Aristocratic Apocalypse

Commander / EDH Aristocrats Attrition BG (Golgari) Sacrifice Toolbox Value Engine

Hijjak

Lands (37)

• 1x Bayou
• 1x Bloodstained Mire
• 1x Boseiju, Who Endures
• 1x Deathcap Glade
• 1x Field of the Dead
• 1x Forest
• 1x Golgari Rot Farm
• 1x Llanowar Wastes
• 1x Marsh Flats
• 1x Misty Rainforest
• 1x Nurturing Peatland
• 1x Overgrown Tomb
• 1x Phyrexian Tower
• 1x Polluted Delta
• 5x Snow-Covered Forest
• 5x Snow-Covered Swamp
• 1x Spymaster's Vault
• 1x Swamp
• 1x Takenuma, Abandoned Mire
• 1x Twilight Mire
• 1x Verdant Catacombs
• 1x Windswept Heath
• 1x Wooded Foothills
• 1x Woodland Cemetery
• 1x Woodland Chasm
• 1x Yavimaya Hollow
• 1x Malakir Rebirth  ^Flip
• 1x Agadeem's Awakening  ^Flip
• 1x Disciple of Freyalise  ^Flip

Targeted Removal (9)

• 1x Boseiju, Who Endures
• 1x Assassin's Trophy
• 1x Cankerbloom
• 1x Reclamation Sage
• 1x Faceless Butcher
• 1x Skinrender
• 1x Vraska, Golgari Queen
• 1x Yawgmoth, Thran Physician
• 1x Noxious Gearhulk

Protection (8)

• 1x Yavimaya Hollow
• 1x Malakir Rebirth  ^Flip
• 1x Spore Frog
• 1x Tamiyo's Safekeeping
• 1x Heroic Intervention
• 1x Lightning Greaves
• 1x Swiftfoot Boots
• 1x Mikaeus, the Unhallowed

Combo B (3)

• 1x Pitiless Plunderer
• 1x Demon of Dark Schemes
• 1x Avenger of Zendikar

Combo D (3)

• 1x Yawgmoth, Thran Physician
• 1x Gray Merchant of Asphodel
• 1x Mikaeus, the Unhallowed

Recursion (14)

• 1x Takenuma, Abandoned Mire
• 1x Trailtracker Scout
• 1x Agadeem's Awakening  ^Flip
• 1x Eternal Witness
• 1x Liliana, Heretical Healer  ^Flip
• 1x Six
• 1x Victimize
• 1x Body Launderer
• 1x Junji, the Midnight Sky
• 1x Liliana, Death's Majesty
• 1x Living Death
• 1x Blood on the Snow
• 1x Demon of Dark Schemes
• 1x Metamorphosis Fanatic

Card Draw (12)

• 1x Spymaster's Vault
• 1x Skullclamp
• 1x Callous Bloodmage
• 1x Dark Prophecy
• 1x Grim Haruspex
• 1x Body Launderer
• 1x Vraska, Golgari Queen
• 1x Yawgmoth, Thran Physician
• 1x High-Society Hunter
• 1x Disciple of Freyalise  ^Flip
• 1x Liliana, Dreadhorde General
• 1x Vivien on the Hunt

Sacrifice Payoffs (12)

• 1x Spymaster's Vault
• 1x Skullclamp
• 1x The Meathook Massacre
• 1x Dark Prophecy
• 1x Grim Haruspex
• 1x Body Launderer
• 1x Pitiless Plunderer
• 1x Savra, Queen of the Golgari
• 1x High-Society Hunter
• 1x Demon of Dark Schemes
• 1x Liliana, Dreadhorde General
• 1x Butcher of Malakir

Tutors (8)

• 1x Fauna Shaman
• 1x Fiend Artisan
• 1x Rushed Rebirth
• 1x Eldritch Evolution
• 1x Birthing Pod
• 1x Vile Entomber
• 1x Sidisi, Undead Vizier
• 1x Vivien on the Hunt

Combo C (3)

• 1x Eternal Witness
• 1x Pitiless Plunderer
• 1x Living Death

Combo A (2)

