MTG Salvation

Introduction:

My take on this deck focuses on the normal artifact recycling that you get with Glissa, the Traitor, but it also ramps up to an end game where It That Betrays just takes over. Even though there isn't any synergy between the two cards themselves, there is a lot of overlap between many of the supporting cards that surround them both. This deck features the interactions and synergy between those supporting cards. Glissa provides the value engine that fuels the deck and It That Betrays finishes games like no other card in Magic.


Notes:

• Small Pox - It might seem like a simple spell, but it does so much in this deck. Bloodghast makes spells like Smallpox, Pox, Braids, Smoke Stack completely imbalanced. And Smallpox combined with It That Betrays can steal a 1 creature and 1 land per opponent. Also, with the artifact lands and Glissa in play, you can immediately return these lands to your hand.
• Karn, Silver Golem - Karn is an interesting card because you can kill opposing artifacts (to net cards with Glissa), you can animate your own artifacts to have extra creatures to sacrifice when needed, and with cards like Spine of Ish Sah, Karn can also be a late game finisher.
• Kamahl, Fist of Krosa - Similar to Karn, but for lands.
• Trading Post - This is just a value utility card where all 4 abilities over perform. The discard ability can enable reanimator spells while gaining life and with things like Bloodghast and Life from the Loam you get extra value. Goat tokens can simply act as extra blockers, but they can also help avoid friendly fire from Innocent Blood and Smallpox or they can simply be fodder for Skullclamp while you build up charge counters on Black Market. Trading Post is also one of the main sac outlets for cards like Ichor Wellspring, Mycosynth Wellspring, and Spine of Ish Sah.
• Springjack Pasture - More goat tokens for all the same synergies that Trading Post gives. Also worth noting that goat tokens from Trading Post can also be sacrificed to the pasture to produce even more mana when necessary.
• Death Cloud - Much like Living Death, it becomes absolutely absurd with It That Betrays.
• Life / Death, Dread Return - Between these 2 cards and Sheoldred, the reanimator cards in the deck are very good, but this isn't really a "reanimator" deck.
• Black Market - In multiplayer games, when mana burn no longer exists, in a deck that is killing things constantly, Black Market gets out of control real quick. There are plenty of places to spend the mana and if nothing else, the mana can always be used for a big Death Cloud to kill everyone else immediately or a big Genesis Wave to drop your entire deck on the battlefield.
• Army of the Damned - Especially with Black Market, the amount of black mana that this deck can produce can get out of control real quick. I felt like the deck needed a big finisher and I settled on Army of the Damned over some other x-spell. Also, With Black Market on the table (or with enough artifact mana), the flashback on Army of the Damned can be dropped the turn after a huge Death Cloud kills all creatures, lands, and cards in hand.
• Terastodon - Together with Beast Within, not only can you spawn creatures under your opponent's control (to activate Glissa's triggered ability), but you can target your own permanents like Ichor Wellspring, Mycosynth Wellspring, Spine of Ish Sah, Bloodghast, and Nihil Spellbomb. Or you could simply trade up on your goat tokens. Or if you have Darksteel Citadel in play, you can target it and spawn a beast for free.
• It That Betrays - Unlike the other, more famous eldrazi friends like Kozilek and Ulamog, It That Betrays doesn't reshuffle when it his the graveyard and it can be reanimated.
• Memnite, Ornithopter, Phyrexian Walker - Low impact cards that only make sense when combined with Glissa. Infinite blockers, extra bodies to soak up Innocent Blood or Smallpox, work with Phyrexia's Core and Trading Post, triggers all black enchantments, more free targets for Terastodon, endless permanents to sacrifice to Braids, can be sacrificed to pay Dread Return's flashback cost, and they help to turn on metalcraft for Mox Opal. There are many draw engines in the game and sometimes you just need to dump cards.
• Berserk - A fun kill spell in multiplayer where you can double the power of an opponent's creature as it attacks into another player, trampling over after blockers are declared and killing the berserk'd creature after combat. Also very good when used to pump any of your own deathtouch creatures.
• Revenge of the Hunted - This is kind of a pet card of mine. The main target for this spell is Glissa herself, making her a 9/9 first strike, death touch, trample creature with lure. Wurmcoil Engine and Grave Titan are other good targets just as other deathtouch creatures.
• Ritual of the Machine - Another one of my pet cards. The black control magic.

Weaknesses:

• Sigarda, Host of Herons - This is basically the nightmare match-up. There are only a few answers for Sigarda in the deck, so you'll have to rely on the beat down plan to get the win against her. Fortunately for you, this deck has a decent beat down plan even without all the sacrifice effects.
• Bribery, Control Magic, Animate Dead - Facing off against an opposing It That Betrays might be the worst thing ever for this deck. He's not impossible to deal with, but it's going to be rough with him on the board.

Omissions:

• Gaea's Cradle, Cabal Coffers - Unlike other green/black decks, most of the mana ramp is generated through artifacts in this deck. These lands just don't do enough consistently when I'm playing cards like Smallpox, Pox, and Death Cloud.

Possibles:

• All is Dust - Not sure if this deck needs a 3rd sweeper (which hits all my black enchantments in the process). As the deck stands right now, I think both Living Death and Death Cloud are both better in this deck.
• Living Death - Recently taken out of my deck. I don't think I actually need this card to win. I have some good creatures, but not a particularly high creature count in the deck. Unless I exile everyone's graveyards, I'm likely giving opponents some extra value.

Quote from Stefan

All is dust is a nice sacrifice card for you with It That Betrays.

Yeah, I was thinking abut All is Dust earlier.

But I think both Living Death and Death Cloud are better for the deck as sweepers. If I need a third after some testing, I'll probably put it in.

Mana Vault --> Darksteel Axe Bone Shredder
Grim Monolith --> Darksteel Ingot

I know the overall power level of the deck drops with these changes, but I've been having a lot of fun using Beast Within or Terastodon on my Darksteel Citadel and just wanted more targets.

Ingot can also be animated with Karn, Silver Golem for an indestructible creature. And axe can get some extra value with Disciple of Bolas.

Also added all 4 green and black cycle lands for extra draw and extra value with Life from the Loam.


edit: I've instead decided to go with the Ornithopter, Phyrexian Walker, Memnite, and Shield Sphere package. They do a lot of things (see the changes I made to the OP), but they can also be used as Terastadon targets in a pinch. When Glissa is involved, when creatures are dying all the time, these guys can do a lot of work.

Great list! Are their any new cards u have considered adding?

Quote from Ninja Bob

I've instead decided to go with the Ornithopter, Phyrexian Walker, Memnite, and Shield Sphere package. They do a lot of things (see the changes I made to the OP), but they can also be used as Terastadon targets in a pinch.

Unless I am misunderstanding you, they can't be used as Terastodon targets since it only targets noncreature permanents.

I really like the sacrifice theme you build around your glissa
I think i might try sth like it.

Have you updated the deck recently?
I think there might be some intresting cards in the new zendikar block like
Vampiric Rites
Smothering Abomination
Catacomb Sifter
or even
Conduit of Ruin