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by Jaybie Cantey Card Spotlight Forsaken Wastes Summer is here, and here comes the heat. Type II decks everywhere are bracing for the impact of the DCI's new rulings, and the chill winds of the Ice Age are prepared for a comeback. Before you throw that Necro deck back together, consider this: There may be a better card for black than Necropotence. For even the most powerful Necrpotence deck shies away from: The Forsaken Wastes. Forsaken Waste: 2B. Enchant World. No life may be gained. During each player's upkeep, that player loses 1 life. I smell cheddar, I smell swiss. I smell my opponent burnt to a crisp. Yes, cheese is back, and oh- so sweet. Forsaken wastes cuts out all that life-gaining junk like Mangara's Blessing, Spirit Link, Stream of Life, and other cheesy white-green cards. Fountain of Youth? Useless. Ivory Tower? Six dollar waste. Drain Life? Just a fireball now. The time has come for all good men to come to the aid of Black. White has ruled for so long in Magic that few remember the good ole' days of Mind Twists and Channel/Fireballs. No, for too long Savannah Lions and White Knights have roamed free. Now, all must enter: The Forsaken Wastes. Top 5 Combos with Forsaken Wastes. 5). Lightening Cloud - Bolt you for 3, Ping you for 1. A few more bolts and you're gone.   4). Drain Life - Cast a big drain life, then drop down the wastes. You'll have a huge life advantage to coast to victory with.   3). Fiery Justice - Yeah, yeah, it takes a lot of colors, but it's a great circle card - blow up a bunch of permanents and don't worry about who gets the five life.   2). Anti-lifer - A lot of decks, such as Bazaar decks, use Ivory Tower, Juju bubbles, and other cards to gain a huge life total. Forsaken Wastes negates all life gainers, leaving your opponent stuck in the mud.   1). And finally, what you've all been waiting for...this month's killer deck: (Editor's Note: Type 1 Legal; but something like this could indeed be built for Type 1.5 or Type 2 play... - Kevin McLaughlin) Black 3 Forsaken Wastes 4 Dark Rituals 3 Necropotences 3 Drain Lifes Red 4 Lightening Bolts 4 Incinerates 4 Fireballs 4 Fireblasts 2 Land's Edges Artifact 4 Nevinyrral's Disks 1 Zuran Orb   Lands 6 Swamps 8 Mountains 4 Badlands 2 Crystal Veins 2 Rocky Tar Pits 2 Sulphurous Springs 1 Thawing Glaciers Whoa: Necro in a deck that uses Forsaken Wastes? Bear with me for a minute. Bolt whatever weenies your opponent puts out. Then, when both of your hands are depleted, drop the Necro. For every one life you pay, you should draw a damage-dealing card. Simply outrace your opponent to zero life and use the Disks to clear out any creatures he puts down. If you should need the life of a Drain Life, simply drop the Land's Edge...it works well with Necro, and it will destroy the Forsaken Waste (They're both Enchant Worlds.) Good luck, and good shooting.        Jaybie Cantey        [email protected] [ Back to June 1997 Table of Contents ] [ Back to Beyond Dominia ] Magic: the Gathering is a Registered Trademark of Wizards of the Coast