The goal is to slowly suck resources away from your opponent (or quickly, it really doesn't matter) and gain an advantage until you're in a zone where you can interact positively with your opponents, but they can do nothing but react negatively.
Find your lock pieces, set em down, and force your opponents to react to them. Mass Discard works well, Syphon Mind will do wonders here. Recurrable resources are also equally important - a Crucible of Worlds + Strip/Waste opens new opportunites, as well as giving your Bloodghast/Clamp engine new life. Gravecrawler is the newest addition to this pile of fun.
I personally think GB/x is the way to go for this style of play, but mono black works well too. Sheoldred would be an excellent general for this, provided you run a bit of ramp.
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Tantarus: It didn't make the gaka greifer level, so it should be fine
Thanks Gaka. I feel like there's some stax artifacts I'm missing. Also would Sheoldred be any good if i'm having to sac lands and stuff? I'm consider Xiahou Dun, the One Eyed.
Are necrogen mists and oppression good eventhough they hit me too? What about Painful Quandary? If anyone is interested in seeing the deck I'm trying to convert and giving me feedback on cards to add and cards to cut, it's the Xiahou Dun list in my sig under WIPs. I'd really appreciate it.
Are necrogen mists and oppression good eventhough they hit me too? What about Painful Quandary? If anyone is interested in seeing the deck I'm trying to convert and giving me feedback on cards to add and cards to cut, it's the Xiahou Dun list in my sig under WIPs. I'd really appreciate it.
The most powerful stax effects will generally hit everyone. The key is to make it hit you in an overwhelmingly negligible way (via token production, graveyard recursion, etc.), while it hits your opponents in an overwhelmingly costly way (forcing them to sac lands, win-cons, etc.).
I've found Nether Traitor and the like to be really useful in stax-type decks, and you might want to consider Pox and Deathcloud-type effects, too. YMMV.
Yeah I've made Stax with Anowan back in the day. Personally I thought my deck was very good. Couple tips:
1) Play cheap. Your converted mana cost should be 0-4, so basically you want fast artifacts that help you power out more enchantments and permanents.
2) Necropotence. The deck should be an early-mid game lock, you need to be able to play your spells fast and continue to refill your hand & as far as I know this is the only card that effectively breaks this deck in half.
3) Tutors. Run all of them from Demonic to Diabolic Intent, Beseech, etc.
4) Resilience. You'll get a lot of hate, so resilience to board sweeps mid-game is cruc. Guardian Beast is your Darksteel Forge for the deck if you can afford one, he'll protect you from disks. Yawgmoth's Will will also be your best friend... now usually in most EDH I'd say no, but if your decks built around cheap artifacts like crypt, Sol Ring, etc. this card is your best friend to bounce right back I've found.
This was my list for reference, if you'd like to compare notes
MONO BLACK -- EDH
02/19/2010
[GENERAL] Anowon, The Ruin Sage (1)
[LAND] (38)
-Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth
-Shizo, Death's Storehouse
-Spawning Pool
-Bojuka Bog
-Cabal Coffers
-Cabal Pit
-Volrath's Stronghold
-Winding Canyon
-Strip Mine
-Wasteland
-The Tabernacle at Pendrell Vale
-Maze of Ith
-Swamp x 26
[ARTIFACTS] (17)
-Mana Crypt
-Overflowing Chalice
-Sol Ring
-Mana Vault
-Thran Dynamo
-Darksteel Ingot
-Gauntlet of Power
-Sensei's DT
-Skullclamp
-Lightning Greaves
-SoFI
-SoLS
-Journeyer's Kite
-Crucible of Worlds
-Smokestack
-Vedalken Orrery
-Nevyniral's Disk
[CREATURES] (19)
-Bloodghast
-Bane of the Living
-Mindslicer
-Royal Assassin
-Graveborn Muse
-Solemn Simulacrum
-Guardian Beast
-Braids, Cabal Minion
-Magus of the Abyss
-Magus of the Coffers
-Chainer, Dementia Master
-Endrek Sahr, Master Breeder
-Duplicant
-Guiltfeeder
-Avatar of Woe
-Dread
-Myojinn of Night's Reach
-Sundering Titan
[SORCERY] (13)
-Demonic Tutor
-Diabolic Tutor
-Diabolic Intent
-Beseech the Queen
-Mind Twist
-Promise of Power
-Beacon of Unrest
-Damnation
-Yawgmoth's Will
-Pox
-Curse of the Cabal
-Repay in Kind
-Suffer the Past
Thanks Gaka. I feel like there's some stax artifacts I'm missing. Also would Sheoldred be any good if i'm having to sac lands and stuff? I'm consider Xiahou Dun, the One Eyed.
Couldn't remember his name at that late hour, so i didn't type it in..
But yeah, if you've got a Xiahou, he makes an excellent stax general, because I hear recursion is good.
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Tantarus: It didn't make the gaka greifer level, so it should be fine
Gaka I know you mentioned trying it in a G/B deck...What about Nath of the Gilt-Leaf? Hand disruption to make tokens to sack to the smokestack.
