Cut Grave Titan, Grimgrin, and Endless Ranks of the Dead. They're too slow. Diregraf Ghoul is incredibly powerful and should be a 4-of, and the others can just be replaced with any good 1 or 2-mana Zombie you want.
This has been my current zombie tribal. The real goal is to get Amulet of Vigor out along side of Lord of the Undead and a Korlash of the Blackblade. With another Korlash in hand we can pull all of our swamps out for a huge Korlash and mana to regenerate him if need be. It's not full proof, but it's been a lot of fun to play.
It's cute, but so far just relying on zombie tribal hasn't been too great for me. It's not a great deck, but it's a fun one to play. I had thought about Geralf's Messenger in there too to take advantage of the amulet as well, but I've had the deck shelved for some time now. Maybe it's about time I reassemble it.
why not playing more like a merfolk deck? I mean most of your creatures are 3 mana.
Play a set of Æther Vial even with your tight mana base you won't summon more than one 3 mana zombie per turn but with vial you just play them end phase and swarm more the field. Cut some Diregraf Ghoul or charm.
Mutavault - it's a zombie, plus its interaction with Gravecrawler is excellent: post boardwipe, just activate a vault and fetch them all out again.
Cavern of Souls - Modern is so rife with countermagic I would not play any tribal without playing at least two main deck.
Aether Vial - a turn one Aether Vial is amazing and happens more often than you think. Floods the board, dodges countermagic, and lets you play your dudes on the opponent's end step or in response to attackers.
Lifebane Zombie - sideboard tech, but delicious hate against a lot of decks. About to drop a Goyf? Not anymore!
Dark Confidant - if you're running black and a low curve, he's an all-star.
IMO I would not play any five- or six-mana zombie in Zombie in this deck. I'd top out my curve with Undead Warchief and probably only run two-thee of him.
While AEther Vial is good in Merfolk, where it usually allows you to cheat out at least two creatures, this deck has way too many 3-drops for Vial to be good. Lifebane Zombie is way too slow for Modern. Other than that, all of the things you suggested are fine options.
Thanks for all the input. I modified the deck to work more with the local meta. I figured since I have some blue, it wouldnt hurt to throw in some cheap counterspell, and bounce.
IMO, 18 one drops, 16 three drops, and zero two drops is not good. You need to cut some number of both and add 2 drops. Rotting Rats, Stromgald Crusader, Withered Wretch, maybe even Zombie Outlander are some good 2 drop zombies to look into. Also I hear good removal comes at the 2cmc slot, and Necromancer's Stockpile is no slouch in a zombie tribal deck.
I would not play more than eight three-mana lords, max ten.
Of the play sets you're running, I'd most likely take out Diregraf Captain and Death Baron and keep Cemetery Reaper and Lord of the Undead. Deathtouch is good, but not as relevant in this format where there's so much more tempo, combo, and control are more prevalent than midrange strategies that want to hold on to their fatties. Diregraf Captain is basically boardwipe insurance: I might run him in the sideboard against Control, but he's outclassed otherwise.
I would not underestimate Withered Wretch's ability, it's a must-answer for Melira Pod, Goryo's Vengeance, and Living End, and puts pressure any B/G/x using Goyf-deck and U/x tempo deck using Snapcaster Mage. Even against awkward matchups like Storm it will help with their Graveyards, plus spells with delve-costs are now a thing.
Just throwing out ideas, but, this would be my take on a Dimir zombie deck:
Thanks for the input. Always helpful.
I made some mods. But I still want to emphasize the discard hate, as well as the counterspells. If I can run my opponent out of cards in 2-3 turns, having them top-deck. Then I have it relatively easy. Counterspells make it even worse when all they have is the card they are top-decking.
Basically, different ways to empty your hand into your graveyard, then gain value from that through Dredge, Unearth, Flashback and other abilities that use the graveyard. Sort of a cross between regular Junk ( minus the Goyfs as we'll be recycling so much ) and Dredgevine ( without our titutar vine ).
I may try to sleeve up one of these decks for a game and see how it goes! I doubt it's competitive, but brewing with zombies is fun.
