Premodern Clerics Deck Guide (2026)
Premodern Clerics is a mono-black tribal deck in which Dark Supplicant sacrifices three Clerics for Scion of Darkness, a 6/6 trampler, as early as turn two. Rotlung Reanimator gives you a 2/2 Zombie for every Cleric that dies, Cabal Archon drains 2 life for each Cleric it sacrifices, and Duress and Cabal Therapy take the opponent's answers. It is a rare deck on MTGTop8, 30 of about 8,200 lists since April (0.4 percent), and its biggest results since then are Tim Schmeltz's second place at the ELD Open in June (50 players) and Ben Bauer's top four at the New England Autumn Regional in October (80 players).
How the deck wins
- Dark Supplicant taps and sacrifices three Clerics to search your graveyard, hand or library for Scion of Darkness and put it onto the battlefield. Supplicant can be one of the three, so you need only two more Clerics, and Priest of Gix adds {B}{B}{B} as it enters, so a turn-one Dark Ritual can put Supplicant and two more Clerics on the battlefield. Supplicant can tap on your next turn, so Scion arrives on turn two at the earliest and attacks from turn three.
- Rotlung Reanimator makes a 2/2 Zombie whenever it or another Cleric dies, so each Cleric you sacrifice to Supplicant, Archon or Therapy leaves a body behind. The tokens are Zombies without the Cleric type, so Cabal Archon and Dark Supplicant cannot sacrifice them, but Cabal Therapy's flashback can.
- The second plan is Cabal Archon: for {B} and a Cleric, a player loses 2 life and you gain 2, at instant speed, so blockers do not stop it and it helps in a race against burn. It targets the player, so Solitary Confinement's shroud stops it, and Cursed Totem shuts it off; Duress and Cabal Therapy can take both before they land.
- Graveborn Muse, in four of five lists, draws a card in your upkeep for every Zombie you control, itself included, and Rotlung Reanimator, Withered Wretch and every Rotlung token are Zombies too, so it refills the hand quickly. It also costs a life per Zombie each upkeep, which matters against burn.
- The open slots go to the long game: Living Death and Volrath's Stronghold are each in about a quarter of the lists since April and in almost half since September, Recurring Nightmare is in about a third, and Oath of Ghouls, Phyrexian Arena or Headhunter in a few. With Rotlung Reanimator out, Living Death's sacrifice also gives you a Zombie for every Cleric you had, on top of the creatures it returns. Lists without Dark Supplicant are rare: Jose Maria Toledo plays four Soldevi Adnate, Living Death, Rishadan Port and Wasteland instead, won the Technoliga Valenciana in March and took second there on September 12, and a list with Hypnotic Specter in place of the Supplicant package finished seventh of 185 at the Czech Nationals in September.
Core cards
- 4 Rotlung Reanimator
- 4 Priest of Gix
- 4 Dark Supplicant
- 4 Cabal Archon
- 4 Withered Wretch
- 4 Dark Ritual
- 4 Duress
- 3 Cabal Therapy
- 2 Unearth
- 2 Smother
- 2 Graveborn Muse
- 1 Scion of Darkness
- 4 Rishadan Port
- 15 Swamp
Key cards
- Dark Supplicant: Tap it and sacrifice three Clerics, which can include Supplicant itself, to put Scion of Darkness onto the battlefield from your graveyard, hand or library. The ability needs {T}, so Supplicant has to survive until your next turn, and removal, Engineered Plague naming Cleric or Human and Cursed Totem all stop it.
- Scion of Darkness: In all but one list since April, almost always a single copy: an 8-mana 6/6 trampler that puts a creature card from the defending player's graveyard onto the battlefield under your control whenever it deals combat damage to them. Drawn without a Supplicant, it cycles for {3}, and a later Supplicant still finds it in your graveyard.
- Rotlung Reanimator: Whenever it or another Cleric dies, yours or the opponent's, you get a 2/2 black Zombie token, so Wrath of God, Pyroclasm or Engineered Plague leaves you a board. A Cleric exiled by Swords to Plowshares does not die and gives no token. The tokens are Zombies without the Cleric type, so Cabal Archon and Dark Supplicant cannot sacrifice them.
- Cabal Archon: For {B} and a Cleric, target player loses 2 life and you gain 2, at instant speed, so the deck can win without attacking, and Glacial Chasm, which prevents only damage, does not stop it.
