Professional Hearthstone Tournaments and World Championship

Hearthstone is the most popular eSports card game in the world. The professional scene has existed at HS since 2014 — since the launch of the project. Blizzard immediately began making Hearthstone tournaments to bring the discipline to the attention of gamers. The first esports players began to appear. Professional players came and went, but big championships were always held.

One of the main sponsors of the competition is Blizzard, which invests impressive sums in the esports component of its game. The prize money, of course, cannot be compared with the leading disciplines, but given that this is a single sport, pro players get very good sums here.

Hearthstone Tournaments: Features, Rules and Prize Pools

Hearthstone tournaments are a series of related matches. They can be organized in the form of a league or a cup. In the first case, gamers play long. In battles among themselves, they earn points, then the final standings are formed. The esports players who have taken the top lines receive prizes and can also qualify for a more prestigious tournament, for example, the Hearthstone World Championship. The same players who ended up in the lower part, most often do not receive anything, or they may even leave the division altogether, leaving for a decrease.

In the case of the cup, esports players immediately play for elimination. Winning, the player moves further along the tournament grid. The strongest reach the final, where they decide the fate of the trophy. Also, the Hearthstone tournament can take place with a preliminary group stage. There the teams are divided in half or into 4 equal groups. The leaders go further, and the outsiders leave the tournament.

Esports Types of Hearthstone Tournaments

There are several main formats in which the official tournaments of this eSports discipline are held.

1. The most popular is Conquest. Each player chooses a certain number of decks — this depends on the rules of the competition. Moreover, each set of cards must belong to a unique class. This means that you cannot take, for example, two decks of a magician. At the beginning of the round, the player chooses a deck, and the choice is hidden from the opponent. In Conquest, the winner is the gamer who won the first matches with all the kits.
2. Another format is Last Hero Standing. It is the second most common in the official Hearthstone championships. The principle is similar to Conquest, but here the player who first defeats all the opponent’s decks wins. If in Conquest a set of cards is removed after a victory, then in Last Hero Standing — after a defeat.
3. Hearthstone also uses the Strike format. First, the players take 3 decks, then the matches are banned in turn. After that, esports players start the game in the best-of-5 format with the remaining combinations.

Hearthstone tournaments can have different types of grids

Single is a regular knockout playoff. Double — the same playoffs, but with a table of winners and losers. In the first, the advancement is faster, and e-sportsmen have the right to 1 defeat. Round Robin is a game of everybody with everybody. Gamers play matches with each other, and the final standings are formed based on the results.

How Often are the Competitions Held?

Major tournaments are organized very often. In January, players leave their holidays and begin to actively participate in the game. Throughout almost the entire game year, tournaments of the Grand Masters series are held. There are pauses from time to time in big eSports, but they are not long. At the end of the year, top competitions are also held, which are a kind of summing up of the results.

Hearthstone’s Premier Esports Event — the World Championship

As in any other discipline, it has its main tournament – the Hearthstone World Championship. It is held once a year and brings together the top players on the planet who are fighting for the title of the strongest. Another additional motivation is a serious prize — 1 million dollars is raffled off at the World Cup.

The format of this Hearthstone championship is quite standard. Players are divided into groups. The 2 strongest from each quartet advance to the playoffs, where they play in a single grid format.

Another Hearthstone Major Tournaments

The world of Hearthstone does not revolve around one world championship, although it is held in high esteem among professional players. The discipline boasts a range of interesting events. There are both offline and Hearthstone online tournaments.

Masters Tour

This is a series of top events that take place throughout the year. They are held online, although cities and countries regularly appear in the names. At such tournaments, hundreds of players compete for a very significant prize pool — 250-500 thousand dollars.

Grand Masters

This series also boasts a large number of regular events. They are divided into regional tournaments, which became especially important during the pandemic.

World Electronic Sports Games

This tournament includes the best esports disciplines, including Hearthstone. The strongest players go to China, where they compete for a prestigious title and good prize money. In addition to guys, girls can also show their skills at this tournament — a special championship has been organized for them.