New Hearthstone Expansion Kobolds And Catacombs Adds Cards, Free Single-Player Mode

A new expansion called Kobolds & Catacombs is on the way to Blizzard's collectible card game Hearthstone, and it includes a new single-player mode. During the BlizzCon opening ceremony today, Blizzard announced Dungeon Run, a mode that Blizzard says is "nothing like we've done in the past."

Dungeon Run is a rogue-like single-player experience that's all about defeating bosses, collecting loot, and leveling your character. Players start with a 10-card deck and must defeat eight random bosses, out of 48 total possible encounters. Each time a boss is defeated, you'll be presented with a loot pile--each comprised of three cards--to choose from to add to your deck. If you lose, however, your deck is discarded and you have to start the gauntlet again from the beginning. You don't need to own any cards in order to actually play, as everything is contained to each Dungeon Run playthrough.

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Dungeon Run will be a free mode that's completely separate from your normal collection. That allows Blizzard to introduce new passive upgrades (to help you progress during a run) and treasures, which are cards too powerful to introduce into the regular game. For instance, Gloves of Mugging steals three cards from your opponent's hand and gives them to you. Rod of Roasting casts Pyroblast at random until one hero or the other dies. You can see all the new Hearthstone Kobolds & Catacombs cards revealed so far in our gallery.

Other new mechanics include Legendary weapons, which are available for each class and don't necessarily deal direct damage to enemies. Unidentified Items are cards that have a base effect and then an additional effect (selected from four possibilities) that is only revealed when it is played. And Spellstones are a new type of spell for each class that levels up over the course of a match.

The Kobolds & Catacombs expansion is slated to launch in December and will be the final part of the Year of the Mammoth. Players will be able to get one card from the expansion, Marin the Fox, for free on November 6. Logging in after the expansion releases will also get you a free random Legendary weapon card.

Blizzard announced a slate of news for its many games during today's BlizzCon opening ceremony. In addition to two new characters for Heroes of the Storm, Overwatch will soon get a new hero, Moira, as well as a brand-new map called BlizzardWorld. You can find all of the big announcements from the BlizzCon opening ceremony in our roundup.