***Before I go on, do you think I should add more original covers to the post?***
I mean, I think the featured images are enough, but I could improve if it would comfort my blog readers.
This week, for the *community challenge* of **[Splinterlands](https://splinterlands.com/)**, I decided to bring a battle that was, to say the least, different for me.
The reason?
It ended in a **DRAW**. And it wasnât one of those quick draws, no⊠it was a long fight, full of *poison*, and with an ending that felt like âno one can take this anymore, letâs just stop here.â Before explaining how it all happened, letâs understand the rules of this match.

The rule combination was **Noxious Fumes** and **High Five**.

Right from the start, it was clear this would be a battle of endurance.
The more fragile units started falling quickly due to the poison, even with some healing support. Since we only had **5 monsters** and not much room for elaborate strategies, the fight came down to:
Let the poison do the dirty work.
Try to keep the tank alive as long as possible.


In the end, it was a fun battle that made me think more about how poison influences the game. Even without a winner, I think it was worth it for the experience and the lessons learned. And letâs be honest: itâs not every day you see a duel turn into a true **endurance marathon**, with each turn dragging on and the tension building until the inevitable draw.
### [Click here to watch this Battle](https://splinterlands.com/battle/sl_7e01b187d69c6a428b27f66f05adcf8a?ref=alienpunklord)

**[High Five](https://support.splinterlands.com/hc/en-us/articles/9123215350548-List-of-Splinterlands-Modifiers)**: you can summon a maximum of **5 units**. This greatly limits your options and forces you to think carefully about your lineup. That is, you must choose wisely, even if you end up with a lot of unused mana points your first three monsters are crucial for victory.

**[Noxious Fumes](https://support.splinterlands.com/hc/en-us/articles/9123215350548-List-of-Splinterlands-Modifiers)**: all units start poisoned and **lose 2 health** at the beginning of each round, starting from *round 2*.
* Units with **Immunity** are not poisoned.
* This poison is applied only once so, if a creature is **Cleansed**, **Resurrected**, or **Rebirthed**, it comes back clean.
In other words, you canât just go for high damage here, you need to think about **resistance** and **healing**, because poison doesnât forgive.
Both my opponent and I chose the **Earth element**. And, interestingly, our lineups were almost identical.
The only difference was that I placed a **melee attack** creature in a certain position, while he went for a **ranged attack** creature.
And of course, we both used **tanks with HEAL** in this case, the **[Dread Tafarian](https://splinterlands.com/card-detail/822/regular/15)**, which not only takes a lot of hits but also heals itself every turn.


---
The funny thing is that our cards started falling almost in the same order. It was like we were playing mirrored compositions.
In the end, only the **Dread Tafarian** remained on both sides, each one healing itself every turn. It was literally a âyou hit, I heal; I hit, you healâ situation. And the poison? Well, it wasnât doing the job either, because the *heal* recovered almost the same as the *poison* took away.
Thatâs when one of Splinterlandsâ most brutal mechanics came into play: ***Fatigue***.
**Fatigue** is like the game saying, âokay, youâve been fighting too long, now youâre really going to feel the pain.â
Each extra turn, **all** monsters take fixed damage, which increases progressively.
So even if you have healing, there comes a point when you canât hold on anymore. And thatâs exactly what happened:
Turn after turn, both Dread Tafarians held on bravely⊠until the Fatigue damage became too high.
The result? **Draw**.


---
What I liked most about this match was that it showed how Splinterlands is not just about attack and defense, but also about **endurance and adaptation**. In rules like **Noxious Fumes**, itâs essential to think about:
**Monsters with Immunity**, to ignore poison.
**Healing sources** like *Tank Heal*, *Triage*, or *Self Heal*.
Avoiding low-health units that quickly fall to *poison*.
In this case, I could have tried a **Cleanse** to keep some support alive longer, but honestly, since the compositions were so similar, I donât think it would have made much difference.