(If you found this thread in the decklist database - this list was designed for a meta with no infinite combo and no MLD.)
So I've really been in love with Ghoulcaller Gisa since she was spoiled. I've looked at the other lists that people have posted, but most of them are tribal zombies - which I'm not really interested in. Lord of the Undead, Zombie Master, Soulless One, etc. just don't seem good enough for beating multiple opponents down from 40. I decided to do something a bit different with my list. Here it is so far, with some thoughts/explanations below:
Thornbite Staff - I know the equip cost is bad, but once equipped this makes a GIGANTIC army when Gisa combines with something like Gravecrawler or any of the other self-recurring creatures. Equipment speeds this up. I was even considering Grafted Wargear for the +3 and free equip.
Thornbite Staff - I know the equip cost is bad, but once equipped this makes a GIGANTIC army when Gisa combines with something like Gravecrawler or any of the other self-recurring creatures. Equipment speeds this up. I was even considering Grafted Wargear for the +3 and free equip.
I agree that I had too much ramp, and I cut some to add in more stuff to keep me alive like All is Dust, Vault Skirge (who is awesome with nightmare lash, by the way) and Whip of Erebos. I updated my list in the OP. I'll keep Decree of Pain in mind if I decide I need another board wipe.
I've cut both Grave Pact and Dictate of Erebos, so I'm not in the best position to run Carrion Feeder and friends. Also, I'm getting even further away from Zombie Tribal, so stuff like Soulless One and Phyrexian Soulgorger aren't really good unless I'm already winning. I'd like for this deck to be able to make plays even if Gisa is dead or tucked.
I considered Noxious Ghoul, but it slows this deck down a lot when Gisa gets killed. Again, I'll keep it in mind if my meta gets crazy with tokens or tribal shenanigans - but recasting Gisa for 7 is a pain, and after the second time it starts getting impossible. If only Gisa was naturally a zombie herself, this would be one of the best cards in the deck.
Thornbite Staff - I tested this. If I had Gisa active + a creature to sac + lots of mana, then thornbite staff was AMAZING. The problem is that it did very little outside of that situation (aka when I'm already winning), so I decided to cut it for Bonehoard, which is itself a big creature to sacrifice, plus a third equipment to throw onto nether traitor for damage/sacrifice.
Grafted Wargear is pretty interesting. I'm not sure if I have room for another equipment, or if Cranial Plating is better in my artifact heavy list, but it's definitely something I'll consider. Thanks for the ideas!
since you do play with Urborg, tomb of yawgmoth, Strata Scythe should be put in this deck, as I think it would count your enemies lands as +1s for your creature Altho I'm not 100% on this... but, in any case, playing vs some other deck with swamps would help you.
Unfortunately, Urborg doesn't change the name of any lands, just their subtypes. Since I use only snow-covered basics, the Scythe is worse here than it usually is unless my opponents also happen to be using snow-covered swamps. That being said, I may consider switching to regular swamps at some point, and if I do, Strata Scythe is probably going right into the deck over bonehoard as Nightmare Lash #3.
I was assessing your list as it seems the most non-zombie themed. If you don't mind my asking some questions (this time about your mana base), is Wasteland a preference over Strip Mine? As frankly both seem good to me or if just one, Strip Mine. Why run Blinkmoth Nexus? Is there a specific reason not to run Shizo, Death's Storehouse, which can be very useful, is life too much of an issue, that Ancient Tomb is problematic and it's also curious no Thespian's Stage, unless your curve is quite tight and you dislike ETB tapped lands or colourless.
I also play Weiss Schwarz, Chaos, Vanguard and Wixoss.
Weiss Schwarz Sets
Accel World, Angel Beats, Familiar of Zero, Gargantia on the Verdurous Planet, Guilty Crown, Kill La Kill, Robotics;Notes, Sword Art Online.
Chaos Partners
Arpeggio of Blue Steel: Iona, Kirishima, Kongou.
Dangan Ronpa: Asahina, Togami.
Freezing: Vibration: Chiffon, Satelizer.
