Is Slaughter Specialist worth the slots? That's the main problem.
Falkenrath Forebear is not that bad, but blood tokens aren't good for now and 3 cmc is a lot.
Edit: they spoiled Bloodvial Purveyor and in my opinion it's good, but the fact that he pumps only for the opponent blood and that Bloodcaster flips with your blood is a bit anti sinergy
slaughter shine in a list whit removal and at least need attention, imho is worth a sloth, probably against aggro deck, you side out but against midrange is good falkenrath forebear has a lot of issue at least in a tribal vampire deck(modern) ,
1) stats, 3/1 is not enough for a 3cmc
2) can't block
3) to create value has to connect ( survive an entire turn and attack )
4) we currently doesn't have a good blood token engine
5) we connect twice, we pay mana for... just bring back a 3/1 that can't block
6) can't play Lurrus with this creature
7) if you want some type of combo, bloodghast or silversmote ghoul are a better option
Bloodvial Purveyor, i'm not in love with this card because the 4cmc but i understand that is good, 4 mana 5/6 flying trample (hypothetic a 6/6 7/6... ) whit a minus downside has potential, the power level is near the nocturnus, also play on turn 3 create a real clock to your opponent,as you said we lack blood token synergy but i'would give a chance to this card but is not guaranteed that will make the cut
1 mana 2/1 is not bad, also the ability can become really usefull on response of a removal, the problem as you said is the condition "your opponent must lose life this turn" , really hard to activate reactively. so my final thoughs are that is not good enogh, good for early pressure but bad topdeck and late game 2.5/5
As you said is a bit cluncky , but the ability to give permanents +1/+1 is underreted, also with menace you can easaly trigger the lost life effect , also our opponent by cracking a fetch, shock , addiing mana by horizon lands or some random lost life trigger his effect (we need a vial in order to use his ability probably ) and is usefull is some close situation(hard to block),sometimes is a random dude with menace that can pump creatures later in the game, not amazing but is enough...for now, at least in my list is a x4. imho has potential 3.5/5
in the beginning i though she was not good, cmon give value to your opponent! even if is jus a 1/1! and sometimes she just eat the bolt and leave the battlefield with nothing but dude... if she stick she become a monster very fast 4/4, 5/5 ecc...a must answer also a 3/3 for two is nothing to laugh about
and the cost 1B is a lot more accessible in a two color deck ( with mutavaultthan just BB ) 4/5
unfortunaly very often is just a 2/2 with haste, the upsite to replay a push ,bolt from the graveyard is good but the amount of mana you need is to high
ofcourse you can put her in the battlefield by vial and then pay 3 with your land, but is a very niche situation ( you need a vial on 2, a push in the graveyard,a target and 3 open lands...) and is not worth imho 1/5
so far end midnight hunt for the cards spoiled in crimnson vow me neither find sometingh great but this is what i think (i haven't test nothing yet )
lets start with the body 2/1, not great but has flying ( amazing keyword ) so hard to block , what the points of this card, she bring value when die or another creature we control die, she create bloodtoken pay 1 sac discard/draw, teroically we can just play her and mid late game fix our drawstep.
example: we can cycle endstep a useless card in order to draw better one, or in my list we can bring a lot of value with falkenrath gorger, by casting at instant speed creatures and draw card, also has a nice late game ability , if you control 5 blood token ( aka if 5 other cretaures you control died while she was in the battlefield ) she become a 3/3 flying and the token ( 1 for turn ) become 2/2 flyng bat, imho is something to consider at least in my list
hypothetic 3/5
the vampires hive...but less good,pay life to add colored mana is something not good considering we are heavy in color mana cost, the late game potential pay 5 tap add 1 blood token is fine ( we can pay less if we control some vampires ) idk if is worth some life loss during the game but the ability to fix draw step lategame is nice, at least one will be added also in a two or more color deck (maybe in a mono black is not recommanded ) is more usefull
hypothetic x1
what do you think about it , and what do you think about the 3cmc creatures like Florian, Voldaren Scion and dominating vampire?
