This week's battle challenge focuses on the Pirate Captain:
Card Details
An alpha/beta edition common rarity monster from the Water Splinter at level 6:
Estimated cost: ~$172
Mana cost: 3
Range damage: 2
Speed: 4
Health: 3
Snipe ability: Targets enemy Monsters with Ranged, Magic, or no attack that are not in the first position.
Inspire ability: Gives all friendly Monsters +1 Melee attack.
The weekly battle challenge roulette has again selected an alpha/beta monster. This time it's the Pirate Captain. Previously, I had done a weekly battle challenge on its subordinate, the Pirate Archer. Like the Pirate Archer, the Pirate Captain is a low mana cap monster that strikes fast, albeit not too hard, with one of the better abilities in the game, the Inspire ability. It's interesting that the higher you level up the Pirate Captain, you pay a health penalty. I am assuming this penalty in health is compensated by the increase in speed to give a higher chance of enemy monsters missing. As always, with squishy monster cards, it is vital that they are protected and shielded by high-health monsters, or else the Pirate Captain won't survive to have any impact on the battle.
Battle - Full Battle Replay
Battle Details
Mana cap: 14
Rulesets(s): Close Combat, Holy Protection
Lineup Details
Alric Stormbringer (Summoner): +1 magic damage
Lord Arianthus: the king of passive tanks
Furious Chicken: low mana sacrifice
Creeping Ooze: low mana speed debuff
Pirate Archer + Pirate Captain: dual primary range damage
Did your strategy work? What will you try differently next time?
Whenever I encounter a Yodin Zaku, it's almost always a loss, and in this battle, that didn't change; however, I thought I gave it a good showing. My strategy was to rely on Lord Arianthus, Furious Chicken, and Creeping Ooze as the meat shields. The meat shields would protect the duo of Pirate Archer and Pirate Captain and allow them to pick off the opposition monsters. The theory had merit, but unfortunately, coming up against a Yodin Zaku and that Blast ability, the meat shield monsters didn't last very long. The Pirate Captain took the lead and what it could with high speed and decent damage. In hindsight, I should've utilized the abundant Water Splinter magic monsters instead of going for dual-range damage. This may have helped in piercing the Halfling Alchemist armor and maybe turned the battle in my favor.
Do you like the Pirate Captain? Why or why not?
The majority of splinterlands players know that the Water Splinter is renowned for their OP magic monsters. There are only three common range monsters in the Water Splinter: Crustacean King, Pirate Captain, and Sniping Narwhal. This makes the Pirate Captain essential as it provides options when playing the Water Splinter. The thing is, though, is it worth paying $172 for a level 6 card Pirate Captain? Well, it depends. If you are looking for an alternative card with the same abilities, the only available option is Ferexia General, but that will cost you $933 to get a level 4 card (no thanks). If you want to expand your options, then go looking for range monsters with the Snipe ability - there are many options available. However, Pirate Captain being a low mana cost range monster in the Water Splinter makes it a unique and valuable card that I am happy to have in the collection.
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