Augur of Skulls

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Legality

Format Legality
1v1 Commander Legal
Archenemy Legal
Block Constructed Legal
Canadian Highlander Legal
Casual Legal
Commander / EDH Legal
Commander: Rule 0 Legal
Custom Legal
Duel Commander Legal
Highlander Legal
Legacy Legal
Leviathan Legal
Limited Legal
Modern Legal
Modern Beyond Horizons Legal
Oathbreaker Legal
Pauper Legal
Pauper Duel Commander Legal
Pauper EDH Legal
Planar Constructed Legal
Planechase Legal
Quest Magic Legal
Tiny Leaders Legal
Vanguard Legal
Vintage Legal

Augur of Skulls

Creature — Skeleton Wizard

(1)(Black): Regenerate Augur of Skulls.

Sacrifice Augur of Skulls: Target player discards two cards. Play this ability only during your upkeep.

capwner on "Master of Cruelties" - Budget but Strong?

9 months ago

As an x/4 in a no fury meta I think this card could potentially be good. The deck really wants Ragavan but yeah that's not very budget. Bowmasters too.

About 'understanding what to replace,' the way I think of it is, you know there are always more potential good cards than you can actually run in any deck, usually there are multiple good ways to build a deck. Every card should play into your synergy, except for sideboard cards which can attack something very specifically. And every card should be the best possible option for its slot (most versatility, most synergies with your other cards, most favorable in specific interactions vs. specific cards). Example, this is why I love Apostle's Blessing in here, it's versatile because it protects and evades, and these are both things your deck REALLY needs. And it's a cheap instant. Great card.

But now look at Goblin Tunneler, I see a card that is part of the gameplan, but it's also an x/1 non hasty creature and a 2 drop. This is going to fall short a lot of the time. Maybe a card like Wedding Invitation or Key to the City could be better in this slot. Generator Servant is great for the haste but it has the same weakness. Splitting that with artifact ramp like you did is good, maybe consider options like Pentad Prism but go with what you think plays the best. Molten Collapse is a strictly better Dreadbore and not expensive. Sunken Citadel might be a good land to combo with Rogue's Passage, maybe then Field of Ruin instead of Ghost Quarter? And Graven Cairns? On the lands topic I really like the idea posted above of adding Leechridden Swamp but you do need the fetches to really make it work.

Alesha, Who Smiles at Death has a nice effect but doesn't really synergize with anything besides bringing your Master back, which it can't even do vs. LB and Solitude. Maybe adding cards that combo with her like Fulminator Mage or Augur of Skulls could make her better. Lightning Greaves also makes her and a lot of your other creatures better too, this is a card I'd consider for a 1 or 2 of. But without adding more support, you might consider cutting Alesha and adding something along another angle.

I like Brainspoil, the tutor is nice because finding the Master is definitely a bottlneck in the deck. Grim Tutor is an option but a bit more expensive, Profane Tutor is affordable but has some problems. Having at least one other tutorable 5 drop would make your BS a lot better. 1 of Glarewielder would be kind of cute.

Hand disruption is another angle you might consider, it's really good for a slightly slower combo deck like this to nullify your opponent's big early plays and buy you a couple extra turns to combo them out. Collective Brutality is a pretty decent flexible card that also finishes your opponent.

In the end I think tuning your list and making cuts is about trying to make as many of these meaningful synergy connections between different cards as possible, getting the right amount of each type of effect you want (3 vs 4 of a specific effect like Dreadbore matters a lot vs some decks!), and then you cut either your lowest synergy cards, or effects you think you could safely go down a count on. Usually you want 6-8 ways of getting your key card in action, or 6+ of each combo piece/synergy if it involves multiple cards, and in a perfect world you want 4+ post board copies of HATE for particular meta decks, like 4 Leyline of the Void vs. Living End, or 8 killspells that can kill a Primeval Titan or Sheoldred. Your board cards should address aspects of other decks that really threaten you, no need to run those Leylines if you already beat that deck most of the time. It often comes down to having the right reactive cards, so you want good numbers of the ones you'll need the most.

Sorry for the whole ass book! It seemed like you wanted the help and I liked the concept/got into it a bit once I started looking. I think there's a lot of work and playtesting you could do to really optimize this, and maybe it could end up being pretty good+still affordable!

