This post was made as entry for Splinterlands Community Engagement Challenge
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Sometimes the cheapest units in Splinterlands end up giving you the most value. Dark Arborist might look different at first with its mushroom-like hat but don't be deceived and give it a chance. It may look weak with only 2 damage and no armor but the usefulness in its abilities makes it really worth a second look. It’s the type of card that doesn’t win the fight alone but makes the whole enemy team struggle with the units Dark Arborist can affect.
Of course, like most situation, it has its downsides too. Some rule sets completely cut its effectiveness and the low speed can be risky in certain battles. Still if you’re looking for a budget rare card that can counter both melee and magic units, Dark Arborist is definitely a hidden gem.
Let's talk about… Dark Arborist
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In the caverns of the Deep beneath the towering peaks of the Daigenloft Mountains reside a colony of deep gnomes and a grove of arboreal shadites who have formed an uneasy alliance. If one is attacked, the other is sworn to defend.
The deep gnomes’ arborists are responsible for nurturing and maintaining this alliance. They prune the shadites, diagnose diseases, and implement treatments. In exchange, the shadites offer their fruits and leaves, which serve as both sustenance and components for magical spells.
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Other part of the lore can be found in this link…
Stats:
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| Mana: 4 | Rarity: Rare |
| Damage: 2 | Armor: 0 |
| Speed: 2 | Health: 8 |
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|| Reduces the Melee attack of all enemy Units by 1.
|| When hit with a Magic damage, does half the Magic damage (rounded up) back to the attacker.
|| Reduced damage from Magic attacks by 50%.Buy and Rent:
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At $0.401 for a level 1 card the buy price is expensive in my opinion. This unit is a rare unit so it takes quite a number of cards to level it up. While $0.401 looks cheap, you need a total of 115 copies to max it out, which totals to $46+. That is more expensive than some of the max level Legendary units out there.
At only 2 DEC per day for level 2 this rental price is extremely cheap. This is a great deal for anyone who needs secondary tanks in their builds. Unfortunately, there's a limited available rentals on the market so if you're looking for something higher than a level 2, you need to buy it instead.
Rule Sets:
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| Use it in... |
 Only units with magic attacks may be used. Dark Arborist thrives here because of Void which reduces incoming magic damage. Combined with its solid health, it can soak up more hits than most units you use to counter magic attack units in this rule set. The Magic Reflect is also a scary ability against magic attack units getting damage for every attack. |
 All melee units have Sneak (targets the enemy unit in the last position). In this rule set enemies are most likely to use melee attackers which plays right into Arborist’s Demoralize. Lowering every enemy melee unit’s damage at once can swing the battle in your favor. It gives your backline more time to survive and your carries more chances to deal damage. |
 Units with Melee attack may not be used in battles. This rule set is good because your enemies would be forced to use ranged and magic units. That's a higher chance of using magic attack units than if you include that they could also use melee. In this rule set, Dark Arborist’s Void and Magic Reflect make it a good ability to counter. |
| Avoid using it in... |
 All units have Magic Reflect (returns 50% of magic damage to attacker, rounded up). Dark Arborist already have Magic Reflect so he has no benefit in this rule set. What's worse is that Dark Arborist also have magic attack so enemy gaining Magic Reflect can be a problem for him in lower levels. |
 Non-flying Units take 2 Melee damage at the end of each round. Without Flying Arborist takes constant Earthquake damage and loses health quickly. While it can still withstand a few more rounds due to its high health, it's still going to die at some point from Earthquake. |
 All units have Opportunity (targets the enemy unit with the least health). This unit can be good or bad on this rule set depending on your strategy. If you want to use this unit as a tank, Equal Opportunity rule set is good but if you want to get value of Demoralize, Equal Opportunity rule set is a bad one for Dark Arbonist. |
Battle Summary...
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Watchus Fighticus! Replay battles that are oh-so-victorious!
Click here to watch the full battle!
Battle Strat: This battle has Standard rule set which gives me the freedom to do what I want. I used two tanks in this battle, Ujurak Brave and Helheim Demon. I have Dark Arborist in between them in case Ujurak Brave dies immediately. Dark Arborist can buy me time to kill a few more enemies before the enemies reach the backline. Along with this, the team is supported by Arachne Weaver's Corrupted Healing and Meriput Slinger and Sorrow Harvester acts as my damage dealers.
Battle Summary: I had a good level advantage in this battle which means my units are naturally stronger. I was scared at first though because he has a better tank, Commander Slade, and the non-attacking units have Weapons Training to support them. Honestly, the enemy has a good balanced team. The difference that tipped the scale is me having a unit that can heal my team while they don't. That means if the enemy cannot kill my tanks within a round, Arachne Weaver will make sure they live for the next round. They weren't able to make my Helheim Demon and Ujurak Brave eliminated which made them get eliminated one by one.
Disclaimer
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About the Author
Hey! I’m Mavis the Muggle, your friendly Splinterlands addict with a slight obsession for all things Harry Potter. 🧙
When I’m not immersed in gaming or wizardry, I’m busy learning new things. Recently, I’ve been having putting a lot of effort and having a blast creating content on Hive so relax!
You can support me by upvoting this post, reblogging, leaving a comment below or by using my Splinterlands referral link.
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Thanks for sharing! - @yonilkar
