Hello, Splinterlands warriors!
If you asked me what gets my heart racing the most in Splinterlands鈥攁side from waiting for the outcome of a battle鈥攖he answer would probably be simple: spinning the Wheel. It feels a bit like buying a lottery ticket. You know the odds are slim, but there's always that quiet little voice saying, "Maybe today's my lucky day."
And as it turned out, that day finally came.
I managed to obtain Vaelok, a Rare Dragon Unit that is part of The Arena Vanguard program. Honestly, I was pretty surprised. Not because the card is bad鈥攓uite the opposite鈥攂ut because winning a card from the Wheel is notoriously difficult. The chance of landing a card reward is only around 3%, so when the animation stopped on the card prize, I had to look twice just to make sure my eyes weren't playing tricks on me.
There's a different kind of excitement when you earn a card through pure luck. Somehow, it feels far more memorable than simply buying it from the market.
Vaelok belongs to the Dragon Splinter, is a Rare card, comes from the Drakoshan race, and requires 11 mana to summon.
What caught my attention wasn't just its stats, but also the story behind the character.
According to the official lore, Vaelok was inspired by the legendary community member ANK. He hatched alongside his sibling, Aurendrak, beneath the volcanic skies of Draykh-Nahl.
Yet the two dragons chose very different paths.
Aurendrak believes that history is the greatest treasure of any civilization. Vaelok, on the other hand, is convinced that every legacy eventually crumbles with time. Through acid magic and forbidden runes, he created Tarnish-Bleed, a spell capable of erasing enchantments, memories, and even the legends attached to ancient relics.
I really enjoy this concept. Not every character has to be the hero who saves the world. Sometimes, the most fascinating ones are those who question the very meaning of eternity.
As a Dragon card, Vaelok gains new abilities as he levels up.
At Level 1, he immediately starts with Flying. This grants him a 25% chance to evade melee and ranged attacks, provided the attacker doesn't also have Flying. As an added bonus, he's completely immune to the effects of the Earthquake ruleset.
Then at Level 2, he unlocks Demoralize, reducing the Melee Attack of every enemy monster by one.
In my opinion, this ability is incredibly annoying... at least if you're on the receiving end.
I've experienced countless matches where reducing just a single point of damage completely changed the outcome. Sometimes victory and defeat are separated by nothing more than one attack that fails to deal its full damage.
Finally, at Level 4, Vaelok gains Life Leech.
This is easily my favorite ability.
Every time Vaelok deals damage, both his current Health and maximum Health increase by 50% of the damage dealt (rounded up). In other words, the longer he survives on the battlefield, the harder he becomes to eliminate.
Monsters like this tend to become even more troublesome once a battle reaches the later rounds.
What makes Vaelok even more special is the way players can obtain him.
Splinterlands released only 2,500 Regular Foil copies of Vaelok and 500 Regular Foil copies of Aurendrak, with every copy distributed exclusively through Wheel rewards.
That means this isn't a card every player can easily get their hands on.
Personally, I really like this kind of reward system.
It's not simply because I enjoy owning something rare, but because the thrill of hunting for exclusive rewards makes the game feel much more alive. Sometimes, a little bit of luck is exactly what makes a collection feel truly valuable.
For me, Vaelok isn't just another card added to my collection. It's a reminder that in Splinterlands, luck still has its place alongside strategy and careful planning. And every once in a while, a single spin of the Wheel can bring a bigger smile than ten consecutive victories.
I'm definitely planning to keep and continue upgrading Vaelok, using him in high-mana battles, especially against melee-heavy lineups or in the Earthquake ruleset. After all, if luck has already placed this card in my hands, it would be a shame not to unlock its full potential in the arena.
See you on the battlefields of Praetoria.
VONAK! 馃敟
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