I’ve always been intrigued with the idea of dredge. It fascinated me how differently dredge decks played compared to other types of decks. I knew I had to one day try it out for myself. Once Innistrad spoilers started coming up, I knew my time to make a dredge deck had come. Since I only play EDH these days, I knew I couldn’t just make a 60-card legacy dredge deck. I had to improvise. I knew Glissa, the Traitor would be the general I would want to use- her colors are all about dredge. Also, she has a unique ability that this deck will try to abuse. This deck is actually a conglomeration off of two deck ideas I had brewing- one was a previous version of the EDH dredge idea and the other was a deck based around Birthing Pod. This deck has gone through quite a bit of work- but I know it can still be improved. So I finally decided to stop being lazy and post my deck! I love the idea of an EDH dredge deck, and any help will be greatly appreciated.
Why Use Glissa, the Traitor?
It is obvious that an EDH dredge deck needs a GB general at the helm. But out of all of the GB/X generals, why did I choose Glissa, the Traitor? Why didn’t I just use Karador, Ghost Chieftain? Believe me, I considered him. I decided to use Glissa over Karador because Karador relies too heavily on creatures imo. That is not the case with Glissa. As you will see later, this deck doesn’t even rely on creature beat down as the primary win condition.
You should play this deck if:
-You like dredge.
-You want to try something "new" for EDH.
-You're awesome.
You should not play this deck if:
-You hate trying something different.
-You feel like U needs to be in any viable EDH deck.
-You aren't awesome.
Note: Some cards are listed in multiple locations. That is ok-they serve multiple functions.
How to Play Glissa Rebirth
Glissa Rebirth is a dredge deck, so you are obviously going to want to be able to get to your dredge enablers as soon as possible. This can be done through a variety of ways, whether it be through Survival of the Fittest, using Fauna Shaman's ability, or by chucking them straight into your graveyard through Entomb. You can even kill your dredge creatures through any of the creature kill/sac cards in the deck. OR you can discard the dredge cards from your hand through Inquisition of Kozilek, Nightmare Void, Thoughtseize, Cabal Therapy, Liliana of the Veil, Putrid Imp or Lion's Eye Diamond. Getting a dredge card into the graveyard shouldn't be a problem. Once you start to dredge, you need to figure out how you are going to win. The main win condition this deck has is a Mindslaver lock. You enable it by making sure your opponent has a creature that dies each turn. That is what Engineered Plague and Forbidden Orchard are there for. Equipping Glissa, the Traitor with Viridian Longbow works just as well as Engineered Plague. Once you get that assembled, you are well on your way. That isn't all though. Playing Mindslaver every turn is very mana intensive. You need to get out Priest of Titania and/or Elvish Archdruid to start pumping out loads of mana. Don't worry, you can get them out just as easily as your dredge enablers. Once you assemble the lock, the game is yours for the taking.
Overview of Card Choices
Lands
Bayou/Overgrown Tomb: Do I really need to explain these? You can fetch either one of these with any of the fetchlands, but you probably already knew that.
Fetchlands: I run as many the GB color combination has to offer. Great way to fix the mana base up.
Woodland: Taps for whichever color I need. With all my fetches, this tends to come into play untapped.
Bazaar of Baghdad: Fantastic land that the opponent must deal with, or lose.
Forbidden Orchard: Super important in this deck. Works in conjunction with Engineered Plague or when you have Glissa equipped to Viridian Longbow. Yep, Glissa headshots spirits with a bow and arrow. What did you expect-she is an elf after all. Anyway, this land is essential for the Mindslaver lock.
Dakmor Salvage: Dredge! Need I say more? Not the best dredge card, but it can get the ball rolling.
Gaea's Cradle: Can give absurd amounts of mana if the deck is built accordingly.
Dakmor Salvage: Not the best dredge card, but it can certainly help get the ball rolling. Most beneficial when I'm up against a deck with multiple geddon effects.
Darkblast: Fantastic piece or recur able creature control.
Golgari Thug: Great way to bring back my mana dorks that have been dredged away or killed.
Plunge into Darkness: Here is a card not many people will be willing to use. Personally, I think it is awesome for digging for whatever it is you need. The fact that it is an instant makes it all the more better.
Tutor
Demonic Consultation: The epitome of black in MTG. Obviously dangerous, but this instant-speed tutor wins games out of nowhere.
Nihil Spellbomb/ Shred Memory: Instant-speed graveyard hate. Graveyard shenanigans from my opponent is a no-no.
Toshiro Umezawa: The glue that keeps this deck together. Without his unique ability, there would be no way to possibly succeed with this deck. Plus, he's a bamf- who doesn't love this guy?
Creature/Permanent Control
Beast Within: Awesome removal. We basically never have to worry about the token that is created.
Bitterblossom: Awesome token generator that can be used to apply pressure to the opponent, or used for a Birthing Pod chain.
Garruk Relentless / Garruk, the Veil Cursed: Both sides of Garruk give this deck options, whether it be to create a token, kill a creature, or tutor for a creature. His ultimate is just gravy that can help finish the game.
Liliana of the Veil: Another great planeswalker for this deck. Her discard ability is flat out unfair, her second ability is useful, and her ultimate wins games.
Rofellos, Llanowar Emissary: I ran him in a previous build of this deck, but I could never consistently get lots of forests into play. Priest of Titania has proven to be much better.
Winter Orb: Pretty much every deck in the French meta either runs this card, or doesn't get deterred by it at all. No reason to run a card that will not help me.
Buried Alive: Tried it out, but was proving to be lackluster.
Bridge from Below: Awesome card in legacy dredge. Gets crazy with Ichorid. Too bad it doesn't transfer over very well in a singleton format. If you can find a way to abuse this card in EDH, please let me know!
More Dredge: Quite frankly, more dredge isn't needed. I already run the best dredge cards there are. Sure, I guess I could run something like Golgari Grave-Troll, but he isn't going to be helping me for much besides dredging-which isn't good enough.
Cards I'm Considering
Ad Nauseam: Instant speed draw is always nice. I'm just not sure if it is needed. After all, dredging is like drawing.
Tumble Magnet: Could come in handy. Not sure on how much I really want it.
Closing and Thanks
Thanks for taking a look at my deck. I have no idea how this will fare against other powerful decks in the format (especially in the French meta), but I hope to make this as good as can be. Be sure to leave a comment ;).
I considered doing what you suggested with Raven's Crime, but then I found Nightmare Void. It works so much better for this deck than Raven's Crime ever could. Sure it costs more (which is lame), but I get to choose what card my opponent gets rid of. Plus it dredges! A fair tradeoff, I think.
