This post is an entry to the BATTLE MAGE SECRETS Weekly Challenge!

CHALLENGE RULES

RULESET: CLOSE RANGE

Description: Units with ranged attacks are allowed to attack in the first position.

The Battle

Battle Rulesets	Description	Info
BRIAR PATCH	All Monsters have the Thorns ability.	Try to avoid uses of melee monsters or use monsters with Reflection Shield.
CLOSE RANGE	Ranged attacks may be used in the first position in battles.	You can use high HP or high-speed Ranged monsters at position 2 (or even at position 1 if it has Heal). Choose summoners that give a bonus to Ranged attack or speed and then choose high-damage Ranged attack monsters. High HP and Heal are the way to go in this ruleset.
SUPER SNEAK	All Melee attack Monsters have the Sneak ability.	Choose a summoner that increases/reduces Melee attack or Mylor. Keep a monster with Shield, Retaliate, or Thorns in the last position.

Lineup

It was a low mana, thorns game, so I tried to use ranged monsters mainly.

Card	Strategy
	Kelya Frendul - She is a good starting point in this type of battle. Speed and Armor boost are important in low mana.
	Torrent Fiend - Filler of the board, I didn't want to use melee monster, but in low mana, I almost fill the board with 0 mana monster if it was possible, more monsters are always good.
	Igor Darkspear - My main strategy is to use ranged heavy team. For 2 mana Igor is one of the best ranged monsters, the best choice for low mana close ranged games. In bronze level not as strong as on the bigger levels, but he still has good stats.
	Venari Marksrat - It is a very useful monster in some games. Martyr ability always shakes the game up.
	Xenith Archer - It has no ability, so the stats are strong for only 2 mana, not as good as Igor, but still a good selection.
	Musa Saline - During the battle selection time, I found she was a good fit in my team. But later analyzed I found a better selection. See later in the Battle Results sections.

Battle - Replay

Did your strategy work? What will you try differently next time?

No, but it was a draw game what is always a rare result :)

I did find a better team if I chose Venator Kinjo in my team (what is a good choice for a Thorns game), I could win almost 80% of the time.

Battle Results

Tournament Results

I didn't reach the final round, but I won +2 SPS (but maybe it is not worth it for 20-30 minutes :)

Do you like the CLOSE RANGE ruleset? Why or why not?

Yes. With this ruleset, ranged monsters became stronger than the melee monsters.