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Reviewed by Jeffrey Hsu
In Hearthstone, a lot of fun for new and old players alike comes from the legendary cards. Nearly every Hearthstone player will agree with us that there are few moments in the game compare to getting a legendary when opening a pack. They’re big, flashy, and (usually) powerful… but they’re also expensive, costing 1600 dust to craft a single one. You’ll want to make sure the ones you choose to craft are worth it.
To that end, we have here a top ten list of the best legendaries currently in Standard.
We did not evaluate these legendaries based on whether or not there is a current top tier deck that is running them. Instead, we primarily evaluated these legendary cards based on how universally good/playable they are across the Standard format in Hearthstone.
10 Best Legendary Cards in Hearthstone (Standard Format)
We’ll be ranking these in order of good to best. Let’s get started!
Lor’themar Theron
Starting off our list, we have Lor’themar Theron – a neutral 7/7 legendary minion for 7-mana. He has a battlecry that doubles the stats of all minions in your deck.
He is a bit expensive at 7-mana but turns your entire deck into a significant threat. A 7/7 stat line is nothing to sneeze at either. He won’t always make the cut in a deck, but Lor’themar Theron is a big boost to enough decks that he is well deserving of the #10 spot on the list of best legendary cards in Hearthstone.
JIVE, INSECT!
Coming in at #9, we have an interesting card – JIVE, INSECT! This is a 5-mana legendary Shaman spell that transforms a minion into Ragnaros the Firelord at the cost of overload 2.
Ragnaros the Firelord is a 8/8 legendary elemental for 8-mana. He can’t attack, but at the end of your turn, he deals 8 damage to a random enemy. Ragnaros the Firelord used to be so good he got banned in Standard, but recently Blizzard brought him back (which tells you something about the power creep in Hearthstone).
Ragnaros on his own actually didn’t make the list, but the reason JIVE, INSECT! did is because you can cast the spell on turn 5 (or turn 4 with The Coin). That early in the game, having an 8/8 that throws around 8 random damage on each of your turns is brutal.
Sure it can’t attack, but it can still win you games right there. Some decks simply will not be able to handle a threat like that so early and will just fold. For this reason, JIVE, INSECT! gets the #9 spot on the list.
Sylvanas, the Accused
Coming in at #8, we have Sylvanas, the Accused – a neutral 5/5 legendary minion for 6-mana. Her default battlecry destroys an enemy minion.
However, she has the infuse (7) ability, so if Sylvanas “sees” 7 minions die while in your hand, her battlecry changes from destroying an enemy minion to taking control of it. Either effect is really strong, and getting a 5/5 body on top of that is great as well.
If you cast her early, you can clear a nasty threat and put yourself in a stronger position. If you cast her late game after she’s infused, you just turned your opponent’s big threat into yours, and that’s always super punishing. Because of this versatility, Sylvanas, the Accused gets the #8 spot on this list.
Astalor Bloodsworn
In the #7 spot, we have Astalor Bloodsworn – a neutral 2/2 legendary minion for 2-mana. However, Astalor Bloodsworn is actually three minions in one.
Astalor Bloodsworn’s battlecry adds Astalor, the Protector into your hand. He also has manathirst (5), so if you play him when you have 5 or more mana crystals, you’ll trigger a bonus effect. In this case, you get to deal 2 damage to any target.
As for Astalor, the Protector, you’ll get a neutral 5/5 legendary minion for 5-mana with manathirst (8) that grants you 5 armor. He also has a battlecry that adds Astalor, the Flamebringer (the final version) to your hand.
Finally, Astalor, the Flamebringer is a neutral 8/8 legendary minion for 8-mana that comes with a battlecry dealing 7 damage randomly divided among enemies. However, if you can trigger his manathirst (10), it’ll deal a whopping 14 damage randomly divided among enemies instead.
There is a lot going on with this three-in-one card, but it’s all good. You get a nice curve progression with each Astalor, giving you early removal/tempo, mid-game defense, and a late-game finisher respectively. Thanks to all of that, Astalor Bloodsworn fits nicely into almost any Hearthstone deck, earning himself the #7 spot on this list of best legendary cards.
The Countess
At #6, we have The Countess – a Paladin 7/7 legendary minion for 7-mana. She has a battlecry that checks to see if there are any neutral cards in your deck. If there aren’t any, she will add three Legendary Invitation cards to your hand.
Legendary Invitation is a 3-mana spell that lets you discover a legendary minion to add to your hand and set its cost to 0-mana. You don’t know what you’re getting of course, but it is discover – which is always better than random, since you still get a choice between the three cards.
Plus, the fact that the minion you get costs 0-mana is huge. The Countess has a strong 7/7 stat line herself and the legendaries that she gives you can be absolutely brutal. She definitely deserves her #6 spot on this list.
