MAKE IT RAIN (27/121 AT EUROPEAN TOURNAMENT!)(BfZ)

Modern Aggro Competitive Death and Taxes Hatebears Land Destruction WB (Orzhov)

elpokitolama

Creature (31)

• 2x Anafenza, Kin-Tree Spirit
• 2x Aven Mindcensor
• 2x Brimaz, King of Oreskos
• 3x Dryad Militant
• 3x Flickerwisp
• 3x Judge's Familiar
• 4x Leonin Arbiter
• 2x Restoration Angel
• 4x Thalia, Guardian of Thraben
• 3x Tidehollow Sculler
• 3x Wasteland Strangler

Land (21)

• 1x Eiganjo Castle
• 3x Flagstones of Trokair
• 4x Ghost Quarter
• 4x Godless Shrine
• 7x Plains
• 1x Swamp
• 1x Tectonic Edge

Artifact (4)

• 4x Aether Vial

Instant (4)

• 4x Path to Exile

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Sideboard

Creature (10)

• 2x Burrenton Forge-Tender
• 1x Kor Firewalker
• 2x Leonin Relic-Warder
• 2x Linvala, Keeper of Silence
• 2x Mirran Crusader
• 1x Phyrexian Revoker

Enchantment (5)

• 2x Rest in Peace
• 2x Stony Silence
• 1x Suppression Field

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Maybeboard

Creature (4)

• 1x Archangel of Tithes
• 1x Auriok Champion
• 1x Orzhov Pontiff
• 1x Spellskite

Instant (1)

• 1x Dismember

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No red mana produced, but the burn is real.

(pictured: your opponent looking at ya' makin' it rain)

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The description is going to be updated when I'll have the time to do: there are cards mentionned in the description that are no longer in the deck. For an explanation on how to play with Wasteland Strangler, check out the update section!

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This deck is a version of the archetype called "Death and Taxes". To make it short, this is a monocolored hatebear deck that relies on creatures with "enter the battlefield" or blinking effects, along with some nasty land destruction.

Death and Taxes relies also a lot on its hate abilities, and will struggle against some decks like Selesnya Hatebears, deck which doesn't suffer from being hated because, well, they're hatin' as much as DaT (even more most of the time). On the other hand, DaT allows you to gain a lot of value from your creatures faster that Hatebear does.

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2.1.The combos

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Death and taxes has a lot of synergy between the cards it uses, which makes the deck really dynamic and fun to play .

First, You've got library search hate: Leonin Arbiter and Aven Mindcensor are making Path to Exile and Ghost Quarter even more overpowered than those are usually... And, with a well-placed Aether Vial, makes fetch lands completly laughable!

Thalia, Guardian of Thraben + Judge's Familiar are making life even more difficult for burn and control. I'm currently thinking about the potential addition of Vryn Wingmare to hate those archetypes even more...

Now, what makes Death and Taxes different from Hatebears, the blink tricks! The best card to blink your creatures is, obviously, Restoration Archangel. It has a nice body, flash, and return it instantly on the field. It can save your haters from removals or allow you to gain another Golem token from Blade Splicer. The second blinker, Flickerwisp, doesn't have flash and return the permanent you're blinking at the beginning of the next end step, which isn't really handy for you but that's the only blinker that cost only 3 mana. But the best trick to do with it is to cheat it at instant play using either Aether Vial or Restoration Angel at the end of your opponent's turn, and then exile one of his permanents until the end of YOUR turn, while having a 3 power flying beater on the field! The last blink combo is already known of most people and just consist in blinking a morphed Akroma, Angel of Fury to cheat it into play without paying its mana cost.

2.2.Controling the game

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Death and Taxes takes control of the game exactly in the same way as Hatebear does, which means by hating fetches, non-creature spells, tutors and by using land destruction without drawbacks to slow down the game while you're cheating your (uncounterable) creatures into play at instant speed thanks to Aether Vial (this card is really OP). Some lst are using Kitchen Finks for lifegain, but due to budget issues I'm using Aven Riftwatcher here (this birdie is also far superior in term of lifegain with ome blink along the way). The goal is always to slow your opponent down as much as possible while gaining more value from the cards you're playing.