(don't look the red mana cost, just the card)
I never liked him too, most of the time is just a 1/1 lifelink, the ability is hard to activate proactively, i mean you at the same time should have A) 2 mana open, B) enough creatures to bring value to the boost effect , C) nothing to do with extra mana ( like removal,activate mutavault ecc...) D) oppo that cast a removal or a chump block to not sac for free your creatures
1) bitterblossom imho is a bad card in modern rn, slow ,damage yourself and just put a 1/1 each turn, we already have ( white unfortunaly ) a better enchantment then BB Legion's Landing
2) i hope for a two mana that act like a removal lol, but WOTC have already printed Voldaren Ambusher, so i don't think in the next set, they will print just a better card
3)here i hope for a 3 CMC tiny Vampire Nocturnus , maybe that gives flying and +1/+0 ?
4)idk if a lord is what we need, but a lord is alwais good
5)same as point 3
6)here would be nice maybe a removal, that if you control a vampire you draw a card
edit: we potentaly have Falkenrath pit fighter like card advantage
imho Silvermote is too slow, for 3 mana you should stabilaze the board , not just a piece of a combo
Florian is potentialy card advantage, you cast on the first main phase, attack and at beginning of your second main phase maybe play ( not cast ) with aether vial something, also a 3/3 first strike is good but i think is too slow for modern right now but for sure deserve to be tested.
1) unfortunaly we are a creature deck so we have to deal with removal, we shoud play more thing that punish people removal like cordial vampire
2/3) because of DRC and ragavan i add in the deck more removal ( i can't let they connect T1 ) , so i put funeral charm and maybe cut push for dismember ( we can play with mutavault mana also synergy with knight of the ebon legion, i want 1 mana removal , two is too expansive, otherwise even urge to feed is not bad )
i think unholy heat is not a big problem, even push could deal with nocturnus
4)yes but actually now, creatures that force oppo to lose/lose situation are usefull ( cordial , vampire of dire moon ) also we are a creature deck, so we must play creatures, we can't blame to much that they can get removed
5)i don't think so ,is still a lord, also if is not killed, we have an invulnerable defense expect for flyng( all first strike ) , also you can bluff to play cap with vial to make combat a nightmare for your opponent
6) zealot is one of the MVP of this deck, T2 zealoat T3 sorin free lightining helix
what do you think about Slaughter Specialist? 3/3 that growth for two sound good,also some tip, you can vial on rensponse a blocked creature or a removal to growth instant
yeah the 1/1 give to your oppo for free is not good but i think is ok.
in my list i shoud cut gifted aetherborn for it , do you think is a good idea ?
imho Vampire Socialite is worth a slot, ( i still have to test it anyway ) probably i' ll remove 2 kalastrai higborn and 2 knight of ebon legion
push is better than bolt because is a black card ,and help for nocturnus
honestly, i never think about kolaghan, maybe is too expansive for an aggro deck , anyway i dont' know what to cut
you can easily upgrade the list going rakdos, but if you want to stay mono B these are my suggestion:
a)2->4 legion zeloat : the ability to draw a card is to strong for not play an entire playset
b)4 viscera, 4 ebon legion : those are two great 1 drop, but you forget (imho) the best , vampire of dire moon . i would play 4 vampire od dire moon and 2 to 4 viscera/ ebon legion ( i prefer ebon )
c)nighthawk is an outdated card, just play more scavenger
d)4 vial are better then 4 thoughtseize
e)if you are going mono black i would think of gatekeepr of malakir
f)i really don't like bloodghast in an aggro deck, is more a combo card, and i know we have great synergy with sorin and cordial , but i tried i i really didnt like it, i just cut them all.
g)this is my feeling but i would play nocturnus over scavenger and not both
have you seen the new card vampire socialite imho has some potential
1) has menace so can easily trigger the lost life effect
2) has great synergy with aether vial, if opponent fetch/shock , you can vial that turn to boost all your vampires
3) is hard to block
4) also you can "cheat" two +1/+1 counter on a creature with aether vial: example-> attack with a vampire, oppo lose life , cast
vampire socialite, trigger on the stack, activate aether vial , another vampire enter the battlefield, another trigger ,
that specific vampire entering the battle by aether vial enter with two +1/+1 counter
if they can't remove ( if you tapped out they can ) they will just block him, remember by turn 3 (when barkhide troll attack) is just a 3/3, nothing impressive in modern, but with the werewolf you can actually draw card (huge value) and maybe you have a larger body late game.
