Welcome all to a special deck tech edition of the Daily Dose of Eldritch Moon. Today I’ll be reviewing a key card to this Green/Black Delirium deck and than going into details on the deck itself. We first saw Delirium spread across four colours in Shadows Over Innistrad. Delirium always had the potential to be a strong mechanic and deck type, but was missing some of the tools needed to make it a tier one deck. Thanks to some new cards from Eldritch Moon, I believe that Green/Black Delirium can work upon already strong cards from Shadows Over Innistrad to create a strong Standard deck for months to come.
Let’s take a look at one of those cards, Grim Flayer:
Grim Flayer is a well designed two drop creature that fits perfectly into what a Delirium deck wants to achieve, which is of course Delirium. Like Sylvan Advocate, Grim Flayer gets larger in the mid-to-late game. Also Grim Flayer allows you to what I call, graveyard Scry, by allowing you to filter what cards you draw and adding cards to your graveyard to achieve Delirium.
Now, let’s see some of the possible choices to use for the different card types so that I can maximize the chances of getting Delirium. Once Delirium is achieved, we get added value out of all of the Delirium cards in the deck.
Instant
In:
Grapple with the Past – Adds cards to your graveyard while adding a creature or land to your hand. Value on both sides of the battlefield.
Grasp of Darkness – One of the strongest removal spells in the format that is able to kill most of any early-to-mid game creatures.
Pulse of Murasa - Great way to get back any of the cards that have been put into your graveyard while helping you gain life to get out your larger threats.
Out:
Corpse Churn – Grapple with the Past is clearly a superior card to Corpse Churn as you can get a creature or a land.
Complete Disregard – With Grasp of Darkness available as a cheaper alternative, Complete Disregard doesn’t make the cut.
Ultimate Price – Too narrow to deal with a lot of the creature lands, colourless, and multi-colour creatures out there.
Sideboard:
To the Slaughter – This Delirium Instant can be brought in against decks with Planeswalkers as great two for one value or just to get rid of pesky Planeswalkers as well.
Murder – This will give you removal to deal with creatures that Grasp of Darkness is not able to deal with.
Sorcery
In:
Dark Petition – A very versatile spell that allows you to get any of your large threats or cards like Seasons Past for card advantage. Can also be used to get the removal you need to survive.
Ever After – This will allow you to get two creatures from your graveyard to the battlefield. Great value and I’ll have some large targets to choose from.
Ruinous Path – Great removal spell for creatures and Planeswalkers. Potential to be even better in the late game thanks to Awaken.
Traverse the Ulvenwald – Great tutor for land early and potentially one of your big creature threats later in the game.
Seasons Past – Great way to gain major card advantage and you will have lots of targets in your graveyard as well thanks to the many cards going into the graveyard.
Out:
Behold the Beyond – Although a great way to get three cards that you need. I’ll stick with Dark Petition to get what I need to win the game.
Rise from the Grave – Why get one creature from a graveyard when you can get two large threats onto the battlefield.
Duress – Decided to go with the discard spell that will allow you to get creatures as well.
Flaying Tendrils – You will have some early game removal, so this sweeper isn’t necessary. Same the sweeper fun for Languish.
Gather the Pack – Once again, Grapple with the Past is a better alternative at Instant, and the abilities to get more types of cards back.
Nissa’s Renewal – You already have cards like Pulse of Murasa to gain life and Traverse the Ulvenwald to get the lands you need.
Sideboard:
Transgress the Mind – You can bring this in when you need to bring in some hand control to get rid of some large threats.
Languish – Great to bring in against heavy creature decks where you need a sweeper effect to clear the board.
Enchantment
In:
Vessel of Nascency – Great way to get cards into your graveyard early while allowing you to get a card you need early into your hand.
Out:
Oath of Liliana – We already have enough removal in the deck, and unless you have multiple of this enchantment it will be hard to get it into the graveyard.
Crop Sigil – Vessel of Nascency is the same casting cost, puts many cards into your graveyard and also allows you to get more types of cards into your hand.
Oath of Nissa – Would rather use Traverse the Ulvenwald to search your deck instead of leaving Oath of Nissa on the battlefield.
Crawling Sensation – Once again, it’s hard to put enchantments into the deck that will have a hard time getting into the graveyard.
Autumnal Gloom – Too expensive to bring in as a way to get cards into your graveyard.
Sinister Concoction - Great instant removal that can be left on the battlefield until the time you need it, but not enough space to fit in the deck.
Sideboard:
Dead Weight – Early removal against very aggressive Red or White creature decks. Gets an enchantment into your graveyard as well.
Creature
In:
Emrakul, the Promised End – With so many card types going into your graveyard there is a chance that you can case Emrakul for as little as six mana! Also a great target for Ever After.
Grim Flayer – As talked about above, this is the one of the best cards for this deck.
Deathcap Cultivator – Great way to ramp into your larger spells and can turn into a great deathtouch defensive creature later in the game.
Mindwrack Demon – Great value for four mana and gets lots of cards into your graveyard. With Deathcap Cultivator, you can get this out on turn three!
The Gitrog Monster – Amazing card that you will be able to get out and give you a lot of card advantage while allowing you to get some land into your graveyard.
Ishkanah, Grafwidow – Six power and eleven toughness for only five mana is incredibly powerful and leave you with the advantage on the battlefield most of the time.
Liliana, Heretical Healer – Great way to get some more cards into your graveyard, while also bringing some of your early creatures back onto the battlefield.
Ulvenwald Hydra – A great large creature that will keep growing with all of the lands you will be putting into play.
Out:
Distended Mindbender – Great card that can make your opponent discard two cards, but doesn’t fit very well in this deck as you don’t want to sacrifice many of your creatures.
Catacomb Sifter – Gives you three power and four toughness, but not suited for this deck.
Greenwarden of Murasa – There is already plenty of ways to get cards back from your graveyard in this deck.
Den Protector – There is enough creatures in the deck to have this one sitting out and Pulse of Murasa will do the same for most cards in your graveyard while gaining you life.
Jaddi Offshoot – Would rather have Gnarlwood Dryad in the one-mana creature spot.
Gnarlwood Dryad – There are plenty of better creatures to put in the deck and don’t think that a one-drop creature is needed in this deck.
Sideboard:
Kalitas, Traitor of Ghet – Great to bring in to gain some more life and if your opponent has creatures you would rather have exiled than in their graveyard.
Nissa, Vastwood Seer – Great to bring in if you need to gain card advantage in a longer game.
Tireless Tracker – Great to bring in games that will last longer so that you gain some major card advantage. With The Gitrog Monster you will be putting lots of land in play allowing you to get a lot of Clue Tokens.
Planeswalker
In:
Liliana, the Last Hope – Great Planeswalker for this deck as it can be used as removal, or adding cards into your graveyard.
Out:
Nissa, Voice of Zendikar – This great Planeswalker just isn’t suited for this deck.
Sideboard:
Ob Nixilis Reignited – Brought in against non-aggro or creature heavy decks to gain card advantage or kill their large creatures.
Artifact
Out:
Hangarback Walker – Great creature that not only can provide a lot of defense and blockers. It will also get you an artifact into your graveyard as well. Just not able to fit this in to the deck.
Brain in a Jar – A great way to cast all of the wonderful spells in this deck, but Brain in a Jar will stay on the battlefield and not add to your graveyard card types.
Now let’s see the final deck for Green/Black Delirium.
Thanks for reading this Daily Dose of Eldritch Moon Deck Tech and I’m looking forward to seeing how this performs in the upcoming Standard season. Join me for some more Deck Tech action on the Daily Dose soon!
