Pauper: Kuldotha Rakdos Deck Tech & Sideboard Guide

It may seem like an exaggeration, but it is possible to say that the current version of Kuldotha Burn is one of the best red decks in Pauper history. Never has the color had access to such high power level cards as Experimental Synthesizer, Reckless Impulse and Monastery Swiftspear.

Unlike traditional Burn lists, which had immense difficulty dealing with hates like Hydroblast and lifegain, Kuldotha Burn has an incredible ability to recover gas thanks not only to Synthesizer and Reckless Impulse, but also to cards like Chromatic Star, Voldaren Epicure, Implement of Combustion, and Kuldotha Rebirth.

Historically, Burn has always sought to use cards that could generate at least some amount of value, such as Forgotten Cave and Needle Drop, but the versatility that a Voldaren Epicure or a Chromatic Star provides is far above what Burn always dreamed of.

Let's use the Voldaren Epicure as an example. It's a one-drop, which already enters the battlefield dealing damage, gives you an artifact to assist in the metalcraft for Galvanic Blast, allows you to play an aggressive Kuldotha Rebirth or in the worst-case scenario, helps at trading useless mid/late game cards for new cards. Let's be honest, it's a lot for a card that costs one mana.

Another strong point of the current list is the sub-theme with artifacts that allows you to explore cards like Great Furnace, Galvanic Blast, Kuldotha Rebirth and Experimental Synthesizer without suffering so much against hates like Affinity. You will hardly see opponents siding with Gorilla Shaman and Dust to Dust against Kuldotha Burn, for example.

Even though it is an extremely competitive list, Kuldotha Burn, like any other deck, has its weaknesses. And with that in mind, carvs and barff, well-known grinders of the format, decided to build a Rakdos version to try to take the deck to another level.

The Rakdos version doesn't have the same efficiency and speed that the monocolored list has, but it allows you to assume a better Midrange stance when necessary, in addition to giving you access to cards that can help improve bad matchups. Having access to black makes the deck explore the sub-theme of “sacrifices” and starts using cards like Deadly Dispute and Gixian Infiltrator.

After being presented with the version being used by my grinder friends, I decided to build my own version, arriving at the following list:

I decided to dive headlong into the sacrifice sub-theme offered by the guild and, in addition to exploring the potential of Gixian Infiltrator, I also opted to include Goblin Blast-Runner on the list, which is one of my favorite cards from The Brothers' War.

Strategy and Changes

Goblin Blast-Runner is a very well-positioned creature in the current Metagame because, while it combines with the aggressive posture that the deck requires, it can also be considered an excellent blocker against opposing Kuldotha Rebirths.

The great advantage of this list is that it allows you to use Goblin Blast-Runner and Gixian Infiltrator without necessarily having to include medium cards in the deck just to enhance the sacrifice mechanic. The deck naturally already has a series of cards that interact well with both creatures, but at the same time are good by themselves, as is the case with Chromatic Star, Deadly Dispute and Makeshift Munitions.

Reckless Impulse is a wonderful card in the conventional Kuldotha Burn, but Deadly Dispute manages to be even better in the Rakdos version. It is a spell that continues to give you access to two new cards, but with the advantage of being an instant, not revealing the cards that were drawn to the opponent, in addition to interacting with Goblin Blast-Runner and Gixian Infiltrator during the combat phase, often serving as a combat trick.

Another important addition that helps you deal with situations where the conventional list presents difficulties is Makeshift Munitions. Ixalan's enchantment makes Gixian Infiltrator able to get huge in a few turns, in addition to giving the deck the ability to end a match without depending on the combat phase.

Interacting with Kuldotha-generated tokens is also essential as it turns every goblin into a potential removal, clearing the opponent's board so that Infiltrator, Blast-Runner, and Monastery Swiftspear have a clear path.

Manabase

The list's manabase deserves a separate chapter.

Drossforge Bridge and Vault of Whispers increase the natural amount of artifacts in the deck makes it easier to achieve Metalcraft, a situation that does not always occur in the conventional version.

Evolving Wilds and Tramway Station are also means to sacrifice permanents and can be more relevant late game draws than basic lands. One of my favorite plays is to start the game with Blast-Runner, resolve a Gixian Infiltrator on turn 2 to crack an Evolving Wilds on the next turn, triggering the ability of both creatures.

In order not to suffer so much from artifact hates, I preferred to play with only 2 Vault of Whispers. Keeping at least one Swamp on the list is also important, so you have the option of finding black mana via Evolving Wilds.

As black is a color that enters the deck almost like a splash, it turns out that you don't want so many lands that only add black, so the deck has a higher concentration of Mountains and Great Furnaces, reducing the risk of mulligans by absence of red mana in the starting hand.

Mulligan

It's a deck that you don't want to mulligan too much, but even in unfavorable situations, it's possible to recover if you draw a Deadly Dispute or Experimental Synthesizer on the right turn.

Avoid keeping very reactive hands or hands with lots of land, they are tempting, but are often traps. It's a deck where you'd rather be stuck 1-2 turns with two lands than flood.

Don't mind if it takes a few turns to find the black mana source. Deadly Dispute and Gixian Infiltrator are cards you'll usually prefer to play in the mid/late game.

You don't necessarily need to always assume a super aggressive stance, depending on the game it's worth adopting a more midrange stance, managing life points and gaining more value with the cards you play to move forward is also an option.

On the sideboard, in addition to the cards that are used in the conventional version, I choose to use some copies of edicts and Nihil Spellbomb.

Chainer’s Edict and Diabolic Edict are important additions to the list, as they help against Auras and Dimir Terror, decks that present extreme difficulty to Kuldotha Burn. While Nihil Spellbomb has a function very similar to Relic of Progenitus with the advantage of being able to be sacrificed, it is another card that interacts well with Gixian Infiltrator and Goblin Blast-Runner.

For those who want to take a risk with the deck, I prepared a basic sideboard guide that can help with the game plan against the main decks in the Metagame:

Kuldotha Burn

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Dimir Terror

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Grixis Affinity

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Caw Gates

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GW Auras

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Walls

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Fog Tron

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Mono U Faeries

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The list is far from being closed and there are several cards that can still be tested like Blood Fountain, Vampire's Kiss, Lotus Petal, among others.

I recommend the deck for those who currently play Kuldotha Burn or for those who want to try something different without losing their competitiveness.

Thank you all for reading, and until next time!