I'm also considering running Riftsweeper. After all, the only real way my opponent can deal with a dredge creature is through exile. If I add him then I definitely want to try out Demonic Consultation and Plunge into Darkness over my current tutors. I know that exiling your own cards is generally frowned upon, but they will hurt less if I'm running Rift Sweeper. Plus they are instant speed- I can play them from my graveyard through Toshiro Umezawa. Thoughts?
I also added Bridge from Below in the "Why not This Card?" Section. It is an all-star in legacy dredge, especially with Ichorid, but it doesn't transfer over well into a singleton format like EDH. If somebody knows of a way to abuse it, please let me know!
lastly, Dredge just seems sub-par. Surely there is a better card to fit this guy's slot.
Love the deck idea and good luck.
Hey, thanks for the comment! Glad to see a fan :).
I decided not to run Golgari Grave-Troll in here because he doesn't really do anything besides dredge. All the other dredge cards in here do something relevant. If I ever feel like I need more dredge, GGT will probably be the first new one I look at.
Skullclamp will probably come in handy. Thanks for pointing that out. I kind of forgot about it :rolleyes:.
Dredge is in here because I'm paranoid that my opponents will Path to Exile or Swords to Plowshares my dredge creatures. It is a cheap safety precaution that also cantrips. I'll take it out right now and try Skullclamp in its place and see how that goes.
I can't run Academy Ruins in this deck because it has a U mana symbol. But I did try out Buried Ruin, and I found it to be a bit lackluster.
Volrath's Stronghold and Worm Harvest are interesting suggestions. I don't like how Volrath's Stronghold taps for colorless mana, but the ability may be useful. I'll look into it. I don't think I need Worm Harvest, but it could be an alternate win condition. Thanks for your input!
I've also noticed that permanent creature pumping cards like Elesh Norn, Grand Cenobite make this deck sad. I need to find a way to deal with them consistently, or just lock out my opponent before they get to those types of cards.
I'm beginning to feel that running Winter Orb isn't necessary. All the top decks in the French meta already either play it themselves or they don't get deterred by it.
I finally got around to playtesting this deck a bit, and I must say that I'm loving it! This deck is definitley my baby :). My favorite part of this deck is probably the fact that it plays so differently than all of the other decks I've ever played with. Playing against blue mages is annoying, but by no means a lost cause. If they counter something, it isn't the end of the world- I seem to have enough recursion in this deck. Blue mages are just annoying. I can't believe how awesome Nightmare Void is. That card by itself has won me some games. There is nothing like dropping Glissa, the Traitor early, follow it up by a Nightmare Void loop, dredge Lightning Greaves into the graveyard, return it to your hand via Glissa's ability, and equip to Glissa before my opponent draws instant speed removal. Fun stuff. It may have just been a fluke (Lightning Greaves got dredged early both times this happened), but I'm interested in seeing how good that interaction really is. I'll have to add more hexproof/shroud equipments in here to increase my chances of dredging into a Lightning Greavesesque effect.
All in all, I'm excited to see how far this deck can go. Comments/critiques appreciated as always.
"I'll have to add more hexproof/shroud equipments in here to increase my chances of dredging into a Lightning Greavesesque effect."
That sounds like a bad idea, the only reason Greaves is even half playable is that it's so undercosted. Just focus on increasing your disruption and threat density.
"I'll have to add more hexproof/shroud equipments in here to increase my chances of dredging into a Lightning Greavesesque effect."
That sounds like a bad idea, the only reason Greaves is even half playable is that it's so undercosted. Just focus on increasing your disruption and threat density.
Lol ok. Makes sense.
I have never really played against the top decks in the French meta. Do you think my deck stands a chance against other top contenders like Sygg or Edric, or is dredge just too slow?
I think Glissa is A) aggressively costed B) has a large impact on the board presence (aka stops ground attackers cold) and c) has a reasonable method of creating card advantage. So yes I think she has a lot of untapped potential for competitive edh.
With that being said I've never seen the deck in action, so I can only help so much, but browsing through your list these appear to be cards that seem out of place. My suggestions are geared towards making an attrition control deck, that has a Mindslaver finish, that means that every card has to help you reach endgame, as well as hopefully still be good in the endgame, but not endgame only cards. Also each card needs to be good in every matchup, aka removal that can't kill Zur is sketchy.
With that said:
Seems bad / slow / out of place:
Disciple of the Vault - Goblin Fireslinger doesn't do anything
Expedition Map - slow, low value targets
Lightning Greaves - your general is low value, however greaves is very undercosted
tangle wire - your not a tempo deck so its not that great for you, the effect to so natually unsyemtric tho this may work out, I am wary tho
Engineered Plague - the combo with Orchard is useless, and its low impact
Toshiro Umezawa
Crop Rotation - low value targets
Dark Rit - card disadvantage, if you want to increase your tempo, just run more cheap removal that eliminates the opponetns tempo (this deosnt create card disadvantage btw) instead of runnigns cards like this
Demonic Consultation - your not a combo deck
Noxious Revival - Regrowth is better
Plunge into Darkness
reclaim
Vines of Vastwood -why?
Buried Alive - too slow / low impact, entomb is sick becuase it gets Life from the Loam which is probaly the best card in the deck, this does not.
Loaming Shaman - why? If you feel you need more GY hate, that new green guy from the Commander pre-cons is better, but you dont need more GY hate
Riftsweeper - why?
Missing
Wurm Coil Engine
Original garruk
Fyndhorn elves
Birds of Paradise
Raven's Crime
Artifact Lands
The new "non-vampire" removal
Oversold Cemetray
Oath of Ghouls
Mirri's Guile
Survival of the Fittest
Viridian Longbow - setting up an indefinite creature kill engine is a win condition in and of itself versus alot of decks in the competitive 1v1 meta (see: Zur, Edirc, Sygg etc) especially one that is self recurring (commander recurs herself, who recurs the longbow) and comes online turn4.
Sword of Fire and Ice
Hymn to Tourach
Sylvok Replica
Engineered Explosives
Memory Jar
Volrath's Stronghold - with a life from the Loam / Dredge engine a must
Gaea's Cradle - a must for mindslaver recursion, makes expedition map alot better, but not crop rotation.
Eternal Witness
Demonic Tutor
Golgari Grave-Troll
Maybe's
Lotus Petal
Masticore/Molten-Tail Masticore/Razormane Masticore
Golgari Signet
Mindstone
Mimic Vat - undervalued in 1v1 I think
Smokestack
Leyline of the Void/Helm of Obedience
Grave Titan
Hero's Demise
Grasp of Darkness
Thanks for the in-depth look at my deck Narglfrob! Now, to talk about some of my card decisions (I know, I still need to do that in the OP)...
