For they have sown the wind... (Commander / EDH MTG Deck)

Featured card: Endless Ranks of the Dead

For they have sown the wind...

Commander / EDH Casual Control Mono-Black Multiplayer Tokens Zombie

MTGApprentice2016

Synergy (26)

Win-Con (12)

Removal-Synergy (22)

Card-Advantage (15)

Commander (1)

Ramp-ish (16)

Removal (4)

Basics (22)

22x Swamp

If an injury has to be done to a man, it should be so severe that his vengeance need not be feared ~ Niccolo Machiavelli, The Prince.

At the request of my friends, whom are all gluttons for punishment, Kalitas, Traitor of Ghet is returning to the game table. This list is better, faster, stronger than it was before. I have included a New Categorization listing below as well as preserved the original deck list, categorization, and breakdown.

Emersonian finally added his Karador, Ghost Chieftain deck which can be found here: Karador Ghost Chieftain Almost-All-Creatures Build. This deck was the original inspiration for Kalitas as my commander for this deck.

New Categorization Show

Synergy

if you haven't noticed I did something weird here. I have Synergy and I have Removal-Synergy. Why you ask? Well in all honesty the deck wants to control the board state of my opponents. Meaning that they have no, or very few creatures while I have some, or many. The 26 cards under the synergy category all help the deck out in various ways. Others would call these pieces utility, but I have chosen to call them Synergy because they all offer some form of synergy with the deck. Be it Gravecrawler begging to be sacrificed to Kalitas, Traitor of Ghet or Burnished Hart sacrificing itself with Grave Pact on the table; these cards help the deck out.

Ramp-ish

You've likely noticed that I am saying Ramp-ish over Ramp for the 16 cards in this category. Why? Simply put, no color but green truly ramps. Black does have some powerful ramp like effects such as Cabal Coffers and Black Market but they are mostly conditional and have some form of requirement such as X number of swamps, creatures dying, or need another land (such as Vesuva, Thespian's Stage or Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth) to truly shine. That is why there are 14 total pieces here that will hopefully help get things rolling.

I am including Sol Ring, Ashnod's Altar, Crypt Ghast, Thran Dynamo and Caged Sun here mostly because I didn't wish to have two ramp categories in spite of these being truly ramp cards.

Removal-Synergy

Why did I chose to call these 22 cards Removal-Synergy? Well, if you'll remember that I previously said the deck wants to control the board state then this categorization starts to make more sense. In another deck, these would simply be removal pieces. In this deck, they do something more than just act as removal...they also have direct synergistic value with my commander in play. Even with the mass removal spells, I still get a lot of zombies if Kalitas, Traitor of Ghet is on the field.

This means that when I am able to recast Kalitas, Traitor of Ghet I have potentially plenty of sacrificial fodder to "voltron" up a win. You'll also note that I am running more of the -X/-X style of removal spells vs. the destroy spells. This is because I don't like indestructible creatures one, and two, the more targeted removal in black also tends to say destroy target non-black creature...which is kinda a serious limitation in my playgroup.

For rulings on Kalitas and just how it works with mass removal consult the following link: http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?multiverseid=407596

Removal

You'll note only 3 cards in this category. Honestly, this is because these three cards do not fit with the Removal-Synergy strategy that I have above. Two of them are grave-hate cards and the other is simply necessary to deal with a problem artifact or enchantment.

Card-Advantage

Honestly, these 13 cards are the engine that makes the deck run. I'm ever in a quest for better parts to this engine as well so feel free to make a suggestion in the comments. Altar's Reap comes to mind as having some potential as not only being card-advantage but also general synergy with other parts of the deck.

Win-Con

Now we're into the real cards; the cards that will win me the game. Before delving into the cards a quick note on how the deck wins. Simply put, the deck wants to win through Attrition by systematically eliminating my opponents creatures as if they can't block my creatures, they will eventually be eliminated from the game.

We first have my commander, Kalitas, Traitor of Ghet which can become scary big somewhat quickly for a voltron victory. He also serves to permanently shut down graveyard based strategies (see my original introduction in the spoiler below regarding why the deck was created) while making fodder.

Second, we have Grave Pact and the Grave Pact effects. These cards help the deck win through Attrition so much that I have included them as win-cons. I sacrifice a creature and then you sacrifice a creature? Most excellent.

