Blizzcon is rapidly approaching, which means The Hearthstone World Championship is drawing near! The tournament will feature the world's best professional Hearthstone players engaging in awesomely intense duels! This article will give you a quick overview of the faces you'll be seeing at the Hearthstone World Championship on 7 and 8 November 2014.

Americas Qualifiers

James "Firebat" Kostesich
Country: United States
Team: Copenhagen Wolves
Fun Fact: Works as a Network Administrator and plays Hearthstone at work
Notable Decks: Miracle Rogue, Midrange Hunter, Ramp Druid

Cong "StrifeCro" Shu
Country: United States
Team: Cloud9
Fun Fact: Former Starcraft II player for Evil Geniuses
Notable Decks: Ramp Druid and Handlock Warlock

Daniel “Dtwo” Ikuta
Country: United States
Team: Don’t Kick My Robot (DKMR)
Fun Fact: Enjoys Tennis and Pokemon
Notable Decks: Midrange Hunter, Handlock Warlock, and Ramp Druid

Jeffrey “Tarei” Liu
Country: United States
Team: Magicamy
Fun Fact: Known for heavy trash talking on opponents
Notable Decks: Handlock Warlock and Miracle Rogue

Europe Qualifiers

Aleksandr "Kolento" Malsh
Country: Ukraine
Team: Cloud9
Fun Fact: Former competitive World of Tanks player
Notable Decks: Miracle Rogue, Control Warrior, and Midrange Shaman

James “GreenSheep” Luo
Country: United Kingdom
Team: Dignitas
Fun Fact: Former Pokemon TCG national champion and avid Runescape player
Notable Decks: Midrange Shaman and Ramp Druid

Riccardo “Kaor” Giammanco
Country: Italy
Team: N/A
Fun Fact: Runs an online shop and frequents many comic and game conventions
Notable Decks: Control Paladin, Control Priest, and Handlock Warlock

Filip “NumberGuy” Samuelsen
Country: Denmark
Team: Innovation
Fun Fact: Former competitive Yu-Gi-Oh TCG player
Notable Decks: Control Warrior, Control Priest, and Ramp Druid

Korea/Taiwan Qualifiers

Junghwan “RenieHouR” Lee
Country: Korea
Team: Golden Coin
Fun Fact: Big Blizzard fan, frequenting Starcraft2, Diablo, and World of Warcraft
Notable Decks: Control Warrior and Token Druid

Hakjun “Kranich” Baek
Country: Korea
Team: Golden Coin
Notable Deck: Hunter Aggro

Wei-lin "Tom60229" Chen
Country: Taiwan
Team: Yoe Flash Wolves
Fun Fact: Defeated Amaz in Taiwan Qualifier
Notable Deck: Handlock Warlock

Shih Kuang "FrozenIce" Chu
Country: Taiwan
Team: Yoe Flash Wolves
Fun Fact: Likes to play Mage and Druid in Arena
Notable Decks: Midrange Shaman and Token Druid

China Qualifiers

Licheng “RunAndGun” Zhang
Country: China
Team: N/A
Notable Deck: Midrange Shaman and Ramp Druid

Lu Xiaobu
Country: China
Team: N/A
Notable Decks: Control Mage and Midrange Shaman

Wang “Tiddler Celestial” Xieyu
Country: China
Team: N/A
Notable Decks: Warlock Zoo and Miracle (Maylgos) Rogue

Wang “Qiruo” Jiahui
Country: China
Team: N/A
Notable Decks: Control Paladin and Miracle Rogue

Group Stages

Blizzard has released the Group Stages information! Many are calling "Group D" the Group of Death! Check out the picture below to see what group your favorite player will be playing in! Our own, James "GreenSheep" Luo, is in Group C!

Who do you think will be crowned the 2014 "Grandmaster of the Hearth" and take home the $250,000 top prize? Let me know in the comments! Don't forget to tune into the live event on November 7/8th 2014 at http://www.twitch.tv/playhearthstone!

-Yusnaan

*Unfortunately, some information from the qualified players from the Taiwan and China qualifiers is unavailable. Due to privacy policies, Blizzard was not able to provide me with the missing information.