I'm QQing so hard because you think that my Engineered Plague + Forbidden Orchard combo is a waste of space. I know Glissa + Viridian Longbow is probably better, but I like having a bit of redundancy in my deck.
Disciple of the Vault is in here for when I have assembled the Mindslaver lock. Once I assemble the lock, I can just draw my deck until I reach Disciple, play him, and basically never have to worry about attacking at all.
That is when Loaming Shaman comes into play. If I am about to deck myself (possible if Disciple of the Vault was on the bottom of my deck), I can just play the shaman to fill up my library again. I use his ability mainly for myself than my opponent.
I can't believe I forgot about Gaea's Cradle. I'll probably cut a basic land for that.
I'm honestly not a fan of Volrath's Stronghold for this deck. The first reason is because it taps for colorless mana. The second reason is that its ability isn't useful for this deck. It will be better in a reanimation deck than in a dredge deck, and seeing as I have no bomb creatures in this deck, it obviously won't be good.
Seeing as how this is a dredge deck, lots of my good spells can and do go straight from my library to my graveyard. Toshiro Umezawa is being run to help fix that problem. His ability is slow though, but when he works, he shines.
Demonic Consultation and Plunge into Darkness are in here not only for their useful effects, but also because they are instant speed (good with Toshiro). They've been working well for me so far.
Noxious Revival is being run in place of Regrowth because it is an instant. I previously ran regrowth, but always had to wish upon a star that it won't get dredged away. Thanks to Toshiro Umezawa, I just don't care if revival gets dredged. Reclaim is another noxious revival. Both of these cards have helped me out more than Yawgmoth's Will. Weird, huh?
I haven't really been able to play around with Tangle Wire enough to know if I really want it. It stays in for now I guess.
I was thinking about taking out Lightning Greaves before, but I just can't seem to do it. I like the protection it provides, and the ability to give my mana elves haste.
Riftsweeper is in if and when Demonic Consultation/Plunge into Darkness exile another card that I need. Plus he is an elf, so Priest of Titania and Elvish Archdruid like him. Also, if for whatever reason I have to cast a dredge creature and my opponent exiles it, I can save them (that last one is a weak argument, I know). He helps save exiled cards, and is an elf-good enough for right now.
"Removal that can't kill Zur is sketchy." I agree. Smother will come out for... something else. Sudden Death maybe? I hate how that costs 1BB...
I'm not sure how I feel about your take on Dark Ritual. I can see where you are coming from, but the French meta is influenced heavily on speed. Dark Ritual can allow me to go off two turns (mana) earlier than usual if I have it in the grave and Toshiro Umezawa out on the field. Major if factor, but a possibility nonetheless. It'll be on the chopping board.
I agree with you on Buried Alive. It has been proving to be lackluster. Demonic Tutor should be better.
I'm running Fauna Shaman over Survival of the Fittest. I have more ways to bring Fauna Shaman out and back from the graveyard than I do for survival.
Wurmcoil Engine seems like nothing more than a dumb beater. Splinterfright is arguably the best beater for this deck, but I might end up cutting him and focus more on the Mindslaver lock.
Original Garruk suddenly became relevant once you reminded me of Gaea's Cradle. Is it worth adding just for that?
I feel that Memory Jar is more cute with Glissa than anything. The only artifact that I want to keep recurring is Mindslaver.
Regarding Disciple of the Vault and Mindslaver lock... Nargl said that your win condition will be Mindslaver lock. That's it. It doesn't need help. If your opponent does not have an answer in hand, he will never have a turn the rest of the game. He will concede the game. It's over. Even if they make you play it out, I guarantee you will find a way to win before you draw your deck. And this is also why you don't need loaming shaman.
edit: he also suggested artifact lands... got me thinking... maybe you could add in pox/smallpox/death cloud and some artifact lands. With glissa in play, casting those spells will get you the artifact land back to your hand immediately. Plus you already have life from the loam... whatcha think? Might be too far-fetched but IDK
Regarding Disciple of the Vault and Mindslaver lock... Nargl said that your win condition will be Mindslaver lock. That's it. It doesn't need help. If your opponent does not have an answer in hand, he will never have a turn the rest of the game. He will concede the game. It's over. Even if they make you play it out, I guarantee you will find a way to win before you draw your deck. And this is also why you don't need loaming shaman.
edit: he also suggested artifact lands... got me thinking... maybe you could add in pox/smallpox/death cloud and some artifact lands. With glissa in play, casting those spells will get you the artifact land back to your hand immediately. Plus you already have life from the loam... whatcha think? Might be too far-fetched but IDK
*grumble grumble grumble*
Ok I'll take out Disciple of the Vault and Loaming Shaman. I can see where you guys are coming from as to why they aren't needed. That's an interesting suggestion for the artifact lands, but I was thinking something else for the two open slots.
I was thinking Heritage Druid can take the spot of Disciple. Having druid out can increase my speed of comboing out by tapping non-mana elves like Glissa, Riftsweeper, and Fauna Shaman. Would Birchlore Rangers or Fyndhorn Elves be more realistic?
The artifact lands would be best if I was running something like Raven's Crime or Mox Opal. Since, I'm not running either, I don't think they'll help at all.
As for Genesis Wave, I just don't feel it is necessary. I hate how it costs XGGG and is a sorcery (would suck if it gets dredged). Also, I fear that I might over-extend if I manage to play it. If my opponent fears it, they can just counter it. Or just nuke the board next turn. If they can't do either, then I should already be winning.
Hey I followed the link from your sig in my Skithiryx post, I just have kind of the opposite question for you, what would you add into this deck/replace if you were playing under non french ban list? I like your idea, just trying to figure out a way to adapt it locally.
If I were to use the multiplayer ban-list, I'd definatly give Hermit Druid a chance in this deck. Honestly though, I feel that he might be a bit too fast for my current build (not positive, just my gut feeling). If you plan on using him, you'll probably have to change this deck up some (lower the amount of basic lands in here and you might just have to take out Scrying Sheets. I'd probably replace Hermit Druid with Yawgmoth's Will, because quite frankly, Will has been disappointing. More times than not it seems like it just gets dredged into my graveyard- and since it is a sorcery, it's probably going to stay there.
As for other cards, Sol Ring/Mana Cryptcould be good, so you might want to try those out. I'm not a fan of Sensei's Divining Top in this deck, because once you start dredging for 3 or more, it becomes pointless.
I'm glad my list sparked your interest! If you do end up building it, let me know how it turns out!
