I built this to be in the 70% deck style; competent in casual games and capable in competitive games.
I play it as agro-control. I wanted the deck to run synergy pieces that work well on their own. It's theme is abuse of Marchesa's abilities mixed with synergistic control elements. I run 7 reusable, 2 land, and 4 single use sac effects to to stymie tuck attempts in addition to the obvious benefits. I used to run whip of erebos to mitigate attempts to move her from the GY to the library. Instead I run multiple ways to dig her out of the deck if necessary.
An earlier build ran rather heavy with hand hate, and while this was potent, my group let me know how much they despised it, so I have dropped them. Those were: Liliana's Specter, Oona's Blackguard, Vendilion Clique, Needle Specter, and Syphon Mind. Other cards are Avalanche Riders, Shivan Harvest, and Fulminator Mage. I won't run abusable Land D cards for the same reason I no longer run hand hate cards. This game is a social thing for me, I play magic to hang out and have fun with friends.
I have no way of surviving a dedicated mill attempt. An eldrazi can take care of this issue but comes with major synergy problems. I am unsure what else would work. It may be a fairly minor issue, but I am a miser, and I dislike losing access to cards/resources.
--Sage of Fables+Puppeteer Cliquewith a reusable sac outlet lets you steal every creature in your opponents graveyards and then swing with them. Having out Marchesa, the Black Rose gives you the option to then sac them all and take them permanently at end of turn. Unless your want them to exile.
--Sage of Fables+Flayer of the Hatebound with a reusable sac outlet nets you a card draw and 5 damage at a target creature or player per activation. Outside of unusual circumstances this can be enough to net a win.
--Glen Elendra Archmage+Sage of Fables creates a soft lock vs. non-creatures, dependant on the amount of blue mana you have available. Copy Glen Elendra with any of the 3 clone creatures to strengthen the lock. Mikaeus, the Unhallowed can work in replacement of sage.
The majority of these interactions will also work with Marchesa, the Black Rose and Unspeakable Symbol, albeit at a single activation per turn. In a 4 person multiplayer game that will still add up quickly.
In this section I will point out Key card choices, and then include cards that are complementary and/or add redundancy Sac Outlets Carrion Feeder Free sac outlet, which you will see is a common theme. Can potentially get very big. At 1 cmc this is one of the best sac cards in the deck. Similar cards of this bent are Goblin Bombardment and Phyrexian Altar. All are free Sac effects and relatively cheap. A quick note on Altar, treat the mana from this as a bonus, don't get caught up in the trap of thinking of this as a source. Attrition While NOT free at B per sac, the destroy effect is worth the cost. A similar card is Flesh Carver, also NOT free at 1B, but this guy does a lot. He puts counters on himself, leaves a beater after he dies, and has evasion. Top notch. Dimir House Guard Free sac effect. The transmute for 4 is key, and being able to regenerate is solid for combat shenanigans. At 4 cmc he isn't cheap but the options he gives you are worth it. Grimgrin, Corpse-born Free sac effect. Can get very big very fast. Being able to clear off blockers on attack is good fun. Note that he cannot sac himself.
Card Advantage/Selection Skullclamp Amazing card draw. This will be one of your top draw engines. It can draw removal pretty quick. Baleful Strix Good value, Deters attacks, and can fly. Can be reused if you can line it up with Marchesa. A similar card is Mulldrifter. Perilous Research Mainly used to kill off troublesome permanents after you steal them, or as an emergency sac outlet. The cards are a bonus. Sage of Fables Tends to be used primarily as a synergy piece, but can draw quite a few cards. Erebos, God of the Dead 4 drop creature, so it can be transmuted or transfigured for. Lets you dump life and turns off lifegain for your opponents. Disciple of Bolas Very solid card. Temp sac outlet, gains life and cards when needed, often a large amount of both. River Kelpie All star card draw. Remember that he triggers on opponents recursion effects. Harvester of Souls Deathtouch is a GREAT deterrent to attackers. He has a decent body and will draw you MANY cards. Fleshwrither Snags any 4 cmc creature, and is very abusable, but don't forget it is sorcery speed. Clutch of the Undercity Almost always gets Sneak attack, but can grab your Commander in a pinch and can be good removal as well. Diabolic Intent Temp sac outlet as a bonus to being anotherDemonic Tutor. A similar card is Rune-scarred Demon.
Copy/Theft Aura Thief This has been a life-saver many times for me. Enchantments are always going to be trouble for grixis, but this guy helps a lot. Zealous Conscripts Takes any permanent, but only for the turn. Very good control piece, and can also make for some explosive plays. Thalakos Deceiver All your critters are belong to me. And they get to see it coming. Sakashima the Impostor This is a core card. Cloning Marchesa lets your army grow VERY quickly. Cloning Marton can let you swing for astronomical amounts. In addition to all the other fun clone effects. Clever Impersonator Any nonland. Millions O' Choices. A similar choice is Phyrexian Metamorph, Impersonator Lite. Kiki-Jiki, Mirror Breaker This list only runs 8 critters he cannot target, but the creatures he can are potent.
Speed Kills Urabrask the Hidden All of your critters get haste and your opponents critters come into play tapped. Anger is similar once you get him to the GY. Swiftfoot Boots A staple at 1 cost to hand a critter haste, much like Flamekin Village. Only takes up a land slot while still providing red mana.
Removal Toxic Deluge Cheap, lets you dump life, gets around indestructible, regen, and anti-sac. Excellent. Damnation Wrath for black. Solid mass removal. Vandalblast One-sided Shatterspree for 5. Staple Oblivion Stone This is an emergency button style removal. It should sit in your hand until you HAVE to use it. Shadowborn Demon Cheap fat flyer that blows up just about anything (there are very few playable demons) and the downside actually helps you feed your GY for Living Death. Nicol Bolas, Planeswalker Beastmode.
Recursive Effects Feldon of the Third Path More than just recursion, shenanigans. Living Death WIN Xiahou Dun, the One-Eyed Unblockable, nabs Living Death back, and is a 4 drop. Awesome. Puppeteer Clique Another win-con, pair this with Sage of Fables to snatch every creature in your opponents GY and then punch them in the face with them. Dread Return Synergistic recursion piece. The flashback cost dovetails nicely with our game plan.
Utility Gray Merchant of Asphodel Potential win con that gets better with clones, and can take you out of the red zone in a pinch. Unspeakable Symbol Staple, this can really open the game up for you, letting you not worry about dethrone to make use of Marchesa's final ability. Archetype of Imagination Win enabler and great control card. Reef Worm Fun effect if you like to clutter the field, potentially with 9/9 Krakens. More importantly, gives you some board presence after a board wipe. Scourge of the Throne Extra attack step with the Dethrone effect. Efficiently costed at 6 for 5\5 flyer. Marton Stromgald This guy can get your army swinging for silly amounts of damage. Gets ridiculous with Sakashima. Mikaeus, the Unhallowed Second in command, he makes our board very resilient. Paired with Marchesa, if they stick, you will have trouble giving the game away. Sneak Attack A card that drives this deck to new heights. Core piece.
Cadaver Imp This became Xiahou Dun Olivia Voldaren This became Nicol Bolas, PW Purphoros, God of the Forge Just too slow Grave Titan Reef Worm just does more Grave Pact Just too indirect as removal, and I don't want to play pillow-fort with this deck Dictate of Erebos See above Burnished Hart Was just underwhelming to me. It felt like I was giving up a turn to gain a couple basic lands Whip of Erebos Gray Merchant is just flat out superior to Whip, and you have control of WHEN you gain that life. Not to mention that this card cloned a few times can just win you a game. Ashnod's Altar Redundant next to Phyrexian Altar High Market This is an excellent sac outlet, but Miren lets me gain a massive chunk of life instead of just 1 Viscera Seer Vela the Night-Clad Same as Purphoros Spellskite Liked the card but I couldn't justify it over other cards Frost Titan Was a placeholder for Inferno Titan Deathrender Cheap alternative to Sneak Attack Bident of Thassa Excellent card but I couldn't justify it over other cards
Solrune's list runs many similar cards and he has an excellent section on playing the deck, which i have copied here: *ALL CREDIT FOR THIS SECTION TO SOLRUNE*
Starting out:
Distinguishing a good hand from a bad one is paramount in any game of magic, and is no different here. What you are looking for in an opening hand in this deck is access to your colors, and some form of card draw or selection. A hand with access to 2 colors is fine to start with, as long as you have more than 2 lands in your hand. I always partial away my 5-7 drops with the exception of Living Death. Don't be afraid to partial away toolbox answers as we have multiple avenues of tutoring them throughout the game. Stick to lands, ramp, card draw, tutors, and Living Death as the cards you keep when you partial mulligan.
Early turns:
As a three colored deck, you first few turns should consist of aggressive color fixing an laying the groundwork for a turn 4-5 Marchesa. I try to always grab a mountain if I have access to Anger, because that leads to great Turn 4s if you can get it into the graveyard. It's not uncommon for me to have a few small creatures out by then and swing for a few counters. Unlike most tempo/aggro decks, you need to pick your attacks very carefully. If you swing just enough for become higher life than your opponent, it shuts Marchesa, the Black Rose off almost entirely if you don't have a life or counter outlet. A wise opponent with let you hit them and make sure your general is "off" as much as possible. That being said, when you can get counters on your creatures unhindered, do so. You need to squeeze as much value out of your creatures as possible to get ahead. After you assemble a few creatures on the board with counters, don't be afraid to throw them at folks. We want our creatures to die after they get their counters with Marchesa, the Black Rose out. Every time we accomplish this, it brings us closer to a critical mass of advantage, that is really hard for our opponents to overcome.