Exsanguinate and Gray Merchant of Asphodel are honestly tertiary win-cons. Can I win with them - yes. Is it likely - no. BUT it is possible with enough manna and/or a way to keep bringing Gray Merchant of Asphodel back.

Ob Nixilis Reignited's emblem has the potential to kill very quickly, I've seen it happen quite often. It might be possible to get two players with his emblem but I think at most you're likely to only take out one which can sometimes be the one person you need to in order to win.

Skithiryx, the Blight Dragon for the infect win and Westvale Abbey flipped into Ormendahl, Profane Prince as a back up hard hitting beater with the potential to win through combat damage.

Origional Deck, List & Description with Breakdown.
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Origional Deck list and categories

Denn die Trodten reiten Schnell Bram Stoker, Dracula.

Most people do not believe something can happen until it already has. That is not stupidity or weakness, that is just human nature Max Brooks, World War Z: An Oral History of the Zombie War

This is quite possibly the smoothest running deck I have ever made; it almost always does what I want it to do and is often viewed as a fairly large threat. But then, there are a lot of recursion strategies in my meta and Kalitas, Traitor of Ghet can shut that down provided he stays on the board! There is a hybrid vampire/zombie tribal theme going on with the deck (leaning more towards zombies) but overall I would classify this deck as being more of a "good stuff" or a "control" deck. When playing the deck I sit back, collect some zombies while controlling the number of creatures on the board and wait for the right time to strike.

Introduction

This deck's original purpose was as a response to a rather challenging to play against all creature Karador, Ghost Chieftain deck that one of my friends has. Hence how the deck received its name, which is also a partial quote from a fun TV show (Archer). Needless to say the look on my friend's face was rather epic when I showed up to the table with this deck and being a good friend, he let me get a lot of zombies that game. And while neither one of us won, we had some fun as he tried to get around Kalitas, Traitor of Ghet exiling all of his combo pieces. I must really salute my friend; he has an amazing deck that is as fun to play against as it is challenging to find solutions to. I hope to convince him to post it here one day to inspire others.

Design & Philosophy

Why did I choose Kalitas over Anafenza, the Foremost? White has some of the best removal effects for EDH and green will ramp your mana for days. While Anafenza, the Foremost might be one of the best creatures ever printed, I chose Kalitas over Anafenza primarily because my collection has the cards to make Kalitas shine more. Already having most of the cards on this list in my collection and the ones that I needed for the completion of the deck being well within my budget made this deck one of the easiest and most budget friendly I have built to date.

I also chose Kalitas because I've always wanted a mono-black EDH deck and I didnt have one at the time beyond the C14 pre con and I really didnt feel like that was my deck if that makes any sense. Those are the primary reasons I chose Kalitas over Anafenza. The secondary reason is that there is an Anafenza deck in the playgroup already and I did not want to steel that persons thunder.

While I was constructing this deck with my piles of cards next to me and the Decked Builder app open on my phone, it occurred to me that I didn't have enough cards to go fully either vampire or zombie tribal. But I did have enough cards to do a hybrid tribal theme supplemented by other creature types. However, I would like to eventually find some more cards to fit within the zombie/vampire theme going on such as Graveborn Muse.

One thing that you have likely noticed already is that I am only running one tutor, Dark Petition. A mono-black deck with only one tutor; what are they thinking you must be saying to yourself in your head. There are two reason for this; one, I traded my Rune-Scarred Demon a while back and my only copy of Sidisi, Undead Vizier is in my deck deck:merens-morgue-grill.

Two; I have mixed feelings about tutors in EDH. Ive seen tutors both abused with repeated castings and used to fetch a basic land (on those most tragic occasions of true mana shortages). My previously mentioned deck above is one such deck that can abuse tutoring; yes I too am just as guilty of the tutoring abuse. It is one thing to go Google up an answer to the biggest threat and/or for the win con after the game has gone on for three hours; but it is another entirely to tutor up the game ending combo by turn five. To that end, this deck will only ever have a maximum of two tutors.

However, I do recognize the advantage that tutors have, so to solve the issue of not being able to tutor up my responses, I have ten cards that I consider to be Card Advantage generators and they work rather well. Necropotence is quite simply one of the best cards ever printed and that's only one of the Card Advantage generators within the deck.

