Subject: T2-"Diesel" Black Date: Tue, 10 Feb 1998 14:57:30 -0600 From: Jimmy Bailey To: "'fkusumot@ix.netcom.com'" Lets talk T2 decks shall we? After a couple of months of strong, steady, showings in the Dallas T2 scene. I thought I'd make one of our current T2 decks available for public consumption in hope of generating feedback on possible improvements and variants. Die-sel(noun)1: A Vehicle driven by a diesel engine.2.(adj.) To be of superior quality. 3.(noun) A fat, hard to kill, beatdown creature. T2-Team Reaper "Diesel" Black // The Diesels 2 Gallowbraid 3 Necrosavant // The Stuff 4 Nevinyrral's Disk 4 Drain Life 4 Diabolic Edict 3 Lobotomy 4 Dark Ritual // Critters 4 Carrionette 4 Bottle Gnomes 4 Nekrataal // Land 10 Swamp 2 Rootwater Depths 2 Gemstone Mine 2 Undiscovered Paradise 1 Reflecting Pool 3 Wasteland 4 Quicksand SB: 2 Disenchant SB: 2 Dread of Night SB: 4 Perish SB: 3 Mind Bend SB: 2 Touchstone SB: 2 Forsaken Waste Diesel is a Mono Black Control deck designed to maintain control of the playing field long enough to drop an exceptionally hard to kill creature. It utilizes many Ultra-efficient, dual purpose, cards to remove enemy threats and secure control and keep an opponent on the defensive. Critters Diesel's creatures are chosen by their abilities to act almost as "two" cards in one. Nekrataal/Carrionette- Both provide excellent removal and beatdown capabilities. Each offers potential for card advantage. Bottle Gnomes- Provide defense for various pro-black/low power(Ophidians ect.)threats as well as Burn defense in the way of life gaining. Necrosavant- In the current T2 environment, this "Diesel" is practically impossible to remove from the game. His recursion ability gives all types of discard and counter decks fits. In a sense, he is "many" fatties in one. Gallowbraid- Not necessarily chosen for his dual purpose but chosen for the added speed that the 5cc offers when paired with trample. Gallowbraid is a threat that must be delt with before an opponent can proceed with their game plan. Control Nevi disks- An old "stand-by" in black decks. It offers tremendous card advantage potential and board control capabilities. Drain Life- Drain life is drain life. It's removal, life gaining, game finishing all rolled into one. Diabolic Edict- Instant Removal. Its non-targeting is invaluable as it is capable of taking out pro black threats. Dark Ritual- Speed enhancer. Making 3-4 turn Gallowbraid/Necrosavant not uncommon. Lobotomy- Much stronger choice than Stupor in a deck than can support the Blue cc. It can cripple combo decks as early as turn 2 as well as taking out "clutch" cards needed later in the game. Quicksand- Another dual purpose card being both a mana source as well as a removal source. Quicksand stops most common creatures cold. Wasteland- Mana source/LD source offering potential to inflict "mana screw" on an opponent in an environment full of targets. Land Is a various assortment of multi lands capable of supporting a very versatile sideboard. SideBoard Sideboard should vary to each environment. The cards I've chosen for mine counter 5cg, ww, various enchantment "lock" decks as well as life gaining decks that are common right now in the DFW area. Weaknesses Mana denial can be very difficult for "Diesel" to overcome especially in game one. Armageddon is not near the threat that Winter Orb is. High land count paired with ample removal make 'Geddoning difficult. Winter Orb, on the other hand, can be extremely dangerous. But smart play can go far with the help of disks and lobotomy. There it is! If you have any questions, comments, or suggestions. Please, feel free to drop me an E-mail. Jim Bailey Team Reaper SocialD on IRC jbailey@sageus.com