Vampire Hexmaster + dark depths

[Aggro_zombies]

1 Dark Depths is an incredible failure, especially considering you have virtually no possible way to win outside of the combo excepting Trinket Mage beatdown.

That's why I said I missed the Factories. I'd like to fit them in here, if it's possible to do so without destroying the mana base.

Keep in mind that you have lots of ways to find Depths: Expedition Map (which itself can be found by Trinket Mages), Tolaria West, Brainstorm, Top, and Standstill. Still, two might be the correct number for Depths, and the deck could probably use a Clique or two as an evasive backup plan if the Factories can't be squeezed in.

[deadlock]

@Aggro_zombies: While i agree with your choice of putting the combo in a blue-based controll shell, i disagree with some of your choices. Foremost because the nature of the combo is different and some card choices become subpar with the Hexmage-combo and the black splash in general.

First take a look at a rough draft of the deck, dont nail me on some choices.

// Lands
3 [CS] Dark Depths
3 [B] Tropical Island
4 [B] Underground Sea
4 [ON] Polluted Delta
4 [ZEN] Misty Rainforest
1 [PLC] Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth
2 [TSP] Island (4)
1 [10E] Swamp (2)

// Creatures
3 [ZEN] Vampire Hexmage
3 [RAV] Dark Confidant
3 [FUT] Tarmogoyf

// Spells
3 [JU] Living Wish
4 [AL] Force of Will
4 [IA] Brainstorm
4 [CS] Counterbalance
2 [LRW] Thoughtseize
2 [M10] Ponder
3 [CHK] Gifts Ungiven
3 [DIS] Spell Snare
1 [ZEN] Grim Discovery
3 [CHK] Sensei's Divining Top

// Sideboard
SB: 1 [CS] Dark Depths
SB: 1 [TE] Wasteland
SB: 1 [ZEN] Vampire Hexmage
SB: 1 [RAV] Dark Confidant
SB: 1 [DIS] Trygon Predator
SB: 1 [FD] Eternal Witness
SB: 1 [FUT] Tarmogoyf
+ x

First of the tutor package, compared to Dreadstill, where Trinket Mage also finds only one part of the combo - there other part (Stifle) is not as dead as Hexmage in here. Both Living Wish and Gifts can find both parts and give you great flexibility all around.

Second point, as we are already forced to play black, i would switch Standstill for Dark Confidant.

Some problems with the list, the blue count has to be watched. E.g. i added the fourth CB and the Ponder for that reason.
Requiring double blue and black is something to keep in mind also when adjusting the manabase. That was the reason i dont added the Wastelands and a couple of Stifle (with a single Nough in the board fetchable with Wish).

Playing with 4 Confidant and Tarmo might be better, but again the problem is to curve out the deck, its extremly heavy on two drops and currently no cmc 3 preboard. On the other hand, there tons currently tons of ways to assemble the combo, so 3 Bob and Goyf in the maindeck are just fine maybe.

Squeezing in a Volraths Stronghold and a Loam would increase the power of Gifts, but the deck shouldnt rely on it. Two Gifts could still be okay, if you find something better.

[Maveric78f]

Can you explain what are the cards you search with Gift ?

[deadlock]

The combo pile is:
Dark Depth+Hexmage+Grim Discovery+Living Wish

You can also mix in some cards that your oppoenent cant give you like CB or Bob, depending on the situation.

As i said, Gifts would be stronger with Loam and Stronghold (and Witness / Academy Ruins if you decide to build the deck more like ITF).

[mhinsz]

I'm curious if anyone would have input on a mono black list like this:

4 Vampire Hexmage
4 Dark Confidant
3 Tombstalker

4 Hymn To Tourach
4 Thoughtseize
4 Shred Memory
4 Rite of Consumption
4 Dark Ritual
4 Grim Discovery
3 Chrome Mox

4 Dark Depths
3 Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth
4 Wasteland
11 Swamp

[Shanghi Knights]

I had this idea of putting this combo inside gamekeeper combo.

run something like

3 gamekeeper
1 progenitus
1 hexmage

2 life from loam
4 living wish
4 cabal therapy

4 pernicious deed

3 dark depths

fill in some more support if the idea develops

sibeboard
1 dark depths
1 hexmage

Get the best of two worlds with two powerful killing machines prog. and lage.

