Introduction

Hello welcome to Ace's Earth starting guide!
|| Do note that the earth splinter really requires the Essentials to really work at its full potential! ||

When everyone thinks of the Earth Splinter they definitely think of Llama x Kron which is definitely the most BROKEN combo in game haha.
But in general, the Earth splinter has a very unique playstyle that really focuses on survivability (Tanking + Healing). You could use this aspect to your full advantage in certain rulesets!

I am planning to make a blog for each splinter in order to help everyone, this is just a part of it!
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The Summoners

• Lyanna Natura: The +1 Health may seem undermining but do not look down on it as you see most tanks in this splinter really has a lot of health, if you plan on healing, which is 1/3 of their health, the +1 buff does really help alot!

• Wizard of Eastwood: A summoner you would definitely want to use if you plan to be more aggressive with range and melee monsters as he removes 2 Armour from each and every opposing monster. Not a summoner I would personally use as I usually don't use debuff summoners but that does not mean he is bad!

The Monsters

1. Tanks

• Unicorn Mustang: An all rounder tank with a whooping 10 health, 3 melee attack and 4 speed! His stats are insanely and balanced throughout along with the "Void" ability that adds into his survivability (50% less damage from magic). 8 Mana
• Flesh Golem: This is just a small downgrade to the Unicorn Mustang but he is still very good with his high health, speed and attack and 2 mana cheaper. Do note that at level 3, this monster gains "Heal" (Self heal at his turn), hence the popularity and demand. I would definitely use him or the Stone Golem when there's a mana constraint. 6 Mana
• Stone Golem: Use him at lower mana battles, you generally use him only for the tanking hits with his "Shield" ability (50% less damage from melee and range). 5 Mana

2. Key Players

• Goblin Thief: One of my favourite phantom card to play in the Earth Splinter! It is a very balanced card that can take 1 to 2 hits and hits hard at any position due to it's "Sneak" Ability (Strikes the monster from the back row). 4 Mana
• Orc Sergeant: You can definitely use this as a secondary tank as he is pretty decent in health. (To be played on 2nd position as he has "Reach"). 5 Mana
• Earth Elemental: This is a very good value card! With its high health it can be used at your back lane, since it is a range it can't attack at the front and has quite a fair bit of health to tank "Sneaks" at the back despite its low mana cost. 3 mana

3. Interesting Plays

• Failed Summoner: This will be a very interesting card to play as a Tank for "Snipes" and it also has "Reflect Magic" (If hit by magic, deals 1/2 damage back without being affected by "Void") which will definitely be helpful in countering magic. 2 mana
• Stonesplitter Orc: You can consider having it on the last position for countering "Sneak" with it's "Retaliate" (50% chance of countering melee attacks). I would much rather use War Chaang which is a neutral monster I'll explain in my future blogs. 6 Mana

Upgrading Your Deck

Here I am going to recommend you different cards you should rent / buy depending on your budget!
I'll split them into 2 categories like Essentials & To Consider

1. Essentials (Cheaper)

• Wood Nymph: A very fragile but important healer, it has "Tank Heal" (Heals 1/3 of the Tank's health). 64 Mana
• Centauri Mage: One of the absolutely must haves in order to protect and punish those that targets the Wood Nymph using its "Return Fire" ability (When hit with ranged, counters with 1/2 damage) while acting as a secondary Tank. 7 Mana
• Sporcerer: A very good card to play for 2 reasons. One being that he does 2 magic attack and second being it has the "Rust" Ability which is similar to the Wizard of Eastwood's debuff (-2 Armour from each and every opposing monster). 6 Mana
• Mushroom Seer: For this card do not look at its stats as it is horrible. The main reason why this is essential is because it has the "Silence" Ability (-1 magic damage from each and every opposing monster), this is a devastating combo to have with the Unicorn Mustang as it makes most magic hits on him ineffective. 5 Mana
• Mylor Crowling: One of the most powerful if not the most powerful Rare Summoner giving all your monsters the "Thorn" ability (If hit by melee, the opposing monster will take 2 damage per hit, "Shield" monsters take 50% less from it). This is a devastating when combo with Centauri Mage or Failed Summoner as 2/3 different hits will punish the opponent. 3 Mana

2. To Consider (Expensive)

• Llama: A summoner that gives +2 Health, cleanses the first monster every turn and give the "Last Stand" Ability (The last monster standing will have his stats multiplied 1.5x) to all of your monsters. This means that it is almost untouchable by the "Toxic Fumes" Rule-set and you will definitely benefit from the "Last Stand" Ability. 7 Mana
• Kron the Undying: Definitely one of the strongest monster in the game, with its insane health and "Heal" along with its incredible stats, Kron is very imposing on the battlefield. He heals from "Snipe" and "Sneak" without forgetting that if you combo Llama with it, it will be very difficult to surpass. 10 Mana

Basic Lane-Ups Examples

|| Remember that Furious Chicken and Creeping Ooze are generally are must have in your deck. ||
These are just some line-ups I think are most effective, you should play it according to your mana cap, if my line up is too expensive, you should consider removing certain rows from the middle / back according to your own preference (playstyle)

Wizard / Lyanna (Basic 25 - 28 Mana)	Wizard / Lyanna (Essentials 35 - 40 mana)
Unicorn Mustang / Flesh Golem / Stone Golem	Unicorn Mustang / Flesh Golem / Stone Golem
Orc Sergeant	Orc Sergeant / Centauri Mage
Failed Summoner	Wood Nymph
Goblin Thief	Sporcerer
Goblin Sorcerer / Child of the Forest / Mantoid	Mushroom Seer
Earth Elemental / Stonesplitter Orc	War Chaang

Llama (To Consider 47 mana)
Unicorn Mustang
Centauri Mage
Wood Nymph
Sporcerer
Mushroom Seer
Kron the Undying

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Source:
splinterlands.com
splinterlands.fandom.com/wiki/Splinterlands_Wiki