Control Rats! A new spin on hate bearers.

[Legionnaire12s]

Hello everyone!
I've always been a fan of the rat creature type. I've toyed with various lists over the years and I'm revisiting it again. This will be one of the first I have posted to the source. Mind you this is a rough draft and I have zero testing with anything current. Just wanted to get input and thoughts.


Creatures: 24
4 Deathrite Shaman
3 Ravenous Rats
3 Chittering Rats
4 Thalia
3 Skull Collector
3 Stoneforge Mystic
2 Knight of the R.
1 Scavenging Ooze
1 Quasali Pridemage

Spells: 14
3 Swords to Plowshares
4 Aether Vile
3 Green Sun's Zenith
2 Sylvan Library
1 Batterskull
1 Jitte

Lands: 22
3 Wasteland
2 Scrubland
2 Bayou
1 Savannah
4 Verdant Catacombs
3 Marsh Flats
1 Forest
1 Swamp
1 Plains
2 Horizon Canopy
1 Urborg, tomb of Yawgmoth
1 Karakas

Sideboard: 15
3 Thoughtsieze
2 Rest In Piece
3 Abrupt Decay
1 Bitterblossom
2 Thorn of Amnethyst
2 Choke
2 Gaddock Teeg

So the overall goal is to disrupt an opponents game plan early on with early discard, Thalia and wasteland. Possibly get the soft lock the Chittering Rat/Ravenous rats>Skull Collector lock going early game. I know the is a very round-a-bout cute way of going about things but it is run to get the rat-lock going. Anyone have anything to offer as far as improving this?

[Redkid43]

No Swarmyard?

[tescrin]

Fundamental Issues:
* You can make your combo without a combo: Cabal Interrogator.
* You can make a better version with Raven's Crime and Life from the Loam/Bob
* Chittering Rats is terrible against Combo and costs the same and Liliana of the Veil.
* Indirect discard is mediocre (until mid game anyway. It's much better next to targeted discard)

Fixes if you're sticking with the plan:
* Replace Skull Collector with Kor Skyfisher I think. Less taxing on you, flying is good.
* Run Swords over BSK (SoFaI or SoLaS.) You already have fat, you don't have discard that matters to protect it, and you don't have Mother of Runes to protect SFM. You also don't have Brainstorm to correct the BSK to something else, this means you should not run it.
* Run 1 Dryad Arbor. You should do this when you have GSZ just because it typically is nice to have the extra reliability in the manabase and ramp.


Cards you may enjoy:
* Rakdos Augermage

[Legionnaire12s]

No Swarmyard?

I thought about it at the beginning but with so few rats, the only way I'd fit it in would be as a one of.

[Legionnaire12s]

Fundamental Issues:
* You can make your combo without a combo: Cabal Interrogator.
* You can make a better version with Raven's Crime and Life from the Loam/Bob
* Chittering Rats is terrible against Combo and costs the same and Liliana of the Veil.
* Indirect discard is mediocre (until mid game anyway. It's much better next to targeted discard)

Fixes if you're sticking with the plan:
* Replace Skull Collector with Kor Skyfisher I think. Less taxing on you, flying is good.
* Run Swords over BSK (SoFaI or SoLaS.) You already have fat, you don't have discard that matters to protect it, and you don't have Mother of Runes to protect SFM. You also don't have Brainstorm to correct the BSK to something else, this means you should not run it.
* Run 1 Dryad Arbor. You should do this when you have GSZ just because it typically is nice to have the extra reliability in the manabase and ramp.


Cards you may enjoy:
* Rakdos Augermage

Good call on the Dryad Arbor, I totally forgot about adding it in. The whole reason behind Skull Collector is this. Bounce Chittering Rats to hand. End of opponents draw step, vial it back in. Rinse repeat. I'll kick things around with your suggestion for direct discard. This is still very rough and I'll be tweaking it as I go. Thank you for your input. It is greatly appreciated.

[Weapon X]

Why no pack rats? It's easily one of the best rats available and turns bad cards into gas.

[Memories of the Time]

I've played some like this years ago

4 Pack Rat
4 Stronghold Rats
4 Bloodghast

x Life from the Loam
x Liliana

Stompy Shell (Mox/Ritual, Chalice, trinisphere)

[rufus]

Here's an older concept that sells out a bit more on the rat concept.

http://www.mtgthesource.com/forums/showthread.php?9000-Deck-The-Rat-Pack&highlight=balthor+the+defiled