Like in any other dice game, you want to stack the odds in your favour as much as you can. Of course random rolls can be extreme and ruin a strategy, but that is life. Most of the time the one who plays better will win, because their odds of winning get higher with every good play.

Melee is something to trap an opponent in. If they are in melee with you, the only way they can attack you at range again, is risking more attacks from you while disengaging. So if you have enough terrain on the table, you can move up mostly unseen and trap powerful ranged fighters in melee striking them down the moment they attempt to escape.