Nim Guard Captain for the Win!

^{Edited in Canva Pro.}

^{The tips and possible advises in this article are designed for Bronze League, in which I am in right now.}

^{Edited in Canva Pro.}

Introduction

The tricky thing about surviving long fights is that it’s never just about power. You can stack damage all you want but if your tanks falls apart at the critical moment, the rest of your team dies. That’s why a good tank isn’t a luxury, he's the core of the whole plan.

The problem with most defenses is that they only work against one kind of threat. Armor can stop melee and range, magic cuts straight through health. If you rely only on one stats, a blast or poison effect can take it down faster than you can adjust.

What really wins battles is a wall that doesn’t give in to pressure. A monster that can soak hits, redirect damage, and still stand after the dust settles. In Frontier Mode, finding that kind of card can be the difference between victory and defeat and that's what I did in order to secure the win.

Wood Nymph Smug Divider.gif

^{Edited in Canva Pro.}

Nim Guard Captain’s stats make him a strong monster specializing in defense. His 5 armor blocks most melee and range damage, while 7 health gives him enough endurance to stay on the board. The downside is his 1 melee damage, even at max level, which limits his capability to be that one man carry you wish to have.

Void ability is especially good in Frontier Mode because most monsters only deal low amounts of magic damage especially when they are low leveled. By cutting that damage even further, Nim Guard Captain turns into a very reliable tank. Against magic-heavy lineups, his ability makes him one of the safest tank options you can pick.

💊 Abilities 💊

Void: [Defense] Monsters with Void ability reduces the incoming magic damage by half. If the damage is 1, before the effect applies, the damage is negated and becomes 0.

Pros

Void is very strong in Frontier Mode. There are no other Void monsters in Frontier Mode and this counters Marlai Singariel's ability that increases magic damage. This is the same reason why Djinn Oshannus was strong before on the same set where Obsidian exist.
Good overall defense. Nim Guard Captain has good health and armor in higher levels. This is because the armor can be used to block melee and range attacks while the decent health can be boosted by Void increasing the value of his health.
Counters Mirror Match. Nim Guard Captain reduces the damage from Little Sister and Sorrow Harvester, two Foundation cards that are core units from the Death element. This gives him an edge in mirror match allowing him to survive longer against other picks with magic damage that many players rely on.

Cons

Low Damage
With only 1 melee damage, Nim Guard Captain contributes very little in terms of damage. If the enemy used a lot of Opportunity and Sneak attacks, he may end up as the last monster alive. This is a problem because he often cannot finish the battle on his own.
High mana cost
At 7 mana cost, he takes up a large part of your team’s mana cap which can be risky in low-mana battles. This can leave fewer options for other units where damage is more needed than defense.
Weak against melee and range.
Void ability reduces magic damage but offers no protection against melee or range damage. Because of this, units with strong melee or range damage can break through his armor and health fairly quickly.

^{Edited in Canva Pro.}

Rank	Rules of Combat	Description
	^{Born Again}	All monsters on the board gains the Rebirth ability that revives them when they die once: When revived, Nim Guard Captain returns with 1 health and his full armor restored. This makes him harder to take down because Void can still block or reduce magic damage and his good armor can block melee and range damage.
	^{Weak Magic}	Monsters on the board can use their armor to block an opponent's magic damage. This has the same effect as Void Armor: Since this rule of combat allows armor to block magic damage, his 5 armor now works against melee, range and magic damage. Combined with Void ability, this makes him extremely difficult to break through.
	^{Back to Basics}	During this battle, all monster's abilities are disabled: Even without abilities, Nim Guard Captain has solid stats for 7 mana. His health and armor still make him a strong tank in this rules of combat.

^{Edited in Canva Pro.}

Rank	Rules of Combat	Description
	^{Briar Patch}	All monsters on the board gains the Thorns ability that inflicts 2 melee damage to monster with melee damage attacking this monster: Since this rules of combat gives all monsters Thorns. Nim Guard Captain takes Thorns damage each time he attacks. His low melee damage makes trading hits less favorable for him.
	^{Tis But Scratches}	All monsters on the board gains the Cripple ability that reduces the opponent's max health by 1 when their attacks hit: This Rule of Combat makes Nim Guard Captain weaker because his health decreases after every successful hit, even if his armor blocks the damage or Void reduces it. Over time, his health will go lower and lower as if he gets hit even though he completely blocked every attack.
	^{Up Close & Personal}	During this battle, only monsters with melee damage type are allowed: When revived, Nim Guard Captain returns with 1 health and his full armor restored. This makes him harder to take down because Void can still block or reduce magic damage and his good armor can block melee and range damage.

