Here’s an early preview of the kind of content we’ll be running next week to celebrate Halloween, when Ghoulhammer once again takes over the site.
As spooky season approaches, it’s time for the long forgotten undead to once again resurrect and haunt our Commander tables. Grimgrin, Corpse-Born is a long standing Zombie commander dating back to the original Innistrad block. Though often thought as a simple beatstick bully on most first observations, the second time round the sacrifice ability makes people grow concerned of more devious ploys. The untap aspect of Grimgrin makes it worth checking new sets for any enchantment that might truly scare people, currently it relies on Agatha’s Soul Cauldron tricks however.
Grimgrin can be built as a conventional Zombie horde commander, but with the added bonus of being a big body that destroys opponent creatures while attacking. Alternatively there is the option to make a deck built around its abilities and instant speed sacrificing of other creatures to use death triggers and aristocrats style damage. A Grimgrin deck is very similar to a Wilhelt, the Rotcleaver deck, or Gisa and Geralf, meaning the Undead Unleashed pre-constructed deck helmed by Wilhelt is a excellent start point, however this build does take a stronger footing towards aristocrats.
For the more visually curious, below is the breakdown of my current deck.
Investigating the card choices for the deck will be broken down into initially the tribal aspect, as what fun is the Zombies if not a horde supported by lords and unending recursion. The aristocrats aspect will be explored after.
The Zombie lords Grimgrin decks use do not deviate from the normal roster, although two of those lords are working directly with Grimgrin:
Diregraf Captain: Helping out both game plans, in addition to the +1/+1 “Lord” effect, on the death of another Zombie one opponent looses 1 life. While not the strongest death trigger, it’ll start the slow death of life loss and can be the finisher too when it comes down to multiple death triggers.
Zombie Master: Gives out Swampwalk and regenerate to other Zombies, although not a true “lord” as he doesn’t given the +1/+1, the buffs he gives outweigh that discrepancy. Swampwalk allows us to get around blockers, while regenerate protects our army from removal including Grimgrin.
To give the deck the Zombie army Grimgrin hungers for, the deck has access to both token generation, and graveyard filling:
Field of the Dead: Outside of landfall or ramp decks, Field of the Dead is not as scary within Zombies by sheer volume, however our lords and sacrifice mechanics will gladly take a new Zombie each turn for simply playing lands!
Wilhelt, the Rotcleaver: Every sacrificed creature that isn’t a decayed Zombie generates one; additionally at end step, sacrifice a Zombie to draw a card. A great package to any Zombie deck, as even Zombie Horde can just throw tokens at the other players blockers to make new decayed tokens. Grimgrin however can use the whole package offered by Wilhelt.
Army of the Damned: Thirteen Zombies that have a flashback cost, so can even be discarded and still cast later in the game, making for a constant threat in hand or graveyard and a good quick solution to a boardwipe.
Open the Graves: Doesn’t matter how the non-token Zombies die, meaning its a good deterrent from boardwipes, each sacrifice gives us another sacrifice option, and it is an enchantment making it harder to remove as well.
Diregraf Colossus: Every zombie spell cast gives you a 2/2 Zombie, that means lots of horde potential and lots of sacrifice potential. Although a weak body if used ahead of the other Zombie spells to promote hordes, casting it after means another big body to swing with or block with.
Eloise, Nephalia Sleuth: Investigating when your creatures die, while not the most exciting mechanic, gives the deck consistent card draw, and for any token sacrificed surveil 1. Given the commander, this is a fast way to dig for desired cards both in the hand and in the graveyard.
The sacrifice mechanic attached to Grimgrin allows the deck to be a bit less concerned about the usual staples such as Ashnod’s Altar and Phyrexian Altar for mana generation behind sacrificing creatures although it’s still a good idea to run them as alternative sacrifice outlets if you can. To facilitate Grimgrin’s sacrificing being a win condition, the deck utilises:
Agent of the Iron Throne: With Zombie generation and recursion every Grimgrin sacrifice brings a point of life loss, just requires cards like Victimize, Dread Return, Open the Graves, or Wilhelt and your opponents will be loosing a lot of life on anyone’s turn.
Warren Soultrader: Paying a life to get something in an aristocrat deck that is healing isn’t a concern, and for the benefit of sacrificing a creature we get a Treasure to cast more Zombies. While it doesn’t work directly with Grimgrin, as a alternative to Phyrexian Altar with benefit of being a Zombie it has upside, such as not being difficult to get from the graveyard when removed.
Drivnod, Carnage Dominus: Working off death triggers means trigger additions are a huge benefit, and Drivnod gains indestructible by exiling three creatures from the graveyard, something Zombies fill quite quickly.
Meathook Massacre II: The new enchantment from Duskmourne offers more methods to keeping a board for sacrificing going once it has entered the field and made each player sacrifice according to the paid cost. The other two effects are permanently active on the board, meaning each opponent now has to pay 3 life every time they loose a creature, or it’ll be added to our field for the Grimgrin engine to use, especially when Grimgrin on attack can destroy target creatures.
Butcher of Malakir: Every time a creature dies under our control each opponent has to sacrifice a creature, under Meathook Massacre II that’s a lot of life to pay, while under Drivnod, that is a lot of sacrifices to make. Although a vampire, the Butcher of Malakir can end games on its own. Opening each enemies’ board up to being swung at by lord-buffed Zombies is a constant threat.
