While most of your changes seem to make sense, I don't understand the Demon->Phalanx swap at all. Netherborn Phalanx sucks - it's a Sheldon Menery type of card which may be good for battlecruiser metas, but not for ours. It's slow, there are better cards doing the same thing (Massacre Wurm, as you've already noticed) and even the tutor part is mediocre - what are you going to search for, Mindslaver? Rune-Scarred Demon is way better, especially if you're adding YawgWin to your deck.
When speaking of "our meta" you have to admit that having 7 mana to play stuff is rare unless you pack a lot of fast artifact mana. You're right about Phalanx though - there are better options to consider. Demon is fine unless playing against blue decks which happens all the time... I wonder if Sculpting Steel could make a cut here?
Demon is fine unless playing against blue decks which happens all the time...
Okay, let me explain it taking myself as an example:
Some time ago I was probably the most common Bribery target in our group and there were only three creatures every Bribery caster was interested in: Consecrated Sphinx, Prophet of Kruphix and Elesh Norn. At some point I asked myself two questions: how important is this creature in my deck and how bad it is when I see it on the other side of the table. The results were as follows:
1) Consecrated Sphinx: it's pretty important (I have only a couple draw engines) and I can deal with the opposing Sphinx.
2) Prophet of Kruphix: it's one of the best cards in my deck, but seeing it on the other side is very bad.
3) Elesh Norn: it's very good, but not crucial, and seeing it on the other side is an absolute disaster.
The verdict was: Sphinx stays, Elesh Norn gets the cut. With Prophet I was on the verge, but ultimately he's too good, so he stayed as well.
Now think about the Demon: how important is it in your deck and how bad it is when he lands on the other side?
Hrm, are you sure about the Hedron Archive for Thran Dynamo swap? The moment that card came out I evaluated every list I have that runs Dynamo, and in a high number it got the axe, but the thing is super useful in here and you don't REALLY need the extra draw, do you? I mean, there's so many other options already in here, and the ability for the Dynamo to single-handedly power out a next turn Sheoldred regardless of land drop is awesome as hell.
the ability for the Dynamo to single-handedly power out a next turn Sheoldred regardless of land drop is awesome as hell.
I've been playing with Artaud for well over three years now and I've seen him piloting this deck a countless times. Casting naked, unprotected Sheoldred just because you can is rarely a good idea - she usually eats removal, a counterspell or you're just tapping out while your opponents are either comboing off or locking down the board.
Best scenarios to cast Sheoldred are when you're safe, i.e. after Mindslicer, Myojin, or when you resolved Contamination.
I'm not enirely sure about what to swap Hedron Archive for yet. Thran Dynamo is good even if slow at times but I don't need a lot of mana early on as Vysogota pointed out. The exception is Myojin which needs to be cast as soon as possible but it's only one card... On the other hand I need as much draw as I can fit in. Cards like Overeager Apprentice, Dark Ritual and cheap mana rocks can empty my hand fast and I need to refill. I even think about getting Mind Stone back in.
As for creature importance Vysogota mentioned, there are only three must-have creatures in this deck: Mindslicer, Myojin and Sheoldred herself. The rest is support/ramp/goodstuff so I could get rid of any of them easily but I've chosen my strategy and flavor already so things like Dimir House Guard or Phyrexian Revoker stay. As for a Demon I still have mixed feelings - it's both tutor and fat flyer for me but it's also the same for opponent. While I can kill it if Bribered most of the time it already tutored something useful like wincon piece. The most important question is - how many tutors are too much/too few? I currently run 3 + Dimir/Fleshwrither + Demon eventually.
