Opening Moves: Part 2 - The Coin

Author: Andrew ‘The Water Boiler’ Klawitter

A followup to the Opening Moves article, where we looked at what minions are best at 1 crystal cost. We take into account the impact of the Coin, and how this changes our gameplay, with all possible outcomes from the premiere hearthstone card set.

We are evaluating one of two possible scenarios, based on your opponent’s turn 1 play:

1. Your opponent played a 1-cost minion (ignoring innervate nonsense).
   1. Eliminate that minion.
   2. Ignore the minion.
      1. Play a 1-cost minion. - saving the coin.
      2. Coin out a 2-cost minion.
2. Your opponent passed the turn.
   1. Play a 1-cost minion. - saving the coin.
   2. Coin out a 2-cost minion.

Heh, This Guy’s Toast

In the case of Eliminating the minion, you have to consider the impact, on whether it is worth spending your coin, one of the major tempo enabler cards, on, most probably, one of the weakest minions in the opponents deck.

The downside of not killing the minion your opponent plays, means that he will be getting in some free damage until you do deal with it. When left unanswered, this could add up to 6-8 damage over a few short turns. Which is why the turn 1, 1 crystal cost, minions can be such a great opening move.

When considering what plays you can make to remove those minions, it is important to note that the best ones available are those that advance your own board, while at the same time removing the opponents minion.

This means a card like Wrath, which can deal 1 damage to the minion, and draw you a replacement card, is ideal for eliminating a 1 health minion. ‘But why would you waste the coin-Wrath when you can just coin-hero power and take a little damage to kill the same minion?’ This is important concept to understand. When you dont have a follow-up play for the next few turns, as when your starting hand ended up being too many high cost minions, the wrath increases the probability you will draw into a future play more quickly than if you just coin-hero power.

With that said, the best response plays are as follows:

Neutral cards:

• Elven Archer - Kills off a 2/1 opposing minion, and leaves a 1/1 behind to advance your board. Saves the coin for future turns.
• Coin → Mad Bomber - Assigning damage randomly, gives you 3 chances to dispatch a pesky 1 health minion, (even under the cloak of stealth), or a remote possibility to eliminate something slightly larger.

Druid:

• Claw - Attacking a 1 / 2 or a 2 / 1 (or a 3 / 2) minion, and saves your coin for a future turn.
• Coin → Wrath - Kills of a vital minion of 3 health, such as an ill advised turn 1 Northshire Cleric, or can deal just a single damage, but advance your deck filtering by drawing you a card.
• Coin → Hero Power - Deals 1 damage to a minion, but spends your coin in doing so.

Hunter:

• Arcane Shot - Deals 2 damage, killing off a 1 / 2 or a 2 / 1 (or a 3 / 2) minion, and saves your coin for a future turn.

Mage:

• Arcane Missiles - Mad Bomber with none of the downsize and all the upside, especially because you dont have to spend a coin. This doesnt leave you with any board position going into turn 2, but it does save the coin.
• Coin → Frostbolt - While it does do 3 damage, I prefer not to use a frostbolt on small minions with only 1 or 2 Health.
• Coin → Hero Power - This is the most common scenario i have seen, as it guarantees a pinpoint hit on the opponent’s minion. unfortunately, it does cost you the coin.

Paladin:

• Light’s Justice - The ultimate 1 health removal tool, killing up to 4 minions with this measly little hammer. Due to being less useful late-game (baring Spiteful Smith buffs) players tend to shy away from its use for Constructed play, but it can certainly be a decent counter to an aggressive low-health minion threat.
• Noble Sacrifice - This is basically Claw, or Arcane Shot, but you dont get to decide the target. Though with only one minion on the board, if it has 2 or less health, you can justify playing this as an opening move (except against a druid or rogue opponent).

Priest:

• Holy Smite - The list of 2 damage spells for 1 crystal cost goes on!
• Coin → Shadow Word: Pain - While usually i like to reserve this spell to take out a key minion hiding behind a taunt in the late game, it can remove an early flame imp, to prevent the board from getting completely out of control.

Rogue:

• Backstab - The downside of using your backstab early, is you do not get to draw a card off of it with a Gadgetzan Auctioneer on turns 5 or 6. The upside, due to the zero crystal cost, you can follow up with a minion of your own.
• Coin → Shiv - Apt to remove an early one health minion, while refilling your hand, like Wrath without the ‘Choose One’ text option.
• Coin → Hero Power - Daggers. Spends the coin and a few health resources in exchange for dealing a damage to an early minion. Also leaves you with a 1 / 1 dagger for a future turn.

