Discard Deck

Okay, a few tips...

1.) 60 cards. No more, no less. I used to fall into the trap of making 65, 70, and 75 card decks because I kept finding cool cards I thought worked with my theme. Now, those cards might be awesome, but the more cards in your deck, the smaller the chance you'll get the one you need.

2.) Balance. A good deck structure when starting out is the 20/20/20 design. This means you have 20 creatures, 20 lands, and 20 spells and enchantments. 8 creatures won't last very long, and once you lose them, you'll find yourself completely overwhelmed in a few turns.

3.) Effectiveness. The purpose of a discard deck is to limit your opponent's options by denying him/her the cards he/she needs. Now, technically, you CAN win the game by depleting you're opponent's library, however, this is a lot harder than you'd think. Also, if you force an opponent to discard a whole hand or something close to it, they can still play instants before the effect takes place. Here's an example...

Player A plays a spell that forces Player B to discard 5 cards. Player B has 6 cards in hand, and 4 of those cards happen to be instants. Player B decides to play all 4 instants in response to Player A's spell. Player B is now left with 2 cards. Player B still has to discard 5 cards, but since his/her hand size is now 2, he/she only has to discard those 2 cards.

Discard decks are only strong if they are complemented by creatures and spells that can take advantage of an opponent's lack of cards. Try to find creatures that have abilities similar to the spells you've chosen so you can force your opponent to discard his/her hand and then strike at him/her while he/she is defenseless.

3.) Adaptability. Never build a deck to battle another type of deck. Against a deck with lots of big mana creatures or spells, a discard deck can disrupt an opponent's flow enough to cause a problem. Against a fast attack deck of Elves or Goblins, however, and you'll find yourself hard pressed to keep the table clear of your opponent's creatures. Try to create a deck that's balanced enough to deal with anything an opponent could throw at you.

...and there you go. Some simple suggestions for how to create a balanced deck that can adapt to any situation. I'd recommend picking up a few Guiltfeeders and maybe a couple Glimpse the Unthinkables (1 Blue, 1 Black, Sorcery: Target player puts the top ten cards of his or her library into his or her graveyard.). That combination works great, especially if you can clear out an opponent's creatures for a turn. Best of luck and let me know when the deck is revised! :)

Actually Foxhound, the deck structure is either 24/24/12 or 24/12/24 as Lands/Creatures/Non-Creatures.
As well, the chances that Player B in your example has the ability to drop 4 instants in a turn is very small assuming they are playing a normal deck. If they are running blue, they just counter, otherwise, they probably have burn. You should probably realize that this deck functions very well, but has a few card choice issues. Mainly I suggest that Cephalid Broker and Looter be exchanged for better slot cards.

I highly suggest some of the other specters. Evacuation would be devastating in combo with Megrim and Warped Devotion. I am excited to see another one of these decks running off with a unique twist, and hope my comments help you out, DickChuckJack.

Please check out my I EAT YOUR DAYS deck and comment.

Also! I almost forgot: Add some Bottomless pits, and I agree with Foxhound in that you should cut the deck down to 60. Keep your decks trim, and they get better by the chances of drawing the key cards for combos.

Any suggestions on which 6 cards I should take out to trim it down to 60? Also, if you were to add some of the other cards you are suggesting, what additional cards would you remove?