Since the release of Hearthstone's most recent expansion, Rise of Shadows, one month ago from today, the game's development team has been hyping up the single-player adventure mode as the biggest in the game's history. On Thursday afternoon, the team released a video that revealed the name of the adventure mode, when it is being released, what it includes, and more.

Game Designer, Giovanni Scarpati, began by introducing the overall theme of the adventure mode which is called "The Dalaran Heist." In it, players will pilot dastardly villains as they crawl through the city of Dalaran, similar to previous Monster Hunt and Dungeon Run modes. 

The Dalaran Heist story is being told in chapters of a book, with each one taking place in a different location and theme of the story. The first chapter, which is free, is available to be played on Thursday, May 16. The second chapter will be available to purchase as well on that date for 700 gold or $6.99. The entire adventure mode can be purchased for $20. Remaining chapters will be unlocked one at a time over the following three weeks. 

Each chapter will tell a unique story and feature a special theme for each run, providing a distinct experience each time you play. The playable villains, one for each class, feature their own progression system as well. By completing different mini-quests, new Hero Powers can be unlocked, as well as decks that can be played by each henchman.

A unique feature of The Dalarn Heist is the ability for players to come across non-combat encounters from time to time. The taverns allow players to select unique cards for their decks, drop old ones, add copies of existing ones, etc.

Additionally, the Hearthstone team is bringing back more difficult game modes for players who want to test their luck against foes trying to stop you. The Heroic mode is, naturally, a more difficult playing experience that doesn't radically change the gameplay. The other game variant, Anomaly mode, is opened once a player beats all five chapters and each run starts with a random effect that will persist throughout. One example is an effect that allows both players to have their spells cast an additional time at a random target.

With seven days until the heist begins, only time will tell how this year-long story develops.