This primer details a near creature-less, enchantment heavy EDH deck built around life gain / drain effects. It is a simple strategy, but works extremely well in multiplayer EDH. The strategy for this deck is to sit back, make yourself difficult to attack, and then unleash pain. Once you commit to not playing creatures, you have a variety of defensive strategies open to you (pestilence, humility, tainted aether). Because Vish Kal is expensive to cast and a rather low threat commander, the deck tends to go unnoticed. Sure, you have a Sanguine Bond out--but it isn't really doing anything. Until you Beacon yourself for 60 life... this deck can easily win 4 player games without ever casting Vish Kal.
Play this deck if:
[LIST]
[*]You like playing a patient Johnny game
[*]You don't care about casting creatures, including your commander
[*]You like living on the edge
[*]You like pulling wins out of your butt
[/LIST]
Don't play this deck if:
[LIST]
[*]You are a Timmy or a Spike
[*]You like fast games
[*]You play in a meta with mass LD
[*]You like consistent decks (while this deck has lots of tutors, I find the joy of playing it is that you get an entirely different feel every game)
[/LIST]
How does this deck win? First, it quietly makes itself unattractive to attack. There's cards like Pestilence, Humility, Tainted AEther to annoy opposing creature decks. There's COPs, Righteous Aura, and Story Circle to prevent damage. There's the Bitterblossom to produce chump blockers. There's also a Sun Droplet to recover life.
Once the deck has tutored some defense in the early game, it can focus on finding a way to finish. You have many options.
Well, that's some of the ways the deck can win. I'm sure I am forgetting others. Try it. You'll see.
[b]Deck History[/b]
[Spoiler]
I am a long time magic player, and have been playing Commander now for a few years. B/W has long been one of my favorite color combos, and I wanted to build a multiplayer deck that took advantage of white's life gain. My build started pretty close to [URL="http://forums.mtgsalvation.com/showthread.php?p=7580575#post7580575"]Englishboi's approach[/URL]; rather than treating this as an aggro deck that attempts board control through tokens, grave pact effects, and recursion, my deck looks to gain massive life and then use that life to do obscene things.
Over its evolution (see the change log), I came to run even fewer creatures and more "defensive" cards that bother opposing creature decks. What distinguishes my build is the use of the old school Circles/Runes of Protection. These are often the first thing I will tutor for as necessary. My meta determines the choice between circle/rune. Righteous aura is also an incredible defense card in this deck. Its better to occasionally draw a useless COP Green than not have sufficient mana to null the Ezuri deck trampling at you.
I also pulled a lot of the bonus life gain cards, such as Boon Reflection, in favor of more defensive cards. Gaining life is important in this deck--but only as a kind of engine for draining life.
My meta plays with a 250$ per deck budget restriction--this deck checks in at $242.09 (according to Cockatrice). In other words, yes, I have some money to play with, but, no, I will not include a Grim Tutor or an Imperial Seal. Also, I will not play Sorin Markov because it just feels cheap in this deck (unless it starts losing a bunch, then it will suddenly feel fair again).
[/Spoiler]
[b]Card Choices[/b]
The cards listed below include options not currently in the deck
[Spoiler]
[b]Defensive Choices[/b]
The heart of this deck is defense.
[List]
[*]Akroma, Angel of Wrath - Flying, First Strike, Protection from Black and Red will keep many creatures at bay
[*]Bitterblossom - Flying chump blockers
[*]Sorin, Lord of Innistrad - Chump blockers, with the chance of destroying/claiming three permanents
[*][card]Phyrexian Processor [card] - I'm on the fence about this card; Gurst talked me into keeping it. It is great to spend 6 life on to pump out chump blockers, or things to feed to Vish.
[*]Circle of Protection: Black . Circle of Protection: Green and/or Rune of Protection: Red - In the first draft of the deck, I played a total of 8 circles and runes. Now, with the addition of Story Circle, I am down to 3. My meta doesn't have a great mono-white deck (and I play the only mono-blue deck), so I focus on stopping Black, Green, and Red. Note that while Runes of Protection can be cycled, they also require only white mana, and that is a problem in this deck.
[*]Story Circle - Great tutor target
[*]Righteous Aura - Outstanding protection from Voltron generals; because it targets the damage and not the source, it gets around shroud.
[*]Glacial Chasm - This card has saved my life so, so many times. Paying 8, 10, or even 12 life can be easy in this deck (especially if a Venser's Journal is in play).
[*]Maze of Ith - Amazing defensive card.
[*]Humility - If this card resolves, it will serious cripple many black, red, or blue decks. "Hey look, its Azami, Lady of Do Nothing."
[*]No Mercy - This card will influence aggro decks to attack other players first.
[*]Tainted AEther - This is another card that just punishes aggro decks. This one differs, however, in that it will immediately draw all the hate toward you. Humility will do this too--but I wouldn't play humility against an aggressive green or white deck unless I had to; they are far more likely to have a way of dealing with enchantments and will likely be pissed.
[*]Mikaeus, the Unhallowed - I play Mikaeus for his combo ability with Vish, but his other ability doesn't hurt for a tad bit of defense.
[*]Aurification - Similar to No Mercy, I've debated which of the two to put in the deck. No Mercy works better against tokens, Aurification against commanders.
[*]Batwing Brume - A fog effect that also doubles as life loss that could kill a token deck. I am tempted to try this one.
[*]Souls of the Faultless - A wall that brutally punishes Voltron generals (assuming they don't have flying, unblockable or protection from white or black)
[*]Wall of Reverence - This is more a lifegainer, but at least it flies.
[*]Vow of Duty and Vow of Malice - These cards are a nice way to encourage someone to attack somebody else.
[*]Peacekeeper - This guy, and his big brother Archon of Justice, can be a combo deck's best friend. I play too many effects that destroy creatures to feel comfortable with him in the deck. I might change my mind, though...
[*]Circle of Despair - I don't play enough token generators for this card, but I could see it being an incredible play in a more token heavy build.
[*]Songstitcher - Another fragile creature who can hold flyers at bay. I'd rather the COP's.
[*]Icy Manipulator - Call it nostalgia for Ice Ages, but I'm never too sad to see one of these on my side.
