The same holds true for merfolk
Even among the special units only Ramza, Cloud, and Orlandou are exceptions, with the first two having the female MP/MA bonus in addition to their male HP/PA bonus, and the latter having one of the few classes that increases your magical power growth when leveling up, which makes them the only ones naturally good at fulfilling a physical/magical hydrid role
Getting around indestructible is always nice to have
This was a pretty big advancement for creature tokens because it meant they were being used not just in individual card design, but in large set structure design
We can observe a relationship between cards and life total
Bloodbraid Challenger is close enough to Bloodbraid Elf to not stain the name, and at a mana value one greater, with the ability to escape, the Challenger hits differently and I'm OK with that