If I were to use the multiplayer ban-list, I'd definatly give Hermit Druid a chance in this deck. Honestly though, I feel that he might be a bit too fast for my current build (not positive, just my gut feeling). If you plan on using him, you'll probably have to change this deck up some (lower the amount of basic lands in here and you might just have to take out Scrying Sheets. I'd probably replace Hermit Druid with Yawgmoth's Will, because quite frankly, Will has been disappointing. More times than not it seems like it just gets dredged into my graveyard- and since it is a sorcery, it's probably going to stay there.
As for other cards, Sol Ring/Mana Cryptcould be good, so you might want to try those out. I'm not a fan of Sensei's Divining Top in this deck, because once you start dredging for 3 or more, it becomes pointless.
I'm glad my list sparked your interest! If you do end up building it, let me know how it turns out!
Yeah I am looking to build something Black/Green and I am between Glissa and Nath ... the only problem I am having doing some playtesting online with your deck is I don't know how to play it all that well so far lol.
Yeah I am looking to build something Black/Green and I am between Glissa and Nath ... the only problem I am having doing some playtesting online with your deck is I don't know how to play it all that well so far lol.
Yeah, its tough to get a handle on the deck. I love it!
Thornbite Staff is wicked powerful with Glissa. When equipped, she gets "2: Kill target creature" since she untaps herself. Combined with Viridian Longbow, it basically shuts down your opponent's chances of sticking creatures.
I'd ditch the Dismember. In EDH, I don't think it's strong enough.
Also, someone may have mentioned this, but no Primeval Titan?
Oh, and thanks for uploading a second Glissa primer.
(Self-Note: Must get Diabolic Intent.)
Private Mod Note
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"When does a man die? When he is hit by a bullet? No! When he suffers a disease? No! When he ate a soup made out of a poisonous mushroom? No! A man dies when he is forgotten!" Currently Piloting: EDH BGGlissa, The Traitor - Recursion (Primer) WBRKaalia of The Vast URGRiku of Two Reflections WUBSydri, Galvanic Genius UBRamirez DePietro GWKrond, The Dawn-Clad GWUDerevi, Empyrial Tactician RGOmnath, Locus of Rage
Thornbite Staff is wicked powerful with Glissa. When equipped, she gets "2: Kill target creature" since she untaps herself. Combined with Viridian Longbow, it basically shuts down your opponent's chances of sticking creatures.
I'd ditch the Dismember. In EDH, I don't think it's strong enough.
Also, someone may have mentioned this, but no Primeval Titan?
Oh, and thanks for uploading a second Glissa primer.
(Self-Note: Must get Diabolic Intent.)
I previously considerd running Thornbite Staff but quickly decided against it. For starters, the main way this deck ensures an opponent's creature dies is via Engineered Plague + Forbidden Orchard. The second route is going with Glissa, the Traitor + Viridian Longbow. I feel like adding the staff isn't necessary. It costs one more to play and equip than Viridian Longbow, and you can't even machine gun the opponent's creatures unless you already have lots of mana. So yeah, I'm not a fan of Thornbite Staff.
Dismember is actually really good in the French meta, which is usually filled with cheap utility creatures. Also, kill spells in the french meta need to be able to deal with Zur the Enchanter before he gets out of hand, and Dismember does that job pretty well.
With all the mana elves I'm running, I don't think Primeval Titan will help much. He's an all-star in multiplayer EDH, but 1v1 is much different. I could be wrong here, but I feel he is just not necessary.
Your deck might be better equipped for Diabolic Intent than mine is. I'm not sure how I feel about it. I like how it can tutor up anything, but the only creatures I'm willing to sac will be the dredge creatures (which I should be discarding rather than casting in the first place).
Also, sadly, I haven't gotten around to do much playtesting with this deck. If someone wants to give this deck a test run on cockatrice and let us know how it went, that'll be awesome :D.
Why Use Glissa, the Traitor?
You should play this deck if:
-You like dredge.
-You want to try something "new" for EDH.
-You're awesome.
You should not play this deck if:
-You hate trying something different.
-You feel like U needs to be in any viable EDH deck.
-You aren't awesome.
Deck List by Card Type
1x Glissa, the Traitor
Lands (37):
1x Bayou
1x Bazaar of Baghdad
1x Bloodstained Mire
1x Cabal Pit
1x City of Brass
1x Command Tower
1x Dakmor Salvage
1x Forbidden Orchard
1x Gaea's Cradle
1x Marsh Flats
1x Misty Rainforest
1x Overgrown Tomb
1x Phyrexian Tower
1x Polluted Delta
1x Scrying Sheets
7x Snow-Covered Forest
8x Snow-Covered Swamp
1x Wirewood Lodge
1x Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth
1x Verdant Catacombs
1x Wasteland
1x Windswept Heath
1x Wooded Foothills
1x Woodland Cemetery
Artifact (12):
1x Executioner’s Capsule
1x Expedition Map
1x Lightning Greaves
1x Lion's Eye Diamond
1x Mindslaver
1x Mox Diamond
1x Nihil Spellbomb
1x Pithing Needle
1x Skullclamp
1x Tangle Wire
1x Umezawa’s Jitte
1x Viridian Longbow
1x Bitterblossom
1x Dark Tutelage
1x Engineered Plague
1x Pernicious Deed
1x Phyrexian Arena
1x Survival of the Fittest
1x Sylvan Library
Planeswalker (2):
1x Garruk Relentless / Garruk, the Veil-Cursed
1x Liliana of the Veil
Creature (16):
1x Arbor Elf
1x Elves of Deep Shadow
1x Heritage Druid
1x Llanowar Elves
1x Putrid Imp
1x Dark Confidant
1x Fauna Shaman
1x Golgari Thug
1x Phyrexian Revoker
1x Priest of Titania
1x Riftsweeper
1x Elvish Archdruid
1x Eternal Witness
1x Splinterfright
1x Stinkweed Imp
1x Toshiro Umezawa
Instant (14):
1x Beast Within
1x Crop Rotation
1x Darkblast
1x Demonic Consultation
1x Dismember
1x Entomb
1x Go for the Throat
1x Krosan Grip
1x Noxious Revival
