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Also, I don’t know about Disfigure as an anti-Red. Sure, it’s a 1-mana removal spell, but I feel like it’s a little unreliable. RW “Boros Bushwacker” is probably the model for Red aggro in the format, and their threats include Steppe Lynx, Plated Geopede (both of whom are hard to kill with Disfigure because of all their fetches) and Kor Skyfisher. Obviously, Purge misses a lot of their threats as well, but I don’t really think that’s where it’s supposed to shine.

@wobblesthegoose
I like a lot of your strategic comments and agree with them (first Forest important, subsequent Forests relatively unimportant) and the flash point comments; however I think that you are a bit off in your card valuations. Ob Nixilis just kills the opponent on the spot about 1/3 of the time. Lord of Extinction gets blocked by Elspeth tokens. I really agree about the mana constraints that Thornling puts on this deck (I hate losing it in combat) but it is massively more powerful than almost anything else you can play there.

I don’t see how you can be happy with one Sorin. He is one of the best cards in the deck and I side up to four in so many matchups (Vampires, anything Red, any control deck)… He’s just unreal. I think Sorin is the main reason you beat Vampires with Junk Mana Ramp. Also have you never just put them to 10 and then killed them on the spot with Ob Nixilis? I just don’t understand why you think Lord of Extinction is comparable… Don’t get me wrong I love Lord of Extinction and could see testing him in the Thornling spot purely due to the Green mana issue, but Lord of Extinction will not generally be 9/9 to 12/12 on his first attack, where Ob Nixilis often–even usually–is that big.

@Tekanan
I hate using Grim Discovery as a Raise Dead or Lay of the Land but you do what you’ve got to do to facilitate Baneslayer Angel… Also wobblesthegoose’s deck can’t get broken Ob Nixilis draws so he isn’t seeing the same value from Grim Discovery (one Grim Discovery is like a cantrip Ball Lightning, maybe even cantrip double Ball Lightning or double cantrip Ball Lightning depending on the opponent’s play). It’s a good play to recycle Lotus Cobra on turn three as well (or just tax the opponent’s removal with Knight of the Reliquary, which is also unreal in this deck).

Thanks for the comments guys–keep the discussion going.

1 Behemoth Sledge
1 Sorin Markov
1 Grim Discovery
1 Elspeth, Knight Errant

They seem very miser-ish. IMO Grim Discovery and Sorin begs to be at least a 2-off. Maybe tweak the LoE numbers? He isn’t as potent as Orb Nixilis during the first few turns (when having fetchlands in hand), so I see him more as a late-game insurance.

I would also like to see Malakir Bloodwitches in the sideboard if you are playing against a heavy white deck.

Using the knight to get you from 4 mana to five mana is often key. The fact that you can tap 4 lands, activate knight, and drop a five is insane, especially because you typically get to untap with 10+ power on the table. Knighting up sac lands has totally pushed this card over the edge.

Two, understanding what lands to fetch is equally important. I mean, this deck rarely needs more than 1 green source after turn 3, but desperately needs that first forest to cast anything at all. Then it needs two white sources by the time it gets to five mana, so it can hardcast baneslayer, but it would like to have double black as well, just so that it can cast mind shatter. Basically, what I wind up trying to do is go: 1st Green, 1st White, 1st black, 2nd White, 2nd black, 3rd black. It’s an important pattern, because the snake allows you to play anything but it never survives long. Also, this makes the 1x thornling random and really hard to use effectively. I mean, like everything in the deck it’s great with the snake powering out green, but without it Thornling is almost always requiring you to leave a Green up, which makes it cost at least 3GGG, or 3GGGG with haste or trample. Either way, that’s awkward with 3WW, 3BBB cards in your hand, too.

Third, Mind Shatter is great. Even just for 3, it puts you way ahead. Against everything but the most agressive burn decks you really want 3 in the main. And even against boros it’s pretty good in the main, because having them lose lands takes a lot of damage off the board.

Forth, Grim Discovery. This card is so good when you get blightninged. It’s also great when they kill your cobra and you’ve got time to get it back. That said, if they aren’t running discard (or don’t see it) and you don’t have a cobra opening it’s mostly a fair to middling lay of the land. I mean, this build is really focused on cobra. I’ve had a really hard time closing with ob when it isn’t backed up by a sac land immediately after playing it or on the board. And that’s not an easy situation to get to.

This is what my build has become over the course of easily four or five dozen games:

5 Forest
4 Marsh Flats
3 Plains
3 Swamp
2 Sunpetal Grove
4 Verdant Catacombs
4 Terramorphic Expanse
4 Knight of the Reliquary
4 Lotus Cobra
4 Baneslayer Angel
4 Noble Hierarch
4 Lord of Extinction
4 Maelstrom Pulse
4 Path to Exile
3 Mind Shatter
1 Behemoth Sledge
1 Sorin Markov
1 Grim Discovery
1 Elspeth, Knight Errant

Sideboard
1 Sorin Markov
2 Grim Discovery
4 Disfigure
3 Duress
3 Tidehollow Sculler
2 Captured Sunlight

The biggest change is Lord of Extinction for Ob. Lord doesn’t need any other cards to become easily the biggest threat on the board, ends the game if you untap with it while usually being able to both block and survive burn, and isn’t legendary. It’s also ridiculous after a mind shatter. The Terramorphic Expanses are for the Lord, but also to makes sure that your opponent can’t just lightning bolt your knight on turn three. Having the knight survive is really important to dropping your fives at least a turn early. With a turn one hierarch into a turn two knight that can easily be a turn 3 five drop, without a cobra. Hierarch makes 12 accelerators, all of which are able to attack for damage (Often while also making mana!). In a world of lots of planeswalkers, early beaters are that much more important. The sideboards have some important differences too. Mostly, focusing on a discard package instead of the traps vs control and cheaper removal against ridiculously fast red decks. I’d love to hear what other people playing with this deck have found, because I’ve spent quite a bit of time with it.