evolutions. Evolutions bring a whole new set of pressure to each game, and any card that isn’t able to perform similarly will always be a bit behind compared to others, so while the change is a nice thought, Tesla Evo is similar to the DD in that it revolves more around the environment. Nonetheless, an okay change. Approved.
Evo LJ: I’ve been playing LJ since forever and I’ll be honest, this card has always been able to creep its way into the meta, the Evo just pushed it more towards the broken side. Right now a good portion of the meta revolves around using it / keeping it in check, so this rework seems pretty solid. Approved.
Goblins: yeah no that’s a lot of changes, I’m not going over every individual one. Apparently this change is supposed to help tone down cards like GG or Gang while giving other swarm cards a chance to shine, however the other swarm cards aren’t exactly doing too well in such a power crept environment (just look at Minion horde for example). I really can’t say how these will impact the meta, as it’s… A LOT, however I do expect some serious changes. Only time will tell how badly this messes up the meta.