Vanguard Clans Favoured
Angel Feather, Dark Irregulars, Genesis, Neonecter, Pale Moon, Shadow Paladins, Tachikaze.
Yeah, Strip Mine is obviously just better than Wasteland. Honestly, I have more Wastelands than Strip Mines in my collection (weird, I know) so I usually don't consider it. I'll be making that change soon.
Kind of. I considered it, but the only legendary creatures I'm playing other than Gisa is Kokusho, the Evening Star, who already has evasion, but usually blocks and ends up sacrificed to make Zombies anyway. The other issue is that Gauntlet of Power only works with Basics, and without Urborg, Crypt Ghast, Nightmare Lash, Lashwrithe, Liliana of the Dark Realms, and Cabal Coffers only work with Swamps. The more nonbasics I play, the worse all of those cards get. I decided that I'd not activate it often enough to make it better than regular swamps here.
I do have a lot of effects that cost me life in this deck: Necropotence Phyrexian Arena Phyrexian Reclamation Mana Crypt Vampiric Tutor Night's Whisper Snuff Out Shepherd of Rot Underworld Connections
...not to mention the 3 other players who are trying to kill me (I usually get archenemy'd when I play this deck) - so I'm not entirely sold on ancient tomb. It's especially lame once I land one of my black mana doublers and works less well than a basic. Thespian's Stage is interesting if I can hit Cabal Coffers with it, but the rest of my cool lands are Legendary, so other than Maze of Ith or something cool that an opponent might have, this might not be worth it - again, the more nonbasics I run, the worse my "x number of swamps" cards get. It's definitely something I'm going to test out though.
Thanks for the ideas! Let me know if there are more!
I've made my list now, so I can ask more :). Is not running Contamination intentional? Gisa obviously provides ammunition to sustain it. It also allows running Dimir Machinations to search for it or any of the other great 3 drops. Dimir Machinations seems good all round really given it has many targets. I understand the swamp theme for the liliana you chose, but Sorin Markov seems very good since just 5 zombies will kill someone. Once again this is often considered a rude card to many.
Malicious Affliction seems very good in this type of deck, it is non-black, but two creatures for two is quite strong. Two other cards I am using that you don't seem to be are Larceny and Filth, which both make your creature hits more important and easier to hit. What are your thoughts on these?
I also play Weiss Schwarz, Chaos, Vanguard and Wixoss.
Weiss Schwarz Sets
Accel World, Angel Beats, Familiar of Zero, Gargantia on the Verdurous Planet, Guilty Crown, Kill La Kill, Robotics;Notes, Sword Art Online.
Chaos Partners
Arpeggio of Blue Steel: Iona, Kirishima, Kongou.
Dangan Ronpa: Asahina, Togami.
Freezing: Vibration: Chiffon, Satelizer.
Vanguard Clans Favoured
Angel Feather, Dark Irregulars, Genesis, Neonecter, Pale Moon, Shadow Paladins, Tachikaze.
Yes. Contamination and Infernal Darkness. It's a very powerful effect, but I hate completely locking people out of the game unless you're playing for something other than fun. An earlier version of this deck had Zombie Trailblazer, which allowed me to turn all of a player's lands into swamps during their upkeep after a Gisa activation - even that felt bad.
Dimir Machinations seems good all round really given it has many targets.
I'm not a fan of this card. I've already got a handful of tutors, and if I was going to add another one, it'd be something like Diabolic Intent or Diabolic Tutor, to get anything. Only being able to find 3 drops when you REALLY need Cabal Coffers or All is Dust is bad times. It also hurts the card that the actual spell it's attached to is awful. In other decks, I've played Shred Memory or Dimir House Guard, and it's nice when the card itself is relevant, rather than just a transmute.
Sorin Markov seems very good since just 5 zombies will kill someone.
