Welcome to Season 8 of Battlegrounds in Hearthstone. Gone with the Buddies and in with the Trinkets!
Trinkets are passive power-ups that are offered twice during battle. The first, offered on turn 6, is known as a “Lesser” Trinket. The next is offered on turn 9 and known as a “Greater” Trinket.
The difference between the two is simple. The “Lesser” Trinkets aren’t as powerful as the “Greater” Trinkets. The names pretty much explain themselves.
Depending on your warbands build, different Trinkets will be offered. Usually, ones that would boost your current build or strategy. For example, if you have mostly Quilboar on the board, the Trinkets offered will be specific to Quilboar and the different gameplays specific to that minion type.
Below I have ranked the Top 10 Trinkets you can choose to help you get the coveted win in Battlegrounds.
10. Goldenizer Supply (Lesser)
Did you know gold is rarer than diamonds? The same can be said for hard-to-earn golden minions in Battlegrounds. This is where the Goldenizer Supply comes in.
Being able to get a Trinket for 0 cost? Good. Getting a Goldenizer (make any minion gold) every 3 turns? Better. Getting all this on turn 6? The Best. It doesn’t matter what minion type you are going for. Being able to make any minion of your choice golden that early in the game can set you WAY ahead of your competition.
My advice? Don’t get stuck on the warband you have built up to turn 6. Keep an eye out for minions in the Tavern that get extra powerful when golden. Base your gameplay off of those minions and their boosted power/potential from the Goldenizer.
Goldenizer Supply (Lesser) Best Comps:
- Versatility: It is hard to pin down the best Comps with this Trinket, because it is SO versatile. No matter what cards you have, no matter what strategy you are playing, making a minion golden boosts the power of your warband.
- Deathrattles: Any deathrattle card made golden as early as turn 6 is crazy powerful. This ensures that early game deathrattle minions get twice the deathrattle effect.
9. Azeroth Model Globe (Lesser)
Are you like me and try to upgrade the Tavern aggressively to get higher-tier minions? But then lose because your warband gets far behind your competitors? If so, then the Azeroth Model Globe Trinket is for you!
I still can’t believe this is a Lesser Trinket. For only 2 coins you can discover a Tier 6 minion every 2 turns. That means getting higher-tier minions early and mid-game.
My advice? Don’t try to fit the Tier 6 minions into your existing warband. Plan on building a menagerie based on 2 or 3 Tier 6 minions you get.
Azeroth Model Globe (Lesser) Best Comps:
- Versatility - This is another Trinket that is very versatile in the Comps you can do. It is all random/dependent on the Tier 6 minions you get.
8. Rewinder Portrait (Lesser)
Do you ever wish you could rewind time? It’s possible when you play Demons in Battlegrounds. Even more so with the Rewinder Portrait Trinket.
There is a demon minion that already rewinds damage done to your hero and turns it into its personal health. So why do you need this Trinket? Because you not only gain health, but you also gain attack now too.
My advice? Build a warband of Demons so you get offered this Lesser Trinket on turn 6. Then by mid game you can have a crazy large stat minion.
Rewinder Portrait (Lesser) Best Comps:
- Damage - Pair this Trinket with cards such as Malchezaar, Prince of Dance and Pilgrimp to deal damage to your hero every turn, thus your Soul Rewinder will grow in attack and health.
- Greater Trinket - Pair this Lesser Trinket with the Greater Trinket, Felbat Portrait. You get the Tier 6 minion, ‘Famished Felbat’, and the Tavern now always offers 7 cards. This ensures your Demons suck up all those stats for late game!
7. Token of the Old Gods (Lesser)
Again … I like aggressive gameplay. So, if there is any way I can get a higher Tier minion faster, I’m gonna do it. Players like me love the Token of the Old Gods Trinket.
Coming in at 0 cost you can get a spellcraft that transforms a minion into a random higher Tier minion. Getting this at turn 6, you can already be at a Tavern 2 or 3, depending on your gameplay. That means you can have higher-tier minions sooner in the game than your opponents.