Personally in the match up section of your primer i wouldn't say the strong against or weak against since you can't say 100% sure that this match up is favourable since the decks that your reader are playing against might be different from what you are playing against. Rather, consider outlining deck archetypes and certain deck lists/commanders and how you can fight them and your silver bullets for them (for voltron has sigarda, rafiq and uril, ramp has any green commander ... so on and so forth)
*stifled giggle at the word "goodstuff" coming out of the woodwork in the thread*
I think I'll stick with Thran Dynamo, because I'm considerably more top heavy than you. Tutor wise, I think the list in the primer (you've still got the demon in there) is around the sweet spot.
Personally in the match up section of your primer i wouldn't say the strong against or weak against since you can't say 100% sure that this match up is favourable since the decks that your reader are playing against might be different from what you are playing against. Rather, consider outlining deck archetypes and certain deck lists/commanders and how you can fight them and your silver bullets for them (for voltron has sigarda, rafiq and uril, ramp has any green commander ... so on and so forth)
You have a point at that decklists can differ for one Commander but it's still the same Commander and it usually defines gameplan anyway. Sheoldred IS strong against most general-centric decks (excluding token-makers like Prossh) being them aggro, voltrol, combo or just goodstuff. If they can't keep their Commander on board they are severaly crippled and usually lose. Multiplayer environment redefines it of course but I played a lot at tables with Uril, Kaalia, Rafiq, Narset and many other and saw Sheoldred's impact on their boardstate and strategy. It's not only Sheoldred herself but also amount and type of removal my deck packs.
Anyway I'm working on a more detailed list of generals I face in my meta so stay tuned.
*stifled giggle at the word "goodstuff" coming out of the woodwork in the thread* ;).
I think I'll stick with Thran Dynamo, because I'm considerably more top heavy than you. Tutor wise, I think the list in the primer (you've still got the demon in there) is around the sweet spot.
Haha, goodstuff indeed. Some cards are simply worth playing regardless of strategy you take and Commander you choose, Crypt Ghast, Puppeteer Clique or Gray Merchant of Asphodel being prime examples. I tend to steer away from having too many goodstuff contents though and Rune-Scarred Demon belongs to it. It's also too expensive for a tutor as when I cast one I usually need mana to play what I searched for right away. I think I already found viable replacement for it - long forgotten Havoc Demon. It can replace both Rune-Scarred and Massacre Wurm - it doesn't tutor and kills my stuff but most importantly - it can serve as instant (with sac outlet), repeatable mass removal which doesn't kill Shelly. Now only to get one...
Have you considered Worst Fears? I know it costs a little more than Mindslaver to activate to get the complete effect, but it is also a "stealaturntocrippleyou" card in my opinion. I have a very similar Sheoldred list as this, and I have found Worst Fears to just be splendid.
"Exile Worst Fears" clause disqualifies this spell for me even if it costs less. I can use Myr Retriever to get Mindslaver back and use it again to make a hard lock against one player or cripple other players next turns. Did that few times to win.
Given the sudden shift in my meta, I might be retooling my list, taking some cues from you. The Havoc Demon looks pretty interesting, how's it been so far? Also, how atrocious has your Trading Post experience been? I'd assume it's not been that bad, it lived in your list for ages, and it's one of the shortlist of cards I'm toying with to replace my Strionic Resonator.
Havoc Demon did not show up yet. Played only two games last Thursday but was badly mana screwed and couldn't do much except tossing cheap removal here and there. As for Trading Post while it looks juicy and all I was very unlucky with it most of the time. When I needed to sacrifice a creature I had no artifact to target. When I wanted to return an artifact my table was creatureless. Goat token was meaningless most of the time and the only draw I had out of it was when I sacrificed it in response to removal. I don't even recall if I used the lifegain option once.
The lifegain option seems like it would have a good time in my list. Ditch a Pestilence Demon in the end step, promptly reanimate it in my upkeep. The goat seemed like good chump times and potential Contamination fodder. But you do have a point, I mean, I cut it from one of my other decks for being a bit do-nothing in the first place, so it'll probably also be do-nothing here. Something else gets the slot then!
