I do not have Demon of Death's Gate and the reason why is simple: he is a nice, dumb beater. He doesn't do anything outside of his brute size, and has no protections. I would prefer to run beatdown guys with other utility/ability.
About Elbrus. Simply, it's a fun card, not a great one. I dislike the fact that it costs so much to play, and REQUIRES creature damage to an opponent to flip it. Bit limiting, and can stop the effect for enough turns to render it easy prey to artifact destruction. Its flip has issues to. A really powerful creature, but no real protections (shroud, hexproof, indestructible, etc). Very easy to kill, and given its cost, not really worth it. Despite all this, it is a super FUN card that can be played for the heck of it. Depends on the deck. If I were to run it, it would be for fun. At least in 1v1 (non competitive) there are fewer threats to it (so it is likely to survive more) but come on! We all WANT to run it in multiplayer. Just do it for fun!
But good thinking! You are starting to pick up some clearer ideas about EDH!
Kiviuq1000: You are very welcome, love having new EDH players aboard! I draw on my experience playing as well as EDH design time (you get better the more you do, my early decks also SUCKED!:P) The process can be long and complicated, but SUPER satisfying. BTW, feel free to post your OWN decklist at some point (if you have one) I'd be happy to help (already working with Bicer74's Thalia deck).
Thanks alot!
ALSO, to ANYONE reading this, please feel free to give me feedback as I build the primer (layout, coloring, pictures, suggestions, ideas, etc).
Thanks for the suggestion, Afromime! Gonna try her out.
Kiviuq1000: Wecome, so nice to see you here in the EDH realm! :D. Actually, there IS a 200 card format I can't remember the name for, but at that point I can't even hold the deck let alone shuffle it, so I am gonna stick with EDH for now (till I go super saiyan and can do the 200 :P) Mikaeus is gonna get put on the list for now, even though I am nervous about him. Ashenmoore Cohort is much to weak. The idea is good though, which is why I am running Lashwrite and Cloak of Doom :). And actually, I have beseech the Queen on the list, but nice catch! Definitely wanted that, thanks.
ItThatBetrayed: WOAH, SO MANY AWESOME POINTS :D. Thanks for spending the time, really.
Spot Removal: I actually agree with you, which is why finding spells to kill everything is SO annoying, since black loves the "destroy non-something creature". However, having some is important. Recurability can't be a make or break here, because most of the wraths suffer the same issue that way. Basically, I am picking based on A) Usefulness - WHAT can it kill? and B) Cost - is it cheap (aka Slaught Pact) which you can play despite being low on mana? Otherwise, I am turning towards wraths. I am not the biggest fan of stax, so I may only run smokestack (since it is an artifact and I have 1 :D). The other two non-stax I feel are potentially dangerous since I may run this in multiplayer and don't want to be completely ganged up, but I will consider them.
Weakness: I totally forgot about Gravecrawlers need for zombies :P. So I am replacing him with...BADADUM REASSEMBLING SKELETON! However, I think nether traitors unblockability makes him sick with the Lashwrithe and Doom Cloak, so I will be keeping him.
I like suffer the past because you can use it early in response to graveyard shenanigans but also because it can kill a player late game when the graveyards are bigger. Planar Void is too scary for me, but I'll consider Leyline.
I pulled out those two wraths, cause you are just plain right. I am putting in Living Death, and I HAD Oblivion Stone in already, just forgot to add him to the list :P.
I pulled out cloak and plate, but I like BOTH the lashwrithe and the Doom Cloak, so I will keep them for now. Good points though.
Grim discovery does land and creature (2 options) which is the main reason to use it. The others I will consider.
I can't respond to all the rest right now, but pretty much all of it was really good. I will be editing the deck further, and hopefully make more videos as well showing and talking about the progess.
Haha, hey, love your name Afromime! It's a great choice! (especially with your suggestion :P). Yup, she is a beast. Avatar of Woe can be super cheap later game and has fear, which is possibly a little more useful than flying in EDH, but I definitely will consider her. I have an extra copy lying around somewhere...definitely gonna consider that, thanks!
"So what's the plan?"
"Blow up the building, that works good for vampires. Then soak what's left in gasoline. Set it on fire. Then blow it all up again."
- Jim Butcher, from Blood Rites
History
When I started Magic 11 years ago, I was a NOOB. But not only a noob. I was also 9 years old, and I would often be suckered in to compromise and "playing nice". But I quickly learned that in order to win, you had to dominate. Take no prisoners. CRUSH YOUR ENEMIES INTO UTTER OBLIVION!!! And what color is more dominating and versatile than black? (hint: NONE!) My Reanimator Deck of Doom was tested shortly after and did REALLY well (this was Odyssey time) and I just fell in love with the Darkness. For the last decade, I've been that evil black player who loves to cackle evilly at the table when I do something that (at least on the card) is the equivalent of tearing people brains out. Or summoning a zombie apocalypse. Whatever. Basically, Global domination without being completely hated off the table has been my goal. And then I found EDH, and my question became: Is a mono black EDH deck viable? HELL YES! So when I laid eyes on Drana, I said "I must make this deck". And here it is!
