Premodern The Rock Deck Guide (2026)
Premodern The Rock is a black-green attrition deck: Duress and Cabal Therapy take the hand and Pernicious Deed resets the board. Ravenous Baloth, Krosan Tusker and Treetop Village are the threats, and in about half the lists Recurring Nightmare brings creatures back from the graveyard. Since September it has made up about 2 percent of the Premodern lists on MTGTop8 (42 of 1,931), with Top 8 finishes at Bogardan War II in Bologna (139 players, September 27) and Buckeye Brawl II in Columbus, Ohio (125 players, September 12), and Brian Lonergan finished second with it at Monster Mash 2026 in White Plains, New York (28 players, October 18).
How the deck wins
- Duress and Cabal Therapy take their best spells, Wall of Blossoms draws a card when it enters, Wall of Roots blocks and makes mana, and Krosan Tusker cycles early for a card and a basic land, so their removal mostly trades with creatures that have already paid for themselves.
- Pernicious Deed punishes whatever they commit to the board: activate it for the X you need and rebuild first. Treetop Village survives it while it is not animated, Volrath's Stronghold and Genesis, where the list has them, bring back the creatures it destroyed, and Recurring Nightmare does too once you have a creature to sacrifice to it.
- Ravenous Baloth is a 4/4 that sacrifices a Beast for 4 life, a hard-cast Krosan Tusker is a 6/5 and Treetop Village attacks as a 3/3 all game, so the threats are hard to trade with. Most lists follow one of two builds: one plays Wall of Roots, the other Ravenous Rats and Graveborn Muse for more card advantage. From January to August most lists played Wall of Roots; since September about half the MTGTop8 lists play Ravenous Rats or Graveborn Muse instead. Diabolic Edict is in about two thirds of the recent lists and Deranged Hermit, which makes four Squirrels, in two of five. More than a third add Blastoderm, a 5/5 with shroud that fading sacrifices in your fourth upkeep after it enters, and about as many play Call of the Herd.
Core cards
- 4 Pernicious Deed
- 4 Cabal Therapy
- 4 Duress
- 4 Wall of Blossoms
- 3 Ravenous Baloth
- 3 Krosan Tusker
- 3 Wall of Roots
- 4 Ravenous Rats
- 2 Smother
- 2 Diabolic Edict
- 2 Recurring Nightmare
- 4 Treetop Village
- 4 Llanowar Wastes
- 1 Dust Bowl
Key cards
- Pernicious Deed: Pay X and sacrifice it to destroy every artifact, creature and enchantment with mana value X or less, at instant speed and with X chosen when it matters; tokens and face-down creatures have mana value 0, though a face-down creature can be turned face up in response. It doesn't target, so shroud doesn't help, and once it is on the battlefield you can activate it in response to Naturalize, Seal of Cleansing or Vindicate. Sacrificing it is part of the cost, so a Stifle on the activation leaves you with nothing. Almost every list plays four.
- Cabal Therapy: Once Duress has shown you their hand, it takes every copy of the card that matters, and you flash it back by sacrificing a Wall of Blossoms, Wall of Roots or Ravenous Rats you no longer need.
- Wall of Blossoms: A 0/4 for two that draws a card when it enters, blocks early attackers and is then the creature you sacrifice to Cabal Therapy's flashback or Recurring Nightmare. It is in more than four of five lists.
- Ravenous Baloth: A 4/4 for four in more than 85 percent of the main decks since September. It can sacrifice any Beast, itself, Krosan Tusker and Blastoderm included, for 4 life, blocks most early ground threats and decides races against burn, unless Sulfuric Vortex stops the lifegain.
- Krosan Tusker: Cycle it for {2}{G} early to draw a card and search for a basic land, or cast it late as a 6/5. Cycling also puts it in the graveyard for Recurring Nightmare and Volrath's Stronghold. It is in about two thirds of the lists since September.
- Wall of Roots: A 0/5 for two that makes {G} once each turn, even on the opponent's turn, by shrinking itself. That mana activates Pernicious Deed or Treetop Village at instant speed. Played in most lists from January to August, in about three in ten since September.
