Making Sacrifices In Standard

Have you ever eaten so much that you think you’re going to die? That’s where I’m at right now.

After spending a week in my hometown of Pittsburgh, PA, I had done it all. Primanti’s sandwiches, Mineo’s and Vincent’s pizza, DeLallo’s Italian Market…too
much to even comprehend. I put food down like it was Old Yeller. It was an absolute massacre. I had to ask Cedric for an extra day on my deadline because
A) it was my favorite cousin’s wedding and B) I couldn’t move!

That’s actually a picture of me.

But no matter how far I step away from Magic to enjoy the other muggle aspects of my life, it’s never too far from my mind.

Quite innocently, I posted a R/B deck at the end of my article last week. It was a prototype looking
for a way to exploit the power of one of my favorite cards to come out of Battle for Zendikar, Smothering Abomination. The effect that this card
provides, “whenever you sacrifice a creature draw a card” seems absolutely incredible when paired with its primary line of text, “sacrifice a creature at
the beginning of your upkeep.” There is a wealth of expendable creatures out there, so I started with what I knew I wanted while working with incomplete
information.

My initial inclination was to want cards like Thopter Engineer and Ghirapur Gearcrafter because they provided multiple bodies for a single card, and that
would allow us to grind out card advantage with Smothering Abomination. That seemed pretty underpowered when you didn’t draw your enabler, so instead I
took this approach, which you saw last week:

R/B Aggro

Mark Nestico

Test deck on 09-15-2015

Standard

Creatures (19)

Lands (23)

Spells (18)

The initial synergies were great, as Bloodsoaked Champion would be a reoccurring threat and sac outlet on top of being a great early means of pressure.
Merciless Executioner also made a lot of sense in conjunction with the eight token creators, Hordeling Outburst and Dragon Fodder. Wild Slash was the
perfect removal spell to use as well since it could double as finishing burn.

Other parts of the deck seemed clunky and out of place entirely. Exquisite Firecraft was essentially a placeholder for whatever new spell I’d find in the
spoiler, as was Monastery Swiftspear. Fiery Impulse was a much weaker Wild Slash, and Ultimate Price with all the devoid cards was sure to be awful.

Thankfully, the spoiler was completed and I was pleasantly surprised at some of the toys this deck would be allowed to play with. The heavy emphasis on
spells would need to be replaced by better and more efficient creatures. Right off the bat when I spotted Drana, Liberator of Malakir I knew that she
belonged. Not only was she aggressive and powerful, but with an early curve of creatures she should provide an extremely effective clock.

The next card may seem gimmicky, but I truly believe in this deck it has tons of untapped potential. Bone Splinters with Smothering Abomination on the
field allows you to sacrifice a Goblin token or Bloodsoaked Champion to kill any creature and draw a card. The fact that it costs a single black
mana makes it very tempo-centric, so casting multiple threatening spells won’t be much of an issue.

My first draft also didn’t have a sideboard, so that became a priority. With 24 lands, my choices may be greedy, but I think the choices are correct for
the introductory portions of the metagame. Remember: There is no more Drown in Sorrow, so stunting earlier advances is going to be more difficult. Decks
like Abzan will rely more on their turn 4 plays of Siege Rhino or Languish, but that may prove slightly harder without Temples to ensure land drops.

So far this is my working list to test for the Open Series in Atlanta in a few weeks.

R/B Aggro

Mark Nestico

Test deck on 09-22-2015

Standard

Creatures (23)

Lands (23)

Spells (14)

Sideboard

One of the cards I liked a great deal was Carrier Thrall, and I figured that it would be a good two-drop along with Dragon Fodder. The 2/2 body may not
turn any heads, but like its green cousin Nest Invader, it provides a couple bodies for a rate we’re willing to pay. Replacing itself with a 1/1 Eldrazi
Scion is no small deal either, considering that if it dies on turn 3, you’re able to accelerate into an Abomination or Outpost Siege. It’s aggressive
enough to warrant consideration, and it gives us that little extra cost-effective creature to fill the previously stagnant spot on two.