• 1x Devoted Druid
• 1x Mikaeus, the Unhallowed

Commander (1)

Sacrifice Outlets (13)

• 1x Phyrexian Tower
• 1x Skullclamp
• 1x Viscera Seer
• 1x Altar of Dementia
• 1x Bloodthrone Vampire
• 1x Fiend Artisan
• 1x Ashnod's Altar
• 1x Yahenni, Undying Partisan
• 1x Birthing Pod
• 1x Vraska, Golgari Queen
• 1x Yawgmoth, Thran Physician
• 1x High-Society Hunter
• 1x Vivien on the Hunt

Ramp (12)

• 1x Phyrexian Tower
• 1x Birds of Paradise
• 1x Deathrite Shaman
• 1x Elves of Deep Shadow
• 1x Elvish Mystic
• 1x Veteran Explorer
• 1x Devoted Druid
• 1x Sakura-Tribe Elder
• 1x Trailtracker Scout
• 1x Ashnod's Altar
• 1x Wood Elves
• 1x Pitiless Plunderer

Mass Removal (8)

• 1x Accursed Marauder
• 1x The Meathook Massacre
• 1x Savra, Queen of the Golgari
• 1x Liliana, Death's Majesty
• 1x Living Death
• 1x Blood on the Snow
• 1x Demon of Dark Schemes
• 1x Butcher of Malakir

Misc (5)

• 1x Field of the Dead
• 1x Deathrite Shaman
• 1x Callous Bloodmage
• 1x Panharmonicon
• 1x Drivnod, Carnage Dominus

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Gameplan / Tips / Deckbuilding choices

This deck accrues resources through various sacrifice engines, using Meren to grind out of parity if possible. It usually takes a controlling role, tutoring for interaction pieces that can be recurred throughout the game as needed before attacking for the win or draining opponents to death. Infinite sacrifice combos can be used to accelerate either of these win conditions.

Main weaknesses: Heavy early pressure, strategies we can't interact with, anti-trigger effects

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The normal swamp & forest are included to contribute to Field of the Dead. Search for them after getting at least four snow lands (to be able to reanimate Meren with Blood on the Snow).

The fetch lands are included for Field of the Dead, Avenger of Zendikar, and Deathrite Shaman.

Sacrifice Faceless Butcher with its ETB trigger on the stack to permanently exile the creature it targets.

Use the proliferation effects of Yawgmoth and Cankerbloom to reach planeswalker ultimates much quicker than your opponents expect.

Try to keep your most important cards out of the graveyard if possible; Meren can't reach them in exile!

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This deck is built to take full advantage of pod effects. As such, it's important that useful effects (card draw, ramp, tutors, etc) are spread across a variety of mana values.

Veteran Explorer is used because it's a lot more fun than Sol Ring and has a much higher ramp ceiling. Plus, this deck makes good use of the many landfall triggers.

Noxious Gearhulk may seem expensive at first, but a repeatable, duplicate-able, unconditional kill effect that gains big chunks of life shouldn't be underestimated (and it's VERY funny when someone makes an infinitely large creature).

For a list of exclusions, see the Alternate Cards section.

Combos

Combo A (Infinite)

Devoted Druid + Mikaeus, the Unhallowed

With Mikaeus on the field, put -1/-1 counters on the druid until it dies, at which point undying brings it back. Repeat for infinite death triggers.

If you control Lightning Greaves, this combo also generates infinite green mana.

Combo B (Infinite)

Avenger of Zendikar + Demon of Dark Schemes + Pitiless Plunderer

Sacrifice the avenger and 3 plant tokens with any free sacrifice outlet, gaining 4 treasures from the plunderer and 4 energy counters from the demon. Use 3 mana and 4 energy to reanimate the avenger, creating 4+ more plant tokens. Repeat to generate treasures, plants, and death triggers (also energy by sacrificing more than three tokens each time).

