Practice mode

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Selecting practice mode, Expert difficulty

Practice mode is a type of game mode in which the player does battle against computer-controlled versions of the regular playable classes. Players can select the opponent of their choice, and either Basic or Expert difficulty, determining the deck and tactical ability of the AI opponent.

Practice mode is the ideal mode for learning the basics of the game, exploring new classes, leveling or unlocking heroes, and trying out new strategies. Practice mode matches are played against The Innkeeper.

Practice mode is accessed from the Solo Adventures screen.

Notes[edit | edit source]

  • Because Practice mode games are played against computer opponents, there is no time spent waiting for your opponent to choose their actions each round. This typically makes these games much faster than those played in other modes, which can be useful for progression or simply preferable for those who do not enjoy waiting.
  • New heroes can be unlocked in this game mode. This makes Practice mode the quickest and easiest way to unlock new heroes.
  • Players can gain XP in Practice mode, up to max level. Above level 10 extra XP is gained from played games against human opponents; however, given the relative speed of most Practice mode games, this may still be considered a quicker way of levelling up heroes.
  • Practice mode is perfect for learning a class, or levelling a new class to level 10 in order to acquire its basic cards, before heading out into the wider waters of Play mode.
  • Initially only Basic difficulty is available, with Expert difficulty enabled upon unlocking every class.[1]
  • Basic Practice mode is generally considered a fairly easy difficulty setting, although some class combinations can be surprisingly tricky. Basic opponents use only basic cards in their decks.
  • Expert Practice mode offers a fairly substantial challenge for newer players, and gives players the chance to try decks against reasonably well-arranged decks. As with higher level player vs. player battles, Expert mode opponents tend to feature specific strategies and intended plays, and use decks featuring Classic cards of common, rare and epic rarity.
  • Most daily quests cannot be completed in Practice mode.
  • Defeating all Expert heroes will complete the Crushed Them All! quest, awarding 100 gold.

Decks[edit | edit source]

Each opponent in Practice mode always plays with the same deck, with each class having a Basic and an Expert deck. This allows experienced players to learn the intended plays of that deck, and counteract them effectively.

All cards in Basic decks are from the basic set. The Expert decks feature a large number of Classic cards, including many common cards, a few rares, and the odd epic, but do not include any legendaries.

Below are listed the decks for each Practice mode opponent. Each card listed is included x 2 in that deck unless otherwise noted.

Basic opponents
Demon Hunter Druid Hunter Mage Paladin Priest Rogue Shaman Warlock Warrior
 Aldrachi Warblades  Boulderfist Ogre  Arcane Shot  Arcane Explosion  Blessing of Might  Bloodfen Raptor  Assassinate  Ancestral Healing  Chillwind Yeti  Boulderfist Ogre
 Bloodfen Raptor  Chillwind Yeti  Bloodfen Raptor  Arcane Intellect  Gnomish Inventor  Chillwind Yeti  Backstab  Booty Bay Bodyguard  Darkscale Healer Charge
 Chaos Strike  Claw  Core Hound  Arcane Missiles  Goldshire Footman  Core Hound  Bloodfen Raptor  Boulderfist Ogre  Drain Life  Dragonling Mechanic
 Chillwind Yeti  Core Hound  Houndmaster  Bloodfen Raptor  Hammer of Wrath  Elven Archer  Deadly Poison  Chillwind Yeti  Hellfire  Execute
 Coordinated Strike  Darkscale Healer  Ironforge Rifleman  Boulderfist Ogre  Hand of Protection  Frostwolf Grunt  Dragonling Mechanic  Frost Shock  Kobold Geomancer  Fiery War Axe
 Elven Archer  Elven Archer  Multi-Shot  Fireball  Holy Light  Gurubashi Berserker  Elven Archer  Frostwolf Grunt  Murloc Raider  Frostwolf Grunt
 Frostwolf Warlord  Healing Touch  Oasis Snapjaw  Murloc Raider  Ironforge Rifleman  Holy Smite  Gnomish Inventor  Frostwolf Warlord  Ogre Magi  Gurubashi Berserker
 Murloc Tidehunter  Innervate  Raid Leader  Nightblade  Light's Justice  Mind Blast  Goldshire Footman  Hex  Reckless Rocketeer  Heroic Strike
 Nightblade  Lord of the Arena  Razorfen Hunter  Novice Engineer  Lord of the Arena  Northshire Cleric  Ironforge Rifleman  Raid Leader  River Crocolisk  Lord of the Arena
 Raid Leader  Mark of the Wild  River Crocolisk  Oasis Snapjaw  Nightblade  Power Word: Shield  Nightblade  Reckless Rocketeer  Shadow Bolt  Murloc Raider
 Reckless Rocketeer  Nightblade  Silverback Patriarch  Polymorph  Raid Leader  Sen'jin Shieldmasta  Novice Engineer  Rockbiter Weapon  Felstalker  Murloc Tidehunter
 Sen'jin Shieldmasta  Oasis Snapjaw  Stonetusk Boar  Raid Leader  Stonetusk Boar  Shadow Word: Pain  Sap  Sen'jin Shieldmasta  Voidwalker  Razorfen Hunter
 Shadowhoof Slayer  River Crocolisk  Stormpike Commando  River Crocolisk  Stormpike Commando  Shattered Sun Cleric  Sinister Strike  Stonetusk Boar  Voodoo Doctor  Sen'jin Shieldmasta
 Shattered Sun Cleric  Silverback Patriarch  Timber Wolf  Sen'jin Shieldmasta  Stormwind Champion  Silverback Patriarch  Stormpike Commando Windfury  War Golem  Warsong Commander
 Sightless Watcher  Wild Growth  Tracking  Wolfrider  Stormwind Knight  Voodoo Doctor  Stormwind Knight  Wolfrider  Wolfrider  Wolfrider