Icbrgr on MBC: Classic 8-Rack

9 months ago

@capwner I actually just had a FNM tonight and played this deck (but my Shriekmaw/Slaughter Pact/Sudden Spoiling/Grim Discovery are still in the mail... so instead I was running a playset of Bloodghast and some ratio of Liliana's Triumph/Sheoldred's Edict/Augur of Skulls... I will update this deck with the matchup results next week when I get the missing cards in.

Tonight I played against yawg and Rhinos and had a bye.... In the yawgmoth matchup One of the games I just got absolutely blown out by Force of Vigor getting rid of my both The Rack/Shrieking Afflictions and both of us were in topdeck mode but I ended up losing. I went 1-2 for both the games I played tonight; granted I lost but they were close/winnable I swear!

I have been toying with the idea of Cabal Coffers but The real monkey wrench of the deck is Smallpox and Liliana of the Veil... some games I can get 5 lands in play but other times its a struggle to get/keep 3; I think thats why I like Ghost Quarter simply because there isn't any investment to use it.

capwner on MBC: Classic 8-Rack

9 months ago

It's sweet how budget this list is! I have no idea how good 8 rack is in modern right now but I could see it being rough without access to some of the big haymakers that Coffers has, are you finding that you can get under decks like Yawg and Titan? Would love to see some matchup specific info in your description. Sudden Spoiling is a sweet card btw. Have you considered running Field of Ruin, Demolition Field, Sunken Citadel? These cards are affordable and can be pretty effective vs some greedy decks. And of course Urza's Saga tutoring for your rack is pretty banger. Also here's an idea, Aether Vial for Augur of Skulls during upkeep? Probably not the best thing for this deck but in another build maybe!

DreadKhan on Sacrificial Treachery

2 years ago

Well, I'm glad a few were worth a look! If you're really into lower budget stuff, there is also Augur of Skulls that is about the most efficient bulk discard spell at 1B for 2 cards, but it's also a blocker if you'd prefer a regenerating weenie. Another cheap way to sacrifice a creature (that you've stolen probably) and hopefully be discarding a manageable amount is Smallpox. Not sure if you think you can handle the card loss, but I'd hate to not mention it, and Pox are very good effects if you want to pressure people's hands and boards.

As for the art, that's funny because I actively go well out of my way to find older art generally, I especially prize any of the really old stuff, pre-digital is very special to me. My Rakdos deck still has an Uncle Istvan, it's just too cool to cut out, there are better cards, but Istvan has better art IMHO. Obviously you can't run too many pet cards, but I hate to run none. I commend you for sticking to what you enjoy, and am happy your tastes don't compete with mine!

ObserverWill on Tergrid's Damnation

2 years ago

I’ve played this deck a few times and it definitely works as advertised. I’ve made a couple of small edits on the creature side. I removed some of the higher CMC creatures and added Augur of Skulls and Mindstab Thrull. They are much easier to cast and will aid in getting the opponents to discard.

Just to add insult to injury I added Whispering Specter. I hadn’t run into that card before but it is definitely the right amount of evil to include here.

I plan on making some updates for the sets after Kaldheim soon.

DreadKhan on 8 Rack *Budget*

3 years ago

In my very limited experience, I found that cards like Necrogen Mists and Bottomless Pit felt more effective than Hymn, especially in games where I only got 1 (or could only keep 1 out) Rack, and the opponent could stabilize eventually. 1 of those makes it impossible to stabilize for most decks, and a 2nd will turn your Racks on in a turn or 2. I think if you run enough Racks, longer games aren't an issue, but at 8, I worry some will end up stretched out.

Davriel, Rogue Shadowmage isn't a terrible card in a deck like this, offering both discard and an additional Rack, if a bad one. Another odd card that can work is Augur of Skulls , a surprisingly handy chump blocker, and can sac to cost the opponent 2 cards if you don't need him, for only 2 mana, which is hilariously better than Mind Rot at least.

If you want a higher budget target, Liliana of the Veil is straight up amazing in a deck like this, arguably the best card ever printed for a deck like this. I'd run it over Mind Twist in a heartbeat, and that's banned for some reason. Running more Lilianas enables you to benefit fully from Liliana's Triumph , a painfully useful card vs decks running creatures, and along with a Lil is likely going to clear their board.

I don't think you really need to change your deck, just wanted to bring some things to your attention. Good work!

PuddinWing on Vampire Party

4 years ago

Viscera Seer, Grudge Keeper, or Augur of Skulls, to replace Shadow Alley Denizen and complete the Party?

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