It has been 16 Years. Sixteen years i have waited for this moment.
Braids, Cabal Minion is unbanned. (Effective date: April 22, 2025.)
So let us dive into it.
This deck plays a game of Attrition in order to win with either by completely locking down your opponents or one of a few combos, however this can be quite a balancing act - especially the very first few turns.
You want to pressure your opponent ASAP, but make shure you have enough to sacrifice to keep the pressure up.
You won't like all sacrifices you have to make, but so do your opponents.
In order to make the right decisions, it is crucial to know the cards' synergies and the tutor targets.
I will deliver a table with the synergies and explain my card choices eventually. Apart from Sheoldred, the Apocalypse and Liliana of the Veil - which i will acquire soon - I own this deck in paper and will upload a few images of signed cards.
Stay tuned!
Scribbled notes so far:
Creature
Bloodghast - Recurring fodder.
Butcher Ghoul - Fodder, combos with Yawgmoth, Thran Physician to draw a bunch of cards.
Cathodion - Fodder. Can be used for Mana.
Chainer, Dementia Master - Reanimate Anything at Instant-speed - ETBs are your friend.
Crypt Ghast - Insane Mana if you can keep it around. Extort can be a mana dump.
Geralf's Messenger - Fodder, combos with Yawgmoth, Thran Physician to draw a bunch of cards and to win,
if you have more life than opponent(s).
Gray Merchant of Alphabet :-) - Can safe you in a pinch, possible Wincon, if you keep recurring it and have some devotion.
Liliana, Heretical Healer
- Wincon and Utility depending on situation.
Memnite - Fodder.
Mikaeus, the Unhallowed - Wincon with Triskelion, draws a bunch of cards with Yawgmoth, Thran Physician + any non human
Creature.
Chunky body can be used to close the game if you dont have the other pieces.
Can be easily assembled With Buried Alive + Victimize.
Ophiomancer - Provides Fodder each upkeep.
Ornithopter - Fodder.
Phyrexian Walker - Guessed correctly - fodder.
Priest of Gix - Fodder. Has some ways to net mana with Liliana, Heretical Healer
's -X or Soldevi Adnate.
Shambling Ghast - Fodder. Its Treasure token can be either used for mana or keep Braids, Cabal Minion for another turn.
Sheoldred, Whispering One - Wincon. Sticking this and Braids, Cabal Minion on the board is what i want to see.
Sheoldred, the Apocalypse - Wincon. Finish with this if you have locked your opponents down.
Shield Sphere - Another fodder piece.
Soldevi Adnate - Underrated Card. Fantastic Ramp.
Solemn Simulacrum - Fodder. Good recursion piece.
Triskelion - Combo piece with Mikaeus, the Unhallowed. Gets rid of Birds.
Xiahou Dun, the One-Eyed - Utility.
Yawgmoth, Thran Physician - Draw engine. Combos with undiing Creatures.
Enchantment
Animate Dead - Reanimate.
Bitterblossom - Provides fodder in each of your upkeeps.
Contamination - Hose any player that doesn't play black.
Infernal Darkness - Same as Contamination.
NecropotenceGC - Draw engine. Putting 20-ish cards in your hand should find you what you need.
Phyrexian Arena - Draw engine.
Planeswalker
Liliana of the Veil - Wincon. Utility.
Lands
Ancient TombGC - lets you play Braids, Cabal Minion one turn earlier.
Bloodstained Mire - Gives additional Bloodghast trigger, shuffles Scroll Rack and Sensei's Divining Top,
fetches a Swamp every turn with Crucible of Worlds
Cabal Coffers - Additional Mana late, but bad early, best paired with Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth
Castle Locthwain - Draw engine.
Cavern of Souls - Human is the best choice for Creature type. You can choose a new Creature type on Cavern of Souls,
if you recur it with Crucible of Worlds.
Lake of the Dead - A pure gem, insane ramp. Use Crucible of Worlds to recover in the long run. Can be difficult to manage.
Nykthos, Shrine to Nyx - Similar to Cabal Coffers, but has potential to explode faster.
Peat Bog - lets you play Braids, Cabal Minion one turn earlier.
Phyrexian Tower - lets you play Braids, Cabal Minion one turn earlier. (Granted you have some fodder.)
Polluted Delta - Same as Bloodstained Mire.
Strip Mine - If Braids, Cabal Minion just isn't enough - both together can be the nail in the coffin early.
Swamp - This is what you want in Mono-Black. Synergizes with Cabal Coffers.
Four of these bad boys let you cast Braids, Cabal Minion.
Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth - Hell yea! Even more Swamps. Cabal Coffers and Crypt Ghast are its best friends.
Fixes colorless producing Lands and makes Sheoldred, Whispering One unblockable.
Volrath's Stronghold - Fantastic Land. An endless supply of Creatures - given they keep diing.
War Room - Draw engine. Slightly worse than the Castle Locthwain in most situations, since it produces colorless Mana.
Wasteland - Same as Strip Mine.
Sorcery
Artifact
Instant
Commander
Braids, Cabal Minion - The ideal development is to keep her around as early as possible until your opponents have sacrificed most of their lands
before managing to stabilize. Remember, you can always sacrifice herself to re-cast later, if you can not keep up the
pressure.
Putting her in the graveyard is a viable option for recursion and reanimate.
