Lorwyn Eclipsed is having a rough time of it at the moment. With Prerelease just starting now, this should be the peak of excitement for the new set. This week, however, has seen several major reveals that have undermined the community’s hype levels. From an all-new Fallout Secret Lair Superdrop to some early Secrets of Strixhaven leaks, the distractions have come thick and fast. Today, we got yet another distraction in the form of Shark Shredder, Killer Clone, thanks to a rogue MTG Prerelease pack promo. While this leaked legend from the TMNT set could be a hoax, as is always the case with leaks, the card looks very legit.
Shark Shredder, Killer Clone MTG
While it gets off to a great start with that incredible “Shark Octopus Ninja” type line, Shark Shredder, Killer Clone doesn’t look like an amazing MTG card overall. Four mana for a 4/4 with no immediate impact is a tough sell these days, even in Commander.
Once it deals combat damage, however, the ability here is, admittedly, quite strong. Getting to unconditionally reanimate something from your opponent’s graveyard is solid, and there’s no end-of-turn sacrifice clause here, so you’ll often get to keep it for good.
As a Commander, Shark Shredder has a bit of potential. Combining the Reanimator and Theft archetypes, it offers something unique and interesting in the command zone. To make the best of it, you’ll need two things: ways of getting a lot of cards into your opponents’ graveyards, and ways to maximize Shark Shredder’s damage trigger.
For the former, your best bet is to lean heavily into mill and discard. There are a number of great mill options available to Mono-Black, including Mesmeric Orb, Grindstone, and Altar of Dementia. Discard-wise, you’ll want to prioritize pieces that hit the whole table at once. Cards like Bandit’s Talent and Tinybones Joins Up are ideal picks in this regard.
Once you’ve got some juicy targets lined up, the next step is to pull them all out ASAP. Granting Shark Shredder Double Strike via something like Fireshrieker is one way to do this, though it’s worth noting that the second creature you reanimate this way won’t deal damage right away due to how combat windows line up. Alternatively, you can double Shark Shredder’s damage trigger with something like Roaming Throne, which will let both creatures hit immediately.
A Real Team Player
With all of that said, you’ll probably want to keep Shark Shredder, Killer Clone in the 99 for the most part. While the card is powerful, it seems better as a standalone threat rather than a build-around in itself. Mono-Black is quite a restrictive color identity, too, so you’ll get more out of the card in other brews.
In terms of where Shark Shredder will see play, there are a number of solid homes. Decks that care about stealing creatures, like Jon Irenicus, Shattered One and Edea, Possessed Sorceress, are ideal fits for a start. Shark Shredder is one of the few ways of permanently snatching opposing creatures, so it adds a ton of value to these lists.
As a Ninja, Shark Shredder also makes a natural addition to the 99 of Ninja Typal decks. Yuriko, the Tiger’s Shadow is the obvious pick, but I expect to see it in the likes of Taeko, the Patient Avalanche as well. While it’s a bit on the pricey side, Shark Shredder offers a welcome high-impact creature for these lists, and it pairs beautifully with the Clone Ninjas, like Sakashima’s Student, as well.
Finally, Shark Shredder has real potential in Mill decks, too. In something like Phenax, God of Deception, it adds an unconventional way of leveraging all those milled cards. Instead of just waiting until you fully deck opponents out, you can use Shark Shredder to turn their milled-out troops against them. It may prove too clunky for more competitive tables, but at the lower brackets, there’s a ton to explore with Shark Shredder.
Stick with us here at mtgrocks.com: the best site for Magic: The Gathering coverage. Be sure to check out our deckbuilder for your next big brew!