Its a staple in midrange and control shells like Death and Taxes or Azorius Control, and the lifelink also helps to stabilize against aggressive decks when you cast it for its full price
Sure, instant would make it a whole lot better and put any interest left in Terminate to bed but if you really want some instant removal play a Doom Blade or a Lightning Bolt as well, it's not like your ever going to not play the Dreadbore
And from there, we know how many copies there are of each mythic, rare, uncommon and common from those packs
When were talking about dealing damage, several MTG sets buffed this strategy, like Ravnica Allegiance , through the spectacle mechanic, and Bloomburrow , through lizards
Some of them still exist to this day in some shape or form, but not necessarily as Trading Card Games.