We're half way through the week but there is still so much to look forward to. Today, all of the black cards come out to play for our reviewing needs. Strap yourselves in and get ready to take a stroll through the garden of black cards, let's get started.
Abnormal Endurance
We kick off the black cards with a good little combat trick. What I love able Abnormal Endurance is the possible value you can get out of it: it could just give your creature that extra 2 power, it can save a chump blocker to chump again next turn or it can trade with an opposing creature thanks to the power boost and bring that creature back to fight another day all for two mana. It’s at home in limited where it could do a lot of work.
Blood Divination
I don’t like this card. I don’t like the lazy name which evokes Divination in my head, I don’t like the fact that it costs one more mana or that you have to sacrifice a creature to cast it. The only part I do like is the additional card it draws, but it would have to draw three cards as one replaces the spell and the second replaces the sacrificed creature, so the third is was the only real way to get value out of the spell. One in limited and that’s it, Blood Divination is too costly for constructed with to much investment.
Bogstomper
What a name, this guy is going to stomp all over your opponent’s bogs in limited. It’s a big, top end threat that will command the combat zone.
Bone Dragon
Bone Dragon is a bomb creature in limited and could see some constructed play. As a recurring creature dealing with this five mana fleshless dragon could prove harder than first thought, it’s ability does involve you filling your graveyard with a tonne of creatures but getting into the late game that’s not hard. Bone Dragon’s ability doesn’t specify when you can use it either so you can flash it back at the end of your opponent’s turn, what a beating that could be. There are a couple of reasons I could see it being a flop in constructed: Cast Out, Seal Away, Vraska’s Contempt. After rotation though Bone Dragon could break through and start a trend of black midrange/control decks which would be fun.
Child of Night
Child of Night is such a good early game limited creature. It can put quite a bit of distance between you and your opponent if left unchecked thanks to the Lifelink and in the mid to late game throw some pants on this guy and you can start building your perfect creature.
Death Baron
A great duo lord for skeletons and zombies giving them both a power and toughness boost and Deathtouch. For a three mana 2/2 Death Baron is good enough to play if you don’t have many zombies or skeletons, though you would prefer getting more value out of it. I would love to pair Death Baron and Bone Dragon together in limited with the ability to fuel my graveyard, because you’ll then have a 6/5 flying Deathtouch Dragon with a recursion ability, either it will eat everything on the battlefield or win you the game, maybe both. There’s plenty of zombies to play Death Baron with but this three mana lord might be too slow and fragile for constructed, good in limited with or without a loss of zombies and skeletons though.
Demon of Catastrophes
It’s all there on the card. Four mana 6/6 flying trample with a small drawback. If you hit this on turn four the game could be over then and there, I’m even thinking a turn sooner thanks to Llanowar Elves as it accelerates you and gives you the fodder for the demon. Bomb rare in limited and get ready to see this in constructed.
Diregraf Ghoul
A one mana 2/2 has to have a drawback, Diregraf Ghoul comes into play tapped as it’s drawback. This is fine in the early game when not much attacking is happening but terrible in the late game when you might need a blocker and this is what you top deck. Fine in limited and has even seen constructed play, though this time around I don’t see that happening.
Doomed Dissenter
This guy is value. He’s cheap and fragile but acts as a great limited chump blocker after which he drops a nice 2/2 onto the battlefield for you.
Duress
Duress is Duress. It’s not going anywhere as it’s the new standard one mana hand disruption spell. Work really well against control decks in constructed but I don’t like it much in limited as it’s a much more aggressive format so you’re more likely to whiff and see a hand full if creatures.
Epicure Of Blood
This is your mid to late game black creature in limited, Epicure of Blood is easy to splash and has a sizeable body but can do so much more. Find a consistent way to gain any amount of life and you can be draining your opponent for 1 each turn, that might not sound like a lot but if you can also hit with Epicure of Blood then that 1 damage turns into 5, which is a for turn clock. I really like multiples of Epicure of blood because the abilities can stack and start doing some real damage, only two max though,
Fell Specter
I love the effects of Fell Specter, one leading into the other is great, but I’m not happy with the mana cost or power and toughness. It feels like Fell Specter could have been at least a 2/2 flyer but maybe the effect was easy enough to abuse that they couldn’t justify making it a viable threat, in lieu of that it can soak up some aerial damage and could provide you space between you and your opponent in limited.
