When I heard that this week's challenge was to fight a match using ANY monster with the "Retaliate" ability, I instantly knew that I wanted to use Stonesplitter Orc. Stonesplitter Orc is a powerful, Earth Splinter monster that has a strong attack, good speed, decent health, and even a little bit of armor to protect him from the enemy. On top of that, his "Retaliate" ability means that he not only gets to attack on his own turn, but he also has a 50% chance of striking back each time he takes Melee damage. Let's see if he can lead us to victory.
The Lineup
This was a 22 Mana cap match with no modifications to the standard ruleset. Obviously, as a melee monster, Stonesplitter Orc can only attack from first position (under standard rules). I thought that placing him in first position would be a great way to allow him to use his strong attack, and I also knew that each time he took damage he would have a chance of striking back.
Although Stonesplitter Orc is a strong first potision monster, I wanted to make sure he had an equally strong team supporting him, so in second position I chose Centauri Mage. Unlike the Fire Splinter (with Fineas Rage) or Water (with Wave Runner), I have always felt nervous to play the "Reach" capable monsters of the Earth Splinter (Orc Sergeant or Minotaur Warrior) because they only have an attack value of 1 which would make them worthless if my opponent plays a first position monster with the "Shield" ability. Thus, I usually prefer Centauri Mage because it has good health, can attack from any position, and deals damage directly to the opponent's health while bypassing any armor defenses.
In third position, I decided to play Mushroom Seer. This is actually a card that I purchased for a previous Share Your Battle Challenge, and it has served me well since then. Not only does Mushroom Seer have a good magic attack, it also has the "Silence" ability which reduces the magic attack of all enemy monsters. I knew that Stonesplitter Orc's "Retaliate" ability would be well suited to facing the opponent's melee monsters, so I thought that including the "Silence" ability of Mushroom Seer would be a good balance that could debuff enemy magic monsters.
In fourth position, I played Creeping Ooze as a way of slowing down the opponent's team and ensuring that my monsters would have a speed advantage. Sometimes getting in that first strike against the opponent's team can make all the difference, so for 1 Mana I usually consider Creeping Ooze a great card to play.
In last spot, I placed Furious Chicken. I normally say that Furious Chicken is simply a buffer monster to absorb an enemy's attack if they have a "Sneak" or "Snipe" monster, but in this case Furious Chicken played an added benefit. Because I played Mylor Cowling as my summoner, Furious Chicken also had the "Thorns" abiity which meant that it wouldn't passively sit there as it was attacked, but had a chance of striking back at the opponent's melee monsters as well.
The Match
When I first saw the opponent's lineup, I was impressed as they had played a strong Life Splinter team. As soon as the match started, however, I saw the strength of Stonesplitter Orc as there were** some rounds when he attacked THREE TIMES!** He attacked on his normal attack, but thanks to the "Retaliate" ability he struck back when he took melee damage. On top of that, the "Thorns" ability that Mylor Cowling gives also let Stonesplitter Orc deal additional damage when hit with a melee attack. I give my opponent credit for choosing a good team, but at the end of the day, their team simply couldn't stand up to the power of Stonesplitter Orc combined with the strong magic monsters and Mylor Cowling supporting him.
Analysis of Stonesplitter Orc
I can still remember when I first battled Stonesplitter Orc for the first time. I entered the match thinking I had a strong team, but my team was decimated as Stonesplitter Orc attacked multiple times per round with its "Retaliate" ability. As soon as I could after that match, I started using Stonesplitter Orc because of its strong abilities in battle.
Stonesplitter Orc has a great balance of speed, health, a strong attack, and even a little bit of armor that makes it a great, well rounded monster. Even the Mana cost is a good value. I really can't find many disadvantages of this monster.
Conclusion
As always, it is nice to be able to take part in the challenges and try out new strategies and new tactics. Before closing out the article, I'd encourage you to check out Splinterlands. I have been playing for over a year, and this isn't one of those games you will try once and get bored of. It is a fun game that allows you to battle monsters online, be a part of the community while also earning some crypto and NFTs for your efforts in the game. Feel free to join up or watch my battle replay here.
https://splinterlands.com/?p=battle&id=1aa6f5b7e2f07c122a2fc0bb72e75ef8ae4ad048&ref=parttimeeconon