- Recurring Nightmare: Sacrifice a creature you no longer need and return Recurring Nightmare to your hand to put a better creature card from your graveyard onto the battlefield, then cast it again whenever you have the mana. A spent Wall becomes a Ravenous Baloth or Krosan Tusker. It works only at sorcery speed, but you can activate it as soon as it resolves, before they can destroy it, so they have to counter the spell, Stifle the activation or exile its target in response. It is in about half the lists since September.
- Treetop Village: A land that becomes a 3/3 Ape with trample until end of turn for {1}{G}. It dodges sorcery-speed removal and survives your own Pernicious Deed while it is not animated, so it is the threat left after the sweep. Every list since September plays it, about two thirds of them four copies.
- Volrath's Stronghold: A land that puts a creature card from your graveyard on top of your library for {1}{B} and a tap, at instant speed, so it becomes your next draw. It is in about two of five lists since September, and in a long game it keeps the threats coming without costing a card.
Mulligan guide
Keep
- Two or three lands with early interaction (Duress, Therapy, Smother) and a creature such as Wall of Blossoms or Ravenous Rats behind it.
- Slower hands with Wall of Blossoms and Pernicious Deed against unknown or aggressive opponents: the Wall holds the ground until Deed clears the board.
- Hands with Recurring Nightmare or Volrath's Stronghold and creatures to bring back, as long as the hand also has early plays.
Ship
- Hands with nothing to do before turn three: Krosan Tusker and Pernicious Deed come too late against a fast start.
- One-land hands: the deck has almost no acceleration and needs its drops.
- Hands whose lands are mostly Dust Bowl and Volrath's Stronghold: double black and double green costs come fast.
Early interaction matters most, the recursion pieces next and the big threats last; a hand with turn-one discard, a blocker and two or three lands is a keep.
Play tips and sequencing
- Cast Duress before Cabal Therapy, so you know their hand before you name a card, and cast Therapy before the turn they need their key card.
- Flash back Cabal Therapy by sacrificing a creature that has done its job: a Wall of Blossoms that has drawn its card, a Wall of Roots that has blocked or made its mana, a Ravenous Rats after its discard.
- Hold Pernicious Deed until it trades two for one or better, and count your own board into it. If your list plays Volrath's Stronghold or Genesis, keep the mana for them so you rebuild first.
- Cycle Krosan Tusker early for the land and the card; hard-cast it only when the game is long, or leave it in the graveyard for Recurring Nightmare.
- Use Wall of Roots mana on the opponent's turn: it pays for Pernicious Deed or Treetop Village at instant speed, but each use costs it a point of toughness.
- Against control, lead Treetop Village and Dust Bowl into the land war and keep mana open for Volrath's Stronghold, which can put a creature their removal killed back on top of your library at the end of their turn.
Matchups
- Stiflenought (even): Discard plus Smother and Diabolic Edict pick the combo apart, and Pernicious Deed for one sweeps a resolved Dreadnought, but Vision Charm, in every list, phases Dreadnought out in response to all three. Activate Deed when they are tapped out: Stifle counters the activation after you have already sacrificed it. MTGDecks: 51 percent over 116 matches.
- Goblins (slightly unfavorable): Speed plus Goblin Ringleader card advantage pressures one-for-one attrition, and Pernicious Deed for two sweeps most of their board. After boarding Engineered Plague naming Goblin is the key card, though Goblin King, in about half their lists since April, cancels it for their other Goblins; until then Wall of Blossoms, Wall of Roots and cheap removal have to stop them. Their Naturalize, main deck in most lists, can destroy Deed. MTGDecks: 45 percent over 75 matches.
- Sligh (favorable): Your Walls block their creatures, your removal has targets and Ravenous Baloth gains the life that decides races, but Sulfuric Vortex, main deck in about two thirds of their lists, stops all lifegain, so destroy it with Pernicious Deed for three or with Naturalize after boarding. Llanowar Wastes cost you life, and Price of Progress, in most of their sideboards, deals 2 damage to you for each of your nonbasic lands, so budget life carefully. Deed also destroys Cursed Scroll. MTGDecks: 63 percent over 57 matches.