- Priest of Gix: It adds {B}{B}{B} as it enters, which pays back its own cost and leaves a 2/1 Cleric for Dark Supplicant or Cabal Archon. The mana comes from a trigger, so you get it even if the Priest dies at once, for example under Engineered Plague naming Cleric.
- Dark Ritual: In every list. Swamp, Dark Ritual and two Priest of Gix leave {B}{B}{B} after the second Priest, enough for Dark Supplicant and Withered Wretch, so four Clerics can be on the battlefield on turn one and Supplicant can be activated on turn two.
- Withered Wretch: In almost every main deck: a 2/2 Zombie Cleric that exiles one card from a graveyard for each {1} you pay, at instant speed. With mana open it exiles Reanimator's creature card in response to the reanimation spell or the target of a Recurring Nightmare, and it can exile a flashback card before they cast it. An opposing Wretch, in almost every Mono Black and Zombies list, can exile a cycled Scion of Darkness before your Supplicant finds it.
- Cabal Therapy: For {B} you name a nonland card and they discard every copy of it, creatures included. Its flashback costs only a creature sacrifice, Zombie tokens included, and with Rotlung Reanimator out, sacrificing a Cleric to it gives you a 2/2 Zombie back.
- Unearth: In about half the lists, usually two copies: for {B} it returns a creature card with mana value 3 or less from your graveyard to the battlefield, Rotlung Reanimator or Cabal Archon after a sweeper for example, and it cycles for {2} when there is nothing to return.
Mulligan guide
Keep
- Two or more lands plus two of Priest of Gix, Rotlung Reanimator, Dark Supplicant or Cabal Archon: that is a functioning board.
- Swamp plus Dark Ritual plus Priest of Gix: the deck's best opener.
- Against Stiflenought, Enchantress, Replenish or Reanimator, any hand with Duress or Cabal Therapy plus a threat.
Ship
- Hands whose only Cleric is Dark Supplicant: on its own it does nothing, it needs two more bodies.
- Zero or one land without Dark Ritual, and five-land hands with a single threat.
Apart from Scion of Darkness and the occasional Living Death, the curve ends at Graveborn Muse, so three lands are enough. Count how many Clerics the hand can put on the battlefield before you keep it. Scion of Darkness without a Supplicant is no reason to mulligan: cycle it for {3}, and a Supplicant drawn later still finds it in your graveyard.
Play tips and sequencing
- Cast Duress before Cabal Therapy when you can: Duress reveals their hand, so you know what to name with Therapy and with its flashback, unless they have drawn something new in between.
- Cast Dark Supplicant a turn before you want to use it, since its ability needs {T}, and count your Clerics first. Activate it in your upkeep, where you get priority first: the three Clerics are sacrificed as the cost, so removal in response cannot stop Scion of Darkness, while waiting until your main phase gives them a window to kill a Cleric first. Scion cannot attack that turn either way.
- Choose what you sacrifice to Cabal Therapy's flashback: a Cleric gives you a Zombie back while Rotlung Reanimator is out, a Zombie token gives you nothing back. A Priest of Gix whose mana you have already used is the cheapest Cleric to lose.
- Expect Engineered Plague naming Cleric after boarding, in almost every Mono Black, Deadguy Ale, Pit Rack, BW Control and Contamination sideboard: it kills Dark Supplicant and Priest of Gix and makes your other Clerics 1/1s. It stays on the battlefield, so a Supplicant you hold back dies too when you cast it, unless Bad Moon is out to offset the -1/-1; Nevinyrral's Disk destroys the Plague. While Rotlung Reanimator is on the battlefield each Cleric that dies leaves a 2/2 Zombie, which the Plague does not shrink, and Priest of Gix still adds {B}{B}{B} when it dies on entering.
- Unearth is a sorcery, so cast it in your main phase when it returns the third Cleric for Dark Supplicant: the returned Cleric can be sacrificed at once, since only Supplicant has to tap, and a returned Priest of Gix adds {B}{B}{B} again.
- Keep {1} open for Withered Wretch and exile the card that matters: the target of a Reanimate or Recurring Nightmare in response, their best creature card in response to Exhume, which still lets them choose another one, and a flashback card such as Call of the Herd or Deep Analysis before their main phase, since they cast it straight from the graveyard. Each card costs {1}, so it cannot empty a full graveyard at once.
