The February Splinterlands Journey was full of war and love. I completed the weekly challenges, got new cards and progressed all the way to Silver III just minutes before the end of the season. March came with the spring, sunshine and ... cool battle challenges. I reached Silver III again and I got some cool cards from chests, which raised my stash of epic cards to 6 (Pyromancer, Coral Wraith, Torhilo the Frozen, Axemaster, Mitica Headhunter and the War Chaang).
attle Challenge 1 : The Molten Ogre
Molten Ogre Battle Challenge! I had to borrow this one from my brother so thank you @H3ruvim78 for the badass card! This card is too expensive for my taste and I don't see it as an improvement of using Living Lava as the main tank. The Molten Ogre has Demoralize at level 1 and Trample at level 6. Has 10 health and 3 attack but only 1 speed.
For my battle I used the Molten Ogre as pseudo-tank, ready to face some damage and the Chicken in front to take on the first attack. The battle had the Equalize rule, therefore all the monsters will start with the same health. My opponent didn't chose a full team and I feel that this battle was a free ticket. See the battle here!
As I want a real challenge, I decided to play another one and try to win the battle fair and square. I was lucky to get a 99 Mana fight and I could use the best card I have. I started with the Living Lava as main tank and the Molten Ogre as the second. I chosen overpowered damage, such as the Pyromancer, Fire Elemental, Sand Worm and War Chaang. My opponent had a Water Splinter team with the Serpent of Eld and Elven Defender as tanks, and the Mantoid, Narwhal, Squid and Goblin Chariot as damage monsters. The Serpent of Eld fell quickly and my Pyromancer and Fire Elemental did damage behind the enemy lines before being taken out the fight.
I won the battle without losing any of my tanks thanks to the "Hit and Run" strategy, using the Pyromancer and the Fire Elemental to hit the enemy casters and ranged monsters before they could do to much damage. See the full fight here!
Battle Challenge 2 : Furious Chicken
Cluck ... Cluck ... Can you hear the call of the wild? The chickens are angry and they are ready for a rebellion
The Furious Chicken is a Neutral Splinter card, which can be found in reward chests. It has Enrage ability at level 5 and at MAX level will have 2 Melee Attack, 2 Speed and 1 Health. Because of the Zero Mana cost, the Chicken is expensive and to level it may cost up to $50.
The Furious Chicken is one of my favourites, as it costs nothing. Is a top addition in any type of team, as it can be used to take on the first attack or kept at the back to be targeted by Snipe or Opportunity.
My first try had the "Little League" battle rules , with only monsters with 4 mana or less available to pick. I choose Lyanna Natura as my summoner and two tanks, the Grumpy Dwarf as the main tank and the Biceratops as an off-tank. They were backed up by the Wood Nymph, as the healer and magic damage. The Barking Spider and the Child of the Forrest where added for ranged damage. The back door was guarded by the Failed Summoner, left to reflect some magic casted by my opponents.
My opponent chose the fire splinter with the chicken as decoy-tank, and a mix of flying, casters and ranged monsters. My concern was the spark pixies but they fall in Round 1 after they were targeted by the Child of the Forrest. Before the round ended, the Grumpy Dwarf was defeated but my challenger had only three monsters left.
The Nymph done a good job healing and casting damage, and one by one the adversaries were defeated. By the end of Round 2, only the Tower Griffin remained to nuke. A clear and comfortable victory. [See the full battle HERE!]
My second try was more interesting and with a well chosen strategy! Keep the distance man! The battle rules allowed only rangers and casters while melee were not available for picking up! With 21 mana and a small picking range, this fight required a top tactic.
I chose Lyanna Natura as my summoner and I used the Gelatinous Cube as main tank for the 8 HP and Scavenger ability, which will add 1 HP each time a monster will die. It was backed up by the Wood Nymph, as the healer and magic damage. Mitica the Headhunter was the nuke behind the Cube and the Furious Chicken was the shield for Mitica.
My opponent used the Spirit Miner as tank, with the Nymph to heal and the Spirit Shaman to give Divine Shield, both casters. The Barking Spider was used as ranged and the Chicken to fill the team and take on a strong attack.
I managed to take down the Spirit Miner in round 2, without losing any monster. The Gelatinous Cube started to scavenge while the Nymph did an excellent healing job.
Not a single monster was lost during the battle, and the Cube ended up with 14 HP. The strategy I choose was successful and this battle was won with skill and tactics. [See the full battle HERE!]
The conclusion is that the Furious Chicken is very versatile and can help the team to achieve various levels of synergy. If he falls, he can always be used for chicken strips or chicken nuggets
Battle Challenge 3 : Lone Boatman
Time for a challenge again, time for a battle! The Splinterlands Weekly Battle Challenge has become a weekend thing for me, one of the relaxing treats for my brain.
This week the Lone Boatman is the hot topic. This Untamed common card is a ranged monster of the Life splinter. It costs 5 Mana and has Snipe from level 1 and gains Repair at level 5. Upgraded to maximal level will gain Shatter. Not sure if is related to Charon the ferryman but it is a good card to use in various mechanics.
I have the card so this time I don't have to borrow from my brother or to hit the market. I checked the market anyway, just to have an idea about the price. This is one of the cheapest cards on the market and can be easily upgraded for better stats. At level 2 will gain 1 Speed and at level 3 will gain one more Health Point.
I don't play so often with the Life Splinter, and all the summoners are level one. On top of the low knowledge of the splinter, I don't have many cards or any good mechanics to play.
