Volrath the Risen

Commander / EDH Eldrazi Mono-Black Phyrexian Primer Suicide Black Voltron Vorthos

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Creature (20)

• 1x Archfiend of Despair
• 1x Artisan of Kozilek
• 1x Blightsteel Colossus
• 1x Crypt Ghast
• 1x Draco
• 1x Emrakul, the Promised End
• 1x Erebos, God of the Dead
• 1x Filth
• 1x Graveborn Muse
• 1x It That Betrays
• 1x Kozilek, Butcher of Truth
• 1x Nirkana Revenant
• 1x Pathrazer of Ulamog
• 1x Pestilence Demon
• 1x Phage the Untouchable
• 1x Rune-Scarred Demon
• 1x Sheoldred, Whispering One
• 1x Thief of Blood
• 1x Ulamog, the Ceaseless Hunger
• 1x Ulamog, the Infinite Gyre

Enchantment (7)

• 1x Arguel's Blood Fast  ^Flip
• 1x Necropotence
• 1x Phyrexian Arena
• 1x Phyrexian Reclamation
• 1x Rime Transfusion
• 1x Strands of Night
• 1x Tortured Existence

Planeswalker (4)

• 1x Karn Liberated
• 1x Karn, the Great Creator
• 1x Liliana of the Dark Realms
• 1x Liliana Vess

Artifact (18)

• 1x Expedition Map
• 1x Fleetfeather Sandals
• 1x Grim Monolith
• 1x Jet Medallion
• 1x Lightning Greaves
• 1x Mana Crypt
• 1x Mana Vault
• 1x Manifold Key
• 1x Quicksilver Amulet
• 1x Scroll Rack
• 1x Sol Ring
• 1x Swiftfoot Boots
• 1x Sword of Feast and Famine
• 1x Sword of Fire and Ice
• 1x Sword of Light and Shadow
• 1x Thought Vessel
• 1x Vedalken Orrery
• 1x Whispersilk Cloak

Sorcery (9)

• 1x All is Dust
• 1x Beseech the Queen
• 1x Bubbling Muck
• 1x Damnation
• 1x Deadly Tempest
• 1x Decree of Pain
• 1x Demonic Tutor
• 1x Imperial Seal
• 1x Toxic Deluge

Commander (1)

Land (38)

• 1x Ancient Tomb
• 1x Blast Zone
• 1x Cabal Coffers
• 1x Dark Depths
• 1x Hall of the Bandit Lord
• 1x Homeward Path
• 1x Nykthos, Shrine to Nyx
• 1x Rogue's Passage
• 1x Scrying Sheets
• 1x Shizo, Death's Storehouse
• 24x Snow-Covered Swamp
• 1x Thespian's Stage
• 1x Tower of the Magistrate
• 1x Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth
• 1x Volrath's Stronghold

Instant (3)

• 1x Imp's Mischief
• 1x Tainted Strike
• 1x Vampiric Tutor

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"Some say that time is cyclical and that history inevitably repeats. My will is my own. I won't bow to fate."

-Volrath                      

Volrath returns to eat giant creatures and unleash demons, colossi, and the terrible Eldrazi onto a future denied to him

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This deck is extremely fast, deadly, and resilient. It does very well in multiplayer, and exceptionally well in "one on one" competition. Being Mono-Black, it does lack decent removal for some pesky enchantments and artifacts. Karn Liberated and All Is Dust were added to give additional protection from these. However, the best course of action is simply to ramp up and kill the controlling player.

Volrath the Fallen is the primary win condition of this deck. He's also a very good discard engine for reanimation and other graveyard utilities. This deck has also been designed to run perfectly fine should he get "tucked" or end up under Arrest or simply unplayable.

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WHO IS VOLRATH?

--------------------------------------------Click here to read about Volrath!--------------------------------------------

Click to hide!

Volrath was an ancient (by the modern timeline) Phyrexian Evincar. Evincars were Phyrexian leaders (like Praetors) who were in charge of preparing the plane of Rath to overlay with Dominaria, and allowing Phyrexia to invade. Volrath ruthlessly ruled the plane of Rath from his iconic Stronghold fortress.

Volrath mastered a Phyrexian creation called Flowstone. Created in the churning core of the Stronghold's reactor, Flowstone was actually made of microscopic nanorobots which could be manipulated into different shapes with magic. The main purpose of Flowstone was to terraform Rath in order to have it overlay with Dominaria, however through proper implementation it could also be a devastating weapon.