That's the guy I was thinking of. Naturally disruptive, highly resilient. Nath is a pretty fearsome general, because he takes over the game really quickly.
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Tantarus: It didn't make the gaka greifer level, so it should be fine
I already have a Nath deck in my sig and it's does really well with just discard and contamination. I wanted to make my Xiahou Dun deck into stax because I've found it's too similar to my other black deck
Are necrogen mists and oppression good eventhough they hit me too? What about Painful Quandary? If anyone is interested in seeing the deck I'm trying to convert and giving me feedback on cards to add and cards to cut, it's the Xiahou Dun list in my sig under WIPs. I'd really appreciate it.
Quick Caveat: I play strictly Multiplayer edh for fun. But my personal Word of advice...Stay away from Painful Quandary. There's just something about it that screams, Kill Me. Kill me NOW. Everytime I've ever cast it I've died before it's my turn again. Typically the card just sits in my hand because I don't want to get rage killed.
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Thanks in advanced.
Thank You Rivenor/Miraculous Recovery Studios!
GGGSKamahl's Band of Monstosities SGGG
RRRSFreaki-Kiki, The Goblin DoucheSRRR
BBGGNath, Raper of Hands and Spewer of Tokens!GGBB
BUGDamia, Sage of AnswersBUG
WIPs
BBBXiahou Dun, the Bitter Stax Enabling BastardBBB
On Break
BBBSKagemaro, First to RetireSBBB
BBBThe Walking DeadBBB
UUUSTeferi Combo PrimerSUUU
The goal is to slowly suck resources away from your opponent (or quickly, it really doesn't matter) and gain an advantage until you're in a zone where you can interact positively with your opponents, but they can do nothing but react negatively.
Find your lock pieces, set em down, and force your opponents to react to them. Mass Discard works well, Syphon Mind will do wonders here. Recurrable resources are also equally important - a Crucible of Worlds + Strip/Waste opens new opportunites, as well as giving your Bloodghast/Clamp engine new life. Gravecrawler is the newest addition to this pile of fun.
I personally think GB/x is the way to go for this style of play, but mono black works well too. Sheoldred would be an excellent general for this, provided you run a bit of ramp.
EDH:
RNorin the WaryR <-Link! (Primer - Mono Red Control)
GUEdric, Spymaster of TrestUG <- Link! (Mini-Primer - Dredge)
Duel Commander:
WUGeist of Saint TraftUW <- Link! (Aggro-Control)
BGSkullbriar, the Walking GraveGB <- Link! (Aggro)
BUGDamia, Sage of StoneGUB <- Link! (Extinction Control)
Church of the Wary
Thank You Rivenor/Miraculous Recovery Studios!
GGGSKamahl's Band of Monstosities SGGG
RRRSFreaki-Kiki, The Goblin DoucheSRRR
BBGGNath, Raper of Hands and Spewer of Tokens!GGBB
BUGDamia, Sage of AnswersBUG
WIPs
BBBXiahou Dun, the Bitter Stax Enabling BastardBBB
On Break
BBBSKagemaro, First to RetireSBBB
BBBThe Walking DeadBBB
UUUSTeferi Combo PrimerSUUU
Thank You Rivenor/Miraculous Recovery Studios!
GGGSKamahl's Band of Monstosities SGGG
RRRSFreaki-Kiki, The Goblin DoucheSRRR
BBGGNath, Raper of Hands and Spewer of Tokens!GGBB
BUGDamia, Sage of AnswersBUG
WIPs
BBBXiahou Dun, the Bitter Stax Enabling BastardBBB
On Break
BBBSKagemaro, First to RetireSBBB
BBBThe Walking DeadBBB
UUUSTeferi Combo PrimerSUUU
The most powerful stax effects will generally hit everyone. The key is to make it hit you in an overwhelmingly negligible way (via token production, graveyard recursion, etc.), while it hits your opponents in an overwhelmingly costly way (forcing them to sac lands, win-cons, etc.).
I've found Nether Traitor and the like to be really useful in stax-type decks, and you might want to consider Pox and Deathcloud-type effects, too. YMMV.
R.I.P. Sundering Titan (6/20/12) and Braids, Cabal Minion (9/12/14)
Board clearing sorceries: death cloud, pox
Permanent based Stax effects: call to the grave, braids, cabal minion,
Cards to make the above cards more one sided: wound reflection, reassembling skeleton, Geth, lord of the vault, grave pact, and mana doublers.
Kemba | Linvala | Talrand | Geth | Krenko | Zada | Patron of the Orochi | Medomai | Athreos | Gisela | Trostani | Nin | Silumgar | Kaervek | Jarad | Xenagos | Sydri | Narset | Roon | Zurgo | Ghave | Marath | Uril | Tasigur | Animar | Riku | Riku | Sek'Kuar | Cromat
amazingly epic sig courtesy of DarkNightCavalier at Heroes of the Planes.
1) Play cheap. Your converted mana cost should be 0-4, so basically you want fast artifacts that help you power out more enchantments and permanents.
2) Necropotence. The deck should be an early-mid game lock, you need to be able to play your spells fast and continue to refill your hand & as far as I know this is the only card that effectively breaks this deck in half.
