I've been playing a lot of games recently and I noticed some patterns. I seem to be getting a lot of Back to Basics modifier recently. I don't know why and it's not really a problem. However, it's a weird coincidence to get 3 Back to Basics modifier in the last 20 games I had.
Back to Basics modifier disables all monster abilities. Archon abilities still works.
This modifier really changes how we build our lineup. Normally, we depend on abilities like Sneak, Heal, Shield or Taunt. However, in Back to Basics, all of that disappears. In these battles, only stats remain. Damage, health, armor, and speed are the only things that matter from the monsters. Because of that, the way you spend your mana and what your archons can do becomes very important. You are not using the monsters for abilities anymore. You are using them only for stats. So, choosing low mana units with good health or damage can give big advantage.
It's funny because I've almost did the same lineup like my enemy. Instead of using Halfling Refugee and Ironwing Juggernaut, two low mana cost unit, as my main tanks, I was thinking of just adding one solid strong tank. I didn't and I think that's a huge reason why I won. I was able to maximize my mana for this battle making my tanks more effective by using quantity over quality.
Since abilities are disabled, expensive tanks that rely on abilities like Shield or Heal has less value. Cheap units with decent health become stronger than usual. By using two low mana tanks, I saved mana for more attackers. That means more total damage per round.
My opponent used fewer but stronger units. In normal battles, that can work. But here in Back to Basics modifier, numbers matter more. More bodies means more attacks every turn and also more bodies to block. The balance between quality and quantity can make things shine at times.
Like on the last battle, I used Halfling Refugee and Ironwing Juggernaut again as my tanks. The opponents also did that but my two units costed me 1 and 3 mana while their Sacrosanct Shanker and Fenmoor Platypus costed them 4 and 3 mana.
For the comparison of stats, Halfling Refugee has 6 health and no armor while Ironwing Juggernaut has 3 health and 3 armor. Their Sacrosanct Shanker has 3 armor and 4 health and Fenmoor Platypus has 1 armor and 1 health.
The armor doesn't really matter much when magic damage is involved. There is no Void or Void Armor in Back to Basics to reduce magic damage. Magic damage goes straight to health. When I combine the total health and armor of my two tanks, I had more durability for cheaper mana. That saved mana allowed me to add better monsters with magic damage. This battle shows that cheap but efficient stats can win over slightly stronger but more expensive units.
The concept for this opponent's lineup is interesting. They used Ulundin Overseer with 12 health and 5 armor and no attack, plus Saltwater Mage with 2 magic damage and 6 health. They used Marlai Singariel archon that gives +1 magic damage to all of their monsters.
That means their Saltwater Mage was dealing 3 magic damage every round. Ulundin Overseer was just there to absorb damage. It is a simple but strong plan.
I used Halfling Refugee with 3 melee damage and 6 health, Skyspire Leopard with 2 melee damage, 3 armor and 5 health, Halaran Huntress with 2 melee damage and 3 health, and Endless Ape with 2 melee damage, 2 armor and 11 health. I used Elowen Sylphie archon that gives Charge to all my Avian and Mundane Beast Bloodline monsters. That means all my backline units can attack from anywhere.
Even though my units are melee, they can still attack because Charge comes from the archon. Only monster abilities are disabled, archon abilities still works. I also gave Trample and True Strike to Skyspire Leopard and Endless Ape, which helped with consistent damage.
While they had the better single tank, I had better total team damage. I was hitting every round with all of my units. Once their big tank went down, they only had one damage source left. Having more attackers made a big difference that lead me to victory.
Getting 3 Back to Basics battles in a short time felt strange but also interesting. It forced me to focus more on stats and mana efficiency instead of ability synergy. In Back to Basics, I like choosing monsters with Debilitations like Halfling Refugee because these monsters usually have better stats but the debilitations, since they are considered abilities, are disabled leaving you with just a good monster with good stats. Of course, Archon choice also became more important since their abilities still works.
These battles reminded me that you don't always need complex abilities. In Back to Basics, make the best of your mana and stats and total team damage decide the match.
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