[*]Noetic Scales - This is one that probably never works as great as it sounds it might.
[/list]
[b]Removal / Mass Removal[/b]
Of course, removal could be counted as defense--and there are many more removal options than I play in the deck. I already played a Teneb deck that specializes in mass removal, so I wanted something a bit different for this deck.
[list]
[*]Oblivion Ring - Pretty much an auto-include in any deck that plays white, right?
[*]Mortify - Can target just about any creature
[*]Vindicate - I don't play this one because of the price tag, but it would be an auto-include if money weren't an option
[*]Swords to Plowshares - all this for one mana. And, in a pinch, you can use it on a pumped up Vish for life gain or in a Sanguine Bond combo
[*]Austere Command - Life is all about leaving your options open.
[*]Wrath of God - Standard board-wiping.
[*]Black Sun's Zenith - Hey, are those creatures indestructible?
[*]Pestilence - Hey, is that an elf? Or a wizard? Or a sliver?
[*]Terminus - This card is incredible in a deck like this. It is my favorite Vampiric Tutor or Liliana Vess target.
[*]Decree of Pain - I like this card for its versatility, and its potential draw. 8 mana isn't prohibitively expensive for this deck.
[*]Barter in Blood - Its easy to sacrifice two creatures when you don't really play any. That's a lot of value out of 4 mana.
[*]Death Pits of Rath - Pestilence's best friend. I could also see it working well with Bitterblossom; I haven't play tested this one yet.
[*]Nevinyrral's Disk - I don't ever want enchantments to be blown up.
[*]Terror, Dark Banishing, Go for the Throat, Dismember - Sure, if you need more spot removal for your meta. In multiplayer, I prefer to have cards that wipe the board (especially in this deck, since I don't have many creatures).
[*]Angel of Despair - A powerful card, but I don't want to give my opponents any more Bribery targets than I have to (or Havengul Lich targets either).
[*]Retribution of the Meek - Eh. Kills off tokens while leaving Vish Kal in play.
[*]Culling Sun - Eh. Kills off Ezuri decks.
[*]Damnation - Eh. You are playing white and thus have access to many other board wipers. There's better ways to spend 16 bucks.
[*]Sever the Bloodline - Eh. If you regularly face a really strong token deck.
[*]Tribute to Huner - Eh. Force a sac, gain some life. The lifegain adds insult to injury.
[/list]
[b]Life Gain[/b]
At one point, I had far more life gain cards in the deck. Now it is down to the first 5 listed below (there are others, like exsanguinate or death's grasp, that can also gain life).
[list]
[*]Sun Droplet - Its probably easy to underappreciate this card. In a four player game, it generates 4 health every time around the board for two mana. The steady stream of life can also activate other life gain effects (like Sanguine Bond).
[*]Venser's Journal - A hero in this deck. One of my favorite late gain tutor targets if I have Sanguine Bond or Well of Lost Dreams out (it is especially amazing with the latter).
[*]Beacon of Immortality - My favorite play with this card is to combo it with False Cure.
[*]Bloodchief Ascension - A great one drop. It almost always activates, and gives a nice supply of gain and drain.
[*]Exquisite Blood - An instant win with Sanguine Bond and any damage (to any player) or any life gain. Otherwise, this is a fairly terrible card that will only attract attacks from the rest of the table. I am trying it out, but I am not sure it will stay in the deck.
[*]Boon Reflection - I tested this card for a long time, but found that it is pretty much a "win more" card.
[*]Spirit Link, Vampiric Link, Soul Link - In a multiplayer game, I like to play these cards on opposing creatures, similar to the "Vow of..." cards. Only these won't protect you from lethal general damage.
[*]Wall of Reverence - It is not unusual for my most powerful creature to be a fairy token.
[*]Divinity of Pride - This was one of the last creatures to be cut, only because it does so many things--provides defensive, provides life gain, and can even supply a killing blow if needed.
[/list]
[b]Life Winners[/b]
[list]
[*]Felidar Sovereign - Good.
[*]Test of Endurance - Better.
[*]Hatred - Best.
[*]Storm Herd - Decent. I debate whether to keep this card in the deck. Generating an insane amount of flyers is fun, but isn't necessarily an "instant" win. At the ten mana cost, I wonder if there isn't a better play out there.
[*]Serra Avenger - I have few creatures, no way of giving them trample, and no way of recurring them (outside of reanimate). Sure, its fun to have a 40/40 creature--but it is just asking to be stolen. And it has no evasion or protection.
[b]Life Drain[/b]
This is how we roll.
[list]
[b]Life Drain[/b]
[*]Sanguine Bond - Probably the most important card in the deck.
[*] Wound Reflection - A bit high priced, but can accelerate kills.
[*]Exsanguinate - Duh.
[*]False Curse - The only thing better than resolving this after a Beacon of Immortality is resolving it on an opponent's Exsanguinate
[*]Suffer the Past - Graveyard hate on theme
[*]Blood Tribute - I'm torn on this card. When it resolves, it is excellent. But only Vish Kal or a Sorin token can pay the kicker. At six mana, I wonder if Sorin's Vengeance wouldn't be a more consistent play.
[*]Bond of Agony - Another great life drain effect.
[*]Death Grasp - Targeted dr/gain. Better than most Drain life effects since it can use colorless mana.
[*]Syphon Soul and Blood Tithe - Great value cards, but I would rather play Bloodchief Ascension for one mana. Tough call.
[*]Sorin's Vengeance - With all of the life dr/gain enchantment effects in this deck, this card has a serious chance of becoming a 40 point swing for 7 mana. I might try this in place of Storm Herd.
[*]Netherborn Phalanx - This one punishes any token theme, gets around Gaddock Teeg, and doubles as a tutor. This is another card high on my play test list.
[*]Baneful Omen - I could see this working better with a top; as it is, it looks like a hate generator more than a finisher.
[*]Sorin Markov - I just think this card is too douchee to play in this deck. Feel free.
[*]Agent of Masks - Eh. 5 mana for a one point drain effect? Not my thing.
[*]Blind Hunter - Eh. 4 mana for a 4 point dr/gain effect? Not my thing.
