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The Hearthstone Grandmasters program is less than a month away. Card game enthusiasts are willing to watch the best pros duke it out at the highest echelon of competitive Hearthstone.

Until a few days ago, however, there was no information regarding who these pros would be. It is only now, after two separate announcements from Blizzard itself, that we finally know 30 of the 48 players who will fight for their spot in the Global Finals throughout the upcoming months.

The Asia-Pacific region’s contenders have not yet been revealed. However, 15 players from Europe and North America each have now been unveiled. The sixteenth spot, however, will belong to the best EU/NA player at the Hearthstone World Championship 2019. This year’s most important tournament will take place in Taipei during the last weekend of April.

Chen "tom6022" Wei Lun won last year´s World Championship. This year, the tournament will be key for qualifying for Hearthstone Grandmasters.
Chen “tom60229” Wei Lun won last year’s World Championship. This year, the tournament will be key for qualifying for Hearthstone Grandmasters. Photo credits: Red Bull.

There are a lot of well-known faces on the list. That, nonetheless, was to be expected. The criteria used for determining which players entered the league ranged from lifetime earnings to overall contribution to the community. They also included, understandably so, the performance at HCT 2018. Blizzard wanted to make sure only the finest players got to enter the highest tiers of competitive Hearthstone this year.

So far they have been pretty successful at achieving that objective. In North America, Paul “Zalae” Nemeth, James “Firebath” Kostesich, and David “Dog” Caero are some familiar faces due to the importance of their streams. Leaning more towards the competitive side of things, we can also find Frank “Frozen” Zhang, who placed second at the 2018 World Championship. Moreover, recurrent names in last year’s circuit such as David “Justsaiyan” Shan or Brian “Bloodyface” Eason will also be present in the first installment of the tournament.

Afer not such an estelar 2018, Fr0zen comes back in full force with the trophy as the main objective. | Hearthstone Grandmasters
After not such a stellar 2018, Fr0zen comes back in full force with the trophy as the main objective. Photo credits: Team Liquid.

In Europe, all the way across the Atlantic Ocean, the same pattern kind of repeats itself. The G2 couple, formed by Thijs “Thijs” Molendijk and Radu “Rdu” Dima, are definitely difficult opponents to go up against. There is one thing, however, that they both have in common (apart from the team, of course). There is a massive number of people who turn on to watch their stream almost every single day.

To complement them, players like Casper “Hunterace” Notto and Raphael “Bunnyhoppor” Peltzer are also joining the roster. Both of them showed a stunning level throughout last year’s competitive circuit. Of course, they will be trying to prove they can keep up with it on this new format as well.

Hunterace has stablished himself as one of the most consistent players in the world. | Hearthstone Grandmasters
Hunterace has established himself as one of the most consistent players in the world. Photo credits: Tuttosport Esports.

With all these great players and a well-planned project from Blizzard, Hearthstone Grandmasters is most likely going to be a complete blast once it starts on May 17. In the meantime, though, there is only one thing fans can do. There is no option but reading through the player announcements in order to have an idea of the insane level of play the best Hearthstone competition ever will offer once it finally gets underway.