Mid game:
I consider mid game with this deck when I have Marchesa, the Black Rose and a sac outlet both on the board. The combination of the two is what propels the deck forward into late game. That being said, this deck can hit mid game really early for a commander deck. A turn 3 Phyrexian Altar into a turn 4 Marchesa, the Black Rose is a very reasonable start to mid game. We want to protect her as much as possible, so get a counter on her if you can. Don't be afraid to sacrifice her even if she doesn't have a counter on her if it means saving her from a tuck spell. Tuck spells can shut her down hard. In the event of a tuck spell, Mikaeus, the Unhallowed can act as a second commander, and Fleshwrither can tutor Marchesa, the Black Rose back to play. You should be gathering answers and responding to threat accordingly and netting minor advantages here and there through throwing your creatures under attackers and at you opponents. Every time you can use a creature again pulls us a little closer to our late game. Late game for us, is our strongest phase. We will have some permitted life loss during this phase, through our own effects and through taking attacks. This will keep our dethrone triggering.
Late game:
I consider late game for this deck to be when I can all out swing at a typical player, and kill them through blockers. Whether that is 40+ power on the board, or 20+ power on the board with a Scourge of the Throne out, or in the special case of having Living Death and Xiahou Dun, the One-Eyed looping. Another signal that it is late game is when you can Sneak Attack almost a whole hand of creatures into play. These scenarios are what the deck is built to do, and it is good at it. When going for an alpha swing, make sure you do your math right, leaving blockers if needed. You will be at a bit lower life than most of the table (hopefully) and be swinging hard because of it. During late game you can give your dudes pseudo "vigilance" if you need blockers by sacrificing them post combat so that they return end of turn. When you start getting dangerously low on life, you can cast Gray Merchant of Asphodel or Disciple of Bolas and gain some back. Gray Merchant of Asphodel can be a strong win condition if you can recur it multiple times with a full board.
*Special notes*:
People playing life gain decks are going to absolutely hate you, and will be actively trying to destroy you as soon as they can. Be careful to notice whats on the board before turning that last dude sideways. Be very careful of Living Death, while it is one of the strongest effects in the deck for us, recurring it a lot will lead to people play around it, pitching nasty things like Terastodon in their graveyard in anticipation. Sac outlets are incredibly important in this deck, as they can save your dudes from exile/tuck/bounce effects, while abusing their etbs. Playing around grave hate takes a lot more effort. As this deck wants to have creatures moving in and out of the graveyard all game long, grave hate of any form can really put a damper on your game plan. Remove, destroy, bounce, or steal to get rid of whatever grave hate your opponent is packing, and if you can't get rid of it, get rid of them. Sometimes the best removal is player removal, especially when the problem permanent is either Rest in Peace or Leyline of the Void. If the player has something they can activate in response, make them use it as soon as possible to keep your momentum going forward.
Advanced Strategies and Match-Ups in Multiplayer:
Against control variants(America/Esper/Bant or any combination of blue/white), you want to try and keep Marchesa on the board as much as possible until they are at lower life. That may be the hardest part of your fight. Keep the pressure on them and try to grab advantages where you can. Do not over-extend into board wipes, because it will give them time to stabilize. A haste enabler is key in these match ups. You are the aggro deck for sure. This holds true to facing combo decks as well. They need to be hit as hard as possible, usually the group will focus them as well, making their demise that much quicker. Against other aggro decks, it really depends on the speed of the other decks. Where my list can play well as a tempo deck, that's not going to cut it when you are taking 15 damage turn 3/4 by a giant Omnath, Locus of Mana, or staring down an elf army turn 3.(Which happens a lot in our meta) If you can't out race them, control them, and play very reactionary. Get advantages when you can, but don't paint a huge target on yourself. Just a general rule I play by : If there is a monogreen deck at the table, it's going to hit faster and harder than you, so play more controlling/midrange.
Hey all, I wanted to share my deck with all of you, and maybe get some ideas.
As a heads up before we begin, let me tell you the social contract we work within in my playgroup. We banned all mana accelerants that cost 2 or less, whether it put mana into your mana pool or put a land into play. For odd-ball cases we defined the concept as making sure you only had 3 mana on turn 3. Any accelerant after turn 3 that has a CMC of 3+ is good to go. Basically thats why I don't have a sol ring, a mana crypt, and a mox package in here. Or Sacktribe or Coilfang etc. You of course can suggest these things but I will most likely discount them.
As the name suggests, this is a blink deck, and I play it as a fun deck. I have not included any extra turns, any infinite combos/mana generators, or any lockdown effects. I have and can add any of these, I just choose not too. I tend to control as a playstyle, I don't naturally turn creatures sideways. So Derevi Fit me better than Roon or Jenara for this deck concept.
So what am i looking for as far as critique? Just some tightening and tuning geared towards a control player who loves getting that value and grinding out wins. My Meta is some combination of: Several Animar concoctions, a Naya Gods'n'walkers monstrosity, a really solid Nekusar build, a generic Kalia build, a Jenara goodstuff deck, and an Esper control/sludge thing.
I am looking for a mostly casual group of players for EDH. The people I play with are starting to splinter apart as RL bears its ugly mug. I have most evenings free other then Saturdays.
I'm not much for the Tourney scene and I'm not cutthroat. I don't mind tournaments but they are not my preference. I don't mind the occasional cutthroat game/deck either, as long as everyone still gets to play and enjoy there evening at some point.
I don't mind having a beer or some such while I play either.