Combo C (Infinite)

Eternal Witness + Living Death + Pitiless Plunderer

With Eternal Witness, Pitiless Plunderer, and at least four other nontoken creatures on the battlefield, sacrifice all of your creatures to any free sacrifice outlet (generating at least five treasures), then cast Living Death. On ETB, use the witness to return Living Death to your hand. Repeat for infinite ETB and death triggers for all creatures on the battlefield and in graveyards, plus infinite treasures if you have extra creatures.

Combo D (Pseudo-Infinite)

Gray Merchant of Asphodel + Mikaeus, the Unhallowed + Yawgmoth, Thran Physician (+ any other nonhuman creature)

Sacrifice Gary to Yawgmoth, putting a -1/-1 counter on another nonhuman creature you control and drawing a card. Gary comes back with a +1/+1 counter because of undying from Mikaeus, draining each opponent on ETB. Sacrifice the other nonhuman creature, targeting Gary to cancel out his +1/+1 counter with a -1/-1 counter. That creature comes back with a +1/+1 counter. Repeat to drain each opponent and draw cards until your entire deck is in your hand.

Another nonhuman creature can take Gary's place as long as you have a source of life gain to mitigate Yawgmoth's life loss.

Alternate Cards

Cards I'm still trying to fit in: Skinrender, Volrath's Stronghold, Virtue of Persistence, Carrion Feeder

Cards to consider: Grim Servant, Command Tower, Tainted Wood, Westvale Abbey  , Pattern of Rebirth, Fecundity, Prosperous Innkeeper, Journey to Eternity  , Woodfall Primus, Protean Hulk, Foundation Breaker, Mazirek, Kraul Death Priest, Golgari Charm, Woe Strider, Thorn of the Black Rose, Endurance, Roaming Throne, Cavalier of Night, Coati Scavenger, Undercellar Myconid, Timeless Witness, Fyndhorn Elves, Cabal Pit, Awakening Zone, Zopandrel, Hunger Dominus, Enduring Vitality, Fell the Profane  , Witch's Cottage, Ruthless Technomancer, Noxious Revival, Krosan Grip, Skyfisher Spider, Saw in Half, Manglehorn, Moldervine Reclamation, Phyrexian Reclamation, Solemn Simulacrum, Tevesh Szat, Doom of Fools, Liliana, Waker of the Dead, Lazotep Quarry, Decaying Soil

Exclusions

Cards that would get me ostracized by my friends and family: Black Cat, Contamination, Hope of Ghirapur, Mesmeric Fiend, Mind Slash, Mindslicer, Nezumi Bone-Reader, Sadistic Augermage, Sadistic Hypnotist, Tergrid, God of Fright  

Sol Ring because it's neither necessary nor enjoyable in non-competitive games.

Demonic Tutor and the like because unconditional tutors aren't very interesting.

Warren Soultrader, Phyrexian Altar, Blood Artist, Forsaken Miner, and Razaketh, the Foulblooded *f-etch* because they raised the deck's power level in a boring way. Opinion might change in the future if I want to lean more into combo.

Grave Pact, Dictate of Erebos, and most Plaguecrafter effects because they're not super fun. I didn't completely avoid this type of card, but their deck space is limited.

Other IPs because their inclusion in this game disgusts me. Might commission a couple MTG alters at some point, but I will not use the advertisement versions.

Date added	3 years
Last updated	4 weeks
Key combos	Devoted Druid + Mikaeus, the Unhallowed Gray Merchant of Asphodel + Mikaeus, the Unhallowed + Yawgmoth, Thran Physician Avenger of Zendikar + Demon of Dark Schemes + Pitiless Plunderer Eternal Witness + Living Death + Pitiless Plunderer
Legality	This deck is Commander / EDH legal.
Rarity (main - side)	17 - 0 Mythic Rares 43 - 0 Rares 15 - 0 Uncommons 12 - 0 Commons
Cards	100
Avg. CMC	3.33
Tokens	Emblem Liliana, Defiant Necromancer, Emblem Vraska, Golgari Queen, Energy Reserve, Experience Token, Morph 2/2 C, Pest 1/1 BG, Plant 0/1 G, Rhino Warrior 4/4 G, Treasure, Zombie 2/2 B
Folders	Commander - Main