Modern Diamond League - Holy Protection Ruleset

Greetings, fellow Splinterlands players! Today, I want to dive into my strategy for tackling the Holy Protection ruleset using the Water Splinter, specifically with the formidable Kelya Frendul as my summoner. This setup is tailored to take full advantage of Kelya's buffs and to leverage the unique strengths of some powerful Water monsters. Here’s a detailed breakdown of my lineup and strategy

Using Holy Protection ruleset to win a Diamond level Modern League battle!

We have three rulesets in effect: Holy Protection, Taking Sides and Lost Legendaries:

RULESET: Holy Protection

Description:

All units gain the Divine Shield ability which reduces the damage of the first attack received to 0.

Divine Shield will be re-applied when a unit is Resurrected.

Blast damage will remove divine shield.

The Strategy

The Holy Protection Ruleset
In the Holy Protection ruleset, every monster starts with the Divine Shield ability, meaning they are immune to the first instance of damage they receive. This unique twist influences how battles unfold, often requiring a reevaluation of typical strategies. For this setup, my approach is to maximize speed and damage output while ensuring sustainability through armor repair and healing.

Strategy Overview
The primary goal of this setup is to utilize a combination of speed, damage, and sustainability to overpower the opponent. Here’s how each element contributes to the overall strategy:

Speed Advantage: With Kelya Frendul’s +1 Speed, our monsters often attack first, bypassing the Divine Shield and starting to deal damage sooner. This is crucial in gaining an early advantage.

Tank Sustainability: Diemonshark, supported by Merdaali Guardian’s Repair and Heal, can withstand and retaliate against the brunt of enemy attacks. This resilience is key to maintaining a solid frontline.

Target Weaknesses: Deeplurker’s Opportunity ability ensures we quickly eliminate the weakest enemy monsters, reducing the opponent’s damage potential early in the match.

Attrition Warfare: Poison from Deeplurker and consistent attacks from Pelacor Bandit and Ivan Darkspear ensure that enemy monsters are constantly taking damage. This steady attrition can wear down even the toughest defenses.

Versatility and Adaptability: The combination of melee, ranged, and poison damage means this lineup can adapt to various opponents. Whether facing a heavily armored team or a high-speed evasion setup, this team has tools to handle multiple threats.

Conclusion
By combining the strengths of Kelya Frendul’s buffs with a well-rounded and resilient team, this Water Splinter lineup excels in the Holy Protection ruleset. The synergy between high-speed attacks, sustained tanking, and targeted damage ensures that we can outlast and outmaneuver most opponents. Give this strategy a try and watch your win rate soar in Splinterlands!

Summoner: Kelya Frendul

Kelya Frendul provides +1 Speed and +1 Armor to all friendly monsters. This is particularly advantageous in the Holy Protection ruleset as the extra armor allows us to endure longer, and the speed boost increases our chances of attacking first, bypassing Divine Shields quickly.

Position 1: Diemonshark
Abilities: Retaliate, Trample, Enrage
Stats: 6 Shield, 10 Health, 4 Melee Damage

Diemonshark is my tank of choice. With substantial shield and health, it’s built to absorb significant damage. Retaliate gives a chance to counterattack, which is great for chipping away at enemy monsters. Trample can cause devastating chain damage if Diemonshark defeats an opponent, and Enrage boosts its damage and speed when it takes hits, making it even more formidable.

Position 2: Deeplurker
Abilities: Opportunity, Demoralize, Poison
Stats: 4 Speed, 5 Melee Damage

Deeplurker is essential for its Opportunity ability, targeting the enemy with the lowest health. This can quickly break Divine Shields and start dealing real damage. Demoralize weakens enemy melee attacks, providing indirect protection for our team. Poison adds a damaging effect over time, which is invaluable in protracted battles.

Position 3: Merdaali Guardian
Abilities: Repair, Tank Heal
Stats: Support Monster

Merdaali Guardian is the backbone of my defensive strategy. Its Repair ability restores the armor of our front-line tank, while Tank Heal replenishes health. This combination ensures Diemonshark can stay in the fight much longer, effectively outlasting the opponent's front lines.

Position 4: Pelacor Bandit
Stats: Fast Speed, High Melee Damage

Pelacor Bandit brings additional speed and melee damage. Its fast attack helps to quickly remove enemy Divine Shields and contribute consistent damage. As the battle progresses, the Bandit’s speed allows it to evade attacks and stay relevant.

Position 5: Ivan Darkspear
Abilities: Stun
Stats: Ranged Attack

Ivan Darkspear rounds out the lineup by providing a reliable ranged attack. Positioned at the back, Ivan can deliver consistent damage without being in immediate danger. This ensures sustained offensive pressure throughout the match.

THE BATTLE

Surprise! Here we have almost a mirror battle! Looks like Kahel13 picked identical monsters and the only difference is in the position of the support monster Merdaali Guardian! My Merdaali Guardian is in the third position while Kahel placed his in fourth position. Let's see which positioning works better in this rulset.

In the first round we were less lucky as Kahel was able to land a stun on our tank and we didn't! Let's hope for a better luck in the next round!

Second round was much better for us as we were able to land poison on their Merdaali Guardian and stun on their tank.

In round three we took out their Merdaali Guardian while we lost our Igor Darkspear.

In round four they took out our Merdaali Guardian and we took out their Igor. With three monsters remaining on the field we seem to have an advantage as our tank has three health more than their tank:

Rounds five and six proved to be the decisive rounds, the victory is right around the corner:

We scored an important victory over a strong opponent and over 10 SPS tokens is our reward for winning this Modern Diamond level battle: