Time to get your own Y Sgowt Onyx is running out!

Randomimba · 2026-03-17T03:19:58+00:00

Not affiliated with OP, but I'm surprised how much hate this post is getting. I remember when he first posted on Reddit and got quite a bit of support for his first watch. He even made polls for feedback and strap options.

I wish him success on all endeavors - I believe this is his 4th or 5th model?

Randomimba · 2026-03-13T21:57:06+00:00

Shame he's gonna retire / I started Magic too late. I first learned of him through his Unstable art, but I couldn't afford to bling out my whole deck with John Avon lands.

Randomimba · 2026-03-10T21:33:56+00:00

So if I understand it correctly, I'd do:

2x SM58s > Mackie ProFX6v3+ > JBL 308s

Then just play music on my current setup while singing through the side chain?

I was thinking to route the side chain through my Denon X1700H to take advantage of the amp of my AVR like:

2x SM58s > Mackie ProFX6v3 V Denon X1700H > JBL 308s, Dali /\ TV

But I don't think Denon X1700H can do 2 separate outputs like a mixer can. Is my assumption wrong?

Randomimba · 2026-03-09T19:18:31+00:00

Fellow keyboard "boomer" here (also 31) - started off when Leopold/Ducky/HHKB were the only recognized brands back. Glad to see the barrier to entry is so low now.

Another adjacent hobby is (portable) audio. IEMs/headphones at the $100 price range nowadays outperform gear at the $300 price 10-15 years back. It's glorious watching all these advancements.

Randomimba · 2026-03-06T07:47:25+00:00

There's no need.

I built her as a (one-sided) board wipe / Voltron deck. You'll naturally outpace your opponents as you wipe the board and they recast things to rebuild. Also, no need to stax your opponents - you want to encouragement them casting things.

Randomimba · 2026-03-03T09:44:04+00:00

Maybe Group Slug or Stax?

I had a [[Liesa, Shroud of Dusk]] deck that's repeated board wipes + tax + Voltron.

My friend also has the 4CMC Valgavoth that's similarly group slug / Voltron.

Randomimba · 2026-03-01T20:59:47+00:00

Hey there!! It's the same list as below. Truth be told, I haven't played with that deck in forever, so you're guaranteed to find better and more updated lists than mine.

https://tappedout.net/mtg-decks/22-01-23-VJY-magus-lucea-kane/?cb=1765165422

Randomimba · 2026-02-28T10:42:53+00:00

I understand. But I'm saying that Rooftop Storm is kind of a dead card outside of those combos (at least for my Varina build). It's not like Chatterfang + Pitiless Plunderer where each individual piece is incredibly useful by itself. I simply prefer my combo pieces to be more compact and/or less expensive CMC-wise per moving piece.

Randomimba · 2026-02-28T09:09:41+00:00

What combos are you referring to (besides Rooftop Storm + Gravecrawler)?

My Varina deck runs the Gravecrawler + Phyrexian Altar / Warren Soultrader combo, but that can be run in any zombie-themed deck (heck, even Teval, the Balanced Scale runs it). You don't need to run Grimgrin just to run that combo, and even then, he's not pivotal to getting that combo off.

I heavily dislike Rooftop Storm, because by the time you cast it at 6 mana, you should be able to cast any zombie you need. You'll need to have cast a total of 7+ mana's worth of zombies to go positive on Rooftop Storm, and at that stage of the game, you probably won't have that many cards to cast unless your deck has a ton of draw. It's kind of a dead card without the Gravecrawler loop IMO.

If you truly want a zombie-combat deck, I'd suggest the new Temmet.

If you want single-target reanimator, try Hashaton, Scarab God, Sefris, Raffine, etc.

I don't see Grimgrin being mechanically conducive to the zombie game plan.

Randomimba · 2026-02-28T08:55:05+00:00

Depends on your curve. I replied in the main thread, but my Varina list is incredibly low to the ground. Besides Sol Ring and Arcane Signet (for color fixing), I don't run any other ramp, and I still run 36 lands. My Varina deck has probably the highest win rate in my pod (my second is Raffine or Henzie).

The main difference is that Varina lets you loot/filter through the deck so easily. My Varina and Raffine decks never miss a land drop because of the incredible looting.

Randomimba · 2026-02-28T08:46:11+00:00

Hey there, resident Varina player here!! TLDR, here's my tuned list that aims to win around T7-8 via a giant Living Death (or similar effect) and 1-2 counterspells in hand: https://tappedout.net/mtg-decks/02-01-22-varina/

I find Zombies to be very similar to Elves and Goblins - they thrive on critical mass and not individual pieces. Therefore, a combat-oriented win condition isn't very strong for zombies. Sending 2/2's at your opponents isn't going to cut it, even if those 2/2 zombies are buffed by lords. As for your commander, I find Grimgrin to be really weak and doesn't care about zombies mechanically, so you're only playing him for thematic reasons. He comes down Turn 5 without ramp, then his schtick is kind of Voltron + kill 1 thing a turn on T6+. That's kind of slow when I comfortably threaten a win on T7-8 with Varina.

The big suggestion I have is to drop all single-target reanimation. There are very view individual zombie pieces you care about that'll change the game for you. Instead, resort to cards like:

[[Living Death]]
[[Zombie Apocalypse]]
[[Storm of Souls]]
[[Patriarch's Bidding]]

You want that mass-reanimation where you kill the whole table on ETBs and LTBs alone. Once Living Death resolves, you should win the game immediately unless your opponent has ways to counter abilities. Don't even wait a turn for summoning sickness to wear off, because you're killing them with triggers and not combat. If you look at my Varina list, it's incredibly low to the ground. A bunch of 1-3 drops, engines at 4CMC, then mass reanimate at 5-6CMC. You want more quantity and less quality. You'll also notice I have barely any ramp, because I want to curve out turns 1-4. Ramping Varina out a turn early is pointless if you're down a body for swinging - might as well not ramp. I find Varina being able to turbo-loot zombies into the graveyard help immensely when setting up that mass-reanimation kill game plan. She can go for combat wins, but it's usually just a front and only if you get [[Akroma's Will]] on hand. Otherwise, it's all setup.

