This deck even got replies at MTGnews; How ironic

[DÛke]

I don't usually post decks unless they were for special reasons.
This deck, which I created was special. The reason why it was special is that it got so many replies back at MTGnews; if you know those boards, than you'd know that you either get flamed for a deck, get a simple "good deck", or you'd be ignored, however, this deck, for some reason, struck fast and hard, people started copying it and calling it 'their own'; younger kids created a similar version, played it, and posted at MTGnews, but mine was the first and the ONLY one of it's kind, it was simple, and fun. Here's the 2 different decklists, one is MM Block and one is T2:

MM Block:
Creatures
4x Avatar of Woe
4x Molting Harpy
4x Whipstiched Zombie
4x Spitful Bully
4x Wall of Vipers

Spells
4x Snuff Out
4x Vendetta
4x Dark Ritual
4x Parallax Nexus

3x Rath's Edge
21x Swamps

T2:
Creatures
4x Avatar of Woe
4x Molting Harpy
4x Bone Shredder
4x Ticking Gnomes
4x Whipstiched Zombie

Spells
4x Snuff Out
4x Vendetta
4x Dark Riutal
4x Duress

3x Rath's Edge
21x Swamps


MM Block - If you have noticed, all the creatures can somehow destory themselves: Molting Harpy, Spitful Bully, Whipstiched Zombie, Wall of Vipers, and even Avatar of Woe. This is because the deck is designed to bring the creatures early, since they're mostly cheap, block and/or attack with them, and then get rid of them anyway you can. It shouldn't be a big of a deal since each one of these creatures can get rid of themselves in a snap.
This self-sacrifice mechanic in this deck enables me to play Avatar of Woe as early as turn 5 and 4, for sure though, you will be able to play atleast 1 Avatar by turn 6, which isn't bad. To survive, play defensively. Play a Harpy or Bully to 'fog' you opponent for a turn, this will most likely put a creature in your graveyard and your opponent's. Hey, one turn could be all you need to play an Avatar. The deck can win without the Avatar, but it's not designed that way, so play carefully. Snuff-Out and Vendetta only add up to the pain; both cards serve two purposes: destorying a creature, and making playing an ACC Avatar more likely.

T2 - This deck is much more aggressive, with Duress and Bone Shredder. Bone Shredder not only destroys a creature, but also adds a creature to your graveyard; the same thing goes for the Ticking Gnomes, in which most cases you'll be playing it and sacrificing it before you pay the Echo cost, but after your opponent's attack step. The rest functions just the same.

Other versions not listed - There's another version, a Mercenary version. This version 'actually' recruits the Molting Harpy and the Spitful Bully inorder to instantly provide a defender and adding to the creatures in the graveyard. I find this version to be the most constant, but the least effective, since the Mercs that I use to recruit don't have a built in 'sacrifice' mechanic, therefore, leaving me with creatures in play instead of the graveyard.

Extended - This version is still under construction, since there are plenty of options, from Buried Alive to Nekkratal and the like. This deck will only get better over time.

What do you think?

 

[Purple_jester]

Extended, huh? Creatures that destroy themselves? This is the best card you can put in the deck:

4x Crypt Rats

They destroy themselves, hurt your opponent, and stand a pretty good chance of killing a lot of other creatures. The damage to you is a minor inconvenience, especially when you've been rewarded by a early Avatar of Woe.

Other options include: Nekrataal (but has no self-kill ability), Buried Alive (guess what happens when you place Carrionette directly in the grave), Hidden Horror (what a utility, a 4/4 for 3 mana, plus 1 free grave creature), and finally, Living Death (have your Avatar kill itself, then cast this for lots more fun, recommended after using a Tormod's Crypt or Thran Foundry on your opponent's graveyard).

 

[tapper]

some ideas for your deck:

Kjeldadorian dead: a 3/1 regenerater for 1 mana and a free creature.

Victimize: nothing gets creatures into the gravyard fastter then sacking a creature then regenerating 2 bone shreders.

Millsonte duress coercion: gets more creatures into your graveyard. also you can use greel and discard creatures for it's activation cost.

if you add white add in megat and wrath of god.

if you add green add lughorf

 

[DÛke]

That's cool.
Can someone tell me what Crypt Rats do? Carrionette? Thanks.
Purple Girl, I really don't want to add Livind Death to the deck, I want to keep it 'reanimation-free'. If I do, I'll just add 1 or 2, but I don't want to make my deck look like a Living Death deck.

