The color black in Magic the Gathering is often associated with heavy graveyard play, creature destruction, and milling your opponents to an early demise. Few other colors in the game come close to black’s ability to outright murder your enemies creatures, ignoring things like indestructible, pump spells, or even the dreaded blue bounce with its hand destruction capabilities.
The creatures hiding in the shadows of Magic’s lore evoke a sense of dread, boasting skills that let them return from your graveyard, force your opponent to sacrifice their own creatures, and a whole slew of others that reward you when your creatures die instead of punishing you.
20. Phyrexian Obliterator
Phyrexian Obliterator is one of those cards that just shuts some others down. As a mono-green main I love me some +1/+1 counters, and proliferating those same counters all over my other creatures. What I can’t do is remove this card without causing damage to it, leading to a total board shutdown if the opponent is aggressive enough (trust me they always are) or, on a rare occasion, it gets drawn out for a half an hour until I manage to roll over with enough that sacrificing everything afterwards doesn’t matter.
It’s a solid one-of in any black deck leading to either a lightning rod for your opponents removal spells or, if you’re lucky enough, are up against a combination of red or green which makes Phyrexian Obliterator an immediate time bomb your opponent can’t deal with. It’s nestled right at the bottom of the list because you have a very small chance of getting away with this card against certain decks but is easily dispatched against many more.
Combined with cards like bushwhack that lets you force an opponent to fight Phyrexian Obliterator directly, you can aggressively push its ability.
Attacking becomes a lot easier since chumping this monstrosity will cost you more than just a couple tokens.
An immediate presence that your opponent must address and if they can’t it’s debilitating, taking lands, creatures, and enchantments alike.
19. Evolved Sleeper
The next card is a bit of a jack of all trades with its ability to add two other archetypes, one of which is being a Phyrexian which has countless interactive texts in standard. I love any cards that come in turn one and Evolved Sleeper just compounds as the game goes on. The third ability, while a little cumbersome to get to, is a great late game play that lets you pump him and draw cards as many times as you have mana and life.
Evolved Sleeper can quickly get out of hand in black/green or even black/white with the abilities to ramp or heal the lost hp. While it may not be an instant drop win-con, Evolved Sleeper has very flexible abilities that let it do lots of different things in different decks, especially when you get a little crafty and combine it with a card like Nesting Grounds, you can repeatedly give and move deathtouch counters to any other creature.
Great flexibility for lots of different situations, using his abilities more than once during a turn or, even turning it back into a weaker creature if the need should ever arise.
Lots of different interactions between other cards with its multiple archetypes.
Low cost mana means you can play this card on turn one or turn twenty and still get value.
18. Tenacious Underdog
Sometimes, Wizards makes a card that wholly encapsulates a set, Tenacious Underdog is a good contender to be the poster child for Streets of New Capenna. A set all about, street fights, backyard brawls, and the signature Blitz mechanic. While Tenacious Underdog’s somewhat heavy cost may be a little slow for Standard play, it is still a viable asset in any format, giving you a 3/2 every turn with haste and an extra draw.
On paper the cost looks too high for the effects but, when you consider there is no other card in black that gives you a creature with haste that can block, attack, and also has recurring draw power every turn it starts to look a little more appealing.
Recurring draw power in black is essential with how often you throw your own cards to the grave, so having one you can bring back infinitely with a draw is pretty wild.
Even without his Blitz ability you can still play this creature as a 3/2 for two mana in an emergency.
Goes toe to toe with cards like Memory Deluge or Bloodtithe Harvester with its flat mana cost each cast, unlike Deluge or, the three damage it can put out each turn in a similar fashion to the Harvester.
Works very well for self-mill or self-sacrifice decks as he can be brought back if thrown out with something like Ob Nixilis the Adversary from the same set.
17. Junji, the Midnight Sky
Legends of Kamigawa is one of my favorite sets in the last few years from Magic the Gathering. With a heavy emphasis on magical constructs and a unique Asian theming that gave all the artwork within the set a beautiful aesthetic. With green being my favorite color in the game I really enjoy playing different tribal decks that all interact with and benefit from each other. As I touched on earlier with Tenacious Underdog, black pays heavy attention to what creatures are available for sacrifice.
As a 5/5 with flying and menace, Junji IS a menace to your opponent's life points and as such will become a target allowing you to pull any massive creature from any graveyard straight to the battlefield. It does have its downsides though, since it can be exiled and have its effect negated or, the card you pull can’t be a dragon but those are very short limitations.
Five cost 5/5 flying and menace alone isn’t a bad mid-game card to apply pressure with even without its secondary ability.
