Ikoria, Lair of Behemoths really changed the competitive Magic: The Gathering landscape with the introduction of Companions, spawning brand-new deck archetypes, and improving on old ones. However, the blood-thirsty Rakdos frenzy can never be stopped even by Godzilla himself. Rakdos Sacrifice is still a top-performing deck and for a good reason.
Deck Tech
Rakdos is a fun-loving guild lead by a giant demon who enjoys nothing more than causing havoc on the streets of Ravnica by throwing the most unforgettable shows complete with dancing and acrobatics mixed with a healthy dose of uncontrollable violence and arson. That’s what a killer combo of black and red mana does to you.
No other deck currently in Standard represents the guide’s ethos better than Rakdos Sacrifice. Much like the Cult itself, this build is straightforward and bent on destruction – yours and your opponent’s! Everything you need to know is in the name – it’s a Rakdos deck (meaning black and red) and it relies on Sacrificing your permanents to deal damage to the opponent until their life total reaches 0. The brew was perfected when War of the Spark brought Mayhem Devil, a key piece to the strategy. However, now that Ikoria is here, things are really heating up – pun intended, of course! Let’s look at a decklist.
Rakdos Sacrifice
This is a classic build that doesn’t need fancy Companions to win. It gets straight to the point and gets the job done.
MAINBOARD
4x Cauldron Familiar4x Fiend Artisan3x Gutterbones2x Kroxa, Titan of Death's Hunger2x Lurrus of the Dream Den4x Mayhem Devil1x Midnight Reaper2x Mire Triton4x Priest of Forgotten Gods1x Rix Maadi Reveler1x Woe Strider1x Call of the Death-Dweller4x Claim the Firstborn4x Witch's Oven
4x Blood Crypt2x Castle Locthwain4x Fabled Passage4x Mountain5x Swamp4x Temple of Malice
SIDEBOARD
2x Act of Treason2x Agonizing Remorse1x Angrath's Rampage1x Embereth Shieldbreaker // Battle Display1x Epic Downfall1x Leyline of the Void1x Mire's Grasp2x Noxious Grasp1x Pharika's Libation1x Redcap Melee1x Rotting Regisaur1x Storm's Wrath
Lurrus Sacrifice
Tired of the tested and true vanilla build? Have a fancy new companion that you want to use? Let’s go ahead and do that, too! After all, who needs speels with converted mana cost 3 or more!
MAINBOARD
4x Cauldron Familiar4x Dreadhorde Butcher4x Knight of the Ebon Legion2x Kroxa, Titan of Death's Hunger4x Mire Triton4x Priest of Forgotten Gods3x Serrated Scorpion4x Call of the Death-Dweller4x Claim the Firstborn3x Light Up the Stage4x Witch's Oven
4x Blood Crypt3x Castle Locthwain4x Fabled Passage4x Mountain5x Swamp
SIDEBOARD
2x Act of Treason3x Cry of the Carnarium2x Embereth Shieldbreaker // Battle Display3x Extinction Event1x Lurrus of the Dream Den2x Pharika's Libation2x The Elderspell
Lurrus of the Deam Den is pretty amazing value regardless of whether he’s your companion or just a card in the mainboard. The creature-heavy environment of Standard makes Limited bombs like Act of Treason really good and older cards like Witch’s Oven, Light up the Stage, and of course, Mayhem Devil work just like they always have. One thing is certain – it’s a good time to be a Rakdos player!
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