Tapper, you have some really good ideas, but I don't want to play creatures to sacrifice creatures, I want to play creatures that sac themselves, like Bottle Gnomes, now that would be great in Extended, but you do have great ideas. The Victimize idea sounds great, but like I said above, I want anything except reanimation.

Purple Girl and Tapper mentioned Kjeldadorian Dead and Hidden Horror; these two cards would add an amazing power to the deck.
The deck would have to Mercenarys though; remember when I said I don't play the Merc version because I can't find an efficient was to sacrifice the Mercs? Well, Kjeldadorian Dead and Hidden Horror could take care of this problem easily.

There's also the Cylcing Woe version: based around Cycling creatures, like Drifing Djinn, Penderell Drake, and Sandbar Serpent. Cycle them to draw Avatar of Woe and creature-removal while fillin up your graveyard, then just cast an Avatar of Woe.
The Cycling method is really great, as it Cycles the creatures to fill the graveyard AND get me other cards I need.

Any other ideas?

 

[Zadok001]

[Edit added 'cause DUke posted at the same time, asking for what Carioneet and Crypt Rats do. Carrionette costs 1B for a 1/1. While it's in the grave, you can pay 2BB to remove it and target creature from the game as long as the creature's controller doesn't pay 2. (Note that you can pay 2BB as many times as you wish, and it will try to remove that many creatures from the game.) Crypt Rats are 2B for a 1/1 Rat, that has the ability X: Deal X damage to each creature and player.)

I know what happens when you put Carionette directly into the grave; it removes itself and something else FROM THE GAME. That is not your friend in this deck.

DUke, I think this deck will run the best in MBC, simply because the Avatar has the greatest affect there. In T2 or Extended, I've always felt this type of deck to be fairly weak, since it isn't nessesarily gonna face a deck with 20 creatures in it. Bargain and Replenish would make this thing into pudding. Any creature deck, you'll maul flat out. If you're gonna play this Type 2, please try and be a good Magic player, and get matchups against creature decks.

In Extended, I think a B/u version would do the best, allowing you to splash in light Countermagic, i.e., Arcane Denial, FoW, and possibly Mana Leak. This gives you more options against combo and control. Against creature decks, it gives you the ability to counter the larger critters your blockers can't deal with, and since countered creatures go to the graveyard... Could work. The Crypt Rats are a great addition, giving you something the deck is otherwise lacking except for Dark Banishing-esque cards, powerful board control. As Purple_Jester said, the damage to you is a minor issue at most, not something to be concerned about in the slightest.

In the Type 2 environment, the first and foremost issue is Land Destruction. Your deck should actually not have a problem, as mana is not too important to you. Watch out for Plow Under, though. I would recommend a maindeck Pestilence, just to kill Elf decks before they make their fifty-thousand-some-odd mana to kill you with. Pestilence, like the aforementioned Rats, hurts everything, and lets you take out plenty of creatures to get to the ACC of the Avatar.

In MBC, that deck looks just fine. You have enough creatures to go aggro if you want to, and everything seems to fit the theme nicely. I like the 'I'm gonna take you with me!' approach. The only thing I question is Parallax Nexus, seems almost like Specter's Wail (sic) would have more synergy, since it can force the discard of a creature, adding to the graveyard count. The Wail (sic) also costs a bit less, even if it is generally _much_ worse than the Nexus. It's the choice between synergic Wail (sic) and good card Nexus. Dunno which one would work better in the deck.

"HA! I killed your creature! Oh, damn..."

 

[DÛke]

Yes, the MBC version is the best version I've played too. It remindes me of the suicidalness of black. I really like it.

The problem with Extended is that there are too many cards to fear.
I think I'll play U/B just like you told me. I didn't know a creature like Crypt Rats existed That card is very powerfuL.
In Extended, I think I'll play a couple of counter magic cards, and some aggressive creatures like Bone Shredder, Cyrpt Rats, and Nekkratal: just those creatures by themselves could take care of a small hord of elves or whatever. Crypt Rats and Bone Shredder both have the ability to destory themselves, but Nekkratal might be a problem, especially with First Strike. What do you guys think of Ticking Gnomes and/or Bottle Gnomes in the deck? Are those Gnomes good in Extended, or is there better options?

For some reason, between now and then, I just get the urge to play Necrologia in the deck, I don't know why, I just get he feeling that Necrologia has something I don't know...