Even if there hasn’t been much in the graveyards you can use his first ability to control their hand with a two card discard.
While it can’t resurrect itself and make an infinite loop with just two of them, there are plenty of cards in black that will let you pull him back for much cheaper.
When dealing with historic play you can make him undying for a pretty busted combo, bringing him back stronger and triggering his ability.
16. Misery’s Shadow
Misery’s Shadow is another card on this list that doesn’t do a whole lot but is just very good at what it does do. It isn’t a card that you will probably use in a confusing combo play in an attempt to surprise your opponent, instead it will do what it does best, put in work and intimidate your foe.
Two mana, non-legendary, graveyard denier, moonlighting as the rapper Lil’ Pump, that’s what you get with Misery’s Shadow. That means you can have multiple of these things on the battlefield at once, getting as big as it wants for the turn. Then very easily give it menace, flying, or unblockable and you have a cheap card that will never hurt to top deck into.
Two cost 2/2 means it’s viable in your starting hand or a top deck way into late game.
The mana used to pump it is colorless, meaning in black/green you have the possibility of making this thing huge.
Works against other black decks, sending their fodder to exile instead of the grave.
The fact you can easily give him any other combat terms like double strike, menace, or indestructible makes his pump ability even more deadly.
15. Archfiend of the Dross
Archfiend of the Dross is a very complicated card with multiple abilities, some of which may not seem entirely useful at first glance. I assure you though, cast off the shackles of standard formatting and you have a grade A meme deck that actually has a pretty good chance of catching your opponent off guard.
When the card first came out a lot of people decided to tilt their opponent by handing over control of this creature or giving them a copy that had no counters on it from the get go. This resulted in them losing their very next turn unless they had a way of destroying their own creatures. If they did, well good news for you as they burned some removal on their own creature and lost two life for it.
While it has slipped in recent entries there is nothing saying you can’t work an entire deck around utilizing his abilities. Though some of the really good combos are banned in almost everything besides commander or legacy, which is why he is so low on the list.
Four cost flying 6/6 is still unbelievable value.
Lots of different combos make the Archfiend particularly scary.
With other black cards it’s incredibly easy to sacrifice before he loses all his counters and costs you the game.
There are plenty of cards which let you add or proliferate oil counters in standard currently.
14. Servant of the Stinger
The first uncommon on this list, Servant of the Stinger utilizes the game's new crime mechanic to effectively become the next big tutor in black. The new mechanic is extremely easy to activate, only requiring you to target an opponent, anything they control, or even their graveyard. Mix in deathtouch, his ability, and his 1/3 attack for two mana and I am completely baffled that this card is an uncommon.
Yes it does have some conditions that must be met before activating its ability but even if you don’t get it off, it’s still a really good deterrent for low cost aggressive decks. Toss in the added ability to get ANY card directly to your hand should you do so much as attack with it. I’m really looking forward to seeing the unique crime boss decks that stem from this guy right here.
Probably one of the best cards for value in this list as a two cost 1/3 with deathtouch.
Great deterrent for low cost aggressive decks like mono red.
The three toughness will ensure it survives more than a few battles at early game or force a double block and get rid of them both.
Cards like Apprentice Necromancer will return this to the battlefield with haste letting you use its ability more than just four times per card restriction if you would ever want to.
13. Vein Ripper
While Vein Ripper may have a high cost of six mana, it’s hard to deny the value you get for this late game threat. Flying 6/5 that damages your opponent, heals you, and makes your foe sacrifice one of their own just to target this thing directly. Combo this with the new tutor we just talked about, Servant of the Stinger and you could pull this thing directly to your hand by turn three and be ready to play by turn six.
Channel Fireball, one of the biggest names in the community, actually built a competitive deck that revolved around this card, taking it almost to the top 8 in pioneer pro tours. Comboing this card with Sorin, Imperious Bloodlord actually lets you play this from your hand on turn three, essentially winning the game.
Unfortunately a lot of these great combos come from formats like historic or pioneer as the main piece, Sorin, isn’t actually legal in standard since he’s from a core set which puts it in the bottom half of our list.
A consistent win-con in historic or pioneer formats.
Can be cheated out with other cards for free since it’s a vampire.
The ward ability usually just costs more mana but, in the case of the Vein Ripper it costs a whole lot more for a whole creature.
Its third ability triggers anytime a creature dies, meaning if you run sacrifice in your deck you can burn your opponents and heal your wounds from the back lines.