Pardon the double post, but is there any particular reason as to why you still have Basalt Monolith with the rings gone? Also, any particular reason for Volrath's Stronghold being absent?
Grim Monolith will go in Basalt's place when I'll get my hand on it but Volrath's Stronghold seems unnecessary for me. Sheoldred and other reanimation stuff is enough and while I may not have access to it all the time I don't use creatures like Primordial or Rune Demon what could varrant this tempo loss either. It's a land so it's a thing to consider though. It's also another hard-to-come-by card from reserved list
That's the thing, it's a land. Hence it doesn't take much sacrifice to fit in. In fairness, I'd even run Worn Powerstone over the Monolith.
The cues I took from your list slightly ironed my deck's game out in the reshaped meta, and the tears of people ditching their hands with a random guy's Omen Machine on the board are delicious. Thanks for the list/thread!
What are your thoughts on Ob Nixilis Reignited? What would you replace assuming you decided to run it?
Liliana probably. Ob's biggest flaw is his ultimate which not only doesn't make you win but rarely kills affected player. He's also one turn slower than Liniana which may be relevant in some metas. If he's cast after board wipe he acts as 5CC Arena. He can definitely become useful in slower meta though.
Ob's main advantage is that he can pop a creature immediately and stick around.
I know you're not really a Pestilence sort of guy, at least with this deck, but I'm still in the process of adapting my list from a weird corner case haste fat killer to a more general EDH play style, and wonder whether you've had any experience with Thrashing Wumpus. It doesn't instantly fold to itself like Crypt Rats, and Pestilence Demon is as back-breaking as ever, so the Wumpus seems like a potentially good doubler of the functionality. Keep x/2's off the board, doesn't need a sac outlet like Havoc Demon or Massacre Wurm to keep doing his duty, can potentially blank all the way up to x/5's with ease and bounce back with Sheoldred in my next upkeep. Relatively standalone as far as dealing with all the Marath, Will of the Wild, Ghoulcaller Gisa, Avenger of Zendikar or Kemba, Kha Regent wideness. Any history with him on your end?
Hi Artaud,
I have an EDH with Balthor the Defiled as a commander. He has almost the same strategy as your Lady : Big Mana & creature reanimation. Thus, I have almost the same base as you but with more creatures and less non-creature spells.
My strategy is to play big beaters as you, then I use Balthor when my threat factor is exhausted to gain a new breath. Or sometimes to combo out with sac-outlets and life-draining creatures.
I do not use the stax strategy (e.g. Contamination)
I tend to you as most as possible synergies with my general. For example I do not play Sad Robot because he isn't black.
Well, I have a few suggestions I play and like to know your thoughts about them :
- Agent of Erebos replaces in my deck Nihil Spellbomb because it's repeatable/recurrable with Balthor or Sheoldred, and fits the 4-CMC package with Fleshwrither.
- Disciple of Griselbrand is a cheap sac-outlet, easily recurrable if destroyed, and big life gainer.
- Bone Shredder I play this one despite its poor killing restriction because it's cheap and can die by itself or chump-block big flying beaters. Another good creature that fitted that role and that I played long ago was Big Game Hunter who was funny with Mindslicer.
- Ashes to Ashes can exile 2 threats in one card! 2-for-1 is card advantage! I know that it's only sorcery-speed and cost a lot of life, but everytime I draw it I've found critical uses for it.
- Harvester of Souls & Dark Prophecy are nice objects to draw many many cards.
- Bloodghast is my Reassembling Skellie #2, but better. Insane with Skullclamp.
- High Market is a great sac-outlet almost indestructible (there are better target for Wasteland against me, as Cabal Coffers.)
- Liliana, Heretical Healer (transformed into: Liliana, Defiant Necromancer) is a recurrable PW! Easily transformed, mainly used for it's second ability to reanimate cheap creatures. Her first ability is still useful to pitch big creatures in the graveyard for a reanimation plan.
