#decimator beetle

[mtg-cards-hourly]

Decimator Beetle

Artist: Adrian Majkrzak TCG Player Link Scryfall Link EDHREC Link

[5ecardaday]

Alright, so for those Patron-chosen homebrews, the first was another MtG Conversion, in this case the Decimator Beetle from Amonkhet. Honestly a great choice, considering how this card works. It was definitely a challenge to bring this to life as a 5e creature, but in the end I made something that I think works very well.

A massive scarab with a shining black shell, the decimator beetle is a terrifying challenge for even seasoned veterans, let alone the unfortunate Crop Initiates who might have to face one during a trial. While their size alone makes them an intimidating foe, the beetle's true danger comes from its infectious bite, full of a powerful toxin capable of rendering otherwise healthy warriors totally unable to defend themselves.

Multiplying Infection. As with many of the insects which live in the deserts of Amonkhet, the decimator beetle is an omnivore, living on a mixed diet of meat and plant matter, showing no preference for one over the other. But in the wastes of the desert, plants are an uncommon sight, and many creatures must have a way of subduing others in the struggle to survive. The decimator beetle makes do with a powerful poison, created by an organ similar to the venom sac found in snakes and serpopards. Unlike a serpent however, the decimator beetle is capable of removing poison from other creatures as well, using its proboscis to suck the poison back into its poison sac. After it does so, before the poison has entirely left the proboscis, the beetle can bite another creature to inject them with a double-dose of the poison, making it twice as effective.

Representatives of a Lost God. The origin of the decimator beetles is unclear, given the lack of other beetles the same size. Scarabs are a common sight in the deserts of Amonkhet, but none grow even a fraction the size of the decimator beetle. Ancient stories, whispered in secret by wizened viziers and ancient sages, tell of legend in which the decimator beetles were made by one of the gods in their own image, a display of the grandeur of their power. This story seems unlikely to be true, as none of the five gods bear the head of a scarab, and none currently lay claim to the origin of the beast. But then the question remains, where did the decimator beetles come from? Why are they used in the trials as a challenge for initiates? And why are they only found near Naktamun, in the deserts just at the edge of the city, and no further? What reason could such creatures have to stick near to the city, when they are regularly hunted and captured?

[magicjudge]

What if I attack with a decimator beetle and none of my creatures has a -1/-1 counter, can I still put a -1/-1 counter on my opponents creature?

Yes.

When Decimator Beetle attacks, its second triggered ability triggers. When you put that trigger on the stack, you can target any creature you control and any creature an opponent controls. When the trigger resolves, it will remove a -1/-1 counter from the first creature if any are there and add one to the second creature. Putting a counter on the second target isn’t at all dependent on removing a counter from the first target.