2x Death Baron
2x Diregraf Captain
3x Geralf's Messenger
4x Gravecrawler
2x Lord of the Undead
2x Phantasmal Image
4x Stromgald Crusader
Land (21)
4x Darkslick Shores
4x Drowned Catacomb
2x Island
4x Polluted Delta
7x Swamp
4x Inquisition of Kozilek
4x Thoughtseize
3x Echoing Truth
4x Phyrexian Crusader
4x Vapor Snag
4x Withered Wretch
Instant (12)
3x Dismember
3x Mana Leak
4x Remand
2x Spell Pierce
RUG Temur Deprive Delver
BUG Sultai Deprive Delver
4x Cemetery Reaper
4x Death Baron
4x Diregraf Captain
4x Diregraf Ghoul
4x Gravecrawler
2x Lich Lord of Unx
4x Undead Warchief
4x Darkslick Shores
4x Drowned Catacomb
4x Sunken Ruins
10x Swamp
Sorcery (8)
4x Inquisition of Kozilek
4x Thoughtseize
Instant (4)
4x Hero's Downfall
2x Lord of the Undead
Thanks for the input!
RUG Temur Deprive Delver
BUG Sultai Deprive Delver
4x Diregraf Ghoul
4x Amulet of Vigor
3x ThoughtSeize
3x Inquisition of Kozilek
3x Nameless Inversion
4x Geth's verdict
2x Infernal Tutor
4x Lord of the Undead
4x Korlash, Heir to the Blackblade
3x Mutavault
2x Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth
19x Swamp
This has been my current zombie tribal. The real goal is to get Amulet of Vigor out along side of Lord of the Undead and a Korlash of the Blackblade. With another Korlash in hand we can pull all of our swamps out for a huge Korlash and mana to regenerate him if need be. It's not full proof, but it's been a lot of fun to play.
Cheeri0sXWU
Reid Duke's Level One
Who's the Beatdown
Alt+0198=Æ
Currently Playing:
Legacy: Something U/W Controlish
EDH Cube
Hypercube! A New EDH Deck Every Week(ish)!
Cheeri0sXWU
Reid Duke's Level One
Who's the Beatdown
Alt+0198=Æ
4x Cemetery Reaper
4x Death Baron
4x Diregraf Captain
4x Diregraf Ghoul
4x Gravecrawler
4x Undead Warchief
Land (21)
4x Darkslick Shores
4x Drowned Catacomb
4x Sunken Ruins
9x Swamp
3x Funeral Charm
2x Dismember
2x Hero's Downfall
2x Lord of the Undead
Sorcery (12)
4x Blackmail
4x Inquisition of Kozilek
4x Thoughtseize
RUG Temur Deprive Delver
BUG Sultai Deprive Delver
4 Gravecrawler
4 Diregraf Ghoul
4 Slitherhead
4 Stromgald Crusader
4 Withered Wretch
2 Glissa, the Traitor
Enchantments
4 Necromancer's Stockpile
Hand Disruption
4 Thoughtseize
3 Inquisition of Kozilek
2 Dismember
3 Abrupt Decay
Land
4 Cavern of Souls
4 Verdant Catacombs
4 Overgrown Tomb
4 Woodland Cemetery
5 Swamp
1 Forest
1 Doom Blade
1 Go for the Throat
1 Inquisition of Kozilek
1 Abrupt Decay
2 Maelstrom Pulse
1 Glissa, the Traitor
3 Dreg Mangler
1 Dismember
2 Wrench Mind
2 Liliana of the Veil
Just a deck I use casual for fun. Thought maybe it could give people some ideas for zombie tribal decks.
4x Cemetery Reaper
4x Death Baron
4x Diregraf Captain
4x Diregraf Ghoul
4x Gravecrawler
4x Undead Warchief
Land (21)
4x Darkslick Shores
4x Drowned Catacomb
4x Sunken Ruins
9x Swamp
3x Funeral Charm
3x Dismember
3x Hero's Downfall
3x Lord of the Undead
Sorcery (12)
4x Blackmail
4x Inquisition of Kozilek
4x Thoughtseize
RUG Temur Deprive Delver
BUG Sultai Deprive Delver
RUG Temur Deprive Delver
BUG Sultai Deprive Delver
Play a set of Æther Vial even with your tight mana base you won't summon more than one 3 mana zombie per turn but with vial you just play them end phase and swarm more the field. Cut some Diregraf Ghoul or charm.
I've always loved zombie tribal, though I always thought that it really misses out on not having a two-mana lord.
