Because I am a budget player, this deck was constructed for the Modern format with the condition that its total value could not exceed $20.00, sideboard included. The value of each these cards was based on the Medium price rating for each card on TCGPlayer.com, in order to avoid inaccurately high or low prices. I hope that this decklist can be of use to other budget players, or simply any player looking for a fun casual deck that can be easily assembled. Enjoy!
It doesn't get more straightforward than an Aggro strategy. This deck is designed to output damage as quickly and consistently as humanly possible, all while overloading enemy removal packages, and eliminating the odd blocker or two. Each of the cards in this deck are here for pretty obvious reasons.
Rakdos Cackler
,
Gnarled Scarhide
, and
Firedrinker Satyr
are the one-drops of this deck. Each is an efficient beater with its own little differences, but they all serve the shared purpose of getting a creature with two power out on your very first turn.
Spike Jester
and
Lightning Mauler
form the two-drop lineup for creatures here. While the Jester has slightly more power than the Mauler does, it's also somewhat harder to cast and cannot synergize with other creatures as easily. Playing a Lightning Mauler with any one-drop creature on turn three allows you to empty your hand and out-tempo the enemy removal package. Often a surprise, and always a great time.
We have just one three-drop creature,
Shambling Remains
. It's big and it's slow, but it's tough to remove and it hits like a truck. Combining the Remains with a Lightning Mauler is very effective, and the enemy will usually be reluctant to use a boardwipe when you can just Unearth this guy for four damage the following turn.
Two copies of
Hellrider
top off this deck's curve. Normally I would be hesitant to use a four-drop in an aggro deck, but this guy is simply powerful enough to be worth the mana. His ability synergizes extremely well with a deck filled with small creatures, and having Haste means that he can quickly become a one-man army if need be.
Our removal package is composed of
Vendetta
,
Incinerate
,
Mizzium Mortars
, and Devil's Play. Vendetta is a very cheap spell, and will often net you a mana advantage for taking down an expensive creature. Since we're going to be the beatdown in most of our matchups, the life loss won't usually be an issue. Incinerate is simply an efficient removal spell, and can be aimed at an opponent's face to end the match with a burnout. Mizzium Mortars cannot be used to damage an opponent's life total directly, but it can be overloaded to wipe an entire lineup of enemy blockers if you find yourself in a stagnant lategame state. Devil's Play is somewhere between Incinerate and Mizzium Mortars, allowing you to dump huge amounts of mana into taking down creatures or players. And the flashback lets you do it again!
This deck's curve is rounded out by three spells.
Bump in the Night
is here to provide an extra turn one play, assuming you haven't found a one-drop creature yet. It's also very useful for providing a little inevitability if you're in a topdeck war; oftentimes you'll be hunting for a burn spell to take down those last couple points of life, and having a Bump in your graveyard means that you don't need to worry about topdecking lands because they too can contribute to your burn efforts through the flashback mechanic.
Two copies of Blightning appear here because they allow the deck to punish a poor opening hand from the enemy, all while keeping the damage clock rolling along. Remember that most decks won't be as redundant as this one, so being forced to discard two cards can often send an enemy player into a desperate topdecking spree as they hunt for answers to your threats.
Madcap Skills
appears as a four-of in this deck. Although playing an aura on your smaller creatures can often result in card disadvantage, the sheer speed and power make it worth the risk. The evasion Madcap Skills gives a creature should not be underestimated, and being able to function like a Spike Jester in terms of damage output makes it even easier to live the dream of swinging in for 5 damage on turn 2.
The landbase in this deck features no utility lands. This is because our priority here is consistency, and we can't afford to have an opening hand sabotaged by something that comes in tapped, or doesn't give us the right colour of mana. A single copy of
Stensia Bloodhall
does appear in the sideboard, but it should only be sided in during very specific matchups.
Like the rest of this deck, the sideboard is straightforward. It's mostly composed of specialized removal spells, and a little disruption. Leyline of Punishment is important to note here, as it can often give this deck a fighting chance against lifegain-heavy opponents. If you have any questions about this deck, feel free to ask in the comments below.
This particular deck has good matchups against my WU Control and RG Midrange decks. It has poor matchups against my UB Control and GW Midrange decks. You can find the exact price listings for all of the cards in this deck at the link below.
http://pastebin.com/94345yJX
- (Note that these prices may have fluctuated since this deck was created)