[android]

To mhinsz:

-4 Shred Memory
+4 Sinkhole

-3 Tombstalker
+3 Nantuko Shade

That's what I would do.

[mhinsz]

I feel like I need the Shred Memory to find the combo pieces. I'm pretty much all in on the Dark Depths combo.

[EssKay]

How do people feel about the necessity of Chalice of the Void to stop StP/Path vs. Grim Discovery to just get everything back? So far in testing Grim Discovery seems too conditional, but CotV also locks out helpful stuff like thoughtseize and ritual.

[nateo]

Wouldn't this combo fit well with a survival type of shell? You could use a minor vampire theme wiht bloodghasts and hexmages, squeeze in some living wishes or crop rotations plus add eternal witness to return any part of the combo that you lose.

Also, knight of the reliquary could be a nice addition as well. Survival could find it and it could find dark depths.

[Infinitium]

Still feel like an ITF-ish shell is best suited to abuse the Gifts combo. There's a number of piles in there to fit the occasion, but the most common ones should be Hexmage/Depths/Discovery/Regrowth for the kill, Crime/LFtL/Wasteland/Gigapede for combo/control or decks that might deal with Marit-Lage otherwise and recursive Explosives/Witnesses otherwise (Innocent blood is kinda neat in that it allows you to bring the witness right back with Stronghold).

// Lands
1 [CS] Dark Depths
1 [SH] Volrath's Stronghold
4 [ON] Polluted Delta
4 [U] Underground Sea
4 [ZEN] Misty Rainforest
4 [A] Tropical Island
2 [ST] Island (3)
1 [B] Bayou
1 [TE] Wasteland
1 [TSP] Academy Ruins

// Creatures
1 [FD] Eternal Witness
1 [ZEN] Vampire Hexmage
1 [ON] Gigapede

// Spells
2 [AP] Pernicious Deed
4 [OD] Innocent Blood
4 [MM] Brainstorm
1 [A] Regrowth
4 [AL] Force of Will
4 [CHK] Gifts Ungiven
1 [ZEN] Grim Discovery
1 [RAV] Life from the Loam
3 [MM] Counterspell
4 [CHK] Sensei's Divining Top
1 [ARB] Maelstrom Pulse
1 [EVE] Raven's Crime
3 [ON] Smother
1 [FD] Engineered Explosives

// Sideboard
SB: 4 [R] Blue Elemental Blast
SB: 3 [PLC] Extirpate
SB: 2 [TSP] Krosan Grip
SB: 1 [OD] Petrified Field
SB: 4 [US] Duress
SB: 1 [TSB] Tormod's Crypt

[deadlock]

As many talk about the problems Dreadstill currently has (which is a little bit over the top - especially after boarding, DS has insane options to deal with Merfolk and Zoo).

Anyway, while working on adapting the Dreadstill list, i also put some thought into this combo and i need some help to get a first rough version done.

// Lands
3 [CS] Dark Depths
1 [ZEN] Island (1)
4 [ON] Flooded Strand
4 [ON] Polluted Delta
4 [R] Underground Sea
3 [TE] Wasteland
4 [B] Tropical Island

// Creatures
3 [RAV] Dark Confidant
4 [FUT] Tarmogoyf
3 [ZEN] Vampire Hexmage

// Spells
3 [V09] Sensei's Divining Top
3 [CS] Counterbalance
4 [AL] Force of Will
4 [IA] Brainstorm
3 [JU] Living Wish
3 [DIS] Spell Snare
3 [NE] Daze
4 [SC] Stifle

