Hello!

So, we have had some roller-coaster ride on the Steem blockchain, haven’t we? Steem heist was planned, and the heist was heisted. That was one game which played out well and much to my liking. I will probably write a novel on that one.

But no game compares with Splinterlands when played on the blockchain. It’s one game which I started playing a bit late, and that laces me with regret but all the fun and rewards kind of makeup for the loss. 😉

The game is quite engaging, and there are several rules which define the way each game is played. They are all quite easy and fun to follow. However, at times people don’t get the full sense of the rule and play as they would play regularly. So, let me discuss one of the rules.

The rule that we will be looking at is the ‘Monsters lose all abilities’ rule. So, what happens under this rule.

Let’s get to know. But before that, let’s understand what Splinterlands is all about for newbies around.

What Game is Splinterlands?

Well, it is one of the earliest blockchain-based collectible games. Though I started playing the game quite late, on hindsight, I should have had got going early. Anyway, no need to despair, there is so many opportunities no matter when you start.

Splinterlands is a digital card game which allows you to collect, trade, battle, rent and even earn on the cards. It is one of the most generous games that I have seen where cards, potions, Dark Energy Crystals (DEC. Cryptocurrency) are given out every day to thousands of players for just playing and winning daily quests. And there are tournaments or guilds that you can join.

Just to give you an idea of few of the uber-expensive cards, take a look at this recent purchase of Prince Julian at USD 3500.

Card purchase contract: Gold Foil Prince Julian

Did you go to the link and see for yourself? I hope you did. And I hope that gives an overview of the game. I just love the game, and those interested can go to Splinterlands’ site and join. If you want a link to join, I will leave one at the end of the article which you can use.

Scroll down, quick. 😊

Monsters Lose All Abilities Rule

This is one rule where all that a monster can do is attack the opposing monster. In other words, only the basic ability to attack the opposition monster remains. So, if your Sea Monster can self-heal, that ability is lost, if your Wood Nymph can heal the monster in the first position, that ability is lost, and similar additional abilities are gone.

Now, players who don’t realize this loss in ability make the mistake of taking a monster basis how they usually operate. In such circumstances, the player who has planned his monster well wins. And, invariably, a player who hasn’t paid attention to the rule is the one who ends up on the losing side.

As an example, the Sea Monster is a great melee attacker with an attack value of four and self-healing ability. However, when the self-healing ability is removed, its potency reduces. So, while the attack value remains high, you would instead go for a Goblin Mech (which has armour) or Molten Ogre (Fire Splinter) for their better health or attack stats. Why? Because without any self-healing, they form a better bet over the Sea Monster.

So, under this rule always:

CHOOSE A MONSTER FOR ITS RAW POWER

What do I mean? I mean, consider the game to be one where the strongest and longest army wins. So, the more monsters with higher health and attack value are there in your army, the more are your chances of a win. That’s the idea.

Let’s look at a battle to understand this better.

Show Me The Game

So, let’s look at one of the games where I had chosen monsters under the ‘Monsters lose all abilities rule”.

If you notice, my monsters under the “OIVAS” player name is selected for their raw power except Zalran Efreet and Fire Elemental. Why? Because with that, I will show you why it is a bad idea to use monsters for their abilities. Will come to that in a moment.

Let’s start with the enemy monsters first.

FIRST POSITION: GOBLIN SHAMAN

Goblin Shaman is a mistake. This monster can reduce the opposition monsters’ health by 1. Now, clearly, that ability is not working. My Goblin Mech’s health is still at six, and so is the base health of all other monsters remain unchanged.

The other thing is that the Goblin Shaman is a non-attack monster. Second biggest mistake. So, it not only can’t reduce the health of my monsters but also not attack my monsters. Double-whammy!!

PLACEMENT OF MONSTERS

The second visible issue is that Magic Monsters are placed after the Ranged attackers. Now, ranged attackers can’t attack in the first position, so that is a placement issue. At this point, I have reasons to believe that the player could be new to the game, so we will be kind in our assessment. 😊

OTHER MONSTERS ARE FINE

Considering the mana cap, the brute strength of the other monsters are great. There is nothing much to debate on that.

