Vito, Death of a Thousand Cuts

Commander / EDH* Deathtouch Lifegain Lifelink Mono-Black

Red05

Lifegain Sources (12)

• 1x Deathgreeter
• 1x Serrated Scorpion
• 1x Blood Artist
• 1x Demon's Horn
• 1x Exsanguinate
• 1x Simulacrum
• 1x Zulaport Cutthroat
• 1x Syphon Soul
• 1x Sangromancer
• 1x Gray Merchant of Asphodel
• 1x Blood Tribute
• 1x Pontiff of Blight

Lifelink (5)

• 1x Vampiric Link
• 1x Gifted Aetherborn
• 1x Nighthawk Scavenger
• 1x Vampire Nighthawk
• 1x Henrika Domnathi  ^Flip

Boardwipes (4)

• 1x Toxic Deluge
• 1x Archfiend of Depravity
• 1x Blasphemous Edict
• 1x Massacre Wurm

Mana Sources (4)

• 1x Crypt Ghast
• 1x Nyx Lotus
• 1x Paradise Plume
• 1x Nirkana Revenant

Card Draw (10)

• 1x Night's Whisper
• 1x Sign in Blood
• 1x Foreboding Fruit
• 1x Phyrexian Arena
• 1x Read the Bones
• 1x Succumb to Temptation
• 1x Greed
• 1x Well of Lost Dreams
• 1x Clackbridge Troll
• 1x Bolas's Citadel

Removal (8)

• 1x Defile
• 1x Erebos's Intervention
• 1x Suffer the Past
• 1x Malicious Affliction
• 1x Flay Essence
• 1x Tendrils of Corruption
• 1x Noxious Gearhulk
• 1x Vengeant Vampire

Mana Lands (4)

• 1x Arid Archway
• 1x Cabal Stronghold
• 1x Everglades
• 1x Guildless Commons

Special Lands (2)

• 1x Memorial to Folly
• 1x Radiant Fountain

Commander (1)

Ramp (7)

• 1x Everflowing Chalice
• 1x Bubbling Muck
• 1x Dark Ritual
• 1x Sol Ring
• 1x Jet Medallion
• 1x Extraplanar Lens
• 1x Pristine Talisman

Lifegain Effects (4)

• 1x Bloodthirsty Aerialist
• 1x Marauding Blight-Priest
• 1x Alhammarret's Archive
• 1x Sanguine Bond

Basic Lands (30)

• 30x Swamp

Defense (1)

• 1x Darkness

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Maybeboard

Lifegain Sources (28)

• 1x Basilisk Collar
• 1x Bloodchief Ascension
• 1x Howl from Beyond
• 1x Prism Ring
• 1x Witch's Oven
• 1x Diamond Mare
• 1x Drain Life
• 1x Giant's Skewer
• 1x Mire Triton
• 1x Tavern Swindler
• 1x Ayara, First of Locthwain
• 1x Duskfang Mentor
• 1x Grimdancer
• 1x Hooded Blightfang
• 1x Nocturnal Feeder
• 1x Spoils of Evil
• 1x Staff of the Death Magus
• 1x Bushmeat Poacher
• 1x Enduring Tenacity
• 1x Revenge of Ravens
• 1x Whip of Erebos
• 1x Palace Siege
• 1x Magus of the Mirror
• 1x Zof Consumption  ^Flip
• 1x Grave Endeavor
• 2x Shard of the Nightbringer
• 1x Profane Transfusion

Boardwipes (9)

• 1x Bontu's Last Reckoning
• 1x Crypt Rats
• 1x Make an Example
• 1x Mutilate
• 1x Consume the Meek
• 1x Thrashing Wumpus
• 1x Necrotic Hex
• 1x Reiver Demon
• 1x Dread Cacodemon

Too Expensive (4)

• 1x Cabal Coffers
• 1x Damnation
• 1x Sceptre of Eternal Glory
• 1x Kokusho, the Evening Star