- Chainer, Dementia Master as commander-backup plan B. I can use it safely because I play more life-draining creatures than you.
- Strands of Night as commander-backup plan C.
@Rumpy
Pestilence effects are fine if you can manage two things - your life total and a lot of colored mana to burn. In my plays I often hit myself for half of my total life before receiving any damage from my foes so I would kill myself with Pestilence and the like. Sure I could run some more life-gainers but they are dead draws when I don't need to heal myself desperately. The second thing is mantaining a lot of spare mana to use. Cards like Wumpus or Crypt Rats are removal magnets and keeping them in play makes opponents hesitate to play creatures making these cards dead. I would rather play Decree of Pain and/or Night of Souls' Betrayal if I'm concerned about hordes of small creatures.
@Stefouch
Most of the cards you mentioned are probably better in your Balthor than my Sheoldred as you focus more on mass reanimation and less on control/stax (probably). I would not play things like Disciple, Shredder or Bloodghast though - there are far better options if these slots. High Market is a good call as I have only few sac outlets and another one won't hurt although I try to keep my non-basic land count as low as possible to make my Cabal Coffers better. I don't play Strands of Night for the same reason. Liliana is on my watch list but she's also pretty pricy for the moment. I already tried Dark Prophecy and Harvester and they turned out unreliable in meta infested with combo, control and stax. This is also the reason I don't use sorcery-speed point removal.
Now that full C15 spoler is up, let's take a look at new cards: Banshee of the Dread Choir - simple beater without evasion and mediocre stats. NO. Corpse Augur - now that's interesting. It fits 4CC toolbox and can draw a lot depending on situation. Better than many rares there. Definitely YES. Daxos's Torment - will trigger once or twice during a whole game and only beats face. Definitely NOT. Deadly Tempest - too costly for a wrath and life loss will be irrelevant unless killing Avenger of Zendikar and its plants. NO. Dread Summons - could be of some use if tokens didn't ETB tapped. NO. Scourge of Nel Toth - one of the cards I like to acquire but NOT for Sheoldred. Good card for token decks. Thief of Blood - no one plays Æther Snap and this one doesn't make much difference. NO. Wretched Confluence - I'm on the verge of decision with this one. If it had -3/-3 for a second mode it would be auto-pick (kills Prophet and Derevi among the others) but I'm afraid it will be "draw 3 cards lose 3 life" instant most of the time. It's not that bad but I don't see it replacing Moonlight Bargain which seems the only spot to consider. MAYBE. Blade of Selves - not many ETB creatures here but making clones of Solemn, Gary or Clique looks good on paper. Good card for most decks. MAYBE. Sandstone Oracle - its cost is steep but can be a hell of draw engine if used correctly. It also flies and that encourages to trying it at least. MAYBE. Scytheclaw - errr... NO. Seal of the Guildpact - NOT this deck. Thought Vessel - Mind Stone seems better and cleanup step discard can sometimes help. NO. Command Beacon - with 7CC commander this one can really help to go around commander tax in time of need. YES I suppose and it makes me reconsider including Crucible of Worlds again.
I've chosen to run transmute/transfigure subtheme for having 4CC toolbox and because DHG and Fleshwrither are creatures, not just for more tutors. I'd rather run Beseech the Queen and/or Diabolic Intent than Netherborn Phalanx and other transmutes which are just bad on their own. Remember that tutoring takes mana so it have to be as cheap as possible cheap or have other applications. Also remember that you need more tutors only if your target is to combo. If you play control you need card advantage in form of card draw and both Dimir House Guard and Fleshwrither can be Skullclamped easily.
When speaking of "our meta" you have to admit that having 7 mana to play stuff is rare unless you pack a lot of fast artifact mana. You're right about Phalanx though - there are better options to consider. Demon is fine unless playing against blue decks which happens all the time... I wonder if Sculpting Steel could make a cut here?
Everything will - [Primer] Sheoldred, Whispering One - Bow to Phyrexia!