Fraying Omnipotence
This is kind of like a cheaper Cruel Ultimatum but it effects both players instead of just your opponent. For five mana Fraying Omnipotence is a decent mid game spell but you have to be careful for a couple of reasons: it effect you as well as them and they get to choose what they sacrifice and discard. I like this in a format like Commander where it effects a few players rather than just two because it can really backfire in a one on one situation. It’s probably fine in limited if you time it right but as I said the backfire capability might put you off a bit and I wouldn’t blame you for not playing it.
Gravedigger
He digs graves, he’s a good blocker in limited and in multiples you can keep chaining them together to always have a creature on the board.
Graveyard Marshal
This guy is insane. Yeah he’s a commitment to black but it’s worth it to generate a lot of value and board position, I can see Graveyard Marshal seeing constructed play in a midrange black deck just because it can turn all of your dead creatures into 2/2 zombies. A two mana 3/2 is still really good and I think Graveyard Marshal will be a limited bomb and do some real work.
Hired Blade
I love surprise blockers and Hired Blade is a great one. It’s easy to splash and will trade up in the best of ways, without your opponent suspecting it. I imagine Hired Blade will live in limited but it could maybe break into constructed, might stand more of a chance if it had a relevant creature type.
Infectious Horror
This may look like a four mana 2/2 but it’s more along the lines of a four mana 4/2 when it attacks. The nice thing is that even if it dies in combat you’ve still forced 2 damage through.
Infernal Reckoning
This isn’t for standard. There may come some applications for it but this is a card designed for modern to combat Death’s Shadow. It’s cheap, quick and really efficient with removal and life gain rolled into one.
Infernal Scarring
The two for one problem with auras hasn’t gone anywhere but auras like Infernal Scarring help a little. A power boost and it replaces itself when the creature dies. You are technically still a card down overall but for two mana you get what you get.
Isareth the Awakener
This is a midrange decks dream creature. Three mana for 3 power is more than good enough already but it gives decks a bit of late game longevity and a mana sink letting you re arm your side of the board. Isareth is a limited bomb obviously and if protected will absolutely command a game, get ready to see a lot of Isareth in the months to come.
Lich’s Caress
Removal is removal, no matter what form it comes in. Lich’s Caress costs a lot and is a small commitment to black but it does net you 3 life back, I wouldn’t go more than one in limited unless I really had to and there’s no place for it in constructed.
Liliana, Untouched by Death
Maybe it’s just me but Liliana, Untouched by Death is very underwhelming. Every ability is centred around zombies which makes this four mana planeswalker really narrow. Her first ability is conditional and could just result in you killing yourself for three cards, her second ability requires you to control a few zombies already and her last ability lets you cast any zombies you may have milled through. Not put them into play, just cast them, normally, like a boring person. Meh I say, meh.
Liliana’s Contract
This card is full of value. Five mana and 4 life for four cards, I’ll take that all day long in limited, and the “win the game” clause may not be as hard as first thought. Remember Arcane Adaptation? Well that three mana enchantment and this five mana enchantment are pretty good friends it turns out, especially when you have four creatures with different names and you’ve chosen demon with Arcane Adaptation. It does require you and them to make it to the next upkeep but if you do, well you win. I would love to see a pseudo-combo deck with both Liliana’s Contract and Arcane Adaptation in constructed but I think that deck is a bit greedy, won’t stop me though. Great card advantage in limited from this five mana enchantment but it does come at quite a price so be careful, you don’t want your opponent putting the trigger on the stack and burning you for the rest.
Macabre Waltz
Macabre Waltz is fine on the surface, it can help get you back into a game of a particularly good utility or bomb creature was dealt with early. However, it’s more card selection than card advantage as you are spending a card to get two back and then discarding an additional card. One is enough in limited, more than one has diminishing returns.
Mind Rot
Mind Rot is always a card and is always great in limited, it’s even seen some constructed play but usually as a one-of in sideboards.
Murder
This is one of the premium removal spells in Core 2019. It’s a little bit of a commitment to black but it’s relatively cheap and instant speed, Murder will even make its way into constructed. Those three little words are very powerful, it doesn’t care about colour or creature type, cost, power or toughness. It’s dead, deal with it.
Nightmare’s Thirst
This card could be a trap, sure it’s cheap and it looks like a removal spell but to be effective as one you need to couple Nightmare’s Thirst with lifegain. That might not prove to be that hard but my point is that on the whole Nightmare’s Thirst doesn’t work well on its own. At worst it’s a a one mana -1/-1 so you could utilise it well as a combat trick and they work well in multiples incrementally, it’s not going to be a go to for me in limited but I could see playing a couple of copies in lieu of a Murder or something better.