Matchups
- Stiflenought (favorable): Seven discard spells attack a two-card combo, and Phyrexian Dreadnought is a one-mana nonblack creature, so Smother, Snuff Out and Diabolic Edict all answer it, unless Vision Charm phases it out in response. Their Stifle, in every list, can also counter Dark Supplicant's ability after you have sacrificed the three Clerics, so take it with Duress first. No meaningful match data.
- Goblins (favorable): Game one is a race, but Engineered Plague naming Goblin after boarding is close to a lock, unless they destroy it with Naturalize or Tranquil Domain. Very limited data: 67 percent over 9 matches.
- Sligh (slightly unfavorable): Cabal Archon drains 2 life per sacrificed Cleric and Rotlung Reanimator replaces every Cleric that dies with a 2/2 Zombie, but your creatures are small, and Grim Lavamancer, Mogg Fanatic and Seal of Fire trade with them cheaply. Watch your own Graveborn Muse life loss; Bad Moon after boarding makes your black creatures bigger. MTGDecks: 29 percent over 17 matches, limited data.
- Enchantress (even): Elephant Grass, in about half their lists, stops your black creatures from attacking at all, Solitary Confinement prevents your combat damage, and its shroud stops Cabal Archon's drain too. Dystopia makes them sacrifice a green or white permanent in each of their upkeeps, and Gloom makes their white spells and every Seal of Cleansing, Parallax Wave or Sterling Grove activation cost three more. Very limited data.
- Landstill (even): Wrath of God and Powder Keg punish overextension, but Rotlung Reanimator leaves a 2/2 Zombie for every Cleric that dies, and in response to Wrath, Cabal Archon can sacrifice Clerics for {B} each to drain them 2 life apiece. Duress and Cabal Therapy take their answers first. About half their lists play Humility, which turns off Rotlung, Archon and Dark Supplicant, and four Swords to Plowshares wait for Scion of Darkness; Gloom from your sideboard makes their white spells cost three more. No match data.
- Elves (favorable): Before boarding, Withered Wretch exiles Squee and Anger from their graveyard, Cabal Therapy names Survival of the Fittest, Smother kills Priest of Titania, and Rishadan Port taps Gaea's Cradle in their upkeep. After boarding Engineered Plague naming Elf kills every Elf with toughness 1, and Perish, in about half your sideboards, destroys every green creature; Masticore, which is colorless, and Squee, which is red, survive both. Their Nantuko Vigilante and Naturalize destroy Plague, and every Cleric their Masticore shoots gives you a Zombie from Rotlung Reanimator. No match data.
- Mono Black (even): Both decks play Duress and Cabal Therapy, and neither side's Snuff Out can target the other's black creatures. Their Engineered Plague naming Cleric kills Dark Supplicant and Priest of Gix, but your Rotlung Reanimator makes a 2/2 Zombie for each Cleric that dies, their Withered Wretch included, and Bad Moon, in about half your sideboards, undoes the -1/-1, though it pumps their black creatures too. Scion of Darkness is too big for their Smother and dies to an edict only when it is your only creature. Limited data: 50 percent over 14 matches.
- UG Madness (favorable): After boarding, Perish destroys their green creatures, though Wild Mongrel survives if they discard a card to make it another color in response, and Aquamoeba and Wonder are blue. Withered Wretch exiles Wonder, Roar of the Wurm and Deep Analysis from their graveyard. No match data.
- The Rock (unfavorable): Pernicious Deed for three destroys everything you have except Graveborn Muse and Scion of Darkness, tokens included, and they can bring Engineered Plague on top. After boarding your Dystopia and Perish hit their green permanents and leave yours alone. Unearth and Rotlung Reanimator rebuild after a Deed, and Withered Wretch exiles the creatures Recurring Nightmare wants back. Very limited data: 56 percent over 9 matches.
- Reanimator (favorable): Your main-deck Withered Wretch goes after the creature card, and Duress and Cabal Therapy after the reanimation spell: keep a mana open so Wretch can exile the creature card in response. Akroma, Angel of Wrath has protection from black, so your creatures cannot block it and Smother and Snuff Out cannot target it; Diabolic Edict and, after boarding, Dystopia are your answers, and Snuff Out still kills Phantom Nishoba and Verdant Force. Their Exhume also returns a creature card from your graveyard, often Scion of Darkness. No match data.
