Art by Arnie Swekel
Commander deckB
Hired Muscle // Scarmaker
Aggressively flip Hired Muscle using Spirit and Arcane synergies, then grant fear to high-power beaters while burning and draining opponents out with black life-loss effects and sweeping the board when needed.
Asked for“Red Slicer-hired muscle as commander, red aggro, burn, ramp, boardwipe”
Deck anatomy
What this list actually runs on: how cheaply it casts things, and whether it has enough ramp, card draw and interaction to keep up at the table. Each block is one card — hover for its name.
Mana curve · 62 nonland cards
The working parts
Counted from Scryfall’s community card tags, not from the builder’s own labels. A card that does two jobs counts twice, so these add up to more than the deck. The hatched band is a common rule of thumb, not a law — combo decks run leaner, battlecruiser decks heavier.
Colored mana symbols
Commander
1Hired Muscle // Scarmaker
1BBCreature — Human Warrior // Legendary Creature — Spirit
Chosen commander for the requested strategy.
Ramp
10
Card Draw
10
Ayara, First of Locthwain
BBBLegendary Creature — Elf Noble
drains life and sacrifices creatures for cards
Erebos, God of the Dead
3BLegendary Enchantment Creature — God
repeatable draw engine that stops opposing life gain
Removal
11
Black Sun's Zenith
XBBSorcery
reusable sweeper that shrinks indestructible threats
Threats/Wincons
23
Bloodghast
BBCreature — Vampire Spirit
aggressive recurring Spirit beatdown threat
Kyoki, Sanity's Eclipse
4BBLegendary Creature — Demon Spirit
large Spirit that exiles opponent cards on Spirit and Arcane casts
Iname, Death Aspect
4BBLegendary Creature — Spirit
Spirit commander that fills graveyard with Spirits
Thief of Hope
2BCreature — Spirit
Spirit that drains opponents when casting Spirits or Arcane spells
Kokusho, the Evening Star
4BBLegendary Creature — Dragon Spirit
legendary Spirit with massive life-drain death trigger
Gray Merchant of Asphodel
3BBCreature — Zombie
devastating life drain based on black devotion
Syr Konrad, the Grim
3BBLegendary Creature — Human Knight
pumps out continuous burn whenever creatures die or move zones
Torment of Hailfire
XBBSorcery
devastating late-game finisher and life-loss spell
Vito, Thorn of the Dusk Rose
2BLegendary Creature — Vampire Cleric
amplifies life gain into lethal targeted burn
Twilight Prophet
2BBCreature — Vampire Cleric
burns all opponents and draws extra cards with ascend
Geth, Lord of the Vault
4BBLegendary Creature — Phyrexian Zombie
high-power evasive threat and mana sink
Massacre Wurm
3BBBCreature — Phyrexian Wurm
wipes tokens and burns opponents for each dead creature
Drana, Liberator of Malakir
1BBLegendary Creature — Vampire Ally
aggressive evasive attacker that buffs the board
Nirkana Revenant
4BBCreature — Vampire Shade
mana doubler and massive pumpable finisher
Grave Titan
4BBCreature — Giant
token-generating powerhouse that excels with fear
Bloodletter of Aclazotz
1BBBCreature — Vampire Demon
doubles all life loss suffered by opponents
Spawn of Mayhem
2BBCreature — Demon
cheap aggressive flyer that burns all players
Rankle, Master of Pranks
2BBLegendary Creature — Faerie Rogue
hasty flyer that forces sacrifice and discard
Netherborn Phalanx
5BCreature — Horror
Spirit that punishes wide boards with direct burn
Utility
8
Lightning Greaves
2Artifact — Equipment
provides haste and protection for your commander
Whip of Erebos
2BBLegendary Enchantment Artifact
grants lifelink and reanimates creatures for one last swing
Bolas's Citadel
3BBBLegendary Artifact
game-winning engine that casts spells from top of library and burns
Sickening Shoal
XBBInstant — Arcane
Arcane instant removal that adds ki counters to commander
Cranial Extraction
3BSorcery — Arcane
Arcane disruption spell that triggers commander's ki ability
