Phage EDH

Commander / EDH Combo Control Demons Group Slug Lifegain Lifelink Mono-Black Reanimator Sacrifice

Blackisthebestcolor

Creature (28)

• 1x Avatar of Woe
• 1x Bloodgift Demon
• 1x Butcher of Malakir
• 1x Chancellor of the Dross
• 1x Coffin Queen
• 1x Crypt Ghast
• 1x Disciple of Bolas
• 1x Drana, Kalastria Bloodchief
• 1x Erebos, God of the Dead
• 1x Ghoulcaller Gisa
• 1x Grave Titan
• 1x Gray Merchant of Asphodel
• 1x Havoc Demon
• 1x Indulgent Tormentor
• 1x K'rrik, Son of Yawgmoth
• 1x Kokusho, the Evening Star
• 1x Magus of the Coffers
• 1x Mikaeus, the Unhallowed
• 1x Nirkana Revenant
• 1x Overseer of the Damned
• 1x Pestilence Demon
• 1x Platinum Angel
• 1x Rune-Scarred Demon
• 1x Sheoldred, Whispering One
• 1x Solemn Simulacrum
• 1x The Haunt of Hightower
• 1x Vilis, Broker of Blood
• 1x Visara the Dreadful

Instant (4)

• 1x Blood Pact
• 1x Dark Ritual
• 1x Darkness
• 1x Vampiric Tutor

Land (37)

• 1x Buried Ruin
• 1x Cabal Coffers
• 1x Dark Depths
• 1x Deserted Temple
• 1x Geier Reach Sanitarium
• 1x Hall of the Bandit Lord
• 1x Maze of Ith
• 1x Phyrexian Tower
• 1x Reliquary Tower
• 1x Sanctum of Eternity
• 1x Shizo, Death's Storehouse
• 20x Swamp
• 1x Terrain Generator
• 1x Thespian's Stage
• 1x Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth
• 1x Vesuva
• 1x Volrath's Stronghold
• 1x War Room

Sorcery (9)

• 1x Beacon of Unrest
• 1x Damnation
• 1x Demonic Tutor
• 1x Exsanguinate
• 1x Mutilate
• 1x Painful Lesson
• 1x Reanimate
• 1x Rise of the Dark Realms
• 1x Sign in Blood

Planeswalker (3)

• 1x Liliana Vess
• 1x Liliana of the Dark Realms
• 1x Liliana, Dreadhorde General

Commander (1)

Artifact (13)

• 1x Bolas's Citadel
• 1x Caged Sun
• 1x Commander's Sphere
• 1x Elixir of Immortality
• 1x Expedition Map
• 1x Ghirapur Orrery
• 1x Gilded Lotus
• 1x Hedron Archive
• 1x Lightning Greaves
• 1x Mind Stone
• 1x Sol Ring
• 1x Thought Vessel
• 1x Vessel of Endless Rest

Enchantment (5)

• 1x Animate Dead
• 1x Dance of the Dead
• 1x Exquisite Blood
• 1x Necromancy
• 1x The Meathook Massacre

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Maybeboard

Creature (23)

• 1x Archfiend of Depravity
• 1x Ayara, First of Locthwain
• 1x Blood Artist
• 1x Bog Initiate
• 1x Burning-Rune Demon
• 1x Dakmor Sorceress
• 1x Demon of Dark Schemes
• 1x Demon of Loathing
• 1x Dread Cacodemon
• 1x Dread Presence
• 1x Eradicator Valkyrie
• 1x Gravecrawler
• 1x Grim Haruspex
• 1x Harvester of Souls
• 1x Massacre Wurm
• 1x Nightmare
• 1x Razaketh, the Foulblooded
• 1x Scion of Darkness
• 1x Sepulchral Primordial
• 1x Sidisi, Undead Vizier
• 1x Spirit of the Night
• 1x Vampire Hexmage
• 1x Viscera Seer

Sorcery (18)

• 1x Beseech the Queen
• 1x Black Sun's Zenith
• 1x Decree of Pain
• 1x Demonic Collusion
• 1x Diabolic Revelation
• 1x Diabolic Tutor
• 1x Disturbed Burial
• 1x Feed the Swarm
• 1x In Garruk's Wake
• 1x Increasing Ambition
• 1x Killing Wave
• 1x Life's Finale
• 1x Night's Whisper
• 1x Plague Wind
• 1x Read the Bones
• 1x Reprocess
• 1x Sever the Bloodline
• 1x Torment of Hailfire

Planeswalker (2)

• 1x Liliana, Waker of the Dead
• 1x Ob Nixilis of the Black Oath

Enchantment (5)

• 1x Death Pits of Rath
• 1x Grave Betrayal
• 1x Grave Pact
• 1x Pestilence
• 1x Sanguine Bond

Artifact (5)

• 1x Ashnod's Altar
• 1x Caltrops
• 1x Jet Medallion
• 1x Torpor Orb
• 1x Vedalken Orrery

Land (4)

• 1x Command Beacon
• 1x Crypt of Agadeem
• 1x Myriad Landscape
• 1x Rogue's Passage

Instant (3)

• 1x Cabal Ritual
• 1x Hero's Downfall
• 1x Snuff Out

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This deck has been in development since about 2010, long before Command Beacon existed. While others would build around Phage to get it out as fast as possible, my approach was to not rely on Phage to win, and instead make deck powerful enough to win without it. I was successful. Too successful. There was a point when I could tutor for 20 cards at instant speed with this deck. I have since been working on curbing its power level without disrupting its identity.

With cards other than Platinum Angel and Torpor Orb at my disposal, I can win with Phage more often. But in the spirit of my original goal I still technically deliberately run Phage as a dead card. Most people struggle to beat this deck because they're anticipating a Phage play, but I instead come out with something else, like a Gary Bomb. It is one of the most versatile in my circle because I've made it challenging for opponents to predict how I'm going to attack. This has made deaths by Phage something of an achievement my friends yearn to witness, rather than despise.

What it lacks in speed it usually makes up in control, via wiping the board of creatures and gaining large quantities of life and cards. This deck has undergone many modifications over the years, usually to reduce the number of unsporting combos in the deck, like Sanguine Bond + Exquisite Blood, while maintaining its notorious versatility. This deck most often wins with mass life leeching, but I have won with zombie hordes, big creature smashing, mass Pestilence, reanimation, and occasionally, Phage herself.

I am treating the "Maybeboard" as a change-log because I can't figure out how to do custom categories.

Date added	3 years
Last updated	2 months
Legality	This deck is Commander / EDH legal.
Rarity (main - side)	14 - 0 Mythic Rares 42 - 0 Rares 15 - 0 Uncommons 9 - 0 Commons
Cards	100
Avg. CMC	4.43
Tokens	Emblem Liliana of the Dark Realms, Marit Lage, Zombie 2/2 B