2001)

Since Invasion Block Constructed (IBC) is the format for PT-New Orleans qualifiers, I've been trying to figure out what to play. In such a wide-open format such as IBC, beatdown is generally strong because aggressive beatdown decks punish slow starts if someone is play a new deck that is inadequately tuned.

Although I'm generally a control player, I've also always been a great Wakefield fan: The last fattie you can't deal with will kill you. Spiritmonger has been the most talked about fattie in Apocalypse, I have been surprised not to see many efforts to build dedicated Green-black decks (most people can't seem to resist including white for Vindicate and Death Grasp).

Here's a decklist for an aggressive G-B fattie deck that's IBC which uses two of the strongest cards out of Apocalypse: Spiritmonger and Pernicious Deed.

G-B Fatties Galore:

4:Lay of the Land
4:Llanowar Dead
4:Kavu Titan
4:Ebony Treefolk
3:Plague Spitter
3:Consume Strength
4:Phyrexian Scuta
4:Jade Leech
4:Spiritmonger
4:Pernicious Deed

4:Llanowar Waste
8:Swamps
10:Forest

The deck has a solid mana curve:

1cc: 4
2cc: 8
3cc: 12
4cc: 8
5cc: 4 [8 if you re-count the Titans]

The Lay of the land is a solid turn-one play which thins the deck and ensures consistent land drops. The 4 Lay of the land allows the deck to run 22 land and have strong color-consistency. In addition, the Llanowar Dead ramp you up to the 4cc Fatties on turn three.

I find this deck elegant in its dedication to dropping one fattie after another. Counting the Kavu Titans (which are both a two-drop and a five-drop), there are 16 creatures that are 5/5 or larger and the Ebony Treefolk pumps itself up to be equally fierce. All together, there are 27 legitimate threats, 23 of which have the potential to do at least 3 damage each turn and 20 can potentially do 5 or more damage a turn.

The Pernicious Deed at first seemed wrong somehow because they're not large bodies, but I need removal and it can clear away smaller creatures to let the fat boys in. It deals with enchantments like Collective Restraint that can slow you down.

Although I feel comfortable with most of the cards in the deck, I had to struggle on the last few cards. The last few cards to be included were the Plaguespitters and Consume Strength. The Plaguespitters are a slide three-drop and it nullifies Spectral Lynx, the only playable regenerating blocker in the format. Consume Strength is powerful psuedo-removal and can often provide two-for-one card advantage if played correctly.

Nevertheless, I am still unsure about these last few cards because I would like to make room for Addles and these six cards are among the likely candidates for replacement. Addle is a solid second or third turn play to strip away troublesome spells as a pre-emptive way to protect your fatties from Excludes, Moats, and Routs. Addle may also strip away opposing Spiritmongers, which can be an effective blocker against this deck.

Conclusion

I am still testing this deck, but the deck has shown some promise so far. At its best, this deck is a beating because it drops one fattie after another. If you enjoy turning creatures sideways, you may want to give this deck a try.

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