- Enchantress (slightly unfavorable): Shroud on Argothian Enchantress blanks your targeted removal and the engine out-draws discard. Solitary Confinement gives them shroud against Duress, Cabal Therapy, Ravenous Rats and Diabolic Edict and prevents all damage dealt to them, and Elephant Grass, in about half their lists since September, stops your black creatures from attacking and makes you pay {2} for each other attacker. Pernicious Deed doesn't target, so cast it before the lock comes together and activate it in response when they Seal of Cleansing it. After boarding Tranquil Domain destroys every non-Aura enchantment through Sterling Grove's shroud, while Naturalize can only take a lone Grove, since two Groves give each other shroud. MTGDecks: 43 percent over 58 matches.
- Landstill (even): Counters trade one for one with threats and their card advantage runs deeper. Duress and Cabal Therapy clear the way for your threats, Treetop Village and Dust Bowl fight the land war, and Volrath's Stronghold puts a creature that Wrath of God killed back on top of your library, though it cannot return what Swords to Plowshares exiled. A Pernicious Deed already on the battlefield destroys Standstill without giving them cards, since activating it is not casting a spell, while casting Deed into a Standstill draws them three. Deed also destroys Powder Keg and an animated Mishra's Factory, and for four Humility, in about half their lists, which strips your creatures of their abilities. After boarding Meddling Mage, in most of their sideboards, can name Deed. MTGDecks: 50 percent over 56 matches.
- Mono Black (even): In this attrition mirror your creatures and recursion are bigger and their discard runs deeper. Ravenous Baloth and Krosan Tusker outsize their creatures, though Nantuko Shade, in most of their lists, gets +1/+1 for each {B} they pay into it, and Snuff Out, in more than half their lists, kills a green creature without costing them mana, but not Ravenous Rats or Graveborn Muse. Respect Cursed Scroll in the topdeck war, and kill Withered Wretch before it exiles the creatures your Recurring Nightmare and Volrath's Stronghold want back. MTGDecks: 47 percent over 58 matches.
- Replenish (unfavorable): A single Replenish returns the whole board that Pernicious Deed and Naturalize clear, and your Smother and Diabolic Edict only find targets once Opalescence turns their other enchantments into creatures. Duress and Cabal Therapy must take Replenish or Attunement early; after boarding Haunting Echoes, Tormod's Crypt and Tranquil Domain are your outs. Limited data: 17 percent over 30 matches.
- Deadguy Ale (slightly favorable): Pernicious Deed for three answers Hypnotic Specter, their other small creatures and Phyrexian Arena at once, and even a Deed for zero destroys a face-down Exalted Angel unless they pay {2}{W}{W} to turn it face up in response. Recurring Nightmare out-grinds one-for-one removal. They will save Vindicate for Deed, which you can activate in response. Recurring Nightmare goes back to your hand when you activate it, which you can do as soon as it resolves, so Vindicate cannot reach it; Withered Wretch and Tormod's Crypt can still exile its target in response, and they disrupt your graveyard loops. After boarding expect Perish, in most of their sideboards, which destroys all your green creatures. No match data.
- Aluren (favorable): Duress, Cabal Therapy, Dust Bowl, Pernicious Deed, Engineered Plague and a real clock all work against Aluren. Deed is not an automatic answer, since they can combo in response to the activation. The win comes from discard and mana denial stopping them before they reach that point. Very limited data.
- Zombies (favorable): Pernicious Deed for two wipes a board of one- and two-drops, and Ravenous Baloth and Krosan Tusker clean up. They will name Deed with Cabal Therapy and deploy in waves, so hold the second Deed and kill the Lord of the Undead that keeps recurring their Shepherd of Rot; an edict will not, since they choose what to sacrifice. After boarding, Engineered Plague naming Zombie kills their Shepherd of Rot unless a lord is out and shrinks the rest of their team. No match data.
- Terrageddon (unfavorable): Pernicious Deed for zero destroys Mox Diamond and their Elephant tokens, and for three Terravore too. But Deed needs mana, and their Armageddon, Wasteland and Rishadan Port strand it on a two-color mana base with Llanowar Wastes and Treetop Village. They will not overextend into it; two threats and an Armageddon is their plan. MTGDecks: 36 percent over 45 matches.
