Sideboard


In short terms, this is a Mono-Black deck for ELD Standard looking to grind people out, Jund style.

People call this type of strategy "Mono-Black Control" even though it really is a midrange deck seeking to win by grinding value.

Yarok's Fenlurker - This is our Elvish Visionary . It presents a disposable body, which is surprisingly versatile in this deck (mainly useful for chump-blocking, sacrificing to various of our own effects, and giving Witch's Cottage a target), while not costing us a card. It is actually better than Visionary here because forcing a discard (or an exile-from-hand, in this case) is stronger than drawing a card in our deck, which really wants to whittle down the opponent's resources.

Dreadhorde Invasion - This card gets pretty close to a Bitterblossom in our deck. Most of the time, this is just a chump block/sacrifice fodder engine, and once in a while, it becomes a recursive though slow threat that wins the game.

Cry of the Carnarium - Sweeps up in the early game. Don't be afraid to use it to remove just one creature, as its efficiency falls off quickly in the late game.

Noxious Grasp - I am constructing the deck under the assumption that Oko, Thief of Crowns gets banned, and I anticipate that green deck will still be powerful after that. Nissa, Who Shakes the Worls is very powerful, and so are Questing Beast and Hydroid Krasis . You get the point; green remains a very powerful color even after Oko gets banned, and I think playing one Grasp in the main is justified. P.S. If you are playing the deck right now with Oko running rampant, you should play the full four.

Disfigure - More removal for the early game. Something like Edgewall Innkeeper or even Robber of the Rich can wreck us if it sticks on the board.

Ritual of Soot - Sweep.

Murderous Rider - The best removal spell in this deck... and probably in all of Standard. Most importantly, it hits planeswalkers, and the body it provides is also useful, with the lifelink on it coming in clutch more often than you'd imagine. Sadly, it doesn't work with Witch's Cottage due to the shuffling ability, but still: it's Hero's Downfall on a stick.

Midnight Reaper - We don't have a super high creature density, so Midnight Reaper isn't at its best. It is a card advantage source, though, and gets pretty powerful in combination with our sacrifice effects.

Cavalier of Night - Bone Splinters plus a huge lifelinker that leaves value behind when it dies. Very high-impact in the midgame and usually shuts the door on aggro decks.

Dread Presence - This is a major payoff for being mono-black, and even just triggering it once provides great value. Drawing cards is generically awesome, and the Sorin's Thirst effect can kill small creatures and pick off planeswalkers while also helping to recoup the life loss from Murderous Rider , Dreadhorde Invasion , and Midnight Reaper . One thing of note is that we should play Dread Presence on turn five and immediately play a swamp and trigger it, to avoid it getting killed or turned to an elk.

Rankle, Master of Pranks - Right now, don't play this card; play two Noxious Grasp over it. Rankle just matches up so badly against Oko. After Oko gets banned, though, this card will return to reasonable strength. It's a pretty fast, flying clock with very versatile effects. Dreadhorde Invasion and Midnight Reaper also do a great job at breaking the sac ability's symmetry.

Castle Locthwain - Our deck is not very good at quickly dumping the hand, so Castle Locthwain is not at its best. Still, the opportunity cost of playing one copy in a 25-swamp deck is very low.

Ugin, the Ineffable - Ugin in the most versatile top-curve planeswalker in all of Standard, killing pretty much everything in the American-police-fashion and generating tokens that draw a card when they leave the battlefield. The value that gathers can become insurmountable very quickly.

Liliana, Dreadhorde General - I think this card is slightly worse than Ugin, but not by much since she has an ultimate and starts with more loyalty, so I'm going with a 2-2 split. Anyway, she plays the same removal-plus-finisher role.

Value Package:

Covetous Urge - It's slow, but it's disruption in the form of a two-for-one. Thievery feels great in matchups where attrition is the name of the game.

Davriel, Rogue Shadowmage - It's slow, but it's a three-for-one that can catch opponents by surprise in matchups where the board doesn't matter.

Planeswalker Package:

Duress - The cleanest answer to turn-two Oko is turn-one Duress . Besides, this is simply a good Magic card that comes in relevant against a bunch of decks.

The Elderspell - Both Oko and Fires of Invention decks offer plenty of targets.

Noxious Grasp - Ok...o.

Creature Removal:

Blacklance Paragon - Gruul. Questing Beast . Also good in matchups where a random 3/1 is useful for applying pressure. The lifegain (and Witch's Cottage ) puts this above other options.

Witch's Vengeance - Conditional one-sided sweeper. Once Oko gets banned, aggro decks will again become a force to respect.

Massacre Girl - Sweeper on a stick. Same argument as above.

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Top Ranked
Date added 4 years
Last updated 4 years
Legality

This deck is not Standard legal.

Rarity (main - side)

5 - 0 Mythic Rares

21 - 6 Rares

6 - 6 Uncommons

4 - 3 Commons

Cards 60
Avg. CMC 3.39
Tokens Spirit 2/2 C, Zombie 2/2 B, Zombie Army 0/0 B
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