NOTE: I know Dark ritual is not extended legal. I intend to replace it to make this deck legal.
Intro:
I seem to have really bad timing when building decks. Just as I was finishing up the list, pretty much everything lost its standard play-ability. This deck mainly started with two Bloodghast and took off from there.
Who I Play
I thought that it would be important to mention that these-non standard decks are really meant for casual play. The group at my local gaming store is pretty chill, and also have looser terms with the banlist, so most cards still see play. These decks are mostly made for fun, but also to win.
How it Plays
I think that this is a pretty straightforward deck, with no real tricks. Play creatures, transform Bloodline Keeper zap a few things with Terminate and Lightning Bolt and throw out Sorin Markov if you can.
What needs to be changed
First, I'd like this to be a competitive extended deck, which right off the bat means tossing out Dark Ritual . I know there are some newer vampires in Dark Ascension that may be able to help this deck out. I find that I get mana screwed every now and again, which can lead to a slightly frustrating loss. I feel that this deck isn't anywhere near as efficient as it could be. I am also three cards short, what should I add in?
Frame of Reference Primer: I play in a casual Extended group. Less than half of us have sideboards. We play competitively and often have 4-of's for commons and uncommons. We only acquire $10+ cards if we open them in boosters.
The Bloodlord is hitting the field when your hand should be mostly empty. I suppose if you keep the Dark Rituals, it can come out earlier, but then we aren't talking Extended.
I find the Curse requires you to sacrifice board presence and it has a tendency to be a win-more card. I'd rather be playing a creature on turn two.
I just don't like Sorin 1.0. His mana cost is too high for him to be playable. His +2 is okay; if you need his -3 by the time you get six mana, things aren't looking good; the -7 also seems like a win-more (if he lasted that long on the board without interruption, you're probably in a safe spot already).
The Bloodlord is hitting the field when your hand should be mostly empty.
Often times, yes, my hand lack creatures by the time he is out, but I find that he works pretty well with Bloodline Keeper by popping out 5/5 vampires at the end of combat. Also Bloodghast coming in with an additional +3/+3 can be tricky to deal with.
he works pretty well with Bloodline Keeper by popping out 5/5 vampires at the end of combat.
In a token-producing deck featuring Bloodline Keeper, I don't really think Bloodlord of Vaasgoth has the role you want him to have. His ability only applies to Vampires you cast, so the tokens the Keeper makes are still 2/2 tokens (that get pumped when the Keeper flips to Lord of Lineage). The synergy just isn't there.
His ability only applies to Vampires you cast, so the tokens the Keeper makes are still 2/2 tokens
I never knew that! After a quick search here is the official ruling:
Quote from Wizards »
9/22/2011: Vampire creatures you put directly onto the battlefield without casting them and Vampire creature tokens you put onto the battlefield will not gain bloodthirst 3 from Bloodlord of Vaasgoth.
Vampire Nighthawk should work well as a replacement. As for artifact hate, I assume you're looking for sideboard material. For the board, Shatter works. If your playgroup just doesn't use sideboards and you have to maindeck it, I'd suggest Manic Vandal or Torch Fiend instead, since they can swing in match-ups that don't involve artifacts.
I'd still strongly consider dropping those Sorin Markovs. Perhaps a couple copies of Blightning?
So you took out land, put in more creatures, added more cards (+60) and a mediocre enchantment? Seems like your going the wrong way. I like Sorin, but I don't think he really fits here, his ultimate is cool with bloodghast, but you don't have a sac outlet and your thinning your land count. I too like the Blightning idea, but dislike distress compared to duress, despise, inquisition etc.
Why is Duress favored over Distress? Is it because I already have enough answers to creature cards? Also, should I bump up to four Blightning and drop down Distress to two?
I just noticed that you're running twenty land. I'd up that a bit. With four CMC 4+ cards, the Bloodghasts that mitigate mana flood, and thirsty Kalastria Highborn, I'd run twenty four lands. Personally, I'd drop the hand disruption to sideboard (if your casual group uses them) and put them in during creature-light match-ups, such as vs. control, over Terminate).