Remember my friend, that knowledge is stronger than memory, and we should not trust the weaker. Bram Stoker, Dracula. This quote sums up my feelings about how to play a black deck. Knowing what your deck can do, knowing what your opponents decks can do, and using that knowledge to obtain victory. But for that game only! Dont rely upon the memories of previous games, for they might be false and/or tainted. Play in the here and now with the knowledge of what your deck and those across the table can do in the here and now. Several of the cards I run come with a price, and that number is only likely to increase. This is fine by me because to a black mage, magic always comes with a price. Victory without some pain isn't a victory at all to this black mage.

Strategy

The overall strategy is to cast Kalitas, Traitor of Ghet as soon as possible and hopefully protect him with Champion's Helm. Once the commander is out it's time to sit back and get some zombies as creatures die. Perhaps your opponents creatures are assisted along to exile by Fleshbag Marauder and/or Merciless Executioner combined with say Grave Pact. Or perhaps they are assisted along to exile via other means both in and outside of your control. The point is, sit back and make some zombies.

Then, once once you have some zombies it's time to start using them by sacrificing some zombies to Kalitas (hopefully with the previously mentioned grave pact or similar effect on the board) and swinging for lethal commander damage. Another way to win is by zombie swarm combined with Eldrazi Monument. And lastly there is the combo of Ashnod's Altar + Grave Titan + Nim Deathmantle which will net you infinite zombies and is best cracked off on someone elses end step; however, in the games that I have won I've never actually gotten to crack this off. Pair with Blood Artist/Falkenrath Noble and/or Gray Merchant of Asphodel for maximum effect.

You do not want to play fast and loose, rather, you want to sit back for a few turns until the time is right to strike. Knowing when to play a card and knowing when to hold back is key as this deck is mana hungry. You do not want to be caught with your pants down and no ability to cast removal when you have a Bruna, Light of Alabaster coming at you with half a deck attached to her. Being able to use Arcane Lighthouse and your removal spells at the same can and will be required. When you do strike though, it is important to show no mercy as there are no half measures with this deck. Go for the kill and hope that the blue and/or white mages are without a response.

Also an important thing to remember is that you are a black mage; your life and your creatures are a resource to be used and abused. Dont be afraid to use cards like Necropotence and Smothering Abomination to get the cards in hand that you need to win. Don't be afraid to sacrifice a few zombie tokens to Ashnod's Altar when you need the extra mana hopefully you'll get some added benefit to their noble sacrifice but if you need the mana sacrifice the zombies. There will be plenty more where they came from.

Weaknesses

The decks greatest weakness is itself in all honesty. Being mono-black, it is mana hungry almost all the time which is why I have done the best I can with the ramp effects, but this is black not green. I often find myself having to choose when to play a card that can net me value now or leaving some mana open for that instant speed removal for an incoming threat.

The next big weakness within my meta are those pesky blue mages. When Cyclonic Rift is cast more than three times in a game by the same player...it is a long night. Another weakness this deck possesses is playing against decks that give everything some kind of protective ability such as Avacyn, Angel of Hope or Asceticism because Damnation just is not in my budget at this time.

And the last weakness that exists within the deck is the lack of multiple forms of protection for Kalitas, Traitor of Ghet. But honestly while that is a weakness, I rather enjoy the fact that he can be interacted with. That hes not there constantly shutting down the board and/or someones strategy.

Removal

This section is dedicated to the cards that eliminate creatures on a more one-on-one basis. There is a lot of synergy though with some of these cards so often times it ends up more of a two for one deal in my favor. Not all of the cards in this category are represented below as most are fairly straight forward; just some where I felt that further explanation of their choice was necessary:

Blighted Fen : Ok, being honest there are better pieces of removal out there for cheaper as is kind of expensive. However, if you pass a turn with a hand full instant speed removal and the ability to use this you can negate an attack and/or take less damage from it. It is a decent defensive card in my opinion.

Demon of Wailing Agonies : Honestly I am on the fence about regarding the Lieutenant creatures from C14 except for Thunderfoot Baloth which is just amazing. I am running this card mostly because I felt like I needed another flying body in the deck and my Rune-Scarred Demon was traded to a friend (having two tutors is not too broken). The removal ability is secondary here, but it could possibly net me a sacrificed creature or two. In all honesty this might become Indulgent Tormentor for the potential card advantage or Kothophed, Soul Hoarder for guaranteed card advantage. Another thought for this slot is Zulaport Cutthroat to provide another combo piece/wincon.

