For many years, it was very hard for Wrath of
God variants to get a lot of consideration in
tournament play, because as long as the original
was in print, it tended to be the last place
people looked when they just had to deal with
creatures. That's a little sad to me, because
the variants often had text that offered
interesting alternate lines of play. Catastrophe
is an excellent example of that; while it's a
little expensive for aggressive white decks,
especially considering that Armageddon was still
in the most recently available core set when it
came out, it suggests a versatile option for a
slower deck with acceleration, in the style of
Erhnageddon. Now that I think about it, I wonder
whether there's actually some deck of that type
that's possible to make using the Standard card
pool of that time. There are all sorts of
surprising decks in the Swedish-invented 93/94
format that we never dreamed of at the time,
ranging from Verduran Enchantress combo to
Nether Void prison, so why wouldn't that be true
of Urza's Saga too? Combo Winter doesn't sound
like a friendly place for green-white midrange
decks, but if you account for the fact
that things like Tolarian Academy, Yawgmoth's
Bargain, and Memory Jar spent as much time
banned as legal, what would rise to the top?
I'd be remiss if I didn't point out that
Catastrophe also answers popular EDH cards like
Nykthos, Mystifying Maze, and Homeward Path, but
I can't help but feel like some groups might
throw something heavy at you if it's your
regular first line of defense!
If you’ve had to debate between Wrath of God and
Armageddon for your deck, why not go with the
card that's both of them at once? For two more
generic mana, Catastrophe is your choice of
Wrath of God or Armageddon. The flexibility
afforded is worth the cost in casual, though six
mana is way too much for any constructed format
when you can have either half at a much more
affordable rate.
The other thing, though, that makes Catastrophe
scary is that, despite its appearance, it is not
a modal spell. You do not have to choose whether
you’re blowing up creatures or blowing up lands
until everyone says “yep, it resolves",
affording you a bit more flexibility in the
politicking and if people try responding to the
spell by bouncing a mass of creatures. Any white
EDH deck has some reason to consider
Catastrophe, acting as two of white's most
infamous spells in one slot.