[/list]
[b]Card Draw[/b]
In revising this deck, I have removed most of the dedicated card draw in favor of tutors and defense. There's still some draw in the deck, but traditional black players will likely try to squeeze more in. I list some of the better option for this deck below.
[list]
[*]Phyrexian Arena - No brainer.
[*]Necropotence - Sigh. This is an incredibly broken card. I should probably break down and play it.
[*]Promise to Power - This is a great card, no doubt. Five mana and five life for five cards is a fine deal.
[*]Sign in Blood, Harrowing Journey - Black versions of Harmonize.
[/list]
[b]Other Cards Worth Considering[/card]
[list]
[*]Deathbringer Liege - I don't think I play enough W/B spells to justify this guy, but he might be worth a try, especially in more creature-heavy builds.
[*]Castigate - If you wanted to build in a control theme to the deck, this could help. However, I am not a fan of discard control in multiplayer, unless it is something global like Myojin of Night's Reach.
[/list]
[/spoiler]
[b]Cards I am considering adding[/b]
[LIST]
[*]Tainted Sigil - this is the last card I cut from the deck, it combos very well with Sanguine Bond and things like Exsanguinate or Bond of Agony
[*]Decree of Pain[/card] - board wiper, that can be cycled, with card draw
[*]Pillory of the Sleepless - a pacifism w/ benefits
[*]Necromancer's Covenant - I regularly play against a very good recursion deck; graveyard hate might be necessary
[*]Netherborn Phalanx - Tutor target, life drain or another tutor that can grab important 6cc cards
[*]Enduring Ideal - I tried this briefly, I'd like to give it another go
[*]Baneful Omen - This seems like it would work well in this deck, especially with Enduring Ideal
[*]Death Pits of Rath - Pestilence's best friend
[/LIST]
[b]Cards I am considering cutting[/b]
[LIST]
[*]Well of Lost Dreams - This has been good (not great) when I have played it. It absolutely chimes with Venser's Journal, or with Words of Worship
[*]Words of Worship - This card combos really well with Sanguine Bond and Well of Lost Dreams in play, but otherwise it is fairly terrible.
[*]Akroma, Angel of Wrath - A great card, but kind of unnecessary in this deck. Sure, protection from red and black is great, but it also means she can't be a hatred target. Chances are you aren't going to win swinging with big creatures.
[*]Phyrexian Processor - Produces chump blockers or beasties to feed to Vish Kal
[/LIST]
[b]Change Log[/b]
[Spoiler]
-1 Tainted Sigil, +1 Exquisite Blood - In testing, the Sigil was actually a solid card, usually netting me 8-12 life for 3 mana. But Exquisite Blood has to go in this deck--something had to come out.
-1 Enduring Ideal, +1 Bloodchief Ascension - Enduring is fun, but it shuts down a lot of what this deck wants to do. Bloodchief is low CC, easy to activate, taxes graveyard recursion/sac strategies, and gives me some life gain/drain
-1 COP blue, COP white, +1 Story Circle, +1 Sorin, Lord of Innistrad -thanks Bismuth
-1 Boon Reflection, +1 Mikaeus, the Unhallowed - Boon isn't really necessary for the deck's combos (it makes them better), while Mikaeus can do evil things with Vish Kal. Thanks A.Minor
-1 Swamp, +1 Sol Ring Duh. More mana is always good.
-1 Divinity of Pride, +1 Greater Auramancy I play a lot of enchantments; this helps protect them.
-1 Jareth, Leonine Titan, +1 Tainted Sigil Eh, this might be a win more card. I'm not sure yet.
-1 Serra Avatar, +1 Humility Hahahahaha. This might attract hate...
-1 Rune Tail, Kitsune Ascendent, +1 No Mercy Attack that other guy.
-1 Profane Command, +1 Black Sun Zenith This was a close call, but I often want to wipe the board with this deck, not just kill a target creature. I have plenty of drain life effects--and I don't have enough creatures to really make the other Profane choices viable.
-1 Greed, +1 Pestilence Another tough cut, but an easy addition. All your creatures are belong to graveyard.
-1 Redeem the Lost, +1 Maze of Ith Redeem is a personal favorite, but if I cut all my creatures I have no use for it.
-1 Scrubland, +1 Orhov Basilica Given my play groups $250 deck limit, the dual land is just too expensive.
-1 Swamp, +1 Leechridden Swamp I missed this land the first time around.
-1 Swamp, +1 Glacial Chasm More defense. This card has become an auto-include in every EDH deck I build.
-1 Celestial Mantle, +1 Terminus Celestial was janky with a lot of creatures. Its a trap card. Terminus, even if I don't miracle it, looks much better for this deck.
-1 Cradle of Vitality, +1 Enduring Ideal Another trap card. I'm interested to experiment with Enduring Ideal, since I can easily grab two enchantments and win the game in a turn or two.
[/spoiler]
"For me metaphysics means something more like realism. That there is a reality that escapes any of its manifestations. You can never be quite sure what it is, but you can offer some description of what the structures of reality are." Graham Harman, The Prince and the Wolf
I like deck idea you need to cut like 4 lands 5-6 cards add some mana accel I don't even see a sol ring seems light in draw for being black as well I know you like the different feel every day but cut the weakest/ least fun crap get some draw and mana accel for consistency the core cards look fine though fun stuff definitly add the angel
The draw in this deck isn't out of this world, but it isn't bad either. I thought about necropotence, but that card attracts a lot of hate--I'm not sure if this deck to handle mass aggression. My strategy is to go unnoticed until I play something insane.
Testing this against my other decks in Cockatrice, it does much better than one might think it would. The high amount of tutors means I can usually grab some defense early and then find a combo-bomb late. And since my other decks (and the other decks in my meta) play more high profile, I-am-coming-to-clobber-you or I-am-about-to-combo-out, commanders, this deck has time to set itself up.
"For me metaphysics means something more like realism. That there is a reality that escapes any of its manifestations. You can never be quite sure what it is, but you can offer some description of what the structures of reality are." Graham Harman, The Prince and the Wolf
This is my favorite deck to play right now. It is quirky, but wins quite a few 4 player games. I recently cut most of the creatures from the deck in favor of creature-punishers, such as Pestilence, Tainted AEther, No Mercy, and Humility. I'm testing Enduring Ideal as a finisher.