Liliana of the Dark Realms: Ok, so she is not the best Lili WoTC has printed. We all know what Lili that is (and I would love to own a Liliana of the Veil one day). And while she might not be the Lili that all back decks deserve, she is the Lili that all black decks need. She ramps your mana and serves as removal, honestly there isnt much more that this particular deck could want out of a Lili.

Overseer of the Damned: Removal on legs that makes me zombies? Plus it flies? Well color me tickled. There might be better pieces of removal out there or better creatures that could fill this slot but it makes me more zombies so Im going to keep it around for a while. May eventually become Archfiend of Depravity

Ruinous Path: An ok piece of spot removal. It would be better if it was at instant speed. The awaken ability is lost on this deck. It may eventually be replaced by another piece of mass removal. This slot might end up as Murder or another creature.

Scour from Existence: Ok, yes this IS expensive at . But with the limited number of ways that mono-black has to deal with artifacts or enchantments (almost no ability what so ever) this is here to provide removal for various pesky protection from black creatures or pieces of equipment (I am looking your way Sword of Feast and Famine). It can also help stop a combo as well. In my book, this is a solid card for mono-black.

Wretched Confluence: So what you are telling me is that for I get three creatures back or a target creature gets -6/-6 or I get three cards for three life and all at instant speed? Ill take it! Mostly here for the card draw aspect but giving a pesky creature -6/-6 isnt anything to sneeze at.

Card Advantage

Some of the best cards for mono black are on this list in my opinion. From the powerhouse of Necropotence and Phyrexian Arena to things like Bloodgift Demon, these are the cards that let me get the others in hand. Yes, I am counting the cycling lands here because in 9 out of 10 situations they are here to be cycled. This section will only be expanded and/or tweaked as new cards are printed and I rediscover old gems.

Zombies

Heya Tom it is Bob, from the office down the hall - Jonathan Coulton, Your Brains

Ahem, so what if I heard that song in my head as I was making this deck? Honestly I think most of these cards are fairly self-explanatory. Id love to have a Zombie Master or Lord of the Undead here, but what I really want is Graveborn Muse.

Scourge of Nel Toth is likely the weakest link on this list but as a 6/6 flyer that serves as a sacrifice outlet when it is in the grave isnt all bad. It can hopefully fly over some token armies and get in some decent damage.

Necromancers

The monsters that rose from the dead, they are nothing compared to the ones we carry in our hearts Max Brooks, World War Z: An Oral History of the Zombie War.

These are the cards that (obviously) make zombies for the deck. This section is why the deck has a slightly more zombie leaning to the hybrid tribal thematic going on. I think that perhaps these cares are fairly straight forward in their tasks. The weakest link of Overseer of the Damned is covered in the Removal section.

I would love to have Diregraf Colossus in here as well as Noosegraf Mob which in my meta really reads, I get five 2/2 zombies before my next turn. Works out to a nice 1.2 mana spent per zombie token form this card. Yeah, Ill take it and figure out a way to abuse it somehow.

Rattlesnakes

Not that many cards sure, but can you hear the hissing and rattling? I sure can.

Tutor

My one tutor, Dark Petition has the potential to give me the most bang for my buck if you will. Providing me with a reimbursement of provided there are two instants and/or sorceries in my graveyard already. My feelings on tutors are above, but I may add in a Sidisi, Undead Vizier as soon as I get my hands on another copy.

Ramp

This section details all of the cards that I classify as assisting the deck with mana generation. I do not think that there is anything in here that is a great surprise to see. Crypt of Agadeem is perhaps the weakest link present. Why am I running it then? Well in all honesty it is to test it out to see if it really is as weak as I think it will be. I can always add the swamp I cut for it back in.

Another card I should mention is perhaps Mage-Ring Network . Yes, there is a reason why this is here. Often times I find myself with extra in my pool from using Cabal Coffers or even Nykthos, Shrine to Nyx. Really I view this as a way to bleed off that extra mana into something that could possibly be useful down the road for say, Exsanguinate.

Utility

This section details those things are here for the sake of utility. Things like Thief of Blood that serves to remove that mass of +1/+1 counters from the Simic decks creatures. And all of my recursion pieces are included here as well as my only haste enabler (currently).

Wincon

These are all of the things I consider to be win conditions. Most of these are also in the combo section as well. I think the choices here are fairly self-explanatory.