Open the Graves
Open the Graves is a limited powerhouse. Getting to turn five and being able to drop this enchantment could very well win you the game, the potential here is huge. You could get some decent upgrades by chumping with your 1/1’s but you could also get downgrades with any creatures bigger than a 2/2. This isn’t as bad as it looks though as you are still getting extra value from all of your dying creatures, if you can couple this with a reanimating strategy then you get even more mileage and can start to overrun your opponent with 2/2 zombies. Open the Graves could be a decent sideboard card for midrange decks in constructed but it’s costly and doesn’t have an immediate impact on the game.
Phylactery Lich
It’s a three mana 5/5 Indestructible, very powerful and it can come down in the early game. The catch is twofold: it’s triple black in the mana cost and you need an artifact to keep Phylactery Lich around. The creature type is important here if mono black zombies becomes a deck Phylactery Lich could see some play though I’m not sure what artifacts a mono black zombie deck could play. The potential power level is here but it could be confined to a one or two colour limited deck.
Plague Mare
Goblin Chainwhirler is insanely powerful and Plague Mare is pretty much the same card but easier to cast. With the ease of casting the power and toughness is lessened and Plague Mare is lacking First Strike, replacing that though it does have a form of evasion. The main part of this three mana creature is the -1/-1 to your opponent’s creatures, like I said Goblin Chainwhirler has shown how powerful this ability is so I think having another creature with the same ability could turn black red decks into an even more dominant force in the format.
Ravenous Harpy
This is the type of utility creature midrange aggressive decks need in limited. It gives you another angle of attack when you can turn your creatures into +1/+1 counters and in a creature with evasion it can really start taking chunks out of your opponent’s life total.
Reassembling Skeleton
Love this guy in limited, he makes things so awkward for your opponent when it’s constantly coming back from the graveyard. Reassembling Skeleton is an early drop blocker that keeps going and going, you do have to set aside two mana to keep up your chump blocking bone man but it’s worth it.
Rise from the Grave
Great late game reanimation spell that can hit either graveyard. Rise from the Grave is easily splashable and can get your beat creature back or utilise your opponent’s bomb creature. Limited only thanks to the mana cost.
Skeleton Archer
Decent cost, decent body and it could double up as a removal spell for the weaker of opposing creatures. At worst it can ping your opponent. A good creature to have in limited.
Skymarcher Bloodletter
Cheap, evasive and drains your opponent for 1 life. Good limited creature that could end up doing work in the air.
Sovereign’s Bite
This card is going to be great in limited, it’s like a slightly worse Lightning Helix - except it can’t hit creatures. I would’ve like this more as an instant and I don’t think it would’ve been too powerful but as it stands Sovereign’s Bite gives you that little bit of reach that could seal a game.
Stitcher’s Supplier
I think Stitcher’s Supplier could be a good player if a constructed zombies deck comes to fruition. So much fuel for your graveyard for just one mana is good value, if you can utilise your graveyard as a resource then Stitcher’s Supplier is almost like a “draw 3 cards” attaches to a 1/1 creature. In limited it’s fine but I wouldn’t want to run too many in fear of denying my own deck too much.
Strangling Spores
Great limited removal spell. It’s easy to splash and works as a combat trick as well.
Two-Headed Zombie
Four mana for 4 power equals one great on-curve creature. The 2 toughness does make Two-Headed Zombie a tad fragile but it makes up for it with the Menace. This is a creature that will almost certainly die whenever it gets into combat but it’s going to take a few creatures with it, or at least trade up. Good mid curve creature for limited, two are fine maybe a third is ok but you don’t want to clog up your hand with too many four drops.
Vampire Neonate
Good early drop limited blocker with a nice ability to chip away at your opponent’s life total or just screw up combat maths.
Vampire Sovereign
Vampire Sovereign is a good top end creature in limited, he gives you a decent body with evasion and some reach to boot. This guy will do work for you, I could even see going as high as two copies just because of the swing in life Vampire Sovereign can provide.
Walking Corpse
Finally, we end on a bear. It’s not great but it’s not terrible. The actual good part of Walking Corpse is its creature type, zombies will matter and this guy is a decent zombie.
Lots to mull over there, but don't spend too long as tomorrow it's time for the red cards in Core 2019. Fiery, passionate and unpredictable, but enough about me, tune in again tomorrow for the review of all cards red, but always remember to check back to Game Changers for more gaming news, updates and set reviews and check us out on twitter at @gcgamingtank.
Happy gaming guys!
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