Why Drana?
First question is: Why would anyone run Drana? Aren't there better black generals? Answer (in my best Arnold Schwarzenegger impression): Talk to the hand. No. Here is why she is the best pick.
Let's break her down:
3BBCC - reasonably costed, good for a early-midgame play especially if you ramp up (voltron option) Flying - built in evasion (which is always good)
XBB: See top picture. Now this is why she rocks. Period. Don't argue, you're wrong. Why? 3 reasons:
1) Spot removal on a stick for everything but shroud/hexproof
2) Makes herself stronger for voltron win
3) Can sweep the board if you have infinite mana
Yes? Yes? See the Light? NO? Oh, COME ON! She is AMAZING!
Best of all? SHE IS SUPER CHEAP! ANYONE CAN RUN HER! (seriously, a foil one is $5 tops)
Now, why choose her over other generals?
Let's compare here to some other popular black generals: Geth, Lord of the Vault - Graveyard recursion/mill - been there, done that...been doing it FOREVER! Xiahou Dun, the One-Eyed - unblockable, recursion - solid...but have you seen the price tag on this guy? Korlash, Heir to Blackblade - big beater - Eh..... beater with regeneration? No thanks. Maga, Traitor to Mortals - player killer - Overcosted till late game, little real interaction...and simply boring. Skithiryx, the Blight Dragon - 1v1 Monster - Drana can play in multiplayer AND 1v1, and doesn't rely on infect to win (which, since it's 10, is BORING) Kalitas, Bloodchief of Ghet - Way too slow, and way too inefficient. Mikaeus, the Unhallowed - good commander, can be very powerful. He is especially good for token making and zombie tribal, but I don't like that he himself is pretty vulnerable and that you HAVE to build around him to make him crazy. Erebos, God of the Dead - Strong cheap commander who SHOULD be a killer in mono black. His greed effect is solid card draw for EDH/Commander, and you have the life for it. What I don't like is that there is nothing too him other than being a card engine. He just sits there, even as a 5/7, and doesn't do much. To me, a little boring (despite the awesome flavor)
(I know I "may" be simplifying here...but seriously, have you seen Drana? No? Go back to the top and look again)
Decklist in Progress
Approximate Value/Cost of Deck= $X (unknown, in progress)
Average Converted Mana Cost = 3.6ish (currently, may change due to in progress)
This deck is designed to win without being hated off the table with a dozen instant win combos (exception: Exsanguiate). The deck is "non competitive" but don't think that will make the deck any less threatening. Ideally, you'll use ramp and draw tools, mana stones (sol ring, thran dynamo, etc), and spot removal (slaughter pact, tragic slip, etc) to build up your resources and keep the enemies smaller utility cards at bay. You can play Drana early and start hosing the board while pummeling with commander damage (but really, the later you play her, the scarier she'll be). Once you have draw engines/ramp cards in place, you can start playing your big baddies and mass mana spells. Each and every one should be terrifying and powerful enough to do sizable damage your (hopefully locked down/minimized) opponents. Worse comes to worse, you'll scare their pants off. Keep doing the above till you win (I know this is an oversimplication of the more complex aspects of the deck, but hey, you asked :P)
You'll likely play out in between cards like Gate to Phyrexia to limit your opponents artifacts/mana stones, and hopefully slow combo decks. Cheap wraths (e.g. Damnation, Mutilate, etc) will limit token/rush decks from gaining hold. Graveyard hate (Leyline of the Void, Relic of Progenitus , etc) should hurt graveyard related decks (Dredge/Re-animator). Control decks are the real trick for this deck; ideally, you would blow up lands, use your ramp to attack quickly and viciously, and take those decks down as fast as possible.
I'll talk more specifically down below.
What Idiot Would Run This Deck?
Well...me, for one. But seriously. Here are the things any deck I build should be able to do (User Blackjack68 succinctly quoted):
1) Be able to win regularly but not obscenely (aka not hated off the table)
2) Be (equally) good against one or multiple opponents.
3) Be fun to play with and against.
4) Have multiple paths to victory.
5) Have lots of cool interactions and synergy.
6) Play out differently every game to keep it fun over a long period of playtime.
7) Be streamlined and fast to play without excessive upkeep, time-consuming play or overcomplicated boardstate.
8) Integrate the Commanders abilities into the strategy, but be able to win without ever playing the commander.
Players who should run this deck are those who:
1 - Enjoy having a commander who is ALWAYS good at every stage of the game. With all the ramp you'll have, Drana will hit board likely on turn 3/4, and be equally terrifying (if not MORE so) as the game progresses. Very easy to use without relying on any cards in your deck to make her playable. And if she is somehow vanished? Well guess what? You'll win anyway!
2 - Enjoy playing around with the CRAZY variety of INSANE (but affordable...aka NOT Imperial Seal) black cards. Crazy combos, powerful ramp, insane synergies, tutoring up (or drawing up :P) just what you need including Drana herself if she is tucked. In other words, if you like an AMAZING deck, you'll like this one.
