Big Rakdos Purphoros by Delmo – Can it Break the Metagame?

Big Red is always a popular strategy that Magic players try and make work in every format. It is a deck archetype that uses higher costing red spells to control and win the game, which is not really Red’s strong suite. Red is more known for its much more aggressive strategies, but there has been a more midrange version floating around by Aaron Barich, which you can check out in our most recent Mono Red Aggro Deck Guide.

Sometimes, the stars align and the deck can work quite well! Today Delmo shared his version of the Big Red deck – or Big Rakdos due to some light splash in Black – which he took to a 11-3 score during his stream, peaking at #281 Mythic. He is also known for taking his versions of Gruul Aggro and Gruul Adventures to high Mythic early in the previous Theros Beyond Death Standard season. Be sure to check out his Twitch channel!

Big Rakdos Purphoros by Delmo – #281 Mythic – February 2020 Season

[sd_deck deck=”tZlLcIAp”]

The main reason we are showcasing this deck today is because we have been craving different competitive Standard decks that can go toe to toe with the currently “dominating” Azorius Control and Temur Reclamation. Some quick notes about the deck:

• Similar to the Jeskai Fires deck, this deck makes use of Fires of Invention and the new Purphoros, Bronze-Blooded to cheat expensive creatures from your hand and end the game in a single combat step.
• The Red God and Cavalier of Flames can both give haste to your creatures, making Drakuseth, Maw of Flames very deadly.
• Tectonic Giant is a card that haven’t seen much play, but seems good with Fires of Invention here to make use of the extra mana (as well as Robber of the Rich).
• The Black splash is there for hand disruption (Duress) and Noxious Grasp out of the sideboard, and Rix Maadi Reveler’s Spectacle cost which may come up from time to time.

If you decide to try out the deck, enjoy – and let us know how you go!