Expert opponents
Demon Hunter Druid Hunter Mage Paladin Priest Rogue Shaman Warlock Warrior
 Aldrachi Warblades  Abusive Sergeant  Animal Companion  Arcane Explosion  Aldor Peacekeeper  Abomination  Argent Squire  Abusive Sergeant  Blood Imp  Acolyte of Pain
 Argent Commander  Acidic Swamp Ooze  Eaglehorn Bow  Arcane Missiles  Argent Commander  Acidic Swamp Ooze  Assassinate x1  Bloodlust  Dark Iron Dwarf  Amani Berserker
 Chaos Strike  Bite  Explosive Shot  Azure Drake  Argent Protector  Acolyte of Pain  Backstab  Dire Wolf Alpha  Demonfire  Arathi Weaponsmith
 Coordinated Strike  Druid of the Claw  Explosive Trap x1  Counterspell  Argent Squire  Faceless Manipulator  Betrayal  Dust Devil  Doomguard  Battle Rage
 Cult Master  Earthen Ring Farseer  Freezing Trap x1  Fireball  Blessing of Kings  Holy Nova x1  Deadly Poison  Faerie Dragon  Dread Infernal  Bloodsail Raider
 Dire Wolf Alpha x1  Elven Archer  Ironfur Grizzly  Frost Elemental  Consecration  Injured Blademaster  Defender of Argus x1  Feral Spirit  Flame Imp  Brawl x1
 Flesheating Ghoul  Harvest Golem  Misdirection x1  Kirin Tor Mage  Equality  Leper Gnome  Defias Ringleader  Flametongue Totem  Imp Master  Cruel Taskmaster
 Glaivebound Adept  Ironbark Protector  Multi-Shot  Kobold Geomancer  Noble Sacrifice  Lightspawn  Eviscerate  Forked Lightning  Knife Juggler  Elven Archer
 Inner Demonx1  Keeper of the Grove  Oasis Snapjaw  Mana Addict  Redemption  Loot Hoarder  Gnomish Inventor  Lava Burst  Mortal Coil  Execute
 Knife Juggler  Nourish  Savannah Highmane  Mana Wyrm  Repentance  Mind Control x1  Headcrack x1  Lightning Bolt  Power Overwhelming  Fiery War Axe
 Murloc Tidehunter  Power of the Wild  Scavenging Hyena  Mirror Entity  Scarlet Crusader  Northshire Cleric  Novice Engineer  Shattered Sun Cleric  Sense Demons  Frothing Berserker
 Satyr Overseer  Starfall  Snipe x1  Polymorph  Secretkeeper  Power Word: Shield  Questing Adventurer  Shieldbearer  Shadow Bolt  Kor'kron Elite x1
 Sea Giant  Windfury Harpy  Stampeding Kodo  Sorcerer's Apprentice  Spellbreaker  Shadow Madness  Ravenholdt Assassin x1  Stormforged Axe  Shadowflame  Raging Worgen
 Sightless Watcher  Wrath  Starving Buzzard  Vaporize  Sunwalker  Shadow Word: Pain  SI:7 Agent  Thrallmar Farseer  Felstalker  Spiteful Smith
 Shadowhoof Slayer  Youthful Brewmaster  Timber Wolf  Water Elemental  Truesilver Champion Silence  Stranglethorn Tiger  Young Dragonhawk  Voidwalker  Tauren Warrior
 Worgen Infiltrator  Unleash the Hounds  Temple Enforcer  Worgen Infiltrator  Whirlwind
 Young Dragonhawk  Youthful Brewmaster

The Starting Game screen[edit | edit source]

Main article: Starting Game

The Starting Game screen is the loading screen displayed while the system prepares a computer opponent for the player, featuring a selection of helpful tips and some comical elements. It depicts a mechanical element which slowly fills from left to right, supposedly representing necessary steps in preparing for the game. Once the loading bar has filled a certain number of times, the game is ready and battle begins automatically.

Trivia[edit | edit source]

The names of the two difficulty settings originally corresponded to the types of cards used in those heroes' decks. 'Expert' mode corresponds to the 'Expert' set, since renamed the Classic set.

Patch changes[edit | edit source]

  • Ashes of Outland logo.pngPatch 17.0.0.44222 (2020-03-26): Practice mode now contains Demon Hunter.
  • Blackrock Mountain logo.png Patch 2.7.0.9166 (2015-06-15): The Practice mode pane of the Solo Adventures screen now has its own music.
  • Curse of Naxxramas logo.png Patch 1.1.0.6024 (2014-07-22):
    • Practice Mode is now entered through the Solo Adventures button on the main menu.
    • The AI in Practice Mode is now better at Hearthstone.
  • Hearthstone logo.png Patch 1.0.0.5314 (2014-05-08): Reconnect functionality has been enabled for Practice Mode.
  • Hearthstone logo.png Patch 1.0.0.4944 (Open beta, 2014-03-11): The Expert AI has been sent to Hearthstone training camp and should now be more challenging.
  • Hearthstone logo.png Patch 1.0.0.4217 (Closed beta, 2013-12-10): The opponent in Practice mode is now called "The Innkeeper".
  • Hearthstone logo.png Patch 1.0.0.3890 (Closed beta, 2013-10-02): You can earn XP in any game mode up to max level.

References[edit | edit source]

 
  1. Tested by User:Taohinton 2017-01-04: Selecting the Expert button on the Solo Adventures screen produces a pop-up text box with the words "Requires unlocking every class."