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Hi everyone
I'm in the process of building an Orzhov deck focused around control, but mainly extort and some bomb's with Obzedat and Blood Baron.
In the following link is the build i want to finish on;
http://deckbox.org/sets/404774
Just wondering if i can get some help before i drop money into it?
Thanks guys, it will be much appreciated 
Just some FNM/Casual play for now.
4 Godless Shrine
4 Orzhov Guildgate
9 Plains
9 Swamp
2 Beckon Apparition
4 Cremate
2 Wear // Tear
2 Blind Obedience
2 Orzhov Charm
2 Gift of Orzhova
2 Profit // Loss
2 Obzedat's Aid
2 Dutiful Thrull
4 Thrull Parasite
4 Basilica Screecher
4 Tithe Drinker
2 Vizkopa Guildmage
4 Sin Collector
2 Crypt Ghast
2 Blood Baron of Vizkopa
2 Obzedat, Ghost Council
I consider FNM at least mildly competitive and sometimes very competitive depending on your area.
First off 70 cards is too many we need to get you down to 60+15 side board.
You can immediately cut these.
2 Beckon Apparition
4 Cremate
2 Wear // Tear
2 Gift of Orzhova
A BW "control" deck can be possible. However, you've got some pretty decent blue cards, so Esper midrange/control is actually probably where you want to go. there are several options here.
You can do the solar flare reanimator, esper control, esper midrange. I think you'd want to be more midrange though. Removal with some sweepers. Take a look at the decklist below. It's something you should look at.
http://sales.starcitygames.com//deckdat … ckID=56470
I realize the lands are expensive and sometimes hard to get, but I think you'd be happier with the results.
Extort hasn't been a mainstream mechanic so far, however, if you really want to stick with the theme of the deck. Then I think a B/W midrange is more where you want to be. It's important to remember that extort is a long plan, you're not going to come out of the gate swinging like a red deck. You want consistent plays that make value for you on the baord.
Go down to 20 or less creatures including bombs and a few extort creatures. Things like knight of obligation crypt ghast would be good. Basilica guards have a healthy body and can block well. Obviously your bombs like blood baron and obzedat are solid. An angel of serenity would fit in here as well. The tougher creatures with larger bodies would also allow you to play mutilate more consistently.
IMO the smaller creatures are either going to get removed or you'll be forced to block with them and they don't trade well. Sin collector might be the exception here. He provides knowledge and could even get some good value.
As far as spells go, blind obedience is good has the extort mechanic as well as slowing down aggressive decks. You need stronger removal, and it needs to be more direct. Murder, orzhov charm, dead weight, tragic slip, victim of night. heavy black, but direct removal is where it's at. Try to stay away from conditional removal like smite or executioners swing. You also need a sweeper of some sort. Look at merciless eviction and Mutilate. Mutilate might kill your own creatures, but it's better than losing to a more aggressive deck. Also, casting a spell puts the extort trigger on the stack so, even if you wipe your board, you can still extort with them first.
Lingering souls is a fantastic midrange card and the ability to cast it twice means you can extort off it more than once. Consistent, flying, blockers, evasive. I play them with sorin in a RBW midrange and they're like peas and carrots. This card gets my vote for top 10 in standard atm.
Thank you so much!
This has helped me out a whole bunch, i think i'll bite the bullet and just try for the three color, even if it takes me a while to get the lands.
I played with a few people tonight and ive learnt that playing with my deck, i rarely have a draw that makes me go
'Oh hells yeah, now things are getting real' besides if i draw Obzedat, my paper deck overall just feels stale.
It wins generally, just because the games get dragged out and extort, then i eventually pull a bomb and i win.
But this has really helped me, i've needed in depth help with my deck for so long now, and im only getting help from my friends and a few people at fnm's and stuff.
I'm unsure about going for lingering souls and oblivion rings and all the cards that are going out soon after the release of M14, just because i want to play this deck for a while.
The Esper Control deck is a deck that i feel i would thoroughly enjoy playing.
It's just a matter of, i want to play a decent deck, using cards from sets that aren't going to phase out any time soon.
There's tons of stuff in esper that are going to remain in standard for a long time. In the last Pro event esper was heavily featured.
Out of the list I linked all the cards below stay in standard after rotation. Go after those first and fill in the rest. A lot of them are uncommons which aren't too difficult to get. If you have to pass on the rares you can fill the slots in with cards from the current block.
