Summary
- Shaman is an unpredictable Class in Hearthstone, known for its cheese factor. Though dubious, it's still fun to play as.
- Paladin excels as both a Control and Midrange option, with the ability to swarm the board with Divine Shield minions. Fun decks make up for its lacking strength.
- Priest is controversial, with aggressive and control archetypes. It doesn't particularly stand out as one of the stronger Classes in Hearthstone.
Hearthstone can be quite an overwhelming game to get into. The game boasts 11 unique Classes, each with its own set of cards and abilities. It can be tough trying to work out which Classes are the best to invest time into. With an ever-changing meta, and new cards coming out regularly, it's difficult to pinpoint an exact rating for each Class in Hearthstone.
However, this is a general rating of how they have performed over the years, and how likely they are to be a strong candidate to play on the ladder. Here are all the Classes in Hearthstone.
11 Shaman
The Shaman Class in Hearthstone is pretty unpredictable. It ranges from being absolutely broken, to utterly useless. One thing that is certain about this Class, however, is that it is renowned for its cheese factor. Evolve Shaman in particular was a ridiculous deck for many players to try counter.
Totem Shaman has generally always been a good deck, but the Shaman Hero Power is a bit troublesome. It's the only Hero Power in the game that is completely random - players don't know which Totem they'll be spawning when they play it. Overall, Shaman is a bit dubious, but it's certainly fun to play as.
10 Paladin
The Paladin class particularly excels as both a Control and Midrange option for Hearthstone players. During lengthy matches, the Paladin Hero Power grants incremental advantages, providing players with a significant edge.
Additionally, they're good at swarming the board with Divine Shield minions and applying buffs, which makes them a good choice for players who prefer a more Aggro strategy. They've had some pretty fun decks come out over the years, and the fun factor makes up for their lacking strength.
9 Priest
Priest remains a controversial Class among Hearthstone players. Priest decks often fall into one of two archetypes - they're either incredibly aggressive, and can pull off some really cheesy combos, or they have a lot of control, making it very annoying to play against.
There have been some more interesting and powerful Priest decks over the years, such as Dragon Priest. However, most of the time, Priest is kind of just there, and doesn't particularly stand out as one of the stronger Classes.
8 Druid
The Druid Class offers Hearthstone players a variety of diverse playstyles, ranging from mid-game Tempo and Aggression to late-game Control. Most Druid decks share a common feature: they utilize cards like Wild Growth and Innervate to ramp up Mana quickly and gain an edge over the opponent.
Druid players can also choose a more aggressive approach by flooding the board or adopt a late-game strategy by focusing on summoning massive minions. Druid has had some strong decks over the years, and many players struggle to keep up with their fast Mana gain.
7 Warlock
Warlock is one of the most difficult Classes to play in Hearthstone. The Class requires players to lose resources to gain an advantage. For example, they can discard cards to gain some tempo, or sacrifice some of their health to cast a spell.
However, Warlock is pretty precarious. The Class fluctuates between being incredibly strong, to pretty much obsolete. Despite its unpredictable nature, Warlock remains one of the more interesting Classes to play as in Hearthstone.
6 Death Knight
The Death Knight hasn't been in the game long enough to get a good feel for how it will perform in the long run. The Class has plenty of different card types under its belt, with Blood, Frost, and Unholy cards playing their part in the Death Knight's decks as part of their unique Rune system.
It plays similarly to certain Warrior and Mage decks, which perform relatively well, cementing the Death Knight Class in the middle of this list.
5 Warrior
The Warrior Class offers aggressive play options, but most successful Warrior decks tend to favor a Control style. The Warrior's Hero Power primarily aids in survival, making late-game dominance the optimal strategy for Warrior players. Over the many years of Hearthstone, the Warrior Class has had some incredibly cool and unique archetypes, such as Pirate Warrior or Grim Patron Warrior.
In more recent years, the Enrage keyword has really helped Warrior shine, and has pushed it up the ranks. The Class has been impactful across various metas, although it has lost some of its mojo because of the Death Knight Class. Despite this, the Warrior class still remains strong, and often performs well.
4 Rogue
The Rogue Class in Hearthstone is all about dealing lots of damage, and playing lots of cards. Throughout Hearthstone's history, Rogue has almost always had at least one good deck in the metagame, and has overall been a strong pick.
Miracle Rogue in particular is one of the strongest Rogue decks available, giving the player a way to control the early game in an extremely effective way. Rogue has always excelled with Tempo decks, and any sort of cards that allow them to combo consecutively. Players who aren't prepared to defend against the Rogue's high damage output will find themselves succumbing to their opponent swiftly.
3 Mage
The Mage class in Hearthstone showcases remarkable versatility, accommodating a wide variety of playstyles. Control Mage decks excel thanks to the Hero Power and highly effective removal spells.
Additionally, Aggro Mage decks find success by capitalizing on the burst potential of cards like Fireball, allowing for swift and aggressive gameplay. Many players often find themselves struggling to protect themselves against aggressive burst plays from Mage players. As a result, Mage has become one of the most iconic Classes in Hearthstone, and has a long history of stomping on the other Classes.
2 Hunter
The Hunter Class in Hearthstone typically leans towards aggressive decks, benefiting from their straightforward Hero Power and ability to deal tons of damage. However, players who prefer a slower approach can opt for Midrange and Control decks, which are also more than viable options.
Many Hunter decks capitalize on the Class' Beast synergy and strategically combine these cards to unleash potent effects. The Hunter Class has a history of crushing it on the ladder, and stomping on opponents, making it one of the strongest Classes to play in Hearthstone.