p.s: 2 mana 3/3 is not a great deal in modern but for sure werwolf far far better than troll
the new werewolf let you draw a card and have a late game ability with trample ( don't understimate it ), barkhide troll has the +1/+1 synergy counter and a one time self hexproof
imho werewolf is far far better, to protect your creatures you have already a lot of spell ( aspect/vines ecc...) aslo the ability to draw/late game sink cover the biggest problem of this deck, the lack of gas
yeah,you are totally right
slaughter shine in a list whit removal and at least need attention, imho is worth a sloth, probably against aggro deck, you side out but against midrange is good
falkenrath forebear has a lot of issue at least in a tribal vampire deck(modern) ,
1) stats, 3/1 is not enough for a 3cmc
2) can't block
3) to create value has to connect ( survive an entire turn and attack )
4) we currently doesn't have a good blood token engine
5) we connect twice, we pay mana for... just bring back a 3/1 that can't block
6) can't play Lurrus with this creature
7) if you want some type of combo, bloodghast or silversmote ghoul are a better option
Bloodvial Purveyor, i'm not in love with this card because the 4cmc but i understand that is good, 4 mana 5/6 flying trample (hypothetic a 6/6 7/6... ) whit a minus downside has potential, the power level is near the nocturnus, also play on turn 3 create a real clock to your opponent,as you said we lack blood token synergy but i'would give a chance to this card but is not guaranteed that will make the cut
i upgraded a my list since last time and now i'm playing a rakdos version (with Lurrus) so i haven't tested all 3cmc and above creatures
So all my opinion and all my test are made on my own list : https://deckstats.net/decks/22999/2174884-rakdos-vampires/it#show__spoiler
Falkenrath Pit Fighter :
1 mana 2/1 is not bad, also the ability can become really usefull on response of a removal, the problem as you said is the condition "your opponent must lose life this turn" , really hard to activate reactively. so my final thoughs are that is not good enogh, good for early pressure but bad topdeck and late game 2.5/5
Vampire socialite
As you said is a bit cluncky , but the ability to give permanents +1/+1 is underreted, also with menace you can easaly trigger the lost life effect , also our opponent by cracking a fetch, shock , addiing mana by horizon lands or some random lost life trigger his effect (we need a vial in order to use his ability probably ) and is usefull is some close situation(hard to block),sometimes is a random dude with menace that can pump creatures later in the game, not amazing but is enough...for now, at least in my list is a x4. imho has potential 3.5/5
Slaughter specialist
in the beginning i though she was not good, cmon give value to your opponent! even if is jus a 1/1! and sometimes she just eat the bolt and leave the battlefield with nothing but dude... if she stick she become a monster very fast 4/4, 5/5 ecc...a must answer also a 3/3 for two is nothing to laugh about
and the cost 1B is a lot more accessible in a two color deck ( with mutavaultthan just BB ) 4/5
Bloodthirsty Adversary
unfortunaly very often is just a 2/2 with haste, the upsite to replay a push ,bolt from the graveyard is good but the amount of mana you need is to high
ofcourse you can put her in the battlefield by vial and then pay 3 with your land, but is a very niche situation ( you need a vial on 2, a push in the graveyard,a target and 3 open lands...) and is not worth imho 1/5
so far end midnight hunt for the cards spoiled in crimnson vow me neither find sometingh great but this is what i think (i haven't test nothing yet )
voldaren bloodcaster
lets start with the body 2/1, not great but has flying ( amazing keyword ) so hard to block , what the points of this card, she bring value when die or another creature we control die, she create bloodtoken pay 1 sac discard/draw, teroically we can just play her and mid late game fix our drawstep.
example: we can cycle endstep a useless card in order to draw better one, or in my list we can bring a lot of value with falkenrath gorger, by casting at instant speed creatures and draw card, also has a nice late game ability , if you control 5 blood token ( aka if 5 other cretaures you control died while she was in the battlefield ) she become a 3/3 flying and the token ( 1 for turn ) become 2/2 flyng bat, imho is something to consider at least in my list
hypothetic 3/5
Voldaren Estate
the vampires hive...but less good,pay life to add colored mana is something not good considering we are heavy in color mana cost, the late game potential pay 5 tap add 1 blood token is fine ( we can pay less if we control some vampires ) idk if is worth some life loss during the game but the ability to fix draw step lategame is nice, at least one will be added also in a two or more color deck (maybe in a mono black is not recommanded ) is more usefull
hypothetic x1
what do you think about it , and what do you think about the 3cmc creatures like Florian, Voldaren Scion and dominating vampire?