Some cards to consider:
Tidehollow Sculler - requires a splash for white, but it's the best zombie in Modern for a reason. White also provides a number of relevant removal options ( Path to Exile ), and interesting possibilities in Zealous Persecution, Orzhov Charm, and Vault of the Archangel
Mutavault - it's a zombie, plus its interaction with Gravecrawler is excellent: post boardwipe, just activate a vault and fetch them all out again.
Cavern of Souls - Modern is so rife with countermagic I would not play any tribal without playing at least two main deck.
Aether Vial - a turn one Aether Vial is amazing and happens more often than you think. Floods the board, dodges countermagic, and lets you play your dudes on the opponent's end step or in response to attackers.
Lifebane Zombie - sideboard tech, but delicious hate against a lot of decks. About to drop a Goyf? Not anymore!
Lotleth troll - Gravecrawler synergy for discard, green gives more than a few interesting options, like Abrupt Decay and Maelstrom Pulse.
Dark Confidant - if you're running black and a low curve, he's an all-star.
IMO I would not play any five- or six-mana zombie in Zombie in this deck. I'd top out my curve with Undead Warchief and probably only run two-thee of him.
UTeferi, Temporal ArchmageU's prison: blue is the new orange is the new black.
Mizzix Of The Izmagnus : wheels on fire... rolling down the road...
BSidisi, Undead VizierB: Bis zum Erbrechen
GTitiania, Protector Of ArgothG: Protecting Argoth, by blowing it up!
GYisan, The Wanderer BardG: Gradus Ad Elfball.
Duel EDH: Yisan & Titania.
In Progress: Grand Arbiter Augustin IV duel; Grenzo, Dungeon Warden Doomsday.
4x Cemetery Reaper
4x Death Baron
4x Diregraf Captain
4x Diregraf Ghoul
4x Gravecrawler
4x Lord of the Undead
Instant (4)
2x Boomerang
2x Rune Snag
4x Darkslick Shores
4x Drowned Catacomb
4x Sunken Ruins
9x Swamp
Sorcery (11)
3x Blackmail
4x Inquisition of Kozilek
4x Thoughtseize
2x Slaughter Pact
1x Blackmail
2x Boomerang
2x Dismember
4x Funeral Charm
2x Hero's Downfall
2x Rune Snag
Thanks for all the input. I modified the deck to work more with the local meta. I figured since I have some blue, it wouldnt hurt to throw in some cheap counterspell, and bounce.
RUG Temur Deprive Delver
BUG Sultai Deprive Delver
4x Cemetery Reaper
4x Death Baron
4x Diregraf Captain
4x Diregraf Ghoul
4x Gravecrawler
4x Lord of the Undead
Land (22)
4x Darkslick Shores
4x Drowned Catacomb
1x Island
4x Sunken Ruins
9x Swamp
2x Blackmail
4x Inquisition of Kozilek
4x Thoughtseize
2x Slaughter Pact
3x Boomerang
3x Dismember
3x Funeral Charm
3x Hero's Downfall
4x Remand
RUG Temur Deprive Delver
BUG Sultai Deprive Delver
I like Stromgald Crusader, Zombie Outlander, and Necromancer's Stockpile.
Necromancer's Stockpile can use some fodder zombies to get somthing better or the same.
Stormgald gives me a flyer.
Any suggestions for what I can throw-out?
RUG Temur Deprive Delver
BUG Sultai Deprive Delver
I would not play more than eight three-mana lords, max ten.
Of the play sets you're running, I'd most likely take out Diregraf Captain and Death Baron and keep Cemetery Reaper and Lord of the Undead. Deathtouch is good, but not as relevant in this format where there's so much more tempo, combo, and control are more prevalent than midrange strategies that want to hold on to their fatties. Diregraf Captain is basically boardwipe insurance: I might run him in the sideboard against Control, but he's outclassed otherwise.
I would not underestimate Withered Wretch's ability, it's a must-answer for Melira Pod, Goryo's Vengeance, and Living End, and puts pressure any B/G/x using Goyf-deck and U/x tempo deck using Snapcaster Mage. Even against awkward matchups like Storm it will help with their Graveyards, plus spells with delve-costs are now a thing.
