Splinterlands Battle Mage Secrets Weekly Challenge (Briar Patch)

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Greetings! Thank-you for your time and attention, nothing is more valuable!

Here we are again with another great Splinterlands battle, this one featuring "Briar Patch", one of the many "Rulesets" that are randomly applied to each match. This virtual trading card game is an amazingly addictive pastime focusing on team-building and strategy.

Splinterlands sponsors a weekly "Battle Mage Secrets" blogging challenge on #HIVE which everyone can join. If you still haven't tried Splinterlands, there is no better day than today! You can get my referral link through the Battle Link below.

I hope you enjoy!

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-------------- Link to watch battle --------------

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Round 1: Begin

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Match Rulesets

(Left-to-Right)

1) Briar Patch: all monsters have the Thorns ability
2) Armored Up: all Monsters have 2 Armor in addition to their normal Armor stat

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With the Briar Patch Ruleset playing Melee monsters becomes dangerous, as most (except those with the Reflection Shield ability) will damage itself on the enemy's Thorns every time it lands an attack of it's own.

Because of the above, Ranged and Magic attacks will commonly be used in this ruleset which can be important to keep in mind when thinking of a counter-play team.

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• My opponent in this match used a strong anti-Magic/Ranged team using the Legendary Life Summoner, Grandmaster Rathe, while bring an Arsenal of strong Magic/Ranged attacking monsters as well. They chose to avoid bringing even 1 Melee monster to the battle, using the non-attacking Pelacor Conjurer for a Tank. Looks like a strong lineup.

• I chose to use a slightly different strategy, with a beefy non-attacking Tank in the front followed by another strong secondary tank with the Reach ability allowing it to attack from the second position and also the Reflection Shield ability, negating any Thorns damage. I also chose to bring a few stronger hitters in the back beefing two of them with a Martyr by suicide through the Dragon Melee-Sneak Monster Vruz. When he attacks, he doesn't last long in the Thorns. Looks like a fun match.

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Friendly Summoner	Opposing Summoner
Friendly Monsters:	Opposing Monsters:
1st	1st
2nd	2nd
3rd	3rd
4th	4th
5th	5th
6th	6th

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1st Round Complete

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• The 1st round is a huge flurry of damage dished out back and forth across both teams. Magic and Ranged damage is often being reflected back, adding to the mass-mayhem.

• Our 5th Position (Vruz) was killed by the enemies Amplified (Grandmaster Rathe Summoner) Thorns damage as soon as it landed it's attack, adding the first round of Martyr bonus before immediately being revived (Adelade Brightwing).

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2nd Round Complete...

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• 2 More Ressurections (one on each team) happened during the 2nd round as the forces continued to collide. The Amplified Thorns along with the Shields could spell trouble for our supped-up Stitch Leech.

• Our Tank, Almo Cambio, being supported by our Byzantine Kitty Summoner "Tank-Heal" ability looks to be able to survive the majority if not all of what the enemy's team has to offer in damage. That combo likely won us the game.

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3rd Round Complete...

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• I'm not sure if our Stitch Leech will survive another attack however he will take the enemies Speed Runner out next turn. That combined with their Tank (Pelacor Conjurer) being removed from the battlefield leads me to believe this will end in our victory.

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4th Round Complete...

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Game, set, match.

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That concludes this weeks Splinterlands: Battle Mage Secrets Challenge! Thank-you again for reading! I would love to hear what you think with a comment below. Until next time, cheers!

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-------------- Link to watch battle --------------

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