- MUD (slightly favorable): Pernicious Deed wipes a board of mana rocks and lock pieces, and Recurring Nightmare, Cabal Therapy and Duress grind them down. They will hold artifacts back and use Winter Orb and Rishadan Port to deny the mana for a big Deed, and Aura Flux after boarding makes Deed cost two each upkeep, so use it early. MTGDecks (Tinker Welder): 56 percent over 9 matches, very limited data.
- Full English Breakfast (unfavorable): No counterspells, so their combo spells resolve. Pernicious Deed, Phyrexian Furnace, Tormod's Crypt and Engineered Plague are your answers: Deed a board they overextended, Plague naming Druid for Hermit Druid or Bird for Birds of Paradise, and graveyard hate in response to reanimation. After boarding they grind back with Ghitu Slinger, Uktabi Orangutan and Monk Realist. Limited data: 35 percent over 17 matches.
- Stasis (unfavorable): Duress and Cabal Therapy take Stasis before it lands, though Daze and Counterspell, in almost every list, can stop them. Under the lock Pernicious Deed needs two mana to destroy Stasis, and Wall of Roots still makes {G} each turn without untapping; Deed for one destroys Black Vise. After boarding Annul counters Deed and Recurring Nightmare, and Cursed Totem, in most of their sideboards, shuts off Wall of Roots and Ravenous Baloth's lifegain. Bring Naturalize and Tranquil Domain, and expect Root Maze to keep your new lands tapped. MTGDecks: 35 percent over 26 matches, limited data.
- Oath of Druids (even): Pernicious Deed for three sweeps Terravore, Oath, Sphere of Resistance and Mox Diamond in one card, and Smother kills Terravore whatever its size; against Diabolic Edict they can animate Mishra's Factory or Treetop Village in response and sacrifice it instead. Their Oath of Druids triggers in their upkeep whenever you control more creatures than they do, and Terravore is usually their only creature, so a single Wall already gives them a trigger. Destroy Oath before you add creatures, and pressure them with Treetop Village, which is a creature only until end of turn. Every land in a graveyard grows Terravore, and their Wasteland, Rishadan Port and Thermokarst hit Llanowar Wastes and Treetop Village. Limited data: 50 percent over 30 matches.
- Psychatog (favorable): Duress takes Counterspell, Cabal Therapy takes it or Psychatog itself, and Smother kills Psychatog whatever its size. Pernicious Deed with X of 3 destroys it too, along with their Powder Keg and Tsabo's Web, though also your Walls; once Deed is on the battlefield their counters cannot stop it, so resolve it early and keep it for the Tog. Treetop Village attacks without casting a spell, and Ravenous Baloth and Krosan Tusker give you more threats than they have counters. After boarding Haunting Echoes and Tormod's Crypt keep their graveyard small. Limited data: 79 percent over 19 matches.
- UG Madness (slightly favorable): Pernicious Deed for two destroys Basking Rootwalla, Wild Mongrel and the rest of their one- and two-drops, and Ravenous Baloth and Krosan Tusker hold off Arrogant Wurm. Roar of the Wurm and Deep Analysis come back with flashback without costing them a card, though Deed for zero still destroys the Wurm tokens; Wonder in their graveyard gives their creatures flying over your Walls, and Circular Logic can counter Deed itself. Limited data: 67 percent over 18 matches.
- Elves (even): Pernicious Deed for two eats most of their board, and Engineered Plague naming Elf after boarding kills every one-toughness Elf, though Birds of Paradise, Wirewood Symbiote, an Insect, and two-toughness Elves such as Caller of the Claw survive it. They rebuild after a Deed with Caller of the Claw and with Survival of the Fittest, unless the Deed for two destroyed Survival too, and Gaea's Cradle mana outpaces your discard. Limited data: 42 percent over 24 matches.
- Reanimator (even): Duress and Cabal Therapy take the reanimation spell, Pernicious Deed for two destroys Animate Dead along with its creature, and Exhume returns a creature for you too, often a cycled Krosan Tusker. Diabolic Edict gets around Akroma's protection from black, since it targets the player, though they sacrifice Putrid Imp instead if it is on the battlefield. After boarding Tormod's Crypt and Withered Wretch attack the graveyard. Limited data: 30 percent over 10 matches.
