It clearly moves away from Devotion (nothing in the build really utilizes devotion), but it is still essentially a control deck focused on hand destruction, card advantage, and board control.
The deck will play slightly differently from straight Mono-B devotion because the hand control portion is so heavy, but it is also positioned to have a strong game against Mono-B and Mono-U, as well as Esper and aggro.
Against control, I love the ability to go to 10 (13 if you include Lifebane Zombie) pieces of hand destruction. That is very serious, especially since it also runs a creature that blanks Esper and Wx targeted removal.
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DnT
"I'm a lead farmer... !" Quote ruined due to policy.
I think the B/W deck is extremely well positioned at the moment. Everyone is running specific removal for nightveil specter and demon (selesnya charm, domestication), which you blank with this approach. Blood Baron and the extra discard is also a great plan against the control decks.
I've tweaked the list a little for myself, removing both ultimate price and a sin collector for two lifebane zombies and a doom blade main. Lifebane zombie is good in nearly every matchup, save for monoblack. But the most important cards in that matchup are pack rat and underworld connection anyway, not like an ultimate price extra will save you in that matchup.
This clears up two sideboard slots which I filled with a 4th zombie and the 4th duress. Lifebane zombie is so good in many matchups and comes in nearly everytime, no reason not to run 4.
I'm also thinking about removing underworld connections altogether and running Read the Bones in the B/W list. Owen Turtenwald already uttered his frustrations with the card in monoblack devotion. In the B/W variant, you don't care about devotion so read the bones might be better. It's also definately better against aggro and midrangy decks to just draw two cards with scry now instead of the same things in two turns from now, with a much higher mana investment.
The only reason I'm hesitant is that underworld connections can completely take over the game against control and in the mirror, it's a threat that must be answered. Having the possibility of drawing a lot of cards feels like it ouweighs the draw 2 from RtB.
Then again, everybody is packing plenty of removal for underworld connections. Everyone has things like Wear/Tear or sundering growth in their sideboard, and sometimes even things like bramblecrush. Tricking people into boarding in those dead cards and you having no actual targets might also be worth something. This is even more likely now since the deck won a GP.
I have to say that with 2 people running Mono-Red and another 2 running Gr Devotion, and a third running a Junk build, I felt really unhappy with Devour Flesh last night. It is a really bad card against decks full of mana dorks or able to splash BTE-BTE-creature, or, as in the case of Gr Devotion, both.
I'm also feeling that I want to move toward maindeck Lifebane Zombie again and Nightveil Specter back in the side. I feel like everyone is packing sufficient Nightveil hate except us, and even we went 4 Devour largely because of Nightveil in Mono-U and the mirror (well, and for Blood Baron of Vizkopa in Esper.) Lifebane is strong versus the decks I am now worried about, while Nightveil is pretty meh. I think I would rather bring it in for the Mirror and Mono-Blue.
If I move to Bw, and replace Gary with BBV, I think I will also try Read the Bones, though I am by no means sold on that idea. As much as I hate Underworld Connections, I also really like it because decks have to react to it and waste resources dealing with it and after the initial 3 mana, it is one mana per turn, which is a very efficient cost for drawing a card.
A couple thoughts after using Owen's deck in two local events this week where I placed 1st (4-0) and 2nd (3-1):
Pack rat is a masterful card in every matchup GM1. The rat train obliterates people just as often as big gary bombs. I like to side 2 rats out on the draw in most matchups, since it is much less likely that you'll establish a rat army by turn 3. I'd rather have a specter, removal, etc. Other than that, I love seeing a rat in my hand (bonus if there's 2 swamps and a mutavault too).
I read Owen's article and I am absolutely with him on underworld connections. The devotion counters and mirror utility make it a lynchpin, but man is it frustratingly slow against most of the decks I've been playing against. More often than not, I am discarding it and going all in on rat tokens, or finding myself wanting to play a specter (same card draw, but off my opponents deck without paying life) -> demon -> gary instead. It's good in long games, but frankly, nobody is really into playing long games where I live.
I don't know what the alternative is... I was thinking of throwing a whip back into the mix since it's a high CMC used card engine, the devotion is the same, and the utility is still pretty good, but it's just as slow. However, I do like the idea of having the option to play cure -> specter -> whip -> demon/gary against aggression. Any extra life helps tremendously.
I think Erebos' big body is undervalued, but he's too slow to rely on. I have him sideboarded 2x.
Devour flesh is awesome. I don't care if my opponent gains life, my lifegains will dwarf his in the long run. Plus, sacrificing a gary or demon to myself and whipping is very satisfying.
Don't agree with Owen on hero's downfall. I am never disappointed when I draw one.
Love lifebane zombie. He rocks it everywhere but the mirror.
26 land count is great. I might sub a nykthos in if I stick with the whip, but it definitely makes me uneasy to have 5 colorless lands, especially with pharika's cure being so vital against aggro.
I like the idea of 4x betrayal in the sideboard. Goodbye rakdos cackler, mogis marauder, nightveil specter, etc!
Considering adding one more lifebane zombie in the sideboard instead of the doom blade. He's just so nice to have around.
(Yes, that land base is off, I just haven't gotten around to getting Mutavault #4. It works fine for now, though)
Erebos I've gotten less & less impressed with in that 1 MD slot. I'm thinking of taking him out for removal #10, probably switching with one of those in the SB. 10 removal seems like where I want to be.
Pharika's Cure is solid maindeck (fun note: I only read Owen's article AFTER I placed Cure as a 2-of, amusing ), or at least where I am it is. Against aggro it can often mean the difference between surviving a turn to drop Gary and eventually stabilize.
I'll also eventually up the Dark Betrayal count to 3, probably taking out Ultimate Price. Doom Blade I still like, as where I am Black Devotion doesn't comprise an obscene amount of the meta so it's still more relevant than Price as the 2-CC removal spell of choice.
Moving forward, changes will probably look like:
MD: -1 Erebos, -1 Ultimate Price, +1 Doom Blade, +1 2CC removal of choice
SB: -1 Ultimate Price OR 2CC removal that I'll add MD, -1 Doom Blade (moves to MD), +1 Erebos, +1 Dark Betrayal
I might even consider placing 1 Hero's Downfall in the side and add in the 3rd Cure, at least in an aggro-heavy meta. Oh, 4 Downfall in the 75 is definitely correct, but it's just something to experiment on since I seem to see red-based aggro half the time.
Good job mate, this is basically my maindeck, with Liliana->Pack Rat and no scrylands. Corrupt is really clunky sometimes (and would be better with 4 Pack Rats) but it has won me so many matches, and by 'won' I mean 'loss with any other card in the deck' (except Gary sometimes). Sadly, versatilily come at a price.