I have a Stonecloaker in the GY. I play Necromancy normal mode targeting Stonecloaker. When Stonecloaker enters the battlefield I choose to have it bounce itself.
My understanding is that Necromancy only makes you sacrifice the creature when IT leaves play, thus the Stonecloaker should make it safely to my hand before statebased effects put Necromancy in the GY.
What color/colors do you want to play? Any tribe you have your eye on already? Details, man. Details.
Actually I don't think the colors matter to much to me as long as i can get some staples in there. Was kinda eyeballing some kinda multicolor wizards concept, but elementals and goblins as well. Maybe a combo goblin/dragon theme. Only downside there is i would have to play red...:tongue:
So a pair of friends made tribal theme decks, one zombies and one vamps. I am looking to join in on the nonsense with a tribal deck of my own. I need an idea for what tribe to use. Any suggestions?
@mellojoe: Its an intrigueing idea for sure, but i not sure where to fit it in. Merieke dies so fricken fast that often my board wipes are just clearing my opponents boards. Mines already cleared
Also I am thinking of putting the umbral mantle in the spot of the SoFaF. I just don't think I have the pieces to be aggressive enough to make it worthwhile. Thoughts?
Recieved some very good ideas from people smarter than me. Admittedly not a hard thing to be, but i digress.
One of the issues I was seeing was the occasional difficulty in killing people off, aka finding a finisher. I was using cards like drana and bloodline keeper to try to overwhlem people but they are either time or mana intensive. I was also using drift of phantasms but transmuting in a deck with U/B seems rather inefficient.
Also twincast is just meh. Just seems too timing essential to be any good.
Next it was noted to me that grafted exoskeleton is just flat out better than glistening oil. After all you can counter the oil by simply killing its target. Boooo.
I will agree with SchizoidMan and Weebos, its all about your playgroup. I play EDH with a group of about 8 guys. None of us will tolerate super competitive people, jerkoffs, or other asinine personalities. We use each other as a buffer from those type of people.
As far as netdecking, this is the age of the internet. EVERYONE netdecks to a degree. It is somewhat on you and your playgroup to "nudge" guys to personalize decks.
Outside of all that, the fact that you are asking to be told not to quit (yes I know, not your exact words) suggests that you have a decision in mind already. I suggest rolling with your gut feeling and not worrying about what is said here.
I play it as agro-control. I wanted the deck to run synergy pieces that work well on their own. It's theme is abuse of Marchesa's abilities mixed with synergistic control elements. I run 7 reusable, 2 land, and 4 single use sac effects to to stymie tuck attempts in addition to the obvious benefits. I used to run whip of erebos to mitigate attempts to move her from the GY to the library. Instead I run multiple ways to dig her out of the deck if necessary.
Aura Thief, Vandalblast and Venser, Shaper Savant have been my go-to's for troublesome permanents. I have added Nicol Bolas, Planeswalker and Zealous Conscripts here as well. Oblivion Stone and Cyclonic Rift are my oh-crap buttons.
An earlier build ran rather heavy with hand hate, and while this was potent, my group let me know how much they despised it, so I have dropped them. Those were: Liliana's Specter, Oona's Blackguard, Vendilion Clique, Needle Specter, and Syphon Mind. Other cards are Avalanche Riders, Shivan Harvest, and Fulminator Mage. I won't run abusable Land D cards for the same reason I no longer run hand hate cards. This game is a social thing for me, I play magic to hang out and have fun with friends.
I have no way of surviving a dedicated mill attempt. An eldrazi can take care of this issue but comes with major synergy problems. I am unsure what else would work. It may be a fairly minor issue, but I am a miser, and I dislike losing access to cards/resources.
1x arcane lighthouse
1x archetype of imagination
1x attrition
1x aura thief
1x badlands
1x baleful strix
1x blood crypt
1x bojuka bog
1x carrion feeder
1x chromatic lantern
1x clever impersonator
1x clutch of the undercity
1x command tower
1x commander's sphere
1x crumbling necropolis
1x cyclonic rift
1x damnation
1x demonic tutor
1x diabolic intent
1x dimir house guard
1x dimir signet
1x disciple of bolas
1x dragonskull summit
1x dread return
1x drowned catacomb
1x dust bowl
1x erebos, god of the dead
1x feldon of the third path
1x flamekin village
1x flayer of the hatebound
1x flesh carver
1x fleshwrither
1x glen elendra archmage
1x goblin bombardment
1x gray merchant of asphodel
1x grimgrin, corpse-born
1x harvester of souls
1x homeward path
1x Inferno Titan
5x island
1x izzet signet
1x Kiki-Jiki, Mirror Breaker
1x living death
1x Marton Stromgald
1x mikaeus, the unhallowed
1x miren, the moaning well
1x mountain
1x mulldrifter
1x Nicol Bolas, Planeswalker
1x oblivion stone
1x opal palace
1x perilous research
1x phyrexian altar
1x phyrexian metamorph
1x phyrexian tower
1x puppeteer clique
1x rakdos signet
1x reef worm
1x reflecting pool
1x riptide laboratory
1x river kelpie
1x rune-scarred demon
1x sage of fables
1x sakashima the impostor
1x scourge of the throne
1x shadowborn demon
1x shivan reef
1x skullclamp
1x sneak attack
1x sol ring
1x solemn simulacrum
1x steam vents
1x sulfur falls
1x sulfurous springs
4x swamp
1x swiftfoot boots
1x talisman of dominance
1x talisman of indulgence
1x thalakos deceiver
1x toxic deluge
1x underground river
1x underground sea
1x unspeakable symbol
1x urabrask the hidden
1x vandalblast
1x venser, shaper savant
1x volcanic island
1x volrath's stronghold
1x watery grave
1x Xiahou Dun, the One-Eyed
1x Zealous Conscripts
--Reef Worm+Mikaeus, the Unhallowed+Sage of Fables with a reusable sac outlet grabs a ton of cards and many 9/9 krakens.