I play almost exclusively multiplayer EDH, and putting one player at 10 usually just isn't worth it. I'd rather play something like Coat of Arms if I wanted a way to make a handful of zombies quickly lethal against one player, and then it sticks around (and combos with Gisa activations)
Yes it does. I haven't gotten my hands on one yet (I bought Gisa as a single), but when I do, I'll probably replace Go for the Throat with it. I could see having problems with needing to destroy a multicolored general that is partially black though.
Two other cards I am using that you don't seem to be are Larceny and Filth...What are your thoughts on these?
Before I cut Entomb, I considered Filth as a target for it. After some games though, I realized that the zombies don't need to be unblockable, because there are usually WAY MORE zombies than my opponent has blockers. If I attack someone with 12 zombies and they block two of them and take 20, I really don't care about the two I just lost (Not to mention, you can always sacrifice one of the blocked zombies to Gisa before damage to make more Zombies...) It just didn't seem worth the slot, especially without Entomb.
Larceny seems kind of win-more. If you've already made zombies AND they're connecting, whatever that player has in their hand probably isn't anything that can stop you anyway.
I knew of this guy, but for me he doesn't seem worth it. Phyrexian Devourer and Phyrexian Dreadnought are pretty awful without an Active Gisa, but they're so insane with her that they're worth running. 8 Zombies for 3B in an ideal situation is an okay deal, but if I wanted another "Big guy to sac to Gisa" I'd probably play Nighthowler or Wight of Precinct Six, which aren't awful if Gisa gets killed/tucked/stolen. I like for the deck to still be playable without the general as much as possible.
Respectfully speaking, I think it's good to be able to control your fate so to speak, hence why cards that rely on any state of your opponent, including their graveyard, are not ideal as their impact will not be the most consistent, which is also why I'm dubious of Bonehoard.
My rationale for Filth was you can just cast it and sacrifice it, albeit for a fairer number of creatures. However, I disagree regarding Larceny, it sounds like you will have a good board state a lot of time, but if not, it can enough to paralyze a person so to speak, so you can focus on another threat. I realise at 5 mana this is pricey and I havent tested, but it doesn't feel completely win more to me.
I'll hopefully get to play once I've completed the last few cards I need.
I also play Weiss Schwarz, Chaos, Vanguard and Wixoss.
Weiss Schwarz Sets
Accel World, Angel Beats, Familiar of Zero, Gargantia on the Verdurous Planet, Guilty Crown, Kill La Kill, Robotics;Notes, Sword Art Online.
Chaos Partners
Arpeggio of Blue Steel: Iona, Kirishima, Kongou.
Dangan Ronpa: Asahina, Togami.
Freezing: Vibration: Chiffon, Satelizer.
Vanguard Clans Favoured
Angel Feather, Dark Irregulars, Genesis, Neonecter, Pale Moon, Shadow Paladins, Tachikaze.
Honestly, so was I, but a friend suggested it to me, and after a few games I realized it was amazing. It usually makes my guys bigger than Lashwrithe would. Wight of Precinct Six is the worst of these effects for sure, but there are always at least a few creatures in my own graveyard for Bonehoard (and Nighthowler, if I decide to run it).
My rationale for Filth was you can just cast it and sacrifice it, albeit for a fairer number of creatures.
It's pretty rare that I'll activate Gisa and make a small number of Zombies. You might be able to make Filth work if you have a bunch of other sacrifice outlets, but I feel like sacrificing Filth to make 2 guys is a waste of a Gisa activation. I don't think an evasion granting card like that is needed for this deck, but if I did, I think I'd consider Cover of Darkness before filth. (Again, unless I had entomb, because entomb --> filth during combat is sweet.)
Larceny...it can enough to paralyze a person so to speak, so you can focus on another threat.
Agree to disagree on Larceny. I'll admit that I definitely didn't think of it when I was putting this list together, and I can see it being devastating under the right circumstances - but I'm trying to keep my curve as low as I can, and another 5 drop that won't be useful unless I'm already well established isn't what I need right now. I feel like I'm killing opponents in 1-2 attacks most of the time, and this thing would just sit in my hand.