That said, don't try to copy the decklist of a random pro who won something, just use your own mind and playtest your ideas. 'OMG this guy won playing [insert card here], now it's a 20$ card and I need a 4x in my deck!'. 'This card has never been used in a deck that top8'd, it's total crap'. Don't do this. A lot of people played Pharika's Cure maindeck ages ago. Different cards can be good in a different meta, and the player thinking 'out of the box' could be successful because other players were just not prepared for something unusual (see BW Control winning last GP, finally 4xBBoV maindeck).
Some days ago I played against a UW Control player splashing black for scrylands (ctrl-c + ctrl-v here), and he was acting like he was the world champion and I was a random noob. I proceed to beat him G1 with Erebos, God of the Dead with a Erebos's Whip on the board, and he said 'Well, this was lucky, you won this with two 1x cards', and I 'Actually the Whip is 2x, and I won this game with Thoughtseize into Underworld Connections', at which point he said 'Ah, so you're playing a really bad version of your deck'. We proceed to G2, and Erebos sticks again. At some point I see two Elspeth and a Jace with a Thoughtseize, and I discard an Elspeth, and pass. In his turn he plays a Jace and +1 (scary Mutavault?), but EOT he eats a Hero's Downfall. He starts laughing and says something like 'Ah, you're losing this!'. In his turn he proceeds with Elspeth and her tokens. In my turn, I cast a Corrupt on Elspeth. He starts laughing like crazy, thinking 'Are you really playing that? lol'. He is happy to see his Elspeth go, and then in his turn he plays another Elspeth. My turn, another Corrupt. Laughs. 'Your deck is total crap, I'm wasting my time'. 'Well, you're losing to this crap, deal with it'. From that point on, after dealing with 3 of his win conditions (out of 4 probably), I proceed to draw like 7-8 cards with Erebos (thanks Corrupt), deal with the remaining tokens, and bash face. He ragequits at some point laughing at my deck. Corrupt has won so many games against control thanks to its versatility. They never see it coming for like 10 to the face.
I'm just getting into this deck -- been playing Esper and considering a change. Reading Owen's article, I'm confused by a couple of his comments.
1) In his argument against Whip, he mentions the only creatures post-board vs aggro are Rats, Specters, and Demons. Do you really side out Gary vs aggro, when the lifegain is at its greatest value? (He actually says later that he never sides it out.) :headscratch:
1a) Also vs aggro, wouldn't you bring in Lifebane Zombie? Except for Rakdos aggro, you'll likely find something in their hand, because even "mono red" decks run BTE and Reckoner. Seems like a 3-power 2-for-1 with Fear is a good thing . . . and oh-by-the-way, even better when it's whipped. Is this my inexperience with the deck, or are there major holes in his argument, here?
2) If this deck is 50/50 vs White Weenie, and you know Shrivel is a bomb, why add just one? You hear a lot about most-likely matchups and squeezing in as many different answers as possible, but if I can get that much work out of a card, I'd like to have more than a 15-20% chance of getting to play it.
Also, it's a little thing, but is there a particular reason for choosing Temple of Deceit? When I build this deck, I plan to use Temple of Silence. It might just keep the opponent off balance, thinking I might be playing an Orzhov splash for Blood Barons.
I'm just getting into this deck -- been playing Esper and considering a change. Reading Owen's article, I'm confused by a couple of his comments.
1) In his argument against Whip, he mentions the only creatures post-board vs aggro are Rats, Specters, and Demons. Do you really side out Gary vs aggro, when the lifegain is at its greatest value? (He actually says later that he never sides it out.) :headscratch:
1a) Also vs aggro, wouldn't you bring in Lifebane Zombie? Except for Rakdos aggro, you'll likely find something in their hand, because even "mono red" decks run BTE and Reckoner. Seems like a 3-power 2-for-1 with Fear is a good thing . . . and oh-by-the-way, even better when it's whipped. Is this my inexperience with the deck, or are there major holes in his argument, here?
2) If this deck is 50/50 vs White Weenie, and you know Shrivel is a bomb, why add just one? You hear a lot about most-likely matchups and squeezing in as many different answers as possible, but if I can get that much work out of a card, I'd like to have more than a 15-20% chance of getting to play it.
Also, it's a little thing, but is there a particular reason for choosing Temple of Deceit? When I build this deck, I plan to use Temple of Silence. It might just keep the opponent off balance, thinking I might be playing an Orzhov splash for Blood Barons.
1a - I use lifebane zombie against all forms of aggro... It's a blocker, a timer, and a devotion magnet (yes, keep gary in)
Also, temple of deceit to me is a metagame choice. There are large amounts of mono blue frontrunners out there, and casting their cards can easily swing a game. Specter + an exiled master of waves = gg
So I have a PTQ this weekend and am pretty much set on Mono B Devotion (Owen Turtenwald's current version). However, there are a couple of things a I am still debating:
1. Is it possible to move 1 Underworld Connections to the sideboard? I definitely want 4 total, but is this a reasonable move? Or is the card just too important vs Mirror/Esper/UW?
2. Are some number of Temple of Silence worth it? The most reasonable approach would seem to be a 2/2 split between it and Temple of Deceit.
3. I feel like I want 2-3 Doom Blade in the board because it kills annoying creatures which Ultimate Price/Pharika's Cure cannot kill. Is this really necessary?
4. With UW, Esper, Mono B and BW Control all having strong finishes, is it perhaps necessary to have access to the full 12 of 4 Thoughtseize / 4 Duress / 4 Lifebane Zombie?
5. The most important question of all: Is it reasonable to play 3-4 Lifebane Zombies main deck? If so, what to cut? Should the Nightveil Specters just be moved to the sideboard?
What do you guys think?
I don't think I have as much experience with the deck as some of the other forum posters, but I have been playing it for the past month and can offer my own opinions.
1. I think underworld connections is just too good. Its one of the best cards in the deck, getting the turn 3 UC is just backbreaking, especially in owen's deck with 4x pack rats. I mean you would be siding in that 4th in pretty much every game anyway outside of rakdos aggro/white weenie right?
2. I think the temple question is just what you expect (off of what you think you might hit with nightveil specter)
3. I agree with the doom blade in the board. In any matchup that isn't mono black or esper you pretty much want them in.
4. I don't know if you want that much. Even the orzhov control deck that won last GP didn't have so many hand disruptions post sideboard. You also don't want to be top decking a duress. I think owen's numbers are right on that one. It's something you want to test for sure, but in my experience, 2-3 duress in board and 3 LBZ has been the sweet spot for me
5. I think it's reasonable to try out LBZ in the main (again dependant on your meta) however, I think nightveil specter is just so good that you should keep him in.