// Sideboard
SB: 1 [CS] Dark Depths
SB: 1 [TE] Wasteland
SB: 1 [RAV] Dark Confidant
SB: 1 [ZEN] Vampire Hexmage
SB: 1 [DIS] Trygon Predator
SB: 1 [FUT] Yixlid Jailer
SB: 1 [LRW] Shriekmaw
SB: 1 [ZEN] Gatekeeper of Malakir
SB: 1 [MI] Phyrexian Dreadnought
SB: 3 [ZEN] Spell Pierce
SB: 3 [FUT] Tombstalker


I know that many will disagree with this approach, but if you dont you may give some advice.
First of the concept of this build. The first point is that i use Living Wish over the two other options - Ponder, which is the most versatile card of the three, but cant find the combo directly and requires you to run both 4 Hexmage and 4 Depths in the maindeck. A couple of Ponders could also be run in this version, but i fear to have too many cards that just draw or search for other cards, also space is a problem.
Then there is Gifts, which looks really good for a more controllish version, like in the post above.

So with Living Wish i only need to run 3 of both and have some more options for a wishboard - which leads to the first problem - infact i have too many options. As you can see the board is filled with wishtargets, and not really much room for actual sb cards.
I already removed Witness from the board, maybe you have some ideas, which of these are ineffective.
If you wonder, the lone Nought is meant to be wished for if you end up with a Stifle and a Living Wish in hand.
Tombstalker can be wished for or sided in against aggresive decks. Spell Pierce answers a lot of cards like STP or Counterbalance, it requires some kind of mana denial though (see next block).

Next critical point i am not sure about is the tempo aspect, running 3 Wasteland (+1 in board) and 4 Stifle has the following background, Besides disrupting there mana, they can provide a good protection against annoying cards like opposing Wastelands on your Depths and numerous activated abilitys.
Potentially this could lead to a scenario, where you try to do too many things in one deck and end up doing nothing really good.

The last thing i need a little help is the manabase. The deck needs both double blue and double black + green. I thought about adding 4 Misty Rainforest and a Bayou instead of the Flooded Strands and either the Island or one Tropical Island.

Thanks for help.

[GreenHornet]

I have a pretty messed up meta with janky combos and random aggro decks. I took the following list and did quite well with it at a local FNM. I went 3-1 taking third from terrible tie breakers. My only loss was my fault and not the deck. The lands could be optimized with Underground Sea, but otherwise I really like the build.

Instants:
4 Brainstorm
3 Daze
4 Force of Will
2 Spell Pierce
4 Stifle
1 Trickbind
4 Lim-Dul's Vault

Soceries:
4 Thoughtseize

Creatures:
4 Vampire Hexmage
4 Dark Confidant
4 Phyrexian Dreadnought

Lands:
4 Dark Depths
4 Flooded Strand
1 Polluted Delta
1 Marshflats
1 Tolaria West
2 Underground Sea
1 Watery Grave
2 Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth
4 Wasteland
1 Island
1 Swamp

[pippo84]

This is the last list I played. Done top 8 in a 20ish people tourney.

4 Vampire Hexmage
4 Dark Confidant
4 Tarmogoyf
4 Force of Will
3 Daze
3 Spell Pierce
4 Brainstorm
4 Ponder
4 Stifle
3 Smother
1 Diabolic Edict
1 Maelstrom Pulse

4 Underground Sea
2 Tropical Island
1 Bayou
4 Drak Depths
3 Wasteland
2 Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth
5 Fetches


Side:

3 Beb
3 Krosan Grip
3 Pernicious Deed
2 Berserk
1 Tormod's Crypt
1 Relic of Progenitus
1 Ravenous Trap
1 Faerie Macabre

Win 2-1 against UW Control
Draw 1-1 against Landstill
Win 2-0 Against Dragon Stompy
Win 2-1 Against Reanimator
ID to enter top 8
Lose 0-2 against a friend playing a 1000 answer deck (kind of BUG Rock)


As you see I only played non basic lands because of the mana base that Dark Depths forces you to have and this is the reason I also added Stifle. The deck played really well though.