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Battlecry
Does something when you play it from your hand.

Battlecry is an ability where a particular effect activates when the card with the Battlecry is played directly from the hand. Although mostly limited to minions, some weapons also have Battlecries.

Activation of Battlecries are indicated by a flash of light from beneath the minion or weapon.

Battlecries are and long have been the most common type of ability in Hearthstone, representing the simplest way for a minion to bring an additional effect into play, and featuring a large variety of different effects.

Notes[]

  • Battlecries do not activate if the card is brought into play by another card. For example, LegacyAlarm-o-Bot, LegacyFaceless Manipulator and LegacyMirror Entity all place minions onto the board, but any Battlecries will not be activated.
  • Battlecries generally occur once, when the card is brought into play. Unlike some other buffs, these effects do not therefore rely on the casting minion staying alive, and cannot be removed by destroying it. For example, destroying LegacyStormwind Champion will remove its bonus effect from any affected minions, whereas LegacyShattered Sun Cleric's Battlecry, once granted, will not be removed by killing the Cleric. This means Battlecry minions are generally some of the less valuable minions once they have been played, since much of their point value lies in their Battlecry.
  • Order of play can be important. For example, if no other Murlocs are in play, playing LegacyColdlight Seer, followed by LegacyBluegill Warrior, will waste the Seer's Battlecry; while playing the Warrior first will allow it to benefit from the Seer's Battlecry.
  • Battlecries take place each time the minion is played by the player. Cards such as LegacyAncient Brewmaster, which return a minion to your hand, can be used to benefit from a minion's Battlecry effect more than once.
  • Choose One and Combo effects on minions are not considered Battlecries. In particular, they have no interaction with The League of ExplorersBrann Bronzebeard, The WitchwoodShudderwock, or Saviors of UldumCorrupt the Waters.

Targeting[]

  • If a Battlecry requires a specific target, that target must be selected immediately after playing the minion. Many Battlecries require a specific type of target, such as a friendly minion or Beast, and cannot be targeted at other targets.
  • If a suitable target exists, the player must manually select it, even if there is no alternative target.
  • If no suitable target is available, the Battlecry simply will not occur.
  • While many Battlecries affect the Battlecry minion itself, targeted Battlecries cannot choose to target the possessing minion.
  • An appropriate target must be selected, if possible. In some cases, this means granting an advantageous buff to an enemy minion, or inconveniencing a friendly minion. This can be circumvented by careful assessment and control of the minions on the board, but is otherwise unavoidable. If no valid target exists, the Battlecry will not take effect, although any visual-audio effects will still be triggered.
  • While choosing a target, the player can choose to cancel the Battlecry. Doing so will actually reverse the summoning of the minion (which process has not actually occurred at that point, despite the display), something which is not normally possible. Note that if the Battlecry is unable to find a suitable target it will not activate, meaning the player will not get the chance to reverse the summoning.

Order of play[]

  • Battlecries occur after the minion enters play, and after 'whenever you play' triggered effects such as those of Hero SkinsIllidan Stormrage and Goblins vs GnomesHobgoblin. Battlecries occur before Secrets such as LegacyMirror Entity, as well as LegacyKnife Juggler's 'after you summon' effect. In the past, Battlecries took place before certain 'whenever you summon' effects, such as Goblins vs GnomesShip's Cannon and LegacySword of Justice, however these cards have since been changed to say 'after you summon' to keep the wording consistent with the order.
    • For references and a comprehensive description of the summoning process, see that section of the Advanced rulebook.

Strategy[]

  • It is a common strategy for players to use return effects (effects that return a minion to its owner's hand) on their own Battlecry minions in order to benefit from the effect again. Minions such as LegacyAncient Brewmaster, LegacyYouthful Brewmaster and LegacyKidnapper, as well as spells such as LegacyShadowstep and LegacyDream, and hostile actions such as LegacySap, can all be used for this purpose. This type of play is most effective when combined with minions with powerful Battlecries.
  • The League of ExplorersBrann Bronzebeard is the strongest Battlecry-specific synergy in the game, with the ability to activate any Battlecry twice. Note that in some cases this produces no significant extra effect, while in others the result can be quite undesirable.
  • Battlecry minions are often good targets for cost-related transform effects like Whispers of the Old GodsEvolve and Goblins vs GnomesRecombobulator. This is because a positive Battlecry accounts for some of the minion's value, meaning that once the Battlecry has been activated, the remaining minion is often below par for its cost (although this is often untrue for minions with self-buffing Battlecries). Because of this transforming a Battlecry minion has a good chance of producing a stronger or more valuable minion.

Cards with Battlecry[]

For Wild format listings, see Battlecry/Wild format

The list of cards with Battlecry is quite extensive, and so is not listed visually, but can be explored through the table below. Click "Expand" to see the table. The table will only list the first 100 cards. To see more, click "Customize this list" and change the amount of cards presented.