12. Bloodletter of Aclazotz
It’s easy to see why Bloodletter of Aclazotz landed in the middle of this list. Attacking the opponent on your turn results in double damage if any of it gets through. When you start to think of all the flying, menace, or deal two damage effects in black the numbers start to add up.
Take the card right above this one, Vein Ripper. With both of these cards on the field anytime a creature dies that damage doubles to 4 from Vein Ripper’s third effect. It does have a somewhat hefty cost with three black specifically being required so he doesn't quite fit in a lot of multi-colored decks, so you might need to stick with mono black for this one.
Bloodletter of Aclazotz works in literally any black deck, lending to more damage overall.
The fact it has flying means it easily doubles its damage by soaring over top.
It’s still a vampire in addition to a demon so you can tutor this card with Sorin as well.
11. Gix, Yawgmoth Praetor
Gix, is still a staple in most standard black decks in play currently. While his ability may seem like you’re giving your opponent an edge with extra draws, combine this with Vein Ripper or Sheoldred, the Apocalypse and they are taking six damage to draw that card.
His second ability is just a game winner. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve had my own win conditions ripped from my deck and placed in front of me, or had my almost winning force decimated by my own board wipe. While he may not do the damage himself directly, I guarantee anyone that uses that second ability has all but won the game.
Unfortunately his relatively low body makes him an easy target to deal with by most one or two cost burn spells which means you may spend more time defending him than using his ability.
Incredible support for most other black win-cons in standard currently.
Relatively easy to get out with a low cost.
If the card you pull doesn’t frustrate your opponent into surrendering, then exiling their deck into a win just might.
Gix’s first ability will usually ensure your opponent has less cards in their deck than you.
10. Sheoldred, the Apocalypse
At one point in time Sheoldred was the number one card in mono black standard. While it may not seem like a win condition card, the damage and health really start to stack if left unrestricted. If your opponent doesn’t already have a response it’s going to hurt trying to draw into one. Add in a 4/5 for four mana with deathtouch and it really starts to come to life.
The five toughness really lends to protect from most burn spells currently in standard and the deathtouch will ensure your opponent can’t play too aggressively. I think Sheoldred’s downfall comes from the fact that it was originally a counter against The One Ring, which we really don’t see much anymore. That and it was so prevalent in the format that people have begun to expect and answer it before it can
Sheoldred doesn’t need to attack and in fact, most of its strategies involve just existing on the board.
One of the cheapest bombs currently in standard.
While you’re patiently waiting for your opponent to die, you’re healing any damage that may have been caused earlier in the game.
Combos very well with Bloodletter of Aclazotz, increasing that draw damage to four every turn.
9. Preacher of the Schism
Preacher of the Schism runs in the same vein as Evolved Sleeper, in that it’s probably best suited for a white/black Orzhov token deck. Running it in white ensures you have the most health and can trigger his abilities every time. Combo it with a card like Wedding Announcement and you’re pumping your board full of tokens that get stronger when the enchantment flips.
While it may not have an enter the board effect, it’s hard to argue the value for cost when it comes to the Preacher. The four toughness and deathtouch alone make this a great momentum stopper against your opponents early game, giving you time to build your army. Combine it with the plethora of token support in white currently and it’s no surprise this card’s popularity is on the rise.
Three cost 2/4 with deathtouch is never a bad play.
The deathtouch will ensure your opponent thinks twice every time you swing with him.
He is a big target on the board but most three damage burn spells won’t be able to touch him without sacrificing a blocker with it.
Great matchup against creature based decks but can be dealt with a few different ways.
He is not legendary so you can stack him on the board to go extremely wide.
8. Deep-Cavern Bat
I was genuinely surprised when checking the popularity of this card in current play and speaking to some of my friends within the community, just how beloved Deep-Cavern Bat is. Not every card on this list needs to be a bomb dropping win condition because that’s just not how decks are structured. You need good support and staple cards like this one to keep the pressure on and make sure the path ahead is clear for anything you really need to get out.
Two cost, flying, lifelink, lighting rod, that’s the best descriptor of Deep-Cavern Bat that I can think of. The best part about it? Say your opponent only has one removal in hand, this card takes it until you deal with him which tends to be pretty hard without said removal. Combine this card with Preacher of the Schism and you’re sure to stay ahead on HP and activate his abilities every turn.
Very unassuming until it’s too late and already putting in the work.
The flying lifelink combo will help guarantee you get past your opponent's defenses.
This card has become so popular that a lot of players are folding as soon as they see it, do with that information what you will.
A halfway decent replacement for Thoughtseize in Standard format.
