Good day everyone and splinterlands community, Today, I’ll be sharing another interesting battle from the modern format, specifically highlighting Katrelba Gobson and why this card remains a valuable choice. In the current state of modern format, playing competitively has become more expensive, with rental prices for max-level cards getting higher and certain elements requiring smarter and more strategic choices. For me, my plan is simple, I rent whatever is affordable, especially for summoners, and I usually try to secure at least one or two max-level summoners while filling the rest of my lineup with random cards that have useful abilities unlocked, even if not maxed. In battles with the “Are You Not Entertained?” rule set, deploying a single overpowered Gladiator card becomes a huge advantage, and this is where Katrelba Gobson shines. Since my Katrelba is already leveled near max, it becomes the core of my lineup during these battles, offering a high chance of victory through its bloodlust potential and opportunity-style attacks, making it a reliable choice in an expensive and competitive meta.
Katrelba Gobson is a common Gladiator card from the Earth Splinter that becomes incredibly valuable in battles, especially in specific rule sets that enhance its strengths. At level 8, my Katrelba Gobson boasts 3 melee damage, 5 health, and 5 speed, along with powerful abilities like Bloodlust, Sneak, Double Strike, and Snare. These abilities make it a deadly backline attacker capable of picking off vulnerable enemy units quickly. In particular, Bloodlust allows Katrelba to grow stronger with each elimination, turning it into a serious late-game threat. Double Strike synergizes well with Sneak, allowing her to attack twice per round against the enemy’s weakest backline units, often securing early eliminations and triggering Bloodlust faster. Snare is also situationally useful for grounding flying opponents, removing their evasion advantage. At max level, she gains 4 melee damage and Cripple, making her even more dangerous by reducing the maximum health of her targets. This card excels in rule sets like Are You Not Entertained?, where a Gladiator card is allowed, or in Super Sneak battles where positioning favors backline attackers. Combined with buffs like Strengthen, Inspire, or additional Sneak units, Katrelba Gobson can carry games by snowballing her stats and dismantling an opponent’s lineup from behind.
Into the battle: https://splinterlands.com/battle/sl_85720d9d03bfd6788369624b2a1dcbad
In this battle, the rule sets given were Need for Speed, Weak Magic, and Are You Not Entertained? with a 36 mana cap, and the active elements were Earth, Life, and Dragon. I decided to use Chuul Jujinchi as my summoner since I have it at max level, making it an ideal choice for this match. Chuul Jujinchi’s double element combination of Earth and Life allowed me flexibility in selecting my line-up. For my strategy, I deployed Halfling Refugee as my frontline tank, Warborn Chieftain in second position as a secondary tank, and Janni Rebel to serve as my main source of magic damage while also providing the Reach ability to support Warborn Chieftain’s attacks from the second slot. Additionally, I included Halaran Huntress to add extra melee attacks targeting various enemy positions, Katrelba Gobson as my core melee damage dealer to take full advantage of the Gladiator rule set, and Olivia of the Brook to provide utility through her Mimic ability, potentially copying crucial abilities from the opponent. Despite having a limited selection of cards available, this line-up was carefully designed to maximize synergy and take advantage of each card’s strengths within the rule sets.
Meanwhile, my opponent opted to use Kaylia Silverleaf, a max-level rare summoner that offers the flexibility of choosing between Bloodline Dominion or Execute abilities while also applying a magic debuff to my team. In this battle, the opponent chose the Execute ability and assigned it to Lord Thanalor. Their line-up included Halfling Refugee, Lord Thanalor, Satha Toledo, Halaran Huntress, Mad Kaboomist, and Vicious Quillion. The opponent’s composition seemed well thought out, featuring high-value and expensive cards focused on a durable frontline and a solid mix of damage sources. However, I noticed that the opponent didn’t utilize a Gladiator card, which might be due to lacking access to the Gladiator set or simply overlooking the opportunity. Given the opponent’s focus on a more traditional set-up and my decision to bring Katrelba Gobson as a sneaky backline threat with Bloodlust and Sneak, I felt confident that my strategy had the upper hand. I expected Katrelba to carve through their backline effectively and disrupt their flow, which would give me a decisive edge in this match.
The opponent’s strategy struggled to break through my frontline, even with all their attacks concentrated on my first position; it simply wasn’t enough to bring it down quickly. This allowed my Katrelba Gobson to freely target and eliminate the opponent’s backline, gaining continuous Bloodlust boosts with each successful elimination and my Olivia was able to copy some useful abilities like heal so that is why it was hard time for the opponent to defeat my frontline. As a result, Katrelba Gobson became even stronger as the battle progressed, making it a highly effective choice whenever the Gladiator set is active. This match clearly highlights the importance of building a strategy that takes full advantage of Gladiator cards, as they can significantly increase your chances of securing victory, especially when used wisely in rule sets that allow them.
A Big Thanks! For supporting me, being here, and coming this far. I hope this strategy assists you with some of your battles with these rule sets in modern format conclave and rebellion sets.
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Credits:
Edited the Design photo Splinterlands Modern League using PicsArt
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