(don't look the red mana cost, just the card)
imho is not worth
2) i hope for a two mana that act like a removal lol, but WOTC have already printed Voldaren Ambusher, so i don't think in the next set, they will print just a better card
3)here i hope for a 3 CMC tiny Vampire Nocturnus , maybe that gives flying and +1/+0 ?
4)idk if a lord is what we need, but a lord is alwais good
5)same as point 3
6)here would be nice maybe a removal, that if you control a vampire you draw a card
edit: we potentaly have Falkenrath pit fighter like card advantage
imho Silvermote is too slow, for 3 mana you should stabilaze the board , not just a piece of a combo
1) unfortunaly we are a creature deck so we have to deal with removal, we shoud play more thing that punish people removal like cordial vampire
2/3) because of DRC and ragavan i add in the deck more removal ( i can't let they connect T1 ) , so i put funeral charm and maybe cut push for dismember ( we can play with mutavault mana also synergy with knight of the ebon legion, i want 1 mana removal , two is too expansive, otherwise even urge to feed is not bad )
i think unholy heat is not a big problem, even push could deal with nocturnus
4)yes but actually now, creatures that force oppo to lose/lose situation are usefull ( cordial , vampire of dire moon ) also we are a creature deck, so we must play creatures, we can't blame to much that they can get removed
5)i don't think so ,is still a lord, also if is not killed, we have an invulnerable defense expect for flyng( all first strike ) , also you can bluff to play cap with vial to make combat a nightmare for your opponent
6) zealot is one of the MVP of this deck, T2 zealoat T3 sorin free lightining helix
yeah the 1/1 give to your oppo for free is not good but i think is ok.
in my list i shoud cut gifted aetherborn for it , do you think is a good idea ?
4 vampire of dire moon
4 kinght of ebon legion
4 cordial vampire
4 gifted aetherborn
2 kalstria highborn
4 dusk legion zeleoat
4 stromkirk captain
3 vampire nocturnus
3 sorin imperius bloodlord
4 fatal push
4 aether vial
2 agadeem awakening
4 blackcleave cliffs
2 bloody crypt
1 cavern of souls
3 mutavault
2 silent clearing
1 urborg
4 swamp
1 bloodstain mire
imho Vampire Socialite is worth a slot, ( i still have to test it anyway ) probably i' ll remove 2 kalastrai higborn and 2 knight of ebon legion
push is better than bolt because is a black card ,and help for nocturnus
honestly, i never think about kolaghan, maybe is too expansive for an aggro deck , anyway i dont' know what to cut
a)2->4 legion zeloat : the ability to draw a card is to strong for not play an entire playset
b)4 viscera, 4 ebon legion : those are two great 1 drop, but you forget (imho) the best , vampire of dire moon . i would play 4 vampire od dire moon and 2 to 4 viscera/ ebon legion ( i prefer ebon )
c)nighthawk is an outdated card, just play more scavenger
d)4 vial are better then 4 thoughtseize
e)if you are going mono black i would think of gatekeepr of malakir
f)i really don't like bloodghast in an aggro deck, is more a combo card, and i know we have great synergy with sorin and cordial , but i tried i i really didnt like it, i just cut them all.
g)this is my feeling but i would play nocturnus over scavenger and not both
1) has menace so can easily trigger the lost life effect
2) has great synergy with aether vial, if opponent fetch/shock , you can vial that turn to boost all your vampires
3) is hard to block
4) also you can "cheat" two +1/+1 counter on a creature with aether vial: example-> attack with a vampire, oppo lose life , cast
vampire socialite, trigger on the stack, activate aether vial , another vampire enter the battlefield, another trigger ,
that specific vampire entering the battle by aether vial enter with two +1/+1 counter
p.s: 2 mana 3/3 is not a great deal in modern but for sure werwolf far far better than troll
but if you have to choose nest>>treetop
imho werewolf is far far better, to protect your creatures you have already a lot of spell ( aspect/vines ecc...) aslo the ability to draw/late game sink cover the biggest problem of this deck, the lack of gas