I thought I’d write today about one of my favourite decks in Mono Black Control, MBC is still a great deck and covers the midrange slot of the meta. However, there is a theory that currently MBC is in a bad place and unplayable. This might be true in MTGO challenges at the current time but it is a solid deck for LGS play and in any given week, Mono Black can still win as shown in some MTGO 5-0 League Results.

Choose Your Win Condition

This is key to how you are going to win your matches and your deck will need to reflect this choice in how it is built.

Gurmag Angler

The beatdown creature of choice and one of the best creatures in the format as a whole.

Gray Merchant of Asphodel

When you use this creature, the idea is to win by massive life point swings, this is done by having a high black devotion count, black mana symbols from your non land permanents.

Bone Picker

This is better in more aggressive decks but a 3/2 flyer is very solid and can finish off a game, even if you’ve paid the full cost. Bone Picker is a card that is difficult to play correctly and can sometimes create card disadvantage to enable its early play only to see it be removed from the battle field.

Carrion Feeder and Mortician Beetle

This combination of creatures has fallen out of popularity but when you can sacrifice creatures to Carrion Feeder, you can see the strategy get out of hand really quick.

If you are interested in playing with Carrion Feeder and friends, you can try this list.

Twisted Abomination

This is a personal favourite and one that is wholly underrated, a 5/3 with regenerate can face down a Gurmag Angler as it has Regenerate. However, what I like to do is use the Swampcycling to grab a Witch’s Cottage and then when I play the Witch’s Cottage return the Twisted Abomination to the top of my library. This can be repeated so when it is played onto the battle field you have can have spare mana to protect it.

Pestilence

Now Pestilence is an awesome card and this card not only works as a mass removal spell, even with the life loss, but also kills your opponent by said life loss. This does mean though that you need to have several ways to gain life and it tends to play better in Orzhov decks.

Ill-Gotten Inheritance

This is my wild card entry and something that applies as a one of usually. I like this card as it grinds a win and was extremely popular in Standard Pauper in Arena.

Corrupt

We do see this sorcery as a way to win the game and serve as additional removal in a pinch.

It has to be said though that the better Mono Black Decks tend to use an overlapping strategy on which win conditions to use. Linking the life drain win conditions to make a spine of a deck is a potentially potent strategy or to give a sufficient life buffer to repeatedly use Pestilence.

Twisted Abomination can be used to accelerate land drops to enable an earlier than expected casting of Gurmag Angler.

Three Cmc Creatures

I like the way that 3 cmc is so well stocked for the deck and provides great potential for variety, also Unearth caps at 3 cmc so if any of these cards has additional value, they can become very critical. The third turn can be one of the most important in any game of Pauper as you are potentially tapping out your mana into potent threats, like Monarch cards.

Phyrexian Rager

This is one of the most popular three drops and helps with its card draw. It is the flexible stalwart of the format.

Chittering Rats

Chittering Rats is great in the devotion builds and when it slows your opponent’s draws it can be great fun but sometimes it is far from impressive.

Lost Legion

Lost Legion has seen play in Pestilence style decks as the extra point of toughness is great for clearing opponents’ creatures and being able to keep your Pestilence around. More recently that 3 toughness helps you maintain a presence against Fiery Cannonade.

Blind Zealot

Yes, you did read that correctly. I appreciate this isn’t something that appears a lot in the format but I’m including it as a friend at my LGS slotted it in his deck. It can be used as additional removal if needed and has the double black mana cost for devotion. The card is not widely used but was a complete annoyance that day evading blocks, killing the best creature on the board and then coming back into play.

Whisper Agent

My favourite three drop, having flash it means I can regularly sneak it out to block and trade, or can throw off opponents combat math by sneaking out an extra threat. We also have Surveil on the card to potentially fix your draw or help fill up the grave for a Gurmag Angler.

Crypt Rats

Although this is technically a three drop, it is also a premium removal card and a staple of the format.

Other Creatures

Cuombajj Witches

The significance of this creature is sometimes overlooked as many consider it only sees play due to its BB devotion. However, with many creatures only having 1 toughness and it can block 2 power creatures adequately makes it a useful card. You just have to be aware that the ping ability can hurt you or your creatures just as much as your opponent.

Dusk Legion Zealot

The baby Phyrexian Rager hasn’t seen much play of late as bigger creatures seem to be more prominent but I’ve had a liking for this card for when I played Orzhov Vampires in Standard drawing me out of issues so often.

Thorn of the Black Rose

Thorn is a card on the hitlist to be banned, its sin is being a Monarch card. It is solid and reliable but in a colour that makes protecting the Monarchy much easier. I cannot count the number of times this card has got me out of trouble in Pauper.

Okiba-Gang Shinobi

One of the more interesting and controversial creatures Mono Black can use, at its best it can win games singlehandedly but the downside can be quite dramatic if you cannot sneak it out or kill the blockers. Whilst it combo’s very well with Phyrexian Rager it can require a lot of effort, a bit of luck and some degree of skill to maximise its potential. Tends to work better in Dimir /Orzhov builds where there are evasive flyers.

Removal

One of the strengths of Black is the removal suite which is by far the strongest in any colour. This is probably a trade off as at times the creatures look particularly bland.

Targeted Removal

Defile

One of the best cards in the deck and scales up in power much like Skred does in snow decks allowing it to continue to be relevant later into the game.

