Grave Pact is not card you play on curve so it costing 3 black should almost never be an issue and therefore is not the reason why I play Dictate.

Flash however, as mentioned, is stupidly strong in EDH and it gives you a whole load of new choices. Someone hitting you with a 10/10 while you only have 3 spirit tokens in play? Flash in Dictate and chump that sucker. Someone trying to wipe your board while keeping theirs? Flash in Dictate and make them pay. All situations that would never happen when you have a Grave Pact in play (since people are aware what’s going to happen then).

All that on top of the usual benefits of having flash like casting it in response to the blue player tapping out.

Fektoer Great points, indeed. Thanks for the clarification. I was a bit surprised when I read the primer and didn't see Grave pact because you mentioned about not playing Necropotence because it's too powerful and NOT because of the triple B cost. Flash is stupid strong in this format. Agreed. I guess I was just a little biased because I have Dictate in Marchesa and just got a Grave Pact to replace it because I almost never cast it when it's in my hand. My board isn't wide enough to justify it and I'd rather play something worth making it stronger. But, I suppose the decks are just built differently in that case. I can imagine flashing in a Dictate with 3-4 nontoken creatures and 10+ tokens in play...so..Good choice in that respect

Necro I don't play because it's so good it becomes boring. The only correct choice when you play a tutor is Necro, save for some very fringe scenarios. Without Necro in the deck you actually have a choice to make. I like having agency as a player instead of the deck playing itself. So when I win/lose it's because of choices I made, not because I play necro in a 40 life environment.

About Dictate, it doesn't matter how much you have on board. The thing is that the opponent doesn't know you have a dictate in hand so therefore makes plays he/she thinks are beneficial to him/her, like swinging at you with a 10/10. Dictate having flash makes it so you can punish that play while if you would have Grave Pact in play, that opportunity to punish would never be there. The only reason I would play Grave Pact, regardless of deck, is if I already have Dictate in the deck.

True, true, when I first built Teysa it was combo city. Every other card combo'd with every other card. Became boring pretty fast. But I struggle to build around Teysa without putting those cards in because while they are combo pieces, they also synergize really well with her when you don't have the combo.

When I play Breya and cast Demonic Tutor everyone just goes "OH, and now he's getting the combo piece" and I have to stop and say "ehhh, maybe, you don't know that" ..but they do know lol

Gocha, gocha. Dictate vs Grave Pact is kind of the Cyclonic Rift vs a Damnation...in a weird way lol

Yeah, at first I wanted to just add Grave pact to Marchesa cause she has Dictate already, then i debated swapping Dictate for Pact and now I'm probably gonna see if I can fit both. Thanks for the wisdom :D

Speaking on the deck playing itself by having multiple OP effects (Necro-draw, d tutor-tutor, etc), I think it could still be advantageous to play Enlightened tutor.

There's no real "correct" choice in this list for when you cast that. You could get Divine Visitation, or Skullclamp, or Anointed Procession, Land Tax, Dictate, or even just a mana rock. I mean, you have 25 options (including some of your creatures)

But maybe that's why you run Vamp Tutor? And not both? Idk, just a thought. If I built this verbatim I would probably add enlightened tutor.

OH...that vamp tutor was literally just added lol nevermind then. I just saw the update. I agree though, I wasn't a fan of Overseer of the Damned when I first read it. But cutting expedition map in a non-green deck? mmmmmmm..i dunno. Let us know how this plays without it. I'm really curious if you feel like you'll need to add it back in.

I don't run Enlightened Tutor because I play black, thus I have access to Vampiric Tutor which does all that Enlightened Tutor does and more. Running them both might be an option but the fact that they are card disadvantage (you spend a card but you get nothing back) should not be underestimated. Vampiric Tutor makes up for that by it's sheer versatility, it can get you any card you need. With Demonic Tutor already in there (and now Sidisi too) I don't feel the need in adding another tutor since some kind of randomness in what you draw is fun. I could add more tutors like Imperial Seal but in the end it will just become boring. Tutor responsibly people!

I swapped Expedition Map for Vampiric Tutor so I don't lose out much. In addition, Expedition Map is a horrible topdeck late game while Vampiric Tutor is never bad and might straight-up win you the game.

