The Aristocrats Return

Standard BGW (Abzan, Junk) BRGW Competitive Four Color Midrange Tokens Weenie

TheFanatic

Instant (3)

• 3x Murderous Cut

Enchantment (5)

• 3x Abzan Ascendancy
• 2x Evolutionary Leap

Planeswalker (1)

• 1x Sorin, Solemn Visitor

Creature (26)

• 4x Blisterpod
• 4x Butcher of the Horde
• 4x Catacomb Sifter
• 4x Hangarback Walker
• 2x Nantuko Husk
• 4x Sultai Emissary
• 4x Zulaport Cutthroat

Land (25)

• 4x Bloodstained Mire
• 2x Canopy Vista
• 1x Cinder Glade
• 2x Forest
• 1x Llanowar Wastes
• 1x Plains
• 1x Sandsteppe Citadel
• 2x Smoldering Marsh
• 3x Swamp
• 4x Windswept Heath
• 4x Wooded Foothills

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Sideboard

Instant (6)

• 2x Crackling Doom
• 2x Rending Volley
• 2x Ultimate Price

Enchantment (1)

• 1x Evolutionary Leap

Creature (8)

• 2x Anafenza, the Foremost
• 3x Arashin Cleric
• 1x Felidar Cub
• 2x Minister of Pain

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Maybeboard

Creature (2)

• 2x Liliana, Heretical Healer  ^Flip

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...and they're better than ever!

I've always loved Aristocrats strategies, so when I saw Zulaport Cutthroat and Blisterpod in the BFZ spoilers, I knew I had to cook up a list that takes full advantage of them. This deck generates insane virtual card advantage by way of Evolutionary Leap and Abzan Ascendancy , and it's a ton of fun to pilot.

The basic strategy is really quite simple:

• Stabilize the board with hordes of chump blockers and a solid, efficient removal package
• Out-grind and out-value your opponent with creatures that are inherently 2-for-1s (or better)
• Win by way of token flood, Butcher of the Horde beatdown, Zulaport Cutthroat life drain, or Nantuko Husk burst damage

Even though I've been out of the Standard format for a while now, I've gotten back into it just to play with this sweet deck until it rotates. It's exactly the kind of strategy I like to play, and I've been having a blast with it.

I'm always open to suggestions, so let me know how you think I could improve this decklist!

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Me thinking about sacrificing creatures for value.

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Frequently Asked Questions

Why not Rally the Ancestors?

Rally the Ancestors is an undeniably powerful card, but it really encourages building a deck specifically around it since it has so many restrictions, namely the fact that it exiles all your creatures if you can't sacrifice them on time. There's also the issue that there's no good way to give non-ally creatures haste en masse. As a result, I've decided to go for a classic Aristocrats grindy game plan here rather than the Rally style of play, as I think it leads to a stronger and more reliable deck overall.

What happened to your Abzan list?

I'm still maintaining the list, but it's moved here since I'm no longer actively playing it.

How do you sideboard with this deck?

The sideboard of this deck is still a work in progress, but here's what I have now and why:

• Anafenza, the Foremost - Great against the mirror (or other similar decks). This is also decent to board in if you just need a big threat or blocker in the control or aggro matchups, respectively.
• Arashin Cleric - Helps fight aggressive decks like Warriors and Atarka Red.
• Crackling Doom - All-around great removal spell, as we all know. Especially useful for for the Esper Dragons matchup, since this deck can have a hard time beating Silumgar, the Drifting Death and Dragonlord Ojutai.
• Evolutionary Leap - Comes in when we need more card advantage against control decks.
• Felidar Cub - This little guy is surprisingly useful. It's great against the mirror, it kills Sphinx's Tutelage, it deals with Ascendancies, it destroys Sieges, and it combats Virulent Plague.
• Minister of Pain - Powerful board wipe against Atarka Red and other hyper-aggressive decks.
• Rending Volley - Helps combat Jeskai decks, since Jace, Vryn's Prodigy  , Mantis Rider, and Dragonlord Ojutai are all extremely annoying.
• Ultimate Price - Solid cheap removal for aggro matchups like Atarka Red. Also seems good against G/W Megamorph.

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Please comment and +1 if you like the deck!

If you're interested in what a modern version of this deck would look like, you can check out my list here.

Top Ranked	Achieved #1 position overall 8 years ago
Date added	8 years
Last updated	8 years
Legality	This deck is not Standard legal.
Rarity (main - side)	1 - 2 Mythic Rares 31 - 3 Rares 12 - 6 Uncommons 10 - 4 Commons
Cards	60
Avg. CMC	2.46
Tokens	Eldrazi Scion 1/1 C, Emblem Sorin, Solemn Visitor, Manifest 2/2 C, Spirit 1/1 W, Thopter 1/1 C, Vampire 2/2 B
Folders	Possible Decks, decks to watch, Test, BFZ POST RELEASE IDEAS, decks i want to build, Standard stuff, Best, Standard Experimentals, standart decks, Decks