For specific hand disruption to include, Duress can be cast turn one if you don't have a Noble, whereas Distress is either cast very late in the game or it eats up a "business" turn. With the eight two-drops that you want on turn two (excluding the four Gatekeepers), it's better to use up your turn one on hitting the hand. Plus, your burn, terminates, and Gatekeepers should help with the creatures.
Thoughtseize is definitely that way to go if you have the money, though.
I just noticed that you're running twenty land. I'd up that a bit. With four CMC 4+ cards, the Bloodghasts that mitigate mana flood, and thirsty Kalastria Highborn, I'd run twenty four lands. Personally, I'd drop the hand disruption to sideboard (if your casual group uses them) and put them in during creature-light match-ups, such as vs. control, over Terminate).
If the store owner says that I can't trade in the premises, I'll just go outside. If he says that I can't trade within 10m of his premises, I'll go to 11 meters. If he says that he doesn't want to see me trading, I will put a basket over his head and continue trading.
Yes, he's a local legend. He's only known to take his clothes off before he goes into the Ladies' Lockerroom. Nobody knows what he does in there because he's invisible, but it's almost certainly tons of masturbating.
I run a vampire deck, it doesn't follow any particular format (all my decks are just for casual play), but I have a suggestion for you. I suggest that you drop all 4 Stromkirk Nobles, take out some mountains and put in some swamps. Since you are running a playset of both Bloodghast and Kalastria Highborn, I would replace the Stromkirk Nobles with 4 Viscera Seers.
I run a mono black vampire deck. 1 on 1, a little slow at some points but if i can survive to to have swamps out, then its over. i have 4 pulse trackers, 4 kalastria highborns, 4 falkenrath nobles, 4 vampire nighthawks, and 4 malakir bloodwitches. for my non creature spells i run 4 blood chief ascensions, 4 urge to feeds, 4 sign in bloods, 4 tendrils of corruption, 4 sanguine bonds, and 2 corrupts. all but one of my vampires gives me life. all of them take extra life from my opponents. with a maxed out bloodchief, a sanguine bond, 1 kalastria highborn and a falkenrath noble, your gunna take a lot of damage for anything hitting the graveyard. i know your doing a red/black vamp deck, but putting in a flakenrath noble or two makes your vampires do even more damage when a creature dies. i would put in an urge to feed if for nothing else to make your vampires stronger.
i know your doing a red/black vamp deck, but putting in a flakenrath noble or two makes your vampires do even more damage when a creature dies. i would put in an urge to feed if for nothing else to make your vampires stronger.
Falkenrath Noble is stupid good in limited, but seems kinda in a constructed matchup. As far as Urge to Feed goes, there are definately better removal spells out there. The purpose of removal in constructed is to effectively remove your opponents creatures, not to slightly buff yours. The removal that I run in my vampire deck is just 4 Dismember and 4 Go for the Throat. Since I'm currently collecting the necessary cards to splash red for 4 Stromkirk Captain, I'm also thinking about putting in 4 Terminates so I think that running these is fine.
First of all nice start, I love the idea of this deck! I personally would go a little more black like only 2-3 Lightning Bolt and Stromkirk Noble. Mainly to add Vampire Nocturnus, I'm not sure why he was overlooked.
Private Mod Note
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Special thanks to Heroes of the Plane Studios (.torrent, DarkNightCavalier, XenoNinja) or the awesome sig. Murder, murder, mermaid murder!:D
Rogueelf, Vampire Nocturnus was probably overlooked because of both its heavy B cost and black card density. Plus, Dub has expressed that he has at least something of a budget during the commentary regarding Thoughtseize and Nocturnus is a little under $20 each.
Intro:
I seem to have really bad timing when building decks. Just as I was finishing up the list, pretty much everything lost its standard play-ability. This deck mainly started with two Bloodghast and took off from there.
Who I Play
I thought that it would be important to mention that these-non standard decks are really meant for casual play. The group at my local gaming store is pretty chill, and also have looser terms with the banlist, so most cards still see play. These decks are mostly made for fun, but also to win.
How it Plays
I think that this is a pretty straightforward deck, with no real tricks. Play creatures, transform Bloodline Keeper zap a few things with Terminate and Lightning Bolt and throw out Sorin Markov if you can.