He is also famous for breeding and manipulating Slivers. He had an entire hive of Slivers guarding the famous Legacy artifacts, and even used them to attack his enemies. Volrath's ultimate goal with his Sliver project remains unknown, though his slivers have spread across the world and are still alive today.



Born a prince in an ancient Jamuraan warclan under the name Vuel, Volrath had his destiny stolen from him by his step brother, Gerrard Capshen. Volrath returned the favor by stealing Gerrard's legacy; as in the pieces of the Legacy weapon built by Urza himself. This included capturing Karn.



Eventually the crew of the Weatherlight came to reclaim the legacy artifacts. Returning from his battle with Gerrard, Volrath found his throne gone, and a tournament being held to claim it. He entered the tournament, and easily bested the other participants until the final round. Before he could land a final blow on Crovax, Ertai caused him to lose his balance and he was cheated out of his destiny again.

But now it's time for his revenge...

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~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~PLAYING VOLRATH~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ "How fascinating it is to watch the machinations of one's own mind play themselves out."

- Volrath                                 

If you enjoy playing decks full of giant creatures, and using loads of synergy and explosive effects to your advantage then you will enjoy playing this deck.

There are no infinite combos and no land destruction. These are purposeful choices for the deck, as well as personal preference.

It does some very voltron-like things. After all, the core idea of the deck is to swing with Volrath for lethal. However, his ability means your library, hand and graveyard are full of giant creatures with crazy abilities. Much of the rest of the deck is built to grant Volrath evasion, haste, etc. But these things also work really well for the fatties he eats, so there are lots of ways to cheat them into play as well.

The deck is built around the idea that it should be able to win if Volrath is totally inaccessible, even if an opponent can't be attacked. This means I have lots of splashy spells and a fair amount of techy spells as well.

So the deck comes off as a sort of hybrid of Voltron and Suicide Black / Reanimator.

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~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~MAKING VOLRATH LETHAL~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ "I once had an entire race killed just to listen to the rattling of their dried bones as I waded through them."

- Volrath                                 

  ---CREATURES TO DISCARD TO VOLRATH---

Creature	CMC	Resulting Power	Left till Lethal
Draco	16	22	-
Blightsteel Colossus	12	18	3
It That Betrays	12	18	3
Ulamog, the Infinite Gyre	11	17	4
Pathrazer of Ulamog	11	17	4
Kozilek, Butcher of Truth	10	16	5
Ulamog, the Ceaseless Hunger	10	16	5
Artisan of Kozilek	9	15	6
Avatar of Woe	8	14	7
Razaketh, the Foulblooded	8	14	7
Myojin of Night's Reach	8	14	7
Pestilence Demon	8	14	7
Phage the Untouchable	7	13	8
Sheoldred, Whispering One	7	13	8
Rune-Scarred Demon	7	13	8
Thief of Blood	6	12	9

Not listed here are "utility" creatures with (CMC's) less than five. These include Summoner's Egg (4), Graveborn Muse (4), Erebos, God of the Dead (4), Crypt Ghast (4), and Filth (4)

  ---EVASION---
- Shizo, Death's Storehouse
- Rogue's Passage
- Whispersilk Cloak
- Key to the City
- Fleetfeather Sandals
- Rime Transfusion
- Filth
- Sword of Light and Shadow (white and black)
- Sword of Feast and Famine (black and green)
- Sword of Fire and Ice (red and blue)


  ---HASTE / AVOIDING SUMMONING SICKNESS (for Volrath)---
- Hall of the Bandit Lord
- Lightning Greaves
- Swiftfoot Boots
- Fleetfeather Sandals
- Vedalken Orrery


  ---MANA RAMP---
- Mana Crypt
- Mana Vault
- Sol Ring
- Jet Medallion
- Crypt Ghast
- Bubbling Muck
- Grim Monolith
- Nykthos, Shrine to Nyx
- Dark Ritual
- Cabal Coffers
- Ancient Tomb
- Extraplanar Lens
- Sword of Feast and Famine


  ---WIPES---
- Damnation
- Decree of Pain
- Toxic Deluge
- All Is Dust
- Pestilence Demon
- Thief of Blood (Counters & Planeswalkers)


  ---TUTORS---
- Vampiric Tutor
- Demonic Tutor
- Beseech the Queen
- Expedition Map (lands)
- Rune-Scarred Demon
- Razaketh, the Foulblooded


  ---CARD DRAW / ADVANTAGE---
- Necropotence
- Phyrexian Arena
- Graveborn Muse
- Decree of Pain
- Key to the City
- Ob Nixilis Reignited
- Erebos, God of the Dead
- Scroll Rack
- Scrying Sheets
- Sword of Fire and Ice

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Volrath, strategy and tactics~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
" The fatal flaw in every plan is the assumption that you know more than your enemy."

