Sideboard

Sorcery (2)


BW shadow

(splashing red for Pyrite Spellbomb, Wear / Tear, and third colour in prismatic ending.)

Built around the synergies between Urza's Saga/ Death's Shadow and Hex Parasite - Hex Parasite can help trigger 3rd saga ability each turn by removing a counter in response to last ability, and can also be used to grow shadows at will by activating for 0 and paying phyrexian with life.

Main Deck Inclusions

8 ways to tutor parasite: 4x Urza's Saga, 4x ranger captain.

Having reliable access to parasite makes Faith's Shield strong, as you can put yourself to <5 life regularly, enabling an attack through single colour blockers, countering a spell that targets you, or preventing all damage from attackers of a single colour. NOTE: Faith's Shield is currently bugged on MTGO (despite the bug being reported over a year ago), and will only give you (not any other permanents you control) protection when fateful hour is active.

As many artifacts as possible were included to make the saga tokens more relevant as an alternative win condition if you can't find Death's Shadow. Tidehollow Sculler over Inquisition of Kozilek is a nod to this. I initially tried running Portable Hole over Prismatic Ending for this reason, but found that hole was worse than ending often enough to include ending over it. Notably hole cannot hit 3 drops including Blood Moon and Lurrus of the Dream-Den. It was also often hit by cards that hurt artifacts such as Kolaghan's Command, and matched up very poorly against Engineered Explosives.

I'd consider the four flex slots to be the 2 Faith's Shield and the 2 Tourach, Dread Cantor. I've liked shield more and more since including it and recommend honestly trying it out before cutting; it steals lots of games you would struggle to win otherwise, including against creature decks (elves, merfolk, goblins), burn/aggro decks, and is still useful against midrange decks for saving key pieces. Combined with Giver of Runes, it can be hard for your opponent to interact effectively. Note that it can protect all permanents (including Urza's Saga) even without fateful hour.

I landed on two Tourach, Dread Cantor as a main deck hedge against Solitude decks, including 4c and UW. It works well enough against those decks, but I would change it to something like Fatal Push to target Ragavan, Nimble Pilferer if you expect more of those decks.

Sideboard Inclusions

SB has a strong hedge against burn with 4 Blossoming Calm. I don't like losing that match up, and think that it is common enough that you can justify the strong commitment. The only other match ups I bring calm in is against Belcher and decks running Tribal Flames.

I have included 4 Fatal Push in the sideboard. These are for Hammer and Lurrus/Ragavan decks. I have noticed that with saga/parasite/ranger captain that the deck has a slight advantage grinding in these matches and the most common way I lose is to tempo from early threats backed by removal. A Fatal Push helps stop a ragavan from taking over the game, and push is one of the best cards to stop hammer from killing you early.

Giant Killer is included purely for Murktide Regent. Its a tutorable answer to a card that nothing else in the deck can answer when in play. I often find that the Murktide match comes down to pressuring your opponent enough to force them to leave Murktide back when they find one, but killer is a good contingency if things go wrong and they get one down early. I wouldn't bother bringing it in against shadow/goyf decks - Fatal Push should be enough. I also don't bring it in against titan decks - if they resolve a titan and you don't already have lethal in play, removing it won't do enough to win the game.

Nihil Spellbomb is an extra hedge against the graveyard, or against decks with Kroxa. It might be better as a Grafdigger's Cage as that hits Yawgmoth decks too, but I landed on the bomb as an extra hedge against Drown in the Loch - target your own graveyard to turn the spellbomb into a black Veil of Summer.

Pithing Needle is there for Yawgmoth, Thran Physician, but can come in against any deck likely to play planeswalkers - especially Teferi, Hero of Dominaria. There's some other match ups its good against (Belcher), and thanks to saga it often does more than a single sideboard slot should.

Wear / Tear is a hedge against other Saga decks, or decks playing Karn, the Great Creator. Very good against Amulet Titan and Hammer.

Finally, Necromentia is included for Amulet Titan and Yawgmoth decks, though there are others in the format that its also great against. I've brought it in against Tron, but wouldn't really recommend that. If resolved against decks its good against it wins the game on the spot, which I think justifies the inclusion. I'd bring it in against Living End, but not Rhinos.

Thanks for checking out my deck, I've put a lot of thought into it and hope that someone else might find it as fun and interesting to pilot as I do. Happy to read through any feedback too, especially thoughts about inclusions and how to build the deck in different metas.

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Casual

100% Competitive

Date added 2 years
Last updated 2 years
Legality

This deck is Modern legal.

Rarity (main - side)

6 - 0 Mythic Rares

31 - 4 Rares

11 - 10 Uncommons

2 - 1 Commons

Cards 60
Avg. CMC 1.26
Tokens Construct 0/0 C, Zombie 2/2 B
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