Power and Ruin - Demon Tribal [Primer]

Commander / EDH Casual Control Demons Mono-Black Multiplayer Suicide Black Theme/Gimmick

CptnHndsm

Lands (38)

• 1x Ancient Tomb
• 1x Bojuka Bog
• 1x Cabal Coffers
• 1x Cabal Stronghold
• 1x Demolition Field
• 1x Myriad Landscape
• 1x Nykthos, Shrine to Nyx
• 1x Phyrexian Tower
• 1x Reliquary Tower
• 24x Swamp
• 1x Takenuma, Abandoned Mire
• 1x Thespian's Stage
• 1x Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth
• 1x Volrath's Stronghold
• 1x Westvale Abbey  ^Flip

Interaction (9)

• 1x Tragic Slip
• 1x Murderous Rider
• 1x Toxic Deluge
• 1x Damnation
• 1x Reaper from the Abyss
• 1x Kindred Dominance
• 1x Overseer of the Damned
• 1x Reiver Demon
• 1x Dread Cacodemon

Recursion (6)

• 1x Phyrexian Reclamation
• 1x Victimize
• 1x Yawgmoth's Will
• 1x Liliana, Death's Majesty
• 1x Demon of Dark Schemes
• 1x Mikaeus, the Unhallowed

Ramp (15)

• 1x Everflowing Chalice
• 1x Dark Ritual
• 1x Sol Ring
• 1x Wayfarer's Bauble
• 1x Arcane Signet
• 1x Charcoal Diamond
• 1x Jet Medallion
• 1x Leaden Myr
• 1x Mind Stone
• 1x Priest of Forgotten Gods
• 1x Thought Vessel
• 1x Worn Powerstone
• 1x Crypt Ghast
• 1x Solemn Simulacrum
• 1x K'rrik, Son of Yawgmoth

Sacrificial Offerings (9)

• 1x Bitterblossom
• 1x Dreadhorde Invasion
• 1x Reassembling Skeleton
• 1x Ophiomancer
• 1x Rite of Belzenlok
• 1x Sengir Autocrat
• 1x Trading Post
• 1x Priest of the Blood Rite
• 1x Abhorrent Overlord

Tutors (6)

• 1x Expedition Map
• 1x Vampiric Tutor
• 1x Demonic Tutor
• 1x Diabolic Intent
• 1x Blood Speaker
• 1x Rune-Scarred Demon

Commander (1)

Card Draw (13)

• 1x Keen Duelist
• 1x Ayara, First of Locthwain
• 1x Necropotence
• 1x Phyrexian Arena
• 1x Read the Bones
• 1x Pact Weapon
• 1x Bloodgift Demon
• 1x Ob Nixilis Reignited
• 1x Tevesh Szat, Doom of Fools
• 1x Demonlord Belzenlok
• 1x Harvester of Souls
• 1x Lord of the Void
• 1x Vilis, Broker of Blood

Finishers (3)

• 1x Gray Merchant of Asphodel
• 1x Liliana's Contract
• 1x Archfiend of Despair

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Maybeboard

Other (4)

• 1x Persistent Specimen
• 1x Blood Artist
• 1x Feed the Swarm
• 1x Living Death

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In the end, the lights fade, the land withers, and only the dead and vile remain...

This is the land where hope is extinguished. This is the land where dark powers roam. This is the demons' domain - where the unquenchable thirst for eternal servitude from lesser beings will leave nothing but ruin in their wake...

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Thank you for checking out the deck!

Let's take a look at some of the card choices as well as the inner workings of the list!

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Deck Origin Show

The idea for the list came about after my sister made a Mono White Angels deck with Avacyn at the helm. Wanting to battle with a flavorful foe, I set about creating Demon Tribal and it has since been one of my main projects that I have continued to tune and adjust for nearly a decade.

The deck started with Nefarox, Overlord of Grixis at the helm and no non-demon cards. It was fun, but clunky so I sped the list up with a change to Ob Nixilis, the Fallen and a landfall heavy theme. It was able to quickly go under opponents while also possessing a grindy late game if need be, yet something still felt off for Demon tribal and sacrifice... Enter Razaketh, the Foulblooded. I already had a "servitude" token sub-theme in my Ob Nixilis list, and he was a perfect fit for this strategy.

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The Mana Base Show

Real talk: Demons are expensive. They require quite the costs for their power so we run all the best lands and rocks to get them out earlier:

• Being in Mono Black allows for a huge "mana double" bonus which is the deck's most efficient way to power out threats. Cabal Coffers, Cabal Stronghold, Nykthos, Shrine to Nyx, Thespian's Stage, Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth, Crypt Ghast and Expedition Map are all integral to establishing a huge mana pool to summon expensive demons.

• More Ramp: While not as explosive, Ancient Tomb, Myriad Landscape, Phyrexian Tower, and Dark Ritual can all provide additional mana.

• Reliquary Tower and Thought Vessel: No maximum hand size effects + Necropotence = BROKEN. This is a common line that leads to victory. You will definitely draw the wrath of the table, but the card advantage is usually insurmountable and Gray Merchant of Asphodel provides the necessary stabilization.

• Volrath's Stronghold: There are lots of ways to draw cards and this can be used to play the same threats over and over again. Super solid land.