So I have a PTQ this weekend and am pretty much set on Mono B Devotion (Owen Turtenwald's current version). However, there are a couple of things a I am still debating:
1. Is it possible to move 1 Underworld Connections to the sideboard? I definitely want 4 total, but is this a reasonable move? Or is the card just too important vs Mirror/Esper/UW?
2. Are some number of Temple of Silence worth it? The most reasonable approach would seem to be a 2/2 split between it and Temple of Deceit.
3. I feel like I want 2-3 Doom Blade in the board because it kills annoying creatures which Ultimate Price/Pharika's Cure cannot kill. Is this really necessary?
4. With UW, Esper, Mono B and BW Control all having strong finishes, is it perhaps necessary to have access to the full 12 of 4 Thoughtseize / 4 Duress / 4 Lifebane Zombie?
5. The most important question of all: Is it reasonable to play 3-4 Lifebane Zombies main deck? If so, what to cut? Should the Nightveil Specters just be moved to the sideboard?
What do you guys think?
1. No. Draw and devotion for Gary are important. IMO, all or none.
2. Not really helpful, but not really bad either.
3. Yes. In fact, in my locals at least, Doom Blade is almost always better than Ultimate Price, since Ultimate Price fails against much of the same stuff as Doom Blade that matters (Nightveil Specter, and every Bx creature, in particular. Again Mono-Red, Rw Devotion, Mono-U Devotion, and Gr Devotion, Doom Blade is strictly better. The only place UP is better is in a Mono-B Devotion-heavy meta.
4. Not at all. Even BW Control only runs 4/3/3. That is the most you would run.
5. If running Mono-B Devotion, it is always Nightveil vs. Lifebane main, and it depends on the meta. Thanks to Mono-U and Mono-B and smaller aggro decks being so important, a lot of decks run ways to hate out power 2 or less creatures, so I think Lifebane is the choice for the main and Nightveil goes back to the side, again, especially if your meta is increasingly Gr, Rw, Wr or Wb, instead of Mono-U (vs. Esper it is a toss up.) And against Mono-U you want to side out Desecration Demon and have both LZ and NS anyway.
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Standard
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Eldrazi and Staxes
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DnT
"I'm a lead farmer... !" Quote ruined due to policy.
I'm advocating Lifebane Zombie in the main as well as Nightveil Specter. Cutting Erebos in the main and moving them entirely to the sideboard. I'm also shaving Nightveil Specter for a main/side 2/2 split.
As we are running 4 mutavault, its much possible to swing with Lifebane + Mutavault for 5 damage in an open field on the 4th turn. Lifebane Zombie is easier on the mana as well. Problems with the stock build is that if you have mutavault and 2 black lands it is difficult to cast Nightveil Specter on the 3rd turn unless you topdeck a land by then.
Also against nonblack aggro decks this acts as a blocker and a 3 power evasive threat. It also gives us answers towards Blood Baron, which gives us headaches when playing against him.
I still had Nightveil Specter against aggro decks in the sideboard which can be boarded out along Phraika's cure to deal with them.
Thoughts? Should I shave a land to put a Whip of Erebos main? Criticisms towards the Whip is because all our creatures then only have 2 power sans the Pack Rat. But with Lifebane main Whip becomes more potent as not only it gains back life easily, it also allows hand inquisition from the graveyard.
I ditched the whip and erebos and splashed green for abrupt decay, golgari charm, and putrify and haven't looked back. Not a huge fan of LBZ so far. Green is meh at the moment and it's too situational for MD consideration IMO. I put two in my SB and I rarely side it in. I put him in vs esper for a possible BB snag and additional pressure. Other than that I don't bother. We are already ahead of G/r devo so I don't use him there.
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Standard: Gave it up
Modern: Eldrazi Tron, UW Tron, GR Tron, BW Tokens, WU Death and Taxes
I'd rather have three Dark Betrayal in the side, but I only have one total. It didn't end up hurting me in the end.
Notes:
Pack Rat -- when I played him, if he wasn't removed right away it got out of hand for the opponent and the game would end quickly after. Brutal against the mirror and a RG Heroics deck I played.
A surprisingly effective tactic was to swing into a blocker or two with Pack Rat, have them get blocked, than activate Mutavault post blockers to kill said blockers. For some reason, no one ever saw it coming
My favorite play was the final play that got me to 4-0. I was playing against a Maze's End deck, and had a Pithing Needle out naming Maze's End so he was whittling me down with Cackling Perimeter. I was down to 8 life and he had 8 gates, so he tapped all of them to deal lethal damage. I cast Devour Flesh on my own Gary to gain enough life to survive, and ended up winning next turn swinging in with Mutavault.
I Thoughtseized someone with no cards in hand because I wasn't paying attention. I hit her for 12 Gary damage next turn so it ain't no thang.
Maining Lifebane Zombie was a great call, as EVERYONE I played had some form of green creature in their decks. Your mileage will vary, of course.
I Thoughtseized turn one quite a bit and it was amazing.
So whats the deal with people cutting Nightveil specters here, i hate to put this in such a blunt way but have you people played with that card? Seriously?
Its a strictly better card against Esper, U/W, Mono Black, the Burn deck, and mono blue which make up the majority of the Meta. In fact i just counted the amount of those decks from the last daily on MTGGoldfish and its 28 out of 40. Thats 70% of matches where Nightveil is not 'marginally' better but just massively more efficient. Even then if you take whats left its a combination of Agro decks and Green devotion. The Green Devotion lists are the only place Zombie is better.
I like Zombie, its a great card and i certainly like the idea of cutting Whip and Erebos from the main for maybe two and then maybe finding one more card somewhere for 3. However, to suggest that playing less Specters main deck for it is just a bit bonkers people
So whats the deal with people cutting Nightveil specters here, i hate to put this in such a blunt way but have you people played with that card? Seriously?
Its a strictly better card against Esper, U/W, Mono Black, the Burn deck, and mono blue which make up the majority of the Meta. In fact i just counted the amount of those decks from the last daily on MTGGoldfish and its 28 out of 40. Thats 70% of matches where Nightveil is not 'marginally' better but just massively more efficient. Even then if you take whats left its a combination of Agro decks and Green devotion. The Green Devotion lists are the only place Zombie is better.
I like Zombie, its a great card and i certainly like the idea of cutting Whip and Erebos from the main for maybe two and then maybe finding one more card somewhere for 3. However, to suggest that playing less Specters main deck for it is just a bit bonkers people
I did it to make people on a message board get angry
So whats the deal with people cutting Nightveil specters here, i hate to put this in such a blunt way but have you people played with that card? Seriously?
