Alpha Deathclaw – Fallout
Date Reviewed: April 2, 2024
Ratings:
Constructed:
Casual:
Limited:
Multiplayer:
Commander [EDH]:
Ratings are based on a 1 to 5 scale. 1 is bad. 3 is average. 5 is great.
Reviews Below:
Alpha Deathclaw reminds me a little of Spiritmonger from Apocalypse – a little in look and a little in spirit. It’s mostly here to be good in combat, but that targeted destruction trigger gives it more to do, and in ways that are less niche than Spiritmonger’s color-changing. I’m glad to see monstrosity return here too, both flavorwise and because it gives you a degree of late-game flexibility that creatures of this style sometimes lack. Menace and trample are also an interesting combination of keywords, being hard to stop at 6/6 and insult to injury at 10/10. I think this will be a popular casual card, and maybe even more than that.
Constructed: 3
Casual: 4.5
Limited: N/A
Multiplayer: 4
Commander [EDH]: 4
Genetic abominations meant to serve as a sort of super-soldier in the Fallout timeline, deathclaws are very much creatures that you do not want to run afoul of. Alpha Deathclaw is in that vein rather cleanly; it’s a Vindicate attached to a solid body, and monstrous makes it 62% more lethal while grating another Vindicate. Monstrosity can be triggered at instant speed, and this creature has it right above where it’d come down, so this can be a massive swing in one turn if you play it well. It’s the kind of creature that’s going to cause chaos when it resolves or is cheated into play, and that’s the point.
Vindicate on a body has been enough to see play sometimes as a reanimation target, and the offensive profile of Alpha Deathclaw besides is formidable; I think it might have a fringe home in some Legacy Reanimator shells, though likely just as a one-of. It’s a menace in combat and nukes something on entry, and it can either draw removal or just rip a game wide open.
Constructed: 3.25
Casual: 5
Limited: N/A
Multiplayer: 4
Commander [EDH]: 4.25
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