The Halloween Special!

Boo!

It’s

my

everyone’s favorite time of year! Crispy leaves on the ground, sweater weather, clear skies, and Halloween, one of the few holidays that’s dedicated to
just having fun!

Celebrating Halloween, it seems, has only gotten more intense and involved as I’ve gotten older. Parties everywhere, crazy costumes, and my wedding
anniversary have joined the mix since dragging a pillow case through my friend’s neighborhood while wearing a cowboy costume. I’m not convinced that people
my age don’t have kids just so they can celebrate again.

With all the beasties and creeps and monsters of Magic, Halloween seems like an unofficial time to celebrate the flavor of the game. Innistrad was a gold
mine, providing tons of fodder for terror. I mean, they even had a card called Bump in the Night. While this set has mostly faded into memory, two creature
types highlighted within that block symbolize two sides of the same flavor coin: Spirits and Zombies.

Spirits, the often benevolent souls of the deceased, can protect you, warn you, or fight for you in numbers. Across each color, they represent different
aspects of this ethereal persona, embodying a god’s wild, untamed essence in cards like Eidolon of the Great Revel, or in representing a venerated martyr
as is the case with Geist of Saint Traft. They’re a fan favorite too, and I have many fond memories of the kami in the Kamigawa Block, each one
representing an aspect of nature and faith.

Zombies are much more straightforward. Animated soulless beings craving brains and more followers–sounds like a science blog’s Twitter page. There’s a
certain primal nature to zombies, removing the reasoning and empathy of a living creature with nothing left to mask the innate, carnal desires of the
beast. Even popular culture has been favoring zombies lately with TV shows and movies dedicated to the rather gruesome subject of undead cannibals.

With our generation’s favorite holiday around the corner, it seemed best to share some spooky, casual brews that center around these two ghastly tribes. It
just so happens that Halloween falls on a Friday night this year, which means this week’s FNM could be a great time to display your frightful 75. Lucky for
us, our two tribes in question have plenty of historical support and current support, with two Standard-legal enchantments dealing directly with the two
creature types: Spirit Bonds and Necromancer’s Stockpile.

Spirits first.

Spirit Warriors

Matt Higgs

Test deck on 10-28-2014

Standard

Creatures (32)

Lands (22)

Spells (6)

Sideboard

Backed up by a team of cheap creatures, this budget-friendly list leverages Spirit Bonds and a low curve to consistently make Spirits while nullifying your
opponent’s removal. The deck has a small Warrior theme; thanks to the mini-lords Chief of the Edge and Chief of the Scale, Warrior is an easy sub-tribe to
add to most white or black aggressive decks.

Creatures

The one-drops are much more limited in this iteration of Standard; while we had three one-drop, two-power white creatures last season, only one survived
rotation, and the rest weren’t replaced. Soldier of the Pantheon, alongside Herald of Anafenza (which can get another power, given time) and
Hopeful Eidolon, round out the team well. Hopeful Eidolon is a Spirit, meaning Spirit Bonds may sacrifice an irrelevant 1/1 to protect a critical creature.

The deck features two hate cards that rarely see any play: Aegis of the Gods and Spirit of the Labyrinth. Aegis of the Gods, while neither a Warrior nor a
Spirit, protects you from some of Standard’s most critical spells, including Thoughtseize, Ashiok, Nightmare Weaver; Stoke the Flames, and even finishers
like Villainous Wealth and Burning Anger in the Ascendancy combo deck. This creature’s a little fragile, but that’s why there are four of them. Plus, they
have to spend extra resources to resolve another spell in hand. Spirit of the Labyrinth is very efficient, offering an impressive bruising ability with
three power while also keeping decks on the Treasure Cruise plan down. Much like the Aegis, opponents must deal with the Spirit before they move along with
their regular gameplan. Against an aggressive deck, the Spirit offers a very strong trade up. Sightless Brawler is the real black sheep of the mix. It’s a
Warrior, and its two-mana cost will come in handy, as we’ll see later. At worst, it trades up, as it can always block. At best, it’s a three-power smasher
that can easily attack on time thanks to twelve one-drops and an army of airborne Spirits.