Its a strictly better card against Esper, U/W, Mono Black, the Burn deck, and mono blue which make up the majority of the Meta. In fact i just counted the amount of those decks from the last daily on MTGGoldfish and its 28 out of 40. Thats 70% of matches where Nightveil is not 'marginally' better but just massively more efficient. Even then if you take whats left its a combination of Agro decks and Green devotion. The Green Devotion lists are the only place Zombie is better.
I like Zombie, its a great card and i certainly like the idea of cutting Whip and Erebos from the main for maybe two and then maybe finding one more card somewhere for 3. However, to suggest that playing less Specters main deck for it is just a bit bonkers people
No complaints about specter from me.
Also, I got rolled last night by an assemble the legion token masher deck with chained to the rocks and elspeth. I don't have shrivel or illness in my sideboard, and duress / thoughtseize were MIA in both games, but I don't know what I could have done better. Seems like sideboarding and then praying for an illness to show up is not a very solid strategy.
Round 1: UW Control - Draw. G1 he lets me resolve 2 (TWO!) Underworld Connections (DSphere ate my Rats) and is buried in card advantage. G2, he pops Elixir of Immortality, chains Revelation after Revelation, and eventually ends up getting all 4 Detention Spheres out, 3 with Connections underneath. By the time we start shuffling for G3, we're informed to take our last 5 turns, and I don't draw a fast enough hand.
Round 2: Naya Midrange - Win (2-0). This is why I don't like playing 3-color in Standard right now. The manabase isn't as good as last Standard's, simply put. I hit his Keyrunes with Thoughtseize leaving him manascrewed, so Mutavault and LBZ take over the game.
Round 3: RDW - Loss (0-2). Game 1, he goes into god hand mode. I didn't even do anything. Game 2 had more effort, though! I got him down to 4 in Game 2 before he topdecks burn the turn before I can drop Gary down. Oh well.
Round 4: Golgari Midrange (technically Junk) - Win (2-1). This was a very interesting deck. It's the Kibler B/G with Witchstalker, Troll, Mangler, etc. but with White for Blood Baron of Vizkopa and Obzedat, Ghost Council. Erebos saves me in G3, blocking Lifegain from Obzedat. He kills all my creatures and is at 5, and with me at three, I topdeck a Connections for Erebos to come alive and swing.
Round 5: Boros - Win (2-0). I draw a removal-heavy hand in G1 which allows me to drop multiple Garys later on. G2, he gets out Purphoros and Assemble the Legion (it went all the way up to 5 tokens), but yeah, Gary with a Demon and 2 Connections down is painful.
Round 6: UW Control - Win (2-0). G1 plays the same as Round 1's G1. G2, he has the worst luck ever with drawing lands.
Round 7: Boros - Lose (0-2). Mogis for 14? Yeah, I can't do anything about that. G2, I'm able to keep taking away all his threats but I draw none of my own (this is with LBZ instead of Connections now), so I run out of removal before Stormbreath Dragon takes over. I make a huge error here, as on T2 he drops Frostburn Weird and I immediately hit it with Devour Flesh EOT (when I had Pharika's Cure). In hindsight, I should've waited for his next turn for him to swing with Weird, pump, then hit it with Cure. Had I done this I would've had one more removal spell in time for the Dragon, because Cure just sat in my hand the whole game. Oh well.
Then it turns out that even if I won Round 7, X-1-1 still wouldn't have made it because there was an X-0-2. Well, with that loss I still get lesser prizes.
(No MBD and MUD for 7 rounds? Wait, did that just happen?)
Some notes:
- After this, I think I'm convinced that Pharika's Cure MD is the way to go. Boros and Mono-Red aren't very nice matchups for the deck, and the card helps a lot there. I would go up to 3 MD, even, and will test it out moving 1 Hero's Downfall (or maybe Erebos?) to the side. Also, like Ultimate Price, it kills Master of Waves.
- Nykthos.... yeah, 4th Mutavault please.
- Someone told me earlier that I may have too much removal in the SB but I don't really get why. Post-board, against aggressive decks/Boros/RDW, I can go up to 15 removal spells. That's a fourth of the deck total, which I think is the right number. The division and numbers change, of course (especially the 2-CC removal), but I feel like it's a good enough number to move forward.
Thought's onthe 4 Devour Flesh & 1 Pharika's Cure vs 2 Devour Flesh, 2 Ultimate Price, and 1 Doom Blade in the MB of the Mono-B decks?
I think that it is a very important meta call and people should be careful to not blindly go with the 4 devour flesh route if there is a decent amount of green run in your area. I think devour flesh is sometimes pretty bad card against the G/R devotion decks.
Went 4-1 at a GPT today. Beat 3 mono blue devotion decks in a row :yawn:. I honestly don't know if I'm lucky, or if the people playing mono blue right now are just bad, but I've won 5 matches in a row against that list. Pharika's cure is a godsend against master of waves, and dark betrayal is clutch against nightveil specter.
My only loss was a 1-2 against white weenie where I was 1 draw away from topdecking a winning land with 2 gary's in hand gm3.
I also played some kind of weird green junk deck with smiter and advent of the wurm. Dunno much about that one....
Thought's onthe 4 Devour Flesh & 1 Pharika's Cure vs 2 Devour Flesh, 2 Ultimate Price, and 1 Doom Blade in the MB of the Mono-B decks?
I think that it is a very important meta call and people should be careful to not blindly go with the 4 devour flesh route if there is a decent amount of green run in your area. I think devour flesh is sometimes pretty bad card against the G/R devotion decks.
I think that's a good point to bring up (mainly because there's a lot of green devotion in my area)
I've cut a Gray Merchant and Swamp to add a couple Duress to the main board for this week. Curving the deck down from where I was a couple weeks ago has allowed me to drop to 25 lands safely I believe. With the additional 1 and 2 CMC cards, I'm back down to 3 Temples to ensure I have action early.
Doom Blade and Ultimate Price are both gone from my 75, but I've added another Lifebane to give me something else proactive against U/W/x, B/W, and Green Devo.
The final spot in my sideboard is Pithing Needle which I've considered changing to Illness in the Ranks as a decent way to combat both Assemble and Elspeth which I am seeing a lot of. I still like Pithing Needle against Garruk though. I'm consciously trying to keep the cards I bring in against U/W/x require a D-sphere to answer.
I like the extra hand disruption. I am still super torn on whether or not I'm bringing this deck to GP Vancouver... this metagame is so varied, its hard to know what decks are well positioned week by week.
I ran this very successfully Tuesday night in a small tournament. Still on the fence about the creature mix, but since I face several people playing Gr Devotion, G/W aggro, and Wb or Wr aggro, I feel okay with the mix for my standard.
