Duskmourn Set Review - Red
Fear of Missing Out by Cacho Rubione
White | Blue | Black | Red | Green | Artifacts & Lands | Allied & Shards | Enemy & Wedges | cEDH | Reprints | Pauper/Budget
The Perks of Being, Well, Red
Hi there! I'm Jeremy Rowe, AKA J Ro, the Unsummoned Skull, a former Judge, Tournament Organizer, and Pro Tour competitor. I'm also a current teacher, college professor, streamer, community leader, and content creator. My favorite kind of horror is psychological horror, and few colors subvert expectations and inspire distrust in a board state like red does with burn. Red can kill without a permanent on the board, and there are some downright scary cards to aid in such strategies in Duskmourn!
Mythics
Overlord of the Boilerbilges
I'm not entirely sure what a Boilerbilge is, but the Overlord of them is NOT playing around. It smacks any target for four when it enters or attacks, doing a solid Inferno Titan impression and making great friends with Ilharg, the Raze-Boar bouncing it each turn and Torbran, Thane of Red Fell adding to its damage output. Impending is an interesting ability for it, as it's able to enter a couple of turns early, but can't attack or block if it does. On the other hand, if it's not a creature, the deck can run Earthquake effects with impunity, which is great news for decks like Toralf, God of Fury that look to use burn to keep the board clear.
Charred Foyer // Warped Space
The nice thing about Charred Foyer and Warped Space is that the two Rooms feed each other. For 10 mana, however, they better do something to warp the game and leave the battlefield charred, and this does neither. Still, a four-mana source of repeated advantage that requires a turn to do anything and a six-mana cost reduction effect aren't too far off of playable, especially in dedicated exile decks that aren't about cascade or suspend (which reduce the cost themselves), like Laelia, the Blade Reforged and Prosper, Tome-Bound.
The Rollercrusher Ride
While The Meathook Massacre got a sequel, this feels more like a reimagining, an alt-universe take. It's the Bates Motel to The Meathook Massacre's Psycho. Damage multipliers have been printed with increasing regularity recently, including those featured in my recent Hugs deck tech, and three mana is definitely a good rate, depending on the amount of work Delirium takes. Being able to clear the board is important for burn decks without a board presence, and leaving behind a damage multiplier for later that's tough to remove is strong, but it still feels like something's lacking. The stories are definitely compelling, but it leans just a bit too hard on its supporting players, asking a lot of grave setup and direct damage to actually get the job done.
Screaming Nemesis
Screaming Nemesis is yet another card that asks the question "Are there enough Boros Reckoner or Stuffy Doll effects to actually build a deck?". Haste on a three-mana 3/3 is largely irrelevant for Commander, but the Reckoner effect is certainly intriguing, both for chump blocking and for Firesong and Sunspeaker burn decks. Probably the best commander for such a strategy would be Rocco, Cabaretti Caterer: the tutoring makes it so we effectively have one of those effects in the command zone. The ability to turn off life gain is important for decks that can deal a finite amount of damage, and, unlike Stigma Lasher, we can control who we hit with its ability, which functions outside of combat.
Rares
Waltz of Rage
Waltz of Rage does a delicate dance between being a wrath spell and trying to be one-sided. Chandra's Ignition is a similar card, but, instead of doming each opponent, we impulse draw for each creature of ours caught in the crossfire. It also spares our inciting creature, which works well for a deck that has a singular, large attacker. Juri, Master of the Revue is one such creature, and that's a deck where we're likely packing cards that take advantage of our creatures dying, like Blood Artist, and Juri should be large enough to blast the board for a decent amount.
Enduring Courage
Scooby Doo. Courage. There are plenty of Final Girls, but this is a card for the Best Bois. Like Ogre Battledriver, Enduring Courage empowers and emboldens its friends when they come out. Even after it dies, the spirit of this brave beast lingers in a way no one can touch. Be careful about layering with cards like this, though: on the surface, it looks like this can go infinite with Opalescence and a sac outlet like Goblin Bombardment. The problem is that Enduring Courage's continuous effect is creating a new timestamp every time it dies and re-enters. If you're in a layer conflict due to timestamps, that's going to make it have the most recent timestamp, making it apply last and losing other card types.
Leyline of Resonance
Leylines are powerful effects, but red has historically gotten the short end of the stick, with some real stinkers. Beginning the game with a permanent on the battlefield is powerful, but it's rare enough that one can't really build around that happening. As a result, evaluating them has to do with whether they are worth the full cost, and this one just might be. Zada, Hedron Grinder is an incredible commander, but it is a lightning rod for removal. They might just want a difficult-to-interact-with version of the effect, for when Zada's tax gets too high.
Razorkin Needlehead
This little hellraiser is certainly going to needle opponents left and right. The perfect follow-up to a Kederekt Parasite, calling this red's answer to Orcish Bowmasters is a bit unfair, but triggering on every draw is big game. Nekusar, the Mindrazer decks have been eating well lately, and this adds another course to the meal. First strike on our turn is likely flavor text, but it might give it extra application in monarch decks, enabling it to steal the monarch while punishing opponents for having it.