What needs to be changed
First, I'd like this to be a competitive extended deck, which right off the bat means tossing out Dark Ritual . I know there are some newer vampires in Dark Ascension that may be able to help this deck out. I find that I get mana screwed every now and again, which can lead to a slightly frustrating loss. I feel that this deck isn't anywhere near as efficient as it could be. I am also three cards short, what should I add in?
Without furtherado- the Vampires
2 Adaptive Automaton
2 Bloodghast
3 Bloodline Keeper
2 Bloodlord of Vaasgoth
4 Gatekeeper if Malakir
2 Kalastria highborn
1 Olivia Voldaren
4 Stromkirk Noble
2 Vampire Nighthawk
3 Dark Ritual
2 Distress
4 Lightning Bolt
4 Terminate
Enchantments 2
2 Curse of Stalked Prey
Planeswalkers 2
2 Sorin Markov
5 Mountain
9 Swamp
4 Dragonskull Summit
:symb::symr:Extended Vampires:symr::symb:
:symr::symb:Modern Goblins:symb::symr:
:0mana::symw::symu: Modern Artifacts:symu::symw::0mana:
:symu::symg:Legacy Madness:symg::symu:
:symg::symw:Legacy Phantoms:symw::symg:
EDH
:symw::symr::symb:Kaalia:symb::symr::symw:
:symw:Darien:symw:
Personally, I like Vampire Interloper as a budget vampire hitter. I'd also look for Stromkirk Captain. If budget isn't a problem, I'd finish the playset of Bloodghast and Kalastria Highborn.
I dislike Bloodlord of Vaasgoth, Curse of Stalked Prey, and Sorin Markov.
The Bloodlord is hitting the field when your hand should be mostly empty. I suppose if you keep the Dark Rituals, it can come out earlier, but then we aren't talking Extended.
I find the Curse requires you to sacrifice board presence and it has a tendency to be a win-more card. I'd rather be playing a creature on turn two.
I just don't like Sorin 1.0. His mana cost is too high for him to be playable. His +2 is okay; if you need his -3 by the time you get six mana, things aren't looking good; the -7 also seems like a win-more (if he lasted that long on the board without interruption, you're probably in a safe spot already).
The Modal Cube is also on Cube Tutor!
GWEDH Asmira's WrathGW
And i know he's pretty high on the curve, but I really like Markov Warlord as a one of.
Most of the time he comes down and you win the game.
Most of the zen and wwk vamps really push you towards mono-b, but I think just a few of the aggressive ones would work in a B/R mix.
Often times, yes, my hand lack creatures by the time he is out, but I find that he works pretty well with Bloodline Keeper by popping out 5/5 vampires at the end of combat. Also Bloodghast coming in with an additional +3/+3 can be tricky to deal with.
I like your idea of finishing the set of Bloodghast and Kalastria Highborn and cutting out Curse of the Stalked Prey
Also cut out the Adaptive Automaton for the Stromkirk Captain
Here is a revised list:
4 Bloodghast
3 Bloodline Keeper
2 Bloodlord of Vaasgoth
4 Gatekeeper of Malakir
4 Kalastria highborn
1 Olivia Voldaren
4 Stromkirk Captain
4 Stromkirk Noble
2 Vampire Nighthawk
4 Distress
4 Lightning Bolt
4 Terminate
Planeswalkers 2
2 Sorin Markov
Lands 20
5 Mountain
11 Swamp
4 Dragonskull Summit
I was also thinking of having some artifact hate/removal. Since Fury Charm and Smash to Smithereens are not extended, would I have to fall back to Shatter? My main issue is a Platinum Angel with Lightning Greaves.
:symb::symr:Extended Vampires:symr::symb:
:symr::symb:Modern Goblins:symb::symr:
:0mana::symw::symu: Modern Artifacts:symu::symw::0mana:
:symu::symg:Legacy Madness:symg::symu:
:symg::symw:Legacy Phantoms:symw::symg:
EDH
:symw::symr::symb:Kaalia:symb::symr::symw:
:symw:Darien:symw:
In a token-producing deck featuring Bloodline Keeper, I don't really think Bloodlord of Vaasgoth has the role you want him to have. His ability only applies to Vampires you cast, so the tokens the Keeper makes are still 2/2 tokens (that get pumped when the Keeper flips to Lord of Lineage). The synergy just isn't there.
