I like battling in Gold since you have combinations of modifiers making things more trickier than usual. It’s not the kind where you can just rely on usual tricks and expect things to work. When modifiers remove certain abilities and add Void, you really have to think about what you can do to come out up the top. I'm having a lot of fun playing in Frontier Ranked since even low leveled units can be effective on higher ranked unlike in Modern Ranked where the level difference had huge impact.
https://splinterlands.com/battle/sl_48f48cb17c8ac3019c9fad0067bcb6ef
With Fog of War, Sneak, Snipe, and Opportunity are completely removed, which means no backline targeting at all. That instantly changes how I do the positioning because my last unit becomes much safer than usual. On top of that, Arcane Dampening gives every unit Void, reducing magic damage by half. That sounds bad for magic-heavy teams which is correct but with the limited units you can field in Frontier Ranked, I think that using magic damage is still better. The match becomes more of a math problem for me. Can I stack enough magic damage to still hit hard even after the reduction or the enemy would overwhelm my defense and reach my attackers?
Modifier 1: Fog of War -Units lose Sneak, Snipe, and Opportunity.
Modifier 2: Arcane Dampening - All units have the Void ability.
I did the positioning on this lineup knowing that Fog of War keeps the last unit safest. Since there’s no threat from Sneak or Opportunity, I can confidently hide my strongest damage dealers at the back. I want my highest damage units protected the most because they’re the ones that will carry the game for me. Instead of putting higher health units like Mystic Scaleweaver in he front, I focused on protecting my win condition and placed her more towards the back.
Marlai Singariel: I have a lot of magic damage in this lineup, so the +1 magic damage from Marlai Singariel is a direct and reliable boost. Even though Arcane Dampening reduces magic damage, increasing the magic damage in this battle makes the reduction less painful. For example, turning 2 magic into 3 magic means even after Void halves it, I’m still dealing 2 damage instead of 1 since it is rounded up after halving by Void. That difference is strong especially since Frontier Ranked doesn't have those big units like Ulundin Overseer that you can use in Modern Ranked.
Port Guardian: Port Guardian doesn’t have abilities but the stats are good enough for Frontier Ranked. I needed someone durable enough to stand in front and simply absorb damage. Since there are no tricky backline threats in this match, his only job is to survive as long as possible. Even if Port Guardian doesn't have good damage, it's fine as long as he can delay the enemy attacks for long.
Great Bear Druid: Even with Void given to all of my enemies from Arcane Dampening modifier, magic damage still goes through by at least 1. With Marlai Singariel boosting the magic attack, Great Bear Druid’s damage is still okay since it's not negated completely by Void ability. Even if it's halved, magic damage still passes through armor so to me, a 1 magic damage is better than a 2 range or melee attack. Over time, consistent reduced damage still gives more value for me.
Frostguard Warrior: I wanted something sturdier in my lineup that can still attack from the back and Frostguard Warrior’s armor helps with that. Even though ranged attacks don’t bypass armor like magic does, having 2 ranged damage still contributes some damage. The armor also gives him a bit more survivability if things start collapsing in front. You can say that I intend to use this unit as a backup tank to delay rounds for the three magic damage unit behind him.
Lunaki Howler: Lunaki Howler doesn’t have abilities either, but she fits the magic-heavy strategy I always use. With Marlai Singariel’s magic damage boost, her magic damage becomes 2 which means 1 still passes through even against Void. Since magic bypasses armor entirely, every hit goes straight to health. That makes her a better unit than just those with melee and range attacks.
Mystic Scaleweaver: One of my main big damage. Since there is no threat from Sneak, I have her in front of Saltwater Mage this time. The 2 magic damage is huge because even if there's Void, since Marlai Singariel boosts his attack to 3, the damage the enemy would receive is still 2 magic damage. The damage is always rounded up so half of 3 is 1.5, which is why 2 magic damage is received by the enemy.
Saltwater Mage: Another high damage for my team. Without the Sneak, Saltwater Mage is just another unit. Even if she is just another magic damage unit though, the 2 magic damage, gets to 3 magic damage because of Marlai Singariel. That is way better than melee and range attacks in Frontier Ranked since magic damage bypass armor.
Battling with two modifiers are very tricky, challenging but fun all at the same time. You need to adjust your units to make the most favorable matchups but the mix of the modifiers makes the unpredictability of what you enemy may use would increase as well. I tried to stick to my magic damage even if it would work against me because I believe that they are still a stronger pick than using melee and range units in Frontier Ranked. This is definitely a special case in Frontier Ranked because I would not use a full magic-based team if I were playing Modern Ranked.