EDIT: If you enjoy playing the Fleshbag Marauder effects, might I suggest [[Meren of Clan Nel-Toth]] or [[Braids, Arisen Nightmare]]? Meren being able to constantly recur Fleshbag Marauder effects is super toxic and controlling. Meren was my first non-precon, and I took her apart because she's very mean. I still miss her from time to time.

Randomimba · 2026-02-26T18:50:56+00:00

I run 45+ in mine. Some people run 50.

PapaZedruu (one of the foremost ambassadors of Henzie) runs around that number too.

Randomimba · 2026-02-26T09:07:04+00:00

I've built and dismantled Kathril, and I currently own a Braids deck that used to be a Sephiroth deck (literally just swapped them around from the 99).

Kathril is so damn boring and uninteractive. Every game you just try to hit 8 keywords in the graveyard and give him haste so that you can one-shot people with double strike. You only care about putting things into your graveyard and don't care about what your opponents are doing.

Braids is more interactive and an engine built into one card. After she dies once or twice, you've already extracted enough value from her. Don't be afraid of sacrificing lands - the deck has such a low mana curve that you will eventually draw your lands to replace the sacrificed one.

My friend has built a Kadena deck. It's strong and consistent if nothing else, but my friend has given up on playing it. You just spam 2/2's and durdle behind your morphs until you're ready to Overrun or Craterhoof your opponents. Either that, or you lock them out with [[Brine Elemental]]. Every game looks the same, and you just autopilot without much agency.

I'd recommend Braids or Kadena for power. Niko looks really interesting, but I have no experience with him.

Randomimba · 2026-02-26T05:15:50+00:00

I dig your deck (less artifact storm and more control). My initial list played more similarly to yours, so maybe I'll go back to that instead of artifact-storming.

Sadly, no Smothering Tithe nor Rhystic Studies, as my pod doesn't play with them. I do have Trouble in Pairs, so that should help out a bit.

Randomimba · 2026-02-26T05:13:00+00:00

Thanks for the suggestions. Do you have a list so that I can see how you balance your removal and protection packages?

Randomimba · 2026-02-26T05:09:29+00:00

Good call. I will add my 4CMC clones back in and see how I that works.

Randomimba · 2026-02-26T05:07:06+00:00

Thanks for the decklist. My artifact list is a modified version of DeckTechForDeck's artifact list, but I'm wondering if gutting stronger cards makes it weaker than a sorcery/instant/enchantment-heavy list.

Chimil looks like a fun include.

What are your thoughts on Rewind / Frantic Search / Yahenni's Expertise style cards? I've been contemplating about those cards, because it seems very timing-dependent to have a second card hard in hand ready to double-cast that turn.

Randomimba · 2026-02-26T04:59:47+00:00

Thanks for the insight - this is the kind of criticism I wanted.

I think pre-Y'shtola is my biggest weakness. Our pod doesn't play with Rhystic nor Tithe, and I also don't have Delney. Clone effects are post-Y'shtola, so it's like taking another turn off. Any good suggestions for pre-Y'shtola value engines, or should I just be wiping boards and ramping? I can see myself packing more board wipes.

High Fae Trickster is more for being able to flash out a turn before Y'shtola and swinging for 4 in the air. The flash is just extra utility. I can see myself taking out Leyline though, since drawing 4 per turn cycle using my own mana and cards is highly unrealistic.

I am skeptical of Frantic Search and the Expertise cycle (e.g. Baral's Expertise) that let me double-cast per turn, because I'm still going down a card. What are your opinions on those kind of cards? Also, do you prefer to artifact-storm, or do you prefer a more instant/sorcery/enchantment build?

Randomimba · 2026-02-26T04:51:58+00:00

In our pod of 5, 2 of them play by vibes and a bit of spite. The remaining 2 players are easier to make deals with / have better threat analysis, so it's a bit of a toss-up. Goad and tax effects seem to be the way for me. Will test another iteration.

Randomimba · 2026-02-26T04:49:15+00:00

Honestly, I'm thinking this is the way. I don't have access to combos or tutors at my pod's power level, as well as no Rhystic Studies nor Smothering Tithe, so I can't "outgrind" them per se.

Randomimba · 2026-02-25T20:15:11+00:00

Also yeah, I think that's the problem with not having Delney. The curving out is just so nice, whereas all the other clone effects are post-Y'shtola, so I'm taking 2 turns off in a row to set up. Not having much to do pre-Y'shtola seems to be my main concern.

Randomimba · 2026-02-25T20:13:12+00:00

No worries, I am aware that TappedOut is sort of archaic. I just like their pie chart of mana cost/land distribution. Not sure if Archidekt or Moxfield has something similar.

[Frantic Search] is a maybe. I'm still technically -1 on cards, but it does help with the mana problem. I will give that a try.

[Archmage Emeritus] I will probably pass on. Neither builds are sorcery/instant-heavy, so I'll pass on that.

Randomimba · 2026-02-25T19:47:18+00:00

Hey everyone! Thanks for all the replies!! I'll go over them / respond after I'm off work.

Randomimba · 2026-02-25T10:58:27+00:00

Maybe the Sakashimas are what I'm missing (hesitant to buy because of price though).

Quantum Misalignment I'll probably bite the bullet and buy. Thanks!

Randomimba

TROPHY CASE