3 - Love MONO BLACK and EVIL! (this should actually be the first on the list, but I am too lazy to move it there). It is the only mono color that has the complete spectrum of options (removal, counterspell, ramp, etc), allowing a mono colored deck to be...y'know...VERSATILE. And if you love the color, the cards, the DOMINATION!!, you have found the right match here.
Players who should not run this deck are those who:
1 - Want to go full voltron with Drana. This list primarily makes Drana a part of the family (a backstabbing, zombie making, demonically evil family), but not the one and only Matriarch of the house. So equipment is utilized, but you'll see fewer General protection and fewer General focused cards in favor of universally good cards for other synergies. So you CAN use her as Voltron here, but it is not nearly as focused as some other lists.
2 - Enjoy a competitive deck or a deck that is better streamlined to win as quickly as possible. This decks infinite combos are more limited to synergy and fun than to instant win (though of course, exsanguiate is an exception), and I have cut some of the MOST evil black cards out for both cost and their unpleasantness. Comboing on turn 4 is not in the cards here.
3 - Be super democratic and approachable to compromise at the table=you want to lose. If you have a pandering, democratic mind, get out of here and find another decklist.
4 - Don't like mono black. In which case, why the hell are you reading this primer?
Card Rundown
A list of the more interesting, less obvious choices for a mono-black deck
– Boseiju, Who Shelters All – This is a powerhouse in a deck with many wrath effects and large mana spells. Makes counterspell effects less pesky and irritating, and for two life can vouche your victory.
– Cabal Coffers – Any black deck not running this card is foolish. A powerhouse card, if it is not dealt with quickly you often can win with sheer ramp. It accelerates large spells, works up infinite mana, and buries your opponents in black death (pun intended :P) A MUST HAVE.
- Vesuva – Usually I don’t like having lands entering the battlefield tapped, but this can be an exception. At its worst, it can kill opposing legendary lands. At its best, you have a second Cabal Coffers. How can that EVER be bad?
- Bojuka Bog – Exiles a graveyard. Which is nice. Don’t know if it is necessary per se, but it has yet to fail me.
- Shizo, Death's Storehouse – I like being able to give fear to a big baddie for a swing once I remove (with Drana or something else) whatever artifact or black creatures are around. And since large amounts of creatures in these colors (or lack thereof) are not widespread, it is a “sure” win card. Very awesome.
- Phyrexian Tower – great accelerator and works well with recurring creatures and tokens.
- Deserted Temple – Works well with reusing better lands, and has some sick infinite combos.
- High Market – Allows you to sack for Gravepact and similar cards, gains a life to counter some of the draw engines a bit.
- Inkmoth Nexus – Great swing option with Lashwrithe. Shizo can help make it unblockable, and its overall a nice wincon option.
- Snow Swamp – Most decks (especially multicolor) don’t use these, so Extraplanar Lens becomes scarily good since it is just for me.
- Necrotic Ooze – lots of cool activated abilities in EDH on a solid body. Underestimated beast.
- Steel Helkite – solid flier that allows you (with infinite mana) to do tremendous damage.
- Wurmcoil Engine – Strong card, and life gain is surprisingly helpful. Can help make infinite tokens and colorless mana, which is bad how?
- Helldozer – killer land destruction card. With infinite black mana, it reads “destroy all opponents non-basic lands” and even so, he is worth his cost and body.
- Grave Titan – great creature, worth its weight in power. It is also an infinite mana/token generator like Engine.
Praetor's Grap - let's you use hybrid cards too, like Unmake, Debtors knell, Divinity of pride, etc. Coming Soon
Coming Soon
- Skullclamp – draw engine with recursion creatures and tokens.
- Nim Deathmantle – Gives intimidate and can be used both for infinite combos and for a 4 mana dread return on the fly (which is just plain embarrassing for wrath style players)
- Lashwrithe – Inkmoth win sinergy, and can make Drana deadly. It is also just an awesome card in a mono black deck.
Coming Soon
Coming Soon
Coming Soon
Coming Soon
- Liliana of the Veil – She is a cheap drop, forces players to sacrifice creatures, and her ultimate is devastating.
- Liliana Vess – I use her for her second ability (vampiric tutor) more than anything, but her ultimate is a wincon, and I like that I can force someone else to discard.
- Sorin Markov – His (-3) is killer (a great political card), his (+2) can kill small Generals and utility, and his (-7) is sick for multiplayer. But mostly his second ability. It is the evilest (and thus the best)
- Karn Liberated – He is a powerhouse in EDH (hard to kill in loyalty). His first two abilities exile stuff, which is a great card advantage, and his ultimate likely wins you the game (though it can be VERY annoying and I tend to stick with abilities one and two)
Quoting User Blackjack68 for the Basalt Monolith explanation:
BM's tap ability is a mana ability..... but it's untap ability is not
Tap Monolith (+3)
Pay 3 to untap Monolith (0), leave that on the stack as BM1, it's still tapped.
