For the low CMC it seems to do fairly well in Jundwalkers in some current testing. It has issues elsewhere, though, considering it forces you to throw away creatures.
lorendorky
★★★★★ (5.0/5.0)(1 vote)
I think you could win a tournament on this guys tail.
Cyberium
★★★★★ (5.0/5.0)(1 vote)
Sacrifice a creature OTHER than Demonic Taskmaster, which means you can Dark Ritual him out on first turn without any consequences. Black control decks often time only need one creature to win the game and this comes with precisely no drawback for such deck type. There are also many cards in this set with "only one creature" requirement.
RAV0004
★★★☆☆ (3.6/5.0)(6 votes)
He's really good guys. His clause can be turned off or negated. If he's giving you "Card disadvantage", then you aren't putting him in the right deck.
WWoody
★★★★★ (5.0/5.0)(1 vote)
I might try a black deck with this playing a big part. 4 power on a flyer for three mana isn't to be overlooked. The "demon drawback" isn't the worst either considering you can have just him out.
If you can keep killing their guys off until turn five, you can cast Homicidal Seclusion and Predator's Gambit to really take this guy over the edge and make him a 6+ power with lifelink and guaranteed to win if they can't answer it somehow.
This would work best with getting him hexproof to block removal.
Something to think about; I'll be trying it at the pre-release.
Fenix.
★★★★★ (5.0/5.0)(1 vote)
This might be my favourite card from AVR. Fits perfectly into my UB control deck.
Laguz
★★★★☆ (4.7/5.0)(3 votes)
Played with him in limited and he is an absolute powerhouse. I won three games on his back alone (obviously). It did get defanged once, and man did that suck, but I ended up winning that game anyway.
DarthParallax
★★☆☆☆ (2.0/5.0)(3 votes)
He's a cheap Demon in both the normal sense of being CMC less than 5, and in the sense of being undercosted for P/T. I wouldn't feel bad about playing him in a deck that doesn't mind losing a few creatures. Maybe you can stock your own GY for a Living Death finisher? Grimoire of the Dead and Liliana Vess pull redundancy duty.
Totema
★★★★★ (5.0/5.0)(1 vote)
If your control deck needs a fatty to keep pressure on the battlefield, this guy should fit in nicely.
WoWbolt17
★★☆☆☆ (2.8/5.0)(2 votes)
can't you have more than one Demonic Taskmaster on the field and not have to sac any since it says sac a creature other than demonic taskmaster?
WarioMan
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
My grixis control deck LOVES this guy. Running a playset doesn't clump at all. I tend to draw another one just in time when my opponent has an answer to the one. This thing demands an answer when you're facing a deck with heavy counter/spot removal.
mimitchi86
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
I like this guy. Make a deck that benefits from the death/sacrifice of your creatures (Soulcage Fiend, Blood Artist, etc.), combine that with this guy's decent 4/3 flyer-ness, and you'll take surprisingly big chunks of life off your opponent.
SirZapdos
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
He can be a powerhouse in limited, just be sure to have some Bone Splinters handy just in case your opponent Defangs him.
Leuitikos
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
Look at this artwork then look at the album cover for Dio-Holy Diver. I think they look very similar.
Mike-C
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
You asked for it, you got it.. Blacks T1, worthwhile to play, Demon. Btw, the "Details" for this card just broke my heart, I was planning to build a deck with 4 of these on the idea that if there's 2 out, no other creatures, no sacrificing will be necessary :(
Halaphax
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
I run this in a B/W Demon deck and it is AMAZING. This is a solid card through and through and will easily stall the game long enough to get my other demons rolling. Love it.
He's a pretty efficient beater in my token deck. Combos well with Skirsdag High Priest so I can continually pump out 5/5 demons, though Magus of the Abyss works even better for that.
For the people asking if you can have two out and not have to sacrifice both to each other... The reason you must sacrifice both is because its drawback should be read as "At the beginning of your upkeep, sacrifice a creature other than this one." Any card with its own name in its text refers to itself.
EDIT: Found the comprehensive rules entry that backs up my second paragraph.
201.4. Text that refers to the object it's on by name means just that particular object and not any other objects with that name, regardless of any name changes caused by game effects.
BongRipper420
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
I have very mixed emotions about the specifics of this guys ability. By that, I mean the fact that you must sacrifice a creature other than him. On one hand, that means if he's your only creature, no issues. On the other, it means you can't sac him to prevent having to sac other creatures.
Regardless, I'm sure Mono Black Control can still do well with it, because that kind of deck doesn't need more than one moderately sized flyer anyway. So I give this a 3.5/5. It has potential.
Augthail
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
@WoWbolt17 Unfortunately, no. While it doesn't explicity say it on the card, "other than Demonic Taskmaster" just means "other than this Demonic Taskmaster". In the rulings section, you can see that having 2 of these causes their triggers to target each other, thus making you sac both.
I was really excited about this card until I read that if you have just two on the battlefield at the same time, you have to sacrifice them to each other. I had visions or running four and four clone... oh well.
cotf1692
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
I kind of ignored this and Fettergeist, but I can actually see them doing pretty good with keyrunes (you don't need to sac them!) and lots of control toys.
Stall3
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
If I play Akroma's Memorial with this card would it negate the ability of making me have to sacrifice my other Black Demon's as I would have protection from black?
Comments (24)
If you can keep killing their guys off until turn five, you can cast Homicidal Seclusion and Predator's Gambit to really take this guy over the edge and make him a 6+ power with lifelink and guaranteed to win if they can't answer it somehow.
This would work best with getting him hexproof to block removal.
Something to think about; I'll be trying it at the pre-release.
For the people asking if you can have two out and not have to sacrifice both to each other... The reason you must sacrifice both is because its drawback should be read as "At the beginning of your upkeep, sacrifice a creature other than this one." Any card with its own name in its text refers to itself.
EDIT: Found the comprehensive rules entry that backs up my second paragraph.
201.4. Text that refers to the object it's on by name means just that particular object and not any other objects with that name, regardless of any name changes caused by game effects.
Regardless, I'm sure Mono Black Control can still do well with it, because that kind of deck doesn't need more than one moderately sized flyer anyway. So I give this a 3.5/5. It has potential.
T2: Swamp, Tormentor's Trident, 4 damage.
T3: Swamp, Equip the trident. 7 damage.
T4: Swamp, Demonic Appetite , Essence Harvest, if the guy's not dead yet swing again, 20 damage
A day in Demon Tribal xP