Dar 'Gottem' Gearnut

DAR (1).png

Splinterlands has concluded another amazing Town Hall with huge news of upcoming game releases. And despite being the last quarter of the year, it seems like the team is really busy and will still have massive updates up until the December holidays. I'm especially looking forward to the first version of the avatar creation tool. That kind of customization might seem insignificant but I believe it adds a personal connection to players and makes you feel like your account is unique.

Another thing that I'm hyped about is the new reward card set. Since we are supposed to have a mini set at the end of the year, I'm guessing the new rewards would be sometime very soon. I'm still missing a whole lot of key cards in this current reward collection but I'm contemplating on saving some glint for the new ones as well.

The true highlight of the town hall for me is the reveal of the new voucher store card that will replace Tasoshi Drakamoto, which is Dar 'Gottem' Gearnut.

And as I am writing this article, the official Splinterlands account has finally released the full details for the voucher shop sale which you can see here.

I have some thoughts about this specific card and I'll start with the artwork. A gnome fitted with a dragon armor really strikes me as a video game character like Ghost n Goblins or Saint Seiya. This inspired me to make a Super Mario parody of him in the post thumbnail. Now, in terms of lore, I think Dar parallels that of Calamity somewhat as both of them are non-dragon races that somewhat gained their powers.

Now for the card stats, the most significant feature of Dar that really stands out is the huge health. Even at level 1, he already has 20 and goes all the way up to 25 at max. I believe he will be the highest health now, eclipsing Ulundin Overseer's.

Both Dar and Overseer would be considered the top tanks in modern right now. What makes Dar better is that he has offensive capabilities as well. Although a melee attack of 3 is not that big considering the cost, it is amplified by his own Inspire ability.

There are also currently four other units with Inspire that can be good partners with Dar Gearnut. But since he already costs too much on his own, Taye Loreswift would be the most likely to fit in more matches with her 3 mana cost.

For archons, I would definitely partner him with Avina of the Wolf for the Healing ability. If Dar has 25 health and Healing restores 1/3 of it, then its 8 health each round. That would make him practically unkillable in some situations.

Another thing that makes Dar really impressive is that he unlocks Void in the max level. This puts him at an advantage as there are many strategies that utilize magic units in modern right now.

Of course if we would want to utilize the Bloodline abiliyu, Razi Clanktrap is also a great partner for Dar. While the Close Range would not be useful to Dar, the Painforge might be interesting. If we put Cavewise Wayfinder behind Dar Gearnut, he will be hit with 1 damage each successful attack from Wayfinder. This in turn increases Dar's attack damage. And with how buff Dar's health is, he can maybe sustain 10 or more penalties from Reckless without worry.

I think Dar Gearnut is a great replacement for Ulundin Overseer once it leaves modern in the future. It's a bit costly at 1,050 voucher per copy even considering that it is a legendary. Although he is a sturdy defensive card, in my opinion, it is also limited by the high mana cost and will not see play in a great deal of matches. That being said, I think it's worth it to try and get at least one copy for now.