As you can tell from my sideboard, the only time I really struggle is against really well built aggro decks. It takes me a few turns to get going, if an opponent drops multiple creatures in turn 2 and 3 I can get overwhelmed. Also I'm thinking of subbing in Dissipate for Counterflux. I'd be interested in feedback, thanks!

One thought that came to my mind when mulling over the spoiler list was Woodlot Crawler . Might not look like much, but it hits the table in time to neuter Burning-Tree Emissary , Flinthoof Boar and can hold the line against things like Thragtusk . Might be worth a try.

Surprised you're nor running Far /Away or Turn /Burn against aggro/midrange matchups or Toil /Trouble against control, the latter might not be a good idea but it negates the whole Sphinx's Revelation lifegain without being too narrow to draw you some cards too

How does it run? Have you taken it to FNM?

Nope. Havent been to an fnm in ages. But its worth a try in playtesting. And it seems like the kind of card that wizards would print for that purpose.

I actually meant has he taken the DECK to fnm

Yeah that's what I thought, but I didn't want to jump in. No I haven't actually been to a FNM, I've been playing with proxies and they don't allow proxies. I've just been playing some friends and casual matches, but no tournaments.

Again though the only thing I find is the meta game is so fast, if I can make it to turn 4 with a decent amount of life I can take the game. But if I get rushed in the early turns before I can control the board I have a rough time getting back control.

I just don't know what the most effective cards to sub in are. Pillar of Flame for quicker spot removal? I liked Izzet Staticaster , and Rolling Temblor , but the aggro decks are getting beefier and I don't know the best board wipes to use. Just looking for some suggestions.

Also concerning the split cards like Far / Away and Turn / Burn I'm just not convinced of the value. Yes I get the card advantage of having two cards in your hand in place of one, but the CMC is one extra mana for not some medium range abilities. I mean a 2 mana Unsummon , which is more a stall than an answer. And yes it combos nicely so if there's 2 creatures you can use Far to get rid of one and target the other with Away. But 5 mana to kill one creature and unsummon another? For one mana less I'd rather use 2 Ultimate Price or better yet 1 Barter in Blood and kill them both. I dunno, maybe I'm missing something, but I just don't get it.

the extra mana is for utility, it's why Simic Charm is pretty good in comparison to a regular Unsummon , Giant Growth or Ranger's Guile . it reduces the need for certain slots in the sideboard to be taken by other cards that could be more useful... and sorry bout the out-of-place reply. for some reason I thought SpaderAce was nim6us...

I'm not too keen on Rolling Temblor . too many of the value creatures for aggro at the moment have 3+ toughness like the boar, smiter, centaur and dreg mangler... the main argument for turn/burn is that the Turn side of it stops Thragtusk from leaving behind a remnant beast token which is always useful as a tempo play.

Far / Away I guess deals with decks packing tokens... so you don't wind up with value taken away from the play, at least it tops Barrin's Spite

I know what you mean about how it's not fast enough. I also run grixis, but at FNM I only can win if my opponent starts off slow. If you look at my build, it isn't completely up to date

I know what you mean about Rolling Temblor you just need to pack more of a punch! I'm thinking of pulling the trigger on 2x Bonfire of the Damned . They've dropped down from $20 to almost $10, and as a sweeper I don't think you can find a better card in standard for Grixis.

UPDATED

against serious aggro decks, i suggest AEtherize myself. it really works against mimic and +1/+1 counter based decks and token decks, a really underrated card imo. also if you're running Master of Cruelties with grixis colors, i would suggest Artful Dodge to make sure he gets in there, then follow up with a spear of course :]

simic** not mimic lol

also if your decks kinda slow, maybe take out the olives and a couple nighthawks for a playset of delvers??

olivias** damn i hate MAC's auto correct...

You know AEtherize was in my original setup, I ended up subbing it out for Cyclonic Rift to give myself more flexibility. I'll definitely have to think about it because you're right, it is very underrated card. Speaking of flexibility, I like Artful Dodge however for that same 1 mana I can get Glaring Spotlight which gives me the option of an alpha strike if need be. Another reason to go with Glaring Spotlight is a lot of decks are taking advantage of hexproof in the metagame, and damn does Glaring Spotlight really make those hexproof useless! HAhAHa! I appreciate the feedback though, I hope more people comment and.. upvote ;)

Thanks for putting something together with Master of Cruelties ever since the card was spoiled I've wanted to build a deck around it. I've tried to be very direct about it, making the master my main win condition. Let me know what you think, I'll definitely be using your deck as reference as I continue to improve it.

Master of the House

well shit dude Master of Cruelties can only attack alone, so glaring spotlight just seems like too much mana to only let 1 creature through. you're gonna want that 2 mana to searing spear for the win you know?

and i love Glaring Spotlight , but I'm conflicted, and i know its just the luck of the draw, but every time i go up against my rival deck, bant auras, i always get the Glaring Spotlight , or the removal spell, never both when i need them, its really annoying! lol aetherize and bonfire should deal with those hex proofers though just fine. also Mutilate works against them most of the time.

I can agree, thats why Glaring Spotlight is in the sideboard its definitely not an every game card. The only time its a must play is verse a deck specifically taking advantage of Hexproof. I had room in the sideboard when I was building the deck, and after looking through Top8 I found several decks playing Hexproof. This deck, heck and control deck relies HEAVILY on spells, so you want to make sure your spells are getting through. If I find a better card or that Hexproof is not that big a threat Ill bump Glaring Spotlight . Not to beat a dead horse, but its about options; and aside from nulling Hexproof, the Spotlight gets Master of Cruelties through or allows you to deliver a deathblow with a flock of Nighthawks.

i would want to side board Skullcrack and mainboard Searing Spear

possibly look at Rogue's Passage as a way to push Master of Cruelties

side board Augur of Bolas to help break aggro decks speed and it will help with card filtering.

get some graveyard hate into your side board, Tormod's Crypt , Grafdigger's Cage or even Rakdos Charm

Too many lands for your mana curve grixis beast mode control is way better

I'd have to disagree on the mana. There's 25 in there because you can't afford to miss a drop. This deck requires a lot a fuel and if you're not putting down land every turn you'll miss the opportunity to drop Master of Cruelties turn six and have a turn seven victory.

Sidenote: There's nothing beastly about your deck. It's pretty average :P

Main deck slaughter games and rakdos return lol hard good luck winning anything top decking lands

If you've got a strong strategy and a good card base, you don't need to get into top deck mode. Top deck hero's are the ill prepared, like guys who arbitrarily throw in "beast mode" into their deck names because they can't think of anything else clever.