I never knew that! After a quick search here is the official ruling:
Gives me enough reason to drop Bloodlord of Vaasgoth, but what would I add in place? 2 Vampire Nighthawk ?
:symb::symr:Extended Vampires:symr::symb:
:symr::symb:Modern Goblins:symb::symr:
:0mana::symw::symu: Modern Artifacts:symu::symw::0mana:
:symu::symg:Legacy Madness:symg::symu:
:symg::symw:Legacy Phantoms:symw::symg:
EDH
:symw::symr::symb:Kaalia:symb::symr::symw:
:symw:Darien:symw:
I'd still strongly consider dropping those Sorin Markovs. Perhaps a couple copies of Blightning?
The Modal Cube is also on Cube Tutor!
GWEDH Asmira's WrathGW
Haves/Wants
Collection
+2 Vampire Nighthawk
+2 Blightning
-2Sorin Markov
-2 Bloodlord of Vaasgoth
4 Bloodghast
3 Bloodline Keeper
4 Gatekeeper of Malakir
4 Kalastria highborn
1 Olivia Voldaren
4 Stromkirk Captain
4 Stromkirk Noble
4 Vampire Nighthawk
4 Distress
4 Lightning Bolt
4 Terminate
2 Blightning
Lands 20
5 Mountain
11 Swamp
4 Dragonskull Summit
:symb::symr:Extended Vampires:symr::symb:
:symr::symb:Modern Goblins:symb::symr:
:0mana::symw::symu: Modern Artifacts:symu::symw::0mana:
:symu::symg:Legacy Madness:symg::symu:
:symg::symw:Legacy Phantoms:symw::symg:
EDH
:symw::symr::symb:Kaalia:symb::symr::symw:
:symw:Darien:symw:
Haves/Wants
Collection
For specific hand disruption to include, Duress can be cast turn one if you don't have a Noble, whereas Distress is either cast very late in the game or it eats up a "business" turn. With the eight two-drops that you want on turn two (excluding the four Gatekeepers), it's better to use up your turn one on hitting the hand. Plus, your burn, terminates, and Gatekeepers should help with the creatures.
Thoughtseize is definitely that way to go if you have the money, though.
The Modal Cube is also on Cube Tutor!
GWEDH Asmira's WrathGW
I totally agree here.
Haves/Wants
Collection
4 Bloodghast
3 Bloodline Keeper
4 Gatekeeper of Malakir
4 Kalastria highborn
1 Olivia Voldaren
4 Stromkirk Captain
4 Stromkirk Noble
4 Vampire Nighthawk
4 Lightning Bolt
4 Terminate
2 Blightning
Lands 24
7 Mountain
13 Swamp
4 Dragonskull Summit
Thoughtseize is good, but is so expensive!
:symb::symr:Extended Vampires:symr::symb:
:symr::symb:Modern Goblins:symb::symr:
:0mana::symw::symu: Modern Artifacts:symu::symw::0mana:
:symu::symg:Legacy Madness:symg::symu:
:symg::symw:Legacy Phantoms:symw::symg:
EDH
:symw::symr::symb:Kaalia:symb::symr::symw:
:symw:Darien:symw:
Play a few fetchlands such as Verdant Catacombs/ Arid Mesa & a couple of Blood Crypt. It'll do good for your bloodghast too.
Falkenrath Noble is stupid good in limited, but seems kinda in a constructed matchup. As far as Urge to Feed goes, there are definately better removal spells out there. The purpose of removal in constructed is to effectively remove your opponents creatures, not to slightly buff yours. The removal that I run in my vampire deck is just 4 Dismember and 4 Go for the Throat. Since I'm currently collecting the necessary cards to splash red for 4 Stromkirk Captain, I'm also thinking about putting in 4 Terminates so I think that running these is fine.
GWUbant.fogGWU
Dub, if you wind up wanting to go the Nocturnus rout, I would also suggest dropping the Stromkirk Nobles in place of a black one-drop, like Vampire Lacerator. You could also replace the Lightning Bolts with Doom Blades, Go for the Throats, or Dismembers, depending on your meta. If you did end up doing this, I'd recommend placing the Nocturnus in over the Bloodline Keepers.
The Modal Cube is also on Cube Tutor!
GWEDH Asmira's WrathGW