Hello all, Jaunty here. Welcome to my den, it is a pleasure to be introducing myself. I have written my story hoping it makes for an interesting, thought provoking, read. Keep in mind everything below is some what fictional and/or metaphoric, so you need not worry too much regarding my mental safety. So, without further ado, let us begin.

I was introduced to Magic The Gathering around the age of 10-12. As worry free as most kids around that age, I simply just stumbled across the game. Originally playing it with my brother, for our own casual enjoyment. We each purchased a starter deck, he showed me all the common rulings and then we just got to it. Thinking back, I guess we figured the rest out together. Being of such a young innocent age, I remember us really getting emotionally invested in our cards. We looked at them in awe thinking, "how cool is this card? I have to make a deck around it". To which we set out to do so. Creating decks with themes that suited our personalities/play styles. After so much use, it felt as if the cards are very much a part of us. The joy a card would bring if you top decked it at a perfect time, would strengthen a bond within. Or if you had performed a bluff with a particular card. After the game you would sit and stare at that card just thinking "oh friend, you have so much more potential than you think"

So, we had both carefully chosen and purchased the cards we wanted to use in our games. With whatever money a child could conjure up at the time. Funnily enough, this sparked the age old battle of black and white (good vs evil). He would play a variation of soul sisters (small synergistic white creatures). I shortly assembled a Mono black deck (early aggression and some larger threats) in hope to hold my own. The white cards would team together using synergies for strength or exiling creatures they deemed too troublesome. My dark creation included all forms of horrifying creatures with just as many destructive spells. My play style was more "We do what needs to be done". I didn't care what left my battlefield or how low my life was. If I'm dying you were dying faster. It was reckless.

We would often battle saying things to each other as if on the battlefield ourselves, children living in the moment. Using our imagination to fill in the blanks. These games often resulted in the white synergistic deck narrowly pulling through with the win. Early life healing, powerful creature combinations and card draw would give him the advantage in the late game. At the beginning we both struggled to grasp the reasoning as to why he would slip through with a win. Of course, Still enjoying ourselves with our own play style of cards. Although, every time I walked away from the table the frustration of continual defeat could only be masked for so long.

It started to have an effect on me, eat into me. How was I loosing so often? Was I just making continual mistakes? What does his deck do better? is it all my fault? These are the questions you ask yourself as a child, over and over again. The questions that lead you to truths. But perhaps as a child guidance would've kept you safe. Kept you sane.

And so, the search begun. I started looking into different outlets. Constantly trying to play to perfection. Every misplay would eat away at me inside, far more than the damage it did in the game. I looked at every black card legal in the format. Just an attempt to find the missing link, evidently the closer I got to winning the more this obsession grew. Cut a black card to replace with another black card telling myself "that's the one". winning, always seemed an achievable goal, yet never achieved. Eventually, it took over my life. For years I assessed everything. Every black cards worth. Analyzed decks created by competitive players, read articles I could find about piloting black archetypes or specific black cards, over and over, and over, again. It could not be abandoned, I needed to find it. Or was it looking for me? you leave these thoughts eventually, because well... in the grand scheme they don't really matter. Eventually somewhere along the path I wondered about original thought that had led me down this path as a child "We do what needs to be done" I started to study it. Have I gone too far down this path? or.... maybe not far enough? "Not far enough", I couldn't tell if the wind whispered it or if the thought was so clear, I simply sounded it out. "Sacrifice everything, at any cost"

I'd found It. A creation that needless to say destroyed absolutely everything, even itself. It was beautiful, poetic in a way. In so much chaos, opponents could not thrive, synergies would break down. They were not build to handle the dark. The deck little by little set itself up with advantage, sacrificing parts of itself as well. The graveyard became a very comfortable place. Nothing was truly dead, only sitting and waiting. Thinking about it now, the deck is very similar to my story. Sometimes we need to destroy old parts of ourselves in order to truly grow.

So this is my journey for everyone to see. This is where my gross obsession for dark cards was born. From the perpetual search for Improvement in all things dark, he (my brother) created an obsession. I haven't yet thanked him for it, but one day would like to. It took me some time to realize, you don't grow in comfort. You grow when your ready, when you can sit alone and whisper to yourself "Sacrifice everything, at any cost"

I've spent far too long trying to answer the question, so I just let others decide. What exactly created me this way? Maybe it was just the continual use of dark cards? Was it even manifested within me? or no, maybe it was inside laying dormant from the very beginning? I've let the question sit on my shoulder for far too long now. It becomes tire some. I just be me.

So this space will be a space I share with everyone what I love. Making a competitive strictly black deck that nobody else is using from fear of it. Then doing what I have done for years, research, calculate, refine and "feel out" all things dark, for the pure love of it.

Now, I have told you my story and you see where my obsession comes from, please don't be afraid. I'm open to share my thoughts regarding any black cards, decks or archetypes. What they would be good for or against, etc. I am more than happy to hold your hand as you take your first steps into the shadows. Never be afraid of the darkness, Embrace it.

We all have it inside of us "Sacrifice everything, at any cost"

May the dark arts guide you.

-Jaunty- Mono Black Counsellor.