As a limited format matures, I start to shift my focus from winning matches to winning matches with absurd decks. It’s at this point that cards like Revel in Riches come to the fore, and I focus on how to handle a beautiful situation: Pack 1 Pick 1 Revel in Riches. So today, I’m going to give you the tools you need to maximize your reveling capabilities!
With Revel in Riches, you’re going to want to be UB. This maximizes your access to card draw and treasure generators, while still giving you access to removal spells in black. One advantage you’ll have in this deck is that you’ll be picking cards that other drafters won’t value very highly. Pirate’s Prize, for example enables you to search for your Revel while also generating treasures, but will often be taken after 8th pick.
Depths of Desire increases in value for this deck, since buying time while also generating treasure is reasonably good in the deck, and you’ll always want insurance against auras. Contract Killing also goes up in value, as it will remove your opponent’s most pressing threat and generate two treasures, what a 2-for-1! Prosperous Pirates provides an excellent body to block with in addition to its two treasures, and will be a solid addition to these decks.
The single most important card for the deck, however, is Ruthless Knave. Ruthless Knave allows you to transform creatures that have become irrelevant into free chump blocks and two treasures, which is an excellent return for the Revel deck. Simultaneously, it gives you the means to find your Revel in Riches by sacrificing treasures! This card does everything you want, and should be taken over basically anything else. Deadeye Plunderers is an excellent addition to the deck as well, as it benefits from treasures and can generate them for Revel, and I think you should take your first one over Prosperous Pirates, but once you have the first its value diminishes, and I’d rather have creatures that generate treasures passively. These are the cards I prioritize most when building this deck, and should be taken early in the draft when possible.
Deciding when to take removal is likely the most difficult aspect of drafting this deck. Removal in black is generally taken early, but your deck falls apart if you don’t pick up your key treasure generators. Thankfully, you have some flexibility. Vanquish the Weak is very important, as it allows you to survive the early game and dispatch opponent’s creatures. Contract Killing is also crucial, as it supports your treasure generation while removing an attacker. Aside from these spells, you don’t need to focus too much on removal;
Skulduggery decreases in value, since your creatures will often match up poorly against your opponent’s. Instead, you’ll want Dive Down as your 1-mana spell. This will become more or less crucial depending on how many Ruthless Knave and Deadeye Plunderers you pick up, but protecting these creatures preserves your win condition, and is therefore an important consideration when drafting your deck. Additionally, look towards card draw spells and creatures that can gum up the board. In particular, creatures like Dire Fleet Hoarder, Sailor of Means, and Skittering Heartstopper provide blockers that can deter attacks by your opponent, and often slow aggressive starts dramatically.
Even Shore Keeper can have a home in this deck, as it provides an early blocker and can draw you into Revel in Riches in the late game.
This is a deck capable of splashing very easily, and you should take advantage of this! Like the usual UB Pirates deck, you have a great deal of flexibility with the colors you can play, and playing Revel in Riches should not scare you away from utilizing this to your advantage! Just how much you can splash will depend on the composition of treasure generators you pick up, particularly how many repeatable generators you have, but splashing cards like Maurading Looter will often be possible, and should be utilized!
What do you think, can you make a sweet 3-0 Revel in Riches deck? Please share your success in the comments!