- Tron (even): Pernicious Deed eats their Chromatic Spheres, Powder Keg and Soldier tokens but never their lands, and Duress and Cabal Therapy strip their counters. Dust Bowl can destroy an Urza land and break up their big mana. No match data.
- Clerics (favorable): Pernicious Deed for three destroys everything they have except Graveborn Muse and Scion of Darkness, tokens included, and Engineered Plague naming Cleric after boarding kills Dark Supplicant and Priest of Gix. Watch for Unearth and Rotlung tokens rebuilding after a Deed. Expect Dystopia, which makes you sacrifice a green permanent in each of your upkeeps, and Perish from their sideboard. Very limited data: 44 percent over 9 matches.
- The Solution (favorable): Pernicious Deed for two sweeps Mother of Runes, Meddling Mage and a face-down Exalted Angel unless they turn it face up in response for {2}{W}{W}, and for four Lightning Angel too; a face-up Exalted Angel survives anything below six. Diabolic Edict ignores Mother of Runes, and Recurring Nightmare wins the long game. Expect Meddling Mage naming Pernicious Deed, and keep mana to activate Deed in response to Disenchant, main deck in about half their lists. Duress their counters first. No match data.
- Dromar Control (even): Their Meddling Mage names Pernicious Deed, but a Vindicate on your Deed can be answered by activating it in response. Recurring Nightmare and card advantage grind them out if they overcommit; your Duress takes their counters first. No match data.
- White Weenie (even): They will play around Pernicious Deed and deploy only what they need. Smother cannot target Soltari Monk or White Knight, but Ravenous Baloth and Krosan Tusker outsize their creatures, and Duress and Cabal Therapy take Armageddon. Engineered Plague from your sideboard, naming Cleric, kills Mother of Runes, Soltari Priest and Soltari Monk. Very limited data: 43 percent over 7 matches.
- BW Control (even): Both decks grind, theirs with Eternal Dragon's return and Decree of Justice, yours with Recurring Nightmare and Pernicious Deed, which for zero destroys Soldier tokens and a face-down Exalted Angel, unless they turn it face up in response for {2}{W}{W}. Duress and Cabal Therapy should take Wrath of God or Decree; their Vindicate wants your Deed, which you can activate in response, and their Dust Bowl your Treetop Village. Recurring Nightmare goes back to your hand as soon as you activate it, so Vindicate cannot reach it. Haunting Echoes after boarding empties your graveyard of Nightmare targets. Limited data: 47 percent over 15 matches.
- Gro-a-Tog (favorable): Pernicious Deed for three kills Quirion Dryad, Meddling Mage and Psychatog together, Duress and Cabal Therapy take their counters, and Ravenous Baloth outsizes Meddling Mage and a young Quirion Dryad. Meddling Mage naming Deed and an Armageddon after a board lead are their outs; Smother kills Quirion Dryad and Psychatog at any size. Limited data: 72 percent over 18 matches.
- Pit Rack (favorable): Pernicious Deed for three destroys every Rack, Cursed Scroll and Bottomless Pit at once, and your Duress and Cabal Therapy match theirs. Their discard feeds Recurring Nightmare, and Smother kills Hypnotic Specter, which flies over your Walls. Expect Dystopia and Perish after boarding. Very limited data: 71 percent over 7 matches.
- Rebels (slightly favorable): Pernicious Deed for three wipes most of their board: Lin Sivvi, the cheap searchers and Mother of Runes all have mana value 3 or less. Cast it when they are tapped out or after Duress takes the counter, since in the blue build Counterspell and Meddling Mage are their answers. Smother kills Lin Sivvi, and Ravenous Baloth blocks most of their ground creatures. No match data.
- Contamination (slightly favorable): Your black half works under Contamination: Duress, Cabal Therapy, Ravenous Rats, Smother, Diabolic Edict and Recurring Nightmare. Pernicious Deed, Ravenous Baloth and Treetop Village's animation need green, which under the lock only Wall of Roots and, in a few lists, Birds of Paradise still make, so cast Deed before the lock unless you have one of them; once on the battlefield it only needs {X}, and X = 3 destroys Contamination, Zombie Infestation and Nether Spirit, though Nether Spirit returns in their upkeep if it is the only creature card in their graveyard. Very limited data: 75 percent over 8 matches.