My advice? Don’t get stuck on discovering the higher-tier minion you want or love. Be open-minded and be willing to grab Tier 4 or 5 minions as well that will strengthen your warband. Like a Brann Bronzebeard or Glowscale.
Token of the Old Gods (Lesser) Best Comps:
- Hero Pair - Paired with Galakrond you can gain higher-tiered minions even faster.
- Versatility - Again, this Trinket’s powers are random, so you can’t rely on a certain Comp. But that can be a good thing. You aren’t always offered the cards you want/need in the Tavern to play a certain minion type. So be fluid.
6. Bronzebeard Portrait (Greater)
Ah. The infamous Brann Bronzebeard. Known for triggering a minion's Battlecries twice. How could he possibly get better? As Bronzebeard Portrait, a Greater Trinket.
Most Greater Trinkets cost more coins, but this one comes in at only 1. You get a Brann Bronzebeard, but instead of not having a class, he is considered a Murloc and a Dragon. Why is this so great? Because Brann normally takes up a space in your warband to get the Battlecry trigger twice power but is not a powerful minion himself. Now that he is classified as 2 different minion types, his stats will grow along with your warbands.
My advice? If the Tavern is offering you lower-tier minions that are Murlocs or Dragons, take them! If you can save a few Battlecry minions in your hand until Turn 9 when you can buy this Greater Trinket.
Bronzebeard Portrait (Greater) Best Comps:
- Hero Pair - The best hero to pair with Brann/Battlecry strategy is Dinotamer Brann or the Shudderwock. So if you see Murlocs/Dragons are offered for the game, and you are offered one of these heroes, jump on it!
- Murloc - The Murloc minions with battlecry are ones like Coldlight Seer and King Bagurgle. Those will boost both Trinket Bran and your warbands stats.
Dragon - The dragon minions with battlecry are the Twilight Emissary and Electric Synthesizer. Those will boost both Trinket Brann and your warband.
5. Lorewalker Scroll (Greater)
Spellcasting is known as one of the most powerful forms of magic. This is also the case in Battlegrounds, when you have the Lorewalker Scroll Trinket.
At first glance this may not seem like a Greater Trinket. Casting a spell on a minion happens with a few minion types. And +5/+5 stats aren’t great for later game. Unless you play the right strategy. This Greater Trinket has great opportunities when you play Naga or Quilboar.
My advice? If your warband is Naga or Quilboar and this Trinket is offered to buy. BUY IT. Naga reproduce new spells each turn, and these stat gains are permanent, even though the Naga spell is not. And paired with Quilboar Blood Gems? That’s just adding an extra +5/+5 stats for each Blood Gem you play on a minion.
Lorewalker Scroll (Greater) Best Comps:
- Quilboar - Anytime you play a Blood Gem on a minion in your warband the extra stats from this Greater Trinket will be added.
- Naga - By using minions such as Reef Riffer and Zesty Shaker, you can give multiple minions boosted stats each turn.
- Lesser Trinket - Paired with the Lorewalker Scroll Lesser Trinket, the stats you give your minions can be boosted like crazy.
4. Souvenir Stand (Lesser)
One of the best parts of being on vacation are the souvenirs you buy to take home. They don’t mean anything on the vacation but mean a whole lot once the vacation is over. The same goes for the Souvenir Stand Trinket.
This Trinket is deceptively simple. For 2 coins you “skip” having a Lesser Trinket, until you buy your Greater Trinket. Then this souvenir turns into a copy of your Greater Trinket. Doubling your Greater Trinkets power.
My advice? If you’ve played the game long enough to have an idea of what the Greater Trinkets are, buy this Lesser Trinket when it is offered. Pair it with Greater Trinkets such as Pagle’s Fishing Rod to get 2 random Tier 7 minions each turn, instead of just 1.
Souvenir Stand (Lesser) Best Comps:
- Greater Trinket Pairs - Because this transforms itself into a copy of whatever Greater Trinket you choose, here are a few best Comps (Greater Trinkets) you can choose.