Collectible[]

Customize this list
NameClassTypeRarityCostAtkHP/Dur.ArmorDescription
Abusive Sergeant Neutral Minion Common 111Battlecry: Give a minion +2 Attack this turn.
Air Guitarist Neutral Minion Common 111Battlecry: Give your weapon +1 Durability.
Annoying Fan Neutral Minion - Mech Common 112Battlecry: Choose a minion. It can't attack while this is alive.
Arcane Wyrm Mage Minion Common 112Battlecry: Add an Arcane Bolt to your hand.
Armor Vendor Neutral Minion Rare 113Battlecry: Give 4 Armor to each hero.
Babbling Book Mage Minion Rare 112Battlecry: Add a random Mage spell to your hand.
Beaming Sidekick Neutral Minion Common 112Battlecry: Give a friendly minion +2 Health.
Body Bagger Death Knight Minion - Undead Common 113Battlecry: Gain a Corpse.
Click-Clocker Neutral Minion - Mech/Beast Common 111Divine Shield. Battlecry: Give a random Mech in your hand +1/+1.
Concoctor Rogue Minion Common 112Battlecry: Add a random Concoction to your hand.
Crystalsmith Cultist Priest Minion Common 112Battlecry: If you're holding a Shadow spell, gain +1/+1.
Dredger Staff Neutral Minion Common 112Battlecry: Give minions in your hand +1 Health.
Drone Deconstructor Neutral Minion - Mech Common 112Battlecry: Get a 1/1 Magnetic Sparkbot with a random bonus effect.
Elven Archer Neutral Minion Common 111Battlecry: Deal 1 damage.
Filletfighter Rogue Minion - Pirate Common 131Battlecry: Deal 1 damage.
Flame Imp Warlock Minion - Demon Common 132Battlecry: Deal 3 damage to your hero.
Flowrider Shaman Minion - Naga Common 121Battlecry: If you're Overloaded, Discover a spell from your deck.
Free Spirit Druid Minion - Beast/Undead Epic 112Battlecry and Deathrattle: Your Hero Power gains 1 more Armor this game.
Frequency Oscillator Neutral Minion - Mech Common 121Battlecry: The next Mech you play costs (1) less.
Glacial Shard Neutral Minion - Elemental Common 121Battlecry: Freeze an enemy.
Jeweled Macaw Hunter Minion - Beast Common 112Battlecry: Add a random Beast to your hand.
Noxious Cadaver Death Knight Minion - Undead Rare 112Battlecry: Deal 2 damage to an enemy and your hero.
Priestess Valishj Priest Minion - Naga Legendary 111Battlecry: Refresh an empty Mana Crystal for each spell you've cast this turn.
Psychic Conjurer Priest Minion - Undead Common 112Battlecry: Copy a card in your opponent’s deck and add it to your hand.
Sanguine Soldier Paladin Minion Rare 121Divine Shield Battlecry: Deal 2 damage to your hero.
Saxophone Soloist Shaman Minion - Murloc Epic 112Battlecry: If you control no other minions, add a Saxophone Soloist to your hand.
Shattershambler Rogue Minion - Elemental Rare 113Battlecry: Your next Deathrattle minion costs (1) less, but immediately dies when played.
Sir Finley, Sea Guide Neutral Minion - Murloc Legendary 113Battlecry: Swap your hand with the bottom of your deck.
Skeletal Sidekick Death Knight Minion - Undead Common 112Battlecry: Give a friendly Undead +2 Attack.
Suspicious Alchemist Mage Minion Rare 113Battlecry: Discover a spell. If your opponent guesses your choice, they get a copy.
Swashburglar Rogue Minion - Pirate Common 112Battlecry: Add a random card from another class to your hand.
Tour Guide Neutral Minion Common 111Battlecry: Your next Hero Power costs (0).
Trinket Tracker Hunter Minion - Undead Common 111Battlecry: Draw a 1-Cost spell.
Voodoo Doctor Neutral Minion Common 121Battlecry: Restore 2 Health.
Ymirjar Frostbreaker Death Knight Minion Common 112Battlecry: Gain +1 Attack for each Frost spell in your hand.
Amalgam of the Deep Neutral Minion - All Epic 223Battlecry: Choose a friendly minion. Discover a minion of the same minion type.
Anonymous Informant Neutral Minion Common 223Battlecry: The next Secret you play costs (0).
Aqua Archivist Mage Minion - Elemental Common 222Battlecry: The next Elemental you play costs (2) less.
Arcanologist Mage Minion Common 223Battlecry: Draw a Secret.
Argent Protector Paladin Minion Common 232Battlecry: Give a friendly minion Divine Shield.
Astalor Bloodsworn Neutral Minion Legendary 222Battlecry: Add Astalor, the Protector to your hand. Manathirst (5): Deal 2 damage.
Audio Amplifier Neutral Minion - Mech Epic 223Battlecry: Set your maximum Mana and hand size to 11.
Azsharan Scavenger Warlock Minion - Murloc Common 223Battlecry: Put a 'Sunken Scavenger' on the bottom of your deck.
Baritone Imp Warlock Minion - Demon Common 222Battlecry: Take Fatigue damage. Gain that much Attack and Health.
Bibliomite Demon Hunter Minion Common 254Battlecry: Choose a card in your hand to shuffle into your deck.
Bloodsail Raider Neutral Minion - Pirate Common 223Battlecry: Gain Attack equal to the Attack of your weapon.
Bone Flinger Neutral Minion - Undead Common 223Battlecry: If a friendly Undead died after your last turn, deal 2 damage.
Bonedigger Geist Death Knight Minion - Undead Rare 222Battlecry: Spend a Corpse to gain +1/+2.
Celestial Projectionist Neutral Minion Rare 232Battlecry: Choose a friendly minion. Add a temporary copy of it to your hand.
Class Action Lawyer Paladin Minion Rare 223Battlecry: If your deck has no Neutral cards, set a minion's stats to 1/1.
Coroner Neutral Minion Rare 222Battlecry: Freeze an enemy minion. Manathirst (6): Silence it first.