Given the heavy enchantment theme in this deck, I was wondering if anyone had other suggestions for B/W enchantments that mess with creatures?
"For me metaphysics means something more like realism. That there is a reality that escapes any of its manifestations. You can never be quite sure what it is, but you can offer some description of what the structures of reality are." Graham Harman, The Prince and the Wolf
Thanks for the reply, and I do see some synergy here--but how does it go infinite? I can't sac Vish Kal to himself to use his second ability, and Vish Kal can't remove a +1/+1 counter from Mikaeus.
EDIT--I wasn't thinking about the +1/+1 counter from undying! Yeah, that's pretty slick. I've been moving away from creatures, but it looks like I have to fit one more in the deck. Thanks.
"For me metaphysics means something more like realism. That there is a reality that escapes any of its manifestations. You can never be quite sure what it is, but you can offer some description of what the structures of reality are." Graham Harman, The Prince and the Wolf
I thought about using Story Circle, I think I'll cut two of the less important COP's (white/blue) for one. Although a problem with Story Circle can be the white mana rather than colorless mana requirement.
"For me metaphysics means something more like realism. That there is a reality that escapes any of its manifestations. You can never be quite sure what it is, but you can offer some description of what the structures of reality are." Graham Harman, The Prince and the Wolf
I really like Phyrexian Processor for Vish Kal. It is much like a second copy of Hatred, but I believe it to actually be better most of the time.
1. If it's countered, you don't lose any life. Unlike Hatred, the life payment is not a cost!
2. The effect is permanent! Vish Kal chews up a minion and gets the counters to keep, unlike Hatred's effect which ends at the turn.
3. The effect is repeatable! You can activate the processor the turn you cast it, and again each time you untap with it. Plenty of minions to bash with!
4. You can use the processor even without Vish Kal. What if your commander gets shuffled into your library? Hatred is a dead draw, but the processor will still spit out a 20/20 minion each turn.
5. Processor is cheaper. Ok, not really... it's a total of 8 to activate the processor vs. Hatred's 5. But it can be split up into two payments of 4, and it's all colorless. These features make it roughly even with Hatred in my mind.
6. Recurs more easily. Instants are tough for BW to get back from the yard, but there are plenty of ways for those two colors to get artifacts back should your fun get spoiled.
The only down side is that Hatred is an instant, so you can definitely surprise people. But, this comes up pretty rarely. Most people will block a general if they're able to, so it is a rare occurence when someone could block Vish Kal but doesn't and you cast Hatred.
Wow, that was a long answer to a question nobody asked. If I were you, I'd run both Hatred and Phyrexian Processor.
Different note... Do you use the red and blue runes of protection because you often don't need those colors, so you cycle them? If that's the case, why not cut them both and run Story Circle instead. Story Circle is never a dead draw! This also makes room for the aforementioned Phyrexian Processor.
EDIT: Someone mentioned your CoP/Runes while I was typing this up. The runes require W activation anyway, so it's not any different than Story Circle.
I had the Phyrexian Processor in an early version of the deck and cut it, but I think you have talked me into trying it again.
I've made some amazing plays with Hatred--and not only on Vish Kal. I've thrown it at opponent's creatures in multiplayer games for surprise kills (my favorite is throwing it at a Brion Stoutarm target for lethal damage to player 1, only to follow it with a False Cure for lethal damage to player 2. Good times). So, I think I'll have to find room for both. Now to figure out what to cut to get the Processor in there...
EDIT: I cut the Well of Lost Dreams. This was a great card, especially with Venser's Journal--but I have cut most of the "trickle" life gain effects in favor of "X" blasters, so I don't have a lot of opportunities to trigger the well, and I don't have extra mana to draw cards when I do.
"For me metaphysics means something more like realism. That there is a reality that escapes any of its manifestations. You can never be quite sure what it is, but you can offer some description of what the structures of reality are." Graham Harman, The Prince and the Wolf
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This primer details a near creature-less, enchantment heavy EDH deck built around life gain / drain effects. It is a simple strategy, but works extremely well in multiplayer EDH. The strategy for this deck is to sit back, make yourself difficult to attack, and then unleash pain. Once you commit to not playing creatures, you have a variety of defensive strategies open to you (pestilence, humility, tainted aether). Because Vish Kal is expensive to cast and a rather low threat commander, the deck tends to go unnoticed. Sure, you have a Sanguine Bond out--but it isn't really doing anything. Until you Beacon yourself for 60 life... this deck can easily win 4 player games without ever casting Vish Kal.
1x Vish Kal, Blood Arbiter
[b]Defense[/b]
1x Akroma, Angel of Wrath
1x Bitterblossom
1x Sorin, Lord of Innistrad
1x Phyrexian Processor
1x Circle of Protection: Black
1x Circle of Protection: Green
1x Rune of Protection: Red
1x Story Circle
1x Righteous Aura
1x Glacial Chasm
1x Maze of Ith
1x Humility
1x No Mercy
1x Tainted AEther
1x Mikaeus, the Unhallowed
[b]Removal / Mass Removal[/b]
1x Oblivion Ring
1x Mortify
1x Swords to Plowshares
1x Austere Command
1x Wrath of God
1x Black Sun's Zenith
1x Pestilence
1x Terminus
[b]Life Gain[/b]
1x Sun Droplet
1x Venser's Journal
1x Beacon of Immortality
1x Bloodchief Ascension
1x Exquisite Blood
1x Test of Endurance
1x Felidar Sovereign
1x Hatred
1x Storm Herd
[b]Life Drain[/b]
1x Sanguine Bond
1x Wound Reflection
1x False Curse
1x Suffer the Past
1x Blood Tribute
1x Bond of Agony
1x Death Grasp
1x Exsanguinate
[b]Tutors[/b]
1x Enlightened Tutor
1x Idyllic Tutor
1x Vampiric Tutor
1x Demonic Tutor
1x Diabolic Tutor
1x Liliana Vess
1x Academy Rector
1x Beseech the Queen
1x Rune-Scarred Demon
[b]Draw[/b]
1x Phyrexian Arena
[b]Tech & Utility[/b]
1x Black Market
1x Debtor's Knell
1x Disenchant
1x Return to Dust
1x Reanimate
1x Replenish
1x Greater Auramancy
1x Sol Ring
1x Barren Moor
1x Bojuka Bog
1x Caves of Koilos
1x Command Tower
1x Fetid Heath
1x Isolated Chapel
1x Kor Haven
1x Leechridden Swamp
1x Marsh Flats
1x Orhov Basilica
1x Orzhova, the Church of Deals
9x Plains
1x Scrubland
1x Secluded Steppe
1x Shizo, Death's Storehouse
1x Springjack Pasture
13x Swamp
1x Tainted Field
1x Thawing Glaciers
1x Vault of the Archangel
1x Volrath's Stronghold
Play this deck if:
[LIST]
[*]You like playing a patient Johnny game
[*]You don't care about casting creatures, including your commander
[*]You like living on the edge
[*]You like pulling wins out of your butt
[/LIST]
Don't play this deck if:
[LIST]
[*]You are a Timmy or a Spike
[*]You like fast games
[*]You play in a meta with mass LD
[*]You like consistent decks (while this deck has lots of tutors, I find the joy of playing it is that you get an entirely different feel every game)
[/LIST]
How does this deck win? First, it quietly makes itself unattractive to attack. There's cards like Pestilence, Humility, Tainted AEther to annoy opposing creature decks. There's COPs, Righteous Aura, and Story Circle to prevent damage. There's the Bitterblossom to produce chump blockers. There's also a Sun Droplet to recover life.