2.3.Using the cards at their full potential

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Since the creatures of this deck have (mainly) static or etb abilities, it would be far greater if you could cast those at instant speed. And kids, that's exactly why the price of Aether Vial is still so hight right now (even if it's often used to cheat out merfolk lords)! Being able to cast an uncounterable Leonin Arbiter in response to your opponent activating his Scalding Tarn is priceless. Same goes for Aven Mindcensor of course.

But, for the same reason It is better to play Thalia, Guardian of Thraben as soon as possible. Her ability works only if she did hit the battlefield before the spell you want to tax was played...

Usually, what you will have to do with Flickerwisp or Restoration Angel is to blink Aven Riftwatcher , Blade Splicer, morphed Akroma, Angel of Fury or anything else to trigger Anafenza, Kin-Tree Spirit.

But there are better things to do sometimes, like cheating a Flickerwisp ability at the end of your opponent's turn and targeting one of his permanent. Due to the wording of Flickerwisp, this permanent isn't going to come back until the next end step, which is the end of your turn! You can then remove anything you need to deal a finishing blow right away. This can be achieved by either play it with Aether Vial or simply blink it with Restoration Angel. ;)

Important thing to do: if you can play a vial on turn one, JUST DO IT! <- [insert Shia Lebeouf meme here]

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Burn isn't a hard match-up for DaT. After all, there isn't a single card here that needs some lifeloss to work. Aven Riftwatcher was only a budget version of Kitchen Finks at the beginning, but it appears that when it gets blinked, it gives you a ton of life while refreshing its vanishing counters and being a nice blocker with 3 toughness that's never going to be bolted/decayed/murderous cutted. If it hits the board, burn players can cry. It can become even worse for them after siding in Burrenton Forge-Tender and Kor Firewalker...

Tron isn't usually a problem for you, since you've got 6 land destruction cards + tutor hate. But it is always wise to switch Aven Riftwatcher for Burrenton Forge-Tender to prevent any table-flipping Pyroclasm or Anger of the Gods.

Against Twin, side in Pithing Needle (and use it to target Deceiver Exarch to prevent those from being able to use the ability given by Splinter Twin), Disenchant (somehow pretty obvious) and Suppression Field (once again, to prevent them from goin' wombo combo). Rest in Peace can be a nice addition, since it completly kills those $80 Snapcaster Mages. ;)

Grixis Delver: I'm wondering if I should add Auriok Champion in the SB just for this match-up. Since I haven't got any yet, Burrenton Forge-Tender +Kor Firewalker+Rest in Peace.

Hatebears: there's nothing to side, but this isn't going to be a nice game for you. Mirran Crusader can be good, tho. And Baneslayer Angel too.

Affinity: Stony Silence kills affinity, but I'm still wondering if I should keep it or trade it with Kataki, War's Wage, because it gives you more value while taxing out your opponent... if it doesn't get removed before.

Bloom Titan: come on, how can it win if you've got land hate or simply tutor hate? Just in case it does, side in Mirran Crusader and Disenchant to deal with Hive Mind .

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Elves: 0-2

Merfolks: 0-2

G/R Tron: 2-0, 2-0

Affinity: 2-1, 2-0

Selesnya Hatebears: 0-2

Torpor Orb: 0-2

Naya burn: 2-1, 2-0, 2-0, 2-1, 2-0

Dredgevine: 0-2

Twin Exarch: 0-2, 2-1, 1-2, 0-2, 2-0, 2-0

Grixis Control: 2-0, 2-0, 2-1

Abzan midrange: 2-1, 2-0

Jund Midrange: 2-1

Gifts ungiven: 2-0, 2-0, 2-0, 2-0

Lantern top control: 1-2, 0-2

Skred: 2-1

Infect: 1-2

Bloom Titan: 0-2, 0-2, 2-1

Grixis Delver: 1-2

*(and many, many more online)*

Current win ratio: 68%

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If you liked the deck, please click here to hate the world a lil' bit more with an upvote!

They see me taxin', they hatin'

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Top Ranked	Achieved #1 position overall 9 years ago
Date added	9 years
Last updated	9 years
Exclude colors	URG
Splash colors	B
Legality	This deck is Modern legal.
Rarity (main - side)	2 - 4 Mythic Rares 28 - 5 Rares 22 - 6 Uncommons
Cards	60
Avg. CMC	2.00
Tokens	Cat Soldier 1/1 W
Folders	whites, Liked, Primer, Just Human Stuff, Modern, decks of interest, Favorite Decks, Possible To-Buy Decks, Death and Taxes (Modern/Standard), Modern