Cruel Intentions

Standard* BGW (Abzan, Junk) Counters

LukasLJohnson

Creature (20)

• 4x Ajani's Pridemate
• 2x Athreos, God of Passage
• 4x Cruel Sadist
• 3x Mer-Ek Nightblade
• 4x Nyx-Fleece Ram
• 3x Tuskguard Captain

Planeswalker (2)

• 2x Ajani Steadfast

Land (21)

• 1x Forest
• 3x Plains
• 1x Swamp
• 4x Temple of Malady
• 3x Temple of Plenty
• 4x Temple of Silence
• 1x Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth
• 4x Windswept Heath

Enchantment (8)

• 2x Brave the Sands
• 2x Eternal Thirst
• 4x Hardened Scales

Artifact (1)

• 1x Bow of Nylea

Instant (6)

• 4x Abzan Charm
• 2x Utter End

Sorcery (3)

• 2x Read the Bones
• 1x Stain the Mind

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Sideboard

Creature (6)

• 2x Abzan Falconer
• 4x Bloodsoaked Champion

Instant (7)

• 2x Bile Blight
• 2x Deicide
• 2x Feat of Resistance
• 1x Utter End

Sorcery (2)

• 2x Stain the Mind

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Pump your little fellas and say adios.

Hardened Scales, and Abzan sharing abilities offers a lot of potential out of little creatures.

Cruel Sadist gets ripped on for being an awful card, but this deck not only makes it viable... But it makes people HATE it.

Essentially Cruel Sadist boasts an instant speed Outlast, which can be very powerful with support.

Cruel Sadist + Mer-Ek Nightblade giving her death touch allows you to kill any creature for 3 mana at instant speed. Pair that with an Eternal Thirst, and you will make that +1/+1 counter back + extra if there are any hardened scales while gaining life. This accounts for much more removal than most Abzan Counter decks are able to use.

Mer-Ek Nightblade + Tuskguard Captain = Classic deathtouch + trample overrun.

There is enough life gain in the deck to make Ajani Pridemates a pain to deal with.

Brave the Sands can absolutely end a game, being able to attack before Outlasting, or attack with everything and handle an odd-man situation.

I'm really enjoying using this deck. Just got to figure out the last few tweaks.

Date added	10 years
Last updated	10 years
Key combos	Cruel Sadist + Mer-Ek Nightblade Mer-Ek Nightblade + Tuskguard Captain
Legality	This deck is not Standard legal.
Rarity (main - side)	4 - 0 Mythic Rares 28 - 9 Rares 17 - 4 Uncommons 7 - 2 Commons
Cards	61
Avg. CMC	2.52
Tokens	Emblem Ajani Steadfast