The MM block version of the deck uses Nexus for one reason only: and that is because it helps me set up my creatures in the graveyard safely. A thrid turn Nexus is very vital in MM block, and if I could hold 2 or 3 of my opponent's cards for 2 or 3 turns, than that'd be great. Specter's Wail seem too shallow to consider.
1B for a random discard? I think the casting cost is more suitable for the deck, since I want to make my opponent discard a creatures as earily as possilbe. Nexus has the power of disruption: it offers time. Wail offers an instant discard that could be vital to the ACC of the Woe, but yet again, if I don't make them discard a creature card, the Wail would do nothing other than miner disruption. Nexus is always helpful and will always stop the opponent for atleast 2 turns, Wail isn't that great. I think it needs some testing in order to really find out which one is better.

 

[Purple_jester]

Sorry about the Rats. I assumed you knew what they were. But they're gonna be great in this deck, I just know it.

Oh, and I can't believe I forgot this really nice card. Have you ever heard of... Grave Pact?

It's an enchantment from Tempest (I think, or at least from that block). Costs 1BBB, and has this effect:

"Whenever one of your creatures is put into the graveyard from play, each other player sacrifices a creature."

See! Evil! Take them down with you is the right idea!

 

[DÛke]

Grave Pack! That's probably the most perfect card for me!
Yes, I've heard of it, it's from Stronghold

Damn! This deck is getting better and better by the minutes
Is there anymore cards in your head Purple Girl? I know you are amazing...So is Zadoc...

No one answered me, are Ticking and Bottle Gnomes and good in Extended?

 

[Dead]

Ok, so i've been messing around with an avatar of woe deck in my playgroup, here some other cards you might want to use:

The Abyss- Like gravepact, except rather than triggering of of your creatures dying, each player sacs a creature in upkeep. just make sure you don't go losing the avatar now...

Abyssal Hunter is good. However, he is made much better by sadistic glee (a must have) or vampiric embrace. This means that he can nail increasingly bigger creatures each turn for just one mana.

Triskelion with sadistic glee means as many dead elves as you want - you can wipe out all toughness 1 creatures for 0 mana. With two glees it just gets sick....

Finally, grindstone is handy against mono coloured decks, especially green, as it can dump loads of creatures in graveyard. With a really big play group whetstone could also be viable so long as you don't mind the risk of hurting yourself.

Splash blue for prosperity/windfall combo, and that also allows you to run soothsaying to get to your creatures faster or avoid whetstone damage.

Finally, throwing a couple of fatties at an altar of dementia should fill graveyards nicely.

 

[Duel]

How about using the old bog witch/exhume combo (When did this get old?)

 

[Firestorm]

What about skittering skirge and skittering horror? when any other creature comes in, they go out...

 

[Firestorm]

i was just looking through apprentice and saw high market and puffer extract....

 

[tapper]

How about attrition being able to sack a creature to kill one is broken in this deck. also cards like fallen angel, skyshroud vampire and that other card from tempest that get bigger when you sack or discard creatures.

 

[DÛke]

You people at this website are freakin' great!
You are just full of ideas

Dead, Triskelion with Sadistic Glee sounds great, what does the Sadistic Glee does, anyone? I know what the Triskelion do, and I like that card a lot. I don't really want to add Prosperity, not just that, but any card with X in the casting cost. The reason for that is because I don't like X cards, that means I have to wait X turns in order to get the X advantage. I like the blue splash though, I have already mentioned the version that supports counter magic. Windfall sounds too risky, since I have to loose some cards myself. This deck is suicidal, Windfall makes it over suicidal
I don't really like Altar/Fatties combo, if I have fatties, that means I have to play them, since I don't use reanimation, and play fatties is out of style in this deck since I want to play the cheapest and most suicidal creatures in MTG.

Duel, Bog Witch/Exhume means that I have to rely on 2 cards in order fill the graveyard. The point of this deck is Avatar of Woe in play ASAP not reanimation. I have already said that I just might add 1 or 2 Livind Death to the deck, just for fun, but single card reanimation like Recurring Nightmare and Exhume are not for this deck. Great idea though

Firestorm, you have something! Why didn't I ever think of Skitterings? Especially the Skittering Skirge! A second turn 3/2 flyer that could deal a good amount of damage or block an kill almost any earily creature, and has the ability to sacrifice itself! They made Skittering Skirge for this deck! I love it.
I think I'll replace the Whipstiched Zombie with the Skittering Skirges! Skittering Horror fits just as great, but the 3 casting cost kind of hesitates me, I will try it out though. You have great ideas

Tapper, you are full of knowledge aren't you! Are a a Magic vault or something I like your ideas The Fallen Angel is too 'fat' for this deck so is the Skyshroud Vampire, but what about Vampiric Hounds from Exodus!? It costs 2B and is a 2/2 creature. I could discard a creature card to give it +2/+2 until end of the turn, isn't that great! I could have a full load of creatures in my graveyard by the end of 3rd turn if I could play the Hounds on turn 1 with a ritual. Attrition is a great idea too. I could add it, attack and then sac the creatures to destroy a creature for 1 black mana. That's great. I think I'll try it. Grave Packt is still in favor since it automatically triggers when ever one of my creatures is gone. I think I'll try Grave Packt, and then Attrition, and then I'll see which one to play. I really don't want to play both of them.

