Splinterlands Hidden Mechanics (Part 3)

_{Edited in Canva Pro.}

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This would be the last part of my three-part Splinterlands Hidden Mechanics Series. It's not as important and as complicated as the first two. These are just some good-to-know knowledge along the way.

I decided to include the card abilities since the initial plan was too short. I will include each abilities in alphabetic order that you can use as guide and tips if you're getting confused by the myriads of effects in this game.

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_{This part covers Mana Cost, Card Rarity, Card Series and Abilities.}

Card Rarity

Splinterlands card rarity is based on how ard it is to be obtained when opening packs and is composed of commons, rares, epics and legendary rarities.

_{Photo from filter section in Peakmonsters.}

All rarities can also be gold foil or non-foil.

Card Rarity Hidden Mechanics: Card rarities fall under a color scheme in this little circle below the card image.

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Mana Cost

Each card has a mana cost that will be totaled to fill the mana cap for each battle. It is very important to know which cards should you level up first especially if you do not have a lot of money to invest in this game.

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This is not really hidden because it was included in a post by Splinterlands as a part of their Rewards Update 2 months ago.

Click this link to see more: https://ecency.com/splinterlands/@splinterlands/various-ranked-battle-and-league-rating-changeshttps://ecency.com/splinterlands/@splinterlands/various-ranked-battle-and-league-rating-changes

This is important since if you are playing in lower league like Bronze, you will have a higher chance of getting lower mana cap battles and your high costs cards may be unusable most of the time. Prioritize having a variety of low leveled monster when you are playing in Bronze and probably Silver.

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Card Series

Card Series shows from which packs the card can be obtained. I play in Modern Format which only allows Untamed card and later. This format does not allow Alpha or Beta series which can only be played in Wild Format.

Card Series Hidden Mechanics: You do not need to memorize where each card is from to know if it can be played in Modern Format. Card Series can easily be known by checking each card's design as seen below:

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Abilities

There are a lot of abilities in the game and memorizing what each does is a pain.

Therefore, you can use this section to recognize the role of monsters in your team. This can be served as a guide to know where to position your monsters more effectively during each game.

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I categorized the abilities in this game in 6 major classifications which I will discuss below. I will also add where is the best position for the monsters with abilities in this category and why.

1. Tank Abilities
   Tank abilities reduces opponent's damage or have an effect when the monsters with these abilities are attacked or dies.

Tanks are mostly played in first position to absorb damage, second position to serve as a backup or last position to block Sneak.

Abilities under this category are as follows:

Backfire
Forcefield
Magic Reflect
Reflection Shield
Retaliate
Redemption
Return Fire
Shield
Taunt
Thorns
Void Armor
Void

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1. Restoration Abilities
   Monsters under this category have some form of healing or restoration to back up the main tanks.

They are best positioned on third to fifth position where they would be safe from both frontal and back attacks. The longer these monsters survive, the higher your survivability is.

Abilities under this category are as follows:

Heal
Life Leech
Repair
Resurrect
Tank Heal
Triage

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1. Stat Modifier Abilities
   There are abilities that stacks and I call them Stackable Stat Modifiers. If you have two monsters with Demoralize, your opponent would have -2 melee, one for each Demoralize abilities. Others does not stack and will only be applied once as long as the conditions are fulfilled.

Monsters with Stackable Stat Modifiers should be placed in 3rd to 5th position. Abilities under this category will lose effect if the monster dies. The longer they survive, the longer the ability will be in effect.

Abilities under this category are as follows:

Demoralize
Headwinds
Inspire
Protect
Rust
Slow
Silence
Strengthen
Swift
Weaken

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Stat modifying abilities that doesn't stack is per case basis. For example, having a Last Stand monster on the very last position is ideal but will be useless if your opponent has many Sneak monsters. Balance will be key.

Abilities under this category are as follows:

Bloodlust
Cripple
Dodge
Enrage
Flying
Halving
Last Stand
Phase
Scavenger
Shatter

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1. Target Modifier Abilities
   Target modifying abilities changes the mechanics of the monster's attacks. A melee monster with Sneak may be able to attack from any position.

When you have monsters with these abilities, you will be basing on their raw stats for positioning. Lowest health monster must be in the middle for protection.

Abilities under this category are as follows:

Close Range
Opportunity
Reach
Scattershot
Sneak
Snipe

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1. Buff Abilities
   These are abilities that enhances your monster's effectiveness in battle. I normally don't consider buff and debuff abilities as important or useful as they are case to case basis and very unpredictable. Their effectiveness will be based on how your opponent will play the game.

Since they are unpredictable, their raw stats are the basis for positioning except for Camouflage, which should almost always be placed at the very back unless your opponent has a lot of Blast abilities. Why that is, I will leave it to your imagination.

Abilities under this category are as follows:

Amplify
Blast
Camouflage
Cleanse
Deathblow
Dispel
Divine Shield
Double Strike
Fury
Giant Killer
Immunity
Knock Out
Oppress
Piercing
Recharge
Trample
True Strike

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1. Debuffing Abilities
   Same as buff, these abilities are very unpredictable. Most of the abilities may or may not activate during the battle which makes it chance based when playing with monsters with these abilities.

Positioning is also based on raw stats and type of damage. Poison and Stun are very powerful combination. I tend to place these monsters at the back for protection for higher chance of activating their effects.

Abilities under this category are as follows:

Affliction
Blind
Poison
Snare
Stun

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• This post is an entry for Splinterlands Social Media Contest.
• Other sources that I do not own are cited under their respective photos. Photos and drawings without cited sources are mine and made for this post.
• I do not own the video nor the photos above the timestamps. All of those are credited to the creator who is mentioned throughout this article.
• Animated Banners and Dividers are edited in Canva Pro.
• Some of the fonts used are from instafonts.io

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ℋ𝒶𝓋ℯ 𝒶 𝑔ℴℴ𝒹 𝒹𝒶𝓎!