Unlike most reanimator decks, this deck is designed to steal creatures from the opponent's graveyards. The multiple sac effects and Black Sun's Zenith help with this. This deck usually doesn't have that much trouble keeping creatures off the board, but usually has a lot of trouble dealing with tokens. The lone Barter in Blood is left over from when I used to run more, and will likely be replaced with another Black Sun's Zenith or something. I might replace Black Sun's Zenith with Damnation, which I own four copies of but switch between multiple decks. The interaction between Fleshbag Marauder and Unholy Grotto has been fairly broken and may be removed.
Your creatures seem very random. Stuff like Rotlung Reanimator just seems worthless. What's he there for, to pitch to Fleshbag Marauder? That just seems very weak. I personally wouldn't cut the Fleshbag Marauder + Unholy Grotto combo because of how sick it is with Phyrexian Arena you need need to keep people off of creatures with a deck like this.
What I would like to see is more re-uable reanimation effects. Beacon of Unrest, Geth, Lord of the Vault, Nezumi Graverobber, Ink-Eyes, Servant of Oni, etc. Right now your deck is fairly weak against removal, since you only have a few cards that can realistically win the game. Anyone playing a combo of any kind/anyone who can establish some sort of lock can probably race you in the end.
No, Rotlung Reanimator is not there to sacrifice to Fleshbag Marauder. I want Fleshbag Marauder in my graveyard at all times. Rotlung Reanimator is there as a good defense, especially with Death Baron out. He also used to serve the purpose of being sac fodder when I ran four Barter in Blood, but that's not relevant anymore. I do manage to get multiple of him out more often than you'd think, though, and get two tokens when he dies, instead of one.
My main qualm with the Fleshbag Marauder/Unholy Grotto combo is that it seems a little too good for my meta. Most decks I play against don't stand a chance once I resolve it. I guess I'll leave it for now.
I suppose I could try removing the Rotlung Reanimators and run some Nezumi Graverobbers and perhaps something else. Ink-Eyes, Servant of Oni in particular seems like it would work quite well. This will weaken my defenses a fair bit though. Most of those cards you mentioned take a while to get active. Nezumi Graverobber can flip quickly if I can get him out early. Otherwise, he is almost useless late-game. Though if I do manage to flip him, that instant speed repeatable reanimation is quite nice. I would usually use the auras first since they are far cheaper, but the option to hold back on them while using Nighteyes's ability is very useful.
The lack of the Rotlung Reanimators will weaken Death Baron a bit, but he's still useful with the other tokens and helping Bone Dancer get through. Anything else you think I should remove or add?
I suppose my reasoning for adding some "slower" cards is that you can afford to field them. The Marauder "lock" is good way to keep them off of creatures, and so from there all you need are some solid ways of winning the game. The problem with the auras, in my mind, is that every piece of spot removal will be headed your way. It's not like anyone else will have strong targets for it. As such, your reanimation spells that do stick should matter. Besides, it's not like you have field a plethora of them. Beacon of Rest is a solid 1-of and will ensure that your deck will never run out of threats. The other cards can all be used as 2-ofs to give the deck some mid-late game power.
Rotlung Reanimator just doesn't strike me as being very strong. 2/2 bodies seem fairly irrelevant, so I feel like it's only useful if you have multiples out or if you have Baron. Even then it only seems "fine." I dunno, it just doesn't seem like it brings much to a zombie deck.
What I will say is that Nezumi Graverobber is probably easier to flip than you think. There's typically someone with a fairly empty GY, and it only takes a few turns of spare mana to get him online. He's also a powerful disruption tool in general, as he hoses GY-based strategies fairly well. I don't know how relevant that is for you, but it's worth noting.
As far as the deck in general is concerned, I really like it. Phyrexian Arena, Grave Pact, BSZ and Syphon Flesh are all amazing. Barter in Blood and Damnation are awesome too, so it's not like you're proposing the addition of weak removal. And, as I've already said, I really like the Grotto + Marauder plan in general, especially in decks with Arena. It's like drawing an Innocent Blood and a random card every turn.
The lock works well, but keep in mind that I only have two Unholy Grotto. That, and most people would stop playing me if I used that combo every game. My deck usually doesn't reach the point where it would run out of threats and Beacon of Unrest would matter. I would have either of won, or the Phyrexian Arenas would have killed me by that point.
Rotlung Reanimator is useful in the ways I already mentioned. Plus, the fact that he leaves behind a token means I get two creatures from one card, and something is still left after a wrath. Nonetheless, I will remove him for now and try what you suggested. I'll give Nezumi Graverobber a try and see how it works out.
I'm glad you like how my deck works. It is pretty fun to play. The sac effects scale well in multiplayer, and I usually have a lot of reanimation targets. I often end up making myself the number one target quickly, though.
Regardless of how many bodies it leaves, 2/2s just seem like they'd be irrelevant. I can't imagine them ever trading with anything, and so I'd imagine that they'd only be useful with Baron kicking around. Producing some chumpers just doesn't seem very powerful to me.
If lifeloss is an issue, you could consider Exsanguinate. It's a fantastic win condition and will ensure that your draw spells won't off you. Leechridden Swamp would be a nice addition to the mana base now that I think about it, s maybe you could even include a slight drain theme to the deck. Cards like these card beat 10 players as easily as they can take down 2, which is great in a multiplayer situation.