3) Tutors. Run all of them from Demonic to Diabolic Intent, Beseech, etc.
4) Resilience. You'll get a lot of hate, so resilience to board sweeps mid-game is cruc. Guardian Beast is your Darksteel Forge for the deck if you can afford one, he'll protect you from disks. Yawgmoth's Will will also be your best friend... now usually in most EDH I'd say no, but if your decks built around cheap artifacts like crypt, Sol Ring, etc. this card is your best friend to bounce right back I've found.
This was my list for reference, if you'd like to compare notes
MONO BLACK -- EDH
02/19/2010
[GENERAL] Anowon, The Ruin Sage (1)
[LAND] (38)
-Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth
-Shizo, Death's Storehouse
-Spawning Pool
-Bojuka Bog
-Cabal Coffers
-Cabal Pit
-Volrath's Stronghold
-Winding Canyon
-Strip Mine
-Wasteland
-The Tabernacle at Pendrell Vale
-Maze of Ith
-Swamp x 26
[ARTIFACTS] (17)
-Mana Crypt
-Overflowing Chalice
-Sol Ring
-Mana Vault
-Thran Dynamo
-Darksteel Ingot
-Gauntlet of Power
-Sensei's DT
-Skullclamp
-Lightning Greaves
-SoFI
-SoLS
-Journeyer's Kite
-Crucible of Worlds
-Smokestack
-Vedalken Orrery
-Nevyniral's Disk
[CREATURES] (19)
-Bloodghast
-Bane of the Living
-Mindslicer
-Royal Assassin
-Graveborn Muse
-Solemn Simulacrum
-Guardian Beast
-Braids, Cabal Minion
-Magus of the Abyss
-Magus of the Coffers
-Chainer, Dementia Master
-Endrek Sahr, Master Breeder
-Duplicant
-Guiltfeeder
-Avatar of Woe
-Dread
-Myojinn of Night's Reach
-Sundering Titan
[ENCHANTMENTS] (13)
-Necropotence
-Phyrexian Arena
-Mind's Eye
-Bitterblossom
-Necrogen Mists
-Gate to Phyrexia
-Dystopia
-The Abyss
-Nether Void
-Gravepact
-No Mercy
-Infernal Darkness
-Leyline the Void
[SORCERY] (13)
-Demonic Tutor
-Diabolic Tutor
-Diabolic Intent
-Beseech the Queen
-Mind Twist
-Promise of Power
-Beacon of Unrest
-Damnation
-Yawgmoth's Will
-Pox
-Curse of the Cabal
-Repay in Kind
-Suffer the Past
[PLANESWALKER] (1)
-Sorin Markov
GWRUB[EDH] Reaper KingGWRUB
GW[Legacy] BEARS (#1 Threat in America)GW
UR[Legacy] Arcane MeleeUR
Couldn't remember his name at that late hour, so i didn't type it in..
But yeah, if you've got a Xiahou, he makes an excellent stax general, because I hear recursion is good.
EDH:
RNorin the WaryR <-Link! (Primer - Mono Red Control)
GUEdric, Spymaster of TrestUG <- Link! (Mini-Primer - Dredge)
Duel Commander:
WUGeist of Saint TraftUW <- Link! (Aggro-Control)
BGSkullbriar, the Walking GraveGB <- Link! (Aggro)
BUGDamia, Sage of StoneGUB <- Link! (Extinction Control)
Church of the Wary
That's the guy I was thinking of. Naturally disruptive, highly resilient. Nath is a pretty fearsome general, because he takes over the game really quickly.
EDH:
RNorin the WaryR <-Link! (Primer - Mono Red Control)
GUEdric, Spymaster of TrestUG <- Link! (Mini-Primer - Dredge)
Duel Commander:
WUGeist of Saint TraftUW <- Link! (Aggro-Control)
BGSkullbriar, the Walking GraveGB <- Link! (Aggro)
BUGDamia, Sage of StoneGUB <- Link! (Extinction Control)
Church of the Wary
Thank You Rivenor/Miraculous Recovery Studios!
GGGSKamahl's Band of Monstosities SGGG
RRRSFreaki-Kiki, The Goblin DoucheSRRR
BBGGNath, Raper of Hands and Spewer of Tokens!GGBB
BUGDamia, Sage of AnswersBUG
WIPs
BBBXiahou Dun, the Bitter Stax Enabling BastardBBB
On Break
BBBSKagemaro, First to RetireSBBB
BBBThe Walking DeadBBB
UUUSTeferi Combo PrimerSUUU
GRRWHazezon Tamar (Valakut)GRRW
UKami of the Crescent Moon (
Group Hug)UUHeidar, Rimewind Master [Mini-Primer]U
WKemba, Kha Regent (Stax)W
GEzuri, Renegade Leader [Primer]G
Quick Caveat: I play strictly Multiplayer edh for fun. But my personal Word of advice...Stay away from Painful Quandary. There's just something about it that screams, Kill Me. Kill me NOW. Everytime I've ever cast it I've died before it's my turn again. Typically the card just sits in my hand because I don't want to get rage killed.