Do you ever get the feeling that your quest to become a Hearthstone Legend just isn't going as well as it should? You probably shouldn't lose too much sleep over it: As Blizzard's recently-released breakdown of the Hearthstone Ranked Play ladder shows, the vast majority of players sit in the bottom ten ranks, and less than one percent have achieved the coveted rank of Legend.
Hearthstone's Ranked Play pits players against one another in duels, ranking them based on wins and losses—hence the name—on a 25-step ladder. Those who achieve Rank One can then shoot for the ultimate goal: Legend Rank. That's obviously not an easy task, but some players are apparently starting to feel a little discouraged.
"Recently, we've seen some comments from our players that feel they are not performing well in Ranked Play compared to others, or disappointed by the fact that they haven't hit Legend rank. We're here to let you know that you're actually doing better than you think!" Blizzard wrote in a new Hearthside Chat . "In fact, most of Hearthstone's Ranked Play players lie between Ranks 25 and 15. Many players aspire to acquire the unique Hearthstone card back each season that awaits at Rank 20. Even going from Rank 20 to Rank 15 is an impressive feat."
The numbers tell the tale: Fully 75 percent of all Hearthstone players are rated between Rank 25, the entry tier, and Rank 15. Only 7.5 percent of players are at Rank Ten or higher, Rank Five and up has only been achieved by two percent of players, and fewer than 0.5 percent of all players have achieved the Legend Rank. (And yes, the graph does add up to more than 100 percent; Blizzard said it's because of rounding.)
It really shouldn't come as a surprise. Blizzard announced earlier this month that Hearthstone had reached 20 million players in just six months, and even though not all of them are on the Ranked Play ladder, there's still a huge number of people vying for a shot at the title. Working to even the midpoint of a field of that size is, as Blizzard says, quite an accomplishment.