30 Years Later, Magic’s Most Ridiculous 1-Mana Creature Is Still a Competitive Powerhouse
Who would win: An entire Magic: The Gathering eternal format, or one Shrimp?
In 1996, Magic: The Gathering's Mirage expansion was released, introducing the highly controversial Phyrexian Dreadnought, a one-mana 12/12 artifact creature. Designed by Mark Rosewater, the card was intended to be the largest ever printed, with the drawback of being incredibly difficult to counter. Artist Pete Venters illustrated the creature, which features a biomechanical creature with a sinuous form and a tiny figure of a planeswalker in the bottom-right corner to convey its size.
Despite its immense power, the Dreadnought was initially dubbed the "Shrimp" by players due to its small size on the card. The card's impact on the game's history is significant, as it became a defining threat in the fan-created eternal format Premodern, showcasing how old Magic cards can find new life and relevance decades after their release.
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