The ban of Gitaxian Probe coupled with the printing of Fatal Push was supposed to be a death knell for Death’s Shadow in Modern. As it turns out, pairing a gigantic one-mana threat with a versatile one-mana removal spell in a color that has all the one-mana discard spells is a better thing than Martha Stewart’s chocolate chip cookie recipe. Death’s Shadow has gone on to take over Modern in a form that is almost completely different from its original incarnation.
But if you’re anything like me, you like to attack. And that means getting back to Death’s Shadow’s roots and getting your opponents dead as well as yourself. And we even have a shell that fits nicely with the heavy fetch-shock element that supports Death’s Shadow: Domain Zoo.
The primary domain card in these lists has been Tribal Flames, made easily a four-damage burn spell that can often be pumped to the full five, but this list includes the secondary domain card, Might of Alara, as a four-of as well. Ideally it will function as a one-mana burn spell which is incredibly efficient, and the ability to help your creatures in combat elevates it over a straight-up burn spell.
Gitaxian Probe gets replaced by Mutagenic Growth, which, while less powerful, is more aggressive, so it suits the deck well and protects your early creatures from Lightning Bolt, which, if you haven’t done it before, is immensely satisfying. 10/10, would recommend.
The creature base is simply a collection of the best one-mana threats in Modern and Tamogoyf. The bar is so high to make the deck that Goblin Guide, perhaps the best red one-drop ever printed, only makes it in as a two-of.
In its own color, Monastery Swiftspear beats it for the explosive potential with Mutagenic Growth and Boros Charm granting double strike as a budget Temur Battle Rage. Also, having a haste creature lets you be threatening from absolutely no battlefield, which is going to force opponents to play cautiously or give you free wins out of nowhere.
There’s no doubt that Fatal Push is good against this deck, but one removal spell won’t be enough by itself to contain it. The damage output this deck can generate is truly impressive, and the burn makes sequencing difficult for opposing Death’s Shadow decks. The lesson from the last six months is there’s more than one way to cast one-mana 5/5s, but it appears we’ve completely abandoned the previous shell, and perhaps prematurely.
Creatures (22)
Lands (18)
Spells (20)
