I haven't tested Skirsdag Priest yet, though I don't think it will serve the same purpose as Artist. Artist gives us extra reach in the late game, letting us push through for the win. Priest tokens can be removed/chump blocked and wouldn't be as reliable for that. I see Priest as a pseudo-beater, in that it makes good beaters consistently w/ Aristocrat out.
I've done extensive testing on BW and BG, and I found BG to be lacking. It could win on t3/t4 with a nut draw, but outside that it was VERY easy to disrupt. BW has tons of reach between Messenger, Artist, and Obzedat/Resto, as well as a strong early game. I'm really enjoying BW right now, it rewards skill and has game against just about everything. Here's my current list;
Things I want to tweak are removal in the MB, sideboard options, and I feel like it could use some card draw somewhere. Not sure if I want that to be Sign in Blood, Altar's Reap, or Underworld Connections. After some testing with Mentor of the Meek, it was just too clunky.
Anyone else having insane trouble with midrange? I've been doing fairly well against everything except Huntmaster + Swagtusk + AoS decks. Like yea, I guess it's super cool bro that you can run your ToomuchvalueTusks in your 5 color midrange deck. It's fairly frustrating.
On accident? Of course, who hasn't? On purpose? Never. There's no reason to cheat; I'm a spike, I play to win. If I won through cheating, what would be the point of playing at all?
Restoration Angel - Great blocker/beater, screws up opponents combat math, gain value from bouncing some of our stuff, namely Obzedat & Messenger.
Obzedat, Ghost Council - The finisher. He's very tough to deal with, and brings at the least a constant 4 life swing per turn.
Mentor of the Meek - Card advantage is king, and this guy does it well. Triggers off a lot of our guys, turning half our creatures into cantrips. Very good w/ Lingering Souls.
Lingering Souls - Crazy value, chump blockers galore, triggers for Mentor of the Meek.
Vampire Nighthawk - Comes out for the faster aggro matchups, stabilizes well and trades with anything.
Sign in Blood - Card draw, not much to say. It's good.
Liliana of the Veil, Nevermore, Duress - Anti-control, as I feel that'll be the decks worst matchup. LotV will rarely hurt us, Nevermore is a good catchall, and Duress hits counterspells/Sphinx's Rev/etc. May opt for a split between Duress & Appetite for Brains, so I can hit things like Swagtusk/Huntmaster/etc.
I feel like Blind Obedience needs a spot somewhere, though I don't know what to cut. Maybe put them in the side instead of Nighthawk? Will be doing heavy testing tonight, and will probably sleeve it up next week and give it a go at my shop.
While I love Geralf's Messenger (and his interaction with Zameck Guildmage), I feel like he just doesn't play well with Strangleroot Geist or Zameck Guildmage based on color requirements. Hitting GG/GU t2, then BBB t3 wouldn't be consistent enough.
4x Cartel Aristocrat
4x Blood Artist
4x Restoration Angel
4x Gravecrawl
4x Diregraf Ghoul
4x Geralf's Messenger
2x Obzedat, Ghost Council
Istants (3)
3x Orzhov Charm
4x Lingering Souls
Planeswalkers (4)
2x Sorin, Lord of Innistrad
2x Liliana of the Veil
Lands (23)
4x Orzhov Guildgate
4x Isolated Chapel
4x Godless Shrine
2x Vault of the Archangel
9x Swamp
2x Nevermore
3x Oblivion Ring
4x Vampire Nighthawk
4x Duress
2x Tragic Slip
Things I want to tweak are removal in the MB, sideboard options, and I feel like it could use some card draw somewhere. Not sure if I want that to be Sign in Blood, Altar's Reap, or Underworld Connections. After some testing with Mentor of the Meek, it was just too clunky.
4x Gravecrawler
4x Geralf's Messenger
4x Diregraf Ghoul
3x Restoration Angel
2x Obzedat, Ghost Council
4x Mentor of the Meek
Instants (5)
2x Devour Flesh
3x Ultimate Price
4x Lingering Souls
4x Sign in Blood
Planeswalkers (2)
2x Liliana of the Veil
Lands (24)
1x Vault of the Archangel
4x Godless Shrine
4x Isolated Chapel
4x Orzhov Guildgate
11x Swamp
4x Vampire Nighthawk
2x Tragic Slip
3x Oblivion Ring
2x Nevermore
4x Duress
Gravecrawler, Diregraf Ghoul, Geralf's Messenger - The normal zombie team, brings the recurring beats and can gain value from being bounced/dying.
Restoration Angel - Great blocker/beater, screws up opponents combat math, gain value from bouncing some of our stuff, namely Obzedat & Messenger.
Obzedat, Ghost Council - The finisher. He's very tough to deal with, and brings at the least a constant 4 life swing per turn.
Mentor of the Meek - Card advantage is king, and this guy does it well. Triggers off a lot of our guys, turning half our creatures into cantrips. Very good w/ Lingering Souls.
Lingering Souls - Crazy value, chump blockers galore, triggers for Mentor of the Meek.
Vampire Nighthawk - Comes out for the faster aggro matchups, stabilizes well and trades with anything.
Devour Flesh, Ultimate Price, Tragic Slip, Oblivion Ring - Removal suite, with some changeup in the sideboard. Not sure what the best choice between Ultimate Price and Victim of Night is, my meta changes quite frequently so that's a hard choice to make.
Sign in Blood - Card draw, not much to say. It's good.
Liliana of the Veil, Nevermore, Duress - Anti-control, as I feel that'll be the decks worst matchup. LotV will rarely hurt us, Nevermore is a good catchall, and Duress hits counterspells/Sphinx's Rev/etc. May opt for a split between Duress & Appetite for Brains, so I can hit things like Swagtusk/Huntmaster/etc.
I feel like Blind Obedience needs a spot somewhere, though I don't know what to cut. Maybe put them in the side instead of Nighthawk? Will be doing heavy testing tonight, and will probably sleeve it up next week and give it a go at my shop.
I think he was suggesting you don't know Obito's and Itachi's actual power levels. Itachi is a fair amount stronger than Obito.
Searing Spear, Undying Evil X
Flash Snapcaster to block, FB Undying Evil onto Snapcaster, Snapcaster reenters @ 3/2, FB Searing Spear