7. Forsaken Miner
The set just dropped so we aren’t entirely sure of all the interactions as of yet but, there are still many inquiries to Wizards of the Coast as to how exactly the new mechanic works. If you were to sacrifice Forsaken Miner as another card’s cost, that also triggered the crime mechanic, would you be able to pull him directly back? As of right now the rules are a little muddy but, we may get more clarification as the things continue.
Even if it turns out that you can’t use him to sacrifice in the same turn, there is still plenty of use to be had if you get a couple of these guys in your graveyard. Yes it can’t block but that just means you can swing with them every turn and then bring them right back with a crime trigger before your turn even ends.
A single black mana means it’s usable at any time during the game.
Crime effects are extremely easy to trigger letting you get him back multiple times a game.
Since he isn’t legendary you can re-summon multiple copies at once.
With it only being an uncommon, this card won’t be too difficult to come by or source for any deck.
6. Vadmir, New Blood
Another new edition from Outlaws of Thunder Junction, Vadmir, New Blood has the potential to fit extremely well in both Orzhov or Golgari. We’ve already covered how easy it is to activate the crime ability and while it only triggers once per turn, there are plenty of ways to pump those counters in white or green.
For three mana you can cast him, as well as a targeting spell to your opponent and he starts as a 3/3. Add in the numerous vampire support cards like Stensia Masquerade or Bloodlord of Vassgoth to enter with even more +1/+1 counters. Having Vaasgoth out alone will put him at a 5/5 for three to four mana depending on the spell used to activate bloodthirst.
While Vadmir may be a little slow for constructed format, the vast number of vampire support cards make him a staple in any tribal deck.
Low cost Vampire that triggers anytime you target your opponent or their creatures.
If your opponent doesn’t have a response Vadmir can quickly become a win condition as a 6/6 with lifelink and menace.
Even if he is targeted, his low cost means you can lay another without much of a strain on your mana base.
Since he is legendary he may be a strong contender for a vampire crime syndicate commander deck.
5. Aclazotz, Deepest Betrayal
Finally to the top five in our long list of powerful black creatures, we have the Bat God himself, Aclazotz, one of the almost forever gods of The Lost Caverns of Ixalan. Each of the five color deities represents the core values of each and usually revolves around its signature abilities. While partial to Ojer myself, any of these recurring creatures are an excellent addition to its respective color.
The gods in this set rely heavily on the flip mechanic, letting you turn these powerhouses into an additional land when destroyed. All their second abilities let them recur as well, as once the conditions are met you can usually cast them for around half cost. This makes removing them such a dance without exile, especially Aclazotz, who forces your opponent to discard their responses.
All of the gods from this set do way more than they should for five mana, causing a major disruption if played on curve. The only way they can reliably be dealt with is exile, shutting down most burn and removal spells. Although it can be destroyed as a land, there aren’t many options for that, leaving you to counter him in blue or remove him from the game completely.
Five cost, flying, lifelink, that pumps tokens, makes your opponent discard, draws you more cards, and can turn into an extra land when dies, need I say more?
Extremely resistant against removal and damage, coming right back to field for three mana if you can force your opponent to discard.
Is an immediate threat that will direct your opponents attention from other cards in play.
Is a solid win-condition by himself without much help.
4. Caustic Bronco
Another new addition with the release of Outlaws of Thunder Junction, Caustic Bronco, reigning in another cowboy themed mechanic called Saddle. Saddle works very similarly to Crew introduced in the Kaladesh set, that lets your creatures commandeer a vehicle to drive. Yes this does mean you will have to tap down another creature to activate it but, if you couldn’t get through to begin with that’s where Caustic Bronco’s ability comes into play.
While you can activate its ability without saddling in a pinch to try and top-deck an answer, it’s much better to pair him with a power three creature or even a few tokens that would be sacrificed at the end of turn anyway. Unfortunately its low power and toughness mean that it probably won’t survive long but, there is currently a mid-range Orzhov deck in competitive play right now that utilizes Shadow of Mortality to deal fifteen damage to the face just from his ability.
While I’m sure the surge of popularity will drop once people really understand the gimmick and start to plan for it, Caustic Bronco is making big waves in the pro scene right now.
Can be saddled with a single creature or multiple small ones.
Damage bypasses blockers so you can make a call to sacrifice him to deal damage up top.
Using a tutor card like Insatiable Avarice lets you put any heavy cost mana card on the top of your deck without revealing it.
Even if you don’t win from the saddle damage, you’re still drawing an extra card every turn he attacks, putting you ahead of your opponent.