In the "mirror" (which means Mono-B Devotion or BW Midrange, since this deck is not quite either), as well as versus Control and Gr and Mono-U Devotion, Merciless Eviction is amazing. It has simply completely re-defined my deck in those matches.
Pithing Needle is not only value against control decks (calling Jace or Elspeth), but I very much like it in the mirror with "pure" Mono-B devotion since we can call Pack Rat or Swamp for Underworld Connections and hurt them far more significantly than they can hurt us.
I love the ability to go to 4 Thoughtseize, 3 Duress, 3 Sin Collector against control as well. 10 pieces of hand destruction (potentially 12, see comment below) is really our best defense.
Sin Collector and Lifebane Zombie also make Orzhov Charm, already the only 2cmc removal spell that kills any creature that can be targeted for a little life loss, better for it's second key effect: returning a creature you control to your hand, in order to replay it.
I took out Pack Rat because even though it can kill us if we can't deal with it, frankly we run enough removal to deal with it and I value Nightveil Specter and Lifebane Zombie more highly at my locals. I could see going back to Rat for a bigger event, instead of Lifebane Zombie, since Gr and GW are not big problems, but I admit I really, really love LZ against Esper and the BW Midrange deck, as well as against the Wx decks.
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Standard
Tempo Modern
Eldrazi and Staxes
Whir Prison Legacy
5c Humans
DnT
"I'm a lead farmer... !" Quote ruined due to policy.
A main deck Ratchet Bomb in place of Doom Blade may hedge your bets against getting run over by rats and G/x devotion. Also something proactive to do on turn 2.
I like your list. Does it play too clunky at 3cmc? There is real value in pack rat as a turn 2 play plus great late game. Thoughts on Gray merchant vs Blood Baron?
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It clearly moves away from Devotion (nothing in the build really utilizes devotion), but it is still essentially a control deck focused on hand destruction, card advantage, and board control.
Obviously the big shakeup is the creature lineup (-4 Nightveil Specter, -4 Gray Merchant of Asphodel, -1 Erebos, God of the Dead, +1 Sin Collector +4 Blood Baron of Vizkopa), and that gives it room to add 2 Duress and 2 Last Breath.
The deck will play slightly differently from straight Mono-B devotion because the hand control portion is so heavy, but it is also positioned to have a strong game against Mono-B and Mono-U, as well as Esper and aggro.
Against control, I love the ability to go to 10 (13 if you include Lifebane Zombie) pieces of hand destruction. That is very serious, especially since it also runs a creature that blanks Esper and Wx targeted removal.
Tempo
Modern
Eldrazi and Staxes
Whir Prison
Legacy
5c Humans
DnT
"I'm a lead farmer... !" Quote ruined due to policy.
I've tweaked the list a little for myself, removing both ultimate price and a sin collector for two lifebane zombies and a doom blade main. Lifebane zombie is good in nearly every matchup, save for monoblack. But the most important cards in that matchup are pack rat and underworld connection anyway, not like an ultimate price extra will save you in that matchup.
This clears up two sideboard slots which I filled with a 4th zombie and the 4th duress. Lifebane zombie is so good in many matchups and comes in nearly everytime, no reason not to run 4.
I'm also thinking about removing underworld connections altogether and running Read the Bones in the B/W list. Owen Turtenwald already uttered his frustrations with the card in monoblack devotion. In the B/W variant, you don't care about devotion so read the bones might be better. It's also definately better against aggro and midrangy decks to just draw two cards with scry now instead of the same things in two turns from now, with a much higher mana investment.
The only reason I'm hesitant is that underworld connections can completely take over the game against control and in the mirror, it's a threat that must be answered. Having the possibility of drawing a lot of cards feels like it ouweighs the draw 2 from RtB.
Then again, everybody is packing plenty of removal for underworld connections. Everyone has things like Wear/Tear or sundering growth in their sideboard, and sometimes even things like bramblecrush. Tricking people into boarding in those dead cards and you having no actual targets might also be worth something. This is even more likely now since the deck won a GP.
*sigh* so difficult.
I'm also feeling that I want to move toward maindeck Lifebane Zombie again and Nightveil Specter back in the side. I feel like everyone is packing sufficient Nightveil hate except us, and even we went 4 Devour largely because of Nightveil in Mono-U and the mirror (well, and for Blood Baron of Vizkopa in Esper.) Lifebane is strong versus the decks I am now worried about, while Nightveil is pretty meh. I think I would rather bring it in for the Mirror and Mono-Blue.
If I move to Bw, and replace Gary with BBV, I think I will also try Read the Bones, though I am by no means sold on that idea. As much as I hate Underworld Connections, I also really like it because decks have to react to it and waste resources dealing with it and after the initial 3 mana, it is one mana per turn, which is a very efficient cost for drawing a card.
Tempo
Modern
Eldrazi and Staxes
Whir Prison
Legacy
5c Humans
DnT
"I'm a lead farmer... !" Quote ruined due to policy.
Pack rat is a masterful card in every matchup GM1. The rat train obliterates people just as often as big gary bombs. I like to side 2 rats out on the draw in most matchups, since it is much less likely that you'll establish a rat army by turn 3. I'd rather have a specter, removal, etc. Other than that, I love seeing a rat in my hand (bonus if there's 2 swamps and a mutavault too).
I read Owen's article and I am absolutely with him on underworld connections. The devotion counters and mirror utility make it a lynchpin, but man is it frustratingly slow against most of the decks I've been playing against. More often than not, I am discarding it and going all in on rat tokens, or finding myself wanting to play a specter (same card draw, but off my opponents deck without paying life) -> demon -> gary instead. It's good in long games, but frankly, nobody is really into playing long games where I live.
I don't know what the alternative is... I was thinking of throwing a whip back into the mix since it's a high CMC used card engine, the devotion is the same, and the utility is still pretty good, but it's just as slow. However, I do like the idea of having the option to play cure -> specter -> whip -> demon/gary against aggression. Any extra life helps tremendously.
I think Erebos' big body is undervalued, but he's too slow to rely on. I have him sideboarded 2x.
Devour flesh is awesome. I don't care if my opponent gains life, my lifegains will dwarf his in the long run. Plus, sacrificing a gary or demon to myself and whipping is very satisfying.
Don't agree with Owen on hero's downfall. I am never disappointed when I draw one.
Love lifebane zombie. He rocks it everywhere but the mirror.
26 land count is great. I might sub a nykthos in if I stick with the whip, but it definitely makes me uneasy to have 5 colorless lands, especially with pharika's cure being so vital against aggro.
I like the idea of 4x betrayal in the sideboard. Goodbye rakdos cackler, mogis marauder, nightveil specter, etc!
