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This week's Battle Mage Secrets challenge features the Back to Basics ruleset!  Back to Basics is one of those "negative" rulesets - instead of adding something to the battle, it removes some element.  In this case, that elements is monster abilities.  That's right - any monster abilities that your team might happen to have do not apply at all.  With that said, there IS still the possibility for abilities granted by summoners.

Back to Basics shifts the emphasis of the battle away from flashy monsters with tons of abilities, and towards more vanilla attackers and summoners with abilities.  Also, if you like being able to hit with more than a single monster per turn, you had better bring along some ranged or magic damage!

If you wanted to jump right to the action, [the Battle Link is right here](https://splinterlands.com?p=battle&id=sl_359ff29dc7bee52fbefc0740bc650a53&ref=bteim). Want to hear some more about the lineup? Read on further!



![image.png](https://files.peakd.com/file/peakd-hive/bteim/23xyTGU27rAkwnznNUxjVtZfznnWdUounwHZwcNZtKvxknQkuwX5VoEoCaNJoLV4AuuSo.png)


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Here were the rules for the battle.  This is a bit of a funny set of rules, because Back to Basics tends to level the playing field a bit by taking all monster abilities out of the picture, and Equalizer takes that a step farther by giving everything the same amount of health.  Finally, we have Even Stevens, which means that only even mana cost monsters will be usable in this battle.

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With this selection of rules, it seems like a good idea to bring a large number of cheap monsters in order to take advantage of Equalizer.  The Dragon splinter has plenty of cheap monsters, so Quix the Devious is a solid summoner to use in this fight.  With Back to Basics in play, the only way to get more than a single attacker each turn is to bring some magic or ranged monsters.  This gives us a good chance of debuffing some enemy monsters with Quix's debuff.  And regardless of what type of monsters there are, a speed advantage from a summoner will always be welcome!

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As I just mentioned, my plan here is to go with cheap monsters since they can all take advantage of Equalizer.  Soul Fiend and Vruz both certainly fit the bill, with Vruz costing just 2 mana, and Soul Fiend being FREE.  Sadly, Vruz's Sneak is nullified by Back to Basics, but if or when he gets to the front line he'll be able to contribute a bit of melee damage, as well as having a great amount of speed in order to possibly get a dodge or two.

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I continued on with my cheap monster plan and stuck Naga Assassin and Dax Paragon in the middle of my lineup.  Both of these monsters can attack from the back line, and will be able to contribute to my team's damage firepower.  And just like Vruz, Naga Assassin's high speed will help to maximize my dodge chances.

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I finished off my team with some more cheap monsters.  Xenith Archer and Time Mage are both affordable monsters who can attack from the back - perfect for this battle.  Looking at this team now I realize that I actually made a small mistake in my monster placement - I probably should have put Xenith Archer all the way at the back, as it can't attack if it gets to the first spot.  Hopefully that won't come back to bite me!



![image.png](https://files.peakd.com/file/peakd-hive/bteim/23sx9sLyHQEGjDBjTD5HBpYZPw1EM2Dwz6QLjEmeT5VZFc93D8DrMU8AHa7Yn2a3ccTq2.png)


With the lineup set, it's off into battle!  When I see the selected teams I am hopeful - my opponent has a bit of a level advantage and is also packing a fair amount of magic attackers, but they also brought one less monster to the fight - that gives me an advantage in the overall bulk department, and hopefully enough of an edge to pull out the win.


![round 1.png](https://files.peakd.com/file/peakd-hive/bteim/EoAUN3DgtypdMakvYBBRQNxzu64SeQQmiMk3zAyDnu1qSmbuLcA6x6s2hkBMJST2Zgy.png)



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In part due to the fact that all of the monsters were budget monsters with low attacks, the battle develops slowly.  But by the start of the third round my team is beginning to make great progress - my monsters have already taken out the enemy's tank, and the last of their magic attackers has already taken heavy damage.


![round 3.png](https://files.peakd.com/file/peakd-hive/bteim/23tbPFXYLnwTbh4KtJXXe7m8pYXk7qzoXGncznzLfXxV8breVyo4zai8G1uTXd4k3T882.png)


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One more round and my team appears poised for victory.  I still have three monsters remaining, facing off against my opponent's two.  And both of those enemy monsters are ranged, meaning that if I can take out one of them then the remaining one will be unable to attack.


![round 4.png](https://files.peakd.com/file/peakd-hive/bteim/23tRxbWAVpcZNgrdVazV1fpjsgML5E2sEPhqQjeAaBQJoLh2JXDCsb9vpnbfLb8fqNxMn.png)



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It ended up taking a couple more rounds, but by round 6 my team was ready to close out the win.  With Acid Shooter on just 2 health remaining (not to mention unable to attack) this battle was all but over.  And again, if you wanted to see the whole battle for yourself, [you can see it right here.](https://splinterlands.com?p=battle&id=sl_359ff29dc7bee52fbefc0740bc650a53&ref=bteim)



![round 6.png](https://files.peakd.com/file/peakd-hive/bteim/23tbKBLT3rrH5vksDYa5rtMLhUGQhEEdn2Y52SECANsbQ1qYEgBcQkuANMExkEh8CxG1a.png)


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Back to Basics is a funny ruleset to play with since it takes monster abilities out of the equation, which normally play a pivotal role in most battles.  Selecting a good team for Back to Basics battles requires careful consideration of the other rules in effect, as well as your available monsters and summoners.  In this particular battle, the addition of the Equalizer ruleset called for a team of cheap monsters, and my strategy of going small was just enough to win the day.

![image.png](https://files.peakd.com/file/peakd-hive/bteim/23tGVcV5BeyJ44zPLMbY7xvukrzdf42v3BA1Qa6tu3FsSdcN6Bmb8nsU7NL2fPPd3e7MU.png)



Thank you so much for reading all the way to the end.  Interested in seeing some more of my writing in the future?  Be sure to give me a follow!  In the meantime, if you'd like to see some of my recent posts:

- [The Opportunistic Play - Battling with Equal Opportunity!](https://peakd.com/hive-13323/@bteim/the-opportunistic-play-battling-with-equal-opportunity) - A battle analysis, featuring Equal Opportunity!

- [Splinterlands Economics: Causation](https://peakd.com/hive-13323/@bteim/splinterlands-economics-causation) - A look at causation, and how we can apply it to Splinterlands!

- [Splinterlands Economics: Ceteris Paribus](https://peakd.com/hive-13323/@bteim/splinterlands-economics-ceteris-paribus) - An introduction to the concept of Ceteris Paribus, and how we can apply it to Splinterlands!

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Thinking about giving Splinterlands a try but haven't signed up yet? Feel free to use my referral link: https://splinterlands.com?ref=bteim, and be sure to reach out to me if you have any questions!

All images used in this article are open source and obtained from [Pixabay](https://pixabay.com/) or [Unsplash](https://unsplash.com/).  Thumbnails borrowed with permission from the Splinterlands team or made in [Canva](https://www.canva.com/).