^{Edited in Canva Pro.}

Rank	Monsters	Description
	^{New Beluroc Aegis}	New Beluroc Aegis works well with Nim Guard Captain because his Taunt ability can redirect incoming damage. By drawing enemy attacks toward himself, New Beluroc Aegis gives Nim Guard Captain more time to live. This makes their pairing strong in long battles where keeping your tanks alive is the key to victory.
	^{A’Lan Musketeer}	A’Lan Musketeer is another great compatible monster since he is a ranged monster with Double Strike. This makes him a dangerous damage dealer but because ranged monsters cannot attack while in the 1st position, he relies heavily on having a strong tank. Nim Guard Captain provides that tankiness, soaking damage while A’Lan Musketeer freely unleashes his attacks from the back.
	^{Vengeful Monk}	Vengeful Monk also benefits from Nim Guard Captain holding the line. His Opportunity ability is designed to target low health enemies which is very effective against most magic monsters that usually have weaker health pools. However, if Nim Guard Captain dies too quickly and Vengeful Monk is pushed to the 1st position, his Opportunity ability is wasted. Keeping Nim Guard Captain alive ensures that Vengeful Monk can keep targetting these low health monsters.

^{Edited in Canva Pro.}

This team composition is just my normal go-to lineup for Death Splinter with an occassional change of Little Sister to another monster. The problem with Little Sister is when her attacks get blocked by Nim Guard Captain's Void ability, the Life Leech will not work since the 1 magic damage becomes 0. Other than a mirror match, every monster in this lineup is good.

Lineup

^Thalgrimore He is a strong archon because he reduces the max health of enemy monsters by 1. This makes it easier for your team to kill opponents faster.

^{Nim Guard Captain} He has solid stats with 5 armor and 7 health. His Void ability makes him a reliable tank against magic damage. The armor is also good against melee and range damage making him an overall good tank.

^{Little Sister} Little Sister works well since her Life Leech allows her to gain health as she attacks. With Nim Guard Captain in front, she has more time to gain more max health with Life Leech.

^{Sorrow Harvester} Sorrow Harvester fits perfectly with Thalgrimore because the reduced max health of opponents coming from Thalgrimore and Sorrow Harvester's Weaken can stack giving them a total of -2 max health. Together, your team quickly eliminate down the opposing team with their lower health.

^{Black Widow} She is a good addition in the lineup with her good 2 ranged damage. Her extra 1 armor also helps protect Sorrow Harvester by blocking melee damage from opponent's Sneak monsters.

^{New Beluroc Aegis} New Beluroc Aegis supports Nim Guard Captain and Black Widow with his Taunt ability. By pulling attacks toward himself, he keeps the rest of the team safe.

^{Edited in Canva Pro.}

In this battle, I won because of some minor advantages. First, the opponent's team focused on melee damage with Vengeful Monk and Kanaaq Miner instead of my New Beluroc Aegis and Little Sister. My team has better armor which absorbed those damage. While Little Sister is bad against Nim Guard Captain's Void, the opponent lacks tank so when their Nim Guard Captain fell, I have free access to their back line. It's very easy to know what happens next. I just eliminate each one by one while they struggle killing my units especially once Little Sister absorbed a few health making her my third tank.

^{> > Click here to view the full battle < <}

Nim Guard Captain works well with monsters that has good damage or protect the team. Thalgrimore lowers the max health of opponent monsters, making it easier for your team to secure kills. Sorrow Harvester takes advantage of those weakened opponents to finish them off. Little Sister also benefits from his protection, gaining more health through Life Leech and becoming a dangerous threat as battles go on. These are just some examples of how a good coherent team can overcome your opponent's strategy.

Other friendly monsters that give extra protection or consistent damage is required when running Nim Guard Captain. Since there are no overpowered monsters in Frontier Mode, you cannot have one monster to focus on to carry your games. When things get tough in this mode, you cannot rely on one monster to salvage your situation, you need a team.

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Nim Guard Captain for the Win!

Introduction

Pros

Cons

Lineup

!LADY