Turboland - Azusa, Lost but Seeking - Control
Vampires' - Edgar Markov - Bites
Yuriko, the Tiger's Shadow - Jumping Ninjas
Daretti, Scrap Savant - From Scrap to Treasure
Prime Speaker Zegana - Primal Surge permanentness
Krenko, Mob Boss - Angry Goblins CHARGE!
Traximundar - Flashback Forward
Nah, it highly depends on who you're playing against and which decks are they piloting.
Okay, let me explain it taking myself as an example:
Some time ago I was probably the most common Bribery target in our group and there were only three creatures every Bribery caster was interested in: Consecrated Sphinx, Prophet of Kruphix and Elesh Norn. At some point I asked myself two questions: how important is this creature in my deck and how bad it is when I see it on the other side of the table. The results were as follows:
1) Consecrated Sphinx: it's pretty important (I have only a couple draw engines) and I can deal with the opposing Sphinx.
2) Prophet of Kruphix: it's one of the best cards in my deck, but seeing it on the other side is very bad.
3) Elesh Norn: it's very good, but not crucial, and seeing it on the other side is an absolute disaster.
The verdict was: Sphinx stays, Elesh Norn gets the cut. With Prophet I was on the verge, but ultimately he's too good, so he stayed as well.
Now think about the Demon: how important is it in your deck and how bad it is when he lands on the other side?
GWU Derevi, the Prison Queen UWG
I've been playing with Artaud for well over three years now and I've seen him piloting this deck a countless times. Casting naked, unprotected Sheoldred just because you can is rarely a good idea - she usually eats removal, a counterspell or you're just tapping out while your opponents are either comboing off or locking down the board.
Best scenarios to cast Sheoldred are when you're safe, i.e. after Mindslicer, Myojin, or when you resolved Contamination.
GWU Derevi, the Prison Queen UWG
As for creature importance Vysogota mentioned, there are only three must-have creatures in this deck: Mindslicer, Myojin and Sheoldred herself. The rest is support/ramp/goodstuff so I could get rid of any of them easily but I've chosen my strategy and flavor already so things like Dimir House Guard or Phyrexian Revoker stay. As for a Demon I still have mixed feelings - it's both tutor and fat flyer for me but it's also the same for opponent. While I can kill it if Bribered most of the time it already tutored something useful like wincon piece. The most important question is - how many tutors are too much/too few? I currently run 3 + Dimir/Fleshwrither + Demon eventually.
Everything will - [Primer] Sheoldred, Whispering One - Bow to Phyrexia!
Turboland - Azusa, Lost but Seeking - Control
Vampires' - Edgar Markov - Bites
Yuriko, the Tiger's Shadow - Jumping Ninjas
Daretti, Scrap Savant - From Scrap to Treasure
Prime Speaker Zegana - Primal Surge permanentness
Krenko, Mob Boss - Angry Goblins CHARGE!
Traximundar - Flashback Forward
EDH
GWSigarda, Host of EnchantressGW[Primer]
I think I'll stick with Thran Dynamo, because I'm considerably more top heavy than you. Tutor wise, I think the list in the primer (you've still got the demon in there) is around the sweet spot.
You have a point at that decklists can differ for one Commander but it's still the same Commander and it usually defines gameplan anyway. Sheoldred IS strong against most general-centric decks (excluding token-makers like Prossh) being them aggro, voltrol, combo or just goodstuff. If they can't keep their Commander on board they are severaly crippled and usually lose. Multiplayer environment redefines it of course but I played a lot at tables with Uril, Kaalia, Rafiq, Narset and many other and saw Sheoldred's impact on their boardstate and strategy. It's not only Sheoldred herself but also amount and type of removal my deck packs.
Anyway I'm working on a more detailed list of generals I face in my meta so stay tuned.