Shaman:

• Earth Shock - The absolute best answer to pesky 1 health minions such as Leper Gnome or Argent Squire, since it removes their game text with silence before dispatching them.
• Frost Shock - An interesting choice, in that if it does not flat out remove the minion, it will provide a temporary reprieve of damage with the freeze effect. This card is best used as a setup to stall before an AOE spell.
• Lightning Bolt - In essence this is minion removal at a cost of a coin on your next turn, due to the overload. Not recommended unless you have no possible follow up plays on turn 2 (since you will be overloaded).
• Rockbiter Weapon - In a pinch this will clean out a minion, but if you should ask yourself if its worth giving up a late-game combo piece, as this is 6 damage for 1 crystal with a windfury minion/weapon.
• Coin → Stormforged Axe - This play will overload you, but it can remove a good number of early minions, since it has 3 charges, so even though you are giving up your first two turns of plays and the coin, it is worth doing.

Warlock:

• Soulfire - This ends up costing 2 cards to take out a weak early minion, so it is only worthwhile if the first minion is a significant threat. Though it does allow you to play a 1 or 2 cost minion, and then soulfire, swinging the tempo and board in your favor.
• Mortal Coil - Solid warlock removal card. and unlike wraith and shiv, it doesnt cost you the coin for the same effect on a 1 health minion.
• Coin → Demonfire - Takes care of a pesky 2 health minion, but does cost you the coin.

Warrior:

• Inner Rage - At the cost of extra damage later (and no longer having an enrage enabler) you can remove an aggressive 1 health minion, and at 0 crystal cost, you can then play a minion of your own.
• Upgrade - Equipping a 1 / 3 weapon in the case of a small minion swarm, while not being completely useless if you draw it in the late game (like the Light’s Justice is.)
• Coin → Fiery War Axe - Similar to the Stoneforged Axe, but with 1 less charge, and no overload. Solid early minion removal tool.
• Coin → Slam - do not save this for drawing a card if it can be used early to pick off a key minion of your opponents. This card is still good as a directed damage kill spell.
• Coin → Heroic Strike - A one-time Fiery War Axe, while it works to dispatch an early minion, it is hardly worth it since you are overkilling, using up a possible 4 damage. This is much better for removing a 4/4 or as a direct damage of +4 against an opponent’s hero.
• Coin → Cruel Task Master - Like the Inner Rage with a 2/2 body attached. Solid opening play, but it costs you the coin.

Coining Out a 2 Mana Minion

1 / 1	1 / 3	2 / 1	2 / 2	2 / 3
Bloodmage Thalnos Captain’s Parrot Novice Engineer	Mana Addict Master Swordsmith	Bluegill Warrior Ironbeak Owl Loot Hoarder Murloc Tidecaller	Crazed Alchemist Dire Wolf Alpha Frostwolf Grunt Kobold Geomancer Mana Wraith* Pint Sized Summoner*	Amani Berserker* Bloodsail Raider River Crocolisk Sunfury Protector

3 / 2	4 / 4	4 / 5	0 / 4	0 / 7
Acidic Swamp Ooze Bloodfen Raptor Faerie Dragon* Knife Juggler* Mad Bomber Wild Pyromancer Youthful Brewmaster	Millhouse Manastorm	Ancient Watcher	Lorewalker Cho Nat Pagle*	Doomsayer

Since this is the first turn, you do not have other minions on the board, and you are going second, so in coining out a 2 crystal minion you are hoping to gain tempo against the opponent who got to play first. If they did not play a minion (or played an insignificant minion) pushing out a 2 cost minion as an early threat is a solid play. Coining out something insignificant like a Novice Engineer or a combo piece like Doomsayer is not.

For this reason, the strongest plays are the 3 / 2’s that have additional game text, Knife Juggler and Faery Dragon. Equally strong is the Amani Berserker, with his 2 / 3. especially if you have an enrage enabler ready for your second turn. Another, more subtle threat, is to coin out Nat Pagle on an empty board, to push for early card advantage.

Two very specific opening move minions are at the 2 / 2 slot. Mana Wraith is an excellent opener for a control deck, increasing minion costs, giving you a greater chance to draw into answers by slowing down the overall speed of the game, reducing the number of minions that can be played each turn. The opposite strategy is the Pint Sized Summoner, who works to quickly pump out your minions in a rush oriented deck. This little guy makes for interesting decks when you can draw her in your opening 4 cards, however, she becomes increasingly less useful as each turn goes by.

