I am revisiting a post I wrote about two weeks ago post here and elaborate on specifically the cards new players or players without a lot of funds should be looking to purchase. No matter how cheap or easy to rent cards it should be a player's best interest to owning the cards. Do not get me wrong there are plenty of reasons renting is great, but to have the card to use it on you own free will and not have to worry if lender cuts contract for card rental gives you peach of mind.
In this post we will look at some of the current still in print cards and the feasibility of owning them at current prices. Which is a good buy and which I would pass. Note this is only my opinion and so if you are reading this post it is by no way the right way of interpreting the cards I am about to discuss. Instead take my experience and merge with what you know to decide what is best for you. Thanks!
Introduction
There are currently seven series of cards in the game. In the order they were first introduced:
- Alpha
- Beta
- Orb
- Untamed
- Dice
- Promo
- Reward
It is worth noting that both 6. and 7. actually scattered in the timeline since there are new cards being introduced sporadically throughout the game's timeline.
What we will be focusing on are the reward cards. Although there maybe some low cost cards in Dice and Untamed the likelihood that more players will find lower prices are in the rewards group. Every day there are new reward cards minted for players who play to earn.
https://kiokizz.github.io/Splinterlands/rewardCards.html
Low Cost Reward Cards
Of the bat most legendary and epic cards are off the list of to buy since they are nearly $10 each. However there are some epics if you really wanted to buy and not over $5 currently it is:
Kretch Tallevor
Kretch Tallevor I would consider as a low budget summoner.
You only need 10 bcx to get the summoner to level 3 which is equivalent to a level 4 rare summoner without having to purchase 25 bcx in Untamed rare summoners. The drawback with Kretch is that it has no abilities, but on the flip side it uses a low 3 mana as a summoner.
Onyx Sentinel
Onyx Sentinel should not be overlooked as a neutral tank card. It is currently cost effective compare to Almo Cambio and Lord Arianthus. The only other neutral tank card I would eye on besides Onyx is Gelatinous Cube, which we will look into later on.
Onyx 1 bcx already includes shield ability that reduces both melee and range attacks. By level 5 with 32 bcx Onyx basically has most of what Lord Arianthus at level 3 has except for magic reflect.
A Lord Arianthus at level 3 for 5 bcx is currently priced $500 while a Onyx level 5 for around $100. I know neither is cheap at these rates but if you look long term to building a strong deck you want to anticipate on what cards to purchase in the future that will help grow your collection. Earning Oynx now and while buying more as prices are below $3 each bcx makes it a good investment in the long run. When the card becomes out of print it will likely follow suite in value appreciation as Lord Arianthus.
Conclusion if you want to buy a higher rarity reward card I recommend Onyx and Kretch. They before are still under $5 which allows players to accumulate them and stack multiple bcx to gain higher stats. Both these cards are competitive at base level but even more so at higher levels.
Rare Reward Cards
Below epics and legends are rare reward cards. Comparing to the current still in print reward cards at base level 1 that I think is good enough are Efreet Elder and Temple Priest. Out of print but under $3 to obtain are Silvershield Sheriff and Captain Ghost.
In Silvershield Sheriff the stats at level 1 already jumps out at you. With a range 3 attack with snipe ability this monster can quickly knock out your opponents key low health monsters instantly. In addition at higher levels Sheriff adds on with Piercing and Protect abilities. Piercing is useful with high attack numbers like Sheriff since it would hit both toughness and health at the same time. Great against monsters who have Repair that recovers toughness.
I am leaving out discussing the other rare reward cards here as I feel the abilities they have are very target specific and that it does come in handy only on specific circumstances. What I will say is that the recommended rares here would be they cost reasonable to purchase at 1 bcx and still useful enough to use in battles.
Common Reward Cards
There are plenty of good cards within the common rewards series even though they are considered the most abundant in quantities in the game. Some of these commons should not even be commons is what I say.
Sand Worm
It maybe slow but boy does it leave a mark. With sneak ability already at base level 1 it is automatic for high mana matches with the benefits of rule sets towards melee. Sand Worm no doubt is easy to use as it can be placed in any position with sneak ability while it is also a neutral monster. At higher levels it adds on snare and pierce abilities which makes it even better. However for the price consentisist a level 4 or 5 Sand Worm would do as the melee attack does not rise higher than 6 until its level 9.
Gelatinous Cube
Early I talked about Oynx being good but now at a lower price point there is the Cube. A great addition for tanker card as its neutral and a common. At base level its health is already at 8 which is far higher than either Oynx or LA. What Cube does not have is the protection or reflection against attacks. Instead it uses scavenger and Heal to stay alive longer than its opponents. So although Cube is not a one for one comparison between Oynx or LA it is still considered a decent alternative tank card.
Ant Miner
Another monster with scavenger is Ant Miner. You maybe wondering how useful the ability is if I bring up my reasons behind Ant Miner being a good card to own. Consider it being a low 2 mana and at level 6 it adds shield ability the monsters can actually supplement very well with rule set such as equalizer. The fact that if Ant Miner can survive further into the match its health will likely increase due to other monsters' getting knocked out while also surviving longer because of reduced damage with shield. A card that is currently under $0.30 per bcx and is $30 to get to level 6 with shield.
Honorable Mentions
I very much believe Screeching Vulture should have been a higher rarity. The monster at level 1 base already includes opportunity and flying abilities.
Screeching Vulture
To put it into perspective out of all the current monsters available that has opportunity Screeching Vulture (SV) only costs 3 manas to play. Maggot has nothing on SV as it has stats better or higher in all categories. While Serpentine Spy which is another 3 mana monster although faster and stronger melee it will likely be killed with one attack by sniper or opportunity as it has 1 health. Best part about SV, at level 6 it has the scavenger ability.
Nectar Queen
This monster is a staple if and when faced with rule set earthquake. With a high health and melee attack it also starts with the flying ability at level 1. Similar to SV the two work very well in earthquake rule set. Like many other high mana monsters Nectar Queen (NQ) can pack a punch even as a level 1 card.
Both SV and NQ are below $1 per bcx at current market prices.
Conclusions
Although this is not a conclusive list I feel the cards I mentioned are very good to own for players with a budget. There is a lot of other commons that would work very well if players choose to level up. The ones I mentioned here are just what I have encountered in matches that have fared well. Tanker cards such as Cube and Oynx are good to have as they can be mixed with any other splinter. Why specific splinter cards such as Silvershield Sheriff and Sand Worm are good cards at middle or end of formations that can pack a punch for the money spent. To mix it in with some low mana cards that maybe overlooked at first appearance is the Summoner Kretch Tallevor or the monster Ant Miner.
Until next time thanks for reading!!!
If you are interested to learn more about Splinterlands please go through some of my other posts. Order is from newest to oldest posts:
All You Want To Know About Reward Chests
Helpful Links for New and Veteran Players
Splinterlands Good Cards To Own
Splinterlands Rentals from a Lender Perspective
I have plenty of other cards for rent! Just go on peakmonsters and check out the market place and if you are curious what I offer here is a link:
If You have yet to take part in playing this great game called Splinterlands please click on my referral link. It is free but in order to earn real assets such as cards and token you would have to invest in a starter deck or purchase game cards. Join the discord to learn more. Good luck!
THANKS FOR READING! CONTINUE TO PLAY SPLINTERLANDS!