MTG Artist Spotlight: Top Cards by Falkenrath Exterminator's Illustrator

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Falkenrath Exterminator by Winona Nelson, MTG card art

Image courtesy of Scryfall.com

MTG Artist Spotlight: Winona Nelson — Notable Cards from a Vampire Archer's Palette

If you’ve ever watched a Falkenrath skirmish unfold on a tabletop, you know there’s more to the moment than just numbers. Winona Nelson’s art brings a velocity to these frames that makes every swing of a bow feel like a whisper through the night. In this artist spotlight, we zoom in on Falkenrath Exterminator, a red-minded creature from the March of the Machine Commander era, and reflect on how Nelson’s signature touch helps this card stand out among a sea of red spells and vampiric ambushes 🧙‍♂️🔥.

Meet the Illustrator: Winona Nelson

Winona Nelson’s portfolio in Magic merges Gothic mood with kinetic clarity. Her work on vampire-oriented characters leans into the tension between hunter and hunted, making even a simple archer feel like a story in motion. Nelson’s lines cut clean, while her color choices—dominant reds punctuated with shadowy undertones—evoke danger and elegance in equal measure. When you pair her aesthetic with a red creature that thrives on combat-induced growth, the result is a card that reads like a scene from a midnight skirmish painted in broad, expressive strokes 🎨.

Nelson’s vampires don’t just stand still; they strike with purpose, and their gaze often tells you more about the battlefield than any set of numbers could.

Spotlight Card: Falkenrath Exterminator

From the March of the Machine Commander set, Falkenrath Exterminator is a red, uncommon creature that embodies the quick-burst, counter-accumulation vibe of a nimble predator. It’s a Vampire Archer—swift, lethal, and a touch theatrical in its execution. Here are the card’s core traits, and why Nelson’s art makes them sing:

  • Mana cost: {1}{R} — a nimble two-mana commitment that fits neatly into fast, aggressive builds.
  • Type: Creature — Vampire Archer — a combination that leans into both the bite of red and the cunning of vampires.
  • P/T: 1/1 — modest on the surface, but the real power emerges through its abilities.
  • Oracle text:
    • Whenever this creature deals combat damage to a player, put a +1/+1 counter on it.
    • {2}{R}: This creature deals damage to target creature equal to the number of +1/+1 counters on this creature.
  • Color identity: Red — all the classic hallmarks of fast, direct aggression and tricky burn support.
  • Rarity: Uncommon — a spicy pick in decks that can leverage its incremental growth and late-game reach.
  • Set: March of the Machine Commander (MOC) — a Commander-focused release that favors legendary storytelling, big splashy effects, and memorable commander-friendly interactions.
  • Flavor and lore: The Falkenrath name carries the night-walking, predatory court vibe—Nelson’s depiction amplifies that sense of swift, shadowed menace as the archer hones in on a target with every draw of the bowstring.
  • Artwork and feel: Nelson’s composition uses negative space and a vivid red palette to emphasize motion, danger, and the predator’s precise attention to its mark.

On the battlefield, Falkenrath Exterminator rewards a player who leans into incremental growth. The first ability—putting a +1/+1 counter on the Exterminator whenever it deals combat damage to a player—lets the card amplify its own threat over time. That growth fuels the second line of defense and offense: with 2R, you can direct a damaging blow at a target creature equal to the number of +1/+1 counters already on Exterminator. It’s a self-stoking engine that can pressure an opposing blocker and, eventually, swing for meaningful damage even in a compact frame 🌀⚔️.

Nelson’s visual design amplifies these mechanics. The illustration places the archer in a poised, almost predatorily calm stance, bow drawn, eyes locked on a distant threat. You can feel the moment of decision—the split-second between letting an arrow fly or using it to juice the creature’s damage output. The mood is quintessentially red: quick, risky, and excitingly kinetic. It’s the kind of card that invites a narrative: a hunter testing the limits of a battlefield, one precise shot at a time, while the shadows creep closer.

Why Nelson Elevates This Card

The synergy between mechanic and illustration matters, and Nelson consistently delivers that tighter alignment between art and function. Falkenrath Exterminator looks like a creature that would actually grow more dangerous as it lands blows; Nelson’s composition makes that sense of growth almost tactile. This isn’t just a stat-line; it’s a moment you can picture as you draw, play, and pivot your strategy on a crowded kitchen-table night or a sprawling EDH table 🧙‍♂️🔥.

Beyond Exterminator, Nelson’s “top cards” in the broader sense come from her ability to balance swift aggression with a dash of theatrical menace. In a world where commander games hinge on tempo and synergy, her art anchors those decisions with a sense of narrative momentum. If you’re building around red aggression or vampire-themed lines, her visuals serve as a constant reminder of why we love the color pie—risk, reward, and a little diabolical charm all rolled into one card frame 💎🎲.

For collectors and players who appreciate the cross-section of gameplay design and art, Falkenrath Exterminator offers a compact case study: a well-tuned two-mana creature that scales through combat and punishes bodies that over-commit to blockers. It’s a card that rewards planning as much as it rewards speed—a quintessential Winona Nelson piece that manages to be both intimate in its details and grand in its battlefield implications.

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