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EDH Rakdos Group Slug

Commander / EDH* BR (Rakdos) Demons Devotion Fear Group Slug Hatebears

amarthaler

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Lands (35)

Protection (6)

Card Draw Punishers (3)

Land Play Punishers (3)

Tutors (2)

Ramp (12)

Cast Spell / Use Ability Punishers (7)

Finishers / Wipes (4)

Removal (4)

Upkeep Punishers (3)

Damage Amplifiers (1)

Commander (1)

Card Draw (9)

Life Gain / Loss (4)

Took Damage Punishers (4)

Havoc & Distractions (2)

Maybeboard

Other (22)

In order to keep this deck interesting and refreshing, I plan to swap out the Commander every so often. The archetype will always remain the same - group slug, and very few cards will change (unless of course new ones come out that are worth tossing in). If you have any Commander suggestions in mind for me, please leave a comment below!

Current Commander for the deck: Obosh, the Preypiercer!

Previously used Commanders:

Magic has a long history of punishing cards, and the Guild of Rakdos has no shortage of these. Stepping outside my comfort zone and into this new territory, I've been tinkering with a deck that constantly dishes damage to the entire table, but also has a consistent win condition. Unlike the majority of "group slug" decks out there, this one is not trying to trying to make the game completely unbearable and agonizing for our playgroup - but it will certainly speed up the game! Often times, smart opponents will see what's going on with this deck's strategy and take advantage of it. The hope would be that our opponents attack each other, while this Rakdos deck continues to burn everyone's life totals down each turn. We, too, can embrace the havoc that ensues within and lay riot to our opponents when the moment is right!

Xantcha's primary purpose as our Commander is to distract our opponents with combat and card draw - having them deal each other damage while we build our board state. Not only does she have a goad effect, but she also has an ability allowing anyone to pay in order to draw a card and deal 2 damage to her current controller. Let the havoc begin!
Obosh's primary purpose as our Commander is to amplify all of our odd CMC permanents which deal damage to opponents. It's important to note that loss of life is NOT considered damage for this strategy to work. We run a total of 19 odd CMC permanents which could deal damage in some fashion.

In order to make this deck work efficiently, it's important that we don't get overzealous with the amount of damage cards we have out on the field. Rather, it's effective to have a few put into play while we continue to dig for interactive spells - whether its to set up more defense or find the game-winning piece. As you draw cards, keep an eye out for working synergies between artifacts, enchantments and creatures (e.g. Solphim, Mayhem Dominus or Obosh, the Preypiercer with something like Zo-Zu the Punisher or Descent into Avernus for extra damage). Lastly, keep in mind that some of these cards can also be punishing us at the same time as our opponents - the true Rakdos way!

The mana base is very straight forward, and we have a rather nice ramp package built into the deck. There are some black mana staples to work with, such as Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth and Crypt Ghast. For red, we're running Chandra, Torch of Defiance, Mana Geyser and the new Descent into Avernus. The bulk of our card draw, ramp and interactive cards are in the 3 CMC range of the deck's mana curve, allowing more flexibility to play the 4-6 CMC creatures by mid-game.

Unfortunately for group slug decks, there is a large majority of players out there that get frustrated with the constant damage per turn and choose to seek out destroying us. On that note, we run cards in this deck which not only protect us from a 1-turn slaughter, but also punish our opponents for encroaching into our battlefield. For this we run Dread and No Mercy which destroy anything we don't block. Lastly, Vandalblast is a classic card which helps us deal with artifacts, and Shunt can help deflect a devastating spell onto someone else's board.

Lastly, as you're working towards a winning play, again keep in mind that this deck can also be punishing you at the same time as your opponents! That being said, your winning play will likely be a "just-in-time" one that sweeps away an opponent or all opponents. I intentionally crafted this deck to not be stove piped into a single win condition, but rather count on luck of the draw to see what we get and what fun synergies we can throw onto the battlefield. Possible win conditions include but are not limited to:

This deck is constantly evolving as new cards are released and the synergy is further developed. I always aim to smooth out the mana curve and help the overall strategy become more efficient - but not over-powered. This brew must remain somewhat fun to play against and not make the game feel miserable.

Suggestions and feedback are always welcome - thanks for reading and happy tapping!

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Date added 10 months
Last updated 1 week
Legality

This deck is Commander / EDH legal.
Rarity (main - side)

9 - 0 Mythic Rares

45 - 0 Rares

18 - 0 Uncommons

9 - 0 Commons
Cards 100
Avg. CMC 3.42
Tokens Emblem Chandra, Torch of Defiance, Lightning Rager, Shapeshifter 3/2 C, Thrull 0/1 B, Treasure
Folders EDH Decks, Read Later, EDH, Commander, Commander, Tapped Out - User Decks
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