Crazed Alchemist Neutral Minion - Undead Rare 222Battlecry: Swap the Attack and Health of a minion.
Cruel Taskmaster Warrior Minion Common 223Battlecry: Deal 1 damage to a minion and give it +2 Attack.
Cult Neophyte Neutral Minion Rare 232Battlecry: Your opponent's spells cost (1) more next turn.
Dirty Rat Neutral Minion Epic 226Taunt Battlecry: Your opponent summons a random minion from their hand.
Dreamboat Priest Minion - Naga Rare 212Battlecry: Restore 3 Health to all other friendly minions. Gain +1/+1 for each one Overhealed.
False Disciple Priest Minion Rare 222Battlecry: Discover a Legendary Priest minion from the past.
Fogsail Freebooter Neutral Minion - Pirate Rare 222Battlecry: If you have a weapon equipped, deal 2 damage.
Frightened Flunky Warrior Minion Common 223Taunt Battlecry: Discover a Taunt minion.
Ghoulish Alchemist Rogue Minion - Undead Rare 232Battlecry: Your next Concoction costs (0).
Grimestreet Outfitter Paladin Minion Common 222Battlecry: Give all minions in your hand +1/+1.
Groovy Cat Druid Minion - Beast Rare 221Battlecry and Deathrattle: Your Hero Power gives your hero 1 more Attack this game.
Hematurge Death Knight Minion Rare 223Battlecry: Spend a Corpse to Discover a Blood Rune card.
Hipster Neutral Minion Common 213Battlecry: Discover a spell from your opponent's class that isn't in their deck.
Imp-oster Warlock Minion - Demon Common 211Battlecry: Choose a friendly Imp. Transform into a copy of it.
Injured Tol'vir Neutral Minion Common 226Taunt Battlecry: Deal 3 damage to this minion.
Instrument Tech Neutral Minion Common 212Battlecry: Draw a weapon.
K9-0tron Hunter Minion - Mech/Beast Common 223Battlecry: Dredge. If it's a 1-Cost minion, summon it.
Kaja'mite Creation Rogue Minion Rare 232Battlecry: Discover a spell from another class that costs (3) or less.
Mad Bomber Neutral Minion Common 232Battlecry: Deal 3 damage randomly split between all other characters.
Maze Guide Neutral Minion Common 211Battlecry: Summon a random 2-Cost minion.
Menacing Nimbus Shaman Minion - Elemental Common 223Battlecry: Add a random Elemental to your hand.
Murkwater Scribe Neutral Minion - Naga Common 232Battlecry: The next spell you play costs (1) less.
Murloc Tidehunter Neutral Minion - Murloc Common 221Battlecry: Summon a 1/1 Murloc Scout.
Mysterious Visitor Priest Minion Epic 223Battlecry: Reduce the Cost of cards copied from your opponent by (2).
Necrotic Mortician Death Knight Minion Common 223Battlecry: If a friendly Undead died after your last turn, Discover an Unholy Rune card.
Nerubian Flyer Druid Minion - Undead Common 223Battlecry: If a friendly Undead died after your last turn, summon a 2/2 Nerubian.
Obsidiansmith Warrior Minion - Pirate Rare 232Battlecry: Dredge. If it's a minion or a weapon, give it +1/+1.
Party Animal Neutral Minion - Beast Common 223Battlecry: Give +1/+1 to a minion of each type in your hand.
Prismatic Elemental Mage Minion - Elemental Epic 213Battlecry: Discover a spell from any class. It costs (1) less.
Queensguard Priest Minion - Naga Common 223Battlecry: Gain +1/+1 for each spell you've cast this turn.
Rolling Stone Neutral Minion - Elemental Common 222Rush Battlecry: If the last card you played costs (1), gain +1/+1.
Roosting Gargoyle Neutral Minion Common 223Battlecry: Give a friendly Beast +2 Attack.
Rotten Rodent Rogue Minion - Undead/Beast Common 221Battlecry: Reduce the Cost of all Deathrattle cards in your deck by (1).
Scourge Tamer Hunter Minion - Undead Epic 222Battlecry: Craft a custom Zombeast.
Seafloor Savior Paladin Minion - Mech Common 222Battlecry: Dredge. If it's a minion, give it this minion's Attack and Health.
Selective Breeder Hunter Minion Rare 213Battlecry: Discover a copy of a Beast in your deck.
Silvermoon Farstrider Hunter Minion Rare 223Battlecry: Give all Arcane spells in your hand Spell Damage +1.
Sketchy Stranger Neutral Minion Common 222Battlecry: Discover a Secret from another class.
Snakebite Demon Hunter Minion - Naga Rare 211Rush Battlecry: Gain +1/+1 for each minion that died this turn.
Spellcoiler Mage Minion - Naga Common 223Battlecry: If you've cast a spell while holding this, Discover a spell.
Spirit Poacher Hunter Minion Rare 222Battlecry: Summon a random Dormant Wildseed.
Suspicious Peddler Warlock Minion - Undead Rare 223Battlecry: Discover a 1-Cost card. If your opponent guesses your choice, they get a copy.
Thornveil Tentacle Warlock Minion Common 222Lifesteal Battlecry: Deal 2 damage to a random enemy minion.
Trench Surveyor Mage Minion - Mech Rare 232Battlecry: Dredge. If it's a Mech, draw it.
Tuskarrrr Trawler Neutral Minion - Pirate Common 223Battlecry: Dredge.
Vicious Bloodworm Death Knight Minion - Beast Rare 232Battlecry: Give a minion in your hand Attack equal to this minion's Attack.
Vrykul Necrolyte Neutral Minion - Undead Common 222Battlecry: Give a friendly minion "Deathrattle: Summon a 2/2 Zombie with Rush."
Watcher of the Sun Neutral Minion Common 223Battlecry: Get a random Holy spell. Forge: Also restore 6 Health to your hero.
Youthful Brewmaster Neutral Minion Common 232Battlecry: Return a friendly minion from the battlefield to your hand.