Haha, goodstuff indeed. Some cards are simply worth playing regardless of strategy you take and Commander you choose, Crypt Ghast, Puppeteer Clique or Gray Merchant of Asphodel being prime examples. I tend to steer away from having too many goodstuff contents though and Rune-Scarred Demon belongs to it. It's also too expensive for a tutor as when I cast one I usually need mana to play what I searched for right away. I think I already found viable replacement for it - long forgotten Havoc Demon. It can replace both Rune-Scarred and Massacre Wurm - it doesn't tutor and kills my stuff but most importantly - it can serve as instant (with sac outlet), repeatable mass removal which doesn't kill Shelly. Now only to get one...
Everything will - [Primer] Sheoldred, Whispering One - Bow to Phyrexia!
Turboland - Azusa, Lost but Seeking - Control
Vampires' - Edgar Markov - Bites
Yuriko, the Tiger's Shadow - Jumping Ninjas
Daretti, Scrap Savant - From Scrap to Treasure
Prime Speaker Zegana - Primal Surge permanentness
Krenko, Mob Boss - Angry Goblins CHARGE!
Traximundar - Flashback Forward
Everything will - [Primer] Sheoldred, Whispering One - Bow to Phyrexia!
Turboland - Azusa, Lost but Seeking - Control
Vampires' - Edgar Markov - Bites
Yuriko, the Tiger's Shadow - Jumping Ninjas
Daretti, Scrap Savant - From Scrap to Treasure
Prime Speaker Zegana - Primal Surge permanentness
Krenko, Mob Boss - Angry Goblins CHARGE!
Traximundar - Flashback Forward
Final changes I'm going to apply today:
Petrified Field -> Blighted Fen - more removal doesn't hurt.
Massacre Wurm -> Havoc Demon - Wurm's life loss hardly kills anyone in my meta and Demon kills more stuff.
Rune-Scarred Demon -> Praetor's Grasp - giving Grasp a third chance until better tutor emerges. Still getting Birthing Pod or Phyrexian Metamorph can be game-changing move.
Promise of Power -> Yawgmoth's Will - already proved to be strong card.
Thran Dynamo -> Hedron Archive - direct upgrade even if losing 1 mana in a proces.
Trading Post -> Mind Stone - to pair with Hedron and Will; making deck faster is always good.
Everything will - [Primer] Sheoldred, Whispering One - Bow to Phyrexia!
Turboland - Azusa, Lost but Seeking - Control
Vampires' - Edgar Markov - Bites
Yuriko, the Tiger's Shadow - Jumping Ninjas
Daretti, Scrap Savant - From Scrap to Treasure
Prime Speaker Zegana - Primal Surge permanentness
Krenko, Mob Boss - Angry Goblins CHARGE!
Traximundar - Flashback Forward
Everything will - [Primer] Sheoldred, Whispering One - Bow to Phyrexia!
Turboland - Azusa, Lost but Seeking - Control
Vampires' - Edgar Markov - Bites
Yuriko, the Tiger's Shadow - Jumping Ninjas
Daretti, Scrap Savant - From Scrap to Treasure
Prime Speaker Zegana - Primal Surge permanentness
Krenko, Mob Boss - Angry Goblins CHARGE!
Traximundar - Flashback Forward
Everything will - [Primer] Sheoldred, Whispering One - Bow to Phyrexia!
Turboland - Azusa, Lost but Seeking - Control
Vampires' - Edgar Markov - Bites
Yuriko, the Tiger's Shadow - Jumping Ninjas
Daretti, Scrap Savant - From Scrap to Treasure
Prime Speaker Zegana - Primal Surge permanentness
Krenko, Mob Boss - Angry Goblins CHARGE!
Traximundar - Flashback Forward
The cues I took from your list slightly ironed my deck's game out in the reshaped meta, and the tears of people ditching their hands with a random guy's Omen Machine on the board are delicious. Thanks for the list/thread!