Remember, you can also facilitate a quick open by coining out two 1-crystal cost minions that combine well when paired. (such as a ShieldBearer + Young Priestess)

Class Specific at Two Crystals

Druid:

• Coin → Wild Growth - Sacrificing the current turn to prolong the coin’s effect into all future turns.
• Coin → Power of the Wild - This just makes you a 3 / 2.

Hunter:

• Coin → Secret (Explosive Trap, Freezing Trap, Misdirection, Snake Trap, Snipe) - This can certainly confuse beginner opponents, but ultimately not a very exciting, or strong, use of the coin.
• Coin → Scavenging Hyena - a 2/2, but without any other beasts in play yet, this wont be useful, and usually gets killed before you can trigger its effects. Much stronger to save this till you have beasts in play and can triggers its’ buffs on the turn you play it.
• Coin → Starving Buzzard - as a fragile combo piece, this is a horrible play, you want to draw at least one card off the buzzard on the turn you play it.

Mage:

• Coin → Sorcerer’s Apprentice - This is an interesting and explosive start, especially when combined with either Mirror Image and/or Arcane Missiles. Though I tend to start off my Aggro Mage with Coin, Knife Juggler, when facing an empty board, and follow up with Sorcerer’s Apprentice and Mirror Image on the next turn, for some added damage potential.

Paladin:

• Coin → Hero Power - Silver Hand Recruit… turns your coin into a 1 / 1. Not impressive.
• Coin → Argent Protector - with no other creatures to protect with the divine shield, this is just producing a 2 / 2.

Priest:

• Coin → Lightwell - a 0 / 5 can be difficult to remove early, especially one that can heal itself or others at the start of your turns. so, why is this card not seen very often? it does not really provide any benefits over that of your hero power, essentially putting a down payment of a card and 2 crystals this turn for a random hero-powerish-heal at the start of each of your future turns. many players just do not feel that it is worth the card, seeing as its impact is mitigated if you draw it later in the game. (the card is better the earlier it is played.)

Rogue:

• Coin → Defias Ringleader - Combo!! a 2 / 2 and a 2 / 1. essentially turning the coin into a 2 / 1 Minion.
• Coin → Patient Assassin - This is the king of passive-aggressive starts. Though it is vulnerable to untargeted damage, such as Arcane Missiles, Arcane Explosion, Mad Bomber, etc. So I would only play this guy in specific matchups.

Shaman:

• Coin → Hero Ability - Totem… meh. don’t waste the coin like this.
• Coin → Stormforged Axe - this is better as a response to a minion, rather than an opening move, because it leaves you vulnerable in future turns, due to overload, and only gives you 2 damage against an empty board.

Warlock:

• Coin → Succubus - costing 3 cards for a 4 / 3 minion on the first turn. Unfortunately, due to the prevalence of 3 damage spells early on, i do not feel this is worth the extra cards lost. there is too much of a risk in this play to fall too far behind if they are able to remove it quickly.

Warrior:

• Coin → Fiery War Axe - as with the stormforged axe, I prefer not to play a weapon unless you can use it to kill a minion on the turn you play it.
• Coin → Armorsmith - a solid warrior open, but is it worth spending the coin? if your opponent played a 2 / 1 minion, and you dont have the quick answer, yes, the coin armorsmith play will put pressure on your opponent to have a followup. On an empty board, i would probably wait a turn, and save the coin.
• Coin → Cruel Taskmaster - similarly to the Argent Protector, this minion is better when there is a friend on the table to buff. or you just get a plain 2 / 2.

A Coin for your Thoughts

As we can see, there are only a few 2 cost minions that are truly worth using the coin on, and quite a lot that are not worth the coin expenditure. Especially when the coin can be quite useful in later turns, as a mini-innervate.

For instance, it will allow an AOE effect a turn earlier, such as the Mage casting Blizzard on turn 5, or Flamestrike on turn 6, without the need to protect a Sorcerer’s Apprentice to do so.

Alternatively, the coin can be turned into a 1 / 1 minion combined with the Violet Teacher, or an additional card with the Gadgetzan Auctioneer. It can provide a bonus to attack with the Mana Wyrm, Mana Addict, Questing Adventurer, or Edwin Van Cleef. It can also enable an 11 mana cost play when you hit 10, to allow for some combos that are otherwise not possible. All of which are reasons for saving the coin for the most opportune moment, instead of spending it right away on a 2 cost minion.

So make sure to weigh the benefits of using that coin, before you decide to speed out that Bluegill Warrior, as you might just have spent the deciding crystal of the game too early, and on a minimal impact minion.