Even professionals make mistakes in Hearthstone. When panic sets in, chaos quickly ensues.
Those who have watched some Hearthstone matches from professionals on Twitch will know the outrage in the chat when someone makes a small mistake. These “misplays” are always immediately met with mockery and ridicule. But sometimes it is not just a small mistake – it can lead to a long chain of unconsidered moves.
Last week, the Dreamhack Montreal Hearthstone Grand Prix took place and featured a match between CoachTwisted and Walaoumpa. In what had been a well-played match up to that point, CoachTwisted solidified his lead. He failed to give Anduin his Death Knight form, and along with Raza and Lyra, he had already created a deadly combination that allowed him to use his hero power for free after each spell.
But then panic breaks out – the opponent played Nozdormu. This gives each player only 15 seconds for their turn. The tunnel vision leads CoachTwisted to damage Nozdormu with a hero power and then even heal him again with Circle of Healing, thereby ruining the trade. A typical beginner’s mistake that can happen in a moment of panic.
This mistake is not the only one. CoachTwisted still has a massive advantage afterwards and could win the game relatively quickly if he simply played his cards and attacked. But he does not. Instead, he decides to remove the enemy minions from the board at all costs and makes numerous mistakes in the process. Spells fizzle out without effect, he draws too many cards, and wastes a lot of resources on something he actually does not need.
It does not get any better in the subsequent turns – and he actually loses the match.
CoachTwisted said in hindsight to PCGamer “I wasn’t thinking anymore. My brain was on autopilot, and I was just playing cards.”
Have you ever experienced such a situation where you just play cards out of panic? Where you stop thinking and fall into tunnel vision?
Recently, there was a significant nerf in Hearthstone – to the most popular druid card in the game.
