Alright, time for another #Splinterlands card spotlight!
Today I picked a card that honestly surprised me a little bit.
The name is, Buttercup Mauler.
At first I looked at this card and thought, another Earth melee card.
But then I looked at the abilities.
And yeah, this thing has FOUR abilities at max level.
Buttercup Mauler is a Common Earth unit with a max level of 10.
And the stats are actually pretty solid too.
At Level 10 it has:
Melee Attack: 5
Health: 6
Speed: 4
Armor: 0
Mana: 5
And then we have the four abilities:
Sneak
Deflect
Reveal
Camouflage
That's a pretty interesting combination for a Common card.
So let's break it down.
First Impressions
The first thing that caught my attention was the 5 melee attack.
That's pretty strong for a 5 mana card.
It also has 4 speed, which is decent enough to give it a chance to attack before some slower units.
The health is only 6 and there is no armor, so it's definitely not a traditional tank.
But looking at the abilities, I don't think that's what Buttercup Mauler is supposed to be.
This card looks much more like an offensive backline attacker.
And that's where the first ability becomes really important.
Ability 1: Sneak
Sneak: Targets the enemy unit in the last position.
Buttercup Mauler has Sneak.
That means it targets the enemy unit in the last position.
I really like Sneak when a card has good attack power.
And Buttercup Mauler has 5 melee attack.
That's not something I want sitting around attacking the enemy tank.
Instead, it can go straight after the backline.
This can be especially useful if the opponent has a support unit sitting at the back.
You know those annoying cards that heal, repair armor or provide some other support?
A Sneak attacker can make them very uncomfortable.
If Buttercup Mauler gets a couple of successful attacks in, that 5 damage can start adding up very quickly.
Ability 2: Deflect
Deflect: 0 damage from Corrosive Ward, Magic Reflect, Thorns, Return Fire, and Blast splash damage.
The second ability is Deflect.
This one is pretty interesting because it protects the card from damage caused by certain abilities.
According to the ability description, Buttercup Mauler takes 0 damage from things like:
Corrosive Ward
Magic Reflect
Thorns
Return Fire
Blast splash damage
That's actually pretty useful.
Especially for a Sneak attacker.
Why?
Because Sneak units are often attacking into enemy backline units that might have abilities designed to punish attackers.
For example, if Buttercup Mauler attacks something with a damaging defensive effect, Deflect can help it avoid that extra damage.
So it's not just about attacking.
The card also has some protection against annoying counter-effects.
Ability 3: Reveal
Reveal: Each round applies Revealed to a Camouflaged enemy unit. Revealed units can be targeted by direct attacks.
Now this is where Buttercup Mauler gets even more interesting.
The third ability is Reveal.
Each round, it applies Revealed to a Camouflaged enemy unit.
Revealed units can then be targeted by direct attacks.
This is a pretty specific ability, but when you need it, it can be VERY useful.
Camouflage can make enemy units difficult to target directly.
So if your opponent is relying on a Camouflaged unit to hide somewhere on the battlefield, Buttercup Mauler can help expose it.
It's basically saying:
"Nice hiding spot, I can still find you."
Ability 4: Camouflage
Camouflage: Cannot be directly targeted unless in the first position.
This is probably the funniest part.
Buttercup Mauler has Reveal, but it also has Camouflage itself.
Camouflage means the card cannot be directly targeted unless it is in the first position.
So while Buttercup Mauler is hiding enemy units, it's also trying to hide itself.
I actually really like this combination.
Because a Sneak attacker can be dangerous if it survives for multiple rounds.
And Camouflage gives it some protection from direct attacks.
The opponent can't simply choose Buttercup Mauler as a target while it's sitting somewhere away from the first position.
Of course, there are ways around that, but it still gives the card another layer of protection.
5 Damage From The Backline
This is probably the main reason I'd consider using this card.
5 melee attack + Sneak.
That's a serious amount of damage for a backline attacker.
Imagine the opponent has a small support unit sitting at the back with 4 or 5 health.
Buttercup Mauler could potentially remove it in a single attack.
And once that support unit is gone, the rest of the enemy team might become much easier to deal with.
That's why I usually like Sneak cards with high attack.
They can completely change how the battle develops.
Where Would I Use It?
For me, Buttercup Mauler looks most interesting in battles where I expect the opponent to have:
Weak backline units
Support cards
Camouflage
Reflect-type abilities
Important cards hiding away from the frontline
It's especially interesting when you can predict that the enemy's last-position card is important.
Because then you're not just randomly attacking the backline.
You're attacking something that actually matters.
What I Like About Buttercup Mauler
There are quite a few things I like about this card.
5 melee attack is probably the biggest one.
Then you have Sneak, which gives that attack a very specific target.
Deflect gives it some protection from various damaging effects.
Reveal gives it a useful role against Camouflage.
And Camouflage itself helps protect it from direct targeting.
So even though the stats aren't perfect, the abilities make up for some of the weaknesses.
What I Don't Like
The biggest problem for me is still the 6 health and 0 armor.
If Buttercup Mauler gets caught by something that can directly target it, it might not survive long.
Also, 5 mana isn't exactly free.
There are plenty of other cards you could put into a lineup for 5 mana.
So you need to actually have a reason for using it.
If the enemy doesn't have anything useful in the backline, Sneak loses some of its value.
And if there isn't any Camouflage involved, Reveal isn't doing much either.
CONCLUSION
So yeah, Buttercup Mauler turned out to be a much more interesting card than I expected.
At first glance, it's just a Common Earth unit with 5 attack.
But then you look at the abilities.
Sneak.
Deflect.
Reveal.
Camouflage.
And suddenly there's quite a lot going on.
I really like cards that have a clear purpose, and I think Buttercup Mauler definitely has one.
It's a backline attacker.
It's a Camouflage counter.
It has some protection from annoying reflected and splash effects.
And it has enough attack power to actually make its Sneak attacks hurt.
The main thing I'd be careful about is its low durability.
6 health and 0 armor means I wouldn't want it getting exposed.
But if you can keep it hidden and let it do its job, it could cause some serious problems for the enemy backline.