Announced at BlizzConline earlier this year, Hearthstone's "Mercenaries" mode introduces a new hero-focused mode to its well-established card battles. Players create a team of mercenaries and fight through a series of randomly generated challenges before facing off against a boss (with some PvP elements). Mercenaries "evolve" over time and can be enhanced with equipment.

In preparation for the release, Blizzard is conducting a survey of existing players about the new mode, in which they share some new screens and some particularly good marketing ideas. As expected, the survey leaked quickly and is currently the talk of the Hearthstone communities.

The screens probably show the splash screen for this mode, the battle arena, the "map" between rounds, and the post-match level-up screen. The survey also mentions that the team would gather 50 mercenaries to create a sort of village hub.

The highlight of the survey, however, is when Blizzard asked players which celebrities they thought should be associated with Hearthstone. The usual list of big-name actors, celebrities, Henry Cavill, etc., is followed by a marketing idea (found here).

I ain't playing, fool!

PC Gamer spoke with game director Ben Lee when this mode was announced.

"The big difference with other roguelikes is that progression is persistent. That is, as King Krush and Rexxar level up, they gain experience, which they keep. They have skills and abilities, and as they level up, they drop items that enhance their abilities. They have all those things.

"You level up with the bosses until the end of the game, when you reach the maximum level. At that point, the game changes a bit. [At that point, it's not so much about improving your levels, but more about skills, meta counters, etc."

A release date for Mercenaries has not yet been set. In the meantime, build your best decks and smash Warlock. And always remember the wisdom of the man who must be the face of Hearthstone's future. Says Mr. T, "I believe in the Golden Rule."