I've continued working on my zombie deck during the week. It's the deck I probably enjoy the most. I've made some changes to it that have greatly increased the deck's performance, so I wanted to share. CSR is tonight, but the zombie archetype is mostly left alone to exist only in the Divine Order set. The big exception to that is Faithbreaker, but that's just a busted card that will get nerfed (or we have bigger problems).
Deck Code:
GU_1_1_CCcCCcIBxIBxBAuBAuBEXBEXCBhCBhCDSCDSIBJIBJIADIADCEaCEaIAJIAJIACIACGCvGCvIAKIAKCCeCCeCAgCAg
Got a buff! 1/2 with 1 armor and the nether tribe is a great fit in this deck. It's a great turn 1 play - the only 1-mana card that can remove it is Blight Bomb. It stays relevant midgame because it combos insanely well with Netherswarm Lord.
This card's text is wrong. It actually summons a 1/2 (1 armor) Skeletal Hoplite. It's incredibly sticky. For 3 mana, you get 4/3 worth of stats, but even better, they are broken up into two creatures that each have 1 armor. This card also gives Vampiric Skull another solid target to resurrect.
I was previously running Crimson Oni, but playing that card when behind is trouble due to the self-damage. I now think Oni is a better fit in a revive deck where you can resurrect him without taking more damage. Manticore Hulk gives you a solid stat line, but with the benefit of the Nether Tribe.
Hard mulligan for Cursed Obelisk and Necroscepter. Here's what's great about this deck: because every card is 2x, you actually have an 80% chance of drawing either a scepter or an obelisk during the mulligan or on your first turn. Any of your 1-2 mana creatures make a nice final card. If going second, Blight Bomb could be better depending on the matchup.
Ideally, you play a Skeletal Hoplite turn 1 that sticks allowing you to bag into your scepter or obelisk and activate frenzy next turn. You can play a scepter turn 2 without frenzy and summon a 1/1 zombie, but I wouldn't play Obelisk turn 2 without frenzy. Too easy to clear it. If Nature has a faeflame blade, watch out. If that's your only play though, go for it. You can always bring it back with the Skull.
The above is the easiest path to victory, but definitely not the only one. If you don't mulligan your zombie cards, the deck can play as a zoo deck until you find them. Hold on to any Rays of Disintegration for high-value targets like Guild Enforcers.
Playing Netherswarm Lord is huge. It's a must-remove target for your opponent, but it buffs your creatures on the same turn it is played, so you will get value. Obviously, don't play it on an empty board. It plus Untold Greed provide a pretty substantial amount of card draw.
This video shows the deck overcoming Counterfit, which took my scepter and gave it to the opponent. I was still able to win, although you'll see the HP bug rears it's ugly head.
There are only 2 expensive cards in the deck.
Replace them with any of these and you still have a competitive deck. Just make sure you include 2x of every card to keep your mulligan percentages as high as possible.
I'm actually interested in testing out Living Container in this deck. Cursed Hoplite, for instance, would make an excellent target. Destroying it creates a Skeletal Hoplite and then it comes back even stronger. Skeletal Hoplite itself wouldn't be bad - particularly if it was injured turn 1. In my deck, I'd probably remove Wicked Fae for the card.
This is my best-performing zombie deck. I haven't taken it for a spin during weekend ranked, but it's my go-to for flux farming and future GODS farming.
