Ability Focus
In this week's Social Media Challenge, I'm excited to explore the relatively recent addition of the FORCEFIELD ability to the Splinterlands game.
The FORCEFIELD ability is a game-changer, enabling a monster to withstand attacks with damages of 5 or higher, taking only 1 damage. With this ability, the game's dynamics have shifted, prompting players to reconsider the frequent deployment of their immensely powerful monsters. This addition to the game exemplifies what I appreciate about Splinterlands – its ability to constantly evolve and diversify gameplay strategies with each new ability introduced 👍
FORCEFIELD ability!
that are often packed with high damage output in the battle,
making it advantageous to include the
FORCEFIELD ability in your lineup.
The Battle
While fulfilling my responsibilities in the Splinterlands scholarship account I have with Balthazar, bltzr-wizard-729, I had the privilege of engaging in a battle that flawlessly showcased the effectiveness of the FORCEFIELD ability! To get right into the action, the battle link can be found here. Otherwise, do read on as I go into more detail regarding the lineup and fight.
Let's begin by diving into the ruleset governing this battle. Firstly, there's the Are You Not Entertained? ruleset, which grants players the privilege of including one extra Gladiator Card in their battle lineup. Following that, we have the Super Sneak ruleset, extending the Sneak ability to all Melee attack Monsters. Lastly, the Broken Arrows ruleset puts restrictions on the usage of Ranged attack Monsters, rendering them ineligible for battle. This encounter adheres to a mana cap of 34 and only allows the deployment of Fire, Water, and Dragon Splinters.
Summoner, Kelya Frendul
With a limited Splinter options, my choice of the Water Splinter was a clear and logical one. The Water Splinter boasts a formidable roster of Monsters that possess the potential to outshine the Fire Splinter in this battle. Instead of opting for the Dragon Summoner, Quix The Devious, whose -1 Range attack debuff holds no relevance in a battle governed by the Broken Arrows ruleset, I decided to employ Kelya Frendul as my Summoner. This choice grants my team valuable buffs in the form of a +1 Speed and +1 Armor boost! 😄
First Position, Noa The Just
Considering the available Splinters and the Super Sneak ruleset, I made a gamble by selecting Noa The Just as my primary tanker for this battle. I was banking on my opponent adhering to the ruleset and field a predominantly Melee-oriented team since Noa The Just is susceptible to Magic attacks. This Monster boasts the Dodge ability, endowing it with an impressive +25% chance to evade Melee attacks. Additionally, it possesses the Rust ability, which removes 2 Armor points from the enemy team at the outset of the battle! 😎
Second Position, Deeplurker
Integrating the Deeplurker into my roster while employing the Water Splinter appear as a straightforward decision, even within the Super Sneak ruleset. Here, its Opportunity ability takes a backseat to the Sneak attack, making it less prominent. However, the Deeplurker still possess the ability to inflict Poison on its target that adds an extra dimension to its already impressive offensive capabilities. Furthermore, it brings the Demoralize ability to the table, imposing a -1 Melee attack debuff on the opposing team! 💪
Third Position, Isgald Vorst
While Isgald Vorst might not seem like the most optimal choice for this specific battle due to the Super Sneak ruleset, similar to what happened to the Deeplurker, it's hard to pass up the opportunity for a Gladius Card provided by the Are You Not Entertained? ruleset, right? There's a glimmer of hope that the Bloodlust ability might be triggered during the battle when Isgald Vorst eliminate a target, therefore providing an extra boost to the Monster! 😝
Fourth Position, Torrent Fiend
To be honest, Torrent Fiend was selected as I have ran out of mana. It is a particularly useful fodder unit when there is space available in the lineup, and the fact that it costs nothing is a definite advantage! Even though my Torrent Fiend has the Headwinds ability that is gained at its maximum level, that ability is pretty redundant in the context of this battle since the Broken Arrows ruleset is in play 😂
Fifth Position, Djinn Oshannus
Positioning Djinn Oshannus in the second last position, making it a secondary backline tank, is a strategic move. This placement ensures that when Dumacke Orc eventually falls, Djinn Oshannus can step in as a reliable backup. With its impressive overall stats and the coveted FORCEFIELD ability, Djinn Oshannus becomes the star of this battle strategy. By anticipating that my opponent might field high Melee attackers to take advantage of the Super Sneak ruleset, this placement allows me to nullify their damage, rendering it insignificant! 😜
Last Position, Dumacke Orc
Drumacke Orc stands out as the ideal backline tank, thanks to its array of abilities that excel at thwarting Melee Monster attacks, a particularly valuable trait in the Super Sneak ruleset. This Monster boasts 3 highly effective abilities - Shield, Retaliate, and Thorns - that act as a robust defense and countermeasure against Sneak attacks. However, it does have one significant weakness: if the enemy manages to inflict Poison with their initial strike, Drumacke Orc could be taken down almost immediately 😖
The Analysis
As previously mentioned, the battle was influenced by a limited selection of Splinters and the additional constraint of the Broken Arrows ruleset. This situation made it somewhat predictable regarding the likely composition of the opponent's team, allowing me to tailor my lineup as a countermeasure. However, like any prediction, there's never a guarantee of 100% accuracy, so there was still an element of risk involved in selecting my lineup. Fortunately, my prediction turned out to be correct this time, and the opponent's lineup matched my expectations ✌️
However, I must confess that I didn't anticipate facing the opponent's Lily Shieldpaw Summoner, which granted the Camouflage ability to their team. This ability effectively directed all of my attacks to their frontline tanker, even with the Super Sneak ruleset in play. Nonetheless, the key to victory in this battle was the defensive setup rather than the offensive one. This was where I truly gained the upper hand. I captured a snippet of the battle and transformed it into a GIF, showcasing how the opponent's Desert Dragon and Diemonshark had no way to bypass the impregnable Djinn Oshannus, all thanks to its formidable FORCEFIELD ability! 😅
Do you guys have any go-to strategy as well? Do share them with me in the below comments 😎
If you made it this far, I sincerely appreciate your time and value your encouragement. Please feel free to leave any comments or suggestions so that we can discuss about other strategies. Thinking about giving Splinterlands a try but haven't signed up yet? Feel free to use my referral link: https://splinterlands.com?ref=ak08, and be sure to reach out to me if you have any questions!
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All banners, dividers card and battle images used in this article are open source and obtained from the Splinterlands team or made by flauwy. Do check out his link for other amazing designs!