Amplifying damage is an excellent way of maximising the additional damage to an opponent. While it takes a little bit of setting up to get right with correct combination of rulesets, cards and monster positions amongst the line up, it is worth doing.
Done right, it can really derail an opponent's gameplan. So which cards can you use to take advantage of the different opportunities available to you?
When to use Amplify?:
If the ruleset is the following:
Counterspell
Briar Patch
Fire & Regret
Or you may be using a Thorns, Return Fire or Magic Reflect card.
When not to use Amplify?
There are no really bad times to use Amplify other than forcing it to work when you don't have the mana. So just consider the game plan. Will Amplify be enough to win the battle? Or is there another way my opponent can play that may counter this strategy.
Either way, Splinterlands pays to think outside the box. So being predictable is not always the best play.
Venari Heatsmith
| Cost Regular Foil BCX | Regular Foil Cost Amplify | Total BCX Required |
|---|---|---|
| $ 0.015 | $ 1.41 | 100 |
| Cost Gold Foil BCX | Gold Foil Cost Amplify | Total Gold BCX Required |
| $ 0.43 | $ 3.723 | 9 |
The former reward card, Venari Heatsmith. Many a chest were opened with this card inside I did manage to grab a few Gold Foil versions whilst I was there. Hopefully you did too because only 9 are required for Amplify which makes this a steal. The price is just over
River Nymph
| Cost Regular Foil BCX | Regular Foil Cost Amplify | Total BCX Required |
|---|---|---|
| $ 0.124 | $ 3.317 | 25 |
| Cost Gold Foil BCX | Gold Foil Cost Amplify | Total Gold BCX Required |
| $ 2.24 | $ 9.369 | 4 |
The River Nymph is a relatively cheap card to own and with it's Cleanse ability it can prevent some nasty poison damage alongside other effects from taking place. At 4th level it learns Amplify which helps to take this Support card to a different place entirely. At just $3.30 and at just under 3x that for a Gold Foil copy, I'd say this card is worth it for the utility it offers.
Sea Stalker
| Cost Regular Foil BCX | Regular Foil Cost Amplify | Total BCX Required |
|---|---|---|
| $ 0.514 | $ 65.998 | 115 |
| Cost Gold Foil BCX | Gold Foil Cost Amplify | Total Gold BCX Required |
| $ 5.49 | $ 144.836 | 22 |
I think this is a really strong card for 5 mana. You get some serious attack and health stats and a Cleanse, Snipe, Camouflage and Amplify all at max level. Unfortunately this card is on the more expensive side for both the Regular and Gold Foil versions but at least it does not cost 3x to get one in Gold Foil. Overall a solid card improved by Amplify and worth it only to those with access to max level rare cards.
Queen Mycelia
| Cost Regular Foil BCX | Regular Foil Cost Amplify | Total BCX Required |
|---|---|---|
| $ 7.249 | $ 21.749 | 3 |
| Cost Gold Foil BCX | Gold Foil Cost Amplify | Total Gold BCX Required |
| $ 79.49 | $ 79.49 | 1 |
Queen Mycelia was the first Legendary card I saved my Hive and Dec for from blogs so this card has a bit of nostalgia about it for me. I love this card and at second level it gains Amplify which is excellent especially if you are utilising Thorns or Magical Reflect which you often do in the Earth element.
At more than 10x the Gold Foil is probably not worth it unless you were aiming for the card power. But even still then I'd need to be using it very regularly to consider it. A great card overall and worth it in Regular Foil.
Dax Paragon
| Cost Regular Foil BCX | Regular Foil Cost Amplify | Total BCX Required |
|---|---|---|
| $ 0.451 | $ 1.921 | 4 |
| Cost Gold Foil BCX | Gold Foil Cost Amplify | Total Gold BCX Required |
| $ 11.177 | $ 11.177 | 1 |
Previously discussed in some depth in my previous blogs, this card is strong and for 2 mana it is well worth the price. Personally for me, picking up this Epic card is worth it despite the nearly 6x on the price for Regular Foil - Gold Foil. I just happen to utilise this card quite often and that is in part down to its mana cost more than any other statistical reason. A great card and works well with another cheap Life card- Pelacor Conjurer.
Worth it for both regular and Gold Foil for me.