--Sage of Fables+Puppeteer Cliquewith a reusable sac outlet lets you steal every creature in your opponents graveyards and then swing with them. Having out Marchesa, the Black Rose gives you the option to then sac them all and take them permanently at end of turn. Unless your want them to exile.
--Sage of Fables+Flayer of the Hatebound with a reusable sac outlet nets you a card draw and 5 damage at a target creature or player per activation. Outside of unusual circumstances this can be enough to net a win.
--Glen Elendra Archmage+Sage of Fables creates a soft lock vs. non-creatures, dependant on the amount of blue mana you have available. Copy Glen Elendra with any of the 3 clone creatures to strengthen the lock. Mikaeus, the Unhallowed can work in replacement of sage.
The majority of these interactions will also work with Marchesa, the Black Rose and Unspeakable Symbol, albeit at a single activation per turn. In a 4 person multiplayer game that will still add up quickly.
In this section I will point out Key card choices, and then include cards that are complementary and/or add redundancy
Sac Outlets
Carrion Feeder Free sac outlet, which you will see is a common theme. Can potentially get very big. At 1 cmc this is one of the best sac cards in the deck. Similar cards of this bent are Goblin Bombardment and Phyrexian Altar. All are free Sac effects and relatively cheap. A quick note on Altar, treat the mana from this as a bonus, don't get caught up in the trap of thinking of this as a source.
Attrition While NOT free at B per sac, the destroy effect is worth the cost. A similar card is Flesh Carver, also NOT free at 1B, but this guy does a lot. He puts counters on himself, leaves a beater after he dies, and has evasion. Top notch.
Dimir House Guard Free sac effect. The transmute for 4 is key, and being able to regenerate is solid for combat shenanigans. At 4 cmc he isn't cheap but the options he gives you are worth it.
Grimgrin, Corpse-born Free sac effect. Can get very big very fast. Being able to clear off blockers on attack is good fun. Note that he cannot sac himself.
Card Advantage/Selection
Skullclamp Amazing card draw. This will be one of your top draw engines. It can draw removal pretty quick.
Baleful Strix Good value, Deters attacks, and can fly. Can be reused if you can line it up with Marchesa. A similar card is Mulldrifter.
Perilous Research Mainly used to kill off troublesome permanents after you steal them, or as an emergency sac outlet. The cards are a bonus.
Sage of Fables Tends to be used primarily as a synergy piece, but can draw quite a few cards.
Erebos, God of the Dead 4 drop creature, so it can be transmuted or transfigured for. Lets you dump life and turns off lifegain for your opponents.
Disciple of Bolas Very solid card. Temp sac outlet, gains life and cards when needed, often a large amount of both.
River Kelpie All star card draw. Remember that he triggers on opponents recursion effects.
Harvester of Souls Deathtouch is a GREAT deterrent to attackers. He has a decent body and will draw you MANY cards.
Fleshwrither Snags any 4 cmc creature, and is very abusable, but don't forget it is sorcery speed.
Clutch of the Undercity Almost always gets Sneak attack, but can grab your Commander in a pinch and can be good removal as well.
Diabolic Intent Temp sac outlet as a bonus to being anotherDemonic Tutor. A similar card is Rune-scarred Demon.
Copy/Theft
Aura Thief This has been a life-saver many times for me. Enchantments are always going to be trouble for grixis, but this guy helps a lot.
Zealous Conscripts Takes any permanent, but only for the turn. Very good control piece, and can also make for some explosive plays.
Thalakos Deceiver All your critters are belong to me. And they get to see it coming.
Sakashima the Impostor This is a core card. Cloning Marchesa lets your army grow VERY quickly. Cloning Marton can let you swing for astronomical amounts. In addition to all the other fun clone effects.
Clever Impersonator Any nonland. Millions O' Choices. A similar choice is Phyrexian Metamorph, Impersonator Lite.
Kiki-Jiki, Mirror Breaker This list only runs 8 critters he cannot target, but the creatures he can are potent.
Speed Kills
Urabrask the Hidden All of your critters get haste and your opponents critters come into play tapped. Anger is similar once you get him to the GY.
Swiftfoot Boots A staple at 1 cost to hand a critter haste, much like Flamekin Village. Only takes up a land slot while still providing red mana.
