30 For 30 Power Rankings: The Strongest Seasons in Hero History

By MartyB

​THL’s 30 for 30 series represents a fun opportunity for us to compare players across history. Typically, we’re focused on a single season or lifetime, but we rarely return to specific seasons to measure player success. Fortunately, PAR now allows us to look back on individual seasons and rank them in ways that we were never able to before.

Unlike our Legacy piece, no Hero seasons need to be omitted. Every season of Hero has been played under a best-of-5 format. Although the number of players per team has varied, this doesn’t affect the individual performance of a player in any given season. As was the case last time, we’ll also be including playoff matches, as lifetime PAR includes all matches someone plays in a season.
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Honorable Mentions:
Switters, Season 5: 9-1 (28-12), 11.937 PAR

AgentPWE, Season 15: 10-2 (32-19), 12.259 PAR

MrPython, Season 15: 9-2 (31-17), 12.323 PAR

rebobson, Season 17: 9-2 (30-13), 12.630 PAR

Freeloader, Season 8: 8-0 (24-8), 12.647 PAR

None of the honorable mentions listed won the Hero Series championship in their respective seasons. In fact, one player even missed playoffs! Freeloader, a name few today would remember, was a shining light in an otherwise dim season for Spell Stoners.

Note that two players listed share historic performances in Season 15. Season 15 was an unusually impressive season for several players, and we’ll be seeing one more of these listed in the top 10.
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10: ironFIRE, Season 7
Match Record: 10-2
Game Record: 34-13
PAR: 12.663

​Few will remember ironFIRE, but their performance during season 7 was a spectacular effort. After going 7-2 in the regular season, they were called upon to clutch up the playoffs for Ugly Mucklings. After the first round, ironFIRE moved up into the 1 seed to compete against ClarkHellscream and jyak. They managed to beat both opponents and finish the season at 550 PR, a huge feat after starting the season below 500 PR in the 2 seed.
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9: Aliensanta, Season 6
Match Record: 8-1
Game Record: 26-11
PAR: 12.772

Aliensanta was a staple in Hero Series for some time, but their best season was arguably their first one. Season 6 saw them reach the 500 PR cap by the end of the season, making them a highly valued player for future teams later on.

8: Wildfire8010 , Season 7
Match Record: 10-2
Game Record: 34-11
PAR: 12.849

The only thing overshadowing ironFIRE’s performance in Season 7 is Wildfire8010’s near-identical record. Wildfire8010 narrowly edged them out with a better game record and slightly higher PAR due to tougher competition. They also beat ironFIRE’s team, Ugly Mucklings, to win the Sylvanas League championship.

7: LotusKnight, Season 15
Match Record: 10-3
Game Record: 36-23
PAR: 13.115

Lotus is our third player with a standout performance in Season 15. Although they played much of the season in the 2 seed below Aviously, they eventually moved up to the 1 seed to help B.L.A.S.T. win the series championship over AgentPWE and NoProsHere.
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6: inposition, Season 8
Match Record: 9-0
Game Record: 24-8
PAR: 13.546

Inposition’s performance comes as an impressive feat not just because of their undefeated record, but also because it took place entirely in the regular season. Big Deck Bandits struggled to string together many wins this season, meaning inposition’s season was cut much shorter than other players on this list.
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5: Turtle, Season 14
Match Record: 10-1
Game Record: 32-9
PAR: 14.330

Tonk If You Are Corny was always known for gifting THL the classic image of a cute turtle with a gatling gun on its back after winning the Hero Series championship, but there is significant meaning to the adorable little creature. Turtle had one of the best seasons of any Hero player on record, entering rare territory with a season PAR above 14. The little guy turned out to be a fitting symbol for someone with such a potent performance.
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4: AgentPWE, Season 16
Match Record: 10-1
Game Record: 32-18
PAR: 14.453

After season 15, AgentPWE wasn’t going to have his performance outdone. They went on a historic tear in the regular season, securing the MVP title despite NoProsHere missing playoffs. There is an argument to be made that no other player had a 2-season performance in Hero as impressive as AgentPWE did during this time.
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3: Dardarbinks, Season 13
Match Record: 10-0
Game Record: 30-12
PAR: 14.594

When you have three Hall of Famers involved with a team, it’s expected that those Hall of Famers propel the team to greatness. The Challengestoners were destined for greatness, but not because of their Hall of Famers. Dardarbinks boasted the best record on the team as they cruised to the finals, solidifying their reputation as a top player in THL. An All-Star 1 seed placement capped off the astonishing performance.
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2: basedinc, Season 12
Match Record: 11-2
Game Record: 36-15
PAR: 15.428

The second Board member on our rankings makes her appearance in the #2 spot. Spies That Flies had effectively created a roster with three 550 PR players in their top 3 seeds, something unheard of. Despite this, it was their 3 seed that stood out as the top player of this season. Based’s historic season will stand as one of the best performances ever in Hero Series history.
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1: Fuel, Season 8
Match Record: 10-0
Game Record: 30-9
PAR: 15.685

It’s only fitting that one of the highest win rate players with 3 or more seasons in Hero tops the list. Fuel earned an MVP award for their regular season performance, and likely would have continued to impress in the playoffs had their team made a deep run.

Fuel never ended up winning a Hero Series Championship, but their individual achievements in the series are so much more impressive. A historic performance highlighted by an MVP award is something only the very best could ever hope of attaining.