Fektoer

Hmmm, yeah I never really considered them card disadvantage cuz usually it's on the end step before your turn, but yeah, good point.

True, true, I just ordered some expedition map becuse it's also useful in my Marchesa deck and hell, maybe even Breya, but that cut will be a hard one if I choose to include it. I don't have a vamp tutor for every black deck I own after all

Doesn’t matter when you cast Vampiric/Enlightened, you spend a card with nothing in return. Yes, your top card is now the card you want but you still need to sacrifice a draw to get it. Compared to Demonic Tutor that replaces itself with a card.

WunderlichDrums Expedition Map into Inventors' Fair into Crucible of Worlds

I run Daretti runs Purphoros's Forge! as my main artifact deck I do not have my Breya deck list up loaded yet.

Fektoer Yeah, great point. Vamp tutor is usually an auto include whenever I create a list for a black deck...after Demonic tutor after all, but I'll have to start reconsidering my card evaluation process.

Amyas Nice! I don't run Crucible of worlds in my Breya artifact deck though and honestly, I was debating how good inventor's fair is in my breya deck the other day. 5 mana for a 1 time conditional Artifact only tutor? mmeeehhh, i dunno.

WunderlichDrums I end up doing it every turn.

Daretti runs Purphoros's Forge! starts to make so many vaule plays a turn once it gets going I end up having waaaaay over the resources I need most of the time.

Amyas Oh right...crucible. lol. Yeah, I can see it being a better play in daretti though. Crucible would have no real value in Breya imo. So Inventor's fair is more or less a one time tutor.

Once you get a fetch land out and Crucible you will get a land out every turn.

Can you keep the Daretti discussion in the comment section of that respective deck? Not that I don't like discussions but I'd rather keep this space for discussions about Teysa :)

Fektoer certainly my apologies for the derailment.

Having a Teysa and Prossh deck made me start thinking about resource management alot with EDH decks. A lot of my decks especially Teysa out resource the other decks in my meta. I like to think of Teysa as a value machine.

Especially sacrificing white tokens that I got as a bonus from sacing black creatures for effect a b or c to exile a enemies win con.

Fektoer my bad haha so easy to get side tracked when talking about cards. I...have also been thinking of building Prossh. You sir, have good taste in MTG lmao

Yup!! even back when I had the little combo factory even if I didn't have it assembled on board or in hand Teysa would still be a threat because with just 3 or 4 tokens she becomes hard to deal with. If they're black? Sac em, get white ones, exile a problem. White tokens? Exile.

That's why I'm rebuilding her. She's one of those commanders that I never felt "ok" about taking apart.

And your list has definitely given me some more excitement to rebuild her Fektoer - I'm gonna be implementing a bunch of the cards on your list :)

Martyr's Bond soooo I picked up a copy of this a while back meaning to put it in Teysa. It is currently in another deck.

People HATE seeing this card in my meta. While talking about Grave Pact and Dictate of Erebos this card should be in the mix.

Thanks for the understanding. I got a Daretti deck too, if you want to have a discussion about Daretti: Daretti, Scrap Savant. /shameless-plug

WunderlichDrums good luck! Post the list when you're done :)

Amyas, Martyr's Bond is really good, however it's also 6 mana. I used to play it in Teysa but it got cut in the end since most of the times you just want it for the creature sac effect. There was a period where I ran Bond, Dictate and Butcher of Malakir. It ground games to a halt since any creature would die. Even my own creatures since I'd be targeted by 3 players. After that I mixed it up a bit so it's (kinda) ok for my opponents to have creatures, hence I don't run multiple grave pact effects anymore.

Fektoer Thanks it definitely will be up on my page :)

Also, good point! You gotta let your opponents do SOME things after all or else you become public enemy #1.

Plus I can't really see a scenario where you're utilizing the full effects of martyrs bond in this deck - i.e. saccing permanents that AREN'T creatures, you know?

Aside from someone else boardwiping artifacts or enchantments of course...and tragic arrogance & cataclysmic gearhulk..so a card that works amazingly well with only 2 cards probably isn't the best option, but to each their own :)