Uncollectible[]

Customize this list

Swipe left or right to see the cards.
TSC 052t
JAM 015t4
JAM 015t2
JAM 015t
TSC 039t
TTN 039t
JAM 012t3
JAM 012t2
JAM 000t
TTN 457t
JAM 012t4
JAM 012t
JAM 000t2
JAM 000t3
JAM 000t4
TSC 644t
TSC 776t
REV 958t
TTN 490t
TTN 076t
REV 244t
RLK 222t1
REV 019t
TID 709t
TID 709t2
TID 709t3
REV 013t
TTN 458t
REV 835t
MAW 033t
REV 353t2
REV 353t
REV 937t
RLK 222t2
REV 017t
REV 906t

Sources of Battlecry[]

For Wild format listings, see Battlecry/Wild format

These cards have effects that generate Battlecry cards.

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ETC 358
RLK 222
TSC 039
JAM 015t4
JAM 015t3
JAM 015t2
JAM 015
JAM 015t
TTN 039
TSC 644
TSC 776
JAM 012t3
JAM 012t2
JAM 000t
TTN 457
JAM 012t4
JAM 012t
JAM 000t2
JAM 000t3
JAM 000t4
JAM 000
JAM 012
TSC 960
REV 958
TTN 751
TTN 076
REV 244
REV 244t
TSC 052
RLK 222t1
REV 019
TID 709
REV 013
TTN 458
NX2 027
REV 835
MAW 033
REV 353
REV 353t
REV 937
REV 017
REV 906

Related cards[]

For Wild format listings, see Battlecry/Wild format
Customize this list

Swipe left or right to see the cards.
TID 710

Achievements[]

Name Requirements Rewards
FOR THE ACHIEVEMENT!!! (1/5) Play 150 cards with Battlecry. 10 Achievement Point
FOR THE ACHIEVEMENT!!! (2/5) Play 500 cards with Battlecry. 10 Achievement Point
FOR THE ACHIEVEMENT!!! (3/5) Play 1500 cards with Battlecry. 10 Achievement Point
FOR THE ACHIEVEMENT!!! (4/5) Play 5000 cards with Battlecry. 10 Achievement Point
FOR THE ACHIEVEMENT!!! (5/5) Play 15000 cards with Battlecry. 20 Achievement Point
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