Liliana probably. Ob's biggest flaw is his ultimate which not only doesn't make you win but rarely kills affected player. He's also one turn slower than Liniana which may be relevant in some metas. If he's cast after board wipe he acts as 5CC Arena. He can definitely become useful in slower meta though.
Everything will - [Primer] Sheoldred, Whispering One - Bow to Phyrexia!
Turboland - Azusa, Lost but Seeking - Control
Vampires' - Edgar Markov - Bites
Yuriko, the Tiger's Shadow - Jumping Ninjas
Daretti, Scrap Savant - From Scrap to Treasure
Prime Speaker Zegana - Primal Surge permanentness
Krenko, Mob Boss - Angry Goblins CHARGE!
Traximundar - Flashback Forward
I know you're not really a Pestilence sort of guy, at least with this deck, but I'm still in the process of adapting my list from a weird corner case haste fat killer to a more general EDH play style, and wonder whether you've had any experience with Thrashing Wumpus. It doesn't instantly fold to itself like Crypt Rats, and Pestilence Demon is as back-breaking as ever, so the Wumpus seems like a potentially good doubler of the functionality. Keep x/2's off the board, doesn't need a sac outlet like Havoc Demon or Massacre Wurm to keep doing his duty, can potentially blank all the way up to x/5's with ease and bounce back with Sheoldred in my next upkeep. Relatively standalone as far as dealing with all the Marath, Will of the Wild, Ghoulcaller Gisa, Avenger of Zendikar or Kemba, Kha Regent wideness. Any history with him on your end?
I have an EDH with Balthor the Defiled as a commander. He has almost the same strategy as your Lady : Big Mana & creature reanimation. Thus, I have almost the same base as you but with more creatures and less non-creature spells.
My strategy is to play big beaters as you, then I use Balthor when my threat factor is exhausted to gain a new breath. Or sometimes to combo out with sac-outlets and life-draining creatures.
I do not use the stax strategy (e.g. Contamination)
I tend to you as most as possible synergies with my general. For example I do not play Sad Robot because he isn't black.
Well, I have a few suggestions I play and like to know your thoughts about them :
- Agent of Erebos replaces in my deck Nihil Spellbomb because it's repeatable/recurrable with Balthor or Sheoldred, and fits the 4-CMC package with Fleshwrither.
- Disciple of Griselbrand is a cheap sac-outlet, easily recurrable if destroyed, and big life gainer.
- Bone Shredder I play this one despite its poor killing restriction because it's cheap and can die by itself or chump-block big flying beaters. Another good creature that fitted that role and that I played long ago was Big Game Hunter who was funny with Mindslicer.
- Ashes to Ashes can exile 2 threats in one card! 2-for-1 is card advantage! I know that it's only sorcery-speed and cost a lot of life, but everytime I draw it I've found critical uses for it.
- Harvester of Souls & Dark Prophecy are nice objects to draw many many cards.
- Bloodghast is my Reassembling Skellie #2, but better. Insane with Skullclamp.
- High Market is a great sac-outlet almost indestructible (there are better target for Wasteland against me, as Cabal Coffers.)
- Liliana, Heretical Healer (transformed into: Liliana, Defiant Necromancer) is a recurrable PW! Easily transformed, mainly used for it's second ability to reanimate cheap creatures. Her first ability is still useful to pitch big creatures in the graveyard for a reanimation plan.
- Chainer, Dementia Master as commander-backup plan B. I can use it safely because I play more life-draining creatures than you.
- Strands of Night as commander-backup plan C.
Pestilence effects are fine if you can manage two things - your life total and a lot of colored mana to burn. In my plays I often hit myself for half of my total life before receiving any damage from my foes so I would kill myself with Pestilence and the like. Sure I could run some more life-gainers but they are dead draws when I don't need to heal myself desperately. The second thing is mantaining a lot of spare mana to use. Cards like Wumpus or Crypt Rats are removal magnets and keeping them in play makes opponents hesitate to play creatures making these cards dead. I would rather play Decree of Pain and/or Night of Souls' Betrayal if I'm concerned about hordes of small creatures.
