31.2 Patch Notes

31.2 Patch Notes

Patch 31.2 goes live December 3 and brings Battlegrounds Season 9 (the Technotavern), new heroes, a holiday in-game event, Twist updates, Arena and Tavern Brawl changes, quality‑of‑life fixes, and more.

Battlegrounds Season 9 — Enter the Technotavern

Season 9 begins December 3. When the new season starts: ratings reset for Battlegrounds and Duos, Trinkets are removed, and the Battlegrounds Rewards Track switches over. Any earned Season 8 rewards that you haven’t claimed will be automatically delivered.

New Heroes

Three new heroes are introduced and will be guaranteed in the initial hero offerings for every Battlegrounds/Duos game for the first two weeks after launch (they will not be available to Reroll during that period).

Farseer Nobundo

• Hero Power: The Galaxy’s Lens [3 Gold]
• Effect: Get a copy of the last Tavern spell you cast. Each turn, your next Hero Power costs (1) less.

Exarch Othaar

• Hero Power: Arcane Knowledge [0 Gold]
• Effect: The next Tavern spell you buy costs (1) less. (Unlocks on turn 3.)

Zerek, Master Cloner

• Hero Power: Cloning Gallery [0 Gold]
• Effect: Summon an exact copy of a friendly minion. (Once per game.)

Hero Updates

Several existing heroes and hero power Trinket pools were adjusted.

Lich Baz’hial (Adjusted)

• Hero Power: Graveyard Shift [2 Gold]
• Effect: Steal a card from the Tavern. Take 2 damage.

Shudderwock (Adjusted)

• Hero Power: Snicker-snack [0 Gold]
• Effect: Trigger a friendly minion’s Battlecry. (Unlocks on Turn 3.)

Marin the Manager (Adjusted)

• Several Trinkets were removed from Marin’s Hero Power Trinket Pool: Kaboom Bot Portrait, Eternal Portrait, Felblood Portrait, Tiger Carving, Souvenir Stand, Goose Portrait, and Empowered Mirror.

Trade Prince Gallywix (Buffed)

• Gallywix is no longer banned in Elemental lobbies.

Minion Refresh and Rollout Schedule

Season 9 adds nearly 90 new and returning minions plus 11 new Tavern spells across Battlegrounds and Duos. Bob will stagger their introduction so players can learn the new synergies:

• December 3: Beasts, Dragons, Quilboar, Pirates, Naga, and Mechs appear at launch.
• December 5: Murlocs and Demons join the pool.
• December 9: Undead and Elementals are added.

All card reveals and details are available in the official Card Library.

Damage Cap Update (Solo Battlegrounds)

Starting with Season 9 (solo games only), the early-game damage cap is adjusted to prevent large burst damage in the first turns. The cap will be:

• 5 damage initially
• 10 damage on turn 4
• 15 damage on turn 8

The damage cap is still removed once you reach the Top 4.

New Feature: Hero Rerolls

From Season 9 you can Reroll individual Hero slots during the Hero selection phase. Each Hero slot can be Rerolled once per game by spending a Battlegrounds Token. A Reroll replaces that specific Hero with another option that has not yet been offered to anyone in the current lobby. Each player’s Rerolls are independent, so timing against other players is not required.

How to obtain Battlegrounds Tokens:

• Included in the Rewards Track (both free and paid tiers)
• In-game grants, viewership rewards, and the in-game Shop
• At launch, every player receives 2 Battlegrounds Tokens automatically
• A free bundle of 4 Battlegrounds Tokens can be claimed in the Shop for a limited time after launch

Note: With the Season Pass+, your first Reroll each game does not consume a Battlegrounds Token.

Because you cannot Reroll into a Hero that was already offered to someone in the lobby, the three new heroes (guaranteed in the initial offerings for two weeks) cannot be obtained via Reroll during that period.

Battlegrounds Season Pass and Season Pass+

The Battlegrounds Rewards Track now includes Battlegrounds Tokens across free and paid rewards. Season Pass+ is a new paid tier that includes everything on the Season Pass plus the perk that your first Reroll each game is free (does not use a Battlegrounds Token).

Pricing:

• Season Pass: $14.99 USD (or 1500 Runestones)
• Season Pass+: $19.99 USD (or 2000 Runestones)
• Upgrade from Season Pass to Season Pass+: $4.99 USD (or 500 Runestones)

Full Rewards Track details are available in the Season 9 announcement.

