Rakdos the Defiler: The first cut is the deepest

Commander / EDH zweiducks

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First documented update —Feb. 9, 2013

Taking the advice of some of your comments, also have some new Gatecrash cards to try out. Out: 2x Swamp, Junk Diver, Beseech the Queen, Threaten, Shattering Spree. In: Vandalblast, Insurrection, Lord of the Void, Ogre Slumlord, Rogue's Passage, Rakdos Guildgate and Thespian's Stage.

dethjakal says... #1

Defiler of Souls is a cool demon that fits the name xD

December 22, 2012 7:59 p.m.

zweiducks says... #2

Hey, don't know how I missed that one, I will try to get a copy and fit him in. Thanks!

December 27, 2012 6:58 p.m.

hazzaismyname says... #3

once its out you will want Lord of the Void and you do want Griselbrand

January 21, 2013 9:38 p.m.

zweiducks says... #4

I will definitely be running Lord of the Void. Would be running Griselbrand, but he is banned!

January 22, 2013 1:22 p.m.

hazzaismyname says... #5

oh fuck right.......... sorry.....

January 22, 2013 6:44 p.m.

XLunAbate says... #6

Some suggestions:

Necropotence : Best black draw card.

Plague Wind and Decree of Pain : This cards are a real blowout.

Rakdos Guildgate : You don't seem to care if your lands ETB tapped as you already have Sinks, Volcano and the other stuff, so I think it fits.

It That Betrays : It feels so good to defile someone and then to have all his permanents :P.

Hope that helps.

January 29, 2013 1:49 p.m.

zweiducks says... #7

Excellent suggestions XLunAbate, thank you.

It That Betrays would be super sweet, but I wonder if I could support it at 12 CMC... hmm.

January 29, 2013 2:08 p.m.

XLunAbate says... #8

No problem, if you have problems letting those lands out the best bet are Armillary Sphere or card:Journeyer's Kite, also did I just saw a Threaten ? You want Word of Seizing to steal their planeswalkers, use their ults and then sac them to Rakdos to see the grief on their faces. Insurrection does a similar effect that It That Betrays , letting you sacrifice most of the stolen creatures, but if you lean to cheaper options Mass Mutiny also helps.

January 29, 2013 2:15 p.m.

xDarkArmed says... #9

Definitely consider card:Rogue's Passage for this deck. Also Temple of the False God is an EDH staple. Terminate ?

I see your using Halo Hunter , as much as I like the card for its flavor, It's ability is sorely limited.

February 8, 2013 2:32 p.m.

zweiducks says... #10

Thanks for the suggestions, xDarkArmed. I am sitting down today to make some list revisions and I will take these into consideration.

card:Rogue's Passage is an excellent suggestion, and I have that card for sure. I have been going back and forth about Temple of the False God . In many instances it would be awesome, but there are definitely times with this deck where I am sitting on 3-4 lands after hitting someone with Rakdos. It definitely deserves a shot, but I don't currently own one.

I have been back and forth about Terminate as well. It's been in and out of the deck more than once. I've been trying to lean towards larger-scale or repeatable removal as I find 1/1 trades are bad for this deck. Though I suppose some spot-removal is always a good thing.

In defense of Halo Hunter : He is cheap for my curve (not too many <6cc demons, the intimidate often matters, and I see a lot of angels in my group. Specifically, he is a meta choice against Kaalia of the Vast and Sigarda, Host of Herons .

February 8, 2013 3:55 p.m.

xDarkArmed says... #11

The fact that somebody runs Kaalia of the Vast in your group makes me understand it's use then (IMO shes "vast"ly overpowered as a general). Have you considered Abyssal Persecutor ? It's a pretty sweet demon to run, and as soon as he became a bother, you just sacrifice him. Also, XLunAbate mentioned Insurrection . If i were you, I would definitely see that as a playable option to force your opponents to sac lands or artifacts etc whilst allowing you to sacrifice their creatures for you're Rakdos. Also I've had more success with Vandalblast than Shattering Spree .

Not that I would run it, but Hellcarver Demon really fits the flavor of the deck.

It also just occurs to me that dropping a Bitterblossom second turn could be REALLY beneficial for you later in the game.

February 8, 2013 9:03 p.m.