Once the deck has tutored some defense in the early game, it can focus on finding a way to finish. You have many options.
Plan A: Vish Kal and Hatred
Plan B: Vish Kal and Mikaeus, the Unhallowed or Sun Titan and Angelic Renewal; swing
Plan C Vish Kal and Mikaeus, the Unhallowed or Sun Titan and Angelic Renewal; with Sanguine Bond and Sword to Plowshares
Plan D: Beacon of Immortality and False Curse and/or Sanguine Bond
Plan E: Sanguine Bond/Boon Reflection/Wound Reflection and any life drain effect
Plan F: Sanguine Bond and Exquisite Blood
Plan G: Redeem the Lost and Serra Avenger or any other big creature (mostly against mono decks; as I have reduced my creature count, this combo is no longer in the deck)
Plan H: Felidar Sovereign (especially with Winding Canyons), Test of Endurance
Plan I: Storm Herd, attack with 40 flyers
Plan J: Storm Herd, Sorin, Lord of Innistrad, attack with 20 boosted flyers
Plan K: Black Market and Exsanguinate
Plan L: Debtor's Knell and, well, whatever is in your opponents' graveyards
Well, that's some of the ways the deck can win. I'm sure I am forgetting others. Try it. You'll see.
[b]Deck History[/b]
[Spoiler]
I am a long time magic player, and have been playing Commander now for a few years. B/W has long been one of my favorite color combos, and I wanted to build a multiplayer deck that took advantage of white's life gain. My build started pretty close to [URL="http://forums.mtgsalvation.com/showthread.php?p=7580575#post7580575"]Englishboi's approach[/URL]; rather than treating this as an aggro deck that attempts board control through tokens, grave pact effects, and recursion, my deck looks to gain massive life and then use that life to do obscene things.
Over its evolution (see the change log), I came to run even fewer creatures and more "defensive" cards that bother opposing creature decks. What distinguishes my build is the use of the old school Circles/Runes of Protection. These are often the first thing I will tutor for as necessary. My meta determines the choice between circle/rune. Righteous aura is also an incredible defense card in this deck. Its better to occasionally draw a useless COP Green than not have sufficient mana to null the Ezuri deck trampling at you.
I also pulled a lot of the bonus life gain cards, such as Boon Reflection, in favor of more defensive cards. Gaining life is important in this deck--but only as a kind of engine for draining life.
My meta plays with a 250$ per deck budget restriction--this deck checks in at $242.09 (according to Cockatrice). In other words, yes, I have some money to play with, but, no, I will not include a Grim Tutor or an Imperial Seal. Also, I will not play Sorin Markov because it just feels cheap in this deck (unless it starts losing a bunch, then it will suddenly feel fair again).
[/Spoiler]
[b]Card Choices[/b]
The cards listed below include options not currently in the deck
[Spoiler]
[b]Defensive Choices[/b]
The heart of this deck is defense.
[List]
[*]Akroma, Angel of Wrath - Flying, First Strike, Protection from Black and Red will keep many creatures at bay
[*]Bitterblossom - Flying chump blockers
[*]Sorin, Lord of Innistrad - Chump blockers, with the chance of destroying/claiming three permanents
[*][card]Phyrexian Processor [card] - I'm on the fence about this card; Gurst talked me into keeping it. It is great to spend 6 life on to pump out chump blockers, or things to feed to Vish.
[*]Circle of Protection: Black . Circle of Protection: Green and/or Rune of Protection: Red - In the first draft of the deck, I played a total of 8 circles and runes. Now, with the addition of Story Circle, I am down to 3. My meta doesn't have a great mono-white deck (and I play the only mono-blue deck), so I focus on stopping Black, Green, and Red. Note that while Runes of Protection can be cycled, they also require only white mana, and that is a problem in this deck.
[*]Story Circle - Great tutor target
[*]Righteous Aura - Outstanding protection from Voltron generals; because it targets the damage and not the source, it gets around shroud.
[*]Glacial Chasm - This card has saved my life so, so many times. Paying 8, 10, or even 12 life can be easy in this deck (especially if a Venser's Journal is in play).
[*]Maze of Ith - Amazing defensive card.
[*]Humility - If this card resolves, it will serious cripple many black, red, or blue decks. "Hey look, its Azami, Lady of Do Nothing."
[*]No Mercy - This card will influence aggro decks to attack other players first.
[*]Tainted AEther - This is another card that just punishes aggro decks. This one differs, however, in that it will immediately draw all the hate toward you. Humility will do this too--but I wouldn't play humility against an aggressive green or white deck unless I had to; they are far more likely to have a way of dealing with enchantments and will likely be pissed.