Arena Update

When Patch 31.2 launches, all active Arena runs will end and a new Arena season will start. Eligible sets for the new season are:

• The Great Dark Beyond
• Perils in Paradise
• TITANS
• Festival of Legends
• Scholomance Academy
• Descent of Dragons

Twist Returns — Wonders Format

Twist is back with the Wonders format starting December 3. Wonders is a retro format using cards from older sets (before Demon Hunter and Death Knight), so those two classes are banned. The Wonders initial run is December 3 to January 6.

Wonders card pool includes (examples listed): Legacy (distinct from Core and Classic), Curse of Naxxramas, Goblins vs Gnomes, Blackrock Mountain, The Grand Tournament, The League of Explorers, Whispers of the Old Gods, One Night in Karazhan, Mean Streets of Gadgetzan, and Caverns of Time.

Format scheduling: starting with Patch 31.2, Twist formats will no longer be forced to begin and end exactly on calendar month boundaries. This allows better timing around weekends and holidays. Ladder seasons remain monthly, so a calendar month may include multiple formats during those transition windows (for example, January 1–6 and January 7–31 will be different formats).

On January 7 the XL Wonders format will begin. XL Wonders uses the same card pool as Wonders but allows decks of 30–40 cards. Your max life equals your deck size (a 37-card deck begins with 37 max life), letting you expand your deck and life total simultaneously.

Heroic Tavern Brawl

Heroic Tavern Brawl returns December 4–11. Pay the entry fee and play until either 12 wins or 3 losses for higher prizing based on performance.

In‑Game Event: Bob’s Holiday Bash

From December 10–31, complete Event Quests to earn XP on a special Event XP Track. Quests can be completed in either Hearthstone or Battlegrounds and progress counts toward rewards in both modes. Completing the full Event Track rewards:

• 7 The Great Dark Beyond packs
• 4 Battlegrounds Tokens
• Bob the Bartender (regular and golden) — first time available in Standard Hearthstone

Note: Bob the Bartender is planned to rotate out of Standard as part of the 2026 Standard rotation.

Hearthstone: Music of the Tavern (Volume 2)

Hearthstone: Music of the Tavern (Volume 2) releases December 18 on Spotify, Apple Music, iTunes, and Deezer. It features over 50 in-game tracks.

Artist: Uriah Voth

Bug Fixes and Game Improvements

This patch includes numerous fixes across Hearthstone and Battlegrounds. Key highlights:

• [General] The in-game menu "Quit" button will no longer Concede your match when closing the client; behavior was reverted to the originally intended functionality.
• [General] Fixed a disconnection/performance issue affecting some players.
• [Tavern Brawl] Tavern Brawl start times are standardized across regions to 9 a.m. PT.
• [Hearthstone] Fixed disconnect bugs involving Private Eye and Mysterious Challenger; both are unbanned from Wild.
• [Hearthstone] Avatar of Hearthstone no longer requires hand space for its effect.
• [Hearthstone] Announce Darkness can now provide Warlock locations.
• [Hearthstone] Fixed various crash and interaction bugs (examples: Titans replay edge case, Imployee of the Month not counting as an Imp, Airlock Breach counting Health changes inaccurately).
• [Hearthstone] Multiple card-specific issues were fixed (examples: Maestra Discover bug, Kil’jaeden’s Portal text-only upgrade issue, Mining Casualties on full boards, Carnivorous Cubicle end-of-turn triggers, Hot Coals resolution waves, Parrot Sanctuary reopen condition, Wakener of Souls self-resurrection edge case, Uluu Choose One interaction with Spell Damage, Mistah Vistah resurrection crashes, Dryscale Deputy copying Cast-When-Drawn spells, Greedy Partner activation with Razorscale adjustments, Dormant transformation functionality, Spore Empress visual bugs, Voodoo Doll copy behaviors).
• [Battlegrounds] Several updates fix how minions that grant bonuses for spending Gold behave (they now still trigger when Gold is spent obtaining a triple), clarify variable-based text, and prevent some Hero Powers from activating when your hand is full. Additional fixes cover Ritual of Growth, Motley Phalanx, Golden Persistent Poet interactions, Ghost spell expirations, Aggem Thorncurse triggering in the Tavern, and other combat/interaction issues.
• [Collection] Fixes include CN-only Refund search results, allowing missed Champions of Azeroth to be obtained via pack opening screens, Imp-oster crafting/disenchanting fix, and Interstellar Starslicer flavor text correction.
• [Shop] Fixed a "New" notification displaying incorrectly.
• [Solo Content] Resolved a couple of unsolvable Boomsday Puzzles.
• [Progression] Fixed achievement progression when using Core Set versions of cards.
• [Misc.] Improved performance of the in-game Reconnect feature and other miscellaneous fixes.

Misc. other bug fixes and game improvements are included in this patch.