I think this particular deck lacks a consistent draw engine, I like think twice better than alchemy unless you're doing rune chanters pike or solar flare.
Aetherling
Jace, Architect of Thought
Godless Shrine
Hallowed Fountain
Watery Grave
Azorius Charm
Far//Away
Sphinx's Revelation
Warped Physique
Supreme Verdict
Rest in Peace
Devour Flesh
Also, control isn't looking to blow out your opponent with big plays. A friend of mine is a long time control player and he says "The best play you can make in a control deck is not making one." By that he usually means you need to know what options your deck has for what they're doing and then respond accordingly, a lot of times the right answer to what an opponent does in a control match-up is just holding plays and drawing cards to open up more options. Surprise them when they try to do something against you.
Last edited by elpablo (2013-06-12 14:36:20)
Ahh thank you!
I'll go figure out a decent composition using those cards, then i'll get back and post here with what i've come up with!
I realize the style is a lot different to how other decks are played, but it seems less linear than aggressive red decks, which is the majority of what my friends play.
I've never been one to enjoy the faceroll playstyle of things, even in video games.
Just because Sphinx's Revelation is so costly, i'll leave that for a last buy.
I know in my inventory it says i have them but i'm a noob and i haven't used this website correctly.
ahh, i see.
Well, i'll say this then. Sphinx's rev is key to the control matchup right now. IMO, the 2 cards you need the most are supreme verdict and sphinx's rev. You'll be glad every time you cast sphinx, i guarantee it. It's not as expensive as you think because the value it provides.
in control vs aggro you usually want to see these plays. Auger, verdict, rev, then just draw to win.
A win condition in a control deck can be almost anything. Once you get the game down it almost doesn't matter how you win. Ætherling is extremely popular because it's so versatile.
I see, i see.
Only two of each Sphinx's rev and supreme verdict?
Im just wondering numbers of key cards, so that i can get a feel of what i have to fill with
Last edited by Nenio (2013-06-12 15:20:33)
I'd suggest, 4 supreme verdicts maindeck. Some people use 3 verdicts 1 terminus and put the other verdict on the side. You Also might consider getting a hold of some terminus, but be aware that it's not a card you want to see in your opening hand especially against aggro. It's purely there for the miracle advantage. against aggro. Though terminus is great against reanimator decks as well. Hard for them to unburial something if it's on the bottom of their deck.
I would think 3 revs in a control deck. Some run 2, some 4. My friend the long time controly player, runs 3.
You'll want one or 2 of some win condition cards. Most control decks only run one or two of the following creatures.
Aetherling,
obzedat
Angel of serenity
Jace, AoT
Tamiyo
My friend actually runs one one ling, one obz, one serenity, one tamiyo, one jace and a lot of removal sweepers, draw, and control.
The more midrangy versions will have resto angels as well. Snapcasters are good in the deck, but you only need a couple if you run any.
If you go the token route, you'll want a couple sorins.
They variation you run is up to you, but doing some more research on the interweb can't hurt. But if you're worried about rotation and card price then I'd stick with a version that runs most of the RTR block cards.
I see, i'll work on getting this all worked out now that i have a direction in which to travel.
This has been a tremendous help to me.
Here's my Orzhov deck, it's fairly similar to yours in terms of creatures, but I focus almost exclusively on removal for my instants/sorceries. It performs really well in FNM and it's pretty fun to play.
http://deckbox.org/sets/339671
In my opinion, Murder and Oblivion Ring are absolute staples of this deck. You want to slow them down while keeping your Extort going and while you generate mana for your bombs. Merciless Eviction is great against token decks and Voice of Resurgence. Smite is helpful against early attackers, or can be used to turn a chump into a champ and has actually come in quite handy for me. One Thousand Lashes is kind of looked down upon, but it is effective and provides a boon for you each turn, plus not many people run enchantment killers so they sometimes have to resort to killing their own creatures to get rid of it.
As far as creatures go, I don't think Dutiful Thrull is going to do much for you and Thrull Parasite fits the 1 drop better and has Extort to boot. Tithe Drinker is OK, but High Priest of Penance plays into delaying the game and costs the same exact mana. Vampire Nighthawk is an absolute beast and I would try to work that in as well.
Good luck, let us know how it goes!
Last edited by ZebN (2013-06-20 20:26:32)
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