- Volrath                                 

My opening hand looks like "this" what should I do?
The answer to this question depends largely on the colors and the commanders sitting across from you. There are a few important things to check off in your head at the start of the game. These are TYPICALLY the most important things to look for, sorted in order of importance.  
This is also assuming your opening hand has a competent amount of mana (I like 3 mana producing lands, or 2 with a good mana rock)


1:      Do you have a way to make Volrath deal lethal damage in a single swing? Everything else considered, in a typical Commander/EDH game you'll be able to play your general with minimal need for luck. If you can get Volrath out and an opponent opens up, this can be all you need. Draco is the most efficient card in the deck for doing this. Two giant creatures, or one giant creature and a Tainted Strike also mean Volrath will be swinging for lethal damage. (Even if you can't kill them in a single attack, any creature with a CMC of 9 or higher puts your opponent on a 1 turn clock from Volrath alone)



2:      Assuming you can make Volrath lethal, will he be able to get through for the win? Cards that grant evasion are worth their weight in gold. I only rate evasion higher than haste because haste is no good with a blocker in the way. It should also highlight just how good and underrated Fleetfeather Sandals is. If you need to be unblockable on the cheap, nothing beats feeding Volrath Filth while your opponent is sitting on some swamps (Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth anyone?) The cheapest evasion available comes from Key to the City, weighing in at just 2 mana and a discard to go unblockable (AND it lets you draw a card), though Rime Transfusion comes close, at a total cost of 3 mana to be unblockable, and the +2/+1 is a nice bonus.



3:      As mentioned above, haste really deserves the #2 spot. But, without evasion it might not be enough unless it's still early in the game. "Sneaking" Volrath into play right before your turn begins is the most effective way to get around that pesky summoning sickness. It also leaves you plenty of mana to make things happen. Vedalken Orrery is great for this, or tossing Volrath into your hand with Command Beacon and following with a Quicksilver Amulet. Alternatively, there are plenty of cards that grant haste, including a land that does it for the low cost of 3 life: Hall of the Bandit Lord (And what good is mono black if you don't pay at least half your life in a single game?)



4:      Protect your investment. Look for cards to keep Volrath in play, and to continue the assault. Sword of Light and Shadow gives Volrath protection from lots of targeted removal, and gives him back that Draco that just took an opponent out of the game (and enjoy that 3 life bonus). The Sword of Feast and Famine also protects from black removal, and the protection from green is a nice bit of evasion. When you go in big, keep in mind your second main phase will be filled with untapped lands at your disposal! And as always, don't forget hexproof and shroud ( Swiftfoot Boots, Lightning Greaves, Whispersilk Cloak, etc)



5:      Will you be able to draw more than one card a turn? An early game Phyrexian Arena or Necropotence can prove game winning if not dealt with. Don't be afraid to pay life to draw cards. While Arena, Graveborn Muse, and 'Potence set you up at the start of your turn, Erebos, God of the Dead and Ob Nixilis Reignited can let you grab something form the top of your library (Vampiric Tutor and Liliana Vess can be used to great effect with this). Scrying Sheets ensures that you won't be drawing a single basic land, and Scroll Rack lets you dig for the cards you need in exchange for what you don't. Scroll Rack has a special place in the deck. While lots of EDH decks like to play Sensei's Diving Top, in a deck that can draw big and tutor with consistency, Scroll Rack is just a better choice. Fill up your hand with draw, then dig twice as deep by using Scroll Rack. Throwing back a lot of things you don't need, or a large clump of lands? Use a tutor effect to shuffle them away and get a fresh draw. Your opponents will have a very bad time if you are reaching beyond the top deck.

Lots of land and equipment in this deck grant multiple benefits from this list. Tutor for and play the best equipment or lands (Shizo, Death's Storehouse, Hall of the Bandit Lord etc) for the situation you are in.



~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~What you need, when you need it~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"If there is such a thing as too much power, I have not discovered it."

- Volrath                                                     

It's early game, and I don't know what to tutor for! - If it's still really early, you might want to hold on to your tutor unless you see a way to edge out a kill with it (Really fast early game kills are always risky) The two things to tutor for early game, if you are playing it a bit safer would be Phyrexian Arena to get on top of drawing, or Liliana of the Dark Realms to get a nice mana base.