Thanks again for the suggestions! Be sure to link me to your list when you get it up. It sounds like you have some good ideas, and I look forward to seeing it. This deck is so much fun to play - and people don't see it as a threat when they first sit down across from it, until you're suddenly essentially casting army of the damned every turn.
That Mimic Vat looks pretty interesting. I like the idea of making a token of one of their guys, attacking with it, then sacrificing it to Ghoulcaller Gisa. I'll have to try that out soon.
I've updated the list to the newest version - only 4 changes this time. I'm doing really well with this list, and the changes are getting fewer and fewer as time goes on.
So I've really been in love with Ghoulcaller Gisa since she was spoiled. I've looked at the other lists that people have posted, but most of them are tribal zombies - which I'm not really interested in. Lord of the Undead, Zombie Master, Soulless One, etc. just don't seem good enough for beating multiple opponents down from 40. I decided to do something a bit different with my list. Here it is so far, with some thoughts/explanations below:
5 Ghoulcaller Gisa
Creatures: 21
1 Phyrexian Dreadnought
2 Myr Retriever
2 Leaden Myr
2 Vault Skirge
2 Reassembling Skeleton
2 Nezumi Graverobber
2 Bloodghast
2 Nether Traitor
2 Gempalm Polluter
3 Metalworker
3 Burnished Hart
3 Junk Diver
3 Scarecrone
4 Solemn Simulacrum
4 Crypt Ghast
4 Disciple of Bolas
5 Gray Merchant of Asphodel
6 Phyrexian Devourer
6 Duplicant
6 Wurmcoil Engine
6 Kokusho, The Evening Star
Artifacts: 21
0 Mana Crypt
1 Sol Ring
1 Expedition Map
1 Wayfarer's Bauble
1 Skullclamp
1 Sensei's Divining Top
1 Nihil Spellbomb
2 Torpor Orb
2 Lightning Greaves
3 Forcefield
3 Thousand-Year Elixir
3 Oblivion Stone
3 Unstable Obelisk
4 Thran Dynamo
4 Lashwrithe
4 Nightmare Lash
4 Bonehoard
4 Whip of Erebos
5 Memory Jar
5 Gauntlet of Power
6 Caged Sun
1 Phyrexian Reclamation
2 Gate to Phyrexia
3 Phyrexian Arena
3 Necropotence
3 Necromancy
Planeswalkers: 1
4 Liliana of the Dark Realms
Instants: 7
1 Vampiric Tutor
2 Go for the Throat
3 Sudden Death
3 Sudden Spoiling
3 Hero's Downfall
4 Snuff Out
5 Murderous Cut
Sorceries: 8
1 Innocent Blood
2 Demonic Tutor
2 Night's Whisper
3 Yawgmoth's Will
3 Beseech the Queen
4 Syphon Mind
4 Damnation
7 All is Dust
Lands: 36
1 Bojuka Bog
1 Cabal Coffers
1 Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth
1 Scrying Sheets
1 Volrath's Stronghold
1 Strip Mine
1 Nykthos, Shrine to Nyx
1 Buried Ruin
1 High Market
1 Maze of Ith
1 Blinkmoth Nexus
1 Phyrexian Tower
24 Snow-Covered Swamp
5 Ghoulcaller Gisa
Ramp: 13
0 Mana Crypt
1 Wayfarer's Bauble
1 Expedition Map
1 Sol Ring
2 Leaden Myr
3 Unstable Obelisk
3 Metalworker
3 Burnished Hart
4 Solemn Simulacrum
4 Crypt Ghast
4 Thran Dynamo
5 Gauntlet of Power
6 Caged Sun
Card Selection & Draw: 11
1 Vampiric Tutor
1 Skullclamp
1 Sensei's Divining Top
2 Demonic Tutor
2 Night's Whisper
3 Beseech the Queen
3 Necropotence
3 Phyrexian Arena
4 Disciple of Bolas
4 Syphon Mind
5 Memory Jar
1 Innocent Blood
2 Go for the Throat
2 Gate to Phyrexia
3 Hero's Downfall
3 Sudden Death
3 Oblivion Stone
3 Sudden Spoiling
4 Snuff Out
4 Damnation
