Dark Depths

[Pernacious_D]

This deck as of yet is untested, I have no match-up analysis to report yet. :(

However! I will happily explain each of my card choices and I'll take all criticism and suggestions openly.

Here's the list:

Mainboard:
Creatures: 10
x3 Dark Confidant
x4 Vampire Hexmage
x3 Dark Depths

Protection/Disruption: 18
x4 Force of Will
X3 Mental Mistep
X3 Daze
X3 Cabal Therapy
X3 Diabolic Edict
X2 Echoing Truth
x2 Stifle

Draw/search: 11
X4 Brainstorm
X3 Lim-Dul's Vault
x2 Ponder
X2 Intuition

Mana:19
x4 Underground Sea
x4 Polluted Delta
x3 Flooded Strand
X4 Snow-covered Island
X4 Snow-covered Swamp

Sideboard:
x3 Duress
x3 Hydroblast
x3 Ravenous Trap
x2 Perish
x2 powder keg
x2 Spellsnare

My choices:
Dark Confidant: He helps me draw into my combo and answers, and I like his synergy with Brainstorm, Ponder, and the fact that he doubles the number of Cabal Therapies in my deck. He is a creature that definitely deserves a counterspell or Swords to Plowshares, and if my opponent uses those cards on him then Marit Lage is less likely to be answered.

Mental Mistep: Primarily there to hate on Swords to Plowshares, Stifle, and other goodies that hate on my combo.

Daze: I prefer free counterspells while tutoring and casting hexmage in the early game.

Diabolic Edict: I've been playing this card since I was a kid and I still believe it to be the best black removal spell, seeing as it hits things like Emerakul as well as annoying little weenie creatures.

Stifle: So Dark Depths doesn't get wastelanded in response to hexmage.

Echoing Truth: More removal designed just to steal turns from my opponent, to deal with noncreature permanents that have resolved, to take care of problem spots. Hitting multiple permanents then casting Therapy is always excellent.

Cabal Therapy: This is my personal favorite discard spell in 1.5. I know the decks and pretty much always name the card I don't want to see. If they have it, it's gone, if they don't, then I know to play aggressively. Its flashback also removes confidant if he starts to kill me.

Brainstorm: Synergetic with Dark Confidant and fetch lands. Probably the most powerful card in legacy that has never been banned.

Ponder: +2 Psuedo-brainstorm effects

Lim-Dul's Vault: Finds my combo with the least amount of mana of any available tutor at instant speed.

Intuition: Originally this was Impulse, but I found going straight for the combo is better.

Cards I've considered:
Into the North: Splashing green would get me this nifty little rampant growth that can tutor out my Dark Depths.

Regrowth: In case my combo is removed somehow

Sensei's Divining Top: search for combo, manipulate library for confidant

Counterbalance: If I play top, this would be a good include as well. There just doesn't seem to be room for this softlock in my present build

Impulse: More good searching.

[Jeff Kruchkow]

Grim Discovery seems like it would be good either main or for sure in the board as it gets back both combo pieces against decks that stop you

[Hanni]

If you're going all in on the Dark Depths combo, with no backup plan (which I don't really agree with), then you need to make that plan as consistent and protected as possible. You should cut a Hexmage and run 4 Living Wish, for starters.

Running Intuition without Volrath's Stronghold and Life from the Loam seems bad. Mental Misstep most definitely needs to be a 4-of, since StP and PtE are some of your biggest problems. Even with Intuition, Therapy seems horrible when you have so few creatures to sac for flashback. I actually like the Stifle's, since they protect you against Wasteland. I'd actually run 4 of them along with 4 Wasteland's to give you're disruption another angle of attack, and Wasteland would be good to run with Loam anyway.

I'd also recommend some sort of backup plan. Whether that be a Worm Harvest, Jace TMS, Phyrexian Dreadnought, Tarmogoyf, Tombstalker, or some combination of those, would be up to you.

[conboy31]

I concur with 4 missteps, I think they are almost mandatory unless some sort of pervasive discard engine was implemented. I have been playing around some with bgw wish depths and the missteps have been instrumental in protecting the 20/20 token.