Why no Spark Trooper ? You could drop him the turn after aetheros for stuff to happen.

I considered him, and ultimately decided against him, but that might have been against my better judgement. I'll do some playtests with him and see how the curve runs! Thanks!

yeah in addition, the life gain could help with all the shock lands and fetch lands.

Keldon Marauders and Vexing Devil are others to consider.

I dig this! Looks very fun. +1

I really would recommend adding Greater Gargadon because you sacrifice your creatures to remove the suspension counters and if you have Athreos, God of Passage out then, you get it. really good deck, looks fun AF to play!

Oh and maybe take out the Spark Trooper for some Vexing Devil

GORGEOUS~ An Athreos build for RDW... o.o Thats just plain sexy.

Thanks for all the positive feedback guys!

aeonstoremyliver I really want to incorporate Keldon Marauders into this deck, but I'm just not sure how the curve would work out, as the only way for it to be very effective is to put down Athreos the turn after, which can't always be the case. Vexing Devil definitely seems like a must have, though.

ER0CK99 I'll run some tests with Greater Gargadon to see where it fits in with the curve and if it plays well, most likely as a finisher. Thanks!

This deck must make tons of friends. +1

I suggest playing Mortician Beetle . He's pretty slow to really get anywhere threatening but since he's a one drop, he might see a lot of game play, thus gaining counters and becoming a late game threat.

A cool, synergistic suggestion, but I think Greater Gargadon wins in this situation. Thanks though!

I think the Mortician Beetle vs Greater Gargadon choice depends on if you need speed / bodies on the field for blocking or that late game threat. I would sideboard either one for sure.

Mechanics question; Say you have Athreos, God of Passage out with a Greater Gargadon and you just unearthed something like Hellspark Elemental and its swinging in, so you sac after combat damage for the suspend timer. Now does Hellspark Elemental count as dying to proc Athreos, God of Passage or does it go straight to exile? I feel like it does count since you still sacrificed it first, then the unearth effect triggers to throw it to exile. I just want to make sure.

Eidolon of the Great Revel for the Idyllic Tutor search. You can then lower down Athreos, God of Passage to two and up Idyllic Tutor to 4.

Oh, and lower down your land count dude! Seriously, how do you like getting 7 LANDS IN A ROW!?

I think I fell in love with this deck, you made a really good job!I only feel to suggest Pandemonium , really useful if the opponent manages to play some good blockers and doesn't care if your creatures are bounced.

Man, I love this. Definite +1 from me, seems very fun.

Femme_Fatale I think see what you're going for, but what exactly would the sequence end up being in that case? I want to have Athreos out as soon as possible, so cutting him for more Tutors would only slow that down, even if it meant having more versatility to pull an Eidolon. I'm just confused as to what the curve will be, could you explain? I'll definitely see how a smaller mana base can help too, thanks!

ZippoInc Definitely a card I'd consider sideboarding for slower decks so I can build up a late game advantage! Thanks!

Marthicus, I think it does trigger Athreos since Unearth isn't an 'Instead' ability.

Because when you play Pillar of Flame on a Goblin Arsonist (which really had happened to me :C ), the exiling part within the Unearth ability would have worked against you rather than one effect after another(dying, then the 1 damage) if the Unearth text mentioned 'instead'.

The problem is is that you lose consistency in your draws with 4 Athreos, God of Passage s. It is legendary after all. The best idea would be to remove Greater Gargadon . You can't guarantee that you have him and Athreos on the field at the same time. I mean, how would you like it if someone Doom Blade d your Greater Gargadon ? You have spent at minimum 5-6 turns at most 10 turns waiting for him to come out, only for him to die. At least with Eidolon of the Great Revel , he does something the moment they remove him. The other aspect I prefer with the Eidolon is that it destroys 30% of the meta of RDW, U/R aggro/tempo, Jeskai Ascendancy, Storm, Zoo, Affinity, Merfolk, and all the other forms of aggro and multiple spell play combo. Now I understand the speed thing with Athreos, God of Passage , but I think if you do the replacement of Greater Gargadon with Eidolon of the Great Revel , you can just lower Athreos, God of Passage to 3 and up Idyllic Tutor to 4.

Though now after actually looking at the deck-list, you already added Eidolon of the Great Revel , so how about some proper control instead of Greater Gargadon ? How about Porphyry Nodes , Path to Exile , Terminate or Lightning Helix ?

I see your point in terms of improving consistency, and while I do value Greater Gargadon for its instant-speed sac ability, as this helps actually bring some use to sacrificing creatures, and synergy with sacrifices, as it's not really "waiting" for him because the fuel comes so easily, I definitely agree it's important to add in some control. I'll run some tests with more control, cutting out some of the less important creatures, and make changes accordingly. Thank you for all the suggestions!

+1 VERY CLEVER! I'd never even thought of this, but it's straight-up GENIUS.

Dude, a very enthusiastic +1 from me! I'm a big fan of Athreos and this is the best abuse of him I've seen so far. I just got into MtG this year / only play standard -- this is the deck I feel like I always wanted to see made with him but never quite knew how to make. 10/10

I just want to mention that your sideboard leaves much to be desired. RDW destroys this deck. I'm currently trying out other decks.

Oh, and I think this version is MUCH more resilient against the various match ups. Will compare in a bit.

The problem this deck has against control match-ups, is that all they have to do, is counter your Athreos, God of Passage and Immortal Servitude and they win. As Lightning Bolt s, Path to Exile s and various other forms of removal will deal with all of your creatures. control really kills you, as not only do they house tonnes of removal and counterspells, but their manlands can prevent your creatures from getting through.

Speaking of other possible sideboard cards, have you ever considered Tymaret, the Murder King ? His main purpose is pretty much the same as Pandemonium , but it gives you a constant blocker if you need it.

Thinking of other possible synergies, (but maybe straying from the theme of the deck) what about Olivia Voldaren ? She can easily kill your own X/1 creatures to boost herself and rapidly become a huge flyer, not to mention her always useful second ability. Both her and Tymaret really shine only if you have a lot of mana though...

Nice deck +1. Maybe swap in a couple Nomad Outpost ?