Considering adding one more lifebane zombie in the sideboard instead of the doom blade. He's just so nice to have around.
Current Decklist:
19 Swamp
4 Mutavault
3 Temple of Deceit
Creatures (16)
4 Pack Rat
4 Desecration Demon
4 Nightveil Specter
4 Gray Merchant of Asphodel
4 Thoughtseize
3 Underworld Connections
1 Whip of Erebos
4 Devour Flesh
4 Hero's Downfall
2 Pharika's Cure
2 Duress
2 Erebos, God of the Dead
2 Pharika's Cure
1 Doom Blade
3 Lifebane Zombie
1 Underworld Connections
4 Dark Betrayal
3 Mutavault
1 Nykthos, Shrine to Nyx
4 Temple of Deceit
4 Pack Rat
4 Desecration Demon
4 Nightveil Specter
4 Gray Merchant of Asphodel
1 Erebos, God of the Dead
4 Underworld Connections
4 Hero's Downfall
2 Pharika's Cure
1 Ultimate Price
2 Devour Flesh
3 Duress
2 Dark Betrayal
2 Pharika's Cure
1 Shrivel
2 Doom Blade
1 Ultimate Price
3 Lifebane Zombie
1 Erebos, God of the Dead
(Yes, that land base is off, I just haven't gotten around to getting Mutavault #4. It works fine for now, though)
Erebos I've gotten less & less impressed with in that 1 MD slot. I'm thinking of taking him out for removal #10, probably switching with one of those in the SB. 10 removal seems like where I want to be.
Pharika's Cure is solid maindeck (fun note: I only read Owen's article AFTER I placed Cure as a 2-of, amusing ), or at least where I am it is. Against aggro it can often mean the difference between surviving a turn to drop Gary and eventually stabilize.
I'll also eventually up the Dark Betrayal count to 3, probably taking out Ultimate Price. Doom Blade I still like, as where I am Black Devotion doesn't comprise an obscene amount of the meta so it's still more relevant than Price as the 2-CC removal spell of choice.
Moving forward, changes will probably look like:
MD: -1 Erebos, -1 Ultimate Price, +1 Doom Blade, +1 2CC removal of choice
SB: -1 Ultimate Price OR 2CC removal that I'll add MD, -1 Doom Blade (moves to MD), +1 Erebos, +1 Dark Betrayal
I might even consider placing 1 Hero's Downfall in the side and add in the 3rd Cure, at least in an aggro-heavy meta. Oh, 4 Downfall in the 75 is definitely correct, but it's just something to experiment on since I seem to see red-based aggro half the time.
Good job mate, this is basically my maindeck, with Liliana->Pack Rat and no scrylands. Corrupt is really clunky sometimes (and would be better with 4 Pack Rats) but it has won me so many matches, and by 'won' I mean 'loss with any other card in the deck' (except Gary sometimes). Sadly, versatilily come at a price.
That said, don't try to copy the decklist of a random pro who won something, just use your own mind and playtest your ideas. 'OMG this guy won playing [insert card here], now it's a 20$ card and I need a 4x in my deck!'. 'This card has never been used in a deck that top8'd, it's total crap'. Don't do this. A lot of people played Pharika's Cure maindeck ages ago. Different cards can be good in a different meta, and the player thinking 'out of the box' could be successful because other players were just not prepared for something unusual (see BW Control winning last GP, finally 4xBBoV maindeck).
Some days ago I played against a UW Control player splashing black for scrylands (ctrl-c + ctrl-v here), and he was acting like he was the world champion and I was a random noob. I proceed to beat him G1 with Erebos, God of the Dead with a Erebos's Whip on the board, and he said 'Well, this was lucky, you won this with two 1x cards', and I 'Actually the Whip is 2x, and I won this game with Thoughtseize into Underworld Connections', at which point he said 'Ah, so you're playing a really bad version of your deck'. We proceed to G2, and Erebos sticks again. At some point I see two Elspeth and a Jace with a Thoughtseize, and I discard an Elspeth, and pass. In his turn he plays a Jace and +1 (scary Mutavault?), but EOT he eats a Hero's Downfall. He starts laughing and says something like 'Ah, you're losing this!'. In his turn he proceeds with Elspeth and her tokens. In my turn, I cast a Corrupt on Elspeth. He starts laughing like crazy, thinking 'Are you really playing that? lol'. He is happy to see his Elspeth go, and then in his turn he plays another Elspeth. My turn, another Corrupt. Laughs. 'Your deck is total crap, I'm wasting my time'. 'Well, you're losing to this crap, deal with it'. From that point on, after dealing with 3 of his win conditions (out of 4 probably), I proceed to draw like 7-8 cards with Erebos (thanks Corrupt), deal with the remaining tokens, and bash face. He ragequits at some point laughing at my deck.
Corrupt has won so many games against control thanks to its versatility. They never see it coming for like 10 to the face.
1) In his argument against Whip, he mentions the only creatures post-board vs aggro are Rats, Specters, and Demons. Do you really side out Gary vs aggro, when the lifegain is at its greatest value? (He actually says later that he never sides it out.) :headscratch:
1a) Also vs aggro, wouldn't you bring in Lifebane Zombie? Except for Rakdos aggro, you'll likely find something in their hand, because even "mono red" decks run BTE and Reckoner. Seems like a 3-power 2-for-1 with Fear is a good thing . . . and oh-by-the-way, even better when it's whipped. Is this my inexperience with the deck, or are there major holes in his argument, here?
2) If this deck is 50/50 vs White Weenie, and you know Shrivel is a bomb, why add just one? You hear a lot about most-likely matchups and squeezing in as many different answers as possible, but if I can get that much work out of a card, I'd like to have more than a 15-20% chance of getting to play it.
Also, it's a little thing, but is there a particular reason for choosing Temple of Deceit? When I build this deck, I plan to use Temple of Silence. It might just keep the opponent off balance, thinking I might be playing an Orzhov splash for Blood Barons.
1a - I use lifebane zombie against all forms of aggro... It's a blocker, a timer, and a devotion magnet (yes, keep gary in)
Also, temple of deceit to me is a metagame choice. There are large amounts of mono blue frontrunners out there, and casting their cards can easily swing a game. Specter + an exiled master of waves = gg
I don't think I have as much experience with the deck as some of the other forum posters, but I have been playing it for the past month and can offer my own opinions.
1. I think underworld connections is just too good. Its one of the best cards in the deck, getting the turn 3 UC is just backbreaking, especially in owen's deck with 4x pack rats. I mean you would be siding in that 4th in pretty much every game anyway outside of rakdos aggro/white weenie right?