Just throwing out ideas, but, this would be my take on a Dimir zombie deck:
4 Diregraf Ghoul
2 Withered Wretch
3 Stromgald Crusader
3 Zombie Outlander
2 Phantasmal Image
4 Cemetery Reaper
2 Lord of the Undead
2 Undead Warchief
4 Inquisition of Kozilek
2 Spell Pierce
2 Disfigure
4 Darkslick Shores
4 Polluted Delta
4 Mutavault
3 Watery Grave
2 Cavern of Souls
3 Swamp
1 Island
1 Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth
UTeferi, Temporal ArchmageU's prison: blue is the new orange is the new black.
Mizzix Of The Izmagnus : wheels on fire... rolling down the road...
BSidisi, Undead VizierB: Bis zum Erbrechen
GTitiania, Protector Of ArgothG: Protecting Argoth, by blowing it up!
GYisan, The Wanderer BardG: Gradus Ad Elfball.
Duel EDH: Yisan & Titania.
In Progress: Grand Arbiter Augustin IV duel; Grenzo, Dungeon Warden Doomsday.
I made some mods. But I still want to emphasize the discard hate, as well as the counterspells. If I can run my opponent out of cards in 2-3 turns, having them top-deck. Then I have it relatively easy. Counterspells make it even worse when all they have is the card they are top-decking.
4x Cemetery Reaper
2x Death Baron
2x Diregraf Captain
4x Gravecrawler
4x Lord of the Undead
2x Phantasmal Image
4x Stromgald Crusader
Land (21)
4x Darkslick Shores
4x Drowned Catacomb
4x Sunken Ruins
9x Swamp
3x Blackmail
4x Inquisition of Kozilek
4x Thoughtseize
2x Slaughter Pact
2x Boomerang
2x Death Baron
2x Diregraf Captain
2x Dismember
4x Withered Wretch
4x Remand
2x Spell Pierce
RUG Temur Deprive Delver
BUG Sultai Deprive Delver
I was toying around with zombies in Modern and was thinking about different colors:
4x Diregraf Ghoul
4x Sangrophage
2x Tymaret, the Murder King
2x Shambling Remains
4x Cemetery Reaper
2x Lord of The Undead
2x Anathemancer
4x Terminate
4x Inquisition of Kozilek
4x Thoughtseize
4x Mutavault
2x Cavern of Souls
4x Blackcleave Cliffs
4x Bloodstained Mire
3x Blood Crypt
3x Verdant Catacombs
2x Swamp
Pretty much straight-forward discard and zombie aggro, but I like the land-hate, removal, and ( less so ) unearth options red provides.
4x Lotleth Troll
4x Tidehollow Sculler
2x Blood Scrivener
4x Cemetery Reaper
2x Viscera Dragger
2x Varolz, the Scar-Striped
4x Inquisition of Kozilek
2x Darkblast
2x Zombie Infestation
4x Abrupt Decay
4x Lingering Souls
4x Marsh Flats
4x Mutavault
3x Windswept Heath
2x Swamp
1x Forest
1x Godless Shrine
1x Temple Garden
1x Overgrown Tomb
Basically, different ways to empty your hand into your graveyard, then gain value from that through Dredge, Unearth, Flashback and other abilities that use the graveyard. Sort of a cross between regular Junk ( minus the Goyfs as we'll be recycling so much ) and Dredgevine ( without our titutar vine ).
I may try to sleeve up one of these decks for a game and see how it goes! I doubt it's competitive, but brewing with zombies is fun.
UTeferi, Temporal ArchmageU's prison: blue is the new orange is the new black.
Mizzix Of The Izmagnus : wheels on fire... rolling down the road...
BSidisi, Undead VizierB: Bis zum Erbrechen
GTitiania, Protector Of ArgothG: Protecting Argoth, by blowing it up!
GYisan, The Wanderer BardG: Gradus Ad Elfball.
Duel EDH: Yisan & Titania.
In Progress: Grand Arbiter Augustin IV duel; Grenzo, Dungeon Warden Doomsday.
3x Cemetery Reaper
3x Death Baron
3x Diregraf Captain
4x Gravecrawler
3x Lord of the Undead
2x Phantasmal Image
4x Stromgald Crusader
Land (21)
4x Darkslick Shores
4x Dismal Backwater
4x Drowned Catacomb
9x Swamp
4x Remand
2x Spell Pierce
3x Surgical Extraction
3x Blackmail
4x Phyrexian Crusader
4x Withered Wretch
4x Zombie Outlander
Sorcery (8)
4x Inquisition of Kozilek
4x Thoughtseize
RUG Temur Deprive Delver
BUG Sultai Deprive Delver