Crypt Ghast: All the Black Mana you want...

Crypt Ghast: All the Black Mana you want...

by:

Virgilio F. De leon Jr.

      The Moment I looked at this guy I envisioned him standing along side cards like Magus of the Vault , Liliana of the Dark Realms and Cabal Coffers for Ridiculous amounts of Mana. An enormous amount of mana to fetch things , cast insanely big mass removal spells like Plague wind or a pumped up Black Sun's Zenith or basically finish off one opponent with a massive Consume spirit or if you are an EDH guy like me then you could finish all your opponents with an Exsanguinate. Expect to be pounded in the next game or this guy to take in all the spot removal at the early stages as well when your opponents catch on with what this he does and they do catch on quick..Nobody loved the Magus of the Vault out for extended stretches of time when it was still in standard, for even less mana and a 2/2 body the Crypt Ghast seems like its actually begging for a Pillar of fire or Shock to hit its ghostly face.Yes it is a creature and there are many ways to remove it but let us consider what it can do once it can actually stay in the game for a moment.

     For Standard/Sealed it works well with the Extort Mechanic of the Orzhov. You cast a spell and when you pay white or black mana your opponent loses 1 life and you gain 1 life. When you tap a swamp for mana it produces an extra one black mana with the Crypt Ghast in play. It doesnt seem much but considering that the Orzhov have several creatures with the Extort Mechanic that you could activate all at the same time.Add to that that with the few creatures that have been previewed they are also bordering on the aggressive. 20 life points seems like such a little thing when you could use a creatures ability,do damage with that as well as attack and also do damage with it.

     It can also play really well with a Liliana of The Dark Realms.Having access to a huge chunk of mana any time is always a good idea. With this creature in play you don't need to play green with the mana ramp any more. Who knows what Magic has in store for the next few blocks but Mono black seems to be gaining momentum once again.