Evasion

Do I need more cards in this section? Im not sure, but maybe. These cards are all fairly straight forward and include a card that Id been misreading up until rather recently.

Potential Wincon

These are cards that I think could possibly serve as win conditions for the deck. I have yet to actually have them win me the game but I believe that the possibility exists for this to happen. Would most likely have to be late in the game however, and one of the cards really is dependent upon my opponents forgetting it is on the board.

Grave Hate

As I mentioned previously, my meta has several recursion themed decks. I myself have one, but that is one of like ten decks. Not many cards here in this section but I have thought about finding something that serves a few other roles to add to this list as well. Going to have to do some digging but if anyone has any suggestions please feel free to let me know. I do not want many cards in this section but I think a third card would be good.

Vampires

Listen to them, the children of the night. What music they make! Bram Stoker, Dracula.

There is a decent line up here for the lesser part of the hybrid theme. They may be smaller in number but they should pack a decent punch. Not a single one of these is in my opinion a wasted card slot. Maybe one day I will get a Dark Depths to abuse with some of the cards here but that day is when I do the impossiblewin the lottery.

Combo

I think that everything in here covers itself. Are there more/better combos I could run? Yeah, I am sure that there are but this one is on theme for the deck so it will stay.

Mass Removal

Ah, clearing the board en mass. This will stack with the trigger from Kalitas as everything dies at the same time so this is always a win-win for me. The cards are below with some explanation as to card choice:

Black Sun's Zenith: A classic choice for most black decks w/in my meta. It helps in dealing with cards like Avacyn, Angel of Hope and Asceticism.

Toxic Deluge: Not as common in my meta, but a solid card for the same reasons as Black Sun's Zenith. Just it comes with a price.

Decree of Pain: Mass creature removal that doesnt allow regeneration with added card advantage? Sign me up! This said, I still would rather have Damnation in this slot.

In Garruk's Wake: Honestly I do not understand how this card isnt priced higher than Plague Wind . In my meta, this card does everything I want it to do, gets rid of my opponents toys and lets me keep mine

Protection

You will note that there are only two cards in this section, Champion's Helm and Eldrazi Monument. This is one of the decks weaknesses as detailed above. Good cards both of them but the Champion's Helm is soon to be rehomed to my Voltron deck deck: eight-and-a-half-times-your-fun and replaced with a humble pair of Swiftfoot Boots.

Comments and suggestions are always welcome. Thanks for viewing!

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Updates Add

List Changes — Sept. 20, 2017

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So I made some changes to this list after taking apart my red deck. Added back in one combo, and then added Vindictive Lich from C17 as that card should be bonkers in this deck. Ugin is also back in the list, making this the most walker heavy deck that I have. He was needed as enchantment removal mostly but he's just plane good and goes into most decks.

Game Play 9/9/17 — Sept. 12, 2017

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Game play 8/19/17 — Aug. 21, 2017

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Torment of Hailfire — Aug. 13, 2017

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Boy... — July 10, 2017

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Changes — June 19, 2017

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2K views — June 12, 2017

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Game Play 6/3/17 — June 5, 2017

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Holding out for a Gilded Lotus — May 25, 2017

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Game Play 5/13/17 — May 16, 2017

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Game Play 4/1/17 — April 4, 2017

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New things — March 4, 2017

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1K views — Feb. 27, 2017

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Cards Acquired — Feb. 18, 2017

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Return from Retirement — Feb. 1, 2017

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Retirement — Oct. 10, 2016

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A finely tuned machine — Sept. 20, 2016

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New things report. — Aug. 10, 2016

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Trying new things — July 24, 2016

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After EMA box opening. — June 28, 2016

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Spoiler Timeline

Card Odds v1 Draw hand

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Date added	7 years
Last updated	6 years
Key combos	Ashnod's Altar + Grave Titan + Nim Deathmantle
Legality	This deck is Commander / EDH legal.
Rarity (main - side)	13 - 0 Mythic Rares 41 - 0 Rares 18 - 0 Uncommons 6 - 0 Commons
Cards	100
Avg. CMC	3.98
Tokens	Emblem Liliana of the Dark Realms, Emblem Ob Nixilis Reignited, Human Cleric 1/1 BW, Zombie 2/2 B
Folders	Current Decks, Commander, Stuff I like, Mono black
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