The Best TAV Champion?

Erellika is small but mighty.

What's the best champion in the Antigonish Variant of Spellfire? That question has been asked many times since 2000, and there's no clear answer yet. I would argue, however, that the best attacking champion is probably Erellika (3rd Edition, 262/400). Surprised? Don't be.

In TAV, the attacker wants things to be over quick. Since there is usually only one round of combat, you want to get in, win the round, raze the realm, and get out again fast. Erellika has the attributes to do so, usually with frightening speed. Here's the rundown on this card.

1 - She is level 2, and when attacking in TAV, lower is better. You're not going to be involved in a level-up war (at least, not often). Both players' hands are doubtless stacked with instant-kill "cheese" (to borrow a term from Magic: The Gathering*). The player who is able to get their cheese down first will usually win. At level 2, Erellika allows her player to throw it down first in most situations.

2 - She is versatile. As a hero able to cast both wizard and cleric spells, you have a wide range of possible options. Loup-Garou? Haymaker? Mindkiller? Wish? Everything's on the table. Erellika's ability to use both kinds of spells, plus the Hero's innate ability to use allies and unarmed combat cards makes her a primo attacker in this format.

3 - She has other powers, as obscure as they may be! Erellika negates all psionic powers when defending, an ability that might come in handy against say, an attacking Lyr of the Mists. Erellika also negates the powers of Holdings in play when she attacks, a rarely-used power, but...whatever! Might be useful some day. :)

For the reasons above, Erellika rules in TAV. She won't take up much space in your deck (I doubt you'll ever brush up against the 90-level limit by adding her), and you'll see her worth the first time you attack an opponent with a fat hand, but win because you hammer down the cheese first!

Next Time: TAV coup-de-grace king...Loup-Garou!

*"Cheese" was a term used fairly regularly in MTG around 1995-2000. It described red direct-damage cards, for the most part. I can't recall hearing the term lately, with all these danged kids playing the game. :)