TN Lone Wolf, the answer to your question "depends". It depends on the jacket thickness, where the bullet hits, what it encounters, how large the deer is, and the angle of your shot. Deer are really not hard to kill and their anitomical make up doesn't make them really "tough". Is the recoil & muzzle blast worth it question, now that is very subjective. Is it worth it to have a 460 that will push bullets faster & harder than a 45 Colt? I say yes due to the "possibilities" that round offers, but there is no deer that will be able to tell the difference ;-)