Battle Mage Secrets - Isgald Vorst Is A Scary Card

The theme for the current "Battle Mage Secret" challenge is Ferocity ruleset this time! This means all units have the Fury ability.. It's not always easy to get the specific ruleset, but if you play hard enough, you definitely can find one! This time I was lucky enough to have one - woohoo!

So hers's the interesting battle that I encountered.

Anyway, I thought it would be still be interesting to introduce some useful cards and show how their strengths can be maximised especially with a particular ruleset. In this post, the featured card is a Gladius card, Isgald Vorst!

Isgald Vorst despite being just a Common card, has two of the best abilities that Melee cards could have. That's Bloodlust and Opportunity. If you think Deeplurker is scary, Isgald Vorst is the scarier version of it. With Gladius cards usable in ranked battles, one should really make the best out of them. At Level 3, it packs 3 Melee damage and has 3 Armor to buffer some initial damage before it gets Bloodlust.

As usual, here's the lore for Isgald Vorst for your reading interest:

Some people of ΛZMΛRÉ have been battle-hardened by the most brutal land in the known world, the Frozen Hell ice shelf of the north. The clan Vorst is the largest ice clan that has inhabited this frozen world, and a young lady named Isgald is their champion. Through years of enduring bitter cold every day and night, her skin has taken on an eerily beautiful shade of blue. Several other members of the Vorst clan have similar complexions, but because Isgald is one of the only Vorst clanspeople who has traveled outside of ΛZMΛRÉ, she has become known as the blue princess. She is in fact not a princess at all; residents of ΛZMΛRÉ recognize the power of no government nor royalty.

The small statured blue princess is a fierce fighter who requires minimal armor and weaponry to go up against foes that are much larger than her. Some say that her skin, in addition to being blue from the cold, is also hard like ice and difficult to penetrate with any blade. Isgald carries a short sabre that has been handed down through a long line of women in the Vorst clan and a small but indestructible shield said to have been crafted by the hands of the Frost Giant himself.

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Battle Type & Team Lineup

Position	Card/Level	Mana
Summoner	Kelya Frendul	4

My default summoner and lineup is always Water because of my familiarity and my collection of cards, so this time would be no different. Kelya Frendul gets the pick and I already had my ideal lineup in my head.

Position	Card/Level	Mana
1	Sea Monster	8

Sea Monster is almost always my default Water tank because not many cards can deal 4 damage per round and still self heal. It is a very strong card especially for low mana matches.

Position	Card/Level	Mana
2	Tide Biter	3

Tide Biter is one of the best Water Melee cards with Reach, packing 2 damage in just 3 mana at Level 2. This is very efficient for low mana matches and can assist Sea Monster to take out the opposing tank's armor first.

Position	Card/Level	Mana
3	Isgald Vorst	5

This is where filler cards come in, but we aren't allowed to use Legendary cards so we continue with my ideal lineup. Isgald Vorst stands in instead of Deeplurker because the former is more superior.

Position	Card/Level	Mana
4	Hardy Stonefish	1

A filler card to buffer Sneak attacks.

Position	Card/Level	Mana
5	Igor Darkspear	2

Igor Darkspear is another mana efficient card for low mana battles, packing 5 HP within 2 mana. He would be the main buffer protector of the backline.

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• Pre Battle: 5 cards vs 6 cards, not an easy battle I foresee, with Lorna Shine being the opposing summoner. Let's see if my lean lineup can deliver.
  

• Round 1: Isgald Vorst couldn't get its Bloodlust because the opposing team had Divine Shield. The opposing team had Inspire too and their Melee attacks were very big. Both teams lost 1 card this round, with lots to play for.
  

• Round 2: The opposing Dumacke Exile was doing 4 Sneak damage per round and my backline was picked out fast. Isgald Vorst gained its first Bloodlust but had become the last card in the lineup.
  

• Round 3: My opponent had trouble getting past my Sea Monster! I think it was partly due to all the Sneak and Opportunity cards and there was no meaningful damage dealt on my tank. Isgald Vorst gained its 2nd Bloodlust and had become a monster.
  

• Round 4: It seemed that even Lorna Shine couldn't save my opponent here. The opposing Dumacke Exile did extremely well and almost took out my Isgald Vorst - but sometimes all you need is a stroke of luck - the penultimate opposing card was taken out and he become the tank.
  

• Rounds 5-6: And we were done!
  

If you are interested to watch the battle, you can find it here.

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Post Battle

Did my strategy work? I think my familiarity with Water lineups helped a lot. Sea Monster at Level 3 and Tide Biter at Level 2 form a very strong combination at the front, followed by Isgald Vorst in the middle of the pack, protected by cards at the back.

What's the Battle Mage Secret? Make full use of Gladius cards like Isgald Vorst in ranked battles!

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So that's all I have! What are your takeaways from this battle? Feel free to comment below, as I am always keen to learn and improve!

As always, thanks for reading and have a pleasant day ahead!

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