5 Murderous Cut
6 Duplicant
7 All is Dust
Awesome to Sacrifice to Gisa: 3
1 Phyrexian Dreadnought
6 Wurmcoil Engine
6 Phyrexian Devourer
Pumps things for Gisa: 4
4 Lashwrithe
4 Nightmare Lash
4 Bonehoard
4 Liliana of the Dark Realms
Recursion: 9
1 Phyrexian Reclamation
2 Myr Retriever
2 Nether Traitor
2 Bloodghast
2 Reassembling Skeleton
3 Junk Diver
3 Scarecrone
3 Yawgmoth's Will
3 Necromancy
2 Vault Skirge
3 Forcefield
4 Whip of Erebos
5 Gray Merchant of Asphodel
6 Kokusho, the Evening Star
Graveyard Hate: 2
1 Nihil Spellbomb
2 Nezumi Graverobber
Misc: 4
2 Lightning Greaves
2 Gempalm Polluter
2 Torpor Orb
3 Thousand-Year Elixir
Lands: 36
1 Bojuka Bog
1 Blinkmoth Nexus
1 Phyrexian Tower
1 Maze of Ith
1 Cabal Coffers
1 Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth
1 Volrath's Stronghold
1 Scrying Sheets
1 Strip Mine
1 Nykthos, Shrine to Nyx
1 Buried Ruin
1 High Market
24 Snow-Covered Swamp
Mishra's Workshop
2. Make zombies - ideally, you want to find either Phyrexian Dreadnought or Phyrexian Devourer, and sacrifice them with their triggers on the stack. Otherwise, hook up ANY creature with Lashwrithe or Nightmare Lash, to make it big, then sacrifice it for zombies. (Bloodghast, Nether Traitor, and Reassembling Skeleton are especially good for this.)
3. Win - you can do any combination of the following:
a. Keep recurring Phyrexian Dreadnought or Phyrexian Devourer every turn using Scarecrone or Phyrexian Reclamation, then attack with huge waves of zombies until your opponents are dead.
b. Get a handful of zombies on the table, then cycle and recur Gempalm Polluter with Phyrexian Reclamation and/or Volrath's Stronghold.
c. Drain everyone with Kokusho, The Evening Star or Gray Merchant of Asphodel.
d. Hit them with your Junk - Even Nether Traitor or Junk Diver with a Nightmare Lash on them gets pretty stupid, pretty quickly. In a pinch, even Ghoulcaller Gisa with Lashwrithe on her can be lethal in an attack or two.
Beacon of Unrest
Coat of Arms
Myriad Landscape
5 November 2014
Added:
- Nezumi Graverobber
- Underworld Connections
- Vault Skirge
- Shepherd of Rot
- Whip of Erebos
- Gate to Phyrexia
- All is Dust
- Innocent Blood
- Thousand-Year Elixir
- Leaden Myr
- Memory Jar
- Phyrexian Tower
- Maze of Ith
- Blinkmoth Nexus
- Bonehoard
Removed:- Snow-Covered Swamp
- Withered Wretch
- Vengeful Dead
- Zombie Trailblazer
- Mana Vault
- Voltaic Key
- Extraplanar Lens
- Swiftfoot Boots
- Sculpting Steel
- Entomb
- Nevinyrral's Disk
- Skeleton Shard
- Unholy Grotto
- Mouth of Ronom
- Karn Liberated
5 December 2014Added:
- Unstable Obelisk
- Sudden Death
- Necromancy
- Strip Mine
Removed:Any and all feedback is appreciated!
Love it. This is basically the direction I was going in as well, but I am including stuff like Zombie Master for flavor (and I have a Beta version
Some Zombs and other creatures I have in mine:
Noxious Ghoul - 1-sided Wrath with a big Gisa sac
Nantuko Husk, Carrion Feeder, Gutless Ghoul - You seem a bit light on sac-outlets. Husk and Feeder can help Grave Pact their board, get HUGE for a swing, then get Gisa'd for a huge army. Gutless can keep your life up to account for self-damage (Shepherd of Rot, Graveborn Muse, Necro, etc.)
