Tempo Rogue is getting some impressive tools in the form of sneaky freebooters. Azsharan Vessel gets you immediate board presence with a powerful Dredge setup on top.
This five mana Rogue spell summons two 3/3 Pirates with Stealth to start things off. It is already a decent amount of stats, but we’re long past the point in Hearthstone where the Vanilla Test serves as a reasonable benchmark, you’d expect 5/6 worth of stats in total for this cost as a baseline.
Things get even better, though, as the card also leans into the set’s new theme and keyword by putting a “Sunken Vessel” card on the bottom of your deck. It is a “Casts When Drawn” spell that summons two other 3/3 Pirates with Stealth.
This means that you don’t even have to spend additional Mana for the payoff once you Dredge for it, and the card will even replace itself once its effect is resolved.
This seems like a really strong tool for any aggressive board-based Rogue deck to work with, and we’ve already seen some decent damage potential from the class’ recently revealed Colossus, Crabatoa. With some luck, it will be just like the good old days when cards like Prince Keleseth, Cold Blood, and Baku the Mooneater allowed Rogue players to quickly develop on the board and never let go, plundering enemy faces in the process.
The Hearthstone design team has nailed the flavor and the tone of the cards in this expansion so far, and this card is no exception. Pirates taking over the ship then sinking it to the bottom of your deck is just magnificent stuff.
Azsharan Vessel will sail into port on April 12 when the Voyage to the Sunken City expansion officially launches around the world.
