Why is Necropotence so good?
General forum
Posted on Aug. 9, 2013, 4:44 p.m. by crystalizeq
Okay, so first off, I know that Necropotence is a good card. But what I don't understand, is why people are like "OMFZG THIS IS SO BROKEN."
Because, the way I look at it, is that each time you draw a card, you lose 1 life, but you don't draw a card each turn. Yes, having more cards than your opponent is a very good thing, but not when you have to pay so much life while using it. If you could gain life somehow, then it would be very good, and in EDH it is insanely good, but in just Constructed, I don't see how it is as amazing as people make it out to be.
So when you are done casting spells for the turn and have 4 cards in hand you pay three life and fill it right back up in your end step. Next turn wash rinse repeat.
August 9, 2013 4:56 p.m.
Ohthenoises says... #4
When this card was originally broken it was used with Drain Life and Corrupt which made for a very powerful engine. Pay life to draw cards that gain you life and deal some damage and then refill your hand again.
It's also why Griselbrand was banned in EDH.
August 9, 2013 5:01 p.m.
Rhadamanthus says... #5
It's because you get to draw 3-4 cards per turn with no mana investment, and it's very easy to gain more life. Check out my Necro Control deck as an example.
August 9, 2013 5:02 p.m.
Weston Ayarza says... #6
So there was a point in standard where people would literally just smother you in card advantage with this. Turn one is Dark Ritual +Necropotence , and they would just drown you with efficient removal. Imagine the deck that literally plays with it's entire library in hand. It really doesn't matter if you have 1 hp, if you're opponent is taking a Drain Life for 10 every other turn. The drawback isn't a draw back, because necropotence is the most efficient card draw engine ever printed in magic EVER.
August 9, 2013 5:19 p.m.
aeonstoremyliver says... #7
Wasn't it the infamous 'Summer of 96' that saw the mass influx of Necropotence decks?
And I concur with the above statements. A Dark Ritual into Necropotence turn 1 is phenomenal. Also, there's a reason why it's banned in Legacy.
August 9, 2013 5:20 p.m.
MaskOfBorro says... #8
Another reason Necropotence is so powerful is its use in combo decks. A combo deck doesn't care about life totals as it just aims to set up the combo for the immediate win. Having access to half your deck with a Necropotence virtually guarantees that you can pull off the combo.
August 9, 2013 5:26 p.m.
Ohthenoises says... #9
aeonstoremyliver it's been called the "black summer"
"Unmask pitching Spinning Darkness , Swamp , Dark Ritual , Necropotence , pay 5 at EoT and refill. Pass turn."
August 9, 2013 5:35 p.m.
Perryshattuck says... #10
All of the above is true, but my personal favorite combo with Necropotence is Near-Death Experience .
August 9, 2013 5:35 p.m.
@Perryshattuck That combo looks weak at first but I've actually lost to it on a few occasions. Being able to draw a chunk of your deck to find the Near-Death Experience and a fist full of answers to protect it and you until your next upkeep is brutal (just watch out for RDW).
To add to what's already been said, it's an enchantment and is therefore (more often than not) harder for an opponent to deal with than something like Griselbrand .
August 9, 2013 6:01 p.m.
doinitwrong says... #13
Also, Ivory Tower can completely negate the life loss. It sets you up to draw and play up to 3 cards every turn without a downside (gets even more obscene with Library of Leng ). When decks like My Death Skull get going like that, it's almost impossible to stop them.
August 10, 2013 midnight
doinitwrong says... #14
*Technically you can draw and play up to 7 each turn, but 3 is the most I've had reason to in a game.
August 10, 2013 12:06 a.m.
There's also the version with Ivory Tower used in conjunction with weenies (like Black Knight and Hypnotic Specter ) to just pump out a large, efficient army rather quickly.
August 10, 2013 12:20 a.m.
@aeonstoremyliver Necropotence doesn't draw so the journal wouldn't trigger
August 10, 2013 1:59 a.m.
GureiSeion says... #18
@rache - Venser's Journal doesn't care about drawing, nor the draw step. Still triggers on upkeep.
Epochalyptik says... #2
First, this isn't a rules question. Moved to General.
Second, always having a full hand is extremely good. Life is a resource. If you can pay some life to have more cards in hand, then you'll often have an advantage over an opponent who's struggling to not overextend.
August 9, 2013 4:46 p.m.