Grandmaster Rathe
| Cost Regular Foil BCX | Regular Foil Cost Amplify | Total BCX Required |
|---|---|---|
| $ 13.2 | $ 13.2 | 1 |
| Cost Gold Foil BCX | Gold Foil Cost Amplify | Total Gold BCX Required |
| $ 99.99 | $ 99.99 | 1 |
Grandmaster Rathe is strong in his own regard by applying Void Armour to all allies, it reduces the risk of magic attacks overrunning your lineup. A steep fall in price recently makes this a pretty good buy at first level for $13. I am not sure I use this card enough to warrant purchasing a Gold Foil copy but I do know that if I had packed or been airdropped a Gold Foil, I'd be holding onto it.
This is on my list to pick up one BCX of as I sold mmy airdropped copy when its price was around $25. So it is about time to buy again for me.
Cabalist
| Cost Regular Foil BCX | Regular Foil Cost Amplify | Total BCX Required |
|---|---|---|
| $ 0.58 | $ 0.58 | 1 |
| Cost Gold Foil BCX | Gold Foil Cost Amplify | Total Gold BCX Required |
| $ 4.259 | $ 4.259 | 1 |
With only 1 BCX required by either of these editions in order to achieve Amplify, the Cabalist offers quite good value. The downside here is there is an 8x cost difference between Regular and Gold foil rarities here so it will lead to your playstyle taking preference over which version you use.
Do you use this card enough to warrant that price difference? I personally do not use it enough to warrant that choice but that might be different for you. With 2 damage and 5 health the Cabalist is a pretty good card for 7 mana. It certainly synergises well with some of the Bronze and Silver options too for Death so well worth it at least for a level or two.
Weirdling Warrior
| Cost Regular Foil BCX | Regular Foil Cost Amplify | Total BCX Required |
|---|---|---|
| $ 0.615 | $ 12.306 | 1 |
| Cost Gold Foil BCX | Gold Foil Cost Amplify | Total Gold BCX Required |
| $ 11.25 | $ 45.00 | 4 |
At around sixty-one cents this card actually has very good value for an Epic rarity. Offering the Shatter ability, this ranged attacker is very cheap at 2 mana and can help reduce the armour of an opponent to zero pretty quickly.
The difference in cost between Regular and Gold Foil editions of the card is around 4x which puts it on the costlier side of things. But what we do always need to factor in is the Card Power value as well. Overall good value for the Regular foil version but I am unsold on the Gold Foil due to my own personal lack of playtime with this card in Gold League and below. I'd welcome any feedback and comments or thoughts on this particular card.
Venari Spellsmith
| Cost Regular Foil BCX | Regular Foil Cost Amplify | Total BCX Required |
|---|---|---|
| $ 0.15 | $ 4.165 | 25 |
| Cost Gold Foil BCX | Gold Foil Cost Amplify | Total Gold BCX Required |
| $ 2.098 | $ 8.455 | 4 |
Dispell is a nuisance of an ability as it reduces magical effects on a card. So often I have good Bloodlust rage going on and this card reduces that fun to zero. Great to have on your side and horrible to go up against. But the addition of Amplify at 4th level makes this card very interesting as it synergises nicely with a wide range of cards utilising Reflection abilities (Thorns, Reflect Magic and Return Fire) and due to it having a ranged attack, it can sit in the backline and offer good support to your attack.
Overall, really good value here in both editions of the card. The Gold Foil cost is around double that of the regular foil which puts it in an acheivable range for a small investment level player like myself.
Venator Kinjo
| Cost Regular Foil BCX | Regular Foil Cost Amplify | Total BCX Required |
|---|---|---|
| $ 2.398 | $ 24.085 | 11 |
| Cost Gold Foil BCX | Gold Foil Cost Amplify | Total Gold BCX Required |
| $ 69.50 | $ 287.150 | 4 |
I hve previously discussed Venator Kinjo in a recent blog and what I can say is that from a Reflection Shield perspective, this card is very strong at ensuring Blast damage does not penetrate past the first or last positions. Whilst I haven't played at the level required to gain Amplify, I will say that this card does look to be quite the menace.The only downside here is that it is a melee based card and this card is not likely to be anywhere too close to the front unless you were in a Little League ruleset.
Looking at the cost for a regular foil Venator Kinjo, I'd say there is some good value here. The card has many utilities and while it offers little going forward, we are talking a max level Legendary support monster for only 2 mana. Worth the $24 price tag, not for me on the Gold Foil price tag though as it makes it more than 10 times the price of the regular foil version. The single cost BCX is a really interesting difference of price with of 28x...
Comments?
Is there an Amplify card you cannot go without? I'd love to hear about it in the comments.
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