Fear of Missing Out
Ah, the embodiment of what it's like to get stuck on the Secret Lair waiting screen; awfully meta for Wizards to try to make a card about that. The card rummages, so it's clear what we're missing out on before we know what we're getting. Pretty smart encapsulation of what it's like to pay up front. The rummaging fuels Delirium, so it feeds itself, and, once it's fed, it doesn't disappoint. While finding a safe opponent can be tricky, it untaps a creature and adds a combat step, which works well with commanders that can make copies with haste, such as Orthion, Hero of Lavabrink.
Chainsaw
Blood seems to lubricate the chain on this nasty weapon, no matter whose it is. Being able to remove a creature is a neat bit of flexibility to give to equipment Voltron decks, and this can become a massive threat if it sits on the field long enough. Krenko, Tin Street Kingpin is a perfect home for a deck like this, as it adds power, which lets Krenko make more bodies, and grows and grows as those bodies meet their ends. Throw in a Bladed Pinions, and we have a massive engine.
Cursed Recording
I'm sure Errant, Street Artist players are saying, "if only this were in blue!". Cursed with being in the wrong color for that, this artifact can still find some love. Repeatedly copying spells can be powerful, as Mirari has shown. As viewers of The Ring can attest however, getting past 7 is dangerous. 40 life helps to mitigate this, but it has to be considered when using the card. The fact that it uses time counters is intriguing with Doctor Who cards, such as Kate Stewart.
Uncommons & Commons
Painter's Studio // Defaced Gallery
For flavor reasons, I should note that Painter's Studio and Ecstatic Beauty functioning similarly and being playable in the same deck is absolutely gorgeous. Put those in Rootha, Mercurial Artist and you'll have a slightly underpowered and disjointed but beautiful deck to feed your inner Vorthos. Disjointed, unfortunately, is exactly the term to describe this card, as the Gallery does little to showcase what the Studio creates. As a result, it feels like two very different cards stapled together.
Vengeful Possession
Temporary theft effects are a dime a dozen, and they usually don't fetch an uncommon rarity. So what makes this one different? Attaching a rummage is rarified air for this effect, and some decks might even be hungry enough for this effect to consider a three-mana rummage with the theft effect as purely gravy. Inti, Seneschal of the Sun and Brallin, Skyshark Rider come to mind as being all-in on these kinds of effects.
Fear of Burning Alive
Similar to Overlord of the Boilerbilges, this card is excellent when it's able to be cheated into play, bounced, or blinked. It likely goes into the same decks, but Flame Rifts are few and far between, so a six-mana one has a decent chance. The Delirium effect isn't inconsequential, either: Satyr Firedancer is a solid card that works amazingly with Solphim, Mayhem Dominus to double the burn to opponents and the additional burn to the creature. Who needs combat, anyways?
Diversion Specialist
While this creature specializes in diversions, there's no way I'm overlooking it. Laurine, the Diversion and Kamber, the Plunderer are a partnership built on recreating the opening scene of The Dark Knight, and this is their kind of teammate. Appearing as a simple sacrifice deck, the incremental advantage gained from exploiting the sacrifices of their teammates helps the deck to steal victories from those who underestimate them and write them off as "just another aristocrats deck". Kamber might not always have her partner out, but the Diversion Specialist does a great imitation, replacing the goading with impulse drawing.
Untimely Malfunction
Abrade is a flexible removal spell that has seen plenty of play as a utility removal spell, and this may have completely outclassed it. Untimely Malfunction marries removal, anti-removal, stack interaction, and blocker removal, all for the same cost as Abrade. Modal spells are potent, and this is a perfect card for a Swiss army knife commander, like Riku of Many Paths. You might not be able to choose more than one mode, but Riku adds value to this card, which is already way more flexible than it should be for its cost.
Ripchain Razorkin
This unsuspecting common has high base stats and a great incidental ability in reach, but the real value is in the activated ability. In an era when activated abilities often have limits, being able to activate an ability that draws cards multiple times a turn is noteworthy. True, the cost is quite heavy, and sacrificing a land, but there are decks where lands in the grave is a good thing, or at least, less of a bad thing. Kirri, Talented Sprout can return those lands in the post-combat main phase, and Hazezon, Shaper of Sand can play Deserts from the graveyard, while Yuma, Proud Protector makes Plant Warriors when Deserts are destroyed. Any of those would be glad to include a card like this.
Grab the Prize
A rummage effect combined with a burn spell, this is a tremendous upgrade to Tormenting Voice. Inti, Seneschal of the Sun and Brallin, Skyshark Rider are eating well again, as are burn commanders, like Ojer Axonil, Deepest Might. Turning this card into Flame Rift with upside just for having the commander out is an incredible boon, and this may have just replaced Tormenting Voice in all but the most dedicated decks.
Ragged Playmate
Another unassuming toy for red decks to play with, this little fella could have some very neat uses. Perhaps the neatest use is for Alesha, Who Smiles at Death decks, which can use a way to sneak creatures through at instant speed. It can even be used on what Alesha reanimates, if you hold priority in the Declare Attackers steps. Giving Master of Cruelties unblockable just seems... cruel.
Red gets a lot of really cool pieces in Duskmourn, including win cons, role-players, and what's likely to be a staple of red decks for years to come. Red's draw leans hard into impulse and rummage spells, working towards a critical mass, and its win cons include potent threats for clone or blink decks, as well as potential combo pieces. Removal might be light, but there's an Earthquake with upside and a strictly better version of an existing staple, which will likely become a chase uncommon. All in all, not a bad haul!
But what do YOU think? And what's YOUR favorite red card from Duskmourn?