You guys/girls are great!

No one answered my question though
"Are Ticking and Bottle Gnomes any good in Extended?"

 

[Dark Horse]

For masque block why not try Notorious Assassin- You can pitch a creature to activate it, and have it destroy another one while its doing it. Also, event though it cant nuke itself, try a Delraich with its attractive ACC. Also, with the assassin and grave pack, your destroying 2 creatures if you ditch a creature which means they sac 2.

Also, Im not sure how well this would work, but try the Skirge from destiny. I dont remember what it was called, but it was a 2/1 Flyer for 4 with pay 2 and sac to draw a card. Reaches the yard and you draw a card, something your deck kind of needs.

 

[Purple_jester]

Y'know, DUke, it seems to me that people here have some sort of Gnome-phobia. No one seems to be able to answer your question. Let me try.

Bottle Gnomes are good blockers and can kill weenies pretty well, but lose out to Incinerate, Disenchant and Dark Banishing. The advantage of being able to sacrifice them for 3 life ofsets this disadvantage. It would go well with your theme, especially if you find that you get whacked by creatures early because yours die so often. You may notice that they don't see much play outside a Rec-Sur deck because they are only 1/3. Card economy usually demands that you get more out of it.

Ticking Gnomes are for the more offensive-minded. 3/3 with echo for 3 mana is a good deal (if you're not playing green). Being able to sacrifice it to ping for an additional point is also excellent card economy (this is what made the Mogg Fanatic so good). Plus, there are a lot of nasty creatures in Extended with only a single point of toughness, elves being high on the list. Again, because of the sacrifice option, this would go nicely with your theme. I say stick with the Ticking Gnomes, or at least keep 2 around.

Was that helpful?
___________________________
BTW, do you need more fliers? Junun Efreet is a 3/3 flyer for 3cc with a BB upkeep.

 

[DÛke]

Dark Horse, Notonrious Assassin isn't great with the deck. It costs 2BB, and that's not that great to begin with. I could consider Delarich, but all my creatures 'already' have the ability to kill themselves upon my wish; a cool idea though

PJ, I think I'll just play 2-3 Ticking Gnomes. Bottle Gnomes seem so tempeting, they are good blockers, and they have a sacrifice ability, that's why I wanted to add them, but after what you said, I think I'll just play with the Ticking Gnomes.

 

[Duel]

Okay, I see your point. I agree, attrition is a good card here. I happen to like gravepact better, since your creatures die anyways, but it's not t2 *sob*.

this deck is less like recursion-crusher, and more like recursion, minus the recurring bit. (That make any sense?) So what you need is what all those decks need, a way to keep creatures going to your graveyard. Vampire hounds is perfect, I'm ashamed I didn't think of it. I'd dump sadistic glee, though (B, creature enchantment, every time a creature goes to the graveyard from play, this creautre gets a +1/+1.). Also, how are you going to get ten creatures there? Assuming you have 6 in the first 5 turns, and your opponent does too, that's still a tad slow. I'd suggest (you knew this would come up eventually) survival of the fittest, but it's not t2*sob*. How about a horrible card: Spiteful bully. It kills itself, it kills anything else you have, or it's a 3/3 for 1B. I'd maindeck it in both decks. Not just MBC

 

[Dead]

Ok, sadistic glee is probably one of the best 1CC common cards out there, especially in multiplayer. It reads:

Enchant Creature B
Whenever a creature is put into a graveyard from play, put a +1/+1 counter on enchanted creature.

So the idea is that each time you use a +1/+1 counter to kill a */1 creature, you get one back. With the triskelion's ability costing 0, that's great. If you add two sadistic glee's, you're in real control.

Someone mentioned attrition- if you're going that route, splash blue is essential for irridescent drake and false demise. Infinte graveyard recursion unless they pluck it out the game somehow...The false demises will be handy once you get an avatar of woe out anyway as now you can steal what you like...

 

[Duel]

Better cards for that. Ashen powder, etc. And they're black.