Spells

Here’s the fun part: Return to the Ranks, a card I’ve been dying to use since it was spoiled, returns every maindeck creature in this deck. While it’s a
good idea to keep the curve low, any extra mana can ramp up the Return to the Ranks’ power. The spell seems almost self-defeating; if you have a bunch of
creatures out, chances are you won’t want to tap them down to reanimate others, but when you’re out of creatures, it will cost a lot of mana to bring just
a few back. Thankfully, your Spirits generated through Spirit Bonds can lighten the load. Pay the tax when your creatures enter, then use the Spirits to
cheapen the Return to the Ranks! If you’ve got extra white mana, power it into more Spirits! Return to the Ranks, especially in a deck like this, is still
limited in its usefulness, as it can only be used to recover creatures you’ve drawn and played, as there’s no way to leverage mill or graveyard
manipulation in this deck. However, the deck doesn’t rely on it, so it’ll just make for the fun play every once in a while.

The sideboard is pretty simple too, but Eidolon of Rhetoric might be the most exciting one. This sturdy creature messes up Ascendancy combo decks as well
as control and removal-heavy decks. Like the maindeck hate cards, you have to kill this Eidolon first, which is harder given its low cost and four
toughness.

Maybe a spirited battle is in your future, but if you prefer the shambling sort of undead, there’s lots for Zombies these days too. Lucky for us, Zombies
are historically one of the most supported tribes, so there’s even a Modern deck we can glean out of Necromancer’s Stockpile. First, here’s Standard.

B/r Zombies

Matt Higgs

Test deck on 10-28-2014

Standard

Creatures (24)

Lands (24)

Spells (12)

Sideboard

This is a modification of a deck I’ve been tweaking for a while, but it revolves around blocking as much as possible to kill your opponents with life
drain.

Creatures

Critters like Black Cat are never meant to get in the red zone. As much as possible, 1/1s with “dies” triggers are meant to dissuade attackers. A loose
keep on your opponent’s part will make them nervous to attack into the Cat, lest they lose their best card. It’s not a creature you particular want to kill
either, so you usually just have to grin and bear it, hoping that extra land hits the bin instead of your threat. Bloodsoaked Champion, while seemingly
inappropriate for this deck, offers a free loot, allowing you to cycle it and still cast it later on. It’s still a slick turn 1 play, even if you’re not
expecting to be the beatdown. Grim Guardian and Spiteful Returned act as the drain in this list; two unblockable damage that triggers on attack is a
beating, especially when they happen in multiples. Grim Guardian represents more unanswerable damage, and our deck’s flagship card even triggers it. Gray
Merchant of Asphodel is the king of drain, so why not give it a chance to shine here? Necromancer’s Assistant gives you another Zombie as well as an
opportunity to mill away a Bloodsoaked Champion or the deck’s final creature, Tymaret, the Murder King. As he is a Zombie, you can discard him and rebuy
him immediately, sacrificing the created Zombie token and netting a card.

Spells

The spells are more typical of most black decks; it seems that these days I can never draw enough of either Thoughtseize or Hero’s Downfall, so I see no
reason to mess with the four-and-four formula. Two Stockpiles may or not be correct, but they are fairly useless in multiples, and the deck does not rely on the enchantment to stay relevant. It just really helps and, frankly, is a lot of fun. Empty the Pits seems like a flavor hit if not a
particular plan-relevant choice, and Whip of Erebos can rebuy those Merchants for massive damage. Even a lesser target like Spiteful Returned can close out
the game.

The sideboard focuses on stronger defense for the hyper-aggressive deck. Returned Phalanx can never attack in this deck, but I doubt that’s how you’ll be
winning the game, so why not play a 3/3 for two mana? Bile Blight seems to get more and more relevant as the format ages, and it’s a great way to
supplement or, in some cases, replace Hero’s Downfall. Despise plays double duty with Thoughtseize, and it’s especially strong against the decks where
on-time removal is less important than efficiency. Agent of Erebos is conveniently a Zombie, and its ability to shred graveyards with any of eleven
maindeck cards helps keep it stocked. Erebos himself is the ultimate punishment for a deck that survives on padding its life total, and the amount of life
you gain pays for the hefty price on Erebos’ Greed mode.

This is sweet, but versions of a Necromancer’s Stockpile list have been floating around Standard for months. What if we take a step back and look at the
Stockpile with a wider lens?