@Stefouch
Most of the cards you mentioned are probably better in your Balthor than my Sheoldred as you focus more on mass reanimation and less on control/stax (probably). I would not play things like Disciple, Shredder or Bloodghast though - there are far better options if these slots. High Market is a good call as I have only few sac outlets and another one won't hurt although I try to keep my non-basic land count as low as possible to make my Cabal Coffers better. I don't play Strands of Night for the same reason. Liliana is on my watch list but she's also pretty pricy for the moment. I already tried Dark Prophecy and Harvester and they turned out unreliable in meta infested with combo, control and stax. This is also the reason I don't use sorcery-speed point removal.
Everything will - [Primer] Sheoldred, Whispering One - Bow to Phyrexia!
Turboland - Azusa, Lost but Seeking - Control
Vampires' - Edgar Markov - Bites
Yuriko, the Tiger's Shadow - Jumping Ninjas
Daretti, Scrap Savant - From Scrap to Treasure
Prime Speaker Zegana - Primal Surge permanentness
Krenko, Mob Boss - Angry Goblins CHARGE!
Traximundar - Flashback Forward
Banshee of the Dread Choir - simple beater without evasion and mediocre stats. NO.
Corpse Augur - now that's interesting. It fits 4CC toolbox and can draw a lot depending on situation. Better than many rares there. Definitely YES.
Daxos's Torment - will trigger once or twice during a whole game and only beats face. Definitely NOT.
Deadly Tempest - too costly for a wrath and life loss will be irrelevant unless killing Avenger of Zendikar and its plants. NO.
Dread Summons - could be of some use if tokens didn't ETB tapped. NO.
Scourge of Nel Toth - one of the cards I like to acquire but NOT for Sheoldred. Good card for token decks.
Thief of Blood - no one plays Æther Snap and this one doesn't make much difference. NO.
Wretched Confluence - I'm on the verge of decision with this one. If it had -3/-3 for a second mode it would be auto-pick (kills Prophet and Derevi among the others) but I'm afraid it will be "draw 3 cards lose 3 life" instant most of the time. It's not that bad but I don't see it replacing Moonlight Bargain which seems the only spot to consider. MAYBE.
Blade of Selves - not many ETB creatures here but making clones of Solemn, Gary or Clique looks good on paper. Good card for most decks. MAYBE.
Sandstone Oracle - its cost is steep but can be a hell of draw engine if used correctly. It also flies and that encourages to trying it at least. MAYBE.
Scytheclaw - errr... NO.
Seal of the Guildpact - NOT this deck.
Thought Vessel - Mind Stone seems better and cleanup step discard can sometimes help. NO.
Command Beacon - with 7CC commander this one can really help to go around commander tax in time of need. YES I suppose and it makes me reconsider including Crucible of Worlds again.
Everything will - [Primer] Sheoldred, Whispering One - Bow to Phyrexia!
Turboland - Azusa, Lost but Seeking - Control
Vampires' - Edgar Markov - Bites
Yuriko, the Tiger's Shadow - Jumping Ninjas
Daretti, Scrap Savant - From Scrap to Treasure
Prime Speaker Zegana - Primal Surge permanentness
Krenko, Mob Boss - Angry Goblins CHARGE!
Traximundar - Flashback Forward
Everything will - [Primer] Sheoldred, Whispering One - Bow to Phyrexia!
Turboland - Azusa, Lost but Seeking - Control
Vampires' - Edgar Markov - Bites
Yuriko, the Tiger's Shadow - Jumping Ninjas
Daretti, Scrap Savant - From Scrap to Treasure
Prime Speaker Zegana - Primal Surge permanentness
Krenko, Mob Boss - Angry Goblins CHARGE!
Traximundar - Flashback Forward