commander-josu-vess

Commander / EDH Mono-Black

scottnonnenberg

Ramp (14)

• 1x Black Market
• 1x Burnished Hart
• 1x Crypt Ghast
• 1x Expedition Map
• 1x Extraplanar Lens
• 1x Heraldic Banner
• 1x Jet Medallion
• 1x Mind Stone
• 1x Sol Ring
• 1x Solemn Simulacrum
• 1x Sword of the Animist
• 1x Thought Vessel
• 1x Thran Dynamo
• 1x Wayfarer's Bauble

Tokens (7)

• 1x Abhorrent Overlord
• 1x Cemetery Reaper
• 1x Grave Titan
• 1x Kalitas, Traitor of Ghet
• 1x Liliana's Mastery
• 1x Vizier of the Scorpion
• 1x Wand of Orcus

Boardwipes (4)

• 1x Decree of Pain
• 1x Grave Pact
• 1x In Garruk's Wake
• 1x Mutilate

Token synergy (3)

• 1x Coat of Arms
• 1x Death Baron
• 1x Undead Warchief

Card Draw (11)

• 1x Ambition's Cost
• 1x Ayara, First of Locthwain
• 1x Dark Prophecy
• 1x Erebos, God of the Dead
• 1x Liliana, Dreadhorde General
• 1x Liliana of the Dark Realms
• 1x Necropotence
• 1x Night's Whisper
• 1x Read the Bones
• 1x Undead Augur
• 1x Vilis, Broker of Blood

Big mana (9)

• 1x Army of the Damned
• 1x Ashnod's Altar
• 1x Doubling Cube
• 1x Dread Summons
• 1x Dregs of Sorrow
• 1x Exsanguinate
• 1x Finale of Eternity
• 1x Phyrexian Altar
• 1x Torment of Hailfire

Single-target Removal (6)

• 1x Attrition
• 1x Feed the Swarm
• 1x Murderous Rider
• 1x Overseer of the Damned
• 1x Silence the Believers
• 1x Vraska's Contempt

Reach (2)

• 1x Gray Merchant of Asphodel
• 1x Whip of Erebos

Commander (1)

Land (38)

• 1x Ancient Tomb
• 1x Bojuka Bog
• 1x Cabal Coffers
• 1x Cabal Stronghold
• 1x Ghost Quarter
• 1x Myriad Landscape
• 1x Nykthos, Shrine to Nyx
• 1x Reliquary Tower
• 1x Sanctum of Eternity
• 28x Snow-Covered Swamp
• 1x Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth

Tutors (4)

• 1x Demonic Tutor
• 1x Diabolic Intent
• 1x Razaketh, the Foulblooded
• 1x Sidisi, Undead Vizier

Other (1)

• 1x Vedalken Orrery

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Key ideas:

• Tagline: Zombie tokens, sacrifice and big mana (the soul of black)
• Josu Vess, Lich Knight costs four mana, but we want to cast it for 10, and get eight 2/2 zombie knight tokens with menace! 20 power on the board just like that!
• We want to do big things, so we use all of mono-black's big mana tricks: Cabal Coffers/Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth (and Expedition Map to find them), Crypt Ghast, Extraplanar Lens, Black Market, Nykthos, Shrine to Nyx, Cabal Stronghold, and of course Phyrexian Altar and Ashnod's Altar
• Quite a few more ways to use this mana beyond our commander: Exsanguinate, Torment of Hailfire, Army of the Damned, Finale of Eternity, Dread Summons, Dregs of Sorrow, and even big creatures like Vilis, Broker of Blood and Razaketh, the Foulblooded.
• Quite a few cards to pump up all our little zombie tokens: Heraldic Banner, Cemetery Reaper, Vizier of the Scorpion, Wand of Orcus, Liliana's Mastery, Death Baron, Undead Warchief, Coat of Arms
• Substantial card draw and selection: Pay lots of life into Necropotence to draw lots of cards. Four different cards to tutor for what you need in the moment. Or, have Liliana, Dreadhorde General out and sacrifice all your creatures - draw a card for each creature! Especialy if you have Grave Pact out!
• A subtheme of many-pip cards, to enhance Gray Merchant of Asphodel, Nykthos, Shrine to Nyx and Abhorrent Overlord, and turn on Erebos, God of the Dead. Several cards with three pips, and a whole lot with two: Dark Prophecy, Necropotence, Ayara, First of Locthwain, Vilis, Broker of Blood, Grave Pact, and Razaketh, the Foulblooded.
• Finally, a Vedalken Orrery to make this deck a little harder to predict

Inspired by Commander Replay:

• Deck: https://tappedout.net/mtg-decks/josu-vess-lich-knight-4/
• Gameplay: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T4_Vk1FJxxQ

Date added	5 years
Last updated	9 months
Legality	This deck is Commander / EDH legal.
Rarity (main - side)	9 - 0 Mythic Rares 41 - 0 Rares 14 - 0 Uncommons 8 - 0 Commons
Cards	100
Avg. CMC	3.76
Tokens	Emblem Liliana of the Dark Realms, Harpy 1/1 B, Zombie 2/2 B, Zombie Army 0/0 B, Zombie Knight 2/2 B