2. I think the temple question is just what you expect (off of what you think you might hit with nightveil specter)
3. I agree with the doom blade in the board. In any matchup that isn't mono black or esper you pretty much want them in.
4. I don't know if you want that much. Even the orzhov control deck that won last GP didn't have so many hand disruptions post sideboard. You also don't want to be top decking a duress. I think owen's numbers are right on that one. It's something you want to test for sure, but in my experience, 2-3 duress in board and 3 LBZ has been the sweet spot for me
5. I think it's reasonable to try out LBZ in the main (again dependant on your meta) however, I think nightveil specter is just so good that you should keep him in.
1. No. Draw and devotion for Gary are important. IMO, all or none.
2. Not really helpful, but not really bad either.
3. Yes. In fact, in my locals at least, Doom Blade is almost always better than Ultimate Price, since Ultimate Price fails against much of the same stuff as Doom Blade that matters (Nightveil Specter, and every Bx creature, in particular. Again Mono-Red, Rw Devotion, Mono-U Devotion, and Gr Devotion, Doom Blade is strictly better. The only place UP is better is in a Mono-B Devotion-heavy meta.
4. Not at all. Even BW Control only runs 4/3/3. That is the most you would run.
5. If running Mono-B Devotion, it is always Nightveil vs. Lifebane main, and it depends on the meta. Thanks to Mono-U and Mono-B and smaller aggro decks being so important, a lot of decks run ways to hate out power 2 or less creatures, so I think Lifebane is the choice for the main and Nightveil goes back to the side, again, especially if your meta is increasingly Gr, Rw, Wr or Wb, instead of Mono-U (vs. Esper it is a toss up.) And against Mono-U you want to side out Desecration Demon and have both LZ and NS anyway.
Tempo
Modern
Eldrazi and Staxes
Whir Prison
Legacy
5c Humans
DnT
"I'm a lead farmer... !" Quote ruined due to policy.
4 Mutavault
4 Temple of Deceit
4 Gray Merchant of Asphodel
2 Nightveil Specter
3 Lifebane Zombie
4 Desecration Demon
4 Pack Rat
3 Devour Flesh
3 Hero's Downfall
2 Doom Blade
1 Ultimate Price
4 Underworld Connections
3 Pharika's Cure
3 Dark Betrayal
2 Duress
2 Nightveil Specter
1 Ultimate Price
1 Hero's Downfall
2 Erebos, God of the Dead
1 Pithing Needle
I'm advocating Lifebane Zombie in the main as well as Nightveil Specter. Cutting Erebos in the main and moving them entirely to the sideboard. I'm also shaving Nightveil Specter for a main/side 2/2 split.
As we are running 4 mutavault, its much possible to swing with Lifebane + Mutavault for 5 damage in an open field on the 4th turn. Lifebane Zombie is easier on the mana as well. Problems with the stock build is that if you have mutavault and 2 black lands it is difficult to cast Nightveil Specter on the 3rd turn unless you topdeck a land by then.
Also against nonblack aggro decks this acts as a blocker and a 3 power evasive threat. It also gives us answers towards Blood Baron, which gives us headaches when playing against him.
I still had Nightveil Specter against aggro decks in the sideboard which can be boarded out along Phraika's cure to deal with them.
Thoughts? Should I shave a land to put a Whip of Erebos main? Criticisms towards the Whip is because all our creatures then only have 2 power sans the Pack Rat. But with Lifebane main Whip becomes more potent as not only it gains back life easily, it also allows hand inquisition from the graveyard.
Modern: Eldrazi Tron, UW Tron, GR Tron, BW Tokens, WU Death and Taxes
18 Swamp
3 Temple of Deceit
1 Temple of Silence
4 Mutavault
Creatures: 18
4 Pack Rat
3 Nightveil Specter
3 Lifebane Zombie
4 Descacration Demon
4 Gray Merchant of Asphodel
2 Pharika's Cure
2 Devour Flesh
4 Hero's Downfall
Sorceries: 4
4 Thoughtseize
Enchantments: 4
4 Underworld Connections
1 Pithing Needle
1 Dark Betrayal
1 Ultimate Price
1 Ratchet Bomb
3 Doom Blade
2 Pharika's Cure
1 Devour Flesh
1 Nightveil Specter
2 Erebos, God of the Dead
2 Duress
I'd rather have three Dark Betrayal in the side, but I only have one total. It didn't end up hurting me in the end.
Notes:
Its a strictly better card against Esper, U/W, Mono Black, the Burn deck, and mono blue which make up the majority of the Meta. In fact i just counted the amount of those decks from the last daily on MTGGoldfish and its 28 out of 40. Thats 70% of matches where Nightveil is not 'marginally' better but just massively more efficient. Even then if you take whats left its a combination of Agro decks and Green devotion. The Green Devotion lists are the only place Zombie is better.
I like Zombie, its a great card and i certainly like the idea of cutting Whip and Erebos from the main for maybe two and then maybe finding one more card somewhere for 3. However, to suggest that playing less Specters main deck for it is just a bit bonkers people
I did it to make people on a message board get angry
No complaints about specter from me.
Also, I got rolled last night by an assemble the legion token masher deck with chained to the rocks and elspeth. I don't have shrivel or illness in my sideboard, and duress / thoughtseize were MIA in both games, but I don't know what I could have done better. Seems like sideboarding and then praying for an illness to show up is not a very solid strategy.
Maybe I just needed better draws... dunno.
4 Temple of Deceit
3 Mutavault
1 Nykthos, Shrine to Nyx
4 Pack Rat
4 Nightveil Specter
4 Desecration Demon
1 Erebos, God of the Dead
4 Gray Merchant of Asphodel
4 Underworld Connections
4 Hero's Downfall
2 Pharika's Cure
1 Doom Blade
2 Devour Flesh
2 Dark Betrayal
3 Duress
1 Doom Blade
2 Pharika's Cure
1 Shrivel
2 Ultimate Price
3 Lifebane Zombie
1 Erebos, God of the Dead
Round 1: UW Control - Draw. G1 he lets me resolve 2 (TWO!) Underworld Connections (DSphere ate my Rats) and is buried in card advantage. G2, he pops Elixir of Immortality, chains Revelation after Revelation, and eventually ends up getting all 4 Detention Spheres out, 3 with Connections underneath. By the time we start shuffling for G3, we're informed to take our last 5 turns, and I don't draw a fast enough hand.
Round 2: Naya Midrange - Win (2-0). This is why I don't like playing 3-color in Standard right now. The manabase isn't as good as last Standard's, simply put. I hit his Keyrunes with Thoughtseize leaving him manascrewed, so Mutavault and LBZ take over the game.
Round 3: RDW - Loss (0-2). Game 1, he goes into god hand mode. I didn't even do anything. Game 2 had more effort, though! I got him down to 4 in Game 2 before he topdecks burn the turn before I can drop Gary down. Oh well.
