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I hope he didn't die of anything catching, eh?

Casual Casual WB (Orzhov)

TheMadRocketeer

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Creature (11)

Enchantment (11)

Instant (11)

Land (22)

Sorcery (7)

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Enchantment (4)

Creature (2)

Artifact (2)

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Creature (9)

Instant (5)

Land (1)

Enchantment (5)

Artifact (1)

Theme and Goals

Overview:
A Pestilence deck. Version 1.0 of this deck is one of the few decks that I have from 20-something years ago. The name is a quote from A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens.

--> Versions 1.0 and 1.1 of the deck both have 62 cards. Working on that.

Deck Plan:
This deck's plan is to bring out one or more creatures which can't be killed by Pestilence then get Pestilence out and start using it to deal damage to the opponent(s) and kill their creatures. The deck can also win by straight combat damage in some matchups. The main theme is supported by small elements of Removal, Disruption, Mana Boost, Life Gain and the like.

Categories and Cards

--> Set the pull-down menu above the deck list to Custom Categories to see the cards sorted by role. Clear the pull-down or set it to Type to restore the regular view.

  • Pestilence - This is both creature removal and win condition.
  • Crypt Rats - A creature with the same effect. Fragile, though.
  • Crypt Rats - A creature that has a Pestilence effect built in.
  • Order of Leitbur - Protection from Black. Pumpable. Can be given First Strike. Low toughness, though.
  • Order of the White Shield - A clone of Order of Leitbur.
  • White Knight - Protection from Black. First Strike. Good value for the cost.
  • Stuffy Doll - Nice synergy here. Besides being a great blocker, when Pestilence goes off, it takes damage (without dying) and deals a similar amount to the chosen opponent, doubling the effect. If I give it Lifelink, I get my life points back too.
  • Cemetery Gate - A tough blocker that survives Pestilence and helps keep it around.
  • High Priest of Penance - He's here for removal of pesky stuff that might otherwise prove annoying. If I can make him survive the damage, I can clear the opponent's board very efficiently and quickly. He probably deserves a lot more emphasis and support.
  • Wall of Hope - A cheap early blocker that gains me life.
  • Disenchant - For enchantments or artifacts. Good value.
  • Drain Life - Here to kill opponents' creatures and gain life.
  • Pestilence - Besides being the win condition, this removes creatures too.
  • Crypt Rats - Works pretty much the same as Pestilence.
  • Terror - For creatures. Good value again, but black and artifact creatures are immune.
  • Fatal Blow - Whenever I use Pestilence, this guy becomes very good removal for the rest of the turn.
  • Hymn to Tourach - A small dose of first-rate disruption.
  • Dark Ritual - Mana boost. Mainly here to help in casting Pestilence earlier on average.
  • Drain Life - Life gain. Also good for creature removal.
  • Lifelink - Life gain.
  • Night Dealings - Has a tutoring effect. Theft counters will add up very quickly. A little expensive at 4 CMC, though, and at only one included won't show up to help often.
  • Sanguine Bond - When I have life gain going, this provides another way to get damage in.
  • Shielded by Faith - Nice creature protection. I love that it can be attached to what's available initially and then transferred to a new creature that benefits from it more later on. Repeatedly.
  • Ephara's Radiance - Lets a creature that's not doing anything more important at that moment give me life. Sometimes, a creature's main job is simply to exist and not to die so that Pestilence stays in play. This gets me extra value out of it.
  • Disentomb - Gets me a needed creature back. As a one-of, this may not be all that useful, but if I lose Stuffy Doll, I really want a shot at getting it back, and this card in the deck gives me hope.
  • Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth - Makes my Pestilences and Drain Lifes better.

    • Potential Changes

    This deck could probably use:

  • More consistency by reducing the one-of items. It needs trimming by two cards anyway.
  • More High Priest of Penance and more support, such as Black Ward.
  • More creature protection, such as Black Ward (for Crypt Rats only, though, so maybe not so good here), Indestructible Aura, or Rootborn Defenses. Needed by Crypt Rats, High Priest of Penance, and Wall of Hope. Alternatively, I could swap those creatures out for something else.
  • More Stuffy Dolls. This is all I own at present, though.

