Well, marine. You qualify on the range out to 500 yds with .223 to KILL a MAN. A .22-250 DOES effectivly kill deer every year for those who know how to shoot a gun accuratly and make well placed shots. I have one and love it. I also shoot the .243. Most of my .22-250 shots are head shots. I'm always practicing and do my best to only shoot when I "know" I'm going to hit the mark. But I will say the the avarege Joe should stick to something a little more potent than a .22-250. Like I said, practice, practice, practice. .243, 6mmAI, .308, 7mm-08, and yes, .270 are all great calibers for deer and yotes. I'd lean towards the .308 for an "all purpose" deer and chucks.