Overview:

This mono-black deck leverages Gix, Yawgmoth Praetor as a card-draw engine and late-game value generator. The primary strategy deploys evasive creatures (shadow, flying, unblockable) to trigger Gix's combat-damage draw ability, fueling life-pay synergies and big mana finishers like Exsanguinate and Torment of Hailfire. Secondary win paths include Psychosis Crawler + mass draw, Bloodchief Ascension drains, and Gray Merchant devotion bursts. Gix is essential for sustained card advantage and enables the deck's core engine, though its 3/3 body is vulnerable to removal. The deck lacks infinite combos but compensates with explosive mana from Cabal Coffers/Crypt Ghast.

Primer:

Core Strategy Execution:

1. Early Setup (Turns 1-3): Play evasive 1-drops (e.g., Changeling Outcast, Tormented Soul) and ramp (Dark Ritual, Culling the Weak). Cast Gix by turn 3 if possible.
2. Draw Engine Activation (Turns 3-5): Attack with unblockable creatures to trigger Gix, paying life to draw cards. Deploy value pieces like Necropotence or Bloodchief Ascension.
3. Mana Acceleration (Turns 4-6): Assemble Urborg + Cabal Coffers or Nykthos with Deserted Temple for exponential black mana. Use Crypt Ghast/Bubbling Muck for additional boosts.
4. Win Condition Execution (Turns 6-8):
   • Big Mana: Cast X-spells (Exsanguinate, Torment of Hailfire) for lethal.
   • Psychosis Crawler: Pair with Peer into the Abyss or Necropotence for mass life loss.
   • Bloodchief Ascension: Activate with consistent pings (e.g., Creeping Bloodsucker) to drain on graveyard entries.
   • Gix Ultimate: Late-game, discard excess cards to exile and cast opponents' spells.

Mulligan Priorities:

• Keep hands with ≥2 lands, ≥1 evasive creature (e.g., Dauthi Horror), and early ramp/draw (Dark Ritual, Night's Whisper).
• Prioritize Gix + protection (Lightning Greaves) in interactive metas. Avoid hands without early plays or mana sinks.

Key Tips:

• Life Management: Balance Gix draws and Necropotence with lifegain from Blood Artist or Gray Merchant.
• Protection: Use Malakir Rebirth on Gix or Greaves on key pieces like Sheoldred.
• Gix Timing: Hold mana for instant-speed draws post-combat. Prioritize exiling libraries when opponents tutor or scry.
• Weakness Mitigation: Fetch Bojuka Bog/Scavenger Grounds vs. graveyard decks; hold Feed the Swarm for stax pieces.

Weaknesses:

Critical

• Board Wipes: Mass removal (e.g., Damnation) cripples the evasive creature engine and halts Gix draws. Limited recursion outside Malakir Rebirth/Takenuma.
• Artifact/Enchantment Hate: Losing Cabal Coffers, Necropotence, or Bloodchief Ascension severely disrupts mana/draw engines.
• Anti-Draw Stax: Opposition Agent, Notion Thief, or Narset, Parter of Veils nullify Gix and Peer into the Abyss.

Moderate

• Fast Aggro: Early creature pressure exploits life-pay costs (Necropotence, Gix triggers).
• Graveyard Reliance: Rest in Peace neuters Gray Merchant recursion and Dauthi Voidwalker.
• Stack Interaction: Minimal counterspells make resolving big X-spells risky against blue decks.

Minor

• Flying/Reach Threats: Evasive blockers can stall attacks, but deathtouch creatures (e.g., Ophiomancer tokens) help.
• Tax Effects: Thalia, Guardian of Thraben slows early creature deployment and X-spell timing.

Most Important Cards:

• Necropotence (Unrestricted card draw enabling wins)
• Cabal Coffers (Primary mana multiplier for X-spells)
• Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth (Enables Coffers and fixes mana)
• Gix, Yawgmoth Praetor (Engine: combat draws and late-game theft)
• Exsanguinate (Scalable life-drain finisher)
• Torment of Hailfire (Uncounterable win condition with big mana)
• Psychosis Crawler (Combo payoff with mass draw)
• Peer into the Abyss (Draw half library; enables Crawler/Sheoldred wins)
• Bloodchief Ascension (Recurring drain engine when active)
• Crypt Ghast (Mana doubler with extort synergy)

Attribute Ratings:

Speed: 6/10

• Goldfish wins typically occur turns 7-8 via X-spells or Psychosis Crawler combos, accelerated by fast mana.

Resilience: 5/10

• Recursion/protection is limited; relies on card draw to rebuild after disruption but folds to repeated wipes/hate.

Consistency: 6/10

• Strong draw (Gix, Necropotence) finds key pieces, but lacks tutors for specific combos and suffers from land dependency (Coffers/Urborg).

Interaction: 5/10

• Targeted removal (Defile, Baleful Mastery) is efficient but narrow; minimal stack interaction and no counterspells.

Rating Justification:

This deck operates as a focused midrange strategy with T7-8 win potential via combat-enabled draws into scalable finishers, aligning with the "Focused" tier (6.0). Its vulnerability to board wipes and stax caps resilience, preventing higher optimization despite strong mana and draw engines.

Power level: 6.0 - 6.5