[*]Mikaeus, the Unhallowed - I play Mikaeus for his combo ability with Vish, but his other ability doesn't hurt for a tad bit of defense.
[*]Aurification - Similar to No Mercy, I've debated which of the two to put in the deck. No Mercy works better against tokens, Aurification against commanders.
[*]Batwing Brume - A fog effect that also doubles as life loss that could kill a token deck. I am tempted to try this one.
[*]Souls of the Faultless - A wall that brutally punishes Voltron generals (assuming they don't have flying, unblockable or protection from white or black)
[*]Wall of Reverence - This is more a lifegainer, but at least it flies.
[*]Vow of Duty and Vow of Malice - These cards are a nice way to encourage someone to attack somebody else.
[*]Peacekeeper - This guy, and his big brother Archon of Justice, can be a combo deck's best friend. I play too many effects that destroy creatures to feel comfortable with him in the deck. I might change my mind, though...
[*]Circle of Despair - I don't play enough token generators for this card, but I could see it being an incredible play in a more token heavy build.
[*]Songstitcher - Another fragile creature who can hold flyers at bay. I'd rather the COP's.
[*]Icy Manipulator - Call it nostalgia for Ice Ages, but I'm never too sad to see one of these on my side.
[*]Noetic Scales - This is one that probably never works as great as it sounds it might.
[/list]
[b]Removal / Mass Removal[/b]
Of course, removal could be counted as defense--and there are many more removal options than I play in the deck. I already played a Teneb deck that specializes in mass removal, so I wanted something a bit different for this deck.
[list]
[*]Oblivion Ring - Pretty much an auto-include in any deck that plays white, right?
[*]Mortify - Can target just about any creature
[*]Vindicate - I don't play this one because of the price tag, but it would be an auto-include if money weren't an option
[*]Swords to Plowshares - all this for one mana. And, in a pinch, you can use it on a pumped up Vish for life gain or in a Sanguine Bond combo
[*]Austere Command - Life is all about leaving your options open.
[*]Wrath of God - Standard board-wiping.
[*]Black Sun's Zenith - Hey, are those creatures indestructible?
[*]Pestilence - Hey, is that an elf? Or a wizard? Or a sliver?
[*]Terminus - This card is incredible in a deck like this. It is my favorite Vampiric Tutor or Liliana Vess target.
[*]Decree of Pain - I like this card for its versatility, and its potential draw. 8 mana isn't prohibitively expensive for this deck.
[*]Barter in Blood - Its easy to sacrifice two creatures when you don't really play any. That's a lot of value out of 4 mana.
[*]Death Pits of Rath - Pestilence's best friend. I could also see it working well with Bitterblossom; I haven't play tested this one yet.
[*]Nevinyrral's Disk - I don't ever want enchantments to be blown up.
[*]Terror, Dark Banishing, Go for the Throat, Dismember - Sure, if you need more spot removal for your meta. In multiplayer, I prefer to have cards that wipe the board (especially in this deck, since I don't have many creatures).
[*]Angel of Despair - A powerful card, but I don't want to give my opponents any more Bribery targets than I have to (or Havengul Lich targets either).
[*]Retribution of the Meek - Eh. Kills off tokens while leaving Vish Kal in play.
[*]Culling Sun - Eh. Kills off Ezuri decks.
[*]Damnation - Eh. You are playing white and thus have access to many other board wipers. There's better ways to spend 16 bucks.
[*]Sever the Bloodline - Eh. If you regularly face a really strong token deck.
[*]Tribute to Huner - Eh. Force a sac, gain some life. The lifegain adds insult to injury.
[/list]
[b]Life Gain[/b]
At one point, I had far more life gain cards in the deck. Now it is down to the first 5 listed below (there are others, like exsanguinate or death's grasp, that can also gain life).
[list]
[*]Sun Droplet - Its probably easy to underappreciate this card. In a four player game, it generates 4 health every time around the board for two mana. The steady stream of life can also activate other life gain effects (like Sanguine Bond).
[*]Venser's Journal - A hero in this deck. One of my favorite late gain tutor targets if I have Sanguine Bond or Well of Lost Dreams out (it is especially amazing with the latter).
[*]Beacon of Immortality - My favorite play with this card is to combo it with False Cure.
[*]Bloodchief Ascension - A great one drop. It almost always activates, and gives a nice supply of gain and drain.
[*]Exquisite Blood - An instant win with Sanguine Bond and any damage (to any player) or any life gain. Otherwise, this is a fairly terrible card that will only attract attacks from the rest of the table. I am trying it out, but I am not sure it will stay in the deck.
[*]Boon Reflection - I tested this card for a long time, but found that it is pretty much a "win more" card.
[*]Spirit Link, Vampiric Link, Soul Link - In a multiplayer game, I like to play these cards on opposing creatures, similar to the "Vow of..." cards. Only these won't protect you from lethal general damage.
[*]Wall of Reverence - It is not unusual for my most powerful creature to be a fairy token.
[*]Divinity of Pride - This was one of the last creatures to be cut, only because it does so many things--provides defensive, provides life gain, and can even supply a killing blow if needed.
[/list]
[b]Life Winners[/b]
[list]
[*]Felidar Sovereign - Good.
[*]Test of Endurance - Better.
[*]Hatred - Best.
[*]Storm Herd - Decent. I debate whether to keep this card in the deck. Generating an insane amount of flyers is fun, but isn't necessarily an "instant" win. At the ten mana cost, I wonder if there isn't a better play out there.
[*]Serra Avenger - I have few creatures, no way of giving them trample, and no way of recurring them (outside of reanimate). Sure, its fun to have a 40/40 creature--but it is just asking to be stolen. And it has no evasion or protection.
[b]Life Drain[/b]
This is how we roll.
[list]
[b]Life Drain[/b]
[*]Sanguine Bond - Probably the most important card in the deck.
[*] Wound Reflection - A bit high priced, but can accelerate kills.
[*]Exsanguinate - Duh.
[*]False Curse - The only thing better than resolving this after a Beacon of Immortality is resolving it on an opponent's Exsanguinate
[*]Suffer the Past - Graveyard hate on theme
[*]Blood Tribute - I'm torn on this card. When it resolves, it is excellent. But only Vish Kal or a Sorin token can pay the kicker. At six mana, I wonder if Sorin's Vengeance wouldn't be a more consistent play.