Unlike most reanimator decks, this deck is designed to steal creatures from the opponent's graveyards. The multiple sac effects and Black Sun's Zenith help with this. This deck usually doesn't have that much trouble keeping creatures off the board, but usually has a lot of trouble dealing with tokens. The lone Barter in Blood is left over from when I used to run more, and will likely be replaced with another Black Sun's Zenith or something. I might replace Black Sun's Zenith with Damnation, which I own four copies of but switch between multiple decks. The interaction between Fleshbag Marauder and Unholy Grotto has been fairly broken and may be removed.
Any suggestions for improvements?
What I would like to see is more re-uable reanimation effects. Beacon of Unrest, Geth, Lord of the Vault, Nezumi Graverobber, Ink-Eyes, Servant of Oni, etc. Right now your deck is fairly weak against removal, since you only have a few cards that can realistically win the game. Anyone playing a combo of any kind/anyone who can establish some sort of lock can probably race you in the end.
Guilds of Ravnica - Commander 2018 - Core 2019 - Battlebond - Dominaria - Rivals of Ixalan - Ixalan - Commander 2017 - Hour of Devastation - Amonket - Aether Revolt - Commander 2016 - Kaladesh - Conspiracy 2 - Eldritch Moon - Shadows Over Innistrad - Oath of the Gatewatch - Commander 2015 - Battle for Zendikar - Magic Origins - Dragons of Tarkir
Green - Blue - Red - White - Gold
My main qualm with the Fleshbag Marauder/Unholy Grotto combo is that it seems a little too good for my meta. Most decks I play against don't stand a chance once I resolve it. I guess I'll leave it for now.
I suppose I could try removing the Rotlung Reanimators and run some Nezumi Graverobbers and perhaps something else. Ink-Eyes, Servant of Oni in particular seems like it would work quite well. This will weaken my defenses a fair bit though. Most of those cards you mentioned take a while to get active. Nezumi Graverobber can flip quickly if I can get him out early. Otherwise, he is almost useless late-game. Though if I do manage to flip him, that instant speed repeatable reanimation is quite nice. I would usually use the auras first since they are far cheaper, but the option to hold back on them while using Nighteyes's ability is very useful.
The lack of the Rotlung Reanimators will weaken Death Baron a bit, but he's still useful with the other tokens and helping Bone Dancer get through. Anything else you think I should remove or add?
Rotlung Reanimator just doesn't strike me as being very strong. 2/2 bodies seem fairly irrelevant, so I feel like it's only useful if you have multiples out or if you have Baron. Even then it only seems "fine." I dunno, it just doesn't seem like it brings much to a zombie deck.
What I will say is that Nezumi Graverobber is probably easier to flip than you think. There's typically someone with a fairly empty GY, and it only takes a few turns of spare mana to get him online. He's also a powerful disruption tool in general, as he hoses GY-based strategies fairly well. I don't know how relevant that is for you, but it's worth noting.
As far as the deck in general is concerned, I really like it. Phyrexian Arena, Grave Pact, BSZ and Syphon Flesh are all amazing. Barter in Blood and Damnation are awesome too, so it's not like you're proposing the addition of weak removal. And, as I've already said, I really like the Grotto + Marauder plan in general, especially in decks with Arena. It's like drawing an Innocent Blood and a random card every turn.
Guilds of Ravnica - Commander 2018 - Core 2019 - Battlebond - Dominaria - Rivals of Ixalan - Ixalan - Commander 2017 - Hour of Devastation - Amonket - Aether Revolt - Commander 2016 - Kaladesh - Conspiracy 2 - Eldritch Moon - Shadows Over Innistrad - Oath of the Gatewatch - Commander 2015 - Battle for Zendikar - Magic Origins - Dragons of Tarkir
Green - Blue - Red - White - Gold
Rotlung Reanimator is useful in the ways I already mentioned. Plus, the fact that he leaves behind a token means I get two creatures from one card, and something is still left after a wrath. Nonetheless, I will remove him for now and try what you suggested. I'll give Nezumi Graverobber a try and see how it works out.
I'm glad you like how my deck works. It is pretty fun to play. The sac effects scale well in multiplayer, and I usually have a lot of reanimation targets. I often end up making myself the number one target quickly, though.
If lifeloss is an issue, you could consider Exsanguinate. It's a fantastic win condition and will ensure that your draw spells won't off you. Leechridden Swamp would be a nice addition to the mana base now that I think about it, s maybe you could even include a slight drain theme to the deck. Cards like these card beat 10 players as easily as they can take down 2, which is great in a multiplayer situation.
Guilds of Ravnica - Commander 2018 - Core 2019 - Battlebond - Dominaria - Rivals of Ixalan - Ixalan - Commander 2017 - Hour of Devastation - Amonket - Aether Revolt - Commander 2016 - Kaladesh - Conspiracy 2 - Eldritch Moon - Shadows Over Innistrad - Oath of the Gatewatch - Commander 2015 - Battle for Zendikar - Magic Origins - Dragons of Tarkir
Green - Blue - Red - White - Gold