Deck Strategies
Brallin & Shabraz
Aggressive treasure generation and tempo advantage by producing multiple treasures with Dockside Extortionist and leveraging artifact synergies to disrupt opponents and steal their commanders.
Korvold, Fae-Cursed King
A treasure storm combo deck that sacrifices artifacts and creatures, including treasures, to draw cards and generate value, aiming to combo off quickly using recursive sacrifice outlets and powerful tutors.
Niv-Mizzet, Parun
A control combo deck using counterspells and card draw to stall the game while assembling combos involving Niv-Mizzet’s damage-dealing triggered abilities, relying on tutors and disruptive spells.
Jhoira, Weatherlight Captain
A staxy/storm build that uses artifact ramp and disruption to tax opponents heavily with enchantments like Rhystic Study and Mystic Remora, aiming to assemble storm combos to win.
ElderDrunkenHighlander’s Jaws V (Brallin & Shabraz)
Fast treasure production with Dockside Extortionist and artifact synergies to gain tempo and steal key permanents, aiming to overwhelm opponents before they stabilize.
Gameplay Insights
- 1
Baal’s early use of Torpor Orb shut down multiple Dockside Extortionist strategies, significantly slowing down treasure-based combos.
- 2
The heavy presence of taxing enchantments forced players to carefully decide when to pay or deny mana, influencing interaction timing and resource management.
- 3
The narrator’s patient use of Teferi, Master of Time to loot and cycle cards enabled efficient value accumulation and careful setup of a complex combo.
- 4
Braden’s tutoring for Abrupt Decay highlighted the importance of removing Torpor Orb to enable treasure sacrifice synergies from Korvold.
- 5
The narrator’s sequence involving Intuition to find LED, Silence, and Sevinne’s Reclamation, followed by Underworld Breach recursion, demonstrated high-level combo assembly under pressure.
- 6
Counterspell battles including Force of Will and Misdirection added layers of tension, with the narrator successfully navigating through them to resolve key spells.
- 7
Despite multiple layers of disruption, the combination of wheel effects and recursion enabled the narrator to find and execute Brainfreeze, clinching the victory.
Notable Cards
Dockside Extortionist
Torpor Orb
Smothering Tithe
Rhystic Study
Mystic Remora
Teferi, Master of Time
Underworld Breach
Abrupt Decay
Mana Drain
Intuition
Frantic Search
Summary
The game started relatively slow with cautious mana development and minimal early aggression. Baal established early board control by casting Torpor Orb, effectively shutting down Braden's and the narrator's Dockside Extortionist strategies. The presence of multiple taxing effects like Smothering Tithe, Rhystic Study, and Mystic Remora made resource management crucial, as players debated when to pay or withhold mana. The narrator leveraged Teferi, Master of Time to loot and control card flow, gradually building up value while avoiding early confrontations due to the heavy counterspell presence. As the game progressed, Braden prepared to break through the Torpor Orb lock by tutoring for Abrupt Decay to remove it, while David used Dig Through Time and Mystic Remora to dig for answers and maintain control. The narrator executed a complex sequence combining Intuition, Frantic Search, and Underworld Breach with Sevinne's Reclamation to reload the graveyard and set up a powerful wheel effect. Despite strong opposition—such as Force of Will, Misdirection, and Abrupt Decay—the narrator managed to navigate through counterspells and disruption, eventually generating enough mana and card advantage to find the critical pieces for a winning combo, culminating in a game-winning Brainfreeze play after a wheel effect resolved.