U/b Zombies

Matt Higgs

Test deck on 10-28-2014

Modern

Creatures (29)

Lands (20)

Spells (11)

Sideboard

What a stinky pile. Of corpses, that is.

Creatures

Two one-drops constitute the strongest choices for an aggressive shell. Gravecrawler can be discarded to the Necromancer’s Stockpile and cast immediately,
even on an empty board (you’ll have a fresh Zombie to help it out!) Diregraf Ghoul, while considerably worse in the abstract, is still a high-power choice.

Dregscape Zombie is like Gravecrawler, getting similar stats, but it also has the benefit of bringing itself back immediately to attack. “Storing”
ready-to-attack creatures in the graveyard can make an opponent hesitant to let their guard down. With such a cheap unearth cost, it’s no problem to get
him out there and cast some binned Gravecrawlers on the same turn.

This deck features sixteen Zombie lords, each with similar primary effects and stats with unique secondary abilities. They are roughly
interchangeable, but the presence of so many anthem effects mean that every Zombie you cast or create via the Stockpile is large enough to crush even
mighty Modern creatures.

Finally, you’ll notice a single Shambling Shell. Shambling Shell is a Zombie, yes, but it also has a fun interaction with Necromancer’s Stockpile. Discard
the Shambling Shell to the Stockpile, then mill three cards and replace your draw, returning the Shell to your hand. This is a great way to fill your
graveyard with Gravecrawlers, Dregscape Zombies, and more bodies to fuel your other spells and lands.

Spells

Aether Vial came along late in the deckbuilding process, but it has so far proven invaluable. With the majority of the deck’s creatures costing an
oppressive three mana, the ability to “cast” two each turn makes up for the potential tempo loss, and it lets you select the right lord for the job on the
fly. In practice, this has the inadvertent effect of making this deck feel like a Modern Merfolk-based deck. While we can’t leverage our end step like they
do, the ability to get a lord online for free at instant speed can continuously threaten to mess up combat math at every phase of the game.

Thoughtseize is a given in mono-black these days, with combo decks flexing their consistent, powerful muscles. We have three copies of the Stockpile this
time, as the deck relies a little more on it to create an unending stream of Zombies to keep up with other lists. Finally, a single Nameless Inversion
rounds out the list. Lord of the Undead has the ability to recover it a la Hakkon, Stromgald Scourge. The Zombies in this deck can get large enough that
this can be cast offensively as well.

Lands

With every lord, Mutavault becomes a more enticing option, and it can always be a 2/2 Zombie in the red zone. Cavern of Souls is the only way to cast some
of the multi-colored Zombies in this list, but thankfully, Aether Vial offers an alternative to force them out. Crypt of Agadeem, a card that was better in
theory than in practice, acts like a graveyard-oriented Nykthos, allowing a lategame way to power out several Stockpile activations or a high-mana spell
out of the sideboard. Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth, is literally only worse than a Swamp against Blood Moon, so you’re gonna be hard-pressed to talk me out of
it.

Sideboard

The sideboard is more flavorful than practical, with only a set of Duress as a nod to the real needs of Modern. Sedraxis Alchemist is definitely a loose
one, but in what amounts to a mono-black deck, having a way to do away with a powerful enchantment for just one turn might be all you need to close the
game. Skirk Ridge Exhumer is a fun choice against aggressive decks, as the Festering Goblins you make with a Gravecrawler or Dregscape Zombie you discard
can trade up, killing X/2s or in multiples to take down immense beasts. Stillmoon Cavalier is a great black or white hoser, and given enough mana, it can
close the game by itself in a heavily white or black matchup. Shambling Attendants offers an extremely efficient and deadly threat that burn and removal
will have trouble touching profitably. The creature dodges cards like Abrupt Decay, Slaughter Pact, and every major burn spell in the format, and the low
cost afforded by Stockpile trash makes this exceptionally efficient in the lategame. Finally, the miser’s copy of Zombie Apocalypse might be the most
exciting way to close a game of Modern ever. While it does reanimate your own team, it also kills critical Humans, like Snapcaster Mage and Noble Heirarch.
Neither will matter much when you’re ending the world by reanimating nineteen Zombies, but sometimes it’s just the little things.

Between these three lists, I’d like it if one of them found your heart (not by force, I hope) and inspires you to play it or something like it for
this flavorful Halloween weekend.

Got a spooky brew of your own?