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Testing Vampires: Video

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Last week I brewed up a synergistic Vampires list based off Tom Ross'.

vampires nocturnus

Today I put it to the test in the tournament practice room on Magic Online. Here's the list:

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Vampires by Sean Ridgeley

Creatures

4 Bloodghast
4 Gatekeeper of Malakir
4 Kalastria Highborn
4 Vampire Nocturnus
4 Viscera Seer

Spells

4 Sign in Blood
3 Victim of Night
3 Inquisition of Kozilek
3 Thoughtseize
3 Liliana of the Veil

Lands

9 Swamp
4 Bloodstained Mire
4 Polluted Delta
4 Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth
3 Mutavault

Sideboard

3 Vampire Nighthawk
1 Leyline of the Void
1 Darkblast
3 Sorin's Thirst
1 Deathmark
3 Duress
1 Bile Blight
1 Cranial Extraction
1 Liliana of the Veil

The matches are Twin, Abzan Company, Burn, and Grixis Delver. See for yourself what happened below.

Company was the only true rough match here. The lesson I'm taking from it is we can't keep weak hands against them, and should shy away from even mediocre ones.

Despite the poor record, I still feel good about Vampires, partly because the testing I did before recording these rounds went better overall (I'd estimate a 60% win rate, with some Abzan Company games included in that), most of the games were close, I misplayed a bit (as it goes with new decks), and I think cutting a Sign in Blood for another Victim of Night could make a fairly big impact.

Bottom line: I'll be taking this to a daily soon. Until then!

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5 thoughts on “Testing Vampires: Video

  1. You got Urborg-flooded at least twice that I saw – is trimming the count for it (and consequently Mutavault) worth considering? That Delver game saw you struggle big time against tokens, so I think you need more than just 1 Bile Blight.

    All in all, though, I’m not overly impressed by the deck in its current form. I feel like it needs more of an early-game presence, whether it be in the form of removal (like Disfigure) or beefier creatures. Will we see a test video for the aggro version?

      1. Why not play red for things like bolt, k-command, and stromkirk captain? I feel like the reach and the cheaper Lord could help you out

        1. I brewed a B/R version as well (see the link above). This one is best monoblack, though – it doesn’t need those things. I know this was a somewhat poor showing, but based on my experience, it’s atypical for the deck. I debated publishing the footage for fear of reactions like this, but I also didn’t want to manipulate reactions.

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