The Primus
Coming in at #5 on this list is our first titan, The Primus. Titans are a unique legendary minion subtype that was added in the TITANS expansion. Each titan has normal stats as well as an ability on the card. However, they will also each have three special one-time use abilities. You can activate one on each of your turns, and the titan cannot attack until all three of its abilities have been activated.
The Primus is a Death Knight 7/9 legendary titan for 8-mana. His three titan abilities are each tied to a different rune, and when one of those abilities are used, you discover a card of the corresponding rune type.
The blood rune ability is called Runes of Blood, and it destroys an enemy minion, giving its health to both you and The Primus. It is worth noting that you are not being healed. This is treated as bonus health that puts you above your current maximum.
The next ability we have is Runes of Frost, which discounts your next spell by 3 mana and gives it spell damage +3. Finally, we have the ability Runes of the Unholy which summons 2 3/3s with taunt and reborn.
The Primus is an expensive card at 8-mana, but each of his abilities are solid and let you discover an additional card. Runes of Blood and Runes of the Unholy are both great stabilizing effects that are good late-game. All of this combines to give The Primus the #5 spot on this list.
Infinitize the Maxitude
Coming in at #4 on our list is Infinitize the Maxitude – a Mage legendary spell for 2-mana. It lets you discover a spell and reduce its cost by (1).
Infinitize the Maxitude also uses the finale keyword, giving you a bonus if it uses up all your mana when you cast it. In the case of Infinitize the Maxitude, its finale ability returns it to your hand.
This card is a ridiculously efficient source of value for Mage, and you can play it over and over again. There is basically no Mage deck that doesn’t want to run this card. For that reason, it comes in at #4 on this list of the best legendary cards in Hearthstone.
Sargeras, the Destroyer
We’re moving into the top three, and it’s titan time! Our first titan in this coveted top three is Sargeras, the Destroyer – a Warlock 6/12 legendary titan for 9-mana.
His battlecry opens a portal (The Twisting Nether) on your side of the field as an indestructible and un-targetable minion. The Twisting Nether will summon two 3/2 imps at the end of each of your turns.
His first ability is called To the Void, and it sends all other minions to the Twisting Nether (removes them from the game without triggering deathrattles, infuse, etc.). His second ability is called Inferno, and it summons two 6/6 infernals from the Twisting Nether. His final (and most potent) ability is called Legion Invasion! and gives all future demons you summon from the Twisting Nether +2 health and taunt.
Sargeras the Destroyer is a great late game control piece that can either just wipe your opponent’s board consequence free or give you unending taunt minions as soon as he comes down. If your opponent is low on cards, it’s nigh impossible to deal with Sargeras. Well deserving of spot #3 on this list.
Aman’Thul
The #2 position belongs to Aman’Thul – a Priest 3/10 legendary titan for 7-mana. Whenever he uses a titan ability, you discover any legendary minion. Notably, this means you can get Wild-only minions. This is huge, as some of them are downright broken.
His first ability is called Shape the Stars and lets you give a non-titan minion +2/+2 before summoning a copy of it. His second ability is called Strike From History, letting you choose two minions to remove from the game (just like before – no deathrattles, infuses triggers, etc.). His final ability is Vision of Heroes, which summons a random 6-cost minion and gives it lifesteal and taunt.
Again, we have a great late game stabilizer that gives us tremendous value. Not much else to say. Aman’Thul definitely earned the #2 spot on this list.
Eonar, the Life-Binder
Coming in as our top legendary card in Standard Hearthstone, we have Eonar, the Life-Binder – a Druid 5/7 legendary titan for 10-mana. When she uses an ability, you summon a 5/5 with taunt.
Her first ability is called Spontaneous Growth, drawing you cards until your hand is full. Her second ability is called Bountiful Harvest, and it restores your hero to full health. Her third ability is called Flourish and it refreshes your mana crystals.
Sure, she costs 10-mana, but Eonar is the ultimate late game card. She can refill your hand if you are ahead, fully heal you if you are behind, and even refresh your mana crystals to give you flexibility. And don’t forget, each time you get a free 5/5 taunt!
She makes it very easy for you to go from losing to winning almost instantly. We truly think Eonar, the Life-Binder is the most powerful card on this list, easily taking the number 1 spot.
Join the High Ground!
Now you’ve got a good idea of which legendary cards to spend your hard-earned dust on in Hearthstone. Do you think another legendary card deserves to be on this list more than our current entries?
If so, let us know your thoughts in the comments below, and don’t forget to subscribe to our weekly newsletter for more gaming content!
Enjoy the awesome power that is legendary cards and happy gaming!
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