Analysing Rebellion Cards #1 - Helheim Demon and Ulundin Overseer

Hello there!

Have you noticed an entire set of new Rebellion cards being "spammed" into the card selection when you are frantically searching for your cards within the 3 minute timer to submit your teams? You are not alone haha!

I figured out that players will need some time to learn some of these new cards, and rather than going through a structured process of studying each element and each card, I thought why not just learn the cards through actual battles? After all, the practical usage of these cards are important than just looking at the stats, and you will never know how they perform until you actually send them to battlefield!

But what about the starter card penalty?

I realised one smart way of bypassing this is to test these cards during guild brawls! I mean, that's not asking you to throw random Rebellion cards into battle and pray for the best result, but to use them intelligently and incorporating them into your lineup. So in this post, I am going to share 3 interesting Rebellion cards that I encountered in this guild brawl. And they are Helheim Demon and Ulundin Overseer!

But before I start, to make this a little more fun, I have come up with a personal rating system to decide if the card is worth buying or renting or not worth a place in your team!

Rating	What It Means
5 stars	Definitely a must have in every player's team and usable in almost all situations
4 stars	Recommended to have in every player's team, but might be useful in certain situations
3 stars	A card that's good to have, useful in some instances or ideal in limited situations
2 stars	Not useful in most situations, but might come in handy in limited situations
1 star	Not worth having the card in your collection unless it's really cheap

So without further ado, let's go!

In the recent brawl, I had a 99 mana battle and the rulesets were pretty restrictive, with both Thorns and Return Fire in play. Obviously, the conventional way to approach this would be to go with a Magic lineup. The mana quota was a luxury and I didn't have enough big cards so I thought one way was to tap on these Rebellion cards!

---

HELHEIM DEMON

As you can see above, the first Rebellion card I selected was Helheim Demon! At 10 mana, Helheim Demon was a big card with 2 Magic damage and very tanky stats. Furthermore, it had an useful Taunt ability to absorb some damage for the team too. That said, without Shield or Void, having the Taunt ability might be a liability sometimes, so one might need to use it strategically.

Pros: With Delwyn Dragonscale's boost, it would go up to 3 Magic damage and that's good enough.
Cons: As with Death Magic cards, they all face the possibility of Thaddius Brood as the opposing summoner and its Magic damage can easily be slashed from 2 to 1. That makes it a very weak card. For such a high mana card, it's only usuable for very high mana (e.g. 99 mana) battles.

VERDICT: At 0.37, it is a little steep for this card in my view. Would give it 2 out of 5 stars.

Ending off with Lore for your reading interest:

Hailing from an infernal realm that found its end in the belly of the dark god Uul, Helheim demons joined the legions of Chaos under the heel of the archfiend Barashkukor. Now, these manifestations of death and decay serve in the archfiend’s legion of demons, where they enjoy nothing better than spreading the cold embrace of mortality.

And with resistance rising in the Splinterlands, they get plenty of opportunity to do what they enjoy.

---

ULUNDIN OVERSEER

Ulundin Overseer packs a very tanky set of stats with both Armor and HP and its main role would be to sit right in front of the lineup as the tank. In addition, it has a unique new ability limited to only Rebellion cards (at least for now), which is Flank. This means if this unit is in the first position, the unit in the second position gains Reach. That's a very strong ability to have, especially given that is a Neutral card and can be paired with any element. Of course, being a card without attack, it also has the opportunity to undergo Weapons Training too! All in all, a very decent card despite being Common.

Pros: Has a unique Flank ability. Solid in tank position, and can be paired with strong Melee cards in the 2nd position such as Coastal Sentry. Also a candidate for Weapons Training as well.
Cons: For such a high mana card, it's only usuable for very high mana (e.g. 99 mana) battles.

VERDICT: At 0.23, this is pretty reasonably priced just that it's a Common card, i.e. it lacks CP and PP for those who are looking out for those attributes. But I think it being a Neutral card is a big plus. Would give it 3.5 out of 5 stars.

Ending off with Lore for your reading interest:

The ulund are a fiercely territorial race, and their overseers are the weighty enforcers of their city-state’s borders. Massive girth undulating, earth trembling beneath each lumbering stride—the sight of one leading a charge is unlike no other.

In combat, their physical efforts largely consist of simply standing firm. It serves their ulund compatriots well, however, as the overseer’s thick hide creates a nearly impenetrable barrier.

Ulundin may have bowed to the Chaos Empire, but their overseers continue to protect the integrity of its borders with a mix of pride and stubbornness… as well as a healthy dose of passive resistance.

---

To sum up, here's what we have!

Rebellion Cards	Element	Rarity	Rating (max 5)
Helheim Demon	Death	Rare	2
Ulundin Overseer	Neutral	Common	3.5

Just to also add on, the ratings are solely based on my personal views and also based on the stats and abilities at Level 1. Different players have different strategies and playing styles so the cards that work for me might or might not work for others. Also, at higher levels, some cards might be stronger or gain more abilities, but since I won't be able to access them for the time being, I will stick with trying out the starter deck. When I have more time, I will continue this series when I have tried out more Rebellion cards!

Let me know what you think!

---

If you are interested to sign up to play Splinterlands, my referral link is here.