My Splinterlands Learning Journey: From Confusion to Confidence
Hi! I’m Lyn, a returning player in Splinterlands. I started playing way back in 2021 when play-to-earn games were booming. This post is part of the weekly Splinterlands Community Engagement Challenge. This week is about sharing my Splinterlands Learning Journey.
When I first discovered Splinterlands, it felt like I had found upon a whole new universe. This wass during the Covid pandemic and I have zero knowledge or idea about crypto games or in crypto itself. Compared to other crypto games, the learning curve for Splinterlands was steep and I’m not afraid to admit that my journey started off bumpy.
The Biggest Hurdle: The Rulesets
The biggest hurdle I faced was understanding the various rulesets and how they could affect battle outcomes. At first, I paid little attention to rulesets, but I quickly learned the hard way that ignoring rulesets like "Reverse Speed" or "Briar Patch" would almost guarantee defeat. One moment I was confident, the next I was scratching my head becuase I used meelee monters in a Briar Patch ruleset or I used high speed units in a Reverse Speed ruleset. Or that healing abilities might become useless in a "Healed Out" ruleset. It felt like every victory or loss had a hidden lesson waiting to be uncovered. Slowly, I began to think less about individual monsters and more about synergy and how each ruleset will benefit my units.
The Most Complex Mechanic: Mana and Positioning Strategy
I underestimated how critical it was to optimize for low-mana battles, or how placing the wrong monster in second position could waste their full potential. Cards like Creeping Ooze or Furious Chicken seemed useless for me at first, until I understood how their roles as low-mana fillers or shields could change the flow of combat.
Then there are these abilities like Reach, Sneak, Opportunity, and Taunt. I used to always placed units with Taunt in the first position, but then I saw other players placing it at the back. A well-placed Taunt tank would soak all the hits together with my tank in the first position while the my damage dealers attacked the opponent. Before, I sometimes place my unit with Reach ability in the first position, wasting its abilit in the process. Or place units with Sneak and Opportunity in the first position and get easily killed by the opponent.
Once I began experimenting more with card placement, everything changed. I started building teams that protected key damage dealers or support units, and I learned to respect every unit and not just the high mana ones.
Advice to My Past Self (and New Players)
If I could go back and give myself advice, or talk to a new player starting today, here’s what I’d say:
Play with purpose – Don’t just click ‘Battle’ for the sake of it. Try out new combos, study your losses, and treat each match as a lesson.
Understand the abilities – Don’t sleep on cards because of their stats. A low mana Dispel or Rust card can turn the tide of battle.
Watch others – Spend time watching top-ranked players’ battles and learn from them.
Who Helped Me Grow?
I owe a lot to content creators and the Splinterlands community. @bulldog1205 and @clove71 were especially instrumental early on. Their YouTube videos broke down concepts clearly, offered strategies for all budget levels, and made the game feel approachable rather than overwhelming.
My Splinterlands learning journey wasn’t easy, but it was incredibly rewarding. To all the new players just starting out: embrace the struggle, stay curious, and trust that the fog will clear. And when it does, the game becomes even more easy and enjoyable to play.