Here is my Grimgrin, Corpse-Born EDH deck that I have in real life. It is a fairly competitive deck with a good chance at winning in both multi-player and 1v1. Predominantly, it is combo oriented, all of which I will go over, but also can become a beat-down / control deck if need be. Obviously, it is zombie tribal, which only makes it more fun to play with.
Regarding the play group that I am used to playing in, I would say that it is a very competitive pool with high tier decks. Some of these decks that I have gone up against include Glissa, the Traitor, Maelstrom Wanderer, Arcum Dagsson,
Teneb, the Harvester
, as well as others, and I have done very well. Now, onto the Deck Tech:
Combos:-Rooftop Storm+Grimgrin, Corpse-Born+Blood Artist/Diregraf Captain/Vengeful Dead+Gravecrawler: The main combo of the deck, being able to pull this off allows you to infinitely ping everyone else's life down to zero and thus win.--+
Noxious Ghoul
: Allows you to wipe the board.--+Phyrexian Altar: Alternative to Rooftop Storm, but same effect.
-Mikaeus, the Unhallowed+Triskelion: obvious combo is obvious ;)
-Contamination+Bitterblossom/Gravecrawler/Reassembling Skeleton/Bloodline Keeper
/Any other form of token generation: Allows you to lock down all non-black decks by turn 3! BE WARNED THOUGH: If you are playing against decks with any amount of black in them, they WILL go after you right away, and once Contamination gets removed from play, every other angry player in the game will come after you HARD. So don't play it unless you are absolutely certain you can keep it in play, but in the games I've played, in short: It will be removed.
-Phyrexian Reclamation/Lord of the Undead/Unholy Grotto+
Twisted Abomination
/Jhessian Zombies or Fleshbag Marauder: Infinite land ramp, or removal, take your pick.
Deck Notes:
-Grimgrin Plays:
Havengul Lich
/Cemetery Reaper/Bloodline Keeper
/Geth, Lord of the Vault/Gravecrawler/Haakon, Stromgald Scourge/Reassembling Skeleton/
Lich Lord of Unx
/Liliana's Reaver/sheoldread, whispering one/Mikaeus, the Unhallowed/Bitterblossom/Unholy Grotto/Phyrexian Reclamation: All of these are means of feeding Grimgrin, and generally harassing your opponents; maybe that's why I get so much hate... :(
-Recursion:Buried Alive/Entomb/Sheoldred, Whispering One/Reanimate/Animate Dead/
Havengul Lich
/Patriarch's Bidding/Living Death: Don't be afraid of let stuff die or picking other stuff out of opponents graves, this has helped me out quite a bit. However, these can be very risky plays, because A: counters/removals, B: board-wipes, and inevitably, C: retaliation. Oh well, no said playing undead abominations would be easy.
-Draw Power!:
Dralnu, Lich Lord
/Graveborn Muse/Vampiric Tutor/demoning tutor/Buried Alive/Entomb/Rhystic Study/Phyrexian Arena/Bident of Thassa/Skullclamp: All good ways of getting you into what you need, especially your combos or much needed answers. Beware for the enchantments/artifacts though, it will NOT take long for your opponents to remove them (Carnsarn jackanapes)!
-Mana Ramp:
Twisted Abomination
/Jhessian Zombies+Lord of the Undead/Phyrexian Reclamation/Unholy Grotto and Crypt Ghast, Caged Sun, Talisman of Dominace, Dimir Signet, Mana Vault, Sol Ring, Phyrexian Metamorph: Good ways of making your plays. However, here are some notes. Both Talisman of Dominance and Dimir Signet are necessary I feel to add that little bit more to the pool, plus are entirely vital if you are playing Contamination. Caged Sun is VERY crucially because the deck relies on big cards, and if you can't get into consistent land draws, or ramp, then this card is a must to boost you up.
-Removal:Damnation/Life's Finale/Living Death/
Sever the Bloodline
/Hinder/Spell Crumple/No Mercy/Call to the Grave/Grave Pact/Fleshbag Marauder/Sheoldred, Whispering One: Three board-wipes to fall back on, an exile card to get rid of pesky reanimation targets a indestructible permanents. Speaking of reanimation decks, be careful using Call to the Grave/No Mercy/Grave Pact because of obvious reasons. Hinder and Spell Crumple because they get rid of other commanders and reanimation targets (Expect to become a target).
-Lands of Notice:Cavern of Souls Obvious, but I don't get as much utility as you would think out of it.Minamo, School at Water's Edge: Absolutely vital for Grimmy-Groo.Reliquary Tower: obvious card is obvious.Rogue's Passage/Shizo, Death's Storehouse: To get over and around.Strip Mine: Kil teh enimee cabhall coffus!
-Other cards of note:Grave Titan: EXCELLENT TARGET FOR REANIMATE AND ANITMATED DEAD O.O: On a serious note, using Buried Alive or Entomb is an obvious tell, so do your business fast and pray you won't get smacked.
Dralnu, Lich Lord
: There are so many good things in the grave that are a target for this guy...Army of the Damned/Endless Ranks of the Dead: Zambambos surely lurve der tokens they do!
Rite of Replication
: Besides your opponents' cards as targets, you've got good stuff like Bloodline Keeper
, Grave Titan, and others to scare the hell out of your opponents with.Lightning Greaves: Obvious card is obvious.
Side-deck Notes:Attrition: The utility of the card fits so well in the deck, considering what you have to use with it. Of course, then there's other black decks... >:(Gate to Phyrexia: KILL THE ARTIFACTS DEAD!!!Snuff Out+Go for the Throat+Victim of Night: Quick, easy, and cheap spot removal when you need it and for 1v1.
Oblivion Stone
: Better than Nevinyrral's Disk, because if you have the mana you can play it right away. The result is, well, obvious.Sorin Markov: Fun card is fun; also makes for a quick and easy kill or an out when need be.
Spin into Myth
: Goodbye Maelstrom Wanderer...Withered Wrtech: Oh hi, Mr. Reanimation-Deck!Nihil Spellbomb Revenge of the graveyard hate! Plus draw!
Final Comments:
I won't lie, the deck is not political, and it gets a lot of hate for doing ANYTHING (Though it makes the wins more satisfying). Cards that will draw the ire of your opponents for sure are Contamination, Rooftop Storm/Phyrexian Altar, reanimation cards, and hell, Grimgrin himself (And that's not even the end of it)! So, you should definitely play a calculated and patient game, taking your shots where you can, and making the best plays when possible. If you're smart, you'll do just fine. It took me six months to build this deck, and after everything this is the best possible deck that I could make, and it is the one that I will play with over and over again (Ye Olde Stand-by)! So, if you are thinking of building this deck, please do not hesitate to do so, and have fun!
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