- Tron (even): Their Wrath of God, in most lists, and Masticore punish a deck that commits bodies, but with Rotlung Reanimator on the battlefield every Cleric that dies leaves a 2/2 Zombie, Rotlung itself included. Your discard has time to work against a slow control deck, and Rishadan Port in their upkeep keeps an Urza land tapped for their turn. Dark Supplicant's ability is not a spell, so their counters cannot stop Scion of Darkness, though Swords to Plowshares still exiles it. After boarding, Engineered Plague naming Soldier kills their Decree of Justice tokens, and Gloom makes Wrath, Swords and a hard-cast Decree cost three more. No match data.
- The Solution (slightly unfavorable): Lightning Bolt, Fire // Ice and Swords to Plowshares answer Rotlung Reanimator and Dark Supplicant, Pyroclasm comes in after boarding, and Lightning Angel flies over your creatures. With Rotlung on the battlefield every Cleric that dies, Rotlung itself and their Mother of Runes included, gives you a 2/2 Zombie, though Swords exiles instead. Duress and Cabal Therapy take their counters, Gloom after boarding taxes their white spells, and Cabal Archon drains past a Lightning Angel. No match data.
- Dromar Control (unfavorable): Dromar Control answers your creatures one at a time with Swords to Plowshares, Vindicate and Dromar's Charm, whose -2/-2 kills any of your Clerics, and some lists add Wrath of God. Meddling Mage names Dark Supplicant or Rotlung Reanimator, and Mana Leak and Dromar's Charm counter your spells, though not Supplicant's ability. Exalted Angel, in every list, gains them 4 life with each hit, more than a Cabal Archon drain takes; Snuff Out kills it face up or face down, Smother only face down. Your black creatures can block Shadowmage Infiltrator despite its fear. After boarding expect Engineered Plague naming Cleric, in almost every sideboard, which kills Dark Supplicant and Priest of Gix, though each Cleric that dies with Rotlung on the battlefield leaves a 2/2 Zombie; your Gloom makes their white spells cost three more. No match data.
- Deadguy Ale (even before boarding, unfavorable afterward): They save Swords to Plowshares and Vindicate for Scion of Darkness, Rotlung Reanimator and Cabal Archon rather than the small Clerics. After boarding almost every list brings Engineered Plague naming Cleric, which kills Dark Supplicant and Priest of Gix, and a few add Wrath of God, but with Rotlung on the battlefield each Cleric that dies leaves a 2/2 Zombie, and their Plague also shrinks their own Withered Wretch, a Zombie Cleric. Smother kills Hypnotic Specter, Nantuko Shade and a face-down Exalted Angel, and Snuff Out kills the Angel. Bring Gloom, which makes their Swords, Vindicate and Gerrard's Verdict cost three more. No match data.
- Aluren (even to slightly favorable): Duress and Cabal Therapy can take Aluren before it resolves, and Therapy can also name Cavern Harpy. Aluren lets you cast your Clerics for free and with flash too, Priest of Gix included. After boarding Engineered Plague naming Beast kills Cavern Harpy as it enters, which breaks their loop. Soul Warden, in about half their lists, gains them 1 life for each creature that enters, so a Harpy loop with it out gains them more life than Cabal Archon can drain, and Spike Feeder gains 2 life for each counter it removes. Compost, in about two of five sideboards, draws them a card for every black card that goes to your graveyard. No match data.
- Terrageddon (even): Dark Supplicant puts Scion of Darkness onto the battlefield without mana, so Armageddon does not stop your biggest threat, Withered Wretch shrinks Terravore, and Cabal Archon drains without attacking. Expect Pyroclasm and Cursed Totem after boarding; Perish destroys their whole green team. Very limited data.
- MUD (even): No recent match data. Dark Supplicant gets Scion of Darkness out without mana and Withered Wretch exiles Goblin Welder targets, but Winter Orb starves Cabal Archon's {B} activations, and Triskelion and Pyroclasm kill most of the tribe, though with Rotlung Reanimator out every dying Cleric leaves you a 2/2 Zombie.
- Full English Breakfast (even): Duress and Cabal Therapy take Survival of the Fittest before it lands, Smother kills Hermit Druid, and your main-deck Withered Wretch exiles the creature card on top of their graveyard that Volrath's Shapeshifter would copy. After boarding Engineered Plague naming Druid kills Hermit Druid, and Dystopia and Perish hit their green creatures. They answer with Pyroclasm, Ghitu Slinger and Ray of Revelation, but Rotlung Reanimator turns every Cleric that dies into a 2/2 Zombie. Very limited data.
