Shatterskull Charger – Zendikar Rising MTG Review

David
Fanany
Player
since
1995

Shatterskull Charger is a riff on the old-school creature Viashino Sandstalker, which was itself a variation of the even older Ball Lightning. The Charger definitely has improved survivability and versatility compared to its ancestors – it’s not only a decent source of surprise damage in the mid-game, but also a more threatening high-curve creature when you need that. Note also that it doesn’t care how it gets a +1/+1 counter when it checks whether it remains in play.

Constructed: 3/5
Casual: 4/5
Limited: 4/5
Multiplayer: 3/5
Commander: 3/5

Shatterskull Charger is an interesting enough creature: it’s normally a pretty good approximation of Viashino Sandstalker and some of the dash creatures of Tarkir block, and it’s pretty good at bashing through an opponent’s defenses. If you can get a +1/+1 counter on it, though, it sticks around, and even paying for kicker is a pretty nice return on investment; a 5/4 with haste and trample is a nice deal for five mana. It’s not the flashiest creature, but a quick clock is always good, and even the self-bounce has some upsides in dodging sorcery-speed answers. Definitely a nice trick in red’s aggressive bag of them, and I could see Shatterskull Charger doing a fair amount in this standard.

Constructed: 3.75
Casual: 4
Limited: 4.5
Multiplayer: 3
Commander: 3.25