Best Black Removal?

Deck Help forum

Posted on Feb. 3, 2012, 11:58 p.m. by seevers35

I want to begin by saying that removal for creatures like , Inkmoth Nexus and other nasty little creatures seems to be a necessity for a competitive FNM deck.

So, what is the best cheap removal card for a standard black deck? I say cheap to try exclude cards with a converted mana cost greater than 1.

If youre running infect, you can quickly default to Virulent Wound. Though Gut Shot is a good card at the moment, shouldnt Tragic Slip and Wring Flesh be considered better if you have a black mana source regularly? We should also not forget about Dismember. Its cmc is 3, but because it can be cast for 1 should it be involved in the conversation?

2austin5 says... #2

well Gut Shot is very useful because you don't have to pay mana so you could use that to kill a creature and then use your open 1 swamp (in theory) to kill basically any creature you want so that is a solid combo. Its big thing is that it just offers more use out of your mana but you would have to decide how much you value life. you could use cards like Exsanguinate, Vault Skirge, and Consume Spirit to gain the life back. Virulent Wound is very specific for the type of deck. Wring Flesh is good, but i am personally not a fan of it but i do like Dismember because of its versatility

February 4, 2012 12:16 a.m.

2austin5 says... #3

the one swamp in that first point is for Tragic Slip

February 4, 2012 12:17 a.m.

http404error says... #4

Don't forget Dead Weight. People majorly underestimate it, Imho.

February 4, 2012 2:40 a.m.

KorApprentice says... #5

Sun Titan can bring it back to kill Geist of Saint Traft, so I think Dead Weight is an amazing card in Standard at the moment. At least if you are playing Solar Flare. Dismember is another excellent removal spell because it can kill indestructible creatures and it makes Phyrexian Obliterator unplayable. It's CMC is 3, but it can be cast for 1 colorless if needed.

February 4, 2012 5:24 a.m.

seevers35 says... #6

You mentioned that using the Sun Titan you can bring back Dead Weight to kill the Geist of Saint Traft. I'm confused how this works. I understand that Dead Weight can be brought back from the grave via the Titan, but I thought that "Enchant Creature" was targeting.

Is the loop-hole the wording of hexproof, "can't be targeted by spells and abilities"? This would mean that bringing the enchantment back is not a spell (which makes sense) and thus would ignore the hexproof ability.

Let me know if I'm wrong and how it works if I am.

Thanks for the help and input. Plus you are correct Dead Weight is a cool card, I just wish it had flash.

February 4, 2012 9:23 a.m.

Rhadamanthus says... #7

Yeah, an Aura only has a target when it's being cast as a spell. Bringing it directly onto the battlefield some other way and attaching it to something gets around that, so you can use Sun Titan, Venser, the Sojourner, etc. to slip auras on things with shroud or hexproof. It doesn't work on things with protection, because one of the things protection specifically restricts is attaching auras or equipment with the protected quality.

February 4, 2012 9:40 a.m.

EleshBlade says... #8

Tragic Slip is the best with Snapcaster Mage. But Delver decks are not running Black right now. So it's probably Gut Shot.

February 4, 2012 12:08 p.m.