Pauper Deck Guide: Dimir Terror - Attacking the Aggro Metagame!

Dimir Terror leans on low-cost interactions, card advantage, and a game plan that focuses on feeding the graveyard to cast many 5/5 creatures all at once. You'll put your opponent under a very short clock that finishes the game in just a few turns.

To execute this game plan and put all our 5/5 creatures in play as fast as possible, we play a wide variety of cantrips, including Mental Note and Thought Scour, which let you mill your own cards. Brainstorm also complements this game plan, as it lets you control what you play in the graveyard a bit better.

To protect its game plan and interact with the opponent, Dimir Terror also plays a great variety of counters, which is what blue decks are known for, as well as the best removals in the format.

Besides its 5/5 creatures, Dimir also plays Fallaji Archaeologist, a creature that adds a good synergy to this list and can also block really well.

Mulligan and Game Style

This deck, like most blue decks, can work well with very few lands as long as you have card advantage and a way to manipulate the top of your deck. The best starting hands will give you these tools and will let you stabilize the game as fast as possible, without much issue.

Try not to self-mill blindly, and get as much information on your deck as you can before you start putting cards in your graveyard. Avoid hands with too many creatures or no cantrips that cost and be careful: you'll often have to play as a control deck, and that's the safest way to play with this deck.

Vs. Kuldotha Red

The best plan against Kuldotha is to stabilize the board with a 5/5 creature as fast as possible, preferably a Terror, as it protects itself better than Gurmag.

An Unexpected Fangs on a 5/5 is more than enough to guarantee a win, but you can never be too careful. Kuldotha is a highly explosive, redundant deck, and can deal tons of damage very quickly.

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Vs. Grixis Affinity

This is another complex matchup. You can definitely put pressure on Affinity for some time, but this deck can create a lot more value than Dimir. Eventually, they'll come out on top, as they play creatures that can stop your Terrors from advancing, like Kenku Artificer, and an excellent engine against creatures of all sizes: Krark-Clan Shaman + Toxin Analysis. This engine completely goes around any protection you use on your creatures and is difficult to interact with.

Preserve your resources, always play around your opponent's strategies, and take advantage of the windows of opportunity you find in your way.

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Post-side, I rarely come back with 60 cards. 61 cards might seem risky, but, in this matchup, I prefer to err on the side of caution than risk running out of resources.

Vs. Glee Combo

Currently considered the best deck in the format, Glee is a challenge for any UX deck because it plays a consistent combo (possibly on turn 3) that fits many builds. This means you won't be able to interact with it as assertively as you want.

The best plan is to prevent the combo from happening while you build a board presence as fast as you can. Snuff Out is excellent against Writhing Chrysalis (which is very popular in Jund Glee), and is also one of the best removals against combos.

Be careful with your opponent's disruption and protection, which they usually play lots of, and prefer starting hands that can put two or three 5/5s on the board at once.

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Vs. Mono Blue Terror

Mono-Blue Terror is relatively a difficult matchup, and I, personally, consider it a bad matchup for a few reasons. Delver is extremely punitive when well-played, for instance. Two Delvers can put you under a very tight clock, and, in many situations, wasting a removal on this creature can be more prejudicial than beneficial.

Mono-U also plays more counters than Dimir and can play faster. Some versions prefer Sneaky Snacker to Delver, which makes everything even worse, considering you can't play Snuff Out on this Faerie; you need to exile it to deal with it for good.

Dimir removals once again make everything a bit more favorable, but this matchup still demands respect, as well as a lot of work.

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Vs. Mono-White Aggro

This is also a complicated matchup. Mono-White got one of the most powerful cards in the format nowadays, and it has everything this deck needs against Dimir Terror: Thraben Charm. This instant can be a removal or a grave hate, and both versions are very dangerous for Dimir Terror. Combine this with White Aggro's strong board presence and damage control, and you'll quickly realize why this is one of the hardest matchups for Dimir.

Luckily, not everything is lost. Playing a deck that needs to work with the graveyard means you need to be able to protect yourself against hates. Remember, you can always remove your opponent's creatures, and even wipe a board full of them with your cards. Blue will be great to control the game in this matchup.

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Dimir Terror definitely stands out in the current metagame because of its speed and consistency. Particularly as it is one of the main decks that prey on Kuldotha, considering how much life it gains and how much it can control the game. Black removals added more versatility and adaptability to this deck and most certainly set it apart from its other versions. Furthermore, despite its clear weaknesses, this deck greatly rewards players who know how to pilot it.

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