3. Kaervek, the Punisher
Kaervek is a card that doesn’t hold any secrets, it does what it does and that’s put in work. A solid 3/3 for three mana nets you a board presence that opens up your graveyard as another hand. Slap him in a green/black Golgari deck and all those creatures you sacrificed as part of your mana base now become useable again.
The exact hype around this card comes from when you use it in conjunction with the Storm mechanic. This works because each copy you cast with Kaervek adds to the stack on storm. Combine this with a card like Aetherflux Reservoir and you can hit your opponents in the face for fifty damage pretty early on. Of course this is more of a commander strategy but that is still one of the most fun formats in Magic.
Even using him in constructed works really well, not as a win-condition necessarily but, as late game value as you pull everything back to the board.
A strong contender for a commander deck.
Combos with the storm mechanic to up the damage output exponentially.
Three cost 3/3 doesn’t put him out of the realm of possibility for more competitive formats.
Combining him with a card like Spark Double would let you control more than one, gaining double activation.
2. Gisa, the Hellraiser
As we get closer to the number spot some of these are very clear as to why they are placing so high in decklists currently. With the latest set from Wizards it seems very clear that mana curves in black are nestled right around four or five. While a lot of the tribal cards so far have been geared more towards vampires, Gisa brings us back home with some unbelievable support for zombies and skeletons.
Even by herself Gisa pumps out enough zombies in one turn to make a big difference. If you were to wait just one turn til six, you could activate her crime ability and start building your undead army. That army by the way comes in as two 3/3’s sporting menace.
If your opponent wants to react to this new threat, they will be forced to pay an extra two mana and two life just to target it. Add in Kaervek the heavy hitter we just touched on, and you can just pull her back if they manage to get through.
Another spectacular contender for a dimir zombie commander deck.
Combining this card with something like Grave Betrayal and any creature your opponent controls that dies comes back to you as a zombie with an extra +1/+1 before Gisa even adds her bonus.
Creates and boosts zombies and skeletons.
Her ward goes beyond the norm, inflicting harm upon your opponents that try to remove her.
1. Tinybones, the Pickpocket
Finally arriving at our number one spot we have Tinybones, the Pickpocket. I think the explosion of popularity comes mainly from the commander format, though why wouldn’t you just throw a playset into your standard deck as well?
A one drop 1/1 that can steal nonland permanents and deter attackers with deathtouch. Throw out Tinybones Joins Up, the legendary enchantment of the same set, and your opponent will have to mill two cards by the time he’s even out.
I’m not a huge fan of mill decks (or blue in general for that matter) because you spend most of the duel just shutting your opponent down before they can even play, you can’t argue with the results though. At least Tinybones doesn’t center wholly around shutting your opponent down before they can play, but the synergies with blue are still very clear.
Cards like Anowon the Ruin Thief, Tasha the Witch Queen, and countless other mill or counter cards synergize extremely well with Tinybones. With his low cost your main goal is definitely going to be milling your opponent down so you have a large selection of cards to choose from by the time you play him.
It’s easy to see why Tinybones is skyrocketing in popularity, listed in over five thousand different deck lists on sites like TCGPlayer.com and MTGDecks.net after only dropping a few weeks ago. It is also a staple in of the decks submitted for Pro Tour Thunder Junction using the enchantment combo I listed above.
A single black mana means he’s playable at any time during the game but gains value as it goes on.
Play him turn one, mill your opponent turn two, and hopefully get in your first steal as early as turn three.
His deathtouch ability will deter fast aggressive decks like red or green.
Set him as your commander and have access to him at any time and wait for the perfect card to hit your opponents graveyard.
Has a ton of synergy options throughout all formats, even getting a dedicated rare enchantment in the same set.
Final Thoughts
Cards in Magic the Gathering are constantly jockeying for popularity as new combinations come to light. This is also such a subjective game that “best” is really hard to define, which is part of the reason I love it so much. I will spend hours looking through cards, trying to find a new and unique deck that hasn’t been discovered yet.
It gives me the feeling of being a kid and watching shows like Yu-Gi-Oh. The internet was still relatively new and surprising your friends with a new deck was one of the best feelings in the world. It felt like how the game should be played, instead of just searching for the top decklists and copying them.
I don’t think it’s necessarily worse now but, some of the magic is taken away having spoilers for every set, competitive deck lists that outline the exact win conditions, and hundreds of thousands of forums where people spend days of their lives discussing and strategizing before even trying to build one on their own. I just hope this list gives someone as much inspiration as it did me because I plan on rushing over to MGTA and constructing a mono black crime deck.