Funeral Room // Awakening Hall: Rooms are interesting additions to the list, as each enchantment added to the deck reduces the reliability of mill mechanics that Dimir can bring to Zombies but enchantments that forward the win condition or offer a reanimation solution can’t be ignored for a deck tech such as Grimgrin.
Funeral Room is an enchantment that gains us 1 life, and every opponent loose 1. With enchantment removal being one of the more uncommon cards, and the other Room returning all creatures from the graveyard to the field, either can be unlocked from the hand, or on the field. This allows a recovery from board wipes, or a final bit of pressure if used after sacrificing the majority of the board.
Mirror Room // Fractured Realm: Creating a copy of a creature we control gives us more options for the Zombie horde game plan; copy a lord, while aristocrats could copy cards like Diregraf Captain, or Butcher of Malakir. Fractured Realm is another trigger addition to the aristocrat game plan, all triggers we control trigger an additional time, meaning enter battlefield effects, death triggers, Cast triggers, Ward and so on. There are lots of desirable triggers for that Room.
Plague Belcher: Despite having the negative of putting two -1/-1 counters on a creature we control, the Plague Belcher forces opponents to lose 1 life for every Zombie that dies under our control. In actual fact if no lords are on the field, the Plague Belcher can self activate using its negative to target a Zombie token. It’s a Zombie meaning it’s easy to recover if destroyed, and it forwards the game plan of our sacrifice engine.
Mirkwood Bats: Making Zombie tokens and sacrificing Zombie tokens is a constant loop of any Zombie commander and Grimgrin is no different, Open the Graves, Wilhelt, Diregraf Colossus, Army of the Damned, all aid the Bats hatred of opponents’ life totals.
Honourable Mentions: Marionette Apprentice, Blood Artist, Zulaport Cutthroat, Bastion of Remembrance, Dreadhound, Syr Konrad, the Grim, Nadier’s Nightblade, are all good alternatives for the aristrocrat game plan and can replace mentioned cards for making opponents lose life, though weren’t included in the list due to various negatives, such as creature type or mana cost. If you lean more into aristocrat, and away from Zombie tribal, these are good includes as well.
Discard possibility: Mentioned before was how mill becomes more unreliable as the deck includes more enchantments and artifacts, while moving away from flash-back and heavy creature. One method to achieve similar results is draw and discard style, as you’ll be able to set up the graveyard akin to mill, but hold onto the cards that are hard to return from the graveyard.
Necromancer’s Stockpile: While a slow card as you are made to discard to draw, and only receive a tapped Zombie for discarding a Zombie, this is a cheap enchantment that eventually pays for itself as you draw Zombies on upkeep, to then discard them immediately and dig through your deck, possibly multiple times a turn.
Bone Miser: Leaning into discard, does open the potential to include a rather expensive Zombie into the list, Waste Not strapped to a body focusing on our discard, instead of opponents. This is also a fun tech against discard decks like Tinybones, Trinket Thief as both of you now benefit from being made to discard.
Forgotten Creation: Discarding whole hand on a may ability means it’s a situational choice, like digging for lands, or removal, or recursion. Also can just be a Zombie body on the field swinging for combat damage.
Compulsion: Discard to draw, and a sacrifice to draw option on an enchantment, slow like Necromancer’s Stockpile, but still achieve support of constantly being able discard on a turn basis.
Spectral Snatcher: A new land fetcher in the form of swampcycling attached to a 6/5 with a ward ability. Likely not to be summoned outside of Victimize, the simple threat in the graveyard as well as being able to fetch for type lands really helps stabilise mana supply.
Daggermaw Megalodon: Although less desirable than Spectral Snatcher as it doesn’t get a ward ability for protection, it does allow us to search our other colour of mana while siting threateningly in the graveyard.
Archaeomancer: Returning any instant or sorcery from our graveyard to hand both aids in the issue of mill and discard, but also lets up replay our more expensive ones for more Zombies!
Boggart Trawler: Modal Dual faced land that can graveyard hate from the creature side. While not furthering our own plans, it’s an answer to facing another reanimator deck. If there’s no need for the graveyard hate, it’s another land.
Invasion of Amonkhet: While the battle side is fun to activate and watch each player mill something scary or useful, the transformed side can be a desperate recovery method, or give new game plans. As a 4/4 Zombie it enters as a copy of any creature in any graveyard. At the end of the day, it’s a Zombie that can be any creature in any graveyard, the options are plentiful.
Regarding land, the Moxfield deck has 36 with Boggart Trawler being a 37th. This is quite high for its mana value average being at 2.33, however with Army of the Dead in the list as well as Meathook Massacre, there are ways to spend the mana those lands will generate. Additionally, each land is another 2/2 Zombie from Field of the Dead. Decks of similar low mana value can go as low as 32 lands, but in experience for comfortable constant land draws, stay above 34.
Removal is up to the player and the pod they’re in. More counter spells are going to work better verse instant reliant Izzet decks, while creature removal works better against the Gruuls. Adjust amount and target as required.
Lastly, to determine the decks strength: the decks strength grows as you go towards combos, Rooftop Storm is a perfect example for setting up constant chains with likes of Gravecrawler. Lean more into the Zombie horde lord side to keep it toned down.
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