Liliana, Heretical Healer was something I originally considered but thought would be too slow. Well, it turns out that in testing she’s one of the best and
most potent facets of this deck! We’re already familiar with how powerful Liliana on 3 into a turn 4 Merciless Executioner is from watching it in various
Rally the Ancestor builds, and it’s no different in this deck except that there are plenty of extra ways to flip her into her planeswalker form. Bone
Splinters and Smothering Abominations are extra ways to put your creatures in the graveyard, and Liliana’s minus ability keeps them on the battlefield and
keeps the card advantage flowing. Once flipped, we found games to be difficult to lose, and she was especially effective against the early versions of
Abzan Control and Esper Dragons we were seeing.

The other maindeck powerhouse is Outpost Siege. I know I’m biased in my love for that enchantment, but we found we needed something on turn 4 when we
didn’t have Smothering Abomination. I casually suggested my pet card, Outpost Siege, knowing full well how much Dromoka’s Command I should be expecting
when BFZ is legal. It wasn’t as incredibly game-breaking, though, because the deck was operating so quickly that usually their Commands were trying to
sweep up creatures. Also, as a side note, Command may see a slight decline in playability given the loss of important creatures like Fleecemane Lion and
Courser of Kruphix. Both modes are equally as important, so determining which one fulfills your needs is going to be based solely on the boardstate, the
amount of cards in your hand and the opponent’s hand, and the one that places you in the most advantageous position. As of now, I’ve chosen both equally,
so you’ll have to pick wisely.

Drana is a card I’d be picking up soon, because her price tag says “$14.99,” but just how good she is says that it might increase. Everything about her is
potent, including her interaction with Hangarback Walker. First strike coupled with +1/+1 counters to your attacking creatures when she deals combat damage
is going to push through a ton of extra damage, and even though she’s a 2/3 for three, she gives the deck the ability to kill rapidly if uninterrupted.

The sideboard is where I’m having a bit of trouble, but I still like all of the options, just maybe not in the numbers they exist in.

I knew Duress had to be a four-of because cards like Crux of Fate and Languish are going to be cornerstones in the two prominent control strategies during
the first few weeks, and even though this deck is quite resilient, I’m sure you noticed everything pretty much dies to those two. Abzan, with its capacity
to buy things back with Den Protector will prove the most difficult to overcome, but thankfully they lose a lot in the way of Courser, Thoughtseize, and
Hero’s Downfall. I would bet that those trying to port it directly won’t have the correct builds right away, which this deck looks to take advantage of.

Kolaghan’s Command is exceptional at buying back creatures, serving as removal, and it’s instant-speed discard. It’s possible it would be better in the
maindeck, but the deck feels like it has the right number–if not a few too many already–threes. Self-Inflicted Wound is for the ton of green creatures
we’re sure to see, like Siege Rhino and Den Protector, but for also catching Dragonlord Ojutai, which is why I believe it may be slightly better than Roast
right now. Butcher’s Glee is an experimentation against other aggro decks, as it has the largest potential for blowouts and tilting races. It’s cute,
though, and may get replaced.

I wanted to try Ob Nixilis specifically for the control and midrange decks out there, which is why we’re packing an additional land to board into. 24 lands
has been just around the cutoff for casting him on five or six, and with the amount of card draw this deck can obtain with Abomination and Outpost Siege,
the re-sparked planeswalker hasn’t been all too tough to cast. It presents an immediate and diverse threat for this deck, and I’d like to keep testing him
to see what else he’s capable of.

Changes I would make involve some number of Altar’s Reap, Read the Bones, or Wasteland Strangler, but I’m still trying to get the numbers right. Be sure to
share any comments, criticisms, or opinions on the deck below. If I can tune this puppy to where it needs to be (and I get the time off), I’ll be battling
with it in Atlanta!

Have fun at your Prereleases, kiddies. I’m going to crawl into a ball and hopefully not die from eating too much. If I don’t make it to the midnight
Prerelease, tell my wife I love her.