Protection (3)

• 1x Kaya's Ghostform
• 1x Dark Privilege
• 1x Champion's Helm

Lifegain Effects (1)

• 1x Bloodbond Vampire

Mana Lands (1)

• 1x Cabal Stronghold

Card Draw (20)

• 1x Insatiable Avarice
• 1x Arguel's Blood Fast  ^Flip
• 1x Endless Atlas
• 1x Isareth the Awakener
• 1x Mask of Griselbrand
• 1x Midnight Reaper
• 1x Necropotence
• 1x Relic Vial
• 1x Cosmos Elixir
• 1x Disciple of Bolas
• 1x Dread Presence
• 1x Erebos, Bleak-Hearted
• 1x Hazel's Nocturne
• 1x Sanguine Indulgence
• 1x Syphon Mind
• 1x Twilight Prophet
• 1x Command the Dreadhorde
• 1x Harvester of Souls
• 1x Soul of Innistrad
• 1x Vilis, Broker of Blood

Special Lands (10)

• 1x Barren Moor
• 1x Blighted Fen
• 1x Bojuka Bog
• 1x Castle Locthwain
• 1x Labyrinth of Skophos
• 1x Leechridden Swamp
• 1x Mortuary Mire
• 1x Mystifying Maze
• 1x Tyrite Sanctum
• 1x Witch's Cottage

Lifelink Vampires (7)

• 1x Indulgent Aristocrat
• 1x Vampire Cutthroat
• 1x Vampire of the Dire Moon
• 1x Blood Glutton
• 1x Bloodline Necromancer
• 1x Markov Crusader
• 1x Tivash, Gloom Summoner

Mana Sources (3)

• 1x Black Market
• 1x Gauntlet of Power
• 1x K'rrik, Son of Yawgmoth

Ramp (3)

• 1x Bontu's Monument
• 1x Hierophant's Chalice
• 1x Relic of Legends

Too Mean (1)

• 1x Wound Reflection

Removal (18)

• 1x March of Wretched Sorrow
• 1x Consuming Corruption
• 1x Go for the Throat
• 1x Imp's Mischief
• 1x Moment of Craving
• 1x Tymaret, Chosen from Death
• 1x Breathe Your Last
• 1x Essence Extraction
• 1x Force of Despair
• 1x Gumdrop Poisoner
• 1x Tribute to Hunger
• 1x Bake into a Pie
• 1x Consuming Vapors
• 1x Vraska's Contempt
• 1x Ruthless Disposal
• 1x Corrupt
• 1x Taste of Death
• 1x Shadowgrange Archfiend

Combat Vampires (10)

• 1x Cordial Vampire
• 1x Drana, Liberator of Malakir
• 1x Bloodtracker
• 1x Bloodlord of Vaasgoth
• 1x Drana, Kalastria Bloodchief
• 1x Drana, the Last Bloodchief
• 1x Scion of the Swarm
• 1x Crossway Troublemakers
• 1x Necropolis Regent
• 1x Patron of the Vein

Lifegain Vampires (8)

• 1x Creeping Bloodsucker
• 1x Nullpriest of Oblivion
• 1x Vraan, Executioner Thane
• 1x Falkenrath Noble
• 1x Sanctum Seeker
• 1x Malakir Bloodwitch
• 1x Sengir, the Dark Baron
• 1x Defiant Bloodlord

Tutors (4)

• 1x Profane Tutor
• 1x Coveted Prize
• 1x Beseech the Queen
• 1x Behold the Beyond

Other (2)

• 1x Triskaidekaphobia
• 1x Underworld Hermit

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Gameplay Mission: Summon Vito before casting a host of creatures and spells to build up your life total while slowly draining your opponents'. Use your life as a resource to continuously draw cards in the late game. Discourage attacks with a defensive wall of deathtouch and lifelink creatures while you patiently await the right opportunities to strike.

