Overview
Maestros Massacre is a spells deck that wants to cast each spell twice. Anhelo, the Painter is a cheap Vampire Assassin with deathtouch, and the first instant or sorcery spell you cast each turn has casualty 2: as you cast it, you may sacrifice a creature with power 2 or greater, and when you do you copy the spell and may choose new targets for the copy.
The 99 cards are 14 creatures, 12 artifacts, 5 enchantments, 10 instants, 21 sorceries and 37 lands. That is a lot of spells and few creatures, and most of the creatures are there to support them, such as Goblin Electromancer, Spellbinding Soprano, Kess, Dissident Mage and Cormela, Glamour Thief. The deck also has a lot of copy effects, including Twinning Staff, Double Vision, Maestros Confluence and Flawless Forgery, and many cards with casualty.
Key Cards
Playing the Deck
The early game is about mana and cheap spell enablers. Sol Ring, Arcane Signet, Dimir Signet, Izzet Signet, Rakdos Signet, Fellwar Stone and Wayfarer's Bauble ramp you, Goblin Electromancer makes instants and sorceries cost {1} less, and Spellbinding Soprano does the same when it attacks. Ponder, Preordain and Frantic Search find cards, and Cormela, Glamour Thief taps for {U}{B}{R} for instants and sorceries.
The middle of the game is about getting two spells for every card. Anhelo, the Painter makes the first instant or sorcery each turn copy itself when you sacrifice a creature, Double Vision and Twinning Staff copy more, and Kess, Dissident Mage casts a spell from your graveyard each turn. Fact or Fiction, Dig Through Time and Drawn from Dreams draw cards, and Cryptic Pursuit manifests a card whenever you cast an instant or sorcery from your hand.
The late game is about huge copies and a single big spell. Xander's Pact, Flawless Forgery and Mystic Confluence benefit from casualty and copy effects, and Call the Skybreaker makes a 5/5 flyer and can be cast again from the graveyard with retrace. Reign of the Pit, Hex, Chain Reaction and Make an Example remove opposing creatures, and Army of the Damned and Clone Legion create huge boards.
Strengths & Weaknesses
Strengths: The deck has a huge amount of card advantage and can often cast two or three spells every turn, and its copy effects scale with each other. It also has strong interaction, including Bedevil, Maestros Charm, Feed the Swarm, Sever the Bloodline and River's Rebuke.
Weaknesses: The deck has few creatures, so it can be slow to put pressure on opponents and can struggle against fast decks, and casualty needs a creature with power 2 or greater to sacrifice. A lot of the best spells are expensive, and a counterspell or graveyard exile effect slows down the plan.
Want to improve it? See the Maestros Massacre upgrade guide: twelve swaps with the data behind each one.
Want to see what a fully optimised Anhelo, the Painter build looks like? Try the Oracle.
✦ Build with The OracleFrequently Asked Questions
What cards are in the Maestros Massacre decklist?
The Maestros Massacre precon is a 100-card Commander deck led by Anhelo. The full Maestros Massacre decklist, with every card, current prices and a button to copy the list into your deck builder, is on this page.
When was Maestros Massacre released?
Maestros Massacre was released on April 29, 2022 as part of Streets of New Capenna Commander.
Who is the commander of Maestros Massacre?
Maestros Massacre is led by Anhelo, the Painter, a Grixis (U/B/R) legendary creature.
How many creatures are in Maestros Massacre?
The 99 cards besides Anhelo, the Painter include 14 creatures.
How many lands does Maestros Massacre have?
Maestros Massacre has 37 lands in the 99 cards besides Anhelo, the Painter, including basic lands.
Full Decklist
All 100 cards from the out-of-the-box Maestros Massacre precon, with current prices. Click any card to expand it.