Fiendslayer Paladin or Fabled hero?
Deck Help forum
Posted on Sept. 25, 2013, 8:37 p.m. by Goody
For some reason I'm not very impressed with Fiendslayer Paladin , yet it's an $8 card. Perhaps I'm underestimating its staying power, but to me it seems like white (especially GW) has better options, like Fabled Hero .
My current Theros deck is called The Selesnya Paradox, and I have Hero in over Paladin. Is Fiendslayer Paladin better in the mainboard? I have it in the sideboard because I'm so loaded up on 3-drops, and it seems lackluster against many decks.
Tell me why I'm right or wrong!
vampirelazarus says... #3
the first strike on Fiendslayer Paladin + lifelink is incredible. And as stated above, he is really difficult to remove.
September 25, 2013 8:53 p.m.
One has a better ceiling and the other has a better floor. Fabled Hero excels when you're successfully targeting it and not getting punished for it, but really almost any creature is going to do well in that scenario. Fiendslayer Paladin dodges most of the removal, making it a safer target for your enchantments and combat tricks, and it fights nearly as well.
September 25, 2013 9:13 p.m.
Fiendslayer Paladin Just look at that guy, how can you not want him on your side.
September 25, 2013 9:20 p.m.
Knight of Meadowgrain was an extremely powerful card, and red and black are the colours with the most abundant removal. This makes paladin a force to be reckoned with as the only removal spells that can kill him right now are Turn , Supreme Verdict , Anger of the Gods , overloaded Mizzium Mortars and Detention Sphere , plus some Prey Upon -style effects and Glare of Heresy . Mizzium won't come until at least turn 6, verdict is a boardwipe, and well... verdict, it kills everything, d-sphere is solid, and all these spells kill the hero too remember, but the thing is, any burn, Abrupt Decay , Doom Blade , which are all common choices in rakdos, jund, junk, gruul etc. don't work, and 2 first strike lifelink can make racing you a nightmare.
September 25, 2013 9:35 p.m.
CaptainCaveman says... #7
Why can't you just use both? Just Play with the numbers a little.
September 25, 2013 9:55 p.m.
I have too many 3-drops, don't wanna lose consistency with the others. I just want Fabled Hero because I have Gods Willing to cover it (as well as triggering heroic) and because I loved Silverblade Paladin so much and he lead to such explosive games. He'll take more building around, I'm just not sure if it's worth it :(
September 25, 2013 10 p.m.
Not all 2/2 double strikers for 3 are created equal. Fabled Hero is not Silverblade Paladin and it's especially not Mirran Crusader . While the body is similar, the difference is that Mirran Crusader also protected itself and Silverblade Paladin offered a psuedo-haste effect you could deploy while they are tapped out.
Fabled Hero is more like Fencing Ace , which has seen little to no play outside of hexproof decks as an 'all-in hope they don't have removal' fallback plan.
September 25, 2013 10:14 p.m.
RickyHoeppner says... #10
I had to say something, and it looks like its been said about 5 times, but Fiendslayer Paladin is possibly one of the best humans ever printed. Evades red or black kill spells (most kill spells are red or black), and fiendslayer is really the guy you wanna be putting your enchantmnents and counters on because if he gets in the 4-5 toughness range he would be nearly impossible to get rid of.
September 25, 2013 10:45 p.m.
Perhaps Fabled Hero could be brought in against removal-light decks, or decks that are creature-heavy? Fiendslayer Paladin seems too weak without support, any 3 toughness creature beats it.
September 25, 2013 10:51 p.m.
RickyHoeppner says... #12
by the way I do still love fabled hero and will probably find a few spots in my human deck for him.
September 25, 2013 10:54 p.m.
Cobthecobbler says... #13
You have 9 spells that will target Fabled Hero, 4 of which (Selesnya Charm) you might not find yourself using to target anything.
Paladin is a great 3-drop. He's incredibly difficult to get rid of, and he synergizes with Archangel of Thune while providing you with sustain to last a little longer than you normally would. He avoids the two most common colors for removal, and early on that first strike is going to matter. You can later on protect him with Gods Willing and he lasts longer and nets you more of an advantage.
Overall, the difference between these two is whether or not you have the cards to support the Hero. You have a 9/60 chance of drawing a card that will benefit the Heroic mechanic of Hero, which you also need on the field. Hero also dies to Shock and Lightning Strike , which are common cheap burn spells. Hero can get huge fast, but you have to have the sustenance to support him. Having him as a 2/2 double striker makes him comparable to Fencing Ace if anything, definitely not Silverblade Paladin though.
September 25, 2013 11:16 p.m.
RickyHoeppner says... #14
man I wish silverblade wasnt rotating... comboing him with Angelic Overseer is just amazing.
September 25, 2013 11:18 p.m.
Fabled Hero
is much better with heroic triggers help...however on his own he isn't terrible. He's almost Loxodon Smiter
s 5-8.
Fiendslayer Paladin is very good as well, however I would relegate him to the SB, against aggro and removal heavier decks, since you're aggro.
sylvannos says... #2
Fiendslayer Paladin is incredibly hard to kill. They can't hit it with Doom Blade , Lightning Strike , Dreadbore , Viper's Kiss , etc. He also has lifelink, making him synergize well with Archangel of Thune .
Fabled Hero , on the other hand, dies to Shock the moment you try and enchant him with something.
September 25, 2013 8:42 p.m.