Pay 2 to copy the ability with Rings (-2)
Rings resolves and untaps Monolith. BM1 still on the stack.
Tap Monolith again (now +1)
BM1 resolves untapping Monolith. You've still got 1 in the pool and an untapped Monolith. Repeat a thousand times, now Exsanguinate, Drana, Hellkite, or Profane Command ftw.
It takes 2 lands to do it the first time, and 1 land to do it the second time as you gain 1 mana each time you do it. Do it a thousand times.
March 31, 2012
- Nihil Spellbomb
- Teramorphic Expanse
- Spawning Pool
- Crystal Vein
- Peat Bog
- Hero's Demise
- Devour in Shadow
- Life’s Finale
- Sudden Death
- Gravecrawler (forgot he needed a zombie :P)
- Reiver Demon
- Whispersilk Cloak
- Darksteel Plate
- Skeletal Scrying
- Ebon Stronghold
- Nihil Spellbomb
- Ancient Craving
- Evolving Wilds
+2 Snow Swamps
+ Mikaeus the Unhallowed
+ Living Death
+ Oblivion Stone
+ Reassembling Skeleton
+ Visara the Dreadful
+Relic of Progenitus
+Duplicant
+Gate to Phyrexia
+Graveborn Muse
+Choice of Damnations
+Leyline of the Void
April 2, 2012
-Hatred
+Ivory Tower
April 4, 2012
-Withered Wretch
-Eyeblight's Ending
-Rend Flesh
-2x Snow Swamps
-Bubbling Muck
-Visara the Dreadful
-Ink Eyes, Servant of the Oni
-Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth
April 10, 2012
-Plague Wind
-Magus of the Coffers
-Coalition Relic
-Lake of the Dead
-Pithing Needle
-Syphon Mind (may switch back in for larger multiplayer)
-Suffer the Past
-Nightmare Lash
-Grim Discovery
-Avatar of Woe
-Night’s Whisper
-Bloodghast
-Dread Return
-Maga, Traitor to Mortals
-Ancient Tomb
-Bojuka Bog
+5 Swamps
-Sickening Shoal
-Duplicant
-Mikaeus the Unhallowed
-Heartless Summoning
-Thran Dynamo
-Necromancy
-Graveborn Muse
-Ivory Tower
-Bloodchief Ascension
-Liliana of the Veil
-Slaughter
Genesis is a universally loved card, but I don't know if it worth the $15 label. It is a useful recur, but if you deck is not built around recuring and reusing, it may not be worth it. Also, it gets ALOT of hate. Tends to get knocked out very quickly.
I think Dissipate is better than Dream Fracture (if less political). Same cost but exiles (really good vs. Eldrazi/recur decks).
I don't know if I'd cut Vess. She is awesome as a fast, possibly two+ time tutor and her ultimate is a game ender. But play out some more and let us know how it is going.
Back again! After more playtesting, I found I had the most fun when using my own graveyard and not milling, so I am going to be heavily editing the deck. Here is what I've changed:
I guess you've never played EDH before.
1x Rafiq of the Many
Non-artifact Creatures:
1x Serra Ascendant
1x Sakura Tribe Elder
1x Coiling Oracle
1x Qasali Pridemage
1x Saffi Eriksdotter
1x Scavenging Ooze
1x Snapcaster Mage
1x Dauntless Escort
1x Eternal Witness
1x Wood Elves
1x Vendilion Clique
1x Yavimaya Elder
1x Trinket Mage
1x Venser, Shaper Savant
1x Glen-Elendra Archmage
1x Restoration Angel
1x Reveillark
1x Karmic Guide
1x Acidic Slime
1x Archon of Justice
1x Consecrated Sphinx
1x Sun Titan
1x Elesh Norn, Grand Cenobite
1x Woodfall Primus
1x Akromah, Angel of Wrath
1x Inkwell Leviathan
Enchantment:
1x Aura Shards
1x Cloud Cover
1x Finest Hour
Instant:
1x Pact of Negation
1x Worldly Tutor
1x Path to Exile
1x Swords to Plowshares
1x Eladamri's Call
1x Bant Charm
1x Dissipate
1x Hinder
1x Voidslime
1x Spell Crumple
1x Cryptic Command
1x Return to Dust
1x Fact or Fiction
1x Regrowth
1x Cultivate
1x Wrath of God
1x Rite of Replication
1x Tidings
1x Hymn of Rebirth
1x Bribery
1x Hallowed Burial
1x Austere Command
1x Akromah's Vengeance
1x Final Judgement
Artifacts:
1x Sensei's Divining Top
1x Relic of Progenitus
1x Sol Ring
1x Spellskite
1x Lightning Greaves
1x Darksteel Ingot
1x Crystal Shard
1x Phyrexian Metamorph
1x Solemn Simulacrum
Planeswalkers:
1x Jace, the Mind Sculptor
1x Venser the Sojourner
Lands:
5x Forests
4x Islands
3x Plains
1x Tranquil Thicket
1x Command Tower
1x Flagstones of Trokair
1x Savannah
1x Tundra
1x Celestial Colonnade
1x Stirring Wildwood
1x Breeding Pool
1x Hallowed Fountain
1x Temple Garden
1x Windswept Heath
1x Flooded Strand
1x Misty Rainforest
1x Wooded Bastion
1x Mystic Gate
1x Flooded Grove
1x Sunpetal Grove
1x Glacial Fortress
1x Hinterland Harbor
1x Strip Mine
1x Alchemist's Refuge
1x Reliquary Tower
1x Sylvan Library
1x Tamiyo, the Moon Sage
1x Survival of the Fittest
1x Mystic Tutor
1x Time Warp
1x Kor Haven
1x Maze of Ith
1x Academy Ruins
1x Skullclamp
1x Harmonic Sliver
1x Vanish into Memory
1x Gilded Drake
1x Phantasmal Image
1x Body Double
1x Beast Within
Any help would be much appreciated!