[*]Bond of Agony - Another great life drain effect.
[*]Death Grasp - Targeted dr/gain. Better than most Drain life effects since it can use colorless mana.
[*]Syphon Soul and Blood Tithe - Great value cards, but I would rather play Bloodchief Ascension for one mana. Tough call.
[*]Sorin's Vengeance - With all of the life dr/gain enchantment effects in this deck, this card has a serious chance of becoming a 40 point swing for 7 mana. I might try this in place of Storm Herd.
[*]Netherborn Phalanx - This one punishes any token theme, gets around Gaddock Teeg, and doubles as a tutor. This is another card high on my play test list.
[*]Baneful Omen - I could see this working better with a top; as it is, it looks like a hate generator more than a finisher.
[*]Sorin Markov - I just think this card is too douchee to play in this deck. Feel free.
[*]Agent of Masks - Eh. 5 mana for a one point drain effect? Not my thing.
[*]Blind Hunter - Eh. 4 mana for a 4 point dr/gain effect? Not my thing.
[/list]
[b]Card Draw[/b]
In revising this deck, I have removed most of the dedicated card draw in favor of tutors and defense. There's still some draw in the deck, but traditional black players will likely try to squeeze more in. I list some of the better option for this deck below.
[list]
[*]Phyrexian Arena - No brainer.
[*]Necropotence - Sigh. This is an incredibly broken card. I should probably break down and play it.
[*]Promise to Power - This is a great card, no doubt. Five mana and five life for five cards is a fine deal.
[*]Sign in Blood, Harrowing Journey - Black versions of Harmonize.
[/list]
[b]Other Cards Worth Considering[/card]
[list]
[*]Deathbringer Liege - I don't think I play enough W/B spells to justify this guy, but he might be worth a try, especially in more creature-heavy builds.
[*]Castigate - If you wanted to build in a control theme to the deck, this could help. However, I am not a fan of discard control in multiplayer, unless it is something global like Myojin of Night's Reach.
[/list]
[/spoiler]
[b]Cards I am considering adding[/b]
[LIST]
[*]Tainted Sigil - this is the last card I cut from the deck, it combos very well with Sanguine Bond and things like Exsanguinate or Bond of Agony
[*]Decree of Pain[/card] - board wiper, that can be cycled, with card draw
[*]Pillory of the Sleepless - a pacifism w/ benefits
[*]Necromancer's Covenant - I regularly play against a very good recursion deck; graveyard hate might be necessary
[*]Netherborn Phalanx - Tutor target, life drain or another tutor that can grab important 6cc cards
[*]Enduring Ideal - I tried this briefly, I'd like to give it another go
[*]Baneful Omen - This seems like it would work well in this deck, especially with Enduring Ideal
[*]Death Pits of Rath - Pestilence's best friend
[/LIST]
[b]Cards I am considering cutting[/b]
[LIST]
[*]Well of Lost Dreams - This has been good (not great) when I have played it. It absolutely chimes with Venser's Journal, or with Words of Worship
[*]Words of Worship - This card combos really well with Sanguine Bond and Well of Lost Dreams in play, but otherwise it is fairly terrible.
[*]Akroma, Angel of Wrath - A great card, but kind of unnecessary in this deck. Sure, protection from red and black is great, but it also means she can't be a hatred target. Chances are you aren't going to win swinging with big creatures.
[*]Phyrexian Processor - Produces chump blockers or beasties to feed to Vish Kal
[/LIST]
[b]Change Log[/b]
[Spoiler]
-1 Tainted Sigil, +1 Exquisite Blood - In testing, the Sigil was actually a solid card, usually netting me 8-12 life for 3 mana. But Exquisite Blood has to go in this deck--something had to come out.
-1 Enduring Ideal, +1 Bloodchief Ascension - Enduring is fun, but it shuts down a lot of what this deck wants to do. Bloodchief is low CC, easy to activate, taxes graveyard recursion/sac strategies, and gives me some life gain/drain
-1 COP blue, COP white, +1 Story Circle, +1 Sorin, Lord of Innistrad -thanks Bismuth
-1 Boon Reflection, +1 Mikaeus, the Unhallowed - Boon isn't really necessary for the deck's combos (it makes them better), while Mikaeus can do evil things with Vish Kal. Thanks A.Minor
-1 Swamp, +1 Sol Ring Duh. More mana is always good.
-1 Divinity of Pride, +1 Greater Auramancy I play a lot of enchantments; this helps protect them.
-1 Jareth, Leonine Titan, +1 Tainted Sigil Eh, this might be a win more card. I'm not sure yet.
-1 Serra Avatar, +1 Humility Hahahahaha. This might attract hate...
-1 Rune Tail, Kitsune Ascendent, +1 No Mercy Attack that other guy.
-1 Profane Command, +1 Black Sun Zenith This was a close call, but I often want to wipe the board with this deck, not just kill a target creature. I have plenty of drain life effects--and I don't have enough creatures to really make the other Profane choices viable.
-1 Greed, +1 Pestilence Another tough cut, but an easy addition. All your creatures are belong to graveyard.
-1 Redeem the Lost, +1 Maze of Ith Redeem is a personal favorite, but if I cut all my creatures I have no use for it.
-1 Scrubland, +1 Orhov Basilica Given my play groups $250 deck limit, the dual land is just too expensive.
-1 Swamp, +1 Leechridden Swamp I missed this land the first time around.
-1 Swamp, +1 Glacial Chasm More defense. This card has become an auto-include in every EDH deck I build.
-1 Celestial Mantle, +1 Terminus Celestial was janky with a lot of creatures. Its a trap card. Terminus, even if I don't miracle it, looks much better for this deck.
-1 Cradle of Vitality, +1 Enduring Ideal Another trap card. I'm interested to experiment with Enduring Ideal, since I can easily grab two enchantments and win the game in a turn or two.
[/spoiler]
List tags are malformed.
