Chainer vs Varina vs Klothys vs Tymna/Tana [EDH/Commander, Magic The Gathering Gameplay] 2021

Deck Strategies

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  Chainer, Nightmare Adept

  A reanimator deck that focuses on casting powerful creatures from the graveyard using Chainer's ability, supported by interaction and removal to control the mid-game and assemble game-winning combos.

• 

  Klothys, God of Destiny

  A group slug deck designed to punish opponents by dealing damage whenever they perform common game actions, leveraging graveyard exile and life drain effects to control the board and chip away at opponents’ life totals.

• 

  Tymna the Weaver & Tana the Bloodsower

  A Bloodpod archetype that aims to go wide with token generation and elves, drawing numerous cards through combat damage with Tymna, and winning by locking opponents down with creatures like Sire of Insanity.

• 

  Varina, Lich Queen

  A zombie tribal deck focused on drawing and discarding cards via combat damage, aiming to assemble a combo involving Gravecrawler and Frixion Altar to generate infinite value or win outright.

Gameplay Insights

• 1

  Blocking Chainer's reanimation of Razaketh with Fierce Guardianship delayed a key combo, showcasing the importance of timely counterspells in disrupting reanimator decks.

• 2

  Ankh of Mishra and Citadel of Pain forced players to carefully manage their mana usage to avoid self-inflicted damage, adding a layer of resource tension throughout the game.

• 3

  Tymna’s card draw on damage and Tana’s token production allowed Calvin to build a threatening board state quickly, emphasizing the synergy between card advantage and board presence.

• 4

  Varina’s use of Lightning Greaves to protect key creatures enabled aggressive attacks that fueled card draw and discard, highlighting the value of equipment in tribal synergy decks.

• 5

  Klothys’s group slug strategy steadily pressured opponents by triggering damage from their own actions, which helped keep the game tempo in check and disrupted opponents’ plans.

Notable Cards

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  Fierce Guardianship

• 

  Lightning Greaves

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  Ankh of Mishra

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  Citadel of Pain

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  Razaketh, the Foulblooded

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  Sire of Insanity

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  Gravecrawler

Summary

The game began with each player developing their board and mana bases while preparing to execute their deck strategies. Calvin, playing the Tymna the Weaver and Tana the Bloodsower partner pairing, focused on ramping with mana dorks like Fintorn Elves and Gaia's Cradle and aimed to draw cards through combat damage to set up a wide board presence. The Varina, Lich Queen player prioritized drawing cards by attacking with zombies and sought to assemble a Gravecrawler and Frixion Altar combo for a reanimation-based win. Chainer, Nightmare Adept's player adopted a reanimator approach, casting powerful creatures from the graveyard to maintain board control and pressure. Meanwhile, Klothys, God of Destiny applied a group slug style, punishing opponents with damage whenever they performed actions like drawing cards or playing lands, leveraging cards like Ankh of Mishra and Citadel of Pain to drain life and control the pace of the game. Early pivotal moments included the disruption of Chainer's reanimation attempt using Fierce Guardianship to counter Razaketh, which slowed down his combo plan. Foley's Klothys deck steadily inflicted damage with punishing triggers tied to opponents’ actions, while Calvin's Bloodpod deck grew a large elf army and used card draw advantage from Tymna to maintain pressure. The Varina player used Lightning Greaves and aggressive combat to draw and discard cards, fueling their graveyard strategy. The game saw several interactions where Ankh of Mishra and Citadel of Pain forced players to carefully manage their mana to avoid damage. Throughout, the players jockeyed for position with incremental damage and board presence until the eventual win condition was reached, likely revolving around either a combo kill from Varina’s graveyard engine or a lock established by Bloodpod’s wide board and disruption.