HearthstoneBattlegroundssaw the return of Buddies after a long absence. They are unique minions that each Hero gets semi-automatically during a game. you may think of them as your sidekick, with abilities that make your Hero better at accomplishing their strategy.
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Some Buddies have relatively minor effects, but others can break the game in the right circumstances. Additionally, while many Buddies are only useful to the Hero they are associated with, others can help any Hero if they can acquire them. Here are ten Buddies you’ll definitely want on your side.
10Ragnaros The Firelord: Lucifron
The obvious benefit of Lucifron is that he doubles — and eventually triples — the stats from Ragnaros’ ability, making it far more likely that you can scale your minions to a relevant level before dying.
However, Lucifron also benefits from the addition of several end-of-turn effects that were added to the game during his absence; notably, The Walking Fort and Magmaloc. They scale quickly even without Lucifron’s help, and he can push them to the next level. This both makes it far easier to create builds as Ragnaros, and means Lucifron can occasionally be useful even if you pick him up on a different Hero.
9Lady Vashj: Coilfang Elite
Coilfang Elite’s power is extremely specificto Naga builds, but it enhances the power level of those builds by a massive amount. One of the biggest disadvantages to playing Nagas is that you need to keep underwhelming Spellcraft minions on your board if you want your synergies to be consistently effective.
With Coilfang Elite, you can instead gain Spells by simply refreshing the Tavern. And since Coilfang Elite is Tavern Tier 1, you can get the Spellcraft train rolling right away, helping to keep you alive until you reach the higher Tier Nagas that really pushes the minion type to lobby-winning heights.
8Al’Akir: Spirit Of Air
Spirit of Air is a rare Buddy that you’ll want to keep around for the entire game. In fact, it gets better the later in the game you get, since both Divine Shield and Windfury (and Taunt, to a lesser extent) are stronger when your minions have more attack.
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Think of the Spirit of Air as a Selfless Hero on steroids; it’s at its best in stat-heavy builds without other abilities,such as Demonsor Menagerie. And unlike Selfless Hero (and many other Buddies), since Spirit of Air has the Elemental type, it is relatively easy to buff, giving it massive stats of its own.
7Forest Warden Omu: Evergreen Botani
At Tavern Tier 5, Evergreen Botani is pricey, but his effect is worth it. For many Heroes, getting guaranteed Tier 5 and 6 minions would be good, but reaching those Tiers early enough for Evergreen Botani to be effective can be difficult. And getting a free Tavern Tier 3 or 4 minion, while better than nothing, is hardly game-breaking.
With Forest Warden Omu, though, the whole goal is to level as quickly as possible, and Evergreen Botani rewards you for doing so. If you may survive the early game, Omu and his Buddy can farm high-Tier triples easier than almost any other Hero.
6Zephrys, The Great: Phyresz
Zyphrys’ Hero Power lets you turn two minions into a triple. And with some careful board management, Phyresz means acquiring a single copy of a minion gives you the golden version. One lucky, high-Tier find will snowball into a victory rather quickly.
That level of consistency is a rare thing in Battlegrounds. Phyresz also happens to be one of the best Buddies to get as a different Hero, since getting a second copy of a key minion is going to be useful in a wide variety of different scenarios.
5Tickatus: Ticket Collector
Like Buddies, the Darkmoon Prizes are a mechanic that have come and gone from Battlegrounds. However, they’ve maintained a small presence thanks to Tickatus, and the return of Ticket Collector grants you access to more of them.
This is definitely not a case of getting too much of a good thing, with Darkmoon Prizes potentially netting you big stats, extra gold, and more. Additionally, the fact that Ticket Master’s effect triggers when you sell it, rather than when you play it, gives you more control over which level of Darkmoon Prize you get, allowing you to hold it for the later, more game-breaking options.
4Scabbs Cutterbutter: Warden Thelwater & Tess Greymane: Hunter Of Old
Warden Thelwater and Hunter of Old have basically the same ability. They are also both Tavern Tier 4, and their stats aren’t different enough to really matter. The difference between the two really comes down to whether you prefer Scabbs or Tess as Heroes.
But their similarities shouldn’t distract you from the value they can provide. Even if the Buddy you are getting from them isn’t great, they are still free gold. And some Buddies are game-winning, many of those on this list being good examples. Additionally, the golden versions of Thelwater and the Hunter give you two copies of your opponent’s Buddy, allowing you to easily farm Triples with Scabbs and Tess’ Hero Powers.
3E.T.C., Band Manager: Talent Scout
There’s really not a lot to say about Talent Scout. It turns out that making a Buddy Golden is good. Any Hero that lucks into a Talent Scout can get a Golden version of their own Buddy early, either making spending gold on the remaining copies unnecessary, or giving them extra Buddies.
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Even better, E.T.C. can potentially get three Golden Buddies. A lot of the time, that is going to be overkill, but if you happen to find several Buddies with synergy using his Hero Power, you may create some of the most powerful builds in Battlegrounds.
2Sylvanas Windrunner: Nathanos Blightcaller
Nathanos Blightcaller is the only Tavern Tier 6 Buddy currently in Battlegrounds. That means he will take the longest to get, although the nature of Sylvanas’ Hero Power means you should have the stats to win early fights, speeding up the process.
His effect is worth your time, though. Nathanos' Battlecry allows you to take the stats of a minion, double them, and shift them onto a minion with a special effect, like Divine Shield. You can scale a random minion early in the game, with Sylvanas’ Hero Power or other methods, then give those stats to minions that are actually useful.
1Trade Prince Gallywix: Bilgewater Mogul
Bilgewater Mogul is not a bad Buddy to get with any Hero, especially with Brann Bronzebeard’s Battlecry-doubling shenanigans in the game. She can give attack to a Divine Shield or Windfury minion, or Health to a minion with Poisonous.
However, when combined with Gallywix’s ability to gain absurd amounts of gold, the Mogul’s effect goes into overdrive. The first copy you get early in the game will give you a solid boost, helping you survive. Then, once you have your gold generation rolling, the other two copies of Bilgewater Mogul can provide a truly staggering amount of stats.