Removal
Toxic Deluge Cheap, lets you dump life, gets around indestructible, regen, and anti-sac. Excellent.
Damnation Wrath for black. Solid mass removal.
Vandalblast One-sided Shatterspree for 5. Staple
Oblivion Stone This is an emergency button style removal. It should sit in your hand until you HAVE to use it.
Shadowborn Demon Cheap fat flyer that blows up just about anything (there are very few playable demons) and the downside actually helps you feed your GY for Living Death.
Nicol Bolas, Planeswalker Beastmode.
Control
Cyclonic Rift Staple
Flayer of the Hatebound Core piece, this lets you blast critters off the field or go nuclear and just win.
Venser, Shaper Savant Solid control piece.
Inferno Titan Titan!
Glen Elendra Archmage Soft lock, lets you make the tempo YOUR speed.
Recursive Effects
Feldon of the Third Path More than just recursion, shenanigans.
Living Death WIN
Xiahou Dun, the One-Eyed Unblockable, nabs Living Death back, and is a 4 drop. Awesome.
Puppeteer Clique Another win-con, pair this with Sage of Fables to snatch every creature in your opponents GY and then punch them in the face with them.
Dread Return Synergistic recursion piece. The flashback cost dovetails nicely with our game plan.
Utility
Gray Merchant of Asphodel Potential win con that gets better with clones, and can take you out of the red zone in a pinch.
Unspeakable Symbol Staple, this can really open the game up for you, letting you not worry about dethrone to make use of Marchesa's final ability.
Archetype of Imagination Win enabler and great control card.
Reef Worm Fun effect if you like to clutter the field, potentially with 9/9 Krakens. More importantly, gives you some board presence after a board wipe.
Scourge of the Throne Extra attack step with the Dethrone effect. Efficiently costed at 6 for 5\5 flyer.
Marton Stromgald This guy can get your army swinging for silly amounts of damage. Gets ridiculous with Sakashima.
Mikaeus, the Unhallowed Second in command, he makes our board very resilient. Paired with Marchesa, if they stick, you will have trouble giving the game away.
Sneak Attack A card that drives this deck to new heights. Core piece.
Cadaver Imp This became Xiahou Dun
Olivia Voldaren This became Nicol Bolas, PW
Purphoros, God of the Forge Just too slow
Grave Titan Reef Worm just does more
Grave Pact Just too indirect as removal, and I don't want to play pillow-fort with this deck
Dictate of Erebos See above
Burnished Hart Was just underwhelming to me. It felt like I was giving up a turn to gain a couple basic lands
Whip of Erebos Gray Merchant is just flat out superior to Whip, and you have control of WHEN you gain that life. Not to mention that this card cloned a few times can just win you a game.
Ashnod's Altar Redundant next to Phyrexian Altar
High Market This is an excellent sac outlet, but Miren lets me gain a massive chunk of life instead of just 1
Viscera Seer
Vela the Night-Clad Same as Purphoros
Spellskite Liked the card but I couldn't justify it over other cards
Frost Titan Was a placeholder for Inferno Titan
Deathrender Cheap alternative to Sneak Attack
Bident of Thassa Excellent card but I couldn't justify it over other cards
Solrune's list runs many similar cards and he has an excellent section on playing the deck, which i have copied here: *ALL CREDIT FOR THIS SECTION TO SOLRUNE*
Starting out:
Distinguishing a good hand from a bad one is paramount in any game of magic, and is no different here. What you are looking for in an opening hand in this deck is access to your colors, and some form of card draw or selection. A hand with access to 2 colors is fine to start with, as long as you have more than 2 lands in your hand. I always partial away my 5-7 drops with the exception of Living Death. Don't be afraid to partial away toolbox answers as we have multiple avenues of tutoring them throughout the game. Stick to lands, ramp, card draw, tutors, and Living Death as the cards you keep when you partial mulligan.
Early turns:
As a three colored deck, you first few turns should consist of aggressive color fixing an laying the groundwork for a turn 4-5 Marchesa. I try to always grab a mountain if I have access to Anger, because that leads to great Turn 4s if you can get it into the graveyard. It's not uncommon for me to have a few small creatures out by then and swing for a few counters. Unlike most tempo/aggro decks, you need to pick your attacks very carefully. If you swing just enough for become higher life than your opponent, it shuts Marchesa, the Black Rose off almost entirely if you don't have a life or counter outlet. A wise opponent with let you hit them and make sure your general is "off" as much as possible. That being said, when you can get counters on your creatures unhindered, do so. You need to squeeze as much value out of your creatures as possible to get ahead. After you assemble a few creatures on the board with counters, don't be afraid to throw them at folks. We want our creatures to die after they get their counters with Marchesa, the Black Rose out. Every time we accomplish this, it brings us closer to a critical mass of advantage, that is really hard for our opponents to overcome.
