Sui

It`s always humbling to start writing about something you think you know about, only to do some research and learn about a) how it actually works and/or b) how to improve on your original design. Today’s deck happens to be a great example of this, as it had to undergo several changes before finally looking the way it does. I think a common misconception among MtG players is that we can group decks under broad strategic categories: aggro, control and combo. There is certainly a logic to doing so, but it doesn’t really describe how a deck works. For example, there are numerous ways to control an opponent – land destruction, hand disruption, counter magic, et cetera. Anyway, it’s because of this that I decided against naming today’s deck by its generic title of Mono Black Aggro, instead going by its other name(s) Suicide Black or Sui.

After such a lengthy introduction, I think it is only fair to delve a bit into what I was referring to. Here is an original draft paragraph I had written for the deck: “I had originally put 1x Hatred in the deck as a sort of homage to the old Suicide Black decks, but the card itself can also win you games. While the cost of 5 mana might seem high, with the rituals and the role the card plays in the deck, as a 1-of I think it`s a fine addition – perhaps even in the mainboard.” Now obviously, the card itself happens to be very important to Sui. Why? It allows you to win on a very fast clock. As you can see in the finished version, the card became a 3-of in the mainboard and one of the key win conditions of the deck. Learning things is neat.

Originally the deck had 8 pump knights in its creature base. I found that the knights, combined with Nantuko Shade, just made the board way too mana hungry and so removed them. In their place, I added another cheap threat that didn’t require mana investment once cast – Rotting Giant. I also added 4 Vendetta to help clear the path for the creatures who land, instead of just adding other efficient beaters that you don’t really want to draw later on. This is supposed to be an efficient threats’ deck, not an Elf-style one.

Speaking of efficient beaters, the [fellow] MtG history nerds among us may have noticed an omission from the deck. The truth is, I was never a fan of Phyrexian Negator despite it being a staple in Mono Black aggro decks. Even with Sarcomancy being a `free’ sac outlet for Negator, Lightning Bolt and other creatures are just so prevalent in the format that I don’t think Negators are worth playing. That doesn’t even factor in drawing them later on..

Speaking of which: the long game. Sui generally tries to avoid the long game, but the inclusion of Grinning Demon, Nantuko Shade and Bad Moon can help you win if the game goes a bit longer than hoped. Try to avoid this though as other decks certainly have an advantage if they are able to withstand your initial assault and stabilize the board.

I think one of the important things to remember when designing Sui is to stay focused on being aggro. You should not be trying to jam in a bunch of answers for your opponents - they should be the ones trying to find answers to you. With that in mind, there are a plethora of playable cards for the deck, so choose the ones that suit you best. Happy Brewing!

Sui

Land

7 Swamp

1 Lake of the Dead

7 Fetch lands

4 Wasteland

Total: 19

Creatures

4 Carnophage

4 Rotting Giant

3 Nantuko Shade

4 Hypnotic Specter

2 Grinning Demon

Total: 17

Spells

4 Dark Ritual

4 Sarcomancy

4 Duress

4 Hymn to Tourach

3 Hatred

4 Vendetta

1 Bad Moon

Total: 24

Sideboard

4 Tormod’s Crypt

4 Smother

2 Gate to Phyrexia

1 Innocent Blood

1 Hatred

2 Engineered Plague

1 Cabal Ritual

Dark Tide

Don’t you love it when you discover a card that immediately gets you thinking of ways to abuse it? That’s exactly what happened with today’s deck, once I stumbled upon a card called Bubbling Muck. Honestly, I had never heard of the card before – a rather embarrassing admission once I discovered how prevalent it had been during Urza’s block. Indeed, this is often the case, as those cards are ‘new’ to me (I stopped playing around Weatherlight..), so try not to judge. But enough about my MtG history, let’s talk about today`s deck: Dark Tide.

How it works. So the deck itself plays quite similar to your normall High Tide-type deck. The main difference here being that the addition of Black offers you more flexibility, both in play-styles and win conditions. Another benefit is that a Storm-based combo deck tends to require a lot less luck when it comes to winning. Why? Because you normally only need to cast <10 spells, as opposed to generating insane mana on top of playing an extremely high number of spells to reduce your opponent’s life total to zero.

Colour balance. This is the part that can be tricky. For example: Force of Will or Duress? While I can understand the argument for including FoW, I decided to go with the latter for a number of reasons. Not only does it build your storm count, but it also lets you know if it`s clear to go for the combo and doesn`t cost you card advantage. In short, it always has a use; whereas FoW does not and can just be stuck in your hand – not an ideal plan for a Storm deck. The one downside to this decision is that Time Spiral re-news your opponent’s hand too, and a well-timed Orim’s Chant or Abeyance in response to your Duress can really ruin your play. The bright side to this is that if does happen, then at least you got a new grip of cards in your hand to try to win with next time.

No Dark Ritual? No problem! Yes yes, I know - it seems almost blasphemous to be playing a Black combo deck without incorporating Dark Ritual. The thing is, with the 4x Muck and 4x Tide, they just aren’t necessary. With those 8 cards, the deck does not need any more mana ramp; what it needs is to be drawing extra cards. In order to do so, the deck contains 17 spells that get cards in your hand. Not only do these replenish your grip while cycling through your deck, but they also add to your storm count and [thus] win you the game.

I know I just wrote that Bubbling Muck and High Tide make other mana pumping spells unnecessary, but that was only sort of true. The 4x Lotus Petal are not there for ramp, but they are there to get you that first B mana without having to tap a land to do so. Also, if you`re playing against a Wasteland deck, you might just want to go the Mono U route; in these instances, the Petals can also be used to cast Tendrils if you`re short on Braingeyser-ing your way to victory. The fact they are re-usable with Time Spiral just happens to be an added bonus, albeit one that is rarely necessary.

Speaking of which.. in the end, I decided to go with Braingeyser instead of Stroke of Genius because the Instant speed of the latter isn`t really necessary and it costs an additional mana to cast. Admittedly, the latter point probably isn’t relevant and the cost of U vs UU can be. These are just some things to consider when you’re trying out the deck and tweaking it to your style. Another omission was the inclusion of other cantrips and/or Impulse. The deck list is already pretty tight due to the addition of Black, but it’s another thing you might want to consider. Happy Brewing!



Dark Tide

Land

4 Underground Sea
4 Island
1 Swamp
4 Polluted Delta
4 Fetch lands

Total: 17

Creatures

4 Cloud of Faeries

Total: 4

Spells

4 Bubbling Muck
4 High Tide
4 Brainstorm
4 Sleight of Hand
4 Meditate
4 Time Spiral
4 Lotus Petal
4 Duress
1 Snap
3 Turnabout
2 Tendrils of Agony
1 Braingeyser

Total: 39

Sideboard

4 Tormod’s Crypt
4 Chain of Vapor
3 Engineered Plague
1 Infernal Contract
3 Cabal Therapy