• The Rest: A solid mashup of fast and slow artifacts to ensure the high curve isn't an issue as well as utility lands to give the deck more versatility.

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The Demons Show

When considering tribes in Magic, you need to ask yourself "Why X over Y? What does X give me that Y doesn't in terms of gameplay?" With Demons you generally have a slight downside for a powerful effect. It may be high cost, sacrifice, life, or most notably even your ability to win the game! Where Demons outshine other tribes is in exploiting the downside to your advantage and playing the Demons at their own game. Naturally, all the best of the winged horrors are here:

• Razaketh, the Foulblooded: The leader of the tribe. He is extremely expensive, but the mana base takes this into consideration to make sure he hits early and hard. His ability is absurd, finding you whatever you may need at the time and helping you to sculpt the perfect hand. Honestly exactly what the deck wanted.

• Bloodgift Demon, Ob Nixilis Reignited, Demonlord Belzenlok, Harvester of Souls and Vilis, Broker of Blood: Having additional cards is great and these Demons excel at ensuring the deck flows smoothly and you never run out of threats.

• Rune-Scarred Demon: A demon favoring quality over quantity.

• Reaper from the Abyss, Overseer of the Damned, Reiver Demon, and Dread Cacodemon: Summon these Demons to disrupt your opponents' best laid plans. Mono Black suffers with Artifact and Enchantment removal so the deck leans hard into "the best form of removal is player removal".

• Archfiend of Despair: Speaking of player removal... this demon demands a very steep cost, but simply destroys people out of nowhere. It triggers on each end step, so even your opponents become your minions!

• Abhorrent Overlord. Honestly an all star in this deck. Huge flier with additional underlings for Razaketh. Due to Demons having many Black pips in their costs, this consistently brings a ton Harpies. Can deal a surprising amount of damage if Ayara, First of Locthwain is already in play.

• Demon of Dark Schemes: A little disruption, a little recursion. One of my favorites.

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The Lambs Show

Sacrifice requires loss. These cards offer their blind devotion and flesh to the lords of darkness:

• Gray Merchant of Asphodel: THE lamb - no, let's be honest - THE GOAT of sacrifice fodder. Drains an obscene amount of life from your opponents and provides this for further blood payment. Pairs with recursion and/or Archfiend of Despair for maximum impact.

• Blood Speaker: A self-recurring tutor that rewards you for summoning Demons.

• Solemn Simulacrum: A solid role-player, providing additional Swamps for the mana base and value for sacrifice.

• Bitterblossom, Dreadhorde Invasion, Reassembling Skeleton, Ophiomancer, and Trading Post: Provide additional bodies for sacrifice each turn. Trading Post also pads the life total and allows for some decent loops with Solemn Simulacrum and other artifacts late in the game - particularly excited about this one!

• Rite of Belzenlok, Sengir Autocrat, and Priest of the Blood Rite: One-time token generators, but offer a large upside such as summoning Demons themselves and/or being recurable.

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Other Card Choices Show

• Liliana's Contract: The ultimate Demon payoff attached to a really solid draw spell. When your opponents must answer your card draw or lose...?? Oh yeah... It's all coming together.

• Vampiric Tutor, Demonic Tutor, and Diabolic Intent: In addition to the narrower artifact tutors above, the list runs a handful of other ways to search the deck. While our Commander does tutor, he acts as a way to stabilize or finish the game depending on the board state. Additional tutors in the 99 help smooth out the rest of the deck and early plays leading up to the main event.

• Keen Duelist, Ayara, First of Locthwain, Necropotence, Phyrexian Arena, and Pact Weapon: Can never have too much gas and can never hurt your opponents too much.

• Toxic Deluge, Damnation, and Kindred Dominance: Choice board wipes that provide time to assemble engines.

• Phyrexian Reclamation, Victimize, Yawgmoth's Will, Liliana, Death's Majesty, and Mikaeus, the Unhallowed: In addition to sacrifice for the engine, your opponents will definitely be pointing removal at all of your threats. The recursion package diversifies itself to provide resiliency at all stages of the game.

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Thank you so much for taking the time to check out the deck!

It has been a lot of fun pouring so much flavor into a Commander deck instead of "jam all the good cards" and has made me appreciate the format more as a whole.

If you enjoyed the deck or it inspired you in any way, feel free to let me know with a +1! Have a wonderful day!

Date added	8 years
Last updated	4 months
Legality	This deck is Commander / EDH legal.
Rarity (main - side)	12 - 0 Mythic Rares 40 - 0 Rares 14 - 0 Uncommons 10 - 0 Commons
Cards	100
Avg. CMC	3.94
Tokens	Cleric 0/1 B, Demon 5/5 B, Demon 6/6 B, Emblem Ob Nixilis Reignited, Faerie Rogue 1/1 B, Goat 0/1 W, Harpy 1/1 B, Human Cleric 1/1 BW, Serf 0/1 B, Snake 1/1 B, Thrull 0/1 B, Zombie 2/2 B, Zombie Army 0/0 B
Folders	EDH, Favorite Decks, Favorites, Demons, EDH Deck, funn, Commanders, Commander, dd, Worth stealing from