1x Plunge into Darkness
1x Putrefy
1x Reclaim
1x Shred Memory
1x Worldly Tutor
1x Cabal Therapy
1x Demonic Tutor
1x Diabolic Intent
1x Duress
1x Inquisition of Kozilek
1x Life from the Loam
1x Maelstrom Pulse
1x Nightmare Void
1x Reanimate
1x Thoughtseize
1x Unearth
Deck List by Card Function
1x Bloodstained Mire
1x Marsh Flats
1x Misty Rainforest
1x Polluted Delta
1x Verdant Catacombs
1x Windswept Heath
1x Wooded Foothills
Utility Lands:
1x Bazaar of Baghdad
1x Cabal Pit
1x Dakmor Salvage
1x Forbidden Orchard
1x Gaea's Cradle
1x Phyrexian Tower
1x Scrying Sheets
1x Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth
1x Wasteland
1x Wirewood Lodge
Any Color Lands:
1x Bayou
1x City of Brass
1x Command Tower
1x Forbidden Orchard
1x Overgrown Tomb
1x Woodland Cemetery
Basic Lands:
7x Snow-Covered Forest
8x Snow-Covered Swamp
Mana Ramp/Fixing:
1x Arbor Elf
1x Crop Rotation
1x Elves of Deep Shadow
1x Elvish Archdruid
1x Expedition Map
1x Heritage Druid
1x Lion's Eye Diamond
1x Llanowar Elves
1x Mox Diamond
1x Priest of Titania
1x Dakmor Salvage
1x Darkblast
1x Golgari Thug
1x Life from the Loam
1x Nightmare Void
1x Splinterfright
1x Stinkweed Imp
Draw:
1x Bazaar of Baghdad
1x Dark Confidant
1x Dark Tutelage
1x Plunge into Darkness
1x Phyrexian Arena
1x Skullclamp
1x Sylvan Library
Tutor:
1x Demonic Consultation
1x Demonic Tutor
1x Diabolic Intent
1x Entomb
1x Fauna Shaman
1x Survival of the Fittest
1x Worldly Tutor
Graveyard Control:
1x Eternal Witness
1x Nihil Spellbomb
1x Noxious Revival
1x Reanimate
1x Reclaim
1x Shred Memory
1x Toshiro Umezawa
1x Unearth
Creature/Permanent Control:
1x Beast Within
1x Dismember
1x Engineered Plague
1x Executioner’s Capsule
1x Go for the Throat
1x Krosan Grip
1x Lightning Greaves
1x Maelstrom Pulse
1x Pernicious Deed
1x Phyrexian Revoker
1x Pithing Needle
1x Plunge into Darkness
1x Putrefy
1x Tangle Wire
1x Umezawa’s Jitte
1x Viridian Longbow
1x Cabal Therapy
1x Duress
1x Inquisition of Kozilek
1x Lion's Eye Diamond
1x Mindslaver
1x Nightmare Void
1x Putrid Imp
1x Thoughtseize
Other:
1x Bitterblossom
1x Garruk Relentless / Garruk, the Veil-Cursed
1x Glissa, the Traitor
1x Liliana of the Veil
1x Riftsweeper
Note: Some cards are listed in multiple locations. That is ok-they serve multiple functions.
How to Play Glissa Rebirth
Overview of Card Choices
Lands
Bayou/Overgrown Tomb: Do I really need to explain these? You can fetch either one of these with any of the fetchlands, but you probably already knew that.
Fetchlands: I run as many the GB color combination has to offer. Great way to fix the mana base up.
Woodland: Taps for whichever color I need. With all my fetches, this tends to come into play untapped.
Bazaar of Baghdad: Fantastic land that the opponent must deal with, or lose.
Cabal Pit: Creature removal in a land slot. Nice.
Command Tower: Fantastic EDH-only land.
Forbidden Orchard: Super important in this deck. Works in conjunction with Engineered Plague or when you have Glissa equipped to Viridian Longbow. Yep, Glissa headshots spirits with a bow and arrow. What did you expect-she is an elf after all. Anyway, this land is essential for the Mindslaver lock.
Dakmor Salvage: Dredge! Need I say more? Not the best dredge card, but it can get the ball rolling.
Gaea's Cradle: Can give absurd amounts of mana if the deck is built accordingly.
Phyrexian Tower: Sac outlet for the dredge critters.
Scrying Sheets: Draw for a non-blue deck? Yes please!
Wasteland: Deals with annoying lands my opponent may be running.
Wirewood Lodge: Mainly for Elvish Archdruid or Priest of Titania.
Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth: Mana fixing that allows my lands that tap for colorless mana tap for black mana.
Mana Ramp/Fixing
Arbor Elf/Heritage Druid/Elves of Deep Shadow/Llanowar Elves: One drop elves that get better with Elvish Archdruid and Priest of Titania.
Crop Rotation/Expedition Map: Land tutors.
Mox Diamond: Great way to get early mana acceleration.
Lion's Eye Diamond: I can't believe they unbanned this. The verdict is still out to see if the French Ban List allows it.
Priest of Titania/ Elvish Archdruid: Crazy mana acceleration. They are the wheels that keep the Mindslaver lock going.
Dredge
Dakmor Salvage: Not the best dredge card, but it can certainly help get the ball rolling. Most beneficial when I'm up against a deck with multiple geddon effects.
Darkblast: Fantastic piece or recur able creature control.
Golgari Thug: Great way to bring back my mana dorks that have been dredged away or killed.
Life from the Loam: Staple dredge card.
Nightmare Void: Useful recurable disruption. Doesn't dredge a lot, but it has still earned its place.
Splinterfright: Arguably the best beater for this deck. He also has a built-in mill ability, which is useful.
Stinkweed Imp: Another dredge staple. Dredging for 5 a turn really gets the ball rolling.
Draw
Bazaar of Baghdad: Awesome land for this deck.
Dark Confidant/Dark Tutelage: Fantastic if you have a deck with a low curve.
Phyrexian Arena: A must. Dredge decks need draw outlets, and this is one of the best.
Skullclamp: Same reasoning behind Phyrexian Arena.
Plunge into Darkness: Here is a card not many people will be willing to use. Personally, I think it is awesome for digging for whatever it is you need. The fact that it is an instant makes it all the more better.
Tutor
Demonic Consultation: The epitome of black in MTG. Obviously dangerous, but this instant-speed tutor wins games out of nowhere.
Demonic Tutor: Obvious inclusion.
Diabolic Intent: Tutor effect that doubles as a sac outlet.
Entomb: Best tutor in the deck. No doubt about it.
Fauna Shaman/Survival of the Fittest. Creature tutor effects that double as a discard outlet.
Worldly Tutor: Instant-speed creature tutor.
Graveyard Control
Eternal Witness: Brings back anything from my graveyard that has been dredged or killed.
Noxious Revival/ Reclaim: Mandatory cards in an EDH dredge deck.
Reanimate/ Unearth: Obvious cards are obvious.