I need more black mana!

• If it's too many non-basic lands making colorless, then fetch Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth If it's simply too little mana, grab Liliana of the Dark Realms. You could also grab Dark Ritual if you only need quick ramp!
  
  Oh no, it's a Maze of Ith / Ice Floe / Mystifying Maze!

• These things can't affect what they can't target!
  
  I need to make everything go away!

• All Is Dust, Damnation, Toxic Deluge, Pestilence Demon, Decree of Pain
  
  Volrath is too expensive now, or has been locked out of the game!

• This may be the easiest to fix. The deck is loaded with giant game winning creatures, ways to get them into play and across the table. Thief of Blood / Thespian's Stage + Dark Depths is always a good one. Then again, so is a Summoner's Egg hatching an unblockable Blightsteel Colossus right before your turn starts. Command Beacon can be worth lots of mana late game if Volrath has been locked behind a heavy commander tax.
  
  My opponent is bluffing fog or counterspell!

• You could cast Myojin of Night's Reach, which would force a counter or kill a potential fog. There is only a SLIM chance they will be able to counter an activated ability, so cheating in an Eldrazi with something like Quicksilver Amulet is uncounterable, and annihilator doesn't care about combat damage. You could also simply bait the reaction while holding onto what you really need. Cavern of Souls is in the side board if you feel that the meta is going to be counter heavy where you play.
  
  My opponent can't be attacked!

• Karn Liberated, All Is Dust, and "the Ulamogs" should be able to remove whatever barrier is in your way
  
  My only answers to "this problem" are non-creature cards in my graveyard!

• Grab either Kozilek, Butcher of Truth or Ulamog, the Infinite Gyre and discard them with Volrath, or one of the Lilianas.
  
  
  

  
  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~Many of the large creatures also represent alternate win conditions, and contain many useful abilities~~~~~~~~~~~~~
  "You are wrong," Volrath said. "I do not hate the living. They often prove quite useful to me." And then he laughed.
  
  
  

• Phage the Untouchable and Blightsteel Colossus can swing for one hit kills using the deck's inherent evasion, in the event Volrath has been locked out of the game
  
  
• While the Marit Lage Token may not be a creature in the deck per say, she deserves a mention for being one of the scariest things that can possibly hit the field. Trigger Dark Depths when you know summoning sickness won't be a problem. And don't forget Thief of Blood!
  
  
• The large Eldrazi can be snuck in with Quicksilver Amulet or Summoner's Egg for devastating early game annihilator
  
  
• Summoner's Egg can turn an opponent's board wipe (or your own) into a game winning advantage
  
  
• Pestilence Demon already has lots of great utility on his own. Equip him with a sword (Sword of Light and Shadow / Sword of Feast and Famine) to avoid his own damage! Add in a Tainted Strike and enjoy the possibilities!
  
  
• Sheoldred, Whispering One gives repeat benefit from expendable creatures with ETB effects like Summoner's Egg and Rune-Scarred Demon
  
  
• It That Betrays + Sheoldred, Whispering One / All Is Dust / other Eldrazi let you steal your opponent's permanents
  
  
  
  --- Remmember, Volrath is not a typical Voltron general! Unlike other creatures, Volrath gains lethality at instant speed and from cards that never have to enter play. Your opponents shouldn't know they are about to die until it's too late!---
  
  
  
  
  FUN FACTS ABOUT VOLRATH!!
  

Occupation: Villain
Hobbies: Sculpture, carving, and needlepoint - all with living flesh
Most Embarrassing Moment: Accidentally sealed jinxed ring inside surgical subject during experiment
Perfect Date: "First, I'd take them to the Map Room and show them my secret plans for world domination. Then, of course, I'd have to kill them."

Top Ranked	Achieved #8 position overall 10 years ago Achieved #3 position in Commander / EDH Eldrazi 2 years ago Achieved #3 position in Commander / EDH Phyrexian 2 years ago Achieved #3 position in Commander / EDH Suicide Black 3 years ago
Date added	10 years
Last updated	3 years
Legality	This deck is not Commander / EDH legal.
Rarity (main - side)	20 - 0 Mythic Rares 36 - 0 Rares 14 - 0 Uncommons 6 - 0 Commons
Cards	100
Avg. CMC	4.69
Tokens	Emblem Liliana of the Dark Realms, Marit Lage
Folders	Neat Decks, edh mono black, Commander Deck Inspiration, good EDH decks, Decks I Like, Favorites, EDH, EDH, Interesting Decks, EDH