In this article, I'm going to focus on Elias Max Pruitt (EMP) to showcase some spots where he's done well for me. All of these examples are in Champion as that's where I play. It's also a way to showcase how EMP can be used to defeat some of the more "meta" summoners like Tofu and Cryptic.
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1. Going The Distance against Tofu
Battle Link: https://splinterlands.com/battle/sl_c9279a7db5ddc28e6c8b2a3e8f9d3fdd?ref=bravetofu
EMP can be a great choice for Going The Distance (where only Ranged cards are allowed), as I'll demonstrate here and in another battle later on.
One of the keys to this battle, as you'll see, is the double taunt in the back, using both Wave Brood and Gallicus to keep the focus off of Tatiana in the front. This, combined with the repair from Anachron Bolter and Venari Crystalsmith's tank heal give the team tons of survivability. EMP's ability to get cards from both Water and Life enable this strategy.
2. Going The Distance against Cryptic
Battle Link: https://splinterlands.com/battle/sl_306117097f8e0cd0504744eb28c51c8f?ref=bravetofu
This is one of my favorite strategies, which I first learned from 
3. Equalizer with Olivia & Iziar:
Battle Link: https://splinterlands.com/battle/sl_725c009774b4fde1fe1a199ac3dcb3fe?ref=bravetofu
Equalizer is a terrific ruleset for Olivia, and it's often used with Tofu, but EMP provides some other interesting benefits, such as bringing River Hellondale as well as Anasth Soothsayer (one of the strongest cards in the game). EMP's access to Water gives all sorts of additional value that can be counters to both Tofu and Cryptic alike, while providing the mass superpower that is Olivia is long games.
4. Against Tofu/Iziar/Olivia combo:
Battle Link: https://splinterlands.com/battle/sl_d803d1ada39f6cb5927d25ce53209db5?ref=bravetofu
Countering the dreaded Tofu/Iziar/Olivia can be a real pain in the butt. In this battle, there was a no healing ruleset, so that neutralized Tofu's Triage, but I still felt I was likely to go up against it, and I did indeed. EMP's Water/Life allows me to bring 3 revives (Goff, River, and Adelade), which served wonders in this battle. You'll also see that Armored Strike on Olivia gives me an immediate head start at killing off his Iziar. Lastly, River's Dispel plays a nice role here by dispelling their Olivia when she gets to the front.
5. Blast/Reverse Speed against Tofu
Battle Link: https://splinterlands.com/battle/sl_840c57cf97d0e3e8d0a8472ff9ad13da?ref=bravetofu
This isn't against a full-powered Tofu, but I did want to show it because it's fun to see Jared go off with the Armored Strike :) He can be a real threat in the right rulesets with EMP, even against Tofu's Thorns.
6. Against Lux in Equalizer
Battle Link: https://splinterlands.com/battle/sl_e50ca59fec6abd8cf24f8a246b41c70f?ref=bravetofu
I've found myself using EMP quite a bit in the Equalizer ruleset, where both Cryptic and Tofu tend to reign. In this case I actually expected either Cryptic or Tofu, and think I would've won in both cases. Against Lux it was a bit easier, though both of us brought very survivable teams. Ultimately my team's extra survivability did the trick.
7. Another one against Tofu/Iziar/Olivia
Battle Link: https://splinterlands.com/battle/sl_432ddca374fcf415060d76f783fcc3d7?ref=bravetofu
Here's another great example of how EMP can defeat this dreaded trio. Once again, the Armored Strike and additional melee damage given to Olivia help me defeat their Iziar quickly enough to start working on their back line. River Hellondale does a terrific job with her (or is it "his"?) Dispel, as well as the magic damage.
8. Against Tofu/Iziar/Olivia/Mantaroth!
Battle Link: https://splinterlands.com/battle/sl_5e487d64f341611fe8efdfd25b9c06b3?ref=bravetofu
You're probably thinking there's no way EMP can possibly with this battle. Mantaroth doesn't have to worry about Corrosive Ward. Mantaroth and Olivia thirst at the prospect of getting buffed as Iziar goes down. Adelade's getting ready to make that last. Meanwhile our Adelade's looking at Mantaroth's blast and is justifiably worried. It's looking bad.
Halfway through the battle, I've gotten their Iziar down but now am facing a mega buff Mantaroth and Olivia. I'm still not particularly confident.
In the home stretch, however, a beautiful thing happens: Hellondale Dispels Mantaroth after getting smacked in the face with Melee Blast damage. PAYBACK BABY!
We're now down to just their Olivia, who's smuggly (if that's not a word, it should be - for Olivia) shooting fireballs out of her face at Inevitable.
My Olivia didn't get Dispel yet, but BOOM goes Hellondale as she fearlessly dispels her.
My Olivia finishes the job and there it is - EMP wins the match!
I've had a ton of fun playing with EMP and getting better at finding his spots. I used him 11 times in the last few days and got a 64% win rate. I was forcing him a bit, so it likely would've been higher if I was more selective. In any case, not too bad.
BONUS: More MJ Images of Elias Max Pruitt
Images created using AI with Midjourney
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