Coffin Queen and Helldozer - With cards like Thousand-Year Elixir, Illusionist's Bracers, and especially the next card on the list, things can get stupid fast.
Thornbite Staff - I know the equip cost is bad, but once equipped this makes a GIGANTIC army when Gisa combines with something like Gravecrawler or any of the other self-recurring creatures. Equipment speeds this up. I was even considering Grafted Wargear for the +3 and free equip.
Other cheap casting-cost dudes with huge power I'm tinkering with: Hunted Horror, Phyrexian Soulgorger(to complete the Phyrexian trio
You do have a ton of ramp. I'd consider some big splashy bombs like In Garruk's Wake Decree of Pain, Rise of the Dark Realms, or Akroma's Memorial with all that mana.
I hope this is useful. Go Gisa + Phyrexia!
I agree that I had too much ramp, and I cut some to add in more stuff to keep me alive like All is Dust, Vault Skirge (who is awesome with nightmare lash, by the way) and Whip of Erebos. I updated my list in the OP. I'll keep Decree of Pain in mind if I decide I need another board wipe.
I've cut both Grave Pact and Dictate of Erebos, so I'm not in the best position to run Carrion Feeder and friends. Also, I'm getting even further away from Zombie Tribal, so stuff like Soulless One and Phyrexian Soulgorger aren't really good unless I'm already winning. I'd like for this deck to be able to make plays even if Gisa is dead or tucked.
I considered Noxious Ghoul, but it slows this deck down a lot when Gisa gets killed. Again, I'll keep it in mind if my meta gets crazy with tokens or tribal shenanigans - but recasting Gisa for 7 is a pain, and after the second time it starts getting impossible. If only Gisa was naturally a zombie herself, this would be one of the best cards in the deck.
Thornbite Staff - I tested this. If I had Gisa active + a creature to sac + lots of mana, then thornbite staff was AMAZING. The problem is that it did very little outside of that situation (aka when I'm already winning), so I decided to cut it for Bonehoard, which is itself a big creature to sacrifice, plus a third equipment to throw onto nether traitor for damage/sacrifice.
Grafted Wargear is pretty interesting. I'm not sure if I have room for another equipment, or if Cranial Plating is better in my artifact heavy list, but it's definitely something I'll consider. Thanks for the ideas!
Unfortunately, Urborg doesn't change the name of any lands, just their subtypes. Since I use only snow-covered basics, the Scythe is worse here than it usually is unless my opponents also happen to be using snow-covered swamps. That being said, I may consider switching to regular swamps at some point, and if I do, Strata Scythe is probably going right into the deck over bonehoard as Nightmare Lash #3.
Main Decks
Diaochan, Iroas, God of Victory, Kaalia, Marton, Ulasht, Volrath,
Kaervek, Prossh, Titania
Amusing or Themed
Progenitus
Pauper Guildmages
Azorius Boros Dimir Golgari Gruul Izzet Korozda
Orzhov Rakdos Rix Maadi Selesyna Simic Skarrg Zameck
I also play Weiss Schwarz, Chaos, Vanguard and Wixoss.
Accel World, Angel Beats, Familiar of Zero, Gargantia on the Verdurous Planet, Guilty Crown, Kill La Kill, Robotics;Notes, Sword Art Online.
Chaos Partners
Arpeggio of Blue Steel: Iona, Kirishima, Kongou.
Dangan Ronpa: Asahina, Togami.
Freezing: Vibration: Chiffon, Satelizer.
Vanguard Clans Favoured
Angel Feather, Dark Irregulars, Genesis, Neonecter, Pale Moon, Shadow Paladins, Tachikaze.
Wixoss - Just trial decks for now!
Yeah, Strip Mine is obviously just better than Wasteland. Honestly, I have more Wastelands than Strip Mines in my collection (weird, I know) so I usually don't consider it. I'll be making that change soon.