Nihil Spellbomb/ Shred Memory: Instant-speed graveyard hate. Graveyard shenanigans from my opponent is a no-no.
Toshiro Umezawa: The glue that keeps this deck together. Without his unique ability, there would be no way to possibly succeed with this deck. Plus, he's a bamf- who doesn't love this guy?
Creature/Permanent Control
Beast Within: Awesome removal. We basically never have to worry about the token that is created.
Dismember/ Go for the Throat: Fantastic creature removal.
Engineered Plague: Awesome card that combos well with Forbidden Orchard.
Executioner's Capsule: Pretty much an auto-include in a Glissa, the Traitor deck.
Krosan Grip: Split-second ftw! Too good to exclude.
Lightning Greaves: Used to protect Glissa, or to equip to our elves to get some haste action going on.
Maelstrom Pulse: Great removal card.
Pernicious Deed: The only wrath effect in this deck.
Phyrexian Revoker/ Pithing Needle: **** you graveyard hate!
Plunge into Darkness: Not only does this card draw, it can also be used as a sac outlet. Or both! Great card.
Putrefy: Great removal capabilities.
Tangle Wire: This card is just so busted.
Umezawa's Jitte: Best equipment in the game. Can hurt our deck and other popular decks.
Viridian Longbow: Equip to Glissa. Proceed to win.
Player/Hand Control
Cabal Therapy: Dredge staple. Allows me to put a dredge card into the graveyard turn one.
Duress/ Inquisition of Kozilek/ Thoughtseize: Best discard cards in the game.
Lion's Eye Diamond: The "drawback" helps this deck out by putting those dredge cards into the graveyard early.
Nightmare Void: Hand control that also dredges. Sweet.
Putrid Imp: Quite possibly the best discard outlet for this deck. Allows us to start discarding dredge cards turn one.
Mindslaver: Win condition.
Other
Bitterblossom: Awesome token generator that can be used to apply pressure to the opponent, or used for a Birthing Pod chain.
Garruk Relentless / Garruk, the Veil Cursed: Both sides of Garruk give this deck options, whether it be to create a token, kill a creature, or tutor for a creature. His ultimate is just gravy that can help finish the game.
Glissa, the Traitor: Our leader.
Liliana of the Veil: Another great planeswalker for this deck. Her discard ability is flat out unfair, her second ability is useful, and her ultimate wins games.
Riftsweeper: A handy little elf that brings back an exiled dredge creature, or whatever else may have been lost through Demonic Consultation or Plunge into Darkness.
Why not This Card?
Rofellos, Llanowar Emissary: I ran him in a previous build of this deck, but I could never consistently get lots of forests into play. Priest of Titania has proven to be much better.
Winter Orb: Pretty much every deck in the French meta either runs this card, or doesn't get deterred by it at all. No reason to run a card that will not help me.
Buried Alive: Tried it out, but was proving to be lackluster.
Woodfall Primus/ Terastodon/ Avenger of Zendikar: This deck has no need/want for any of these creatures.
Bridge from Below: Awesome card in legacy dredge. Gets crazy with Ichorid. Too bad it doesn't transfer over very well in a singleton format. If you can find a way to abuse this card in EDH, please let me know!
More Dredge: Quite frankly, more dredge isn't needed. I already run the best dredge cards there are. Sure, I guess I could run something like Golgari Grave-Troll, but he isn't going to be helping me for much besides dredging-which isn't good enough.
Cards I'm Considering
Ad Nauseam: Instant speed draw is always nice. I'm just not sure if it is needed. After all, dredging is like drawing.
Prey Upon: Pretty neat. I wish it was an instant.
Tumble Magnet: Could come in handy. Not sure on how much I really want it.
Closing and Thanks
Recollect--> Noxious Revival
Regrowth--> Reclaim
Dryad Arbor--> Riftsweeper
Demonic Tutor--> Demonic Consultation
Diabolic Intent--> Plunge into Darkness
Night of Souls' Betrayal--> Engineered Plague
Swamp--> Phyrexian Tower
Buried Ruin--> Scrying Sheets
Basic Lands--> Snow-Covered Lands
Culling the Weak--> Cabal Therapy
Memnite--> Unearth
Ornithopter--> Bitterblossom
Dredge--> Skullclamp
Winter Orb--> Arbor Elf
Snow-Covered Swamp--> Wirewood Lodge
Buried Alive--> Demonic Tutor
Vines of Vastwood--> Eternal Witness
Snow-Covered Forest-- Gaea's Cradle
Smother--> Viridian Longbow
Dark Ritual--> Putrid Imp
Disciple of the Vault--> Heritage Druid
Loaming Shaman--> Diabolic Intent
Chrome Mox--> Lion's Eye Diamond
Birthing Pod--> Survival of the Fittest
Inkmoth Nexus--> Bazaar of Baghdad
Yawgmoth's Will--> Garruk Wildspeaker
Garruk Wildspeaker--> Worldly Tutor
Snow-Covered Swamp--> Cabal Pit
Engineered Plague is pretty neat- I'll have to give that a try.
I'm also considering running Riftsweeper. After all, the only real way my opponent can deal with a dredge creature is through exile. If I add him then I definitely want to try out Demonic Consultation and Plunge into Darkness over my current tutors. I know that exiling your own cards is generally frowned upon, but they will hurt less if I'm running Rift Sweeper. Plus they are instant speed- I can play them from my graveyard through Toshiro Umezawa. Thoughts?
Dryad Arbor--> Riftsweeper
Demonic Tutor--> Demonic Consultation
Diabolic Intent--> Plunge into Darkness
Night of Souls' Betrayal--> Engineered Plague
Swamp--> Phyrexian Tower
Buried Ruin--> Scrying Sheets
Basic Lands--> Snow-Covered Lands
Culling the Weak--> Cabal Therapy
I also added Bridge from Below in the "Why not This Card?" Section. It is an all-star in legacy dredge, especially with Ichorid, but it doesn't transfer over well into a singleton format like EDH. If somebody knows of a way to abuse it, please let me know!
Also, some changes:
Memnite--> Unearth
Ornithopter--> Bitterblossom
Questions/comments:
why no GGT (Golgari Grave-Troll) - the only dredge 6 card? Seems like an auto-include to me.
also your deck needs more card draw. Consider Skullclamp and creatures like Bloodghast and Nether Traitor.
Also it is pricey but Survival of the Fittest would be a nice addition.
lastly, Dredge just seems sub-par. Surely there is a better card to fit this guy's slot.
Love the deck idea and good luck.
Hey, thanks for the comment! Glad to see a fan :).
