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We are the beatdown here and they take the control role, even though both decks are built to attack. We goldfish a turn faster, and the only flying blocker in their deck is the Insect token Infestation Sage leaves behind, so a suited Akroan Skyguard or Skyward Spider is close to unblockable. The problem is what happens if that creature falls: their Nested Shambler, Infestation Sage and Nezumi Linkbreaker leave tokens behind whenever they trade or chump-block, Village Rites turns a doomed creature into two cards, and Unearth brings the best body back, so a long game is theirs. We press the race; they chump on the ground and try to kill or edict the suited creature before swinging with their wide board. Speed and the play favor us, resilience and topdeck quality favor them, and the matchup comes out even.
Everything hinges on Accursed Marauder, the one removal effect none of our protection stops, against Benevolent Blessing, which naming black stops every targeted answer they have. The Marauder answer is a spare body: when the hand allows, get a second creature down before piling Auras onto the first, ideally a second Lagonna-Band Trailblazer, so the edict takes the spare. Spreading Auras across two creatures still grows the Armor, since Ethereal Armor counts every enchantment we control wherever it sits. The Blessing side is simpler than usual: our Auras are white and our own spells can still target the creature, so there is no reason to hold protection from black until the creature is done growing. Name black with Benevolent Blessing and Emerge Unscathed as soon as it matters, and the creature can be blocked only by their Squirrel and Mercenary tokens. Cast the first Aura before they have a free sacrifice outlet such as Carrion Feeder next to Shambling Ghast, or with Blessing mana held up, and put it on Lagonna-Band Trailblazer or Skyward Spider rather than a bare Akroan Skyguard, which dies to the -1/-1 before its first heroic counter resolves.
Attack with the flyer and keep the ground creature home. A ground attacker without protection from black gets chump-blocked by fodder they sacrifice after blocks are declared: the attacker stays blocked and deals no damage, and they still collect the death trigger. Lagonna-Band Trailblazer as a 0/4 blocks their 1/1s all day, first strike from Hyena Umbra or Ethereal Armor wins the blocks that do happen, and the vigilance from Sentinel's Eyes or Homestead Courage lets the attacker block too. Keep Spirit Link on our own attacker and watch Rite of Consumption range: they finish by attacking wide and then sacrificing their biggest creature to drain for its power, so our life total has to stay above their attack plus that creature's power, not just the attack.
Accursed Marauder is the card to play around above all others. Each player sacrifices a nontoken creature of their choice, so it ignores Benevolent Blessing, Hyena Umbra and Skyward Spider's ward alike, and if our suited creature is alone every Aura on it goes to the graveyard with it. Unearth or Supernatural Stamina can bring it back for a second edict, and Mortician Beetle and Sadistic Glee grow off both sacrifices. More than half of lists run it in the mainboard, so never stack the whole hand on a lone creature when a second body is available.
Carrion Feeder is the free sacrifice outlet that powers their instant-speed answers. With Feeder on the battlefield, sacrificing a creature in response to our first Aura fires Shambling Ghast's -1/-1 or switches on morbid for a kill spell such as Tragic Slip, which some lists run in the mainboard alongside Snuff Out; the creature dies with the Aura still on the stack and both the Aura and the heroic trigger are wasted. Casting the first Aura while Feeder sits next to Ghast, or while they have a Swamp open and a creature to sacrifice, is the mistake they are waiting for. Each sacrifice also adds a counter, so Feeder is the attacker that eventually grows too big for our blockers.
Shambling Ghast matters because its death trigger is a -1/-1 aimed at our creature at whatever moment they choose, given a free outlet. That is enough to kill a bare Akroan Skyguard in response to its first Aura, so Skyguard does not get suited up while Ghast and an outlet are both on the battlefield. Lagonna-Band Trailblazer and Skyward Spider survive it, and protection from black stops it entirely.
Rite of Consumption is their finisher against our race and is in almost every list. They attack wide, then sacrifice their biggest creature in the second main phase to drain the rest, gaining the same amount. Letting our life total slip within reach of their attack plus their biggest creature's power is the loss condition, and Spirit Link on one of their creatures does nothing about it: the damage comes from the spell, not the creature, and they can sacrifice the enchanted creature whenever they like.
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Mask of Law and Grace comes in because protection from black and red stops Tragic Slip, Shambling Ghast's trigger, Snuff Out and Spinning Darkness from targeting the creature and keeps Vampiric Link off it, while their green Squirrel tokens become the only creatures that can block it. For one mana it is also a heroic trigger and an enchantment for Ethereal Armor. It does nothing against Accursed Marauder.
Lifelink comes in because they win with a wide ground attack backed by Bloodthrone Vampire pumps and a Rite of Consumption drain. On our flyer it gains back every point it deals, doubles the life when stacked with Spirit Link, and is another heroic trigger and enchantment for Ethereal Armor.
One Journey to Nowhere comes in to exile a Carrion Feeder or Mortician Beetle that has grown too big for our blockers, and it counts as an enchantment for Ethereal Armor. Only one, because any free outlet lets them sacrifice the target in response for value, so it is a one-for-one at best, and a second copy would push out an Aura that grows our threat.
Guiding Voice goes out as the growth spell that does the least against this deck. It adds no enchantment for Ethereal Armor and no protection or life gain, and if Snuff Out, Shambling Ghast's trigger or Tragic Slip kills the target in response, the whole spell fizzles, learn included. Homestead Courage stays because its flashback still gives a second heroic trigger after a fizzle, and its vigilance lets our attacker block their ground creatures.
Emerge Unscathed goes out because its protection lasts only a turn at a time and, like all our protection, does nothing against Accursed Marauder's edict. Mask of Law and Grace covers the same black removal for the rest of the game at the same cost. Benevolent Blessing stays because its protection from black also lasts all game, and its flash still answers a kill spell cast in response to an Aura.
Sideboarding leaves this matchup where it started. Mask of Law and Grace shuts off every targeted removal spell and every black blocker they have, but the extra Accursed Marauders they bring go straight through it, and our sideboard has no castable creature to feed the edict.
Mask of Law and Grace changes the texture of the games: one mana for lasting protection from black and red blanks Tragic Slip, Shambling Ghast's trigger, Snuff Out and Spinning Darkness, keeps Vampiric Link off the creature, and leaves only Squirrel tokens able to block it, which also turns Lagonna-Band Trailblazer into a real attacker. When only one Aura fits in a turn, cast Mask first. It is not instant speed, so when the mana allows, cast it with Benevolent Blessing held up to answer a kill spell in response, then follow with Hyena Umbra and Ethereal Armor. The post-board games therefore turn on their extra Accursed Marauders.
Keeping a second creature on the battlefield matters even more than in game one, because Accursed Marauder is the removal that Mask and Benevolent Blessing don't stop and most lists bring extra copies. Put a spare body down before adding more than an Aura or two to the first creature, and expect Unearth or Supernatural Stamina to bring a Marauder back for another edict. Mesmeric Fiend, which nearly every list sideboards, can take a creature or Mask of Law and Grace from our hand, permanently if they sacrifice it while its enters trigger is still on the stack, so cast creatures as soon as the mana allows rather than holding them.
Lifelink and Spirit Link stack: with both on the flyer, every hit gains twice the damage it deals, which keeps us out of range of a wide attack finished by Rite of Consumption. Save Journey to Nowhere for a Carrion Feeder or Mortician Beetle that has grown too big for our blockers rather than the first one-drop, since any free outlet lets them sacrifice the target in response.