- Stasis (slightly unfavorable): Duress and Cabal Therapy take Stasis before it lands, Dark Ritual gets you ahead of it, and Priest of Gix adds three black mana as it enters, even under the lock. Their Cursed Totem stops Dark Supplicant and Cabal Archon. No match data.
- Replenish (unfavorable): You have no main-deck answer to an enchantment, and Parallax Wave exiles your creatures without costing them mana. Take Replenish with Duress or Cabal Therapy, and keep {1} open for Withered Wretch to exile what they discard. After boarding Gloom makes Replenish, Parallax Wave and Opalescence cost three more, and every Wave or Seal of Cleansing activation as well, while Dystopia makes them sacrifice a white permanent in each of their upkeeps. No match data.
- Oath of Druids (unfavorable): Your creature count keeps their Oath of Druids on in almost every upkeep, and Terravore outsizes the whole tribe. Take Oath with Duress or Cabal Therapy before it lands, kill Terravore with Smother or Snuff Out, and let Withered Wretch exile land cards from graveyards to shrink it. After boarding Dystopia makes them sacrifice a green or white permanent, such as Oath, Terravore or Sylvan Library, in each of their upkeeps, and Gloom makes their Swords to Plowshares cost four. No match data.
- Psychatog (even): Engineered Plague naming Cleric after boarding kills Dark Supplicant and Priest of Gix and shrinks the rest, though Rotlung Reanimator turns every Cleric that dies into a 2/2 Zombie. In game one Cabal Archon's drain and your discard are hard on their two-attack clock: Duress and Cabal Therapy take their counters before Rotlung Reanimator and Cabal Archon, Withered Wretch keeps Psychatog small, and Smother kills it at any size. Their Smother and Sickening Dreams kill your 2/2s, and Snuff Out cannot target Psychatog, which is black. No match data.
- White Weenie (slightly unfavorable): Soltari Monk and White Knight have protection from black, so your Clerics cannot block them and Smother cannot target them. Win with Cabal Archon's drain and Rotlung Reanimator, which also gives you a Zombie when their Mother of Runes, Soltari Priest or Soltari Monk dies, since those are Clerics too, and bring Engineered Plague naming Soltari against their Priests and Monks; some of their lists bring Light of Day, which stops your creatures from attacking or blocking. No match data.
- BW Control (even): Rotlung Reanimator makes their Wrath of God, in almost every list, and the Infest some bring after boarding leave a board behind: every Cleric that dies leaves a 2/2 Zombie, though Swords to Plowshares exiles and gives you nothing. Start fast with Priest of Gix and Dark Ritual, since Decree of Justice, Eternal Dragon and Exalted Angel take over long games, and Withered Wretch exiles a plainscycled Eternal Dragon from their graveyard; Snuff Out kills the Dragon and the Angel. After boarding expect Engineered Plague naming Cleric, which kills Dark Supplicant and Priest of Gix and makes the rest 1/1s, and your Gloom makes their Wrath, Swords, Vindicate and a hard-cast Decree cost three more. Very limited data: 60 percent over 5 matches.
- Gro-a-Tog (even): Their Fire // Ice kills two of your X/1s, Swords to Plowshares takes Rotlung Reanimator or Scion of Darkness, and Pyroclasm comes in after boarding, though with Rotlung on the battlefield each Cleric that dies leaves a 2/2 Zombie. Engineered Plague naming Cleric, in about half their sideboards, kills Dark Supplicant and Priest of Gix. Duress and Cabal Therapy take Counterspell first, Dark Supplicant's ability cannot be countered, and Meddling Mage, in half their lists, names Supplicant or Rotlung. Smother kills Quirion Dryad and Psychatog at any size; Snuff Out kills only the Dryad, since Psychatog is black. No meaningful match data.
- Pit Rack (even): Their discard and your cheap creatures empty your hand quickly, so The Rack hurts you: in your upkeep it deals 3 damage minus the cards in your hand, and Bottomless Pit makes you discard at random; both resolve before Graveborn Muse draws, since their upkeep triggers go on the stack last. Your creatures are black, so their Snuff Out cannot target them, but Smother and Funeral Charm kill your X/1s, Diabolic Edict takes your worst creature, and Cursed Scroll deals 2 damage once their hand is small. After boarding Engineered Plague naming Cleric, in almost every sideboard, kills Dark Supplicant and Priest of Gix, though each leaves a 2/2 Zombie while Rotlung Reanimator is out; your Bad Moon offsets the Plague but also pumps their Hypnotic Specters. No match data.
