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Welcome back to another exciting installment of the Splinterlands Social Media Challenge!
This week, I will be diving into the remarkable synergy between two formidable cards:
Pelacor Deceiver and the Astral Entity!

Get ready to explore how this dynamic duo can dominate the battlefield with a suite of countermeasuring abilities such as Dodge, Backfire, and Retaliate. I will break down their unique strengths and strategies to help you leverage their full potential in your battles.

Dodge - Has an increased chance of evading Melee or Ranged attacks

Backfire - If an enemy misses this Monster with an attack, the attacker takes 2 damage

Retaliate - When hit with a Melee attack, there is a 50% chance of attacking their attacker

Stay tuned for an in-depth analysis and some thrilling gameplay highlights! 😆

The Battle

While fulfilling my responsibilities in the Splinterlands scholarship account I have with Balthazar, bltzr-wizard-729, I was able engage in a battle that showcased the synergy of having the Astral Entity as my Summoner and Pelacor Deceiver in my lineup. To get right into the action, the battle link can be found here. Otherwise, do read on as I go into more detail regarding the lineup and fight.

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Now, let us examine the ruleset that governs this battle. First, we have the Super Sneak ruleset, which grants all Melee attacking Monsters the Sneak ability. Second, there is the Fire & Regret ruleset, where all units gain the Return Fire ability at the start of the battle. The battle is capped at 31 mana, and only the Earth, Death, and Dragon Splinters are permitted.

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Summoner, Astral Entity

Faced with the battle's mana constraints and the impact of the Super Sneak ruleset, I chose the Death Splinter and selected Astral Entity as my Summoner. My strategy was based on the expectation that my opponent would use a Melee-focused lineup, taking advantage of the Super Sneak ruleset. The Summoner provides a -2 Armor debuff to the enemy and grants my lineup the Dodge ability. Additionally, it can Resurrect a single fallen unit once during the battle! 😏

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First Position, Cursed Windeku

I have strategically positioned the Cursed Windeku as my primary tank to fully utilize its Thorns ability. This means that any Melee damage directed at the Cursed Windeku will activate its Thorns, inflicting damage back on the attacker. The Cursed Windeku's resilience is further enhanced by its Heal ability, which allows it to recover Health and endure prolonged assaults. This combination ensures that the Cursed Windeku not only withstands enemy attacks but also consistently retaliates against Melee attackers! 😇

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Second Position, Venator Kinjo

In the second position of my lineup, Venator Kinjo may not significantly enhance the offensive strength of my team even with the Super Sneak ruleset in this battle, but its Amplify ability boosts the Thorns damage inflicted by the Cursed Windeku. With its Camouflage ability, Venator Kinjo can hide in the backline, avoiding being targeted by abilities like Opportunity. Additionally, its Slow ability provides a -1 Speed debuff to the enemy, further increasing the evasion rate of my units! 😤

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Third Position, Venari Bonesmith

In the third position, I opted for the Venari Bonesmith. This Monster performs exceptionally in this battle due to its Magic damage type, which bypasses any Return Fire retaliation. Each attack also has a chance to inflict the Poison status on the target, adding a strategic advantage. Additionally, the Venari Bonesmith's Life Leech ability allows it to replenish its own Health with each successful attack on the enemy Monsters' Health! 😚

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Fourth Position, Spirit Hoarder

Next in line, I have chosen the Spirit Hoarder from the Neutral Splinter. This Monster boasts the Blind ability, which synergizes effectively with the Dodge ability to further enhance the evasion rate of my lineup. Additionally, its Triage ability holds considerable strategic value in this battle as the Spirit Hoarder can provide Healing support to the backline units, focusing particularly on the Pelacor Deceiver that safeguards my team's rear! 😎

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Fifth Position, Revealer

Next up in my lineup is the Revealer, another Magic Monster in my team but possess the unique ability known as Stun. This ability gives it a chance to Stun the enemy's target, causing them to skip their next turn whenever the Revealer lands an attack. This capability can often turn the tide of battle by preventing the target Monster from Healing by themselves or attacking on their next turn, giving your team a crucial advantage to eliminate the target while they are incapacitated! 😵

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Last Position, Pelacor Deceiver

I chose the Pelacor Deceiver as my rear guard tank, recognizing its outstanding suitability for this role. I maximized the synergies between this unit and Astral Entity to great effect. With its Flying attribute and the Dodge ability, the Pelacor Deceiver's evasion capabilities were significantly boosted, especially crucial against Melee attacks enabled to Sneak onto the backline by the Super Sneak ruleset. Additionally, its Backfire ability allowed it to counterattack and deal damage whenever the enemy's strikes missed their mark! 😜

The Analysis

Given the Fire & Regret ruleset, using Ranged units in this battle would be disadvantageous due to the Return Fire ability. Therefore, I opted for Magic-attacking Monsters in my backline, protected by the Pelacor Deceiver in the last position against any Melee assaults.

To be honest, when the battle began, I had difficulty identifying most of the enemy's lineup as they included several Riftwatcher Monsters that I have yet to experience. This unfamiliarity made me apprehensive about what to expect from this battle 😨

However, as demonstrated in the above GIF, my setup successfully safeguarded my weaker Magic units in the backline through the Pelacor Deceiver, while simultaneously eliminating the enemy's Melee attackers with its countermeasures like Backfire and Retaliate. The high evasion rate of the Pelacor Deceiver proved to be a formidable challenge for the opposing team! 💪

Do you guys have any go-to strategy as well? Do share them with me in the below comments!

If you made it this far, I sincerely appreciate your time and value your encouragement. Please feel free to leave any comments or suggestions so that we can discuss about other strategies. Thinking about giving Splinterlands a try but haven't signed up yet? Feel free to use my referral link: https://splinterlands.com?ref=ak08, and be sure to reach out to me if you have any questions!

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Are you interested in reading some of my future writings? Don't forget to follow me! In the meantime, here are some of my most recent blogs if you'd like to view them:

EARTH SPLINTER'S HILL GRUNT DELIVERS A HEAVY HIT!	FEATURING SOME OF MY FAVOURITE MONSTERS IN A LINEUP!
TRIUMPH IN A BATTLE WITH MARTYR, BLOODLUST, AND ENRAGE!	ALL THE BIG BOYS COME OUT TO PLAY! (Latest Blog)

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All banners, dividers card and battle images used in this article are open source and obtained from the Splinterlands team or made by flauwy. Do check out his link for other amazing designs!