I have a 6.5 Creedmoor. I have never considered the 22 centerfires to be adequate deer cartridges, yes, they'll most certainly kill a deer....on the other hand, so will a 22 rimfire. It has always been my belief that the 243 is the minimum deer cartridge, with the 270 being the perfect one. The 6.5 is a compromise, it has about as much killing power as a 270, with the recoil of the 243, and in a short action, which I prefer.
Having said that, no cartridge is magic, as the performance of ANY cartridge falls directly upon the man behind the gun. There are a host of cartridges that will work perfectly for deer sized game, and I've used a bunch of them. Just as there are those who are stupid enough to believe that the 6.5 Creedmore has some kind of magical properties that make it far better than anything else, there are those who are stupid enough to pretend it doesn't exist. It's here to stay, it's a good cartridge, just as there are a host of other good ones as well.
It has the same "magic" that all 6.5 rounds do: Long for caliber projectiles. That gives a 6.5 more push through quarry and makes it appear to hit above it's class, because it does. I have two 6.5x55's and a 6.5x284. All are tack drivers with most any load I work up. The only Creedmore I may make some room for in my safe would be an AR10 variety.