- Rebels (even): Scion of Darkness, which Dark Supplicant can put onto the battlefield on turn two, is your fastest win, and their answers to it are Swords to Plowshares, Whipcorder, which taps it, and a blocking Defiant Vanguard, so make them use those first. Smother kills Ramosian Sergeant or Lin Sivvi before they search, and Withered Wretch exiles the Rebel cards Lin Sivvi would put back into their library. Mother of Runes gives one creature protection from black and Nightwind Glider has it, so your removal cannot target them and your creatures cannot block them. After boarding Gloom makes their white spells cost three more, and Engineered Plague naming Rebel kills Ramosian Sergeant, Defiant Falcon and Nightwind Glider, since protection from black does not stop it. No match data.
- Contamination (slightly favorable): Contamination leaves your Swamps alone, though City of Traitors and Cabal Coffers make only a single {B} under it, and their Rishadan Port, in almost every list, can still tap a Swamp in your upkeep. Scion of Darkness, which Dark Supplicant puts onto the battlefield, is your fastest win, and their answers are Smother or Powder Keg on one counter for the Supplicant and Innocent Blood for the Scion when it is your only creature. Withered Wretch exiles Nether Spirit from their graveyard, and their Zombie Infestation tokens block your 2/2s. After boarding they bring Engineered Plague naming Cleric, in almost every sideboard, which kills Dark Supplicant and Priest of Gix, though each Cleric that dies with Rotlung Reanimator on the battlefield leaves a 2/2 Zombie. Very limited data.
- Turbo Lands (even): Glacial Chasm, in some of their lists, prevents all damage to them, Scion of Darkness's included, but Cabal Archon's drain makes them lose life, which the Chasm does not prevent: every Cleric you sacrifice to it costs them 2 life. Duress and Cabal Therapy go after Exploration and Seismic Assault, which kills Archon and Dark Supplicant for one land each. Some of their lists bring Cursed Totem, which stops Dark Supplicant, Cabal Archon and Withered Wretch. No match data.
- Fluctuator (favorable): Duress and Cabal Therapy take Fluctuator or their kill spells: Haunting Misery and Songs of the Damned, which pays for Drain Life, both depend on the creature cards in their graveyard, and Withered Wretch exiles those cards for {1} each. Scion of Darkness can arrive as early as turn two. Their Expunge cannot kill your black creatures, Gilded Light gives them shroud against your discard and Cabal Archon for a turn, and Misdirection can turn a Cabal Therapy back on you. Tormod's Crypt, in a few of your sideboards, exiles their graveyard in response to Songs of the Damned. No match data.
- RG Zoo (slightly unfavorable): Zoo's cheap burn kills Dark Supplicant, Priest of Gix and Rotlung Reanimator, so keep Clerics coming and sacrifice them to Cabal Archon in response; while Rotlung is on the battlefield, each Cleric that dies leaves a 2/2 Zombie. Elephant tokens and Treetop Village outsize your board, so save Smother for Quirion Dryad or an Elephant, and Withered Wretch exiles Call of the Herd before its flashback. After boarding Perish destroys their green creatures, though Wild Mongrel survives if they discard a card to make it another color in response. They bring Simoon, which deals 1 damage to each of your creatures, though each Cleric it kills leaves a Zombie while Rotlung Reanimator is out. Very limited data.
- Zombies (even): Two mono-black decks with the same core: both play Rotlung Reanimator, Withered Wretch, Duress and Cabal Therapy, either Rotlung makes a 2/2 Zombie whenever any Cleric dies, and their Lord of the Undead pumps your Rotlung, Wretch and Zombie tokens as well. Neither side's Snuff Out can target the other's creatures, so Scion of Darkness off Dark Supplicant is your way through a board of 2/2s, and Cabal Archon's drain races their Shepherd of Rot. After boarding, Engineered Plague naming Zombie kills their Shepherd of Rot unless a lord is out and shrinks the rest of their team, though also your own Rotlung, Wretch, Graveborn Muse and Zombie tokens; their Plague can name Human, which kills Dark Supplicant and Priest of Gix. No match data.