With a Lashwrithe, Nightmare Lash, or Bonehoard on it, Blinkmoth Nexus can be a huge surprise flyer after a wrath, and/or something to sacrifice to Gisa. I've used it quite a few times to chump block creatures with Sword of Light and Shadow and Sword of Feast and Famine too. This could also be upgraded with Inkmoth Nexus, but I don't like pulling off random infect kills out of nowhere.
Kind of. I considered it, but the only legendary creatures I'm playing other than Gisa is Kokusho, the Evening Star, who already has evasion, but usually blocks and ends up sacrificed to make Zombies anyway. The other issue is that Gauntlet of Power only works with Basics, and without Urborg, Crypt Ghast, Nightmare Lash, Lashwrithe, Liliana of the Dark Realms, and Cabal Coffers only work with Swamps. The more nonbasics I play, the worse all of those cards get. I decided that I'd not activate it often enough to make it better than regular swamps here.
I do have a lot of effects that cost me life in this deck:
Necropotence
Phyrexian Arena
Phyrexian Reclamation
Mana Crypt
Vampiric Tutor
Night's Whisper
Snuff Out
Shepherd of Rot
Underworld Connections
...not to mention the 3 other players who are trying to kill me (I usually get archenemy'd when I play this deck) - so I'm not entirely sold on ancient tomb. It's especially lame once I land one of my black mana doublers and works less well than a basic.
Thespian's Stage is interesting if I can hit Cabal Coffers with it, but the rest of my cool lands are Legendary, so other than Maze of Ith or something cool that an opponent might have, this might not be worth it - again, the more nonbasics I run, the worse my "x number of swamps" cards get. It's definitely something I'm going to test out though.
Thanks for the ideas! Let me know if there are more!
Malicious Affliction seems very good in this type of deck, it is non-black, but two creatures for two is quite strong. Two other cards I am using that you don't seem to be are Larceny and Filth, which both make your creature hits more important and easier to hit. What are your thoughts on these?
There is also a weaker Phyrexian Dreadnaught in Phyrexian Soulgorger, which I am running, but creature base seems a reasonable point of divergence.
Main Decks
Diaochan, Iroas, God of Victory, Kaalia, Marton, Ulasht, Volrath,
Kaervek, Prossh, Titania
Amusing or Themed
Progenitus
Pauper Guildmages
Azorius Boros Dimir Golgari Gruul Izzet Korozda
Orzhov Rakdos Rix Maadi Selesyna Simic Skarrg Zameck
I also play Weiss Schwarz, Chaos, Vanguard and Wixoss.
Accel World, Angel Beats, Familiar of Zero, Gargantia on the Verdurous Planet, Guilty Crown, Kill La Kill, Robotics;Notes, Sword Art Online.
Chaos Partners
Arpeggio of Blue Steel: Iona, Kirishima, Kongou.
Dangan Ronpa: Asahina, Togami.
Freezing: Vibration: Chiffon, Satelizer.
Vanguard Clans Favoured
Angel Feather, Dark Irregulars, Genesis, Neonecter, Pale Moon, Shadow Paladins, Tachikaze.
Wixoss - Just trial decks for now!
Yes. Contamination and Infernal Darkness. It's a very powerful effect, but I hate completely locking people out of the game unless you're playing for something other than fun. An earlier version of this deck had Zombie Trailblazer, which allowed me to turn all of a player's lands into swamps during their upkeep after a Gisa activation - even that felt bad.
I'm not a fan of this card. I've already got a handful of tutors, and if I was going to add another one, it'd be something like Diabolic Intent or Diabolic Tutor, to get anything. Only being able to find 3 drops when you REALLY need Cabal Coffers or All is Dust is bad times. It also hurts the card that the actual spell it's attached to is awful. In other decks, I've played Shred Memory or Dimir House Guard, and it's nice when the card itself is relevant, rather than just a transmute.