    • Suggestions

    Updates Add

    Feb. 26, 2017
    Edit

    --> Version 1.0 has 62 cards. <--
    3x Circle of Protection: Black #Damage_Prevention
    2x Circle of Protection: Red #Damage_Prevention
    4x Dark Ritual #Mana_Boost
    3x Disenchant #Removal
    1x Divine Transformation #Creature_Buff
    3x Drain Life #Damage #Life_Gain #Removal
    1x Eye for an Eye #Damage_Payback
    4x Hymn to Tourach (FEM) #Disruption
    3x Indestructible Aura #Creature_Protection
    3x Order of Leitbur #Creature
    1x Order of the White Shield #Creature
    4x Pestilence (4ED) #Main_Theme #Removal
    10x Plains #Land
    1x Reverse Damage #Damage_Payback #Life_Gain
    2x Righteousness #Creature_Protection
    11x Swamp #Land
    3x Terror #Removal
    3x White Knight #Creature

    Potential Changes
    This deck could possibly use:

  • Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth would make my Pestilences and Drain Lifes better.
  • Fatal Blow, in combination with Pestilence, is cheap creature removal.
  • Stuffy Doll doubles the damage for one opponent whenever Pestilence gets activated. It also helps keep Pestilence on the battlefield and makes a great blocker.
  • Something to provide lifelink to my creatures in order to offset the Pestilence hits I'll take. (Works better when used on an Indestructible creature rather than on a Protection from Black creature. Preference should be given to white spells, since our current creatures all feature Protection from Black.) Imagine Lifelink or Eternal Thirst on a Stuffy Doll. It could get ugly. Or some instant-speed Lifelink effects for fun. Picture this sequence. (1.) Swing with Stuffy Doll. (2.) Savor the "What's he up to?" expression on your opponent's face. (3.) Play Grotesque Mutation on the unblocked Doll. (4.) Savor the resulting "Ouch." expression. (5.) Activate Pestilence for all you can afford. (6.) Savor the "You gotta be kidding." expression. (7.) Laugh maniacally like a melodrama villain. :-)
  • Lands that can provide both Blue and Black mana.
  • Maybe something like Diabolic Tutor to search out a key piece when I need it.
  • Maybe something like Underworld Connections for card draw.

    • --> Version 1.1 still has 62 cards. <-- **Added** 1x Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth #Land 2x Caves of Koilos #Land 3x Scoured Barrens #Land 1x Crypt Rats #Main_Theme #Removal #Creature 1x Stuffy Doll #Creature #Damage 2x Cemetery Gate #Creature 1x High Priest of Penance #Removal #Creature 1x Wall of Hope #Life_Gain #Creature 2x Fatal Blow #Removal 3x Lifelink #Life_Gain 1x Ephara's Radiance #Life_Gain 1x Night Dealings #Tutor_Effect 1x Sanguine Bond #Damage 1x Shielded by Faith #Creature_Protection 1x Disentomb #Creature_Recursion **Removed** 3x Swamp #Land 2x Plains #Land 1x Eye for an Eye #Damage_Payback 1x Reverse Damage #Damage_Payback #Life_Gain 3x Indestructible Aura #Creature_Protection 2x Righteousness #Creature_Protection 3x Circle of Protection: Black #Damage_Prevention 2x Circle of Protection: Red #Damage_Prevention 2x Order of Leitbur #Creature 1x Terror #Removal 1x Hymn to Tourach (FEM) #Disruption 1x Divine Transformation #Creature_Buff

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    Date added 8 years
    Last updated 7 years
    Legality

    This deck is Casual legal.
    Rarity (main - side)

    8 - 1 Rares

    8 - 5 Uncommons

    30 - 2 Commons
    Cards 62
    Avg. CMC 2.20
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