Sideboard guide
- vs Goblins, Elves, Zombies, White Weenie, Rebels, Aluren, Full English Breakfast, Tron and the mirror: Engineered Plague. In more than nine of ten sideboards, usually three copies. Name Goblin or Elf to kill every creature of that type with toughness 1, Zombie against Zombies, Soltari against White Weenie, Rebel against Rebels, Beast for Aluren's Cavern Harpy, Druid for Hermit Druid and Soldier for Decree of Justice tokens. Naming Zombie also shrinks your own Rotlung Reanimator, Withered Wretch, Graveborn Muse and Zombie tokens. In the mirror naming Cleric kills every Supplicant and Priest of Gix, yours included, and the Zombie tokens survive it.
- vs Green and white decks: Enchantress, The Rock, Oath of Druids, Elves, Terrageddon, UG Madness, RG Zoo, Full English Breakfast, Replenish, Reanimator and White Weenie: Dystopia, Perish. Each in about half the sideboards. Dystopia makes each player sacrifice a green or white permanent in their own upkeep; you have none, so only they lose permanents, while its cumulative upkeep costs you one more life each turn. Perish destroys every green creature, and you have no green creatures to lose, though Wild Mongrel and Spiritmonger can change color in response.
- vs Enchantress, Landstill, Replenish, Oath of Druids, Deadguy Ale, The Solution and other white decks: Gloom. In about two of three sideboards: white spells cost three more, so Solitary Confinement, Replenish, Wrath of God and Swords to Plowshares get expensive, and so do activated abilities of white enchantments such as Seal of Cleansing, Parallax Wave and Sterling Grove. A face-down morph is colorless and is not taxed.
- vs Enchantment and artifact decks: Enchantress, Replenish, Stasis and MUD: Nevinyrral's Disk. In few sideboards since April. Its ability destroys every artifact, creature and enchantment, an opposing Engineered Plague included, and your Clerics die too, but Rotlung Reanimator's tokens arrive after the ability has resolved, so you keep a board. It enters tapped, so it never untaps once Stasis is on the battlefield, and the enchantments it destroys go to the graveyard, where Replenish can return them.
- vs Go-wide aggro, Stiflenought and Reanimator: Powder Keg, Diabolic Edict. Powder Keg, in about half the sideboards, destroys each artifact and creature with mana value equal to its fuse counters: at one counter that is every one-drop, your own Dark Supplicant included, and Phyrexian Dreadnought. Diabolic Edict, in three of four lists main or sideboard, makes the player sacrifice a creature of their choice, so it gets around protection and shroud on creatures, Akroma, Angel of Wrath included.
- vs Graveyard decks: Reanimator, Full English Breakfast and Fluctuator: Tormod's Crypt. In a few sideboards: it exiles their whole graveyard at once, on top of the main-deck Withered Wretch, and against Fluctuator it leaves Songs of the Damned without mana when you use it in response.
- vs Opposing Engineered Plague, and Sligh: Bad Moon. In almost half of the sideboards: black creatures get +1/+1, which offsets a Cleric-naming Plague and pumps your Zombie tokens, but it also pumps the black creatures of Mono Black, Pit Rack, Zombies and Contamination.
Budget and upgrades
Typical cost: $320–$880. The reference list (Ben Bauer, top four of 80 at the New England Autumn Regional in Whitinsville, Massachusetts, October 3) costs about $880 with its sideboard at the Premodern-era printings tracked here. Three Rishadan Port are about $320 of that and two Recurring Nightmare about $165; the creatures are cheap except Rotlung Reanimator and Graveborn Muse (about $19 each), and two Dystopia in the sideboard add about $90. Gabor Deshors' top-four list from Paris (September 11) plays no Port and costs about $820, and the quarter of lists with City of Traitors (about $553 each) costs more than $1,600.
- Keep the core: Rotlung Reanimator, Graveborn Muse and Cabal Therapy (about $20 each), and Priest of Gix, Dark Supplicant, Cabal Archon, Withered Wretch, Dark Ritual and Duress, which cost $5 or less each.
- Play Swamps instead of Rishadan Port (about $106 each), and skip Recurring Nightmare (about $82) at first; a third Smother and a Snuff Out take their place.
- Build the sideboard from Engineered Plague, Gloom, Perish, Snuff Out and Diabolic Edict, which cost a few dollars, before Dystopia (about $45 each).
- That build costs about $320 with sideboard.
Every deck that costs under $500 with reprints is on our budget decks page, priced from a real tournament list.
