Competitive RB Pauper deck!

[prateta]

Hello everybody,

been playing Pauper for a while (UR Delver and Tron mostly). I'd like to build a new deck and RB combination got my attention. Although I'm not quite sure how to build a deck, as - I confess - I mostly play netdecks. However, I started searching for the good R/B cards and managed to put together some kind of a list. Let's see if we can get a deck out of it, I'd very much appreciate your criticism and opinions / suggestions how to improve this deck.

Now, something to start with, version 1.0

Lands (total of 20?)

X Mountain (will determine the proper ratio of Mountain : Swamp when I will have the rest of the deck somewhat finished)
X Swamp
4 Rakdos Guildgate

Spells

4 Terminate
3 Blightning
4 Lightning bolt
4 Read the bones

Creatures

4 Guul draz vampire
2 Faceless Butcher
4 Grixis Grimblade
X Lava Zombie
X Gobhobbler Rats
X Jund Hackblade
X Kathari Bomber


The basic idea of this deck would be: Maintain a superior board position with removals (lightning bolt, blightning, terminate, faceless butcher). Then win fast with multicolored creatures that get different bonuses of each other (grixis grimblade, jund hackblade). If the game gets to the lategame, which I suppose, there are 4 copies of Read the bones for some new cards and also Kathari Bomber to make goblins even from graveyard. And Guul draz vampire looks like a lategame beast.

What do you think about this deck? Would it be competitive on my local Pauper tourneys, is this idea/strategy playable? My meta consists of: Mono U Delver, affinity, GW Auras, tron, Mono B control, some mushrooms or wtf and other decks...

Please help me build this deck full of awesome pictures! :-) (I'd also like to play Rakdos shred-freak, as it has awesome artwork, but it just seems too weak).

[nodahero]

My first statement for any deckbuilder... don't reinvent the wheel.

Are you trying to create a strong board control deck or would you rather go on the offensive?
Personally, pauper is not the type of format where you can really go midrange.

Second, make sure to play spells that are actually powerful in the format. For example I see a serious lack of the spell Unearth in your list and if you are going any form of black you should absolutely be casting that spell.

Further Chitering Rats is an extremely powerful spell for a control oriented shell.

Also Phyrexian Rager is just all around good in that he provides a body and replaces himself.

I'm not sure if this is something you would want to do but, if you want to run threats and a bit of a control game perhaps play rat.dec

4x Drainpipe Vermin
4x Ravenous Rats
4x Chittering Rats
2x Okiba-Gang Shinobi
4x Skulltap [(for card draw) probably terrible but contriolling the death of Drainpipe Vermin is handy]
2x Lillianna's Spectre
4x Phyrexian Rager
4x Swarm of Rats (i think this is a common... the */1 rat for clairification)
4x Sign in Blood
3x Tendrils of Corruption
4x Victim of Night
19x Swamp
4x Black cycle land (onsalught one)

Also Hymm to Tourach should be in if you use the paper rarities as opposed to online.

[prateta]

My first statement for any deckbuilder... don't reinvent the wheel.

Are you trying to create a strong board control deck or would you rather go on the offensive?
Personally, pauper is not the type of format where you can really go midrange.

Second, make sure to play spells that are actually powerful in the format. For example I see a serious lack of the spell Unearth in your list and if you are going any form of black you should absolutely be casting that spell.

Further Chitering Rats is an extremely powerful spell for a control oriented shell.

Also Phyrexian Rager is just all around good in that he provides a body and replaces himself.

I'm not sure if this is something you would want to do but, if you want to run threats and a bit of a control game perhaps play rat.dec

4x Drainpipe Vermin
4x Ravenous Rats
4x Chittering Rats
2x Okiba-Gang Shinobi
4x Skulltap [(for card draw) probably terrible but contriolling the death of Drainpipe Vermin is handy]
2x Lillianna's Spectre
4x Phyrexian Rager
4x Swarm of Rats (i think this is a common... the */1 rat for clairification)
4x Sign in Blood
3x Tendrils of Corruption
4x Victim of Night
19x Swamp
4x Black cycle land (onsalught one)

Also Hymm to Tourach should be in if you use the paper rarities as opposed to online.

Hello,

thanks for you advice. I'm familiar with rats.dec and that's not exactly what I want to play, few people in my LGS play it and it just looks so boring to me. Since you correctly said midrange is somewhat difficult to build in Pauper, I might go for an aggressive RB then. Totally forgot about Unearth, will definitely add it!

Let's say I'm not trying for a strong board control, I want to go aggressive. Therefore I shall remove the Blightning and play Unearth instead, right?

Phyrexian Rage is awesome but would interfere with my synergy of 8 creatures that need other multicolored permanent in play. I allready have 2 pure black creatures listed.

Hymn is banned for me, as we play paper Pauper but with MTGO banlist :/

Thanks again!

[FTW]

Yeah, don't do midrange.

If you want to play Lava Zombie, run it in a Br Rats list... bouncing rats to play a 4/3 is just busted. I would play Unearth in such a list. But without a lot of abusable ETB effects, I don't think Unearth helps your aggro plan.

go even more aggressive:


4 Lightning Bolt
4 Rift Bolt
4 Chain Lightning
4 Lava Spike
4 Blightning

4 Vampire Lacerator
4 Carnophage
4 Goblin Patrol
4 Gore-House Chainwalker
4 Keldon Marauders

4 Rakdos Guildgate
4 Terramorphic Expanse
7 Mountain
5 Swamp


That's rough but that could be a start. Pyrokinesis is probably amazing in the SB, but I'd guess most of the time you're the aggressor so you don't want to 2-for-2 yourself just to kill creatures.
Searing Blaze and Scouring Sands or Gutshot could be good, depending on your meta.