Power Cards (>$10): None

Sleeper Cards: Simulacrum, Demon’s Horn, Vampiric Link

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Possible Edits

ADD J Medallion, M Wurm

ADD two card draw, three lifegain sources, one lifegain effect, one lifelink, one removal

CONSIDER C Bloodsucker B Ascension E Tenacity (lifegain), Z Consumption (lifegain / land), I Mischief (protection), C Corruption B Last MR Sorrow G Poisoner V Contempt (removal), I Avarice T Prophet Necropotence (card draw)

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During Game

Don’t forget you can cast Vampiric Link on opponents’ creatures

Think about using Palace Siege for Khans mode effect when high impact creatures are in graveyard (e.g. Gary)

Cabal Stronghold needs 5 basic swamps before it produces a net gain; Cabal Coffers only needs 4 swamps but can’t be tapped for generic

Use Beseech the Queen to tutor for Alhammarret's Archive, Bolas's Citadel, Blood Tribute, or Gary in most cases

OK to destroy creatures with boardwipes when cards like Blood Artist and Zulaport Cutthroat are in play

Errata text for Simulacrum: "You gain life equal to the damage dealt to you this turn. Simulacrum deals damage to target creature you control equal to the damage dealt to you this turn."

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Stats

43 cards related to main strategy

10 cards with lifelink (includes Vito)

7 cards with deathtouch

6 creatures with flying

81% of lands are swamps (26 basics plus Leechridden Swamp, Witch's Cottage, and Myriad Landscape)

5 cards depend on # of swamps (Cabal Stronghold, Cabal Coffers, Crypt Ghast, Defile, and Tendrils of Corruption)

1 card depends on devotion to black (Gary)

5 lands that ETB tapped (14% of total)

2 colorless non-fetch lands (6% of total)

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Deck Notes

Focused primarily on slow drain effects instead of vampire tribal or lots of combat attackers

Uses lots of creatures to help with lifegain effects associated with creatures dying and devotion to black

Most of removal is for creatures and planeswalkers; black doesn't have as much A/E removal

Doesn’t currently use commander protection b/c Vito is fairly inexpensive to recast

Originally included cards from ELD that creature food tokens, but switched most of those to other effects

Has some additional cards with $5-10 market value but all of these were bought for <$5

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Card Notes

Basilisk Collar can be moved to the creature with most impact (e.g. Bloodthirsty Aerialist or Nirkana’s Revenant)

Alhammarret's Archive and Nullpriest of Oblivion also help with card draw

Vengeant Vampire also helps with removal

Profane Transfusion is great for late game after using up life to draw cards or intentionally allowing life loss

Extort ability from Crypt Ghast and Pontiff of Blight is very helpful (one mana allows you to drain for 3 life and gain 3)

Syphon Soul is 1/2 the mana cost as Zof Consumption but results in almost the same total life change with three opponents (balance changes when only 1 or 2 opponents remain)

Special lands help with card draw, ramp, lifegain / slow drain, and defense

Considered using Tivash as the commander, but Vito is much more powerful because you keep the life you gain each turn and he hits opponents directly without waiting for combat

Considered Strionic Resonator but not as helpful b/c it only doubles one of the lifegain instances

Using Crypt Ghast as 2nd power card instead of Whip of Erebos since ramp and extort are more helpful in this deck than lifelink and temporary recursion (deck doesn't have a strong emphasis on combat)

Not using Mask of Griselbrand for the same reason

Not using Black Market for ramp due to cost (5 CMC) and lower likelihood of creatures dying compared to Wilhelt deck

Date added	3 years
Last updated	1 month
Legality	This deck is not Commander / EDH legal.
Rarity (main - side)	7 - 0 Mythic Rares 20 - 0 Rares 19 - 0 Uncommons 16 - 0 Commons
Cards	92
Avg. CMC	3.14
Tokens	Food, Goat 0/1 W
Folders	Fun decks