Mid game:
I consider mid game with this deck when I have Marchesa, the Black Rose and a sac outlet both on the board. The combination of the two is what propels the deck forward into late game. That being said, this deck can hit mid game really early for a commander deck. A turn 3 Phyrexian Altar into a turn 4 Marchesa, the Black Rose is a very reasonable start to mid game. We want to protect her as much as possible, so get a counter on her if you can. Don't be afraid to sacrifice her even if she doesn't have a counter on her if it means saving her from a tuck spell. Tuck spells can shut her down hard. In the event of a tuck spell, Mikaeus, the Unhallowed can act as a second commander, and Fleshwrither can tutor Marchesa, the Black Rose back to play. You should be gathering answers and responding to threat accordingly and netting minor advantages here and there through throwing your creatures under attackers and at you opponents. Every time you can use a creature again pulls us a little closer to our late game. Late game for us, is our strongest phase. We will have some permitted life loss during this phase, through our own effects and through taking attacks. This will keep our dethrone triggering.
Late game:
I consider late game for this deck to be when I can all out swing at a typical player, and kill them through blockers. Whether that is 40+ power on the board, or 20+ power on the board with a Scourge of the Throne out, or in the special case of having Living Death and Xiahou Dun, the One-Eyed looping. Another signal that it is late game is when you can Sneak Attack almost a whole hand of creatures into play. These scenarios are what the deck is built to do, and it is good at it. When going for an alpha swing, make sure you do your math right, leaving blockers if needed. You will be at a bit lower life than most of the table (hopefully) and be swinging hard because of it. During late game you can give your dudes pseudo "vigilance" if you need blockers by sacrificing them post combat so that they return end of turn. When you start getting dangerously low on life, you can cast Gray Merchant of Asphodel or Disciple of Bolas and gain some back. Gray Merchant of Asphodel can be a strong win condition if you can recur it multiple times with a full board.
*Special notes*:
People playing life gain decks are going to absolutely hate you, and will be actively trying to destroy you as soon as they can. Be careful to notice whats on the board before turning that last dude sideways. Be very careful of Living Death, while it is one of the strongest effects in the deck for us, recurring it a lot will lead to people play around it, pitching nasty things like Terastodon in their graveyard in anticipation. Sac outlets are incredibly important in this deck, as they can save your dudes from exile/tuck/bounce effects, while abusing their etbs. Playing around grave hate takes a lot more effort. As this deck wants to have creatures moving in and out of the graveyard all game long, grave hate of any form can really put a damper on your game plan. Remove, destroy, bounce, or steal to get rid of whatever grave hate your opponent is packing, and if you can't get rid of it, get rid of them. Sometimes the best removal is player removal, especially when the problem permanent is either Rest in Peace or Leyline of the Void. If the player has something they can activate in response, make them use it as soon as possible to keep your momentum going forward.
Advanced Strategies and Match-Ups in Multiplayer:
Against control variants(America/Esper/Bant or any combination of blue/white), you want to try and keep Marchesa on the board as much as possible until they are at lower life. That may be the hardest part of your fight. Keep the pressure on them and try to grab advantages where you can. Do not over-extend into board wipes, because it will give them time to stabilize. A haste enabler is key in these match ups. You are the aggro deck for sure. This holds true to facing combo decks as well. They need to be hit as hard as possible, usually the group will focus them as well, making their demise that much quicker. Against other aggro decks, it really depends on the speed of the other decks. Where my list can play well as a tempo deck, that's not going to cut it when you are taking 15 damage turn 3/4 by a giant Omnath, Locus of Mana, or staring down an elf army turn 3.(Which happens a lot in our meta) If you can't out race them, control them, and play very reactionary. Get advantages when you can, but don't paint a huge target on yourself. Just a general rule I play by : If there is a monogreen deck at the table, it's going to hit faster and harder than you, so play more controlling/midrange.
Any suggestions are appreciated.
As a heads up before we begin, let me tell you the social contract we work within in my playgroup. We banned all mana accelerants that cost 2 or less, whether it put mana into your mana pool or put a land into play. For odd-ball cases we defined the concept as making sure you only had 3 mana on turn 3. Any accelerant after turn 3 that has a CMC of 3+ is good to go. Basically thats why I don't have a sol ring, a mana crypt, and a mox package in here. Or Sacktribe or Coilfang etc. You of course can suggest these things but I will most likely discount them.
As the name suggests, this is a blink deck, and I play it as a fun deck. I have not included any extra turns, any infinite combos/mana generators, or any lockdown effects. I have and can add any of these, I just choose not too. I tend to control as a playstyle, I don't naturally turn creatures sideways. So Derevi Fit me better than Roon or Jenara for this deck concept.
So what am i looking for as far as critique? Just some tightening and tuning geared towards a control player who loves getting that value and grinding out wins. My Meta is some combination of: Several Animar concoctions, a Naya Gods'n'walkers monstrosity, a really solid Nekusar build, a generic Kalia build, a Jenara goodstuff deck, and an Esper control/sludge thing.
Anyhoo, here is my deck so far.
Be gentle. Or not. Whatever.