I decided not to run Golgari Grave-Troll in here because he doesn't really do anything besides dredge. All the other dredge cards in here do something relevant. If I ever feel like I need more dredge, GGT will probably be the first new one I look at.
Skullclamp will probably come in handy. Thanks for pointing that out. I kind of forgot about it :rolleyes:.
I intentionally left out Survival of the Fittest. Fauna Shaman does the same thing, and I have more ways to get Fauna Shaman than Survival of the Fittest.
Dredge is in here because I'm paranoid that my opponents will Path to Exile or Swords to Plowshares my dredge creatures. It is a cheap safety precaution that also cantrips. I'll take it out right now and try Skullclamp in its place and see how that goes.
Dredge-->Skullclamp
I can't run Academy Ruins in this deck because it has a U mana symbol. But I did try out Buried Ruin, and I found it to be a bit lackluster.
Volrath's Stronghold and Worm Harvest are interesting suggestions. I don't like how Volrath's Stronghold taps for colorless mana, but the ability may be useful. I'll look into it. I don't think I need Worm Harvest, but it could be an alternate win condition. Thanks for your input!
I've also noticed that permanent creature pumping cards like Elesh Norn, Grand Cenobite make this deck sad. I need to find a way to deal with them consistently, or just lock out my opponent before they get to those types of cards.
With that in mind, a quick update!
Winter Orb--> Arbor Elf
Snow-Covered Swamp--> Wirewood Lodge
Also, I want to try out Viridian Longbow. Obviously good with Glissa, the Traitor. No idea what I want to take out though.
All in all, I'm excited to see how far this deck can go. Comments/critiques appreciated as always.
That sounds like a bad idea, the only reason Greaves is even half playable is that it's so undercosted. Just focus on increasing your disruption and threat density.
Lol ok. Makes sense.
I have never really played against the top decks in the French meta. Do you think my deck stands a chance against other top contenders like Sygg or Edric, or is dredge just too slow?
With that being said I've never seen the deck in action, so I can only help so much, but browsing through your list these appear to be cards that seem out of place. My suggestions are geared towards making an attrition control deck, that has a Mindslaver finish, that means that every card has to help you reach endgame, as well as hopefully still be good in the endgame, but not endgame only cards. Also each card needs to be good in every matchup, aka removal that can't kill Zur is sketchy.
With that said:
Seems bad / slow / out of place:
Disciple of the Vault - Goblin Fireslinger doesn't do anything
Expedition Map - slow, low value targets
Lightning Greaves - your general is low value, however greaves is very undercosted
tangle wire - your not a tempo deck so its not that great for you, the effect to so natually unsyemtric tho this may work out, I am wary tho
Engineered Plague - the combo with Orchard is useless, and its low impact
Toshiro Umezawa
Crop Rotation - low value targets
Dark Rit - card disadvantage, if you want to increase your tempo, just run more cheap removal that eliminates the opponetns tempo (this deosnt create card disadvantage btw) instead of runnigns cards like this
Demonic Consultation - your not a combo deck
Noxious Revival - Regrowth is better
Plunge into Darkness
reclaim
Vines of Vastwood -why?
Buried Alive - too slow / low impact, entomb is sick becuase it gets Life from the Loam which is probaly the best card in the deck, this does not.
Loaming Shaman - why? If you feel you need more GY hate, that new green guy from the Commander pre-cons is better, but you dont need more GY hate
Riftsweeper - why?
Missing
Wurm Coil Engine
Original garruk
Fyndhorn elves
Birds of Paradise
Raven's Crime
Artifact Lands
The new "non-vampire" removal
Oversold Cemetray
Oath of Ghouls
Mirri's Guile
Survival of the Fittest
Viridian Longbow - setting up an indefinite creature kill engine is a win condition in and of itself versus alot of decks in the competitive 1v1 meta (see: Zur, Edirc, Sygg etc) especially one that is self recurring (commander recurs herself, who recurs the longbow) and comes online turn4.
Sword of Fire and Ice
Hymn to Tourach
Sylvok Replica
Engineered Explosives
Memory Jar
Volrath's Stronghold - with a life from the Loam / Dredge engine a must
Gaea's Cradle - a must for mindslaver recursion, makes expedition map alot better, but not crop rotation.
Eternal Witness
Demonic Tutor
Golgari Grave-Troll
Maybe's
Lotus Petal
Masticore/Molten-Tail Masticore/Razormane Masticore
Golgari Signet
Mindstone
Mimic Vat - undervalued in 1v1 I think
Smokestack
Leyline of the Void/Helm of Obedience
Grave Titan
Hero's Demise
Grasp of Darkness
Hope this gives you some ideas to chew on.
I'm QQing so hard because you think that my Engineered Plague + Forbidden Orchard combo is a waste of space. I know Glissa + Viridian Longbow is probably better, but I like having a bit of redundancy in my deck.
Disciple of the Vault is in here for when I have assembled the Mindslaver lock. Once I assemble the lock, I can just draw my deck until I reach Disciple, play him, and basically never have to worry about attacking at all.
That is when Loaming Shaman comes into play. If I am about to deck myself (possible if Disciple of the Vault was on the bottom of my deck), I can just play the shaman to fill up my library again. I use his ability mainly for myself than my opponent.
Expedition Map and Crop Rotation are in here mainly to find Forbidden Orchard or any other land that may be important.
I can't believe I forgot about Gaea's Cradle. I'll probably cut a basic land for that.
I'm honestly not a fan of Volrath's Stronghold for this deck. The first reason is because it taps for colorless mana. The second reason is that its ability isn't useful for this deck. It will be better in a reanimation deck than in a dredge deck, and seeing as I have no bomb creatures in this deck, it obviously won't be good.
Seeing as how this is a dredge deck, lots of my good spells can and do go straight from my library to my graveyard. Toshiro Umezawa is being run to help fix that problem. His ability is slow though, but when he works, he shines.
Demonic Consultation and Plunge into Darkness are in here not only for their useful effects, but also because they are instant speed (good with Toshiro). They've been working well for me so far.
Noxious Revival is being run in place of Regrowth because it is an instant. I previously ran regrowth, but always had to wish upon a star that it won't get dredged away. Thanks to Toshiro Umezawa, I just don't care if revival gets dredged. Reclaim is another noxious revival. Both of these cards have helped me out more than Yawgmoth's Will. Weird, huh?
I haven't really been able to play around with Tangle Wire enough to know if I really want it. It stays in for now I guess.
I was thinking about taking out Lightning Greaves before, but I just can't seem to do it. I like the protection it provides, and the ability to give my mana elves haste.