- Lorewalker Scroll - Give any minion you play a spell on +10/+10
- Karazhan Chess Set - You will learn about this one later in the article, but let’s just say summoning 4 powerful minions is great end-game strategy for anyone
- Bronzebeard Portrait - As you read about earlier, getting 2 Brann’s would mean triple the Battlecries
3. Hoggy Bank (Lesser)
Don’t save your Blood-gems for a rainy day. Beef up your warband of Quilboar with your saved blood-gems, thanks to the Hoggy Bank Trinket.
I didn’t think a Lesser Trinket would make it into the Top 3, but I couldn’t deny the value the Hoggy Bank has to offer. Playing Quilboar either goes 1 of 2 ways. You beef up your blood-gem stats, but don’t get a lot of blood-gems. Or you get a lot of Blood Gems without beefing them up. Buying the Hoggy Bank Lesser Trinket for 3 coins solves that dilemma. Focus on beefing the stats and let each minion in your warband give you a blood-gem spell each turn.
My advice? Fully focus on beefing the stats of your blood-gems with Fearless Foodie and Prickly Piper. You can even buy a Greater Trinket later on that also beefs up the blood-gems.
Hoggy Bank (Lesser) Best Comps:
- Greater Trinket - the best Comp is to pair the Hoggy Bank with Greater Trinkets that also deal with Blood-gems.
- Great Boar Sticker - Your Blood Gems give an extra +4/+4
Quilligraphy Set - Avenge 4 and your Blood Gems will give an extra +2/+2 stats for the rest of the game
2. Karazhan Chess Set (Greater)
Strategies where you summon minions during battle isn’t for the faint of heart. If you are up for the challenge, the Karazhan Chess Set Trinket is for you.
At turn 9, giving up 7 coins is a lot. But if you have the right strategy, buying this Greater Trinket is a good idea. With this Trinket you summon a copy of your 2 left minions in your warband. The first time I played this Trinket, I chose it because I realized I had an extra strong minion Foe Reaper 4000. And getting 2 of those would help me survive my opponents' stronger builds.
My advice? If you get offered this Trinket (because it is not minion or strategy specific), be sure to focus on smart minions to buy or beef up. Buying minions with venomous or cleave give you 2 of those guaranteed.
Karazhan Chess Set (Greater) Best Comps:
- Lesser Trinket - This paired with the Souvenir Stand mentioned above? You could summon 4 crazy beefed or special powered minions.
- Special Ability Minions - This could be paired with SO many minions with special abilities
- Cleave - Minions such as Blade Collector have cleave. The ability to hit minions on either side of the minion you directly attack.
- Venomous - One-hit kill
- Divine Shield - A grace hit, where no damage is taken
1. Jar o' Gems
Coming in at number 1 is the Greater Trinket, Jar o’ Gems. I mean, who doesn’t love jars and gems?
I realize this first place rank may come as a surprise to some of you, but I am thinking about the best minion type builds. In my opinion, Quilboar is the strongest minion type to play in the current season of Battlegrounds. Therefore, I feel this is the best Trinket to buy, if you are playing the strongest minion type/strategy in the game.
Jar o’ Gems plays a Blood Gem on all your Quilboar during combat, after 2 friendly minion's attack. That may not seem that great but wait. The majority of games I play Quilboar, I can get my Blood Gems stats up to an insane amount. So, you will already have a powerful warband from the Blood Gems you play during your turn. But during combat your minions' stats will continue to grow as the battle goes on.
My advice? Play Quilboar. It is fun to dominate your competition. Get them so strong that they can survive multiple attacks and have this Trinket's passive power play over and over again.
Jar o’ Gems (Greater) Best Comps:
- Lesser Trinket Pair - Paired with Lesser Trinkets such as Quilligraphy Set and Great Boar Sticker you are sure to get the beefy stats you desire with this spell.
- Windfury - Make an odd pairing with a windfury minion, so right at the beginning of combat you play a Blood Gem on all your Quilboar