1x Derevi, Empyrial Tactician
-Lands (33)
4x Island
3x Plains
8x Forest
1x Temple of the False God
1x Strip Mine
1x Krosan Verge
1x Alchemist's Refuge
1x Yavimaya Hollow
1x Mystic Gate
1x Wooded Bastion
1x Flooded Grove
1x Hallowed Fountain
1x Temple Garden
1x Breeding Pool
1x Tundra
1x Tropical Island
1x Savannah
1x Command Tower
1x Reflecting Pool
1x Seaside Citadel
1x Forbidden Orchard
-Critters (37)
1x Karmic Guide
1x Weathered Wayfarer
1x Thragtusk
1x Deadeye Navigator
1x Scavenging Ooze
1x Champion of Lambholt
1x Craterhoof Behemoth
1x Consecrated Sphinx
1x Body Double
1x Glen Elendra Archmage
1x Oracle of Mul Daya
1x Duplicant
1x Spike Weaver
1x Progenitor Mimic
1x Mulldrifter
1x Reveillark
1x Kozilek, Butcher of Truth
1x Wood Elves
1x Mistmeadow Witch
1x Acidic Slime
1x Ondu Giant
1x Farhaven Elf
1x Ephara, God of the Polis
1x Venser, Shaper Savant
1x Prime Speaker Zegana
1x Harmonic Sliver
1x Archaeomancer
1x Avenger of Zendikar
1x Elesh Norn, Grand Cenobite
1x Sun Titan
1x Eternal Witness
1x Soul of the Harvest
1x Brago, King Eternal
1x Gilded Drake
1x Solemn Simulacrum
1x Ixidron
1x Phyrexian Metamorph
1x Venser, the Sojourner
-Artifacts (7)
1x Skullclamp
1x Sensei's Divining Top
1x Strionic Resonator
1x Crystal Shard
1x Darksteel Ingot
1x Birthing Pod
1x Conjurer's Closet
-Enchantments (7)
1x Sylvan Library
1x Survival of the Fittest
1x Aura Shards
1x Equilibrium
1x Beastmaster Ascension
1x Words of Wind
1x Primeval Bounty
-Spells (14)
1x Path to Exile
1x Swords to Plowshares
1x Momentary Blink
1x Ghostly Flicker
1x Ghostway
1x Council's Judgement
1x Illusionist's Gambit
1x Rout
1x Pact of Negation
1x Austere Command
1x Recurring Insight
1x Cyclonic Rift
1x Tooth and Nail
1x Chord of Calling
I am thinking that the Council's Judgement needs to be a Return to Dust. Outside of that maybe the Archmage becomes a Mystic Snake?
Come at me.
Here is the scenario:
I have Merieke Ri Berit next to Sydri, Galvanic Genius. I activate Sydri on my opponents Sword of Feast and Famine, then I target the new creature with Merieke. With my fresh new critter in the ranks next to Merieke, I allow my turn to end.
What happens to my new critter?
Also, as I have to have something to show my playmates, please show me where you get this ruling from.
Thanks!
I am looking for a mostly casual group of players for EDH. The people I play with are starting to splinter apart as RL bears its ugly mug. I have most evenings free other then Saturdays.
I'm not much for the Tourney scene and I'm not cutthroat. I don't mind tournaments but they are not my preference. I don't mind the occasional cutthroat game/deck either, as long as everyone still gets to play and enjoy there evening at some point.
I don't mind having a beer or some such while I play either.
So that's me, anyone else nearby?
New edits to front page. Opinions, thoughts, and ideas are welcome.
Does the resulting ability from ulamog become white?
Is there any way to 8 1/2 tails to protect something from Ulamogs ability?
Thank you in advance.
My understanding is that Necromancy only makes you sacrifice the creature when IT leaves play, thus the Stonecloaker should make it safely to my hand before statebased effects put Necromancy in the GY.
Am I right?
Actually I don't think the colors matter to much to me as long as i can get some staples in there. Was kinda eyeballing some kinda multicolor wizards concept, but elementals and goblins as well. Maybe a combo goblin/dragon theme. Only downside there is i would have to play red...:tongue:
Also I am thinking of putting the umbral mantle in the spot of the SoFaF. I just don't think I have the pieces to be aggressive enough to make it worthwhile. Thoughts?
One of the issues I was seeing was the occasional difficulty in killing people off, aka finding a finisher. I was using cards like drana and bloodline keeper to try to overwhlem people but they are either time or mana intensive. I was also using drift of phantasms but transmuting in a deck with U/B seems rather inefficient.
Also twincast is just meh. Just seems too timing essential to be any good.
So in go:
guiltfeeder
sorin markov
serra avatar
luminarch ascension
out go:
drift of phantasms
drana, kalastria bloodchief
bloodline keeper
twincast
Next it was noted to me that grafted exoskeleton is just flat out better than glistening oil. After all you can counter the oil by simply killing its target. Boooo.
So in went:
grafted exoskeleton
out went:
glistening oil
I am also trying to figure out where to put an avatar of woe and an umbral mantle.
Any suggestions?
As far as netdecking, this is the age of the internet. EVERYONE netdecks to a degree. It is somewhat on you and your playgroup to "nudge" guys to personalize decks.
Outside of all that, the fact that you are asking to be told not to quit (yes I know, not your exact words) suggests that you have a decision in mind already. I suggest rolling with your gut feeling and not worrying about what is said here.