I play almost exclusively multiplayer EDH, and putting one player at 10 usually just isn't worth it. I'd rather play something like Coat of Arms if I wanted a way to make a handful of zombies quickly lethal against one player, and then it sticks around (and combos with Gisa activations)
Yes it does. I haven't gotten my hands on one yet (I bought Gisa as a single), but when I do, I'll probably replace Go for the Throat with it. I could see having problems with needing to destroy a multicolored general that is partially black though.
Before I cut Entomb, I considered Filth as a target for it. After some games though, I realized that the zombies don't need to be unblockable, because there are usually WAY MORE zombies than my opponent has blockers. If I attack someone with 12 zombies and they block two of them and take 20, I really don't care about the two I just lost (Not to mention, you can always sacrifice one of the blocked zombies to Gisa before damage to make more Zombies...) It just didn't seem worth the slot, especially without Entomb.
Larceny seems kind of win-more. If you've already made zombies AND they're connecting, whatever that player has in their hand probably isn't anything that can stop you anyway.
I knew of this guy, but for me he doesn't seem worth it. Phyrexian Devourer and Phyrexian Dreadnought are pretty awful without an Active Gisa, but they're so insane with her that they're worth running. 8 Zombies for 3B in an ideal situation is an okay deal, but if I wanted another "Big guy to sac to Gisa" I'd probably play Nighthowler or Wight of Precinct Six, which aren't awful if Gisa gets killed/tucked/stolen. I like for the deck to still be playable without the general as much as possible.
My rationale for Filth was you can just cast it and sacrifice it, albeit for a fairer number of creatures. However, I disagree regarding Larceny, it sounds like you will have a good board state a lot of time, but if not, it can enough to paralyze a person so to speak, so you can focus on another threat. I realise at 5 mana this is pricey and I havent tested, but it doesn't feel completely win more to me.
I'll hopefully get to play once I've completed the last few cards I need.
Main Decks
Diaochan, Iroas, God of Victory, Kaalia, Marton, Ulasht, Volrath,
Kaervek, Prossh, Titania
Amusing or Themed
Progenitus
Pauper Guildmages
Azorius Boros Dimir Golgari Gruul Izzet Korozda
Orzhov Rakdos Rix Maadi Selesyna Simic Skarrg Zameck
I also play Weiss Schwarz, Chaos, Vanguard and Wixoss.
Accel World, Angel Beats, Familiar of Zero, Gargantia on the Verdurous Planet, Guilty Crown, Kill La Kill, Robotics;Notes, Sword Art Online.
Chaos Partners
Arpeggio of Blue Steel: Iona, Kirishima, Kongou.
Dangan Ronpa: Asahina, Togami.
Freezing: Vibration: Chiffon, Satelizer.
Vanguard Clans Favoured
Angel Feather, Dark Irregulars, Genesis, Neonecter, Pale Moon, Shadow Paladins, Tachikaze.
Wixoss - Just trial decks for now!
It's pretty rare that I'll activate Gisa and make a small number of Zombies. You might be able to make Filth work if you have a bunch of other sacrifice outlets, but I feel like sacrificing Filth to make 2 guys is a waste of a Gisa activation. I don't think an evasion granting card like that is needed for this deck, but if I did, I think I'd consider Cover of Darkness before filth. (Again, unless I had entomb, because entomb --> filth during combat is sweet.)
Agree to disagree on Larceny. I'll admit that I definitely didn't think of it when I was putting this list together, and I can see it being devastating under the right circumstances - but I'm trying to keep my curve as low as I can, and another 5 drop that won't be useful unless I'm already well established isn't what I need right now. I feel like I'm killing opponents in 1-2 attacks most of the time, and this thing would just sit in my hand.
Thanks again for the suggestions! Be sure to link me to your list when you get it up. It sounds like you have some good ideas, and I look forward to seeing it. This deck is so much fun to play - and people don't see it as a threat when they first sit down across from it, until you're suddenly essentially casting army of the damned every turn.
I've updated the list to the newest version - only 4 changes this time. I'm doing really well with this list, and the changes are getting fewer and fewer as time goes on.
was going to suggest contamination but I guess you don't want it.