- Turbo Lands (slightly favorable): Pernicious Deed for X = 3 destroys Horn of Greed, Seismic Assault and Exploration at once, and Duress and Cabal Therapy strip them first; Ravenous Rats lets them choose the discard, so it usually costs them only a spare land. Keep Dust Bowl for Glacial Chasm, which otherwise prevents all damage from Ravenous Baloth, Krosan Tusker and Treetop Village. Their Seismic Assault kills Ravenous Rats, and an animated Treetop Village for two lands. No match data.
- Fluctuator (favorable): Duress and Cabal Therapy take Fluctuator or the one-of kill spells, Ravenous Rats strips another card, and Pernicious Deed for two destroys Fluctuator. After boarding, Tormod's Crypt, Withered Wretch and Phyrexian Furnace come in, and the Crypt in response to Songs of the Damned leaves them without mana. Their clock is slow, but expect Gilded Light against your discard. No match data.
- RG Zoo (favorable): Pernicious Deed for one destroys Jackal Pup, Mogg Fanatic, Grim Lavamancer, Seal of Fire and Rancor, which returns to their hand, at two Quirion Dryad and Sylvan Library too, and at any X their Elephant tokens. Wall of Blossoms and Wall of Roots block the one-drops, and Ravenous Baloth outsizes almost everything they have and gains back the burn damage. Their outs are fast starts and threats that survive Deed: Treetop Village while it is not animated, so activate Deed while it attacks, and Call of the Herd's flashback. Their main-deck Naturalize can destroy Deed, so keep the mana to activate it in response. MTGDecks: 76 percent over 25 matches.
Sideboard guide
- vs Enchantment decks: Enchantress, Replenish, Stasis and Oath of Druids: Naturalize, Tranquil Domain, Haunting Echoes. Naturalize, in nine of ten sideboards, destroys a key piece at instant speed, though not through Sterling Grove's shroud. Tranquil Domain destroys every non-Aura enchantment without targeting, and Haunting Echoes exiles every card in their graveyard except basic lands, along with every copy of those cards left in their library.
- vs Tribal decks: Goblins, Elves, Zombies and Clerics: Engineered Plague. In almost nine of ten sideboards, usually three or four copies: naming Goblin, Elf, Zombie or Cleric kills the one-toughness creatures of that type, and Pernicious Deed handles the ones Plague only shrinks.
- vs Graveyard decks: Reanimator, Replenish, Full English Breakfast and Psychatog: Tormod's Crypt, Withered Wretch, Phyrexian Furnace. Tormod's Crypt exiles a whole graveyard in response to reanimation; Withered Wretch and Phyrexian Furnace take one card at a time and stay useful all game.
- vs Burn and racing aggro: Ravenous Baloth, Spike Feeder. The fourth Baloth and Spike Feeder, which gains 2 life for each of its two counters. Recurring Nightmare rebuys both. Sulfuric Vortex stops both from gaining life, so destroy it first with Naturalize or Pernicious Deed.
Budget and upgrades
Typical cost: $380–$750. The reference list (pokerswizard, Top 8 of 42 at an MTGO Premodern Challenge, September 18) costs about $750 with its sideboard at the Premodern-era printings tracked here. Four Llanowar Wastes are about $120, Deranged Hermit and Recurring Nightmare about $85 each, four Cabal Therapy about $80 and two Dust Bowl about the same. Lists with Volrath's Stronghold add about $135.
- The core is cheap: Duress, Ravenous Rats, Diabolic Edict, Krosan Tusker and Wall of Roots cost under $1, Smother about $3, Wall of Blossoms and Treetop Village about $4, Ravenous Baloth about $14 and Pernicious Deed about $17.
- Without Recurring Nightmare, Deranged Hermit, Dust Bowl and Llanowar Wastes (play basics), the 75 costs about $380.
- Add Recurring Nightmare first, since it trades a spent creature for a Baloth or Tusker from your graveyard each time you cast it.
- Then Llanowar Wastes for smoother colors, Dust Bowl for the land war, and Volrath's Stronghold last (about $135).
Every deck that costs under $500 with reprints is on our budget decks page, priced from a real tournament list.
The Rock is one of five decks in our guide to your first Premodern deck.