WG Gaddock Teeg and the Reveillark Experience [M][c]
U Azami Draws You Crazy [M][$]
WBVish Kal, the Patient [M]
WRGUBScion of the Double Dragon [M]$
WGBTeneb, the Home Wrecker [M]$
"For me metaphysics means something more like realism. That there is a reality that escapes any of its manifestations. You can never be quite sure what it is, but you can offer some description of what the structures of reality are." Graham Harman, The Prince and the Wolf
Damia http://forums.mtgsalvation.com/showthread.php?t=410191
DDFT Legacyhttp://forums.mtgsalvation.com/showthread.php?t=505247
Domain Zoo http://forums.mtgsalvation.com/showthread.php?p=10212429#post10212429
The draw in this deck isn't out of this world, but it isn't bad either. I thought about necropotence, but that card attracts a lot of hate--I'm not sure if this deck to handle mass aggression. My strategy is to go unnoticed until I play something insane.
Testing this against my other decks in Cockatrice, it does much better than one might think it would. The high amount of tutors means I can usually grab some defense early and then find a combo-bomb late. And since my other decks (and the other decks in my meta) play more high profile, I-am-coming-to-clobber-you or I-am-about-to-combo-out, commanders, this deck has time to set itself up.
WG Gaddock Teeg and the Reveillark Experience [M][c]
U Azami Draws You Crazy [M][$]
WBVish Kal, the Patient [M]
WRGUBScion of the Double Dragon [M]$
WGBTeneb, the Home Wrecker [M]$
"For me metaphysics means something more like realism. That there is a reality that escapes any of its manifestations. You can never be quite sure what it is, but you can offer some description of what the structures of reality are." Graham Harman, The Prince and the Wolf
Given the heavy enchantment theme in this deck, I was wondering if anyone had other suggestions for B/W enchantments that mess with creatures?
WG Gaddock Teeg and the Reveillark Experience [M][c]
U Azami Draws You Crazy [M][$]
WBVish Kal, the Patient [M]
WRGUBScion of the Double Dragon [M]$
WGBTeneb, the Home Wrecker [M]$
"For me metaphysics means something more like realism. That there is a reality that escapes any of its manifestations. You can never be quite sure what it is, but you can offer some description of what the structures of reality are." Graham Harman, The Prince and the Wolf
EDIT--I wasn't thinking about the +1/+1 counter from undying! Yeah, that's pretty slick. I've been moving away from creatures, but it looks like I have to fit one more in the deck. Thanks.
WG Gaddock Teeg and the Reveillark Experience [M][c]
U Azami Draws You Crazy [M][$]
WBVish Kal, the Patient [M]
WRGUBScion of the Double Dragon [M]$
WGBTeneb, the Home Wrecker [M]$
"For me metaphysics means something more like realism. That there is a reality that escapes any of its manifestations. You can never be quite sure what it is, but you can offer some description of what the structures of reality are." Graham Harman, The Prince and the Wolf
stuff
WG Gaddock Teeg and the Reveillark Experience [M][c]
U Azami Draws You Crazy [M][$]
WBVish Kal, the Patient [M]
WRGUBScion of the Double Dragon [M]$
WGBTeneb, the Home Wrecker [M]$
"For me metaphysics means something more like realism. That there is a reality that escapes any of its manifestations. You can never be quite sure what it is, but you can offer some description of what the structures of reality are." Graham Harman, The Prince and the Wolf
1. If it's countered, you don't lose any life. Unlike Hatred, the life payment is not a cost!
2. The effect is permanent! Vish Kal chews up a minion and gets the counters to keep, unlike Hatred's effect which ends at the turn.
3. The effect is repeatable! You can activate the processor the turn you cast it, and again each time you untap with it. Plenty of minions to bash with!
4. You can use the processor even without Vish Kal. What if your commander gets shuffled into your library? Hatred is a dead draw, but the processor will still spit out a 20/20 minion each turn.
5. Processor is cheaper. Ok, not really... it's a total of 8 to activate the processor vs. Hatred's 5. But it can be split up into two payments of 4, and it's all colorless. These features make it roughly even with Hatred in my mind.
6. Recurs more easily. Instants are tough for BW to get back from the yard, but there are plenty of ways for those two colors to get artifacts back should your fun get spoiled.
The only down side is that Hatred is an instant, so you can definitely surprise people. But, this comes up pretty rarely. Most people will block a general if they're able to, so it is a rare occurence when someone could block Vish Kal but doesn't and you cast Hatred.
Wow, that was a long answer to a question nobody asked. If I were you, I'd run both Hatred and Phyrexian Processor.
Different note... Do you use the red and blue runes of protection because you often don't need those colors, so you cycle them? If that's the case, why not cut them both and run Story Circle instead. Story Circle is never a dead draw! This also makes room for the aforementioned Phyrexian Processor.
EDIT: Someone mentioned your CoP/Runes while I was typing this up. The runes require W activation anyway, so it's not any different than Story Circle.
Kuro, Pitlord - Life Gain/Drain MBC
Malfegor - Discard and Punishment
Ghave, Guru of Spores - Fungus Tribal
building Dralnu, Lichlord - Arcane Draw-Go
I had the Phyrexian Processor in an early version of the deck and cut it, but I think you have talked me into trying it again.
I've made some amazing plays with Hatred--and not only on Vish Kal. I've thrown it at opponent's creatures in multiplayer games for surprise kills (my favorite is throwing it at a Brion Stoutarm target for lethal damage to player 1, only to follow it with a False Cure for lethal damage to player 2. Good times). So, I think I'll have to find room for both. Now to figure out what to cut to get the Processor in there...
EDIT: I cut the Well of Lost Dreams. This was a great card, especially with Venser's Journal--but I have cut most of the "trickle" life gain effects in favor of "X" blasters, so I don't have a lot of opportunities to trigger the well, and I don't have extra mana to draw cards when I do.
WG Gaddock Teeg and the Reveillark Experience [M][c]
U Azami Draws You Crazy [M][$]
WBVish Kal, the Patient [M]
WRGUBScion of the Double Dragon [M]$
WGBTeneb, the Home Wrecker [M]$
"For me metaphysics means something more like realism. That there is a reality that escapes any of its manifestations. You can never be quite sure what it is, but you can offer some description of what the structures of reality are." Graham Harman, The Prince and the Wolf