Riftsweeper is in if and when Demonic Consultation/Plunge into Darkness exile another card that I need. Plus he is an elf, so Priest of Titania and Elvish Archdruid like him. Also, if for whatever reason I have to cast a dredge creature and my opponent exiles it, I can save them (that last one is a weak argument, I know). He helps save exiled cards, and is an elf-good enough for right now.
"Removal that can't kill Zur is sketchy." I agree. Smother will come out for... something else. Sudden Death maybe? I hate how that costs 1BB...
I'm not sure how I feel about your take on Dark Ritual. I can see where you are coming from, but the French meta is influenced heavily on speed. Dark Ritual can allow me to go off two turns (mana) earlier than usual if I have it in the grave and Toshiro Umezawa out on the field. Major if factor, but a possibility nonetheless. It'll be on the chopping board.
I agree with you on Buried Alive. It has been proving to be lackluster. Demonic Tutor should be better.
Idk why Vines of Vastwood is in here. Probably out of habit of playing it in green decks. Will change it for Eternal Witness.
I don't see how Oath of Ghouls will be good here. Seems to defeat the purpose of dredging. Same with Oversold Cemetery.
I'm going to pass on Raven's Crime and Hymn. Nightmare Void can recur itself, and that has been good.
No on the artifact lands. Good with Raven's Crime and Mox Opal, but I'm not running either.
Golgari Grave-Troll does nothing for me besides dredge. Not good enough.
I'm running Fauna Shaman over Survival of the Fittest. I have more ways to bring Fauna Shaman out and back from the graveyard than I do for survival.
Wurmcoil Engine seems like nothing more than a dumb beater. Splinterfright is arguably the best beater for this deck, but I might end up cutting him and focus more on the Mindslaver lock.
Original Garruk suddenly became relevant once you reminded me of Gaea's Cradle. Is it worth adding just for that?
I feel that Memory Jar is more cute with Glissa than anything. The only artifact that I want to keep recurring is Mindslaver.
Sylvok Replica/ Engineered Explosives/ Sword of Fire and Ice are good, but I feel they aren't necessary.
Maybe on Mirri's Guile. Doesn't help at all if I start to dredge for 3, 4, or 5.
I'd rather play Fyndhorn Elves over Birds of Paradise. If I find room, I'll try it out.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Changes:
Buried Alive--> Demonic Tutor
Vines of Vastwood--> Eternal Witness
Snow-Covered Forest--> Gaea's Cradle
Smother--> Viridian Longbow
Edit: Forget what I said about Dark Ritual and Toshiro Umezawa. Reading is tech. Easy change. This deck has been wanting another discard outlet.
Dark Ritual--> Putrid Imp
edit: he also suggested artifact lands... got me thinking... maybe you could add in pox/smallpox/death cloud and some artifact lands. With glissa in play, casting those spells will get you the artifact land back to your hand immediately. Plus you already have life from the loam... whatcha think? Might be too far-fetched but IDK
*grumble grumble grumble*
Ok I'll take out Disciple of the Vault and Loaming Shaman. I can see where you guys are coming from as to why they aren't needed. That's an interesting suggestion for the artifact lands, but I was thinking something else for the two open slots.
I was thinking Heritage Druid can take the spot of Disciple. Having druid out can increase my speed of comboing out by tapping non-mana elves like Glissa, Riftsweeper, and Fauna Shaman. Would Birchlore Rangers or Fyndhorn Elves be more realistic?
In order to activate the Mindslaver lock sooner, I was thinking that another tutor seemed appropriate. Maybe Diabolic Intent in place of Loaming Shaman?
Thoughts on the proposed changes?
Disciple of the Vault--> Heritage Druid
Loaming Shaman--> Diabolic Intent
Also, I can't believe Lion's Eye Diamond is unbannned. The verdict is still out to see if the French Ban List allows it, but for now:
Chrome Mox--> Lion's Eye Diamond
The artifact lands would be best if I was running something like Raven's Crime or Mox Opal. Since, I'm not running either, I don't think they'll help at all.
As for Genesis Wave, I just don't feel it is necessary. I hate how it costs XGGG and is a sorcery (would suck if it gets dredged). Also, I fear that I might over-extend if I manage to play it. If my opponent fears it, they can just counter it. Or just nuke the board next turn. If they can't do either, then I should already be winning.
As for other cards, Sol Ring/Mana Crypt could be good, so you might want to try those out. I'm not a fan of Sensei's Divining Top in this deck, because once you start dredging for 3 or more, it becomes pointless.
I'm glad my list sparked your interest! If you do end up building it, let me know how it turns out!
Yeah I am looking to build something Black/Green and I am between Glissa and Nath ... the only problem I am having doing some playtesting online with your deck is I don't know how to play it all that well so far lol.
Yeah, its tough to get a handle on the deck. I love it!
I'd ditch the Dismember. In EDH, I don't think it's strong enough.
Also, someone may have mentioned this, but no Primeval Titan?
Oh, and thanks for uploading a second Glissa primer.
(Self-Note: Must get Diabolic Intent.)
Currently Piloting:
EDH
BGGlissa, The Traitor - Recursion (Primer)
WBRKaalia of The Vast
URGRiku of Two Reflections
WUBSydri, Galvanic Genius
UBRamirez DePietro
GWKrond, The Dawn-Clad
GWUDerevi, Empyrial Tactician
RGOmnath, Locus of Rage
Modern
UG Infect
I previously considerd running Thornbite Staff but quickly decided against it. For starters, the main way this deck ensures an opponent's creature dies is via Engineered Plague + Forbidden Orchard. The second route is going with Glissa, the Traitor + Viridian Longbow. I feel like adding the staff isn't necessary. It costs one more to play and equip than Viridian Longbow, and you can't even machine gun the opponent's creatures unless you already have lots of mana. So yeah, I'm not a fan of Thornbite Staff.
Dismember is actually really good in the French meta, which is usually filled with cheap utility creatures. Also, kill spells in the french meta need to be able to deal with Zur the Enchanter before he gets out of hand, and Dismember does that job pretty well.
With all the mana elves I'm running, I don't think Primeval Titan will help much. He's an all-star in multiplayer EDH, but 1v1 is much different. I could be wrong here, but I feel he is just not necessary.
Your deck might be better equipped for Diabolic Intent than mine is. I'm not sure how I feel about it. I like how it can tutor up anything, but the only creatures I'm willing to sac will be the dredge creatures (which I should be discarding rather than casting in the first place).
Also, sadly, I haven't gotten around to do much playtesting with this deck. If someone wants to give this deck a test run on cockatrice and let us know how it went, that'll be awesome :D.