I was lucky to get a 99 Standard Battle, therefore I could add the best lineup. I choose Mother Khala for 1 extra HP and the Shieldbearer as tank. The Truthspeaker will give everyone 2 Armor from the Protect ability. The Luminous Eagle was positioned behind the Shieldbearer as the Reach ability can hit from the second position. The War Chaang will be a ranged until will reach the first position while the Lone Boatman will Snipe behind the opponent's Shieldbearer. The Silvershield Asassin was positioned last as his 5 HP will defend the Truthspeaker and the Snipe plus Double Strike will nuke the casters.
The opponent had a similar line-up, only using two tanks in the squad. By the end of Round 2, both Shieldbearers were down.
Up to Round 6 was all about grinding down the opponent's monsters. The Elven Defender was the last man standing but couldn't "defend" against the high damage my team delivered. [See the full fight here]
The chosen tactic was a game changer and the fact that all my monsters were able to hit made a huge difference. The extra armor helped my team to survive and win the match. The lone boatman impact in the team was great, as he boosted the damage against the opponent's ranged monsters and helped to nuke them.
Battle Challenge 4 : Spineback Wolf
Once upon a time was a big bad wolf, we don't know if he had spines, spikes or thrones on his back, but he was a real troublemaker. He destroyed the pig's houses, he eat granny and he was constantly the antagonist of so many stories. Now this ancient beast came back from the graves to create more trouble and mischief in Splinterlands.
The Spineback Wolf is an ALPHA/BETA common card from the Death Splinter. This melee monster has Reach at Level One and gains Thorns at Level Five. Using an Alpha card in the team will reward extra 10% DEC rewards. The 4 Health Points, 1 Armor, 2 Attack and 6 Speed are a good set up for 5 Mana Points. I didn't had this card in my book and I asked my brother to borrow me but he is such a nice guy and bought one for me.
Death v Dragons Battle Details Full Battle Video
Mana cap: 26
Ruleset: Broken Arrows - Ranged monsters cannot be used in this battle
Summoner: Owstell Rotwell - All friendly monster gain Reflect Magic
The Graveyard Team:
Undead Rexx - surge DPS for the phase one of the battle
Spineback Wolf - table control and delay of the endgame.
Maggots: Opportunity for low health enemies
Boogeyman : Caster with Slow ability
Fourios Chicken: Decoy and protection for the Boogeyman
The REXX did enough damage and resisted enough for the team to nuke the Goblin Mech. Once the opponent tank was down, the other monsters were under open fire from the Boogeyman and Maggots.
The Endgame was short and the enemies dropped like flies under the Boogeyman magic and the Maggots assault. The Spineback Wolf resisted and the fight was won with only loosing the Undead Rexx.
Strategy analysis
I am still getting used with the battle mechanics and monster abilities. The Spineback Wolf Reach ability allowed him to make constant damage from the 2nd position, and the high life protected the rest of the team once the Undead Rexx was down. As the game rule excluded ranged monsters, it was logical that the opponent will chose casters, and this was the reason for choosing the summoner with Reflect Magic. The strategy was the game changer, and the Reflect Magic made the difference.
The Hive-WAX NFT Bridge
The hottest NFT Bridge was open, and NFT Cards can now be moved between the Splinterlands (Hive) and the WAX chain. Players can now move their trading cards and trade them on both Ethereum and WAX.
If the Ethereum Bridge was open months ago, the bridge to WAX is fresh and new. Splinterlands players can buy or sell cards on the Atomic Hub and enjoy this new freedom.
Splinterlands > WAX
Every player can now send their cards with a simple click. The WAX account must be linked to the Splinterlands account and after this step is completed, the cards be sent straight into the WAX account to be traded. Click on the username and use the "Link External Wallet" option.
Select WAX from the list and add the address in the bar and save. The link between Hive and WAX is now completed.
WAX > Splinterlands
Sending cards from WAX to the Hive blockchain requires extra attention. The users have to send the cards to “splintrlands” and add their Hive blockchain account name in the memo. Please note that the account is “splintrlands” and misses an ‘e’.
The transfer must be confirmed and multiple cards can be selected and sent in one transfer.
Storming the WAX market
In the first days after the bridge was open, some real rip off were added to the Atomic Hub market. Days later everything calmed down and if you are in treasure hunting mode, you can find cards and summoners much cheaper than the Spinterlands internal market. I bought this new summoner for only $0.90.
Seen many other Summoners which I never meet in my battles but for now I will focus on bargain hunting and upgrading some of my monsters.
I spent about 20 WAX to buy the new summoner and upgrade some of the monsters I use constantly in my battles. Found a whole batch of Undead Rexx and bought them all to upgrade it to Level 3.
Upgraded my Barking Spider and the Wave Runner to Level 2 and bought and upgraded the Vampire. I seen the Vampire in some battles and I always wanted one in my army of Forsakens.
I think this upgrade will rise the Splinterlands profile, and the easy transfer from Hive to WAX is opening trading opportunities and new methods to earn.
NFT CORNER
Inspired by Byron's zombi cats I decided to make my own version of a zombi cat, using my pet as a model. I had to be quick as Byron threatened me zombify Sir Milky before I do! Without further BS .. Ladies and gentlemen... I present you .. The Devilish Cat! Now Available as a drop on Atomic Hub
Resources:
DeFi bounty at CakeDeFi with $30 DFI for new users
The fountains: PipeFlare ZCash, GlobalHive ZCash & Get.ZEN
Publishing bundle: Publish0x, ReadCash, LBRY & Presearch
Resources:
DeFi bounty at CakeDeFi with $30 DFI for new users
The fountains: PipeFlare ZCash, GlobalHive ZCash & Get.ZEN
Publishing bundle: Publish0x, ReadCash, LBRY & Presearch
How to get Byron? 😅 too bad florie got him already 😥