Mg 82 Al 8 Ca 10 was determined to be a pseudo-binary eutectic composition [liquid solidifying into ␣-Mg and (Mg,Al) 2 Ca in the Mg-Al-Ca ternary system with a eutectic melting temperature of 789 K]. A series of Mg x (Al 0.44 Ca 0.56 ) 100−x alloys, where 75 ഛ x ഛ 95, were cast into ⌽4 mm rods using copper mold casting. The eutectic alloy exhibits the highest fracture strength, f ס 609 MPa. For 75 ഛ x ഛ 79, the alloys have hypereutectic microstructures with Mg 2 Ca as the primary phase, and f is reduced together with diminishing plasticity. For hypoeutectic alloys with 86 ഛ x ഛ 95, the volume fraction of the primary ␣-Mg dendrites dispersed in the eutectic matrix increases with increasing x, resulting in a gradual decrease of the yield and fracture strengths but improved plastic strain to as large as 9%. The refined microstructures created in bulk samples via chill casting can lead to a good combination of strength and plasticity, with specific strength superior to commercial Mg alloys.