[Vintage Casual] False Medicine

[Shmn]

Edit; Changes (10.7.2006)
-4 Tainted Pact
+4 Infernal Tutor
--

Ever since False Cure was released, it has been considered a bad card. It may have been included in many less competitive casual decks built around common lifegain, but rarely if ever in anything more serious. I believed in the card's latent ability, and explored the possibilities, browsing through life gain cards, and found a way to forge it into a working deck. The decklist has gone through some revisions since it's original form, and below is it's current state. The constraints are that of Vintage, and the aim is to be as efficient as possible in it's goal in winning the game by loss of life gain. Any recommendations that do not include removing False Cure from the deck are welcome.

False Medicine

Spells (38)

4 False Cure
4 Skyshroud Cutter
4 Reverent Silence

4 Duress
4 Cabal Therapy

4 Night's Whisper
4 Infernal Tutor

1 Necropotence
1 Demonic Tutor
1 Yawgmoth's Will
1 Vampiric Tutor
1 Regrowth

4 Pernicious Deed
1 Powder Keg

Manasources (22)

4 Dark Ritual
1 Lotus Petal

4 Bayou
4 Bloodstained Mire
2 Swamp
2 Snow-covered Swamp

4 Wasteland
1 Strip Mine

--

The win condition is simple: cast False Cure and allow the enemy to gain life using Skyshroud Cutter and Reverent Silence. Using one False Cure it is neccessary to use 4 of either of those cards. The life gain (or loss) is an alternate casting cost, and can not therefore be countered, which has often lead to many an unwary enemy's demise when they have thought they can let False Cure resolve and counter whatever comes after. It should also be noted that the alternative casting cost requires a forest to be in play, which explains the use of Bayous.

5 cards does not, perhaps, sound that appealing for achieving victory, even though only BB is needed manawise. However, let's take a look at False Cure's wording:

"Until end of turn, whenever a player gains life, that player loses 2 life for each 1 life he or she gained."

Now, when I cast two False Cures instead of one, the effects stack and the enemy will lose 4 life for each 1 life gained, resulting in greatly increased efficiency (3 times). With two, therefore, only 2 lifegain cards are neccessary, and with three, only one. This reduces the amount of cards needed to four.

The rest of the deck is built around the combo by disruption, removal and tutoring. As hardly any other non-land permanents are played, Pernicious Deed fits perfectly. Duresses and Cabal Therapies serve to buy time and enforce False Cures.

Cards considered or suggested:

Invigorate - too inefficient and unneccessary. Skyshroud Cutter would need haste to make enough use of it, and a card providing that cannot be justified.

Dark Confidant - would be kickass for card drawing, but does not mix with Pernicious Mr. Deeds.

Innocent Blood - sideboard stuff. I've tried this in main, and it's faired well against aggros, but it hinders ability in control matchups.

Laquatus's Champion - an interesting option, but a reanimator could go for something better aswell, and this is not a reanimator.

Summary

The goal of the deck is to play the winning combo which requires 4-5 cards out of 12 total in the deck. It has 11 drawing and tutoring cards, which constitutes slightly less than 1/5 of the deck, or 2/5 with the combo included. There are 8 (13.3%) disruption cards, and 5 (8.3%) for permanent removal.

It is possible to get a first turn win with a hand like this: Bayou / Bloodstained Mire, Dark Ritual, Dark Ritual / Lotus Petal, False Cure, False Cure, S. Cutter / R. Silence, S. Cutter / R. Silence. With an eight draw, with Duress or Cabal Therapy enforcement (two rituals). With one ritual and two lands, the same can be done in two turns (with a first turn Duress / Cabal Therapy preferably). Of course, getting an opening hand like this is not probable, only possible.

That's it. I look forward to your suggestions.

[Jank Golem]

I don't see why you chose not to include Invigorate, you need as much life gain in there as you can get. Pern Deed seems a little slow, I would cut it down to 2 or 3. When I played False Cure, I used Necroliaga for draw. It is really good in here, letting you draw all the combo pieces you need with one spell. I would cut Tainted Pact in here and perhaps Night's Whisper too for Invigorate and Necroliaga. Just my two cents.

[Shmn]

I don't see why you chose not to include Invigorate, you need as much life gain in there as you can get. Pern Deed seems a little slow, I would cut it down to 2 or 3. When I played False Cure, I used Necroliaga for draw. It is really good in here, letting you draw all the combo pieces you need with one spell. I would cut Tainted Pact in here and perhaps Night's Whisper too for Invigorate and Necroliaga. Just my two cents.

Do you mean Necrologia, which is basically a 5 mana one time necropotence? I don't think it's any good really. Very slow.

Deeds, however, is not that slow, and I need 4 to draw one early in the game to wipe out all threats that an opponent can drop during the first few turns. With a ritual I can drop a deed turn 2, and I don't need to hold the rituals in my hand for any particular reason since FCs only cost 2 each.

And Invigorate just isn't effective enough by itself; however if I added Dark Confidants I could perhaps justify it since I could make use of the growth effect. I'm quite tempted to, but I don't know if I'd have to consider switching deeds in that case; and I like deeds a lot. They may not be completely mutually exclusive, though. If I added bobs, one Sensei's Divining Top might not be a bad idea either (in Powder Keg's stead, perhaps).

[EnialisLiadon]

I could see Infernal Tutor being very good here--nabbing extra False Cures and/or life gain cards.

[Shmn]

I could see Infernal Tutor being very good here--nabbing extra False Cures and/or life gain cards.

Indeed. I'm going to replace the Tainted Pacts straight away.

[Moonkeeper]

Why not add white for beacon of immortality?

[Shmn]

Why not add white for beacon of immortality?

I consider 6 mana simply too much; it adds to 8 mana total with a False Cure, and while only being two cards, it is too much manawise to build up in an unpowered deck early. Those who can afford to play power can play a variant with Beacons included, in which case the structure of the deck would need other revisions aswell.

[technogeek5000]

umm if your looking for tutors imperial seal does the same thing as vampiric tutor, you could take out lotus petal for it because lotus petal is not all that good. also you might wanna use some ravnica BG duel lands.