Disfigure, Ghastly Demise and Tragic Slip

Defile is just so good it pretty much relegates the other cards to the sideboard when you may need extra early game removal. All have their place and can be great but their floor is quite significant.

Cast Down

This card was downshifted in double masters and has found its way to the head of the table, the number of Legendary creatures is nominal and none of them currently see regular play. As Cast Down can kill Black creatures it makes it so much better than its siblings Doom Blade, Terror and Victim of the Night.

Snuff Out

Not content with two of the best removal in the format, we get another with Snuff Out. Having an alternative cost utilising life points rather than mana is sweet.

Oubliette

Oubliette rates a mention and there have been times when it has been too slow for the format. The unique templating, that allows it to steal the enchantments on the targeted creature, as well as the excellent devotion cost makes it good for MBC.

Feed the Swarm

I went a little crazy when this card was spoiled and ordered four foil copies immediately rather than be patient and pick them up naturally. The ability to destroy enchantments in black was so welcome I just wanted the pimped-out version in my deck.

Mass Removal

The mass removal in Pauper is quite limited but black comes out rather well as could be expected.

Suffocating Fumes

A very solid removal card giving all of your opponent’s creatures -1/-1 and even if not useful has the ability to be cycled away. Has solidly replaced Shrivel and Nausea.

Evincar’s Justice

Two damage to all creatures and players is very solid, the chance to re-use it by utilising Buyback when casting leads to some very one-sided games.

Sacrifice Spells

Chainers Edict

Chainer’s Edict is such a reliable card, the 1B cost is reasonable and late game you may get a second bite of the cherry.

Diabolic Edict, Geth’s Verdict and Pharika’s Libation can find a home in the sideboard if additional copies are needed but they aren’t usually required unless there is an abundance of Hexproof creature or protections spells being used locally.

Other Spells

Some of these will be great in main deck but others could be more of sideboard options

I feel this is the premium draw spell for mono black as two life for two cards is certainly the going rate.

Night’s Whisper

Makes more of an impact in two colour black decks but is a reliable way to draw cards and is regularly a fifth card draw as Sign in Blood also can be used on your opponent to kill them.

Read the Bones

You could say this card has Fallen from Favor; Sign in Blood is usually so much better but as a fifth card draw it is generally fine aa the scry helps.

Village Rites

The new kid on the block for card draw and is popular in sacrifice decks where it can create synergy when additional sacrifice effects are needed. It is one that I have generally steered clear of.

Bonder’s Ornament

An essential card for decks now as the repeatable card draw is essential for break late game stall or just to keep parity with control decks using their own copy to draw cards.

Unearth

There was a time when these cards just gathered dust in my folder as even though they can be cycled away, I thought both modes were quite limited in scope. Then one week I saw my opponent blow up my board in the mirror match twice with the same Crypt Rat, I was sold at that point.

Unexpected Fangs

Predominately a sideboard option but if you need to gain life it can be very useful.

Discard

Or what about dat card? Discard spells regularly appear in the sideboard and a lot of the time they are meta dependent on which ones to use Duress, Divest, Wrench Mind and Memory Leak all find their way into sideboards in various numbers but they can also be used main deck dependent upon your local meta.

Land

Even though the deck is mono coloured you will need to consider to run lands other than Swamps to round out the build. However, you do need to be careful when allowing for your Swamp synergies for Defile and Witches Cottage.

Barren Moor

There will be several readers who have been burnt too often getting a Barren Moor when they needed a land and get one that comes into play tapped, I have had my fair share of those incidents but then I have also been able to profitably cycle the dead draw away.

Bojuka Bog

Bojuka Bog is so useful in removing graveyards that many decks splash for its effect.

Witches Cottage

Throne of Eldraine is better known for letting Mystic Sanctuary into Pauper, but Witches Cottage was in the same cycle of cards. Witches Cottage is great for bringing back creatures and is generally a better version of Mortuary Mire.

The Deck

Mono Black is very flexible and many of the slots are interchangeable. Here is my current favourite build which I like to run for Mono Black Devotion

2 Gurmag Angler
4 Gray Merchant of Asphodel
2 Thorn of the Black Rose
4 Cuombajj Witches
4 Whisper Agent

4 Defile
4 Cast Down
3 Chainer’s Edict
1 Suffocating Fumes
1 Evincar’s Justice
1 Snuff Out

4 Sign in Blood
2 Bonder’s Ornament
2 Oubliette

3 Witch’s Cottage
2 Barren Moor
2 Bojuka Bog
15 Swamp

Sideboard

2 Feed the Swarm
3 Wrench Mind
1 Unexpected Fangs
1 Suffocating Fumes
1 Corrupt
2 Disfigure
3 Rancid Earth
2 Thorn of the Black Rose

Conclusion

Mono Black Control tends to fulfil a midrange role in Pauper and has a cult following, it can have periods of time when the meta is not well suited to its play. MBC is one of my favourite decks, so much so I’ve been happily foiling it out for quite some time. I do tend to see more MBC in paper than online where the metagame’s have significant deviations, indeed every LGS community I attend has two to four potential pilots.

Aesthetically the deck is beautiful, the Arabia Nights Oubliette, the duel deck version of Snuff Out and Commander Legends Cuombajj Witches are all beautiful cards that are a pleasure to sleeve up. Mono Black is also a rather forgiving deck, albeit not doing anything spectacular so can be a good choice when introducing someone to the format.