Hearthstone: Reno, Lone Ranger—Healthy or Oppressive?

But in one of the latest expansions, Showdown in the Badlands, the until now beloved member of the League of Explorers saw himself returning to the Standard format as the first neutral hero card in Hearthstone's history: Reno, Lone Ranger. This card, available to all classes able to build a strong enough Highlander deck-and if you want to know more about Highlander decks, check out this article-sparked considerable controversy among the community. On one side, players argued that aggro decks had become too dominant and that Reno would help return to a more control and value oriented gameplay. On the other hand, some people thought that an 8 mana removal with some upsides would reveal itself to be too oppressive, even when considering the current power level.

But how is our debate-starting Lone Ranger managing in the current meta, a whole year after its release?

Today, "Reno, Lone Ranger" finds himself in an impressive position—perhaps even a bit too strong for comfort—while also remaining marginal in the meta: currently, only three classes—Shaman, Druid, and Warrior—have viable Highlander decks, with Warrior being the least effective among them. Interestingly, the issue isn't merely that Reno has a cost that feels too low; he has been sitting at 10 mana for quite some time now. After undergoing two nerfs that raised his cost from 8 to 9 mana and then to 10, many players expected him to be less impactful. So, what exactly is the problem with the Lone Ranger?

Unfortunately, there are three significant issues with the clumsy explorer's hero card. First, Reno does not trigger deathrattles or reborns, making him an ideal reset for the opponent's board. He effectively removes both minions and locations, leaving little room for counterplay. Second, after clearing the enemy board, Reno restricts opponents to only one space for either a minion or a location. This makes him not just a hero card but one that offers total removal with some upsides. Lastly, Reno adds yet another removal option to the Warrior arsenal, which already includes cards like Boomboss Tho'grun and Deepminer Brann. This places Warrior in a peculiar position: its best Highlander deck is currently sitting at a win rate of 53%, about 10% lower than those of Shaman and Druid versions. Yet it remains the most oppressive of the three classes due to Reno's and Tho'grun's disruption capabilities, which often come out as unfun, and the ramping potential provided by Hamm, The Hungry, the Druid class's tourist. These three factors, combined with the rise of aggro players in the meta, have made "Reno, Lone Ranger" one of the most hated cards in the Standard format over the past year.

But how can you balance this card without "deleting it" or making it lose its original flavor?

Balancing Reno, Lone Ranger is a very tedious task for Team 5, since it's not just about fixing a problem derived by the card itself, but from the overall meta and from different classes which all have different tools to tutor Reno and bring him online sooner than it should, often creating an oppressive experience for opponents. On its own, Reno is fairly balanced as a 10-mana board clear, since it does not summon any minion but just acts as a reset of the opponent's board. However, when classes like Druid and Warrior can bring it online by turn 7 or 8, it can shut down completely a lot of strategies, in what's commonly referred to as a tempo swing, and a significant one at that too.

Another issue arises in Highlander mirror matchups. Winning often comes down to forcing the opponent to play Reno first, to then have a lot of breathing space and follow up with value cards able to overwhelm them. And when a mirror matchup is decided purely by a neutral card able to lock the opponent out of the game, it's usually an indicator that something is wrong with said deck. For instance, in Highlander Druid mirrors, whoever is able to force the opponent to play Reno before they play their Rheastrasza is, most of the times, guaranteed to eventually outvalue the opponent in the long run. Another example that highlights the difficulty of balancing Reno, Lone Ranger is the fact that it is often played in Highlander Warrior decks. Here, it is often used to tempo out Deepminer Brann, enabling the Brann-Boom Boss synergy—which many players find infuriating and unhealthy. Resetting the opponent's board while leaving little counterplay, then following up by shuffling 6 TNTs inside the enemy deck can be devastating. If the opponent is unprepared, it typically seals the game.

Balancing Reno, Lone Ranger is clearly more than a simple tweak; it's a proper challenge for Team 5. Each class's unique interactions and the extremely variegated meta make this card a focal point in discussions on game balance. And with the new mechanic, Starships, coming out in November, things are only going to get worse both for the clumsy dragon and for the balance team.