Now, let’s move to my team.

POSITION 1: GOBLIN MECH

Mech is chosen for the brute strength of attack and health. Since it was a low mana game, I surmised that there could not be too many strong attackers on the enemy lineup, which, I was right, in a way.

POSITION 2: FURIOUS CHICKEN

This is just a place holder if the opposition team has monsters which attack the second position. So, the furious chicken was there only to waste the opposition’s one attack.

POSITION 3: FIRE ELEMENTAL [FIRST WRONG CHOICE]

Fire Elemental is the first wrong choice in my lineup. Why? Typically, the Fire Elemental’s attack on a monster also reduces the next monster’s health. So, under this rule, the Elemental will still have an impressive attack, but the adjacent monsters won’t be affected.

We will see that in the battle.

POSITION 4: SPARK PIXIES

I chose these for the speed and therefore the chance to attack first. Of course, I know that it would survive a counter-attack. But at least, one of the monsters in the opposition’s team is going to bear the brunt of its attack value of two.

POSITION 5: ZALRAN EFREET [SECOND WRONG CHOICE]

Usually, whenever Efreet attacks the opposition, his health improves in proportion to its attack. But under this rule, that additional ability is lost. In other words, Efreet would attack as usual, but there would be no improvement in its health.

We will see that part in the battle. So, let’s head to the fight straight.

The Fire Elemental’s Attack

As the battle begins, my Pixies being the fastest attack first. After the Pixies, the Fire Elemental attacks. Here is the attack in progress.

So, the Pixies’ attack has already reduced the Shaman’s health by two. The Elemental also attacks the Shaman. That was good enough to take out the Shaman. However, typically, the Fire Elemental’s attack would also reduce the Centaur’s health, which is the adjacent monster in the second position.

But here is what happens:

See that? The Centaur’s health remains unaffected, and it moves to the first position. So, the Fire Elemental’s ability to affect adjacent monsters is lost.

Zalran Efreet’s Attack

The second wrong choice of ours, Zalran Efreet is ready to attack. Here is how the situation appears.

Zalran attacks the Fire Beetle. Normally, with that attack, the Fire Beetle’s health would reduce by two and Zalran’s health would increase by two. So, let’s see if that’s what happened in the game.

The Fire Beetle is indeed attacked and ends up with a reduced health of two. This is the basic expectation. However, Zalran’s health does not improve by two, thus, showing us that additional abilities are lost under this rule.

Concluding the Game

The Goblin Mech almost finishes the opposition holding guard in the first position until the very end. Here is how the scene appeared just after the Goblin’s departure.

See that? So, that brings my second point to the fore. Choose your team for their raw power. The Goblin Mech’s raw power and defence saw it through till the very end. But that was good enough to take the opposition’s attack and hold its position and the rest of the team.

Because of the Goblin Mech, the other monsters stayed protected and that too with two of the monsters being a wrong choice. 😊

And That’s What You Do

I hope readers got an idea of what to do when the ‘Monsters lose all abilities’ rule is in play. Let’s summarize the points that you got to remember.

1. Ensure you choose monsters for Raw power. That is, they have a high attack value and health value
2. Do not select monsters with self-heal, healing others, health improves with attack, attacks adjacent monsters of the one being attacked, etc. These additional abilities won’t work under the rule
3. Choose any of the monsters mentioned under point 2, only if they are also high on raw power. Otherwise, skip them

I hope that clarifies how to play the game under the said rule. So, go ahead, enjoy and have fun playing!!

Take care, and we will be crossing paths soon! 😊

Want to Join Splinterlands?

You can click below and follow the link. All the best!

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Read More About The Game And Other Rules

1. How To Play Splinterlands Game?

 

 

2. Splinterlands – How to Play the Melee Attacks From Any Position Rule?

 

 

3. Splinterlands – How to Use the Health Equalizer Rule?

 

 

Image Courtesy: Splinterlands