To this day, storm and poison counters remain two of the most fearsome mechanics in all of MTG. With both mechanics capable of killing you from nowhere, it’s hard to feel safe being on the other side of the table.
If each mechanic weren’t scary enough on its own, just yesterday, a cool Modern deck combining both strategies just 5-0d a Magic Online League out of nowhere. Designed to close games without ever needing to attack, this archetype is quite intriguing.
Abusing Venerated Rotpriest
This deck’s entire gameplan revolves around getting Venerated Rotpriest into play. The potent one-drop works especially well in multiples, increasing the number of poison counters your opponent receives per targeted spell. With a plethora of tutors including Green Sun’s Zenith and March of Burgeoning Life at your disposal, you should have consistent access to your engine every game.
Once things are set up, your goal is to cast a flurry of spells that target your creatures. Free pump spells like Mutagenic Growth and Gather Courage are among the strongest options, furthering your gameplan while resisting damage-based removal. This deck even incorporates a small Lessons package to maximize Academic Dispute, which similarly triggers Rotpriest while tutoring protective elements like Redirect Lightning.
While this plan is powerful, it sometimes takes more than a few single-target spells to cross the finish line, especially if you’ve mulliganed. Luckily, this deck has access to a one-card bailout in the form of Ground Rift. With the help of free pump spells, Summoner’s Pact, and Manamorphose, building up storm count is trivial.
Poking Holes in an Explosive Strategy
Ultimately, it’s this explosiveness that gives Venerated Rotpriest Combo an opportunity to steal games. This deck thrives against slower strategies like Eldrazi Ramp, while also threatening to race Ruby Storm and other non-interactive combo decks. Plus, unlike traditional Infect strategies, this combo shell isn’t vulnerable to a flood of blockers out of go-wide shells like Affinity.
Unfortunately, without a strong backup plan, this archetype struggles versus some forms of disruption. While the tutorable Sylvan Safekeeper does give you a chance to overwhelm your opponent’s removal suite, fighting through lots of discard spells is extremely difficult. Even a well-timed Disrupting Shoal or Force of Negation on a creature tutor may prevent you from ever getting things going in the first place.
If that weren’t problematic enough, hate cards like High Noon are heavily played and completely shut down your Storm kills. Academic Dispute grabbing Origin of Metalbending does at least give you an out, but setting this up takes time. All of these issues ultimately compound, making this deck more of a fringe option. Still, if you want to shock your friends and speedrun your next FNM, this deck can do just that.
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