Light and Shadow

Modern Angels Demons Humans Midrange RBW (Mardu) Tokens

Arnez

Creature (25)

• 4x Blood Artist
• 4x Cartel Aristocrat
• 3x Champion of the Parish
• 4x Doomed Traveler
• 4x Falkenrath Aristocrat
• 1x Liliana, Heretical Healer  ^Flip
• 3x Skirsdag High Priest
• 2x Xathrid Necromancer

Land (22)

• 1x Blood Crypt
• 3x Bloodstained Mire
• 2x Ghost Quarter
• 1x Godless Shrine
• 1x Lavaclaw Reaches
• 3x Marsh Flats
• 1x Mountain
• 2x Plains
• 2x Sacred Foundry
• 2x Shambling Vent
• 1x Swamp
• 1x Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth
• 2x Vault of the Archangel

Enchantment (3)

• 3x Impact Tremors

Instant (4)

• 4x Lightning Bolt

Sorcery (6)

• 2x Entreat the Angels
• 4x Lingering Souls

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Sideboard

Enchantment (4)

• 2x Leyline of Sanctity
• 2x Stony Silence

Artifact (2)

• 2x Grafdigger's Cage

Instant (8)

• 3x Batwing Brume
• 3x Tragic Slip
• 2x Wear / Tear

Sorcery (1)

• 1x Damnation

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Maybeboard

Creature (3)

• 3x Little Girl

Artifact (2)

• 2x Sword of Light and Shadow

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This is my Dega Innistrad-themed deck, Light and Shadow. It's a Modern Aristocrats build with a heavy cult ritual sub-theme. I want to beat the enemy into submission and drain the life out of them, then flood the skies over the battlefield with both divine and demonic celestial forces to ensure many crushing defeats through shear might!

I believe that the ability to sacrifice your own creatures is one of the most powerful abilities in Magic and the Aristocrats archetype abuses this with great effect. The Aristocrats is a well designed midrange deck with a plethora of threats and engaging complexities both in and out of combat. The amount of serious threats makes it difficult for the opponent to overcome the onslaught of damage you're bringing to the table.

Spells

Your key spells are, of course, Falkenrath Aristocrat and Cartel Aristocrat; these are the engine of this build allowing you to take advantage of your value creatures. My take on this deck involves a heavier emphasis on the Humans matter theme that came out of Innistrad. An early Champion of the Parish can get out of control fast if left unchecked which makes for great aggression. An ideal situation would be a turn one Doomed Traveler with a turn two Skirsdag High Priest followed up by a Cartel Aristocrat for a beefy Demon by turn three. Skirsdag High Priest is highly underestimated and I find most decks even today can't deal with multiple Demons on the battlefield, couple that with an on curve Falkenrath Aristocrat for a crushing blow.

Blood Artist with Cartel Aristocrat also make for a great strategy, a steady stream of bodies and a Lingering Souls can hit the enemy hard and fast then you can finish him with a Lightning Bolt to the face. There are many combinations and ways to play, this versatility makes Aristocrats fun and unpredictable.

Additions

I decided to use Liliana, Heretical Healer  //Liliana, Defiant Necromancer   as my planeswalker, she is flavorful and has beautiful synergy with The Aristocrats. Xathrid Necromancer is a nice inclusion as he adds to the tribal element and keeps bodies on the battlefield. I also included Entreat the Angels for some fun surprises, a miracle can bring down enough beatdown from the Heavens to end wars! I am very tempted to bring in Impact Tremors to make the deck very aggressive.

Mana

The realm of Innistrad is a unique and beautiful land rich with the white, black and red mana that you'll find to be crucial. Isolated Chapel , Godless Shrine , Blood Crypt and Sacred Foundry are vital for having the appropriate colors of mana when necessary. The deck also uses Vault of the Archangel as its utility land; it may never get to this, but Her shear shadow alone can end a tense standoff.

I want this to be competitive, so suggestions are welcome.

(BTW, I'm going to make a prediction here, mark my words, when Shadows over Innistrad comes out The Aristocrats is going surge in power and popularity once again. I'm super excited, all aboard the hype train!!)

Top Ranked	Achieved #18 position overall 9 years ago
Date added	10 years
Last updated	3 years
Exclude colors	UG
Legality	This deck is Modern legal.
Rarity (main - side)	8 - 0 Mythic Rares 23 - 7 Rares 18 - 5 Uncommons 7 - 3 Commons
Cards	60
Avg. CMC	2.16
Tokens	Angel 4/4 W, Demon 5/5 B, Emblem Liliana, Defiant Necromancer, Spirit 1/1 W, Zombie 2/2 B
Folders	Maybe, Decks, Orzhov, wat, To check, Damn that's cool, Combo Decks, Interesting Decks That are not mine, ZFAVS, zzInspiration (not own)