In anticipation for ONE bringing Phyrexian Obliterator back into Standard/Pioneer, I am testing to see whether Mono Black is a viable deck. So far, this feels like a powerful midrange deck. Because it is limited to Black because of the devotion requirements, the early game is so-so, but around turn 4 it starts to really start hitting hard. Here's the rational for the card choices:
Fatal Push, Thoughtseize: Nuff said, efficient early game removal.
Infernal Grasp: I kicked around Go For The Throat, but it whiffs on Vehicles for Greasefang, RG Aggro, and Bankbuster. The 2 damage is acceptable because Sheoldred gets it back.
Sign in Blood: This is the best card draw available for black, also nets 2 life with Sheoldred.
Invoke Despair: This is the first spell cut in the sideboard. In the main, it can clear out small obstacles or does Draw/Damage, but it is slightly slow for the Pioneer format.
Gifted Aetherborn: Okay T2, can block early aggro efficiently and threaten bigger attackers late game with deathtouch.
Tenacious Underdog: Decent early aggro that you can push aggressively because of its ability to haste out of the graveyard later.
Misery's Shadow: Graveyard hate with a baked-in combat trick.
Reckoner Bankbuster: Good card-draw, but also provides a decent block for Brave the Elements.
Graveyard Trespasser: 3/3 for 3 isn't bad, but it also provides more graveyard hate and incremental damage/life-gain. If they let it flip, it's also a very good body.
Phyrexian Obliterator: The whole reason we are in mono-black. 5/5 for 4, Trample, and a severe disincentive to block or attack into it.
Sheoldred, the Apocalypse: Still better than Phyrexian Obliterator. Widens the gap just by existing, pays for all the cards that force you to pay life, solid body that laughs at most removal being played.
Match-ups so far:
Rakdos Midrage - Toss up with this deck being slightly favored. Both decks have solid early removal, Rakdos has a better early game but Mono-B has a better mid game. Sideboard out Invoke Despair, Sideboard in The Meathook Massacre.
Green Devotion - This is a rough game 1 that gets easier game 2. Karn will grab Stone Brain to wipe your Sheoldreds or Obliterators. Killing planeswalkers is difficult, since you have minimal ability to punch through big bodies. Sideboard out Invoke Despair, Tenacious Underdog, and 1 Thoughtseize, Sideboard in Sheoldred's Edict & Pithing Needle.
Mono-White Humans - This match-up is heavily favored even if they hit Brave the Elements. Our removal is efficient at controlling the board, their removal is situational and reversible. Aggressively blocking and removing in the first few turns gets you to a comfortable midgame, where you just out-value their creatures. Don't let them start piling counters on Humans and you are good. Sideboard in Ritual of Soot to hit every creature they have, Side out Invoke Despair, 1 Thoughtseize.
GW Angels - This deck preys on Mono-Black. There really isn't anything that we can do except sideboard in Ritual of Soot and pray for good draws. With no flying and their ability to gain massive amounts of life, this isn't a game we can really win.
Izzet Phoenix - We are set up nicely for game 1 with all the graveyard hate we have. Keeping Ledger Shredders off the board is the main focus. Landing an Obliterator is almost a game over, since they don't really have a way of getting it off the board without significant sacrifice, and Takenuma gives us the ability to get our stuff back. This is as straight-forward as it gets: keep their creatures off the board, land your own creatures, turn them sideways. Sideboard in Go Blank for Thoughtseize to deal with Phoenix and keep their graveyards from getting full.
UW Control - Tricky game 1, but not impossible. Keep slugging away and try to bait out counterspells if you can. Hold back creatures because they have a habit of wiping the board. Game 1 is all about conservation of resources and will get very, very grindy. If you can land a Sheoldred and keep her there, it puts teeth on all of their card draw, so prioritize making sure you don't jam her in to get countered. Game 2, we board out our Fatal Push, Invoke Despair, and 1 Infernal Grasp in favor of Pithing Needle and Sheoldred's Edict. It's still a grindy game, but if you play smart, you can play around them. Play like control and use your mana to signal possibilities, such as swinging in with a Misery's Shadow and an untapped mana base. Are you going to pump it? If you pump it and leave 2 mana untapped, does that mean you are saving an Edict to kill a planeswalker at instant speed?
Change Swapped Invoke Despair for The Meathook Massacre. More often than not, Invoke Despair didn't hit what I wanted and it felt like a dead card.