About Elbrus. Simply, it's a fun card, not a great one. I dislike the fact that it costs so much to play, and REQUIRES creature damage to an opponent to flip it. Bit limiting, and can stop the effect for enough turns to render it easy prey to artifact destruction. Its flip has issues to. A really powerful creature, but no real protections (shroud, hexproof, indestructible, etc). Very easy to kill, and given its cost, not really worth it. Despite all this, it is a super FUN card that can be played for the heck of it. Depends on the deck. If I were to run it, it would be for fun. At least in 1v1 (non competitive) there are fewer threats to it (so it is likely to survive more) but come on! We all WANT to run it in multiplayer. Just do it for fun!
But good thinking! You are starting to pick up some clearer ideas about EDH!
Thanks alot!
ALSO, to ANYONE reading this, please feel free to give me feedback as I build the primer (layout, coloring, pictures, suggestions, ideas, etc).
Thanks!
Kiviuq1000: Wecome, so nice to see you here in the EDH realm! :D. Actually, there IS a 200 card format I can't remember the name for, but at that point I can't even hold the deck let alone shuffle it, so I am gonna stick with EDH for now (till I go super saiyan and can do the 200 :P) Mikaeus is gonna get put on the list for now, even though I am nervous about him. Ashenmoore Cohort is much to weak. The idea is good though, which is why I am running Lashwrite and Cloak of Doom :). And actually, I have beseech the Queen on the list, but nice catch! Definitely wanted that, thanks.
ItThatBetrayed: WOAH, SO MANY AWESOME POINTS :D. Thanks for spending the time, really.
Spot Removal: I actually agree with you, which is why finding spells to kill everything is SO annoying, since black loves the "destroy non-something creature". However, having some is important. Recurability can't be a make or break here, because most of the wraths suffer the same issue that way. Basically, I am picking based on A) Usefulness - WHAT can it kill? and B) Cost - is it cheap (aka Slaught Pact) which you can play despite being low on mana? Otherwise, I am turning towards wraths. I am not the biggest fan of stax, so I may only run smokestack (since it is an artifact and I have 1 :D). The other two non-stax I feel are potentially dangerous since I may run this in multiplayer and don't want to be completely ganged up, but I will consider them.
Weakness: I totally forgot about Gravecrawlers need for zombies :P. So I am replacing him with...BADADUM REASSEMBLING SKELETON! However, I think nether traitors unblockability makes him sick with the Lashwrithe and Doom Cloak, so I will be keeping him.
I like suffer the past because you can use it early in response to graveyard shenanigans but also because it can kill a player late game when the graveyards are bigger. Planar Void is too scary for me, but I'll consider Leyline.
I pulled out those two wraths, cause you are just plain right. I am putting in Living Death, and I HAD Oblivion Stone in already, just forgot to add him to the list :P.
I pulled out cloak and plate, but I like BOTH the lashwrithe and the Doom Cloak, so I will keep them for now. Good points though.
Grim discovery does land and creature (2 options) which is the main reason to use it. The others I will consider.
I can't respond to all the rest right now, but pretty much all of it was really good. I will be editing the deck further, and hopefully make more videos as well showing and talking about the progess.
Thanks for all the help so far!
-1x Crypt Rats
-1x Chainer's Edict
-1x Swiftfoot Boots
+1x Slaughter Pact
"Blow up the building, that works good for vampires. Then soak what's left in gasoline. Set it on fire. Then blow it all up again."
- Jim Butcher, from Blood Rites
History
Why Drana?
Let's break her down:
3BBCC - reasonably costed, good for a early-midgame play especially if you ramp up (voltron option)
Flying - built in evasion (which is always good)
XBB: See top picture. Now this is why she rocks. Period. Don't argue, you're wrong. Why? 3 reasons:
2) Makes herself stronger for voltron win
3) Can sweep the board if you have infinite mana
Yes? Yes? See the Light? NO? Oh, COME ON! She is AMAZING!
Best of all? SHE IS SUPER CHEAP! ANYONE CAN RUN HER! (seriously, a foil one is $5 tops)
Now, why choose her over other generals?
