Rakdos, Lord of Riots

📖 How to build Rakdos, Lord of Riots

Rakdos, Lord of Riots is a {B}{B}{R}{R} flying, trample Demon, but you can only cast it on a turn when an opponent has lost life. Once it's on the battlefield, each creature spell you cast costs {1} less for each point of life your opponents have lost that turn. The game plan is to make opponents lose life early in a turn, then cast creatures at a steep discount while Rakdos attacks in the air.

Build around cheap creatures and effects that make opponents lose life, since those help you meet the casting condition. Dark Ritual can speed you toward the commander's four mana, and Demonic Tutor and Faithless Looting can help you find the pieces you need. Reanimate can return a creature from your graveyard to the battlefield without casting it, which avoids the casting restriction.

Watch the restriction. Rakdos is stuck in hand until an opponent loses life, so it can be dead early. The discount also depends on how much life your opponents have lost this turn, so it shrinks if they've lost little. Sweepers such as Toxic Deluge and Blasphemous Act can clear your creatures, and Rakdos is a single large threat that can be answered.

Deck guide written with AI assistance based on the card's rules text.