Round 4: Golgari Midrange (technically Junk) - Win (2-1). This was a very interesting deck. It's the Kibler B/G with Witchstalker, Troll, Mangler, etc. but with White for Blood Baron of Vizkopa and Obzedat, Ghost Council. Erebos saves me in G3, blocking Lifegain from Obzedat. He kills all my creatures and is at 5, and with me at three, I topdeck a Connections for Erebos to come alive and swing.
Round 5: Boros - Win (2-0). I draw a removal-heavy hand in G1 which allows me to drop multiple Garys later on. G2, he gets out Purphoros and Assemble the Legion (it went all the way up to 5 tokens), but yeah, Gary with a Demon and 2 Connections down is painful.
Round 6: UW Control - Win (2-0). G1 plays the same as Round 1's G1. G2, he has the worst luck ever with drawing lands.
Round 7: Boros - Lose (0-2). Mogis for 14? Yeah, I can't do anything about that. G2, I'm able to keep taking away all his threats but I draw none of my own (this is with LBZ instead of Connections now), so I run out of removal before Stormbreath Dragon takes over. I make a huge error here, as on T2 he drops Frostburn Weird and I immediately hit it with Devour Flesh EOT (when I had Pharika's Cure). In hindsight, I should've waited for his next turn for him to swing with Weird, pump, then hit it with Cure. Had I done this I would've had one more removal spell in time for the Dragon, because Cure just sat in my hand the whole game. Oh well.
Then it turns out that even if I won Round 7, X-1-1 still wouldn't have made it because there was an X-0-2. Well, with that loss I still get lesser prizes.
(No MBD and MUD for 7 rounds? Wait, did that just happen?)
Some notes:
- After this, I think I'm convinced that Pharika's Cure MD is the way to go. Boros and Mono-Red aren't very nice matchups for the deck, and the card helps a lot there. I would go up to 3 MD, even, and will test it out moving 1 Hero's Downfall (or maybe Erebos?) to the side. Also, like Ultimate Price, it kills Master of Waves.
- Nykthos.... yeah, 4th Mutavault please.
- Someone told me earlier that I may have too much removal in the SB but I don't really get why. Post-board, against aggressive decks/Boros/RDW, I can go up to 15 removal spells. That's a fourth of the deck total, which I think is the right number. The division and numbers change, of course (especially the 2-CC removal), but I feel like it's a good enough number to move forward.
I think that it is a very important meta call and people should be careful to not blindly go with the 4 devour flesh route if there is a decent amount of green run in your area. I think devour flesh is sometimes pretty bad card against the G/R devotion decks.
My only loss was a 1-2 against white weenie where I was 1 draw away from topdecking a winning land with 2 gary's in hand gm3.
I also played some kind of weird green junk deck with smiter and advent of the wurm. Dunno much about that one....
4 Pack Rat
4 Nightveil Specter
4 Desecration Demon
4 Gray Merchant of Asphodel
Spells
4 Thoughtseize
4 Underworld Connections
4 Devour Flesh
4 Hero's Downfall
2 Pharika's Cure
19 Swamp
3 Temple of Deceit
4 Mutavault
1 Doom Blade
1 Shrivel
3 Lifebane Zombie
3 Dark Betrayal
2 Erebos, God of the Dead
2 Pharika's Cure
3 Duress
I think that's a good point to bring up (mainly because there's a lot of green devotion in my area)
Doom Blade and Ultimate Price are both gone from my 75, but I've added another Lifebane to give me something else proactive against U/W/x, B/W, and Green Devo.
4x Desecration Demon
3x Gray Merchant of Asphodel
4x Nightveil Specter
4x Pack Rat
Sorcery (6)
2x Duress
4x Thoughtseize
4x Underworld Connections
Instant (10)
4x Devour Flesh
4x Hero's Downfall
2x Pharika's Cure
Land (25)
4x Mutavault
18x Swamp
3x Temple of Deceit
4x Dark Betrayal
2x Duress
2x Erebos, God of the Dead
1x Pithing Needle
4x Lifebane Zombie
2x Pharika's Cure
The final spot in my sideboard is Pithing Needle which I've considered changing to Illness in the Ranks as a decent way to combat both Assemble and Elspeth which I am seeing a lot of. I still like Pithing Needle against Garruk though. I'm consciously trying to keep the cards I bring in against U/W/x require a D-sphere to answer.
4 Godless Shrine
4 Temple of Silence
4 Mutavault
1 Orzhov Guildgate
12 Swamp
Creatures 15
4 Gray Merchant of Asphodel
4 Desecration Demon
4 Nightveil Specter
3 Lifebane Zombie
2 Devour Flesh
2 Orzhov Charm
4 Hero’s Downfall
2 Last Breath
1 Doom Blade
1 Pharika’s Cure
Sorcery 4
4 Thoughtseize
Enchantments 4
4 Underworld Connections
3 Dark Betrayal
3 Duress
3 Sin Collector
2 Pharika’s Cure
2 Merciless Eviction
1 Profit // Loss
1 Pithing Needle
In the "mirror" (which means Mono-B Devotion or BW Midrange, since this deck is not quite either), as well as versus Control and Gr and Mono-U Devotion, Merciless Eviction is amazing. It has simply completely re-defined my deck in those matches.
Pithing Needle is not only value against control decks (calling Jace or Elspeth), but I very much like it in the mirror with "pure" Mono-B devotion since we can call Pack Rat or Swamp for Underworld Connections and hurt them far more significantly than they can hurt us.
I love the ability to go to 4 Thoughtseize, 3 Duress, 3 Sin Collector against control as well. 10 pieces of hand destruction (potentially 12, see comment below) is really our best defense.
Sin Collector and Lifebane Zombie also make Orzhov Charm, already the only 2cmc removal spell that kills any creature that can be targeted for a little life loss, better for it's second key effect: returning a creature you control to your hand, in order to replay it.
I took out Pack Rat because even though it can kill us if we can't deal with it, frankly we run enough removal to deal with it and I value Nightveil Specter and Lifebane Zombie more highly at my locals. I could see going back to Rat for a bigger event, instead of Lifebane Zombie, since Gr and GW are not big problems, but I admit I really, really love LZ against Esper and the BW Midrange deck, as well as against the Wx decks.
Tempo
Modern
Eldrazi and Staxes
Whir Prison
Legacy
5c Humans
DnT
"I'm a lead farmer... !" Quote ruined due to policy.
I like your list. Does it play too clunky at 3cmc? There is real value in pack rat as a turn 2 play plus great late game. Thoughts on Gray merchant vs Blood Baron?