Let's compare here to some other popular black generals:
Geth, Lord of the Vault - Graveyard recursion/mill - been there, done that...been doing it FOREVER!
Xiahou Dun, the One-Eyed - unblockable, recursion - solid...but have you seen the price tag on this guy?
Korlash, Heir to Blackblade - big beater - Eh..... beater with regeneration? No thanks.
Maga, Traitor to Mortals - player killer - Overcosted till late game, little real interaction...and simply boring.
Skithiryx, the Blight Dragon - 1v1 Monster - Drana can play in multiplayer AND 1v1, and doesn't rely on infect to win (which, since it's 10, is BORING)
Kalitas, Bloodchief of Ghet - Way too slow, and way too inefficient.
Mikaeus, the Unhallowed - good commander, can be very powerful. He is especially good for token making and zombie tribal, but I don't like that he himself is pretty vulnerable and that you HAVE to build around him to make him crazy.
Erebos, God of the Dead - Strong cheap commander who SHOULD be a killer in mono black. His greed effect is solid card draw for EDH/Commander, and you have the life for it. What I don't like is that there is nothing too him other than being a card engine. He just sits there, even as a 5/7, and doesn't do much. To me, a little boring (despite the awesome flavor)
(I know I "may" be simplifying here...but seriously, have you seen Drana? No? Go back to the top and look again)
Decklist in Progress
Average Converted Mana Cost = 3.6ish (currently, may change due to in progress)
1x Boseiju, Who Shelters All
1x Cabal Coffers
1x Verdant Catacombs
1x Marsh Flats
1x Bloodstained Mire
1x Reliquary Tower
1x Vesuva
1x Shizo, Death's Storehouse
1x Strip Mine
1x Petrified Field
1x Phyrexian Tower
1x Deserted Temple
1x High Market
1x Inkmoth Nexus
1x Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth
24x Snow Swamp
Big Baddies (6):
6 Steel Helkite
6 Wurmcoil Engine
6 Helldozer
6 Grave Titan
7 Sheoldred, Whispering One
8x Myojin of Night's Reach
Nonland Doublers/Acceleration (7):
1 Sol Ring
1 Expedition Map
3 Extraplaner Lens
3 Basalt Monolith
4 Solemn Simulacrum
6 Caged Sun
6 Nirkana Revenant
0 Slaughter Pact
1 Tragic Slip
3 Ashes to Ashes
3 Praetor’s Grasp
4 Gravepact
Wraths of God (8):
2x Exsanguinate
2x Black Sun's Zenith
3 Oblivion Stone
4 Damnation
4 Mutilate
5 Living Death
7 All Is Dust
8 Decree of Pain
Equipment(4):
1 Skullclamp
2 Lightning Greaves
2 Nim Deathmantle
4 Lashwrithe
Recursion (4):
2 Reassembling Skeleton
2 Nether Traitor
3 Yawgmoths Will
5 Puppeteer Clique
Draw/Tutors (11):
1 Sensei's Divining Top
1 Vampiric Tutor
2 Sign in Blood
2 Demonic Tutor
3 Phyrexian Arena
3 Beseech the Queen
4 Ambition's Cost
5 Bloodgift Demon
5 Promise of Power
5 Increasing Ambition
7 Rune-Scarred Demon
1 Relic of Progenitus
2 Withering Boon
2 Bitterblossom
2x Profane Command
3 Mimic Vat
3 Rings of Brighthearth
3 Ashnod’s Altar
4 Leyline of the Void
4 Infernal Darkness (scary evil card)
5 Treacherous Urge
6 Enslave
6 Choice of Damnations
7 Sorin’s Vengeance
Planeswalkers (4):
4 Liliana of the Dark Realms
5 Liliana Vess
6 Sorin Markov
7 Karn Liberated
So Really....Tell Me What This Deck Does
You'll likely play out in between cards like Gate to Phyrexia to limit your opponents artifacts/mana stones, and hopefully slow combo decks. Cheap wraths (e.g. Damnation, Mutilate, etc) will limit token/rush decks from gaining hold. Graveyard hate (Leyline of the Void, Relic of Progenitus , etc) should hurt graveyard related decks (Dredge/Re-animator). Control decks are the real trick for this deck; ideally, you would blow up lands, use your ramp to attack quickly and viciously, and take those decks down as fast as possible.
What Idiot Would Run This Deck?
1) Be able to win regularly but not obscenely (aka not hated off the table)
2) Be (equally) good against one or multiple opponents.
3) Be fun to play with and against.
4) Have multiple paths to victory.
5) Have lots of cool interactions and synergy.
6) Play out differently every game to keep it fun over a long period of playtime.
7) Be streamlined and fast to play without excessive upkeep, time-consuming play or overcomplicated boardstate.
8) Integrate the Commanders abilities into the strategy, but be able to win without ever playing the commander.
Players who should run this deck are those who:
Players who should not run this deck are those who:
Card Rundown
– Cabal Coffers – Any black deck not running this card is foolish. A powerhouse card, if it is not dealt with quickly you often can win with sheer ramp. It accelerates large spells, works up infinite mana, and buries your opponents in black death (pun intended :P) A MUST HAVE.
- Verdant Catacombs, Marsh Flats, Bloodstained Mire, Polluted Delta – These fetches allow synergy with bloodghast, repeated land effects, cut out land from your deck to increase chances of getting what you need, on the fly shuffle, etc etc. They are sick, trust me.
- Vesuva – Usually I don’t like having lands entering the battlefield tapped, but this can be an exception. At its worst, it can kill opposing legendary lands. At its best, you have a second Cabal Coffers. How can that EVER be bad?
- Bojuka Bog – Exiles a graveyard. Which is nice. Don’t know if it is necessary per se, but it has yet to fail me.
- Shizo, Death's Storehouse – I like being able to give fear to a big baddie for a swing once I remove (with Drana or something else) whatever artifact or black creatures are around. And since large amounts of creatures in these colors (or lack thereof) are not widespread, it is a “sure” win card. Very awesome.
- Petrified Field – returns a land on a stick (aka Cabal Coffers). Seems a shoe in for me.
- Phyrexian Tower – great accelerator and works well with recurring creatures and tokens.
- Deserted Temple – Works well with reusing better lands, and has some sick infinite combos.
- High Market – Allows you to sack for Gravepact and similar cards, gains a life to counter some of the draw engines a bit.
- Inkmoth Nexus – Great swing option with Lashwrithe. Shizo can help make it unblockable, and its overall a nice wincon option.
- Snow Swamp – Most decks (especially multicolor) don’t use these, so Extraplanar Lens becomes scarily good since it is just for me.
- Necrotic Ooze – lots of cool activated abilities in EDH on a solid body. Underestimated beast.
- Steel Helkite – solid flier that allows you (with infinite mana) to do tremendous damage.
- Wurmcoil Engine – Strong card, and life gain is surprisingly helpful. Can help make infinite tokens and colorless mana, which is bad how?
- Helldozer – killer land destruction card. With infinite black mana, it reads “destroy all opponents non-basic lands” and even so, he is worth his cost and body.
- Grave Titan – great creature, worth its weight in power. It is also an infinite mana/token generator like Engine.
- Sheoldred, Whispering One – Incredible creature. Turn by turn recursion and Diabolic Edict affect? Sign me up!
- Myojin of Night’s Reach – By mid-late game, her ability is a game ending one. Period.
- Nim Deathmantle – Gives intimidate and can be used both for infinite combos and for a 4 mana dread return on the fly (which is just plain embarrassing for wrath style players)
- Lashwrithe – Inkmoth win sinergy, and can make Drana deadly. It is also just an awesome card in a mono black deck.
- Liliana Vess – I use her for her second ability (vampiric tutor) more than anything, but her ultimate is a wincon, and I like that I can force someone else to discard.
- Sorin Markov – His (-3) is killer (a great political card), his (+2) can kill small Generals and utility, and his (-7) is sick for multiplayer. But mostly his second ability. It is the evilest (and thus the best)
- Karn Liberated – He is a powerhouse in EDH (hard to kill in loyalty). His first two abilities exile stuff, which is a great card advantage, and his ultimate likely wins you the game (though it can be VERY annoying and I tend to stick with abilities one and two)
Synergies/Interactions
Combos
Cabal Coffers + Rings of Brighthearth + Deserted Temple = Infinite Black Mana (don't forget about Helldozer!)
Rings of Brighthearth + Basalt Monolith = Infinite colorless mana for Profane or Hellkite or Drana.
Ashnod's Altar + Nim Deathmantle +:
Puppeteer Clique = Infinite Stealing & Colorless Mana
Wurmcoil Engine = Infinite Tokens & Colorless Mana
Grave Titan = Infinite Tokens & Colorless Mana
Quoting User Blackjack68 for the Basalt Monolith explanation:
BM's tap ability is a mana ability..... but it's untap ability is not
Tap Monolith (+3)
Pay 3 to untap Monolith (0), leave that on the stack as BM1, it's still tapped.
Pay 2 to copy the ability with Rings (-2)
Rings resolves and untaps Monolith. BM1 still on the stack.
Tap Monolith again (now +1)
BM1 resolves untapping Monolith. You've still got 1 in the pool and an untapped Monolith. Repeat a thousand times, now Exsanguinate, Drana, Hellkite, or Profane Command ftw.
It takes 2 lands to do it the first time, and 1 land to do it the second time as you gain 1 mana each time you do it. Do it a thousand times.
Changelog
March 30, 2012
-1x Crypt Rats
-1x Chainer's Edict
-1x Swiftfoot Boots
+1x Slaughter Pact
March 31, 2012
- Nihil Spellbomb
- Teramorphic Expanse
- Spawning Pool
- Crystal Vein
- Peat Bog
- Hero's Demise
- Devour in Shadow
- Life’s Finale
- Sudden Death
- Gravecrawler (forgot he needed a zombie :P)
- Reiver Demon
- Whispersilk Cloak
- Darksteel Plate
- Skeletal Scrying
- Ebon Stronghold
- Nihil Spellbomb
- Ancient Craving
- Evolving Wilds
+2 Snow Swamps
+ Mikaeus the Unhallowed
+ Living Death
+ Oblivion Stone
+ Reassembling Skeleton
+ Visara the Dreadful
+Relic of Progenitus
+Duplicant
+Gate to Phyrexia
+Graveborn Muse
+Choice of Damnations
+Leyline of the Void
April 2, 2012
-Hatred
+Ivory Tower
April 4, 2012
-Withered Wretch
-Eyeblight's Ending
-Rend Flesh
-2x Snow Swamps
-Bubbling Muck
-Visara the Dreadful
-Ink Eyes, Servant of the Oni
-Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth
April 10, 2012
-Plague Wind
-Magus of the Coffers
-Coalition Relic
-Lake of the Dead
-Pithing Needle
-Syphon Mind (may switch back in for larger multiplayer)
-Suffer the Past
-Nightmare Lash
-Grim Discovery
-Avatar of Woe
-Night’s Whisper
-Bloodghast
-Dread Return
-Maga, Traitor to Mortals
-Ancient Tomb
-Bojuka Bog
+5 Swamps
-Sickening Shoal
-Duplicant
-Mikaeus the Unhallowed
-Heartless Summoning
-Thran Dynamo
-Necromancy
-Graveborn Muse
-Ivory Tower
-Bloodchief Ascension
-Liliana of the Veil
-Slaughter
I don't know if I'd cut Vess. She is awesome as a fast, possibly two+ time tutor and her ultimate is a game ender. But play out some more and let us know how it is going.
Steelshaper's Gift (best response equipment card EVAR)
Stoneforge Mystic (haha, I know, funny right? I still think you can use her in EDH, but she is expensive)
Taj-Nar Swordsmith (selective by mana)
Quest for the Holy Relic (cheap and easy to play early)
Stonehewer Giant (nice body with stoneforger's ability)
Enlightened Tutor (VERY expensive)
At least that I've found. If that is what you need, aim for those. White tutors, esp. for equipment, are hard to find.
1x The Mimeoplasm
Lands (36)
5x Forest
5x Swamp
5x Islands
1x Reliquary Tower
1x Svogthos, the Restless Tomb
1x Command Tower
1x Temple of the False God
1x Lonely Sandbar
1x Barren Moor
1x Tranquil Thicket
1x Golgari Rot Farm
1x Twilight Mire
1x Verdant Catacombs
1x Misty Rainforest
1x Dimir Aqueduct
1x Shelldock Isle
1x Drowned Catacomb
1x Polluted Delta
1x Simic Growth Chamber
1x Bojuka Bog
1x Tainted Wood
1x Tained Isle
1x Bloodstained Mire
1x Winding Canyons
Utility Creatures (9)
1x Trygon Predator
1x Yavimaya Elder
1x Eternal Witness
1x Sakura Tribe Elder
1x Solemn Simulacrum
1x Loaming Shaman
1x Voidmage Husher
1x Riftsweeper
1x Phyrexian Metamorph
1x Thornling
1x Chancellor of the Spires
1x Jin-Gitaxias
1x Stormtide Leviathan
1x Vorosh, the Hunter
1x Simic Sky Swallower
1x Geth, Lord of the Vault
1x Mindleech Mass
1x Sheoldred, Whispering One
1x Gaea's Revenge
1x Skithiryx, the Blight Dragon
Artifacts (5)
1x Sol Ring
1x Darksteel Ingot
1x Lightning Greaves
1x Nim Deathmantle
1x Feldon's Cane
Ramp (4)
1x Genesis Wave
1x Krosan Tusker
1x Cultivate
1x Primeval Titan
Destruction (6)
1x Putrefy
1x Life’s Finale
1x Decree of Pain
1x Krosan Grip
1x Beast Within
1x Acidic Slime
Planeswalker (both Tutor/Reanimate/Discard) (2)
1x Liliana Vess
1x Jace Beleren
Tutors (2)
1x Merchant Scroll
1x Trinket Mage
1x Right of Replication
1x Animate Dead
1x Reanimate
1x Living Death
1x Beacon of Unrest
1x Artisan of Kozilek
1x Oversold Cemetery
Bury-Mill/Discard (3)
1x Buried Alive
1x Corpse Connoisseur
1x Syphon Mind
Counterspell (5)
1x Perplex
1x Rewind
1x Hinder
1x Dissipate
1x Spell Crumple
Draw (6)
1x Graveborn Muse
1x Fact or Fiction
1x Careful Consideration
1x Tidings
1x Jace's Archivist
1x Memory Jar
Fun Stuff (2)
1x Soothsaying (Don’t have extra Sensei Top)
1x Time Stretch
Cards I am still considering:
1x Scion of Darkness
1x Thirst for Knowledge
1x Jace, Memory Adept
1x Black Sun's Zenith
1x Oblation Stone
What do you think?