Splinterlands – Steem Monsters Review.

Splinterlands, previously known as Steem Monsters is a decentralized collectible card game built on the Hive blockchain. Some reviewers compare it to Hearthstone and magic the gathering, but Splinterlands has an entirely different battle system. Its primary focus is on deck building and strategic battle preparations. The game was released on May 2018. In comparison to other crypto and bitcoin games, we are looking at a mature game with an active community and constant updates.

Utilizing blockchain technology, Splinterlands players own their digital collectible cards and can trade and sell them freely. Anyone can know how many of each type of card exists at any time and prove that individual cards are genuinely scarce and valuable.

To begin, you will need to purchase a $10 starter set of 30 cards. There is no free trial or a way to test the game for free. Unlike most crypto games, Splinterlands accepts traditional forms of payment such as Paypal. Of course, you can also buy the pack with cryptocurrencies. This process will also set up a Steem account for you.

Gameplay

Splinterlands is a player vs. player battling game. The game offers ranked and practice battles. It only took a few seconds to find an opponent and start a ranked match. Players can also complete daily quests or participate in tournaments to earn cryptocurrencies and join Guilds to work as a team. Over $58000 worth of prices has already been given out in tournament competitions.

Ranked games

There are currently six leagues based on the player’s skill: Novice, bronze, silver, gold, diamond, and champion. As you win more games and increase your ranking, you will enter higher leagues and get a chance to unlock higher level cards and rewards.
We recommend skipping practice mode and starting with ranked battles right from the start because you will not lose any ranking points until you reach 100 points.

summoners monsters and splinters

Splinterlands has only two types of cards, summoners, and creatures. There are Six distinct factions, represented by six sources of magic in the game: Fire, Water, Life, Earth, Death, and Dragon. Those factions are referred to as Splinters. A Summoner uses magic to call upon monsters within the same Splinter. When you start a battle, you will have two minutes to plan out your strategy. You’ll need to select a Summoner first. Your choice of Summoner will determine which Monsters you can use. The position of the monsters also plays a role in the battle. Position Meele attackers for close combat and ranged attackers to attack from a distance. Magic wielders can attack from any distance. Monsters with the highest Speed will take their turns first. Different stats and abilities will affect the outcome of the battle. Unlike games like Hearthstone, Gods unchained or Magic the gathering where the battle itself is the most important part of the game. In Splinterlands the battles are automated, the main focus of the game is to plan the battle itself strategically.

The Steem Monsters Cards

The Steem monsters cards in the game have a limited supply. Players can buy a pack containing five randomly chosen cards or make a purchase directly from other players. There are different editions of Steem Monsters cards. Editions are similar to sets in Magic The Gathering or Hearthstone. Each edition comes in a limited amount. Once all the card packs sell out, they can only be purchased from another player in the marketplace.

Steem Monsters cards have four different categories. Common, rare, epic, and legendary. Legendary cards are scarcer and have better abilities. Also, each card has a collector’s edition gold foil version. Gold foil cards are very rare and valuable but do not have special abilities than their equivalent standard cards in battle. Duplicated copies of each card may be combined to level up a single card and obtain increased stats and abilities in the game. This process significantly reduces the supply of the cards. Each battle can have a different variation on the rules. So players need to account for the rule variation when choosing their monsters in a battle. Splinterlands has introduced the concept of card lending. It allows players who can’t afford to purchase a high-level collection to rent rare cards and have a better chance to win at tournaments. And a to earn a passive income stream from a card collection.

Dark energy crystals

Dark Energy Crystals (DEC) are the official in-game currency. You can use them to purchase powerful items and potions or trade them for cryptocurrencies. Players earn DECs by winning ranked matches or buying them on the marketplace. They can also convert unused cards to DECs. This action destroys the card and reduces the total card supply.

Conclusion

The game is addictive and fun to play. The developers are active constantly adding new features. It has a big userbase which makes it very fast to find an opponent to play with. Players who got used to magic the gathering and hearthstone might find the automated battle